BARB Figures Show TV Viewing Increase
BARB is claiming that the drop in TV viewing attributed to its new ratings system is not as “extreme” as first thought.
Last December BARB released figures showing that the overall average hours of viewing for the week of 23 December had dropped by 5% under the new TV ratings system, from around 25 hours per person to just under 24 hours. The figures also showed that viewing among 16-34 year olds had decreased by 6%, causing concern that commercial TV viewing was in serious decline.
However, BARB now says that the trend throughout January has shown a general increase of 8% in viewing levels, bringing total viewing to over 25 hours per person. It also claims that viewing among 16-34 year olds has increased by 13% over the past six weeks.
BARB’s chief executive, Caroline McDevitt, said: “The atypical programme schedules made audiences for the first few weeks almost impossible to predict, and equally difficult to interpret; so now that viewing patterns have stabilised after the Christmas and New Year period, shares have returned to similar levels to those recorded by the previous panel.”
Deputy chief executive of Channel 5, Nick Milligan, further defended the new system, saying: “Many industry observers appear to have fallen into the trap of comparing January 2002 viewing shares with those recorded either in January 2001 or across the whole of last year. A comparison with the final quarter of 2001 demonstrates far greater continuity of share than many seem prepared to acknowledge.”
The new ratings system has come in for significant criticism over the last few weeks (see New BARB System Comes In For Criticism) and last Friday the controversy deepened following speculation that the new audience research panel may not be up to its full strength of 5,200 viewers until May or June (see BARB Controversy Continues).
BARB: 020 7529 5531 www.barb.co.uk
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