CBC TV tops Global in prime-time ratings; first time in more than a decade
Citing the success of The Border, the highest ratings ever for Rick Mercer Report, and strong showings from several new series, CBC Television increased its prime-time share (7 p.m. to 11 p.m.) to 7.8 for weeks six through 32 (October 1, 2007 to April 6, 2008), surpassing Global Television for the first time since 1995.
According to BBM/MNR (BBM Nielsen Media Research), Global posted a 7.4 share for the same period for Adults 2+.
“We’re thrilled Canadians are enjoying our programs in such large numbers. We’ve built a schedule with new shows and returning favourites, and we’ve really hit our stride,” said Kirstine Layfield, executive director of network programming.
However, as someone noted in the comments post of this blog, the U.S. Writers’ Strike may have temporarily reduced Global’s numbers.
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And yet CBC has gone and cancelled many of those new shows that attracted viewers. I’m particularly thinking of shows like jPod that brought in viewers like myself, who would not normally tune it to CBC.
Too bad they canceled half of these new shows.
*sigh*
(Bring back jPod, PLEASE!)
Fine. But The Writer’s Strike is over now though, I’m sure this time next year the CBC won’t be able to trumpet those same kind of numbers. I guess it’s easy to compete when the 7 p.m. – 11 p.m. timeslot is filled with American Re-runs.
In February 2008, the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage (a committee comprised of various MPs) produced a report entitled CBC/Radio-Canada: Defining distinctiveness in the changing media landscape. The purpose of the report was to study the future role of public broadcasting, and to present the Committee’s findings and recommendations.
From the Committee’s report:
“[CBC] must constantly keep up with new technologies and reach out to audiences where they are, including young people who seek content on the Internet.” (p.5)
“We are asking CBC/Radio-Canada to be original, of high quality and
innovative” (p.9)
“Mandate of the CBC/Radio-Canada as stipulatedIn the Broadcasting Act (1991, c. 11, B-9.01, [Assented to February 1, 1991)(i) be predominantly and distinctively Canadian […]” (p 18)
“[…]CBC should make large increases to arts and cultural programming, for example, by producing more contemporary Canadian dramas, historical documentaries, and TV movies.” (p.34)
“[...]audience measurement will need to adapt alongside the transition to digital media. Internet broadcasting, downloading and streaming content, PVRs and on-demand and pay services mean that the same film, television episode or news broadcast will be seen by many more viewers than those who tune in for ”appointment television”.” (p55)
“CBC/Radio-Canada’s online presence will be fundamental to its relevance to Canadian audiences in the future.” (p57)
The CBC should be trying to gain the loyalty of the coveted Younger Demographic. The BBM Ratings System is ancient, it only tracks Traditional Television views, and how many people under 30 own their own home to qualify for a Ratings Box? If the CBC continues to ignore that young people are watching more and more programming online they can say goodbye to the next generation of viewers. I bet if there was a comparision of Web Cast Hits between Global, CTV, Showcase, CITY and the CBC, you would see a much different story.
jPod, Nominated for 15 Leo Awards, is also a part of why the CBC had higher ratings this past season. I bet if there was a survey done of 17-25 year olds asking how many of them watched the CBC (Other than for HNIC or the Hour, probably the only 2 shows targeted towards them) before jPod, you would find that they rarely watched the CBC. jPod prompted them to tune in. How could the CBC think it was smart to cancel a show that was bringing in younger audiences?
Enjoy your short-lived Writers Strike induced “victory” now CBC, when September comes around and the onslaught of new American shows roll out, you’ll find yourselves once again behind Global and CTV.
I’m not saying it’s right that Canadians watch more American television, it’s just the sad truth.
This is all well and good, and I am pleased for the programs and their makers, but should the CBC be concerned with ratings? CBC Television seems to be driven by advertising, though largely through a fault of adequate funding. Shouldn’t the model be one of quality and reflecting Canadians to the nation and the world? I’m not sure Rick Mercer or The Border do a particularily great job of either.
Ok I’m sorry…I liked JPod, I really did. I wanted them to keep it, give it a chance. But you can’t say it helped with ratings.
The few people who watched were really devoted, but it HURT CBC’s ratings, it didn’t help them. They could have just stuck in another rerun of rick mercer and had better numbers, never mind the 4 times as many people that would watch a corination street episode.
Just to give you an idea, JPod was averaging about 300k people a night (some nights as low as 200k) Even at it’s worst, the Border was giving double that number at about 600k people a night.
We could certainly get into a debate that CBC shouldn’t worry about ratings and if this was filling a need etc etc, or that the audience for JPod was different from the rest of CBC’s programming, but we can’t say it’s one of the reasons the CBC increased its ratings.
From an article in the Globe and Mail on 30/05/07 and also posted on the CBC Website:
After years of so-called high-impact miniseries that largely left viewers cold, CBC Television has unveiled a slate of fall shows that it says reflects a new belief that audiences like to be given time to really get to know TV characters. Kirstine Layfield, executive director of network programming, promised a “new direction at the CBC” and acknowledged that “the audience had changed.“People like to meet characters. They like to fall in love with them, and stay with them for a while. Our goal is to increase the number of people coming to the CBC,”
In reference to my other post, Kirstine Layfield cancelled jPod so quickly, she didn’t let us stay with them for awhile. So much for a new direction. The BBM Ratings are ancient, counting only traditional television views, and not Web Cast Hits, jPod being put on Friday nights lead fans to watch online, and how many people under 30 have a Neilson Box?
And why, when the CBC reports just about every award that is given from coast to coast, is there no mention anywhere on cbc.ca about jPod getting the 15 nominations for the Leo Awards? Could it be that the Ceeb doesn’t want any positive attention being brought to a show that they cancelled?
What’s a Leo award?
I wasn’t counted in those ratings, but I became a CBC viewer for the first time in my life thanks to CBC’s jPod and CBC’s online service. But its premature cancellation has left me confused and suspicious of CBC’s relevance and value going forward.
jPod was a quality show, confirmed by the awards and critics. Apparently, the ratings weren’t adequate for CBC, but let me ask, what ratings could possibly be considered a relevant predictor for Season 2 in this scenario? Sure the ratings were low for season one, but don’t forget that jPod had to suffer through the following:
-Poor Promotion for the Demographic: yes it was promoted well on the channels, but guess what: we weren’t watching your channels before jPod. The debut audience was comprised of existing CBC viewers, hence not the target market, which is why they rejected jPod. Rather than conclude that jPod has lost its audience, CBC should recognize that they missed the target in the first place. CBC doesn’t have the means to reach our demographic in the first place, so jPod is relying solely on word of mouth, which takes longer. CBC should recognize that growth is not immediate in this case.
-Switched Time Slot: changing the timeslot to Fridays in an attempt to save MVP was a terrible blow to jPod. The target audience is not watching TV on Friday, so once again you missed the demographic, and failed to give jPod a fair chance to prove itself.
-Airing the Episodes Out of Order: alienates your audience
So yes, the rating were low for season one, but how many of your other shows had to put up with adversity like that? There are so many questions left unanswered and fans are confused.
I’m having trouble forgiving CBC for the cancellation. jPod is the only CBC program I have ever watched (besides sports), and by canceling it CBC is basically saying they don’t want me as a viewer. I could understand if the show was bad or even if it was allowed a fair chance and didn’t deliver – but jPod was neither.