Television Round-Up – March
Revenue
The combined ITC/C4 revenue for March, based on agency estimates, came in at £166.55m, an increase of 6.1% on last year. The ITV only figure was £130.17m, up 4.3% year on year, and the Channel 4 figure was £36.38m, up 12.8% on last year. This is a 78:22 split, consistent with last month, but C4’s share seems to be steadily growing. Among the contractors, the biggest change in revenue share compared to last year was from LWT, down 1.09% points to 11.52%; Carlton was up 0.5% points to 15.86%, but LWT had one less trading day this year. Compared to February, Carlton however did not fare so well, down 1.3% points from 17.16%. Central and HTV also lost share compared to last year, down 0.62% points and 0.44% points respectively. Central, despite its loss year on year has regained the highest share of advertising back from Carlton in February.
Granada/Border recorded the highest increase in share on last year, up to 11.49%.
| Mar-94 | Mar-95 | % Pt Chge | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carlton | 15.36 | 15.86 | 0.5 |
| LWT | 12.61 | 11.52 | -1.09 |
| London | 27.97 | 27.38 | -0.59 |
| Central | 16.56 | 15.94 | -0.62 |
| Granada/Border | 10.81 | 11.49 | 0.68 |
| YTTV | 10 | 10.25 | 0.25 |
| STV | 4.67 | 4.62 | -0.05 |
| Grampian | 1.1 | 1.25 | 0.15 |
| HTV | 6.31 | 5.87 | -0.44 |
| Meridian | 10.76 | 11.03 | 0.27 |
| Anglia | 7.57 | 7.32 | -0.25 |
| Westcountry | 2.35 | 2.33 | -0.02 |
| Ulster | 1.93 | 2.11 | 0.18 |
Commercial Messages
Combined ITV/C4 messages for March decreased across the board, with the biggest decrease coming from ABC1 Adults, down 7% year on year. Housewives with children fell by 5.7%, and Men fell by 4.9%.
| H/wvs | Adts | Men | Wmn | H/wvs+Kids | ABC1 Adlts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Audience | 23905 | 39273 | 15409 | 23864 | 6492 | 13873 |
| % Ch YoY | -3 | -3.5 | -4.9 | -2.6 | -5.7 | -7 |
CPTS
With combined ITV/C4 revenue up by 6.1%, and messages down, costs per thousand for March were up across the board, with the highest increase from ABC1 Adults, up 14.1%, followed by Houswives with children, up by 12.5% year on year. The lowest increase year on year was from Women, up by 9.0%.
Costs Per Thousand – ITC/C4 (p)
| H/wvs | Adts | Men | Wmn | H/wvs+Kids | ABC1 Adts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Audience | 844 | 514 | 1310 | 846 | 3109 | 1455 |
| % Ch YoY | 9.3 | 10.1 | 11.6 | 9 | 12.5 | 14.1 |
TV Viewing
TV Viewing for the month of March was down by 1 hour and 41 minutes on February to 26 hours and 21 minutes. ITV lost 0.9% points of share, down to 36.9%; BBC1 and non-terrestrial channels both recorded an increase of 0.4% points in their share.
Share Of Total:
| Mar-95 | Feb-95 | % Pts Ch | |
|---|---|---|---|
| BBC1 | 33 | 32.6 | 0.4 |
| BBC2 | 10.4 | 10.6 | -0.2 |
| TOTAL BBC | 43.4 | 43.3 | 0.1 |
| ITV | 36.9 | 37.8 | -0.9 |
| C4 | 11.7 | 11.4 | 0.3 |
| TOTAL ITV | 48.6 | 49.2 | -0.6 |
| OTHERS | 8 | 7.6 | 0.4 |
Industry News
There were several performance reviews released in March; the Broadcasting Standards Council published its annual survey which revealed that 53% of respondents found at least one programme which gave rise for concern in the areas of sex, violence or bad language.
A CIA Sensor survey on the BBC revealed that it failed to offer good value; only one in four of respondents thought that the BBC was good value for its licence fee. The ITV Network released its own review of 1994 in which it highlighted its peaktime share of audience – 44%, 11% ahead of BBC. 27 of the top 30 dramas on TV were on ITV.
The smaller ITV companies were told they would retain their subsidies, after more than one year of debate. Ulster, Border, Grampian, Westcountry and Channel were told their discount would continue for the next four years.
The Independent Television Commission announced that Channel 5’s coverage would be 66% of the UK population.