There are further signs 97.3FM's decision to ditch Robin Bailey could have spectacularly backfired after a large chunk of its audience appeared to have followed the star presenter to rival Triple M.
ARN's bosses in Brisbane would be feeling the heat on Tuesday morning after the tumultuous first radio ratings survey of the year showed the station shedding two percentage points from its top position at the end of 2016. It now sits in fourth spot.
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At the same time, Triple M, which welcomed Bailey with open arms after she was let go by her long-time employer, enjoyed a massive three-point surge to be just 0.1 points off the top spot.
The results left Austereo's two Brisbane stations (HIT 105 and Triple M) in first and third spot after going without a single ratings win for 2016.
![Robin Bailey has breathed life into Triple M's breakfast ratings.](/web/20170314173419im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/5/p/n/q/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.guxe6y.png/1489446018184.jpg)
The first survey of the year was always going to be interesting after the most significant changes to station lineups in some time.
But the ratings upheaval was even more dramatic than the presenter changes over summer.
HIT 105 leapt from fifth spot in the previous period to a tie for first with the consistently dominant ABC Radio Brisbane.
ABC's audience share remained perfectly flat despite the departure of long-term radio king Spencer Howson, who was replaced by Craig Zonca.
Congratus @zonca! Your first #1 (of many, I'm sure)! @hit105Brisbane too :) So much to take in. @TripleMBrisbane did well to grab Bailey. pic.twitter.com/RoKbdO8Z0v
— Spencer Howson (@SpencerHowson) March 13, 2017
Nova 106.9 shed 1.5 points to slip from second in the previous survey down to fifth as 4KQ (-2.6) also ditched major audience share.
HIT 105 also took out the Drive segment, followed closely by Nova, with 97.3 in a distant tie for third with Triple J.