As we begin the New Year, we spoke to industry leaders to reflect on the shifts that shaped 2025 and the forces expected to define 2026. For Manoj Mathan, CEO, radiomango, the year ahead signals a shift in how radio is valued — from being a pure broadcast medium to becoming a platform that builds cultural relevance and community belonging.
In 2025, radio reaffirmed its core strengths. FM continued to deliver consistent reach, deep trust, and strong local resonance even as digital audio and video platforms expanded rapidly. Regional programming, city-focused content, and on-ground activations helped radio retain its unique advantage — proximity. For advertisers, radio remained a dependable medium for frequency, credibility, and regional impact, particularly outside the metros.
Looking towards 2026, Manoj sees growth emerging from radio’s ability to own and monetise culture at a hyperlocal level rather than relying solely on traditional advertising inventory.
“Hyperlocal IPs will become the real growth engine - In 2026, growth will come from ownable hyperlocal IPs like music festivals, food trails, sports leagues, comedy formats, and cultural experiences rooted in city identity. For Radio Mango, this means monetising Kerala culture through scalable IPs rather than relying only on ad inventory. Brands will partner long-term with these IPs, seeing radio stations as cultural curators, not just media sellers.”
Alongside cultural ownership, technology will increasingly shape radio operations, but Manoj believes its role must remain supportive rather than dominant. As AI becomes more deeply integrated into workflows, radio’s human connection will only grow in importance.
“AI will become deeply embedded in radio workflows like in music programming , show planning, ad production, personalisation, and analytics. However, the RJ’s human emotion, humour, and local context will remain irreplaceable. Stations that use AI to amplify creativity (Not replace it) will win. We believe that the Radio Mango-style warmth, spontaneity, and awareness of cultural nuances becomes even more valuable in an AI-saturated media environment.”
The relationship between radio and younger audiences is also set to evolve. Manoj sees radio brands expanding their presence across platforms to build communities that extend beyond listening into shared identity and participation.
“Radio brands will attempt to become multi-platform youth communities. In 2026, successful radio brands will continue to focus on youth communities across FM, Instagram, YouTube, podcasts, live events, and physical hangout spaces. Radio Mango’s focus will shift from ‘asking’ a listener ‘What you listen to’ to ‘Where you belong.’ Community building will lead to more monetization opportunities.”
(As told to Pritha Pahari)
