Your TV set will run on grey power

22Jun08

Source: David Dale, Sun Herald blogs

What a sweet revenge for the over 55s. Once spurned and ignored by the
commercial stations — "Let them watch the ABC," was the attitude –
they have now become the powerbrokers. Their tastes will determine
which network wins this year and gets the most advertising in 2009.

Not long ago Channel Ten used to put out press releases boasting how
certain programs were "shedding" older viewers, while Nine and Seven
proudly declared their target audience to be viewers aged 25-54.
There’s none of that talk now. The oldies are golden, and not just
because there are more of them. It’s also because they’re the first
ones back into their cocoons as uncertainty grows about the economy.
And once they’ve pulled up the drawbridge, the over-55s are more likely
to watch the box than the under 40s, who have other distractions.

For a vision of the future of Australian television, look at the
favourite shows of each age group last week. In particular, compare the
audience totals across the mainland capitals …

Show most watched by viewers over 55: 
Seven news 849,000 viewers in this age group
ABC news 804,000
Wild China (ABC) 727, 000
Today Tonight (7) 701,000
Sea Patrol (7) 699,000
Silent Witness (ABC) 697,000
Australia’s Got Talent (7) 692,000
Border Security repeat (7) 652,000
The Einstein Factor (ABC) 649,000
Nine news 642,000; CSI (9) 633,000
Australian Story (ABC) 633,000
Better Homes and Gardens (7) 629,000
Domestic Blitz (9) 611,000

Shows most watched by viewers aged 16-39:
The Simpsons (10) 562,000 viewers in this age group
Grey’s Anatomy (7) 555,000
NCIS (10) 548,000
Desperate Housewives (7) 533,000
60 Minutes (9) 487,000
My Name is Earl (7) 486,000
The New Futurama (10) 483,000
How I Met Your Mother (7) 479,000
Rove (10) 465,000
Good News Week (10) 457,000
Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares (9) 455,000
The Gruen Transfer (ABC) 455,000
Brothers and Sisters (7) 450,000

You can see why the oldies are so much more attractive to the
networks as a target audience than the groovers. Between 6pm and
10.30pm each night, an average of 1.821 million viewers over 55 watch
television (up 3.5 per cent on last year), compared with an average of
1.397 million viewers aged 16 to 39 (down 1 per cent on last year).

Clearly there’s not much common ground between the age groups, which
makes programming a much harder task than it was a decade ago. Best to
target the niche with the numbers, so Nine and Seven will need to "skew
older" if they are to win the year. Expect comfy crime shows set in
English villages; quirky quiz shows hosted by former ABC personalities;
deserving documentaries about Asian animals and adventurous
Australians; and gardening guides filmed in the beautiful backyards of
Lisa McCune and Dannii Minogue, who are the current queens of the
senior screen (one remembered from Blue Heelers, the other from Young Talent Time. 

The only hope for diversity lies with the niche we haven’t dissected yet — viewers aged 25-54.

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