Writer’s strike affects television ratings…

With the writer’s strike now behind us, the television world is turning its focus to the toll it took on their advertising and upcoming sweeps.

Viewership on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox was down nine percent during the first four weeks of the year compared with 2007. “The strike has definitely had a detrimental affect on the ratings,” said Marc Berman, an analyst for Mediaweek. “All of the shows that people watch every week and they are into aren’t there anymore.”

CBS has taken the hardest hit with a 22 percent drop in audience from the same time last year, and is closely followed by ABC, which is down 14 percent. Although the writers strike is now over, the lag in production means it may be April before new programming will return.

With an eleven percent decrease in primetime ratings since the end of summer ‘07, advertisers are rethinking there strategies. With nothing on TV, audiences are turning to their internet for entertainment.

While television ratings are plummeting, newspaper website viewership is increasing. Newspaper websites average more than 59 million visitors each month and is continuously growing. In the fourth quarter of 2007, 39 percent of all active Web users visited newspaper Web sites, with visits averaging 44 minutes a month. Users generated more than three billion page impressions on average, a 7.3 percent increase over the same period a year ago.

“ Newspapers continue to successfully transform themselves into multimedia companies, offering unparalleled content that reaches an audience growing in both size and sophistication,” said NAA President and CEO John F. Sturm. “As our industry’s transition accelerates, it is clear consumers recognize newspapers as their trusted source of information in an increasingly digital environment.”

Resources:
NAA Press Release, January 24 2008
Nielsen Media Research January 28-February 3

This monthly newsletter is a service provided by Customized Newspaper Advertising. For more information on the newspaper advertising industry, please contact Leslie Earp, CNA Marketing & Research Manager at cna@cnaads.com.

To unsubscribe, please send an e-mail to cna@cnaads.com and your name will be removed from our subscription list.

ARCHIVES: VIEW PAST ISSUES OF IREACH