|
Post by Ripley on Nov 30, 2016 14:13:02 GMT -5
From Fansided by Sonya Iryna
"The Walking Dead doesn’t have a ratings problem. While every week a new headline screams that The Walking Dead’s numbers are crashing that’s not really accurate. The ratings are still high enough to keep the show in first place.
Live views are down. But the show picks up between 3-4 million additional views each week when other types of viewing are factored in. The Walking Dead Season 7 episodes are consistently achieving an average of 14 million views each.
The show has come under fire this season for the broadening story arc, the deaths of Glenn and Abe, and the slower pace of the episodes following the brutal season opener. But all that criticism isn’t translating into a loss of viewers. At least, not as much as some people want to believe.
The Boycott Isn’t Affecting The Show’s Numbers
The movement to boycott the show based on the graphic deaths of Glenn and Abe isn’t as big as the creators would like people to think. There are many reasons why the show’s live views are down, but but a boycott isn’t one of them.
Every show experiences a little viewer loss each season. Even high performing shows that have strong fanbases expect to lose some viewers every season. New viewers will start tuning in, and some viewers will return to the show and eventually a balance will be struck. In general TV viewership is down across the board.
TV Ratings Falling
TV ratings for even the most popular shows have been dropping steadily for over a year. In the 2015-2016 TV year most shows experienced a drop in viewers of 10% or higher. Even high rated shows on major networks saw serious drops in their ratings.
The Big Bang Theory, one of the shows that typically has very high ratings, had a 10% ratings drop in 2015-16. Supernatural, another popular scripted genre show, had a drop of 14%.
People Don’t Watch TV The Same Way Anymore
Live views don’t reflect the total TV audience anymore. People are watching TV in other ways and in their own time. In 2015 more than 834,000 people dropped cable TV service. In that same year Sling TV, which allows people to watch TV shows streaming in real time, picked up 800,000 subscribers. Sling TV views are not counted in the live viewer totals for ratings.
Some viewers who have kept cable TV record the shows they like on DVR so that they can speed through the commercials or watch the show at another time. The DVR views are counted in the Live+3 measurement, not in the live measurement.
Keep Live Views in Perspective
American Horror Story, which is the second highest rated scripted genre show on cable, averages about 2 million viewers per episode. That means that even the lowest rated episodes of The Walking Dead this season have 4x more live viewers than American Horror Story.
The Walking Dead remains the king of cable scripted genre shows. Even though the show may be experiencing some growing pains the ratings prove that fans are still loyal to the show. No other show comes close to dethroning The Walking Dead as the highest rated genre show on TV."
|
|
|
Post by AlienSoul on Nov 30, 2016 15:53:13 GMT -5
This displeases me.
I know very little about these things. Are they right? Are TPTB not feeling the burn as badly as I thought they were?
|
|
|
Post by Starlight on Nov 30, 2016 16:05:19 GMT -5
I reckon SG and Co are definitely getting heat from AMC over the huge drop in ratings. The live ratings are important to the show due to advertisement I think. AMC put alot of money into promoting Negan and JDM. and so far his presence on the show has resulted in viewers tuning out instead of tuning in like they all thought.
|
|
|
Post by nana on Nov 30, 2016 17:22:00 GMT -5
My two thoughts are : 1. I had no idea Sling TV didn't count on something like this.
2. Whether or not this drop in ratings isn't as dire as this writer would like to present, I think there is alot of credence to the fact a show just loses viewers after a while. I always was so impressed with Breaking Bad's showrunner, Vince Gilligan, to go into that series knowing it wouldn't run past five seasons... citing one reason was so it wouldn't go out badly.
|
|
|
Post by Sexual Chocolate on Nov 30, 2016 17:25:34 GMT -5
Like I said in a different thread, live + 3 is what's most important, but it's all a slippery slope, and in regards to TWD, a fast moving one at that. No, TWD is in no danger whatsoever of being cancelled, but you best believe the money people whose job it is to do projections for potential ad revenue is looking at the trend and are not liking what they see. For popular shows start out as must see tv, then move to something to be DVR'd, and eventually people stop watching.
I had to go back and reread the article posted in the OP to make sure they were talking about Live +3, because there's another article floating around (defending TWD) using Live + 7 ratings. Live +7 is what networks want Ad execs to start using because then they can charge more for commercial time. You can probably guess how the ad companies feel about that. (rofl)
Again someone correct me if I'm wrong about how all of this works. I read a couple of articles online and now I'm acting like I slept at a Holiday Inn Express.
|
|
Kitsune
Woodbury Partygoer
"I will knock you the fuck out if you ever take up smoking." -My friend who's a smoker
Posts: 151
|
Post by Kitsune on Nov 30, 2016 17:48:14 GMT -5
I think people are blowing this whole ratings drop way out of proportion. TWD is still one of the biggest shows on television. The current ratings are way more than enough to keep it alive.
That being said, I believe some fans are still pissed about the season 6 cliffhanger and as a result, this is affecting the viewership. Hopefully this will teach Gimple not to jerk around the fanbase with cheap gimmicks.
FTWD has lower ratings, but it still got renewed for a third season (and it'll probably be renewed for a fourth. Just watch).
|
|
|
Post by AlienSoul on Nov 30, 2016 17:53:58 GMT -5
I think people are blowing this whole ratings drop way out of proportion. TWD is still one of the biggest shows on television. The current ratings are way more than enough to keep it alive. That being said, I think a lot of fans are still pissed about the season 6 cliffhanger and as a result, this is affecting the viewership. Hopefully this will teach Gimple not to jerk around the fanbase with cheap gimmicks. Oh, I'm not worried about it being kept alive. I know it won't be cancelled, otherwise I wouldn't be excited to see the ratings drop like that. As bad as the show has gotten, it's still my addiction and I love it. What I'm hoping for is that the drop in ratings will wake up TBTB and make them fix what's been wrong with the show for the past couple of seasons. That may be naive of me to think, but I'm hoping.
|
|
|
Post by walkingdeadrules on Nov 30, 2016 17:54:27 GMT -5
I think I can speak for others on this board when I say no one wants to see this show cancelled(we don't spend so much of our time here and thinking about this to see it cancelled lol), nor did any of us believe for one minute with the ratings they were still getting that was even in the realm of possibility, but more that declining ratings would prompt some changes to be made HOPEFULLY of the things that have upset the fandom so much(eg...bottle episodes, TF not together, better writing, etc). If there has been no decrease whatsoever...then there is no pressure to change I suppose. Disappointing to me just because I want this show to be great again, I have no other agenda but that.
Jinx Aliensoul lol. I posted mine and saw you posted essentially the same thing at the same time
|
|
|
Post by deadhead on Nov 30, 2016 18:21:37 GMT -5
The articles defending the drops as nothing to worry about may have some important points, but when you're steadily bleeding a cool half mil a week, the suits in charge are going to be paying attention. I don't doubt that for a second.
I'm no math whiz, but a half million viewers every week is a pretty big number. Losing half million a week for the rest of the season would put them somewhere around 5 by 7.16. Not even I believe it'll drop that low, but the drop hasn't slowed yet, and those money-hungry execs have to be at least slightly sweaty in their jocks about the possibility of the trend continuing momentum.
Looking forward to seeing if they tank or plateau at a passable level these next few months.
|
|
|
Post by Ripley on Nov 30, 2016 19:59:52 GMT -5
I'm curious about what services other than Slings may not be counted since I wasn't aware any subscription service wasn't counted in ratings measurement. No the show won't get cancelled soon and no the drops are not insignificant.
|
|
|
Post by jeowyn on Nov 30, 2016 20:52:03 GMT -5
Yeah, as Sexual Chocolate said - I think the main point is that the drop in live/SD ratings (back to S3 levels) is indicative of people not considering it as 'must-watch' TV. They'll watch it but it's ok if it's a day or two later. For now, that's keeping the +3 ratings up. However, that is a slippery slope because it becomes easier and easier to get behind, or skip an episode altogether. It's still the #1 cable show, obviously, and is in no danger of being cancelled but there is a noticeable shift within it's audience.
|
|
|
Post by reckon on Nov 30, 2016 21:54:16 GMT -5
This honestly reads like something SG or AMC would desperately/nervously stammer out at a shareholders' meeting. Weird.
And what's this about a "boycott", lol? Viewers are leaving because the writing sucks and they don't like the story. It's happened to many shows before, it'll happen to many shows again. Yeesh, take off the tin foil hat.
|
|
|
Post by v on Dec 1, 2016 1:18:09 GMT -5
I'm curious about what services other than Slings may not be counted since I wasn't aware any subscription service wasn't counted in ratings measurement. No the show won't get cancelled soon and no the drops are not insignificant. Google play ( where I buy the seasons since AMC is no longer available in my state) doesn't count either from what I've seen.
|
|
|
Post by Sexual Chocolate on Dec 1, 2016 2:00:14 GMT -5
I'm curious about what services other than Slings may not be counted since I wasn't aware any subscription service wasn't counted in ratings measurement. No the show won't get cancelled soon and no the drops are not insignificant. Google play ( where I buy the seasons since AMC is no longer available in my state) doesn't count either from what I've seen. So does this mean Sling and Google aren't counted in the live + 3 either?
|
|
|
Post by Ripley on Dec 1, 2016 4:12:13 GMT -5
I don't know?
I had thought that all paid subscriptions licensed by AMC (Skings, Prime, iTunes etc) were counted in ratings since AMC got paid something by the streamer/licensers but the piece says Slings was not included and V says hers also excluded. Maybe we should all try tweet/asking the piece author/media outlet? Multiple questions are more likely to be answered than just one person asking my IMO.
|
|
|
Post by MorganBGone on Dec 1, 2016 5:58:21 GMT -5
Focusing on the live +3 numbers with a somewhat lazy search in the early hours of the morning, I couldn't find any evidence that that +3 percent increase has gone up significantly (it was typically in the 30s last year, even higher on at least once occasion), which suggests that either, yes, people have switched to uncounted means of watching or there are indeed fewer people watching live *and* in the short term after the episode has aired. Comparing the live +3 for The Well vs Service, the former beat the latter by 1.1 million viewers. Service, in turn, had 500,000 viewers on Go Getters in the live +3. The Well vs JSS? The live +3 for JSS was higher by over 1 million viewers.
What's interesting in the article is that no numbers are provided for sources like subsciption services. If those numbers aren't available, then the assumption that those other sources are the reason for an *apparent* ratings decline is just that: assumption. Somehow those other services didn't stop the season 7 premiere from having similar numbers vs the live +3 for the premieres of 5 and 6... Or keep far more people watching TV itself for ep 2 vs ep 4 vs ep 6. Is the suggestion that a solid fraction of viewers is switching to an alternate source on a weekly basis? If not, then yes, viewership is declining, both for the live numbers and the live +3, with each passing episode. As for dismissing a "boycott", frankly, a boycott isn't what the season's numbers reflect in general. An effective boycott in an otherwise untouched show would have a single ratings drop but then have only the usual week to week variation in numbers thereafter... Not a downward curve on a graph. This has nothing to do with a boycott; it has to do with poorly written episodes and disregard for what fans and critics have to say and viewers want to see, resulting in declining TV viewership. The show hasn't dropped 10 percent overall, as was brought up for BBT as a TV trend last season; it has gone down each week -- consistently -- since the premiere.
It would be interesting to see how subscription numbers alone are faring. As someone who had access to dvr'd eps on a family member's tv at one point in the past, I paid for subscription to ensure I could watch eps the day after they aired, rather than waiting until whenever I visited my amc-subscribed family member. Under the same circumstances, I wouldn't do that now and wouldn't be surprised if I'm not alone in that. Why pay out of pocket for an inferior product? How will the views from all sources compare with those for GoT, a show with lower (but still growing) live TV numbers but huge subscription-based views?
I agree with those who say TWD is obviously in no danger of being cancelled in the near future. Even if it weren't on a cable network that would renew even Ride, despite pitiful numbers, the numbers it has could sustain it a good long while, even with a decline. That said, I agree also with the point that it still matters. This is a show on a downswing, and advertisers, who would rely primarily on live views, won't fail to notice that fewer people are seeing their commercials. Furthermore, TWD is pretty much all AMC has, at least as far as a show still on the air goes, and the network has already seen a decline in shares this year. How will loss of viewership of that one aging product going forward impact that bottom line further?
|
|
|
Post by v on Dec 1, 2016 11:22:40 GMT -5
I don't know? I had thought that all paid subscriptions licensed by AMC (Skings, Prime, iTunes etc) were counted in ratings since AMC got paid something by the streamer/licensers but the piece says Slings was not included and V says hers also excluded. Maybe we should all try tweet/asking the piece author/media outlet? Multiple questions are more likely to be answered than just one person asking my IMO. the way google play works is you buy the entire series up front for 27.99,( this season was 29.99) the monday after an ep airs you get it via youtube. you also get the behind the scenes and making of vids as well. You can also down load them to play while off line. from what I've been told the initial purchase counts but the amount of times and when I watch them does not.
|
|
|
Post by Sexual Chocolate on Dec 2, 2016 3:31:08 GMT -5
Ripley and v further confirmation that streaming devices aren't counted in the ratings Question: does this count streaming services like Sling TV and Playstation Vue? Answer: NO! A lot of people must ask this questions because at some point this year Nielsen added a boilerplate tab to the spreadsheet that includes the following text: Homes receiving a cable network via traditional wired MVPDs, DBS (and satellite) and Telcos contribute to these estimates. Broadband only homes or homes receiving via, non-traditional providers, for example, Sling TV or Sony Vue etc. do not contribute to these estimates at this time. Link
|
|