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Magic million eludes public broadcasters

The ratings race saw no big changes at Seven, Nine and TEN, so how are the ABC and SBS faring? Just one show topped the "magic million" benchmark in Week 24.

Week 24 was much like its preceding weeks: Seven scored with Australia’s Got Talent, Downton Abbey, Dancing with the Stars and Seven News. TEN’s cleverly-coded MasterChef took half the week’s top ten shows, and Nine News (Sunday) was best for Nine with three other shows making the Top 20.

So let’s turn our attention to the public broadcasters.

Just one show ecliped the “magic million” mark: Spicks and Specks at just under 1.06m.

It was followed by ABC News (882,000), Angry Boys (846,000) and Doctor Who (815,000). Amid questions about how it is performing under Leigh Sales and Chris Uhlmann, 7:30 is averaging an uninspiring 552,000.

SBS didn’t enjoy any shows in the week’s Top 100 but its best was a repeat of Catastrophe (323,000) followed by Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking (320,000), Mythbusters (307,000), Coast (301,000) and Who Do You Think You Are? (282,000). While the magic million is always a long way off for SBS, it was often pulling close to that mark with new Top Gear, before Nine snapped up the show and now can’t seem to get it to perform.

Seven won Week 24 again.

Network:
Seven: 31.8
Nine: 25.6
TEN: 24.0
ABC: 13.7
SBS: 4.9

Primary channels:
Seven: 24.0
Nine: 18.6
TEN: 17.9
ABC1: 10.4
SBS1: 4.2

Multichannels:
7TWO: 4.8
GO!: 4.1
ELEVEN: 3.5
7mate: 3.0
GEM: 2.9
ONE: 2.6
ABC2: 2.1
SBS2: 0.7
ABC3: 0.6
ABC News 24: 0.6

TEN won 16-39, Seven won 18-49 and 25-54.

Seven ranked first on all nights except Thursday, which fell to Nine. But TEN beat Nine on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday.

Seven won all 5 metro cities.

Rnk Description Stn Network Sydney Melbourne Brisbane Adelaide Perth
1 Australia’s Got Talent-Tue Seven 1,927,000 528,000 622,000 334,000 217,000 225,000
2 Downton Abbey Seven 1,872,000 497,000 602,000 322,000 210,000 240,000
3 Masterchef Australia Mon Ten 1,637,000 452,000 578,000 251,000 164,000 193,000
4 Masterchef Australia Wed Ten 1,625,000 482,000 538,000 285,000 157,000 163,000
5 Masterchef Australia Thurs Ten 1,569,000 454,000 503,000 287,000 167,000 158,000
6 Dancing With The Stars Seven 1,541,000 431,000 473,000 324,000 141,000 171,000
7 Seven News – Sun Seven 1,508,000 300,000 481,000 349,000 129,000 249,000
8 Nine News Sunday Nine 1,498,000 468,000 473,000 277,000 185,000 95,000
9 Masterchef Australia Sun Ten 1,444,000 463,000 449,000 223,000 165,000 143,000
10 Masterchef Australia Tues Ten 1,439,000 405,000 522,000 230,000 132,000 150,000
11 Seven News – Sat Seven 1,403,000 319,000 355,000 370,000 160,000 199,000
12 The Big Bang Theory Nine 1,374,000 362,000 476,000 270,000 109,000 157,000
13 Seven News Seven 1,374,000 331,000 376,000 272,000 163,000 232,000
14 Winners & Losers Seven 1,312,000 302,000 523,000 195,000 127,000 165,000
15 Today Tonight Seven 1,264,000 327,000 342,000 245,000 154,000 196,000
16 The Amazing Race Australia Seven 1,165,000 307,000 393,000 161,000 133,000 172,000
17 Better Homes And Gardens Seven 1,160,000 319,000 368,000 200,000 140,000 134,000
18 Nine News Nine 1,147,000 306,000 381,000 264,000 108,000 88,000
19 Come Fly With Me Nine 1,126,000 340,000 343,000 202,000 106,000 135,000
20 A Current Affair Nine 1,093,000 305,000 371,000 226,000 101,000 90,000
21 Glee Wed Ten 1,084,000 339,000 377,000 159,000 92,000 118,000
22 Home And Away Seven 1,070,000 312,000 295,000 212,000 118,000 133,000
23 Spicks And Specks ABC1 1,059,000 266,000 348,000 205,000 126,000 114,000
24 Highway Patrol Seven 1,054,000 331,000 277,000 226,000 108,000 112,000
25 Bondi Vet Ten 1,046,000 323,000 332,000 171,000 97,000 124,000
26 Criminal Minds Seven 1,029,000 309,000 263,000 213,000 125,000 120,000
27 60 Minutes Nine 1,027,000 300,000 333,000 212,000 87,000 95,000
28 Nine News Saturday Nine 1,008,000 267,000 306,000 246,000 114,000 75,000
29 The Big Bang Theory -Wed Ep1 Nine 965,000 279,000 310,000 205,000 77,000 93,000
30 Offspring Ten 954,000 241,000 335,000 144,000 106,000 128,000
31 The Big Bang Theory -Wed Ep2 Nine 949,000 269,000 292,000 205,000 74,000 108,000
32 In Their Footsteps Nine 945,000 242,000 345,000 190,000 87,000 80,000
33 World’s Deadliest Roads Seven 943,000 289,000 246,000 204,000 107,000 97,000
34 Law And Order: SVU Ten 942,000 273,000 284,000 164,000 121,000 100,000
35 Grey’s Anatomy Seven 939,000 288,000 269,000 177,000 104,000 100,000
36 The Big Bang Theory -Rpt Nine 922,000 247,000 304,000 190,000 74,000 107,000
37 NCIS Rpt Ten 920,000 238,000 269,000 172,000 98,000 144,000
38 The 7pm Project Ten 888,000 215,000 316,000 187,000 77,000 93,000
39 ABC News ABC1 882,000 242,000 265,000 146,000 114,000 115,000
40 Merlin Ten 881,000 286,000 223,000 144,000 93,000 135,000
41 Masterchef Australia – Masterclass Ten 858,000 209,000 274,000 144,000 95,000 135,000
42 Angry Boys ABC1 846,000 258,000 289,000 137,000 85,000 78,000
43 The Big Bang Theory -Tue Nine 837,000 202,000 270,000 185,000 76,000 104,000
44 RBT Nine 833,000 277,000 262,000 146,000 83,000 65,000
45 Polar Bear Spy On The Ice Nine 827,000 239,000 285,000 117,000 76,000 110,000
46 No Ordinary Family Seven 821,000 261,000 223,000 154,000 77,000 105,000
47 Doctor Who ABC1 815,000 234,000 212,000 175,000 83,000 110,000
48 The Secret Mediterranean Seven 814,000 155,000 232,000 184,000 110,000 131,000
49 ABC News-Sa ABC1 792,000 224,000 226,000 161,000 100,000 81,000
50 The Mentalist Nine 790,000 238,000 245,000 170,000 67,000 68,000
51 Taggart ABC1 757,000 219,000 192,000 146,000 101,000 99,000
52 Rescue Special Ops -Ep1 Nine 744,000 193,000 245,000 139,000 82,000 84,000
53 How I Met Your Mother Seven 740,000 227,000 209,000 143,000 67,000 94,000
54 Rescue Special Ops -Ep2 Nine 726,000 182,000 246,000 131,000 84,000 84,000
55 Australia’s Funniest Home Videos Nine 711,000 223,000 185,000 156,000 88,000 60,000
56 Law And Order: SVU Rpt Ten 708,000 204,000 206,000 114,000 93,000 91,000
57 Sea Patrol: Damage Control Nine 706,000 212,000 167,000 155,000 86,000 87,000
58 ABC News-Su ABC1 703,000 203,000 208,000 125,000 86,000 81,000
59 Criminal Minds (R) Seven 701,000 211,000 187,000 129,000 99,000 75,000
60 The Footy Show Nine 696,000 119,000 348,000 66,000 92,000 72,000
61 RPA Nine 691,000 139,000 261,000 112,000 79,000 99,000
62 Hot Seat Nine 679,000 190,000 202,000 177,000 66,000 44,000
63 Ten News At Five Ten 678,000 193,000 212,000 106,000 71,000 96,000
64 Australian Story ABC1 677,000 202,000 205,000 121,000 79,000 70,000
65 Customs Nine 669,000 160,000 202,000 145,000 65,000 97,000
66 Brothers & Sisters Seven 662,000 193,000 239,000 89,000 58,000 81,000
67 Hawaii Five-O Ten 660,000 200,000 173,000 130,000 62,000 95,000
68 Desperate Housewives Seven 660,000 214,000 219,000 86,000 73,000 68,000
69 Deal Or No Deal Seven 658,000 163,000 196,000 124,000 72,000 102,000
70 NCIS: Los Angeles Tues Ten 656,000 170,000 203,000 94,000 85,000 105,000
71 How I Met Your Mother (R) Seven 643,000 214,000 178,000 107,000 60,000 83,000
72 The Kennedys ABC1 640,000 162,000 204,000 144,000 56,000 75,000
73 Castle (R) Seven 639,000 188,000 191,000 119,000 64,000 78,000
74 Nine’s Live Friday Night Football Nine 633,000 398,000 *** 234,000 *** ***
75 Four Corners ABC1 627,000 189,000 183,000 115,000 74,000 65,000
76 M-Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit Seven 621,000 137,000 194,000 136,000 71,000 84,000
77 Doctor Who: Confidential Cutdown ABC1 619,000 197,000 170,000 107,000 68,000 76,000
78 Qi ABC1 617,000 165,000 172,000 89,000 83,000 109,000
79 Parenthood Seven 609,000 152,000 249,000 100,000 54,000 54,000
80 New Tricks Rpt ABC1 584,000 143,000 184,000 113,000 58,000 86,000
81 Media Watch ABC1 582,000 168,000 173,000 122,000 70,000 49,000
82 Q&A ABC1 582,000 176,000 176,000 120,000 71,000 39,000
83 Gardening Australia ABC1 580,000 141,000 162,000 135,000 86,000 56,000
84 The Defenders Ten 577,000 178,000 193,000 84,000 49,000 73,000
85 Seven’s AFL: Rnd 12: St Kilda Vs Western Bulldogs Seven 571,000 10,000 366,000 7,000 97,000 91,000
86 Saturday Night AFL Ten 566,000 *** 332,000 42,000 112,000 80,000
87 Foreign Correspondent ABC1 559,000 134,000 154,000 110,000 76,000 85,000
88 On Trial ABC1 557,000 207,000 124,000 117,000 47,000 62,000
89 The Mentalist -Ep2 Nine 555,000 162,000 203,000 100,000 46,000 45,000
90 Mountain Gorilla ABC1 555,000 175,000 124,000 120,000 77,000 59,000
91 7.30 ABC1 552,000 156,000 158,000 101,000 71,000 67,000
92 The New Inventors ABC1 548,000 155,000 165,000 80,000 76,000 72,000
93 Nine’s Sunday Football Nine 530,000 286,000 50,000 193,000 *** ***
94 Hungry Beast ABC1 515,000 157,000 173,000 85,000 46,000 54,000
95 Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution Ten 515,000 127,000 187,000 81,000 45,000 76,000
96 House Mon Ten 503,000 102,000 215,000 56,000 64,000 66,000
97 Big Nine 500,000 83,000 203,000 89,000 62,000 63,000
98 Getaway -Sat Nine 500,000 118,000 150,000 109,000 60,000 63,000
99 6.30 With George Negus Ten 489,000 126,000 175,000 101,000 39,000 48,000
100 Arthur And The Invisibles Nine 470,000 162,000 108,000 89,000 55,000 57,000

Week 24

12 Responses

  1. Firstly, it isnt SBSs job to rate. In my opinion this new search for mratings has turned nit into a second rate cable channel at times with old offerings from American pay Tv. I think it should be more experimental and diverse than it has been of late, regardless of how popular that is.

    the second part is the digital channels. They are killing the ABC because any time you want, there is an American sitcom on. This means instead of watching something smart or stimulating, people can chose junkfood, and lets face it, Tv audiences are like children, they would mostly chose junkfood over a healthy meal.

    I would say its not The ABCs fault at all and to try and change this by altering their content to be even more “accessible” would be just dumbing down.

    Viewing habits are mirroring the economy. Lots of highly paid, low skilled or low educated people spending their money and spare time of hollow thrills. i urge people to look at the mediocrity thread in mediaspy.org/forum the Spectrum.

  2. Forgot to add, nice dig at Top Gear/Nine, any chance they will be fast tracking the new season in a few weeks from the UK, and what happened to the US version or AU or has Nine completely killed the franchise here?

  3. Maybe with all of Nines moving around “Top Gear” and moving onto other channels and not showing in sequence and mixed up repeats has got viewers like me resorting to the DVD sets.
    Maybe they are moving around shows to see what will work but give us a break, once we get used to a show being on the same time every week we watch it.
    Take “Alan Sugar The apprentice” it is on Sat morning at 12.15 am still worth a watch but why cant seven show us series three, four five and six the latest series has just started in England. We are getting a repeat of Series 2, again.
    Anyway, all of us the viewers need to lobby our politicians for controls on advertising. Community radio still has controls of five minutes per hour why hasnt commercial TV and radio, ohh I am sorry they are self regulating ….what a joke. 15 ad breaks in a two hour show, come on get real, The self regulating was supposed to be more competitive, it seems to be just a whole heap more ads in a show.

  4. Has the 730 report audience really halved? Seems hard to believe. They must have made a lot of mistakes. It’s stopped being must-see for me, so I drop in and out of it. It feels very soft. That said, I think they need 1 host and Leigh Sales is great so stick with her and fix the approach. Needs to be harder hitting.

  5. 1 million people watching one show. What are the other 20 million Australians doing?

    It makes me think that the ratings measurement system is not very accurate when I’m certain there must be at least 5 million people viewing TV at any one time, but the statistics don’t add up to anywhere near that many.

  6. Weirdly enough I watched all of those SBS shows. Plus didn’t Doctor Who did better on Sunday? Although there are more channels now. Plus do the ABC have the staff to fast track it the same day (i.e. their Saturday night in Britain is our Sunday ) ? However it allows me to watch Who Do You Think You Are? so I’m ambivalent about it. I’ll admit I wish the ABC would change the name of the other show back to The 7.30 Report. As to me the other name is just lame and deserves bad ratings for that crime alone. I don’t mind a change of host when it’s voluntary but I see no reason for foolish name changes. You sent the message to some viewers to go away! It seems it succeeded. Oh well.

  7. I read Karl Quinn’s piece in The Age summarising Nine’s problems really well. Len Downes said Nine were just 2 or 3 hits away from turning things around. That just demonstrates how wrong the strategic thinking is at Nine. They need a complete overhaul and if you’ve been at that network for the past past decade you are part of the problem, not the the solution. That goes for every person in management, commissioning and programming. The problem is so vast it cannot be fiixed by 2-3 good shows. Ridiculous thing to say.

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