Saturday, October 25, 2008

Saturday Night's alright (for something other than television) - Saturday 25 October 2008


Some years ago the major US television networks stopped programming on Saturdays, turning the night over to either sports or rebroadcasts of programs shown earlier in the week (a practice known as repurposing)


While the Australian free to air networks are not there yet it can't be all that far away with no single post 6.30 program drawing in excess of 1 million viewers and several regular draws underperforming.


The biggest dissapointment of the night was the Rugby League World Cup whose delayed telecast attracted a tiny audience even in the northern states where it was shown at 9.30pm. It remains to be seen how the league fares tonight with a better timeslot and Australia playing.


Everything else was movies. As long as the commercial networks treat Saturday night like an afterthought rather than building an audience on the night they'll continue on indefinitely earning these low numbers.

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