betED.com - The View from the Couch - by Gavin McDougald!
May 31st, 2006 - Swepth Away
When you hear all the talk about ?sweeps week,? have you ever wondered what it means, despite it being the time when TV is actually worth watching?
Well, in a nutshell, the ?sweeps? are all about Nielsen ratings. Nielsen Media Research, the company which records viewing figures for the television industry, sends out diaries to sample homes around the U.S., for viewers to record the shows they watch.
These diaries are then "swept" up, and the results analyzed to produce the numbers the networks use to set their advertising rates. The more people watch a show, the more networks can charge for its commercials.
We just went through the biggest ?sweeps? period of the year, the final kick at the can for TV before the long hot summer sets in. That?s the time when TV execs know that fewest folks are parked in front of the set because they?re out getting baked by both alcohol and the sun.
And another thing TV execs know, or at least they should know, about all those beer soaked sun stroke victims is this: The last thing on their minds in June is watching a winter sport.
Which is interesting because the National Hockey League, (hockey, as in that sport played on ice), announced that their number one attraction, the Stanley Cup final, won?t start until June 5th.
Either the Buffalo Sabres or the Carolina Hurricanes will face the Edmonton Oilers in the final round of what many consider the toughest tournament on earth. Well, it?s gotta be one of the longest anyway. If it goes the full seven games, which is likely considering the parity displayed thus far in the post-season, this thing won?t be over until June 19th.
That doesn?t bode well for NBC and OLN, who are both in the first year of their hockey deals. Thus far NBC?s ratings are 27% down from what ABC did two years ago; the last time there was playoff hockey. OLN, the NHL?s cable carrier has seen a 47% drop from what ESPN managed.
Now they face an audience whose focus is more on ice in drinks rather than ice in arenas.
On the other hand, there?s that other played-in-winter sport that few, except for the elite, actually do play in winter, basketball.
Both the NHL and the NBA are enjoying thrilling post-seasons, with the series going the distance and comparable numbers of killer finishes. Yet in the NBA, TNT's playoff rating is up 12 percent. ESPN?s numbers are up a staggering 22 percent. ABC Sports has had its rating jump of 14 percent.
Lately both of these leagues have taken a hit broadcasting wise, with ratings across the board dipping precipitously. Yet this year the NBA has seen an enormous boost, and the NHL has been nothing short of a bust.
What is the difference this year? Why has the sporting nation embraced basketball like it hasn?t since Michael Jordan retired?
Magnetic stars like Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Shaq, Dwayne Wade and the new superstar in the 23 jersey, LeBron sure have helped. As have the series. In the second round there were three Game 7s in a 48-hour period. It looks like the slow burn defense of Detroit can?t match a two-man game Miami has to offer. Dallas should be able to wax a one-name Phoenix team, but they can?t. In this league right now, even the owners are interesting.
As for the NHL, Gavin Harvey, the OLN president, thinks he knows the problem.
?No doubt our lack of awareness as a destination for hockey is something we have to work on,? he said.
However, that doesn?t hold up when you consider how fractured the coverage is for the NBA. It?s shown all over the place ? yet everywhere the ratings are up.
So ? both leagues are providing a great show - yet only one audience is growing.
The biggest difference is simple: one is truly a winter sport, and the other isn?t. The NHL is holding their premier event of the season at a time when the connections to sport are both out of sight and out of mind.
After sacrificing an entire season to fix up the leagues? labor and game play problems, the NHL came roaring back. Now it?s fizzling out at the exactly the wrong time. The NHL didn?t fix enough. They didn?t change the length of the season.
The bottom line is basketball is played in the summer, so watching it isn?t an unusual practice.
Watching hockey right now is.
Cheers - Gavin McDougald - AKA Couch
Remember to drop us a line at rants@betED.com to voice your opinion on one of McDougald's articles or on anything else you read at betED.com!
May 31st, 2006 - Swepth Away
When you hear all the talk about ?sweeps week,? have you ever wondered what it means, despite it being the time when TV is actually worth watching?
Well, in a nutshell, the ?sweeps? are all about Nielsen ratings. Nielsen Media Research, the company which records viewing figures for the television industry, sends out diaries to sample homes around the U.S., for viewers to record the shows they watch.
These diaries are then "swept" up, and the results analyzed to produce the numbers the networks use to set their advertising rates. The more people watch a show, the more networks can charge for its commercials.
We just went through the biggest ?sweeps? period of the year, the final kick at the can for TV before the long hot summer sets in. That?s the time when TV execs know that fewest folks are parked in front of the set because they?re out getting baked by both alcohol and the sun.
And another thing TV execs know, or at least they should know, about all those beer soaked sun stroke victims is this: The last thing on their minds in June is watching a winter sport.
Which is interesting because the National Hockey League, (hockey, as in that sport played on ice), announced that their number one attraction, the Stanley Cup final, won?t start until June 5th.
Either the Buffalo Sabres or the Carolina Hurricanes will face the Edmonton Oilers in the final round of what many consider the toughest tournament on earth. Well, it?s gotta be one of the longest anyway. If it goes the full seven games, which is likely considering the parity displayed thus far in the post-season, this thing won?t be over until June 19th.
That doesn?t bode well for NBC and OLN, who are both in the first year of their hockey deals. Thus far NBC?s ratings are 27% down from what ABC did two years ago; the last time there was playoff hockey. OLN, the NHL?s cable carrier has seen a 47% drop from what ESPN managed.
Now they face an audience whose focus is more on ice in drinks rather than ice in arenas.
On the other hand, there?s that other played-in-winter sport that few, except for the elite, actually do play in winter, basketball.
Both the NHL and the NBA are enjoying thrilling post-seasons, with the series going the distance and comparable numbers of killer finishes. Yet in the NBA, TNT's playoff rating is up 12 percent. ESPN?s numbers are up a staggering 22 percent. ABC Sports has had its rating jump of 14 percent.
Lately both of these leagues have taken a hit broadcasting wise, with ratings across the board dipping precipitously. Yet this year the NBA has seen an enormous boost, and the NHL has been nothing short of a bust.
What is the difference this year? Why has the sporting nation embraced basketball like it hasn?t since Michael Jordan retired?
Magnetic stars like Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Shaq, Dwayne Wade and the new superstar in the 23 jersey, LeBron sure have helped. As have the series. In the second round there were three Game 7s in a 48-hour period. It looks like the slow burn defense of Detroit can?t match a two-man game Miami has to offer. Dallas should be able to wax a one-name Phoenix team, but they can?t. In this league right now, even the owners are interesting.
As for the NHL, Gavin Harvey, the OLN president, thinks he knows the problem.
?No doubt our lack of awareness as a destination for hockey is something we have to work on,? he said.
However, that doesn?t hold up when you consider how fractured the coverage is for the NBA. It?s shown all over the place ? yet everywhere the ratings are up.
So ? both leagues are providing a great show - yet only one audience is growing.
The biggest difference is simple: one is truly a winter sport, and the other isn?t. The NHL is holding their premier event of the season at a time when the connections to sport are both out of sight and out of mind.
After sacrificing an entire season to fix up the leagues? labor and game play problems, the NHL came roaring back. Now it?s fizzling out at the exactly the wrong time. The NHL didn?t fix enough. They didn?t change the length of the season.
The bottom line is basketball is played in the summer, so watching it isn?t an unusual practice.
Watching hockey right now is.
Cheers - Gavin McDougald - AKA Couch
Remember to drop us a line at rants@betED.com to voice your opinion on one of McDougald's articles or on anything else you read at betED.com!
