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TEN in new entertainment hunt

Channel TEN will be looking to launch its next big entertainment format within the next 12 - 18 months.

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ten towerChannel TEN will be looking to launch its next big entertainment format within the next 12 – 18 months, according to Programmer Beverley McGarvey.

McGarvey is set to speak at an international formats conference in London on October 2nd, where she will outline what the network is looking for.

“In terms of formats, the two biggest things that work for us are constructed reality and elimination shows,” said MacGarvey. “Our biggest show has been MasterChef. We took the format and turned it into a big event that was on six days a week for 12 weeks.”

In translating the success of the series to an international market, she indicated the show’s finale pulled a huge 3.7m viewers.

“This is big, big, big for Australia,” explained McGarvey. “Idol is doing 1.2 million at the moment. The big dramas might do 1.8, while most shows do 1.2 to 1.4.”

Well, they do if you’re not talking TEN. Those figures would be fantastic on TEN week in, week out.

McGarvey’s address to the C21 Formats Lab Live event at BAFTA will be followed by a stop at the sales fest, Mipcom in Cannes.

The outline of 12 – 18 months for a new entertainment format probably hints at Idol returning for 2010.

Source: C21

15 Responses

  1. Considering how many viewers Aus idol is currently bleeding, Ten should rest it after this year, if they’re intending to stick with The 7PM Project, which is fairly cheap to make.

    An Aus version of The Amazing Race would never work and would be seen by Seven’s bean counters as being far too expensive. Although networks all love reality TV for being cheap to make, TAR is a rarity in that it goes to several overseas countries, so the costs would be much higher and Seven would have to comply with that, instead of doing a show where people would only go across Australia, that’d get refused.

  2. @nick. yes TAR aus would be great. especially as a stripped 7:00 show .

    but yes, there are complications with making that brand. my understanding is that jerry bruckheimer&co. do allow for international versions, but they are very protective of it and only allow it under strict conditions to the point where no network would ever accept it. which is why there are so few international versions.

  4. Francis, public voting has nothing to do with it. Masterchef did exceptionally well mainly because it was in its first year. Shows with public input such as Big Brother, Australian Idol and So You Think You Can Dance also rated brilliantly in their first years. Viewer involvement undoubtedly played a huge role in the success of the aforementioned shows, and if it were possible to allow more viewer input in Masterchef I’m sure Ten would take advantage of the opportunity – however, for obvious reasons, it just wouldn’t be possible. Viewer interaction is a positive thing, and something that the networks will always try to incorporate into a show where it is possible to do so.

  5. Idol needs to have a rest and let all the little kids who try out to mature and grow up. Maybe they meant 1.2 mill as in the peak audience of the show.. MC will be fine. Just have the one celeb series though – have any more and we’ll all get sick of it rather quickly!

  6. “Idol is doing 1.2 million at the moment”
    am i missing something or did she just make a sneaky thoughtless comment?

    “hints at Idol returning for 2010”
    well that would make leckie and gyngels day. if ten launch a new backend tentpole it comes at a big cost to the competiton. they are huge in their first year. i don’t know why ten would even consider renuing it. because one thing that people are forgetting is that SYTYCD also has one foot out the door. there was a huge drop in ratings from season one to two and will keep dropping. if idol is renued then they run the risk of losing two tentpoles the following year. then they would be in strife.

  7. Good move by ten, except, this move needs to be fasttracked. Lauch a new show Next Year out of MasterChef while its still hot and dump Idol. David Mott said they looked at the Apprentice Austraila, but chose to to go with it cos the UK failed on 7. I think with Fremantle on borad, this would of been awsome 6 nights week, after MC. Id love to see the Amazing Race as well. Still as proven by BL, MC, Ten and Frematle can pick up the simpelist 1hour format and turn it into something special. If they really must keep Idol, move it to a weeknight, same as Dance.

  9. I am sorry, but if 10 think that every series of Masterchef they churn out over the next decade is going to draw 3+ million, then I have some prime quality swamp land I am happy to sell to them. Look at Idol, it has been wrung to death and the same will happen to MC. People watched it for the novelty of it. My tip is “celebrity” MC will draw less and the next series of MC will draw even less. My tip as a series is maybe 3 seasons.

  11. What Channel 10 does so well at is reality shows where the judges do the voting and there is no need for public input.

    Take Masterchef for example. That show did so well as it was all pre-recorded (no live shows) so it could be edited to fit into a one hour or half hour time slot perfectly without going overtime and making viewers upset.

    It also had the judges eliminating the contestants so we actually knew that the right person who didn’t make the best dish was going home and not just the favourite according to the public.

    Also, Biggest loser has no public input and does so well. Also Australia’s Next Top Model (while on foxtel also does equally well).

    So listen Channel 10. If you want another reality show do one that is pre-recorded, no public voting and is nice and just focuses on the competition and not backstabbing and lies.

  12. “Idol is doing 1.2 million at the moment. ”

    What?! It’s not even managing to hit the 1 million mark on Sunday Nights.

    “The outline of 12 – 18 months for a new entertainment format probably hints at Idol returning for 2010.”

    Damn, I thought it hinted that Idol would not be returning next year.

  13. I have to laugh and I quote from the article above: ““Idol is doing 1.2 million at the moment.” I thought it had been doing less than a million for at least the last 3 weeks!! I wonder where the extra 200,000 people came from….
    I think it is losing its star quality…. I didn’t like last years winner and the previous couple have hardly set the charts alight….

  15. If Idol indeed does return next year I would be moving it away from the tentpole Sunday nights and give it a weeknight timeslot, fill Sunday with a drama/comedy + Rove. Idol is tanking on Sundays.

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