Title: Australian Television Ratings
_MetalliX_ - August 6, 2006 03:17 PM (GMT)
I usually check out the television ratings from time to time, just to see what Australia likes to see, and lately they really have surprised me. Border Security was the last show I expected to top the charts, I can't understand how it dwarfs its competitors in the ratings.
In other news, Yasmin is no longer getting married, the show was axed after just a week, viewers went from 800,000 at the start of the show, to 510,000 by the end. A pitiful turn-out for a primetime slot - but something good does come from its cancellation, Futurama will now be filling the void made by the cancellation.
David Tench Tonight will air for the first time this week, the computer generated cliched talk-show host looks like an interesting concept, it will be interesting to see how it pans out.
...finally yes, Bert Newton's Family Fued is still on the air.
Ratings as of 7/8/06
1 BORDER SECURITY - AUSTRALIA'S FRONT LINE 7 2,133 572 597 383 246 336
2 MEDICAL EMERGENCY 7 1,728 429 516 320 218 246
3 NATIONAL NINE NEWS SUNDAY 9 1,727 487 550 283 217 190
4 CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION 9 1,700 494 535 305 196 171
5 60 MINUTES 9 1,650 445 543 315 162 185
6 DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES 7 1,631 508 489 246 187 201
7 SEVEN NEWS - SUN 7 1,504 384 418 319 162 220
8 IT TAKES TWO 7 1,479 444 428 271 172 165
9 BIG BROTHER DOUBLE LIVE EVICTION TEN 1,479 487 382 278 179 152
10 ALL SAINTS 7 1,470 437 470 228 172 163
11 SEVEN NEWS 7 1,464 391 413 268 159 234
12 LOST 7 1,453 470 430 245 140 168
13 COLD CASE 9 1,437 385 502 252 124 174
14 TODAY TONIGHT 7 1,423 388 401 268 152 214
15 20 TO 1 -RPT 9 1,411 364 516 230 147 155
16 TORVILL AND DEAN'S DANCING ON ICE 9 1,402 431 408 283 155 125
17 CSI: MIAMI 9 1,392 418 440 236 156 141
18 GETAWAY 9 1,392 425 404 247 148 169
19 GREY'S ANATOMY 7 1,390 417 400 251 155 167
20 NATIONAL NINE NEWS 9 1,355 380 421 294 149 112
BrotherEstapol - August 6, 2006 10:17 PM (GMT)
24 isn't there?
Hmm, perhaps that's why they pumped the episodes out so fast...didn't give themselves a chance to move its timeslot around. :P
As for Futurama getting the 7pm slot, well that's excelent news! :D
borgster101 - August 6, 2006 11:28 PM (GMT)
Damn that is a poor list :( , kind of like the Top 10 selling games in Australia, oh well.
| QUOTE (_MetalliX_ @ Aug 7 2006, 01:17 AM) |
| In other news, Yasmin is no longer getting married, the show was axed after just a week, viewers went from 800,000 at the start of the show, to 510,000 by the end. A pitiful turn-out for a primetime slot - but something good does come from its cancellation, Futurama will now be filling the void made by the cancellation. |
Whoa, that went fast! :lol: I could have sworn it was Renee is getting married at first?, what the?
Good news on Futurama filling in though, f*ck yeah :D, though its on Foxtel anyway.
_MetalliX_ - August 7, 2006 11:11 AM (GMT)
Renae found off-air love shortly before production began, so things had to be reshuffled. Doesn't matter either way though...
Fry is his own Grandfather?!?! OMG!! Lol, I already knew, but still better than seeing some desperate chick trying to get hitched on television.
Australian Idol was on tonight, and this is my favourite part of the series, bagging out crap singers is always entertaining. Top Gear wasn't all that entertaining, but it was mostly my fault considering I had already seen all the highlights on the internet. Funny about his Ford GT though...
Squato - August 7, 2006 04:14 PM (GMT)
To help answer some questions about why this is the case, The Sydney Morning Herald's liftout The Guide talked about it.
| QUOTE |
Customs officials are Seven's unlikely stars
Michael Idato
August 7, 2006
An audience of 2.26 million last week watched Seven's fly-on-the-wall factual series Border Security, a silent witness to the world of customs, immigration and quarantine. It is an unqualified hit. How much of its success is owed to a culture of fear precipitated by the threat of global terrorism, the spectre of war in the Middle East and the refugee issue in Australia is a question less readily answered.
"I don't think we sell fear here. I think we sell reassurance," the show's executive producer, Dan Meenan, says. "Border Security gives reassurance, in some very troubling times, that people are competent and doing their jobs and protecting us."
With airports, seaports and almost 60,000 kilometres of coastline, Australia's border to the world seems at once small and vast. The "children overboard" affair of October 2001, in which the Federal Government claimed "a number of children had been thrown overboard" from a boat carrying asylum seekers, won Prime Minister John Howard an election and in some ways created a sensitivity about border security that has, long after the story itself was debunked, failed to dissipate.
Border Security, narrated by actor Grant Bowler, is immersed in the inner workings of the Immigration Department and the Customs and Quarantine services. Their officers, the nation's front line of defence, are the stars of the show.
The supporting players - at least when the action gets intense - are drug runners, illegal immigrants and potential terrorists. They're also holidaymakers whose pears and pets might be carrying bugs or diseases, or who have arrived with bad paperwork.
The series is filmed in airports, seaports and mailing centres. The cameras capture a mixture of stories - amusing moments, as well as the planning and implementation of large operations such as drug and weapons busts.
The result, in audience and revenue terms for Seven, and in terms of positive public relations for the government bodies involved, has been nothing short of stunning. The ratings have exceeded even the dizzying records set by Dancing with the Stars, which preceded it in the Tuesday, 7.30pm slot.
Border Security was in development for more than two years before its premiere in 2004, delayed largely by layers of red tape the producers needed to cut through to get permission to film in sensitive areas. It involved long presentations to senior government bureaucrats.
"On the surface, it sounds very easy, but when you start scratching the surface with privacy issues, legal issues and the lawyers get involved, then everything comes to a screeching halt for months," Meenan says. "Luckily, we were given permission to shoot on the condition that the agreements would be made, and we were able to make up time that way. A story you see on Border Security, for example, might be a year in the making. We are already shooting for 2007."
Immigration, Customs and Quarantine immediately recognised the public relations value in the series. Indeed, Immigration is already on the record saying its recruitment rate is up, with many applicants citing Border Security as the trigger for their interest. "Most of the news you get from Quarantine, Customs or Immigration - on the news or in current affairs shows - is not really all that good," Meenan says. "When they're doing their job no one is saying, 'Hey, they're doing their job.' So they understood this was a situation where we were going in there and showing the audience that they were doing their jobs."
However, the staff were initially sceptical about bringing cameras into those sensitive areas: airport customs halls, interview rooms and quarantine facilities.
"When they first arrived we had very little idea of what they were trying to capture with the show," says Peter Davis, who was an airport duty manager during the shooting of the first series and now works for Immigration as a client service manager.
With hindsight, he says: "We were very pleasantly surprised about the range of issues they covered and the positive response we had from the community as a result."
Meenan admits the first production phase of the series was difficult. "It was very uncomfortable in a lot of cases because they didn't have any idea of how we were going to use the footage," he says. "Once it went on the air, officers who were on the fence over whether they wanted to join the show put their hand up."
A bigger challenge was convincing civilians such as passengers and tourists to play ball. American programs such as COPS are notable for the way they capture people in deeply embarrassing situations. Australians, however, have never displayed such ease with the spotlight.
"In the past, it was pretty much a black and white issue - Australians didn't like being filmed and Americans did," Meenan says. "You could throw a camera out of a 10-storey building in America and have a perfect take before it hit the ground. But here, people would shy away."
Lately, Meenan says, there has been a cultural shift. "I don't think it's becoming more American but I think we're becoming more comfortable with cameras. People are far more sophisticated now when they see a camera than they were 10 or 11 years ago and if they don't want to deal with things, they turn around and walk away."
Border Security - Australia's Front Line screens on Seven on Tuesdays at 7.30pm.
A brief history of factual TV
Beyond Tomorrow (1981-1999; 2005-present)
In its third outing - the first was Towards 2000 on the ABC, the second was Beyond 2000 on Seven until 1993 and Ten between 1994 and 1999. This has always been a sharp, illuminating series. Seven launched the third incarnation last year.
Sex (1992-93)
Sophie Lee turned factual to frisky when Nine took an up-close and personal look at the social, medical and psychological aspects of our sex lives. No holes were barred and this excellent series was alternately praised and criticised for its frank imagery.
RPA (1995-present)
The doyen of Australian factual TV, this outstanding series takes an intimate look at the complex work of doctors at Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. It has been a mainstay in the Nine schedule for more than a decade. A new season begins later this year.
Sex/Life (1996-98)
Ten's stepchild of Sex replaced Sophie Lee with Tottie Goldsmith and, later, Alyssa-Jane Cook. It was younger, naughtier and - if possible - nuder. The communications minister of the day, Richard Alston, called it an "electronic Sodom and Gomorrah".
Good Medicine (1997-2002)
Jennifer Keyte and Simon Reeve led a team of reporters covering "health care, patient rights, medical breakthroughs and cutting-edge technology" for this informative but, ultimately, run-of-the-mill infotainment show for Nine.
Medical Emergency (2004-present)
No bones about it, this is Seven's clone of Nine's RPA. It is filmed in the trauma unit of Melbourne's Alfred Hospital and narrated by Georgie Parker and, more recently, Christopher Gabardi.
Forensic Investigators (2004-present)
Lisa McCune presents compelling, clinical examinations of the casework that solved some of Australia's most infamous murder cases in this outstanding Seven take on the forensic drama genre.
Suspicious Minds (2006-present)
Seven copied RPA, so Nine copied Forensic Investigators. There aren't many new ideas in TV and this series plays the line straight - an informative, tightly structured and, as with all copies, slightly faded duplicate of the original.
The Force (2006)
Seven's new factual series, filmed in Western Australia with an "unprecedented level of access" to the state police, promises a fly-on-the-wall take on city, suburban and outback policing. It premieres next week. |
Link.Still, I will tell you that my father will religiously watch this each week, in part as he works at Sydney Airport. Whats more, I myyself have taken a look at the show. It isn't that bad, and does let you see a part of Australia that most people really don't think about all that much (even if you hate the idea that it looks "too American" in the resentation style).
quartz_donkey - August 8, 2006 09:03 AM (GMT)
On that list a watch CSI every now and then, the rest never. I thought Yasmin's getting Married would go on forever 'casue I hated the idea of it and that normally means it will go on forever. For example Big Brother, Australian Idol and so on.
borgster101 - August 8, 2006 10:14 AM (GMT)
| QUOTE (_MetalliX_ @ Aug 7 2006, 09:11 PM) |
| Fry is his own Grandfather?!?! OMG!! Lol, I already knew, but still better than seeing some desperate chick trying to get hitched on television. |
Man, I love that episode was great to see it again, so clever and funny :lol:
Tonights episode was another classic as well,
Executor: "Santa's getting away, get him Jesus"
Zoidberg (dressed as Jesus): "I only help people that help themselves" :lol:
Beast - August 9, 2006 09:38 AM (GMT)
What a load of crap:
""I don't think we sell fear here. I think we sell reassurance," the show's executive producer, Dan Meenan, says. "Border Security gives reassurance, in some very troubling times, that people are competent and doing their jobs and protecting us."
Of course they're selling fear - the fear that bad people from other countries are trying to come here and do bad things. There was an interesting thing in the Australian the other day about the ambulance show on sbs - which follows the night of ambulance workers and gets like 0 ratings and the reviewer thought that the only reason border security got better ratings was because of the channel it was on. ie. if the ambo show was on channel 7 (or whatever) and border security was on sbs then they'd have the opposite ratings.
Anyway those ratings are woeful - there isn't one good program in the top 20 @______@
_MetalliX_ - August 9, 2006 10:47 AM (GMT)
Lost and Desperate Housewives are the only 2 which belong in the top 20. For the record, Desperate Housewives rocks in my book, mostly because of Eva Longoria... :P
NismoR34 - August 9, 2006 04:26 PM (GMT)
^ Agreed although it's finished with for now. Entertainment Tonight was on in the background a few nights ago when I was doing the forum run and she was on it, she had coloured her hair slightly and needless to say I was hooked until she went off screen. She's tops.
I must say though, I am surprised that LOST isn't higher on the list of ratings.
Resident-Seven - August 9, 2006 04:57 PM (GMT)
| QUOTE (_MetalliX_ @ Aug 7 2006, 01:17 AM) |
| ...finally yes, Bert Newton's Family Fued is still on the air. |
Until that timeslot sees yet another show next year.
Lost & Desperate Housewives are the only shows I watch from that list too. I assume you guys know Eva is in that new movie "The Sentinel".
I think lLost is so far down the list because most people just d/l it. If it were aired in Australia first, I'm sure it'd be right near the top.
Random Hero - August 10, 2006 04:27 AM (GMT)
border security? the one with grant bowler? bah that show is lame, they always make out that the guy is a big dealer and then nothing happens. He should go back and host the mole again
_MetalliX_ - August 10, 2006 05:05 AM (GMT)
Shows like Lost, Prison Break, Alias, 24, etc. will never dominate the charts for too long, for the simple fact you can't just flick to the show and continue watching like a sitcom. If you miss an episode or two, you will quickly lose interest as the storyline leaves you behind. Channel 7 have made an attempt to maintain interest in these types of shows, I think the pilot for Lost was repeated 3 times, likewise with Prison Break, and not long ago 24 was played every night until they had aired the entire series.
They really should air each episode twice per week, in differing timeslots. They actually did this for Lost during the holidays, where instead of the midday movies, they aired Lost episodes.
/backslash - August 10, 2006 11:20 AM (GMT)
Goes to show what kind of crap is on TV at the moment. I cannot find one program in that top 20 list worth watching. Why don't they bring back Duckman? :(
Black Books was something I looked forward to each Friday on ABC but now they've taken that off too. And ever since I moved to Perth they got rid of Seinfeld repeats! I haven't seen any episodes besides the ones I had on DVD (seasons 1-3). If it weren't for Cricket and AFL I probably wouldn't even turn on the TV
g1ggy - August 10, 2006 10:28 PM (GMT)
I'm surprised the News made it to #3
and seven news to #7....the new Flashback segment is possibly the worst concept ever..how is it news?
Resident-Seven - August 10, 2006 11:15 PM (GMT)
What exactly are all those numbers anyway? I gather the first 7 are the number of viewers, but the other 12?
Also, where did you come across them, have you got a link?
Squato - August 11, 2006 04:39 PM (GMT)
| QUOTE (g1ggy @ Aug 11 2006, 08:28 AM) |
I'm surprised the News made it to #3
and seven news to #7....the new Flashback segment is possibly the worst concept ever..how is it news? |
Why shouldn't it?
News has always been something that rates in Australian television. It's something that people will always want to know about (even if it has a crappy look).
_MetalliX_ - August 12, 2006 05:14 AM (GMT)
| QUOTE (Resident-Seven @ Aug 11 2006, 09:15 AM) |
What exactly are all those numbers anyway? I gather the first 7 are the number of viewers, but the other 12?
Also, where did you come across them, have you got a link? |
It goes:
Rank - Description - Channel - 5 Cities Total (000's) - Syd (000's) - Melb (000's) - Bris (000's) - Adel (000's) - Perth (000's).
The site is
OzTam. Then you go: Viewing Reports > 2006 > This weeks data is found at Viewing Reports. > Top 20 Program Ranking – Free to Air Viewing – All People.
Latest Rankings 1 BORDER SECURITY - AUSTRALIA'S FRONT LINE 7 2,226 624 597 437 250 319
2 BIG BROTHER - THE WINNER ANNOUNCED TEN 1,879 546 554 345 217 218
3 CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION 9 1,844 539 614 308 206 177
4 MEDICAL EMERGENCY 7 1,784 539 481 347 197 219
5 BIG BROTHER - THE FINAL EVICTION TEN 1,735 497 486 317 214 221
6 LOST 7 1,638 476 536 276 169 181
7 NATIONAL NINE NEWS SUNDAY 9 1,589 510 484 232 210 152
8 GETAWAY 9 1,573 438 542 261 158 173
9 60 MINUTES 9 1,546 454 467 283 166 176
10 BIG BROTHER DOUBLE LIVE EVICTION TEN 1,540 423 421 304 217 175
11 SEVEN NEWS - SUN 7 1,525 355 502 280 150 239
12 SEVEN NEWS 7 1,503 411 431 280 166 215
13 MY NAME IS EARL 7 1,491 432 457 288 141 173
14 BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS 7 1,481 479 484 244 129 145
15 TODAY TONIGHT 7 1,477 413 421 262 163 218
16 NINE'S FRIDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL 9 1,473 441 392 198 143 300
17 IT TAKES TWO 7 1,454 444 446 233 151 180
18 CSI: MIAMI 9 1,422 452 449 233 156 132
19 DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES 7 1,422 440 429 199 173 180
20 HOME AND AWAY 7 1,405 408 423 274 135 166
g1ggy - August 12, 2006 06:45 AM (GMT)
| QUOTE (Squato @ Aug 12 2006, 02:39 AM) |
| QUOTE (g1ggy @ Aug 11 2006, 08:28 AM) | I'm surprised the News made it to #3
and seven news to #7....the new Flashback segment is possibly the worst concept ever..how is it news? |
Why shouldn't it?
News has always been something that rates in Australian television. It's something that people will always want to know about (even if it has a crappy look).
|
yes, but 7 & 9 don't even tell new stuff anymore
i only watch ABC news
Resident-Seven - August 12, 2006 11:17 AM (GMT)
Ah right. Thanks for the link too.
Squato - August 13, 2006 03:56 PM (GMT)
| QUOTE (g1ggy @ Aug 12 2006, 04:45 PM) |
| QUOTE (Squato @ Aug 12 2006, 02:39 AM) | | QUOTE (g1ggy @ Aug 11 2006, 08:28 AM) | I'm surprised the News made it to #3
and seven news to #7....the new Flashback segment is possibly the worst concept ever..how is it news? |
Why shouldn't it?
News has always been something that rates in Australian television. It's something that people will always want to know about (even if it has a crappy look).
|
yes, but 7 & 9 don't even tell new stuff anymore
i only watch ABC news
|
Reporting standards, you are right that Aunty and SBS are better.
For reasons, far from it.
For many years people have always turned to None for their news as well as the shows (hence they where "The One"). Now there are a few reasons for that, one is that people wanted to watch Nine news, they grew up on it, or they didn't want to change after watching the show beforehand. Now over the years Nine has lead, with Seven not too far behind, until something happens and people stop watching Seven for Nine as they are seen a the more up to date with info (the fact they have 60 Minutes helped).
Now a few years ago it was noticed that Seven was starting to not just rate as well...but othertake Nine. Now it was debated until someone noticed that the lead in show at 5:30pm has good ratings that sit and watch the news thats on. So Nine figured they would be back if they had a good show on at 5:30pm...they failed.
Now Nine hasn't given up with it, as it is big money to have the best news service on the air. As that is the reason that more people will tune in to watch them then anything, which translates into people becoming interested with whats on the network (if good).
g1ggy - August 14, 2006 06:31 AM (GMT)
As usual, Squato's long, boring articles WIN...just joking, I now understand that the general public has issues :D
/backslash - August 14, 2006 06:42 AM (GMT)
*looks at latest ratings*
What? No Cybershak?! :P
Resident-Seven - August 14, 2006 09:42 AM (GMT)
How exaclty do they get the ratings anyway? I heard that it is measured from 3,000 oztam box things, which is a pretty poor way of getting accurate numbers.
borgster101 - August 14, 2006 10:34 AM (GMT)
| QUOTE (Resident-Seven @ Aug 14 2006, 07:42 PM) |
| How exaclty do they get the ratings anyway? I heard that it is measured from 3,000 oztam box things, which is a pretty poor way of getting accurate numbers. |
Something like that, it's based on a sample, homes that have those boxes, I cant say I know anyone that has one <_<
_MetalliX_ - August 14, 2006 10:47 AM (GMT)
They install the boxes in homes which they consider to represent a key demographic. From there all television viewing is automatically recorded and sent back. But likewise, I don't have one of these boxes, and I don't know anyone who has one.
http://www.oztam.com.au/pdf/tv_ratings/ratingsprocess.pdfAustralian Idol auditions wrapped up this evening, perhaps the most entertaining stage of the program. From here on in it's pretty generetic reality television with tears, tantrums and other 'emotional' stuff. On they bright side they did seem to have talent - in particular the last 2 auditions before the show ended,
Resident-Seven - August 14, 2006 02:34 PM (GMT)
I've seen people write in "Seven Days" about turning their oztam box because of shows running late and what ever. Basically just having a bitch.
I don't know anyone with a box, but then why would I? I live in the middle of nowhere.
You'd think that they would continuously increase the number of boxes to get more accurate results. I mean, 3000 in relation to how many tvs? Millions. There are 4 in my house alone.
Apparently Family Fued isn't doing as bad as I thought (as bad as it was when it started), it's now only about 200,000-300,000 behind.
NismoR34 - August 17, 2006 04:50 PM (GMT)
I don't understand the process of obtaining ratings that well so if this idea sucks then don't shoot me.
Couldn't all TVs be installed with these boxes (or something similar) and that way the data recorded could be more accurate? Meaning that the numbers they get from the ratings would be a better representation of who watches what because it is recording everybody's viewing habits rather than just the people who own these boxes.
Squato - August 17, 2006 06:12 PM (GMT)
No, that would never happen. For one you need to get the TV makers to add them into their products. Then you need to work out how you can collect/store/and process this massive amount of data.
Now if that isn't the fun part, you would need to get it past any number of privacy laws that are in place.
Now if they can get around all that (and much more), then maybe they will do it that way.
So for now they take a small sample that meets just what the "normal oerson" should look like. With that they then workout just what looks to work from that group, then take that as the norm.
Resident-Seven - August 17, 2006 09:18 PM (GMT)
What "massive amount of data"? All it would need to do is send a signal of what channel you are on every 5-10 minutes. This is what they do with cabel tv in America as far as I know, and everyone that has it is counted. Hence a rating point of 1.9, means 1.9% of people that can watch it, are watching. At least that's what I've been told by people that keep an eye on Stargate ratings in the US.
borgster101 - August 18, 2006 02:06 AM (GMT)
| QUOTE (NismoR34 @ Aug 18 2006, 02:50 AM) |
I don't understand the process of obtaining ratings that well so if this idea sucks then don't shoot me.
Couldn't all TVs be installed with these boxes (or something similar) and that way the data recorded could be more accurate? Meaning that the numbers they get from the ratings would be a better representation of who watches what because it is recording everybody's viewing habits rather than just the people who own these boxes. |
You'll find with these statistics its always based on a sample rather than the whole population, mainly due to the reasons Squato mentioned.
I would also add that its a lot more expensive to collect data for every household, its easier and cheaper to base the data on a sample that ideally represents the population, you'll find that with a good sample it would be able to accuratly reflect the whole population anyway.
_MetalliX_ - August 18, 2006 04:37 AM (GMT)
Did anyone catch David Tench Tonight last night? Thoughts?
I think its a dud. The whole show seems to revolve around celebrity interviews, for the premiere I think they could have brought in some people a bit more high profile than Pat Rafter and some obscure singer who no-one has heard from in years.
Where this show is going to draw ratings is in the presenters anonymity; being a fictional character, he can ask all the hard hitting questions, and the controversial remarks without suffering any ill effects in the tabloids. However this is going to be difficult as big celebrities are seldom in Australia, let alone willing to participate in an interview. Rove Live celebrity interviews only go for the fraction of the duration of American talk shows, so I very much doubt they are going to be happy sitting there talking to a blue screen for 15 minutes.
Resident-Seven - August 18, 2006 08:22 AM (GMT)
I didn't even have to watch it to know it was a dud. I doubt it'll last very long before getting the axe.
f15active - August 18, 2006 09:07 AM (GMT)
I didn't watch it myself, but a friend said that it seemed like the people interviewed had to try hard to laugh, and that the animations were quite repetitive. Picky?
Squato - August 18, 2006 05:22 PM (GMT)
| QUOTE (Resident-Seven @ Aug 18 2006, 07:18 AM) |
| What "massive amount of data"? All it would need to do is send a signal of what channel you are on every 5-10 minutes. This is what they do with cabel tv in America as far as I know, and everyone that has it is counted. Hence a rating point of 1.9, means 1.9% of people that can watch it, are watching. At least that's what I've been told by people that keep an eye on Stargate ratings in the US. |
The data points come from the fact that you would need to store the data from all those TV's that would be smeding the info to.
He is a small break-up to help.
There is more or less 9-12.5 million homes in Australia (depends which report you take it from). Australian homes own something like 2.4 TV's (about 20-30 million TV's). Now that is high as it counts the fact that people have more then one TV for whatever reason, or they have old ones that can still work. So thats alot of data to work with if you want to make your numbers have one more point.
The other issue is that the only people this data is important to is the advertiser, they are the ones that make or break a show (as thats where the cost of the show is found). Now they look for shows that meet the market they want (a product that a 16 year old will like is going to be shown on a show that gets that age group). Now if you have TV's sending back that data, it means they will need to know just who is watching and when. That in itse;f brings up a number of points that would need to be answered before it could happen (such as how to know who is where, and what to do with that info, etc).
As a note, those people with set top boxes have to enter a code that shows just who they are. That allows them to workout who is watching what at when. The reason they can get this data is because the person has ok'ed that info to be collected.
Resident-Seven - August 18, 2006 09:58 PM (GMT)
Well obviously you would need to be able to turn it off, and it wouldn't be that hard to set up profiles for the things, such as age and sex.
Like I said about them doing it in America, each rating point is equal to more than 1 million people, so they would be recording more than 100 million different streams.
Resident-Seven - September 12, 2006 05:53 AM (GMT)
Big mistake putting "The Force" on at the same time as "Thanks God You're Here". The Force was up around no.2, but after going up against TGYH, it's not even in the top 20 anymore.
_MetalliX_ - September 12, 2006 07:08 AM (GMT)
1 BORDER SECURITY - AUSTRALIA'S FRONT LINE 7 2,362 671 664 410 274 344
2 SEVEN NEWS PRESENTS STEVE IRWIN: A TRIBUTE 7 2,114 591 574 385 223 340
3 WHO KILLED DR BOGLE AND MRS CHANDLER?-EV ABC 1,782 627 510 280 193 171
4 GREY'S ANATOMY 7 1,775 491 564 305 176 239
5 NATIONAL NINE NEWS SUNDAY 9 1,768 412 592 369 200 194
6 THANK GOD YOU'RE HERE 2 TEN 1,756 412 622 276 213 233
7 60 MINUTES 9 1,707 519 515 298 165 210
8 HOUSE TEN 1,695 417 607 265 198 209
9 THE CROCODILE HUNTER - A TRIBUTE TO STEVE IRWIN 9 1,694 493 536 368 150 147
10 AUSTRALIAN IDOL - WILDCARD TEN 1,583 420 477 285 228 173
11 SEVEN NEWS 7 1,529 411 425 278 178 238
12 NATIONAL NINE NEWS 9 1,521 416 490 318 172 125
13 A CURRENT AFFAIR 9 1,500 426 489 293 165 128
14 CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION -RPT 9 1,482 425 478 270 164 145
15 ALL SAINTS 7 1,461 407 487 203 157 207
16 TODAY TONIGHT 7 1,436 411 376 255 164 230
17 NATIONAL NINE NEWS SATURDAY 9 1,409 443 475 290 156 45
18 AUSTRALIAN IDOL - THE LIVE VERDICT TEN 1,387 371 405 266 171 174
19 HOME AND AWAY 7 1,367 391 409 251 133 184
20 NCIS TEN 1,360 377 445 212 171 154
It's amazing to see an ABC show in the top 20, let alone 3rd.
Channel 7 should've kept The Force with Border Security that way viewers would carry over.
On a side note its great top see NCIS in the top 20 for once, top show!
auhsor - September 12, 2006 12:08 PM (GMT)
NCIS is a pretty decent show. It's a bit cheesy, but I quite like it.
Squato - September 12, 2006 06:12 PM (GMT)
More or less what I was thinking the week would look like.
Also great to see a great Australian Documentry up there. That should mean that Aunty will be more interested in making more.