Every minute counts in breakfast TV wars between Sunrise and Today
New figures reveal viewers of breakfast TV shows Sunrise and Today spend more time watching one show than the other. So which pair of hosts wins out when it comes to keeping viewers switched on in the mornings?
Entertainment
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The breakfast television war has taken a new twist with Sunrise and Today locked in a battle over which can keep viewers watching longer.
New figures show each Sunrise viewer watches an average of 54 minutes of David Koch and Samantha Armytage on weekdays.
That beats Today where viewers average 49 minutes watching hosts Karl Stefanovic and Allison Langdon each weekday.
Media analyst Steve Allen said those extra minutes meant extra advertising dollars for Seven in the competitive breakfast TV slot.
“Audience engagement — on top of viewer numbers — is one of the biggest talking points in the modern media landscape,” Allen said. “Advertisers and their agencies really consider time spent watching, particularly at breakfast where people often dip in and out.”
Sunrise is already well ahead when it comes to viewer numbers. In 2020, it averaged 295,000 across the five capital cities and 503,000 nationally.
Compare that with Today, which has averaged 181,000 in the five cities and 322,000 nationally.
Another area where Sunrise dominates is reach, with an average of 2.1 million Aussies watching at least some of the show each week. Today’s reach is 1.55 million.
“In breakfast television, every minute counts,” Sunrise executive producer Michael Pell said.