Post by Inside Australian Idol on May 29, 2005 23:49:40 GMT 10
New salvos in ratings war
By Sarah Grant
May 29, 2005
A DRAMA resurgence, a revived game show and a reality onslaught will fight for centre stage in the second act of this year's dramatic TV ratings war.
As the halfway point for the year approaches, commercial networks are rolling out their latest weapons.
The battle has put Seven and Nine head to head against a tenuous backdrop of revolving chief executives, shock axings and inflated salaries.
Seven's move in securing the US ratings hits Desperate Housewives and Lost has paid handsome dividends.
This helped knock Nine from its dominant "still the one" position for five of the 13 weeks in the official ratings schedule.
Under severe pressure from the Seven Network, Nine - now with industry warhorse Sam Chisholm at its helm - has fought back to win the past six weeks.
To spearhead its resurgence, Nine will relaunch Australian television's most successful quiz program, Sale Of The Century.
After a three-year hiatus, the hit show will return to the small screen tomorrow night with a new moniker: Temptation.
Fresh-faced hosts Ed Phillips and Livinia Nixon will front the revived favourite - complete with its familiar buzzer tones - on weeknights at 7pm.
"We've certainly got a number of big guns to come in 2005, and at the forefront of the roll-out is our most significant launch, Temptation," Nine program director Michael Healy told The Sunday Telegraph.
"Obviously, it was a tougher start to the year than we've experienced in some time, but I think that over the past couple of months we've consolidated our position comfortably as the number-one network.
"We're really very excited about Temptation. The hosts are true stars, the format is contemporary and it has lots of new elements."
The move to revive Sale Of The Century is indicative of Nine's return to the proven, reliable programming formula favoured by Chisholm.
Chisholm has also begun negotiations to bring back the axed 15-year hit Burke's Backyard and has reinstated Nine News stalwart Brian Henderson.
But over at the Seven Network headquarters in Pyrmont, Sydney, the programming blueprint is somewhat different.
"We zig when others zag, and we're going to stick with that strategy," Seven's head of programming and production, Tim Worner, says.
The phenomenal success of Desperate Housewives and the cryptic Lost has driven Seven towards a new offering of unique drama with a twist.
Last Man Standing, a local production about the lives and loves of three Aussie blokes, is "unlike anything we've done before", Worner says.
"Last Man Standing is something completely different. Audiences have told us this is what they love."
The series, which premieres on June 7, will star 31-year-old Rodger Corser in his first leading television role.
Network Ten is banking on the reality hits Australian Idol and Big Brother, plus newcomer Australian Princess. "Ten has one of its strongest second-half schedules in years," programming head David Mott says.
entertainment.news.com.au/story/0,10221,15439943-10229,00.html
By Sarah Grant
May 29, 2005
A DRAMA resurgence, a revived game show and a reality onslaught will fight for centre stage in the second act of this year's dramatic TV ratings war.
As the halfway point for the year approaches, commercial networks are rolling out their latest weapons.
The battle has put Seven and Nine head to head against a tenuous backdrop of revolving chief executives, shock axings and inflated salaries.
Seven's move in securing the US ratings hits Desperate Housewives and Lost has paid handsome dividends.
This helped knock Nine from its dominant "still the one" position for five of the 13 weeks in the official ratings schedule.
Under severe pressure from the Seven Network, Nine - now with industry warhorse Sam Chisholm at its helm - has fought back to win the past six weeks.
To spearhead its resurgence, Nine will relaunch Australian television's most successful quiz program, Sale Of The Century.
After a three-year hiatus, the hit show will return to the small screen tomorrow night with a new moniker: Temptation.
Fresh-faced hosts Ed Phillips and Livinia Nixon will front the revived favourite - complete with its familiar buzzer tones - on weeknights at 7pm.
"We've certainly got a number of big guns to come in 2005, and at the forefront of the roll-out is our most significant launch, Temptation," Nine program director Michael Healy told The Sunday Telegraph.
"Obviously, it was a tougher start to the year than we've experienced in some time, but I think that over the past couple of months we've consolidated our position comfortably as the number-one network.
"We're really very excited about Temptation. The hosts are true stars, the format is contemporary and it has lots of new elements."
The move to revive Sale Of The Century is indicative of Nine's return to the proven, reliable programming formula favoured by Chisholm.
Chisholm has also begun negotiations to bring back the axed 15-year hit Burke's Backyard and has reinstated Nine News stalwart Brian Henderson.
But over at the Seven Network headquarters in Pyrmont, Sydney, the programming blueprint is somewhat different.
"We zig when others zag, and we're going to stick with that strategy," Seven's head of programming and production, Tim Worner, says.
The phenomenal success of Desperate Housewives and the cryptic Lost has driven Seven towards a new offering of unique drama with a twist.
Last Man Standing, a local production about the lives and loves of three Aussie blokes, is "unlike anything we've done before", Worner says.
"Last Man Standing is something completely different. Audiences have told us this is what they love."
The series, which premieres on June 7, will star 31-year-old Rodger Corser in his first leading television role.
Network Ten is banking on the reality hits Australian Idol and Big Brother, plus newcomer Australian Princess. "Ten has one of its strongest second-half schedules in years," programming head David Mott says.
entertainment.news.com.au/story/0,10221,15439943-10229,00.html