Editing BBC Asian Network (section)

=== Sliding audiences and increasing costs ===
In July 2009 it was revealed that the Asian Network had lost over 20% of its listeners in a single year and, per listener, was the most costly and expensive BBC radio station to operate.<ref name=":0" />

In 2011, the BBC ruled there would be a 46% reduction in the Asian Network's budget and a declared target of 600,000 listeners a week; with actual audience numbers only peaking at 507,000.<ref>RadioCentre's response to the BBC Trust's service licence review of Asian Network [http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/assets/files/pdf/our_work/asian_network/radio_centre.pdf]</ref> In 2012, audience numbers fell even further; peaking at only 453,000.<ref>{{Cite web |title=RAJAR: BBC Asian Network loses 130k listeners |url=http://www.media247.co.uk/bizasia/rajar-bbc-asian-network-loses-130k-listeners |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130205081527/http://www.media247.co.uk/bizasia/rajar-bbc-asian-network-loses-130k-listeners |archive-date=2013-02-05 |access-date=2013-01-31}}</ref> Even with the budget reductions, in 2013 the Asian Network had the largest budget of the BBC's digital-only radio stations at £13m; despite having the lowest audience figures by far.<ref>[http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/annualreport/pdf/2012-13/bbc-full-financial-statements-2012-13.pdf BBC full financial statements 2012–2013]</ref>

[[RAJAR]]'s figures in 2014 showed that the Asian Network had at last briefly met the target set four years earlier, finally peaking at 619,000 listeners in Q4.<ref>{{Cite web |title=RAJAR |url=http://www.rajar.co.uk/listening/quarterly_listening.php}}</ref> However, the Asian Network was noted as being the BBC's only station – across both television and radio – whose [[Appreciation Index]] measurably fell in 2014.<ref>{{cite web |date=21 July 2014 |title=BBC Annual Report and Accounts 2013/14 |url=http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/annualreport/pdf/2013-14/bbc_annualreport_201314.pdf |publisher=BBC}}</ref>

By May 2015, the Asian Network had once again lost a substantial number of listeners, with the RAJAR reporting a peak of just 562,000 listeners – a loss of 57,000 from the previous quarter.<ref>{{cite web |date=21 May 2015 |title=Radio 4 Extra breaks record to become UK's biggest digital-only station |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2015/rajars |publisher=BBC}}</ref>

In 2016–17, the Asian Network had the second highest cost-per-user of all the BBC's radio stations, at 3.4p per hour,<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Annual Report 2016–17 |url=https://downloads.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/insidethebbc/reports/pdf/bbc-annualreport-201617.pdf}}</ref> the second highest budget of the BBC's digital-only radio stations at £7.5m<ref>{{Cite web |title=Asian Network Service Licence April 2016 |url=http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/assets/files/pdf/regulatory_framework/service_licences/radio/2016/asian_network_apr16.pdf}}</ref> and by far the lowest audience figures of all the BBC's stations.

In 2017/18, it was noted the station not only remained as having the highest cost-per-user of all the BBC radio output, but whose costs also increased – rising from 3.4p per hour the previous year to 3.7p per hour. The audience Appreciation Index figure did not increase, remaining at 80.3; and the average length of time spent on the channel dramatically fell from 06:11 to 05:19 – the biggest fall of all of the BBC's radio stations.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Annual Report 2017/18 |url=http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/insidethebbc/reports/pdf/bbc_annualreport_201718.pdf |access-date=2 January 2019}}</ref>

In 2018/19, the Asian Network's annual budget increased from £7m to £8m, but the station continued to perform poorly: population reach was down again to 1.1%, time spent on the channel per week fell again to 5:12 and an increase in cost per user per hour (up to 5p).<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Annual Report 2018/19 |url=http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/reports/annualreport/2018-19.pdf |access-date=26 November 2019}}</ref>

The station's poor performance continued into 2019/20, where it was noted time spent on the channel fell dramatically again by 20% to just 4:07, while the cost per use per hour had increased up to 6p, remaining the BBC's most expensive-per-listener station.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Group Annual Report and Accounts |url=http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/reports/annualreport/2019-20.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919050915/http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/reports/annualreport/2019-20.pdf |archive-date=19 September 2020 |access-date=7 June 2021}}</ref> Peak audience figures plunged down to 519,000 listeners, losing 13.8%.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-02-06 |title=RAJAR: BBC Asian Network loses over 80k listeners in Q4/19 |url=https://www.bizasialive.com/rajar-bbc-asian-network-loses-over-80k-listeners-in-q4-19/ |access-date=2021-06-07 |website=BizAsia {{!}} Media, Entertainment, Showbiz, Brit, Events and Music |language=en-GB}}</ref>

In 2021/22, the stations audience reach fell to just 1%<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Group Annual Report and Accounts 2021/22 |url=https://downloads.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/reports/annualreport/ara-2021-22.pdf#page=187}}</ref> – the station continues to have by far the lowest audience figures and highest cost-per-user figures of all the BBC's stations.

In 2022/23, Asian Network's audience reach remained at just 1%.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2023 |title=BBC Group Annual Report and Accounts 2022/23 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/documents/ara-2022-23.pdf |journal=BBC Group}}</ref>