TV networks look to shift ratings measurement to seven-day model

Overnight television ratings look set to be dumped in favour of a weekly reporting model.

Seven West Media CEO James Warburton: ‘The UK and US ditched the overnight-only model years ago. We’re a bit slow.’ Picture: Nikki Short

Overnight television ratings look set to be dumped in favour of a weekly reporting model, with Australia’s television networks closing in on an industry agreement to shift to the seven-day schedule in order to capture the growing numbers of viewers who watch “catch-up TV”.

The plan, which would likely inflate the audience numbers of the network’s prime-time shows by between 20 and 40 per cent, would overturn the decades-old practice of overnight ratings reports.

The urgency of the proposal — The Australian understands that the majority of free-to-air broadcasters are keen to have such a model in place by next month — comes as audiences continue the shift away from linear TV in favour of catch-up television services including ABC iview, 7plus, 10play and 9Now, and subscription services such as Kayo and BINGE.

Chief executive of Seven West Media, James Warburton, who is spearheading the push for ratings reforms, said it was “silly” for the industry to downplay its own product by releasing audience figures that are well shy of the number of viewers that a program might eventually attract over the course of a week.

“It’s not the full picture,” Mr Warburton told The Australian.

“TV viewing has fundamentally changed, and the overall audience picture is very, very different to what it is when you look at the overnight audience data.

“We are still operating on a system that puts out the smallest possible number for the industry every single day. So what I’ve proposed to the industry, and I’m working this through with all the networks, including the government broadcasters and Foxtel, is that we move to a seven-day reporting cycle.

“The UK and US ditched the overnight-only model years ago. We’re a bit slow.”

Beverley McGarvey, chief content officer and executive vice president of the Australian arm of ViacomCBS, which owns Network Ten, is also in favour of reforming the way ratings figures are reported.

“Focusing on a seven-day reporting model is much more reflective and captures the true size of the live and playback television audience watching. It is also an important step in delivering the confidence and transparency that advertisers, marketers and sponsors require,” she said.

But Steve Molk, co-creator and senior editor at industry website tvblackbox.com.au, said he believed it was a risky strategy.

“There is a portion of the television-watching community — not to mention other media outlets — who love to know what the daily ratings numbers are. It gives people a sense of knowing what the rest of the community is watching, and people like to be a part of that.”

In the past five years, audiences for Broadcast Video on Demand (BVOD) have doubled, while subscription services such as Foxtel have enjoyed exponential growth over the same period.

In June, a new data measurement program, Virtual Australia (VOZ), will be introduced, which will calculate viewers across linear TV and BVOD and thus provide the industry with all-screen, cross platform audience numbers.

Mr Warburton said it made sense to introduce a seven-day ratings reporting cycle to coincide with the rollout of VOZ.

“Hopefully we’re not far away from industry consensus,” he said.

OzTAM, the official source of measurement, is owned by the free-to-air networks. If the stakeholders agree to reform the way TV ratings are reported, OzTAM will shift accordingly.

Nine and the ABC declined to comment on the reforms.