Radio_Hong_Kong_1961-1962 — Page 37

125. On 31st March, 1962 the staff numbered seventy-seven, thirty- five being members of the programme sections and the remainder being engaged in executive, clerical and miscellaneous duties. Thirty-six technical staff from Messrs. Cable and Wireless Ltd. were employed on broadcasting operations.

LICENCES

126. The number of radio licences in force continued to show an increase and at the end of the year totalled 135,675 which is 10,356 more than the previous year's figure. This increase of approximately 8% was about half that recorded during the 1960-61 period. The annual licence fee for a receiving set remained unchanged at $20.

ACCOMMODATION

127. Accommodation problems have continued to beset the depart- ment and considerable difficulty was experienced in finding space for the few new members of the staff. The position has been reached where it is physically impossible to provide further accommodation for staff and contributors, but it is hoped that during the summer of 1962 the transfer of a number of senior officers to temporary accommodation in the former Wellington Barracks will allow the redistribution of space in Mercury House, a development which will be welcomed by all.

AUDIENCE RESEARCH

128. Considerable progress was made in the field of Audience Research during the year, particularly in the Chinese service. As a result of the Listener Competitions held in March 1961 Radio Hong Kong had the names and addresses of a number of contacts who listen regularly to Radio Hong Kong's services and the conclusions from the competition itself were of great importance in helping Radio Hong Kong to assess the popularity or otherwise of various programmes. As a follow up to the Chinese Listener Competition some 450 letters were circulated to a selected cross section of the competition entrants inviting them to serve on a listener panel, either currently or in the future, and some 270 agreed to do so. Monthly questionnaires were sent to the panel members asking them for their opinions on the quality and timings of many different sorts of programmes, as well as posing a number of questions designed to assemble further information about general listening habits. In addition to the questionnaire panel members received a monthly newsletter containing items of interest about Radio

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