Nine has gone to market reporting its best-ever start to the year with all key demographics and Total People, but a Seven spokesperson has told Mediaweek “Nine’s claims are all over the shop.”
“Its total TV and reach numbers for programs are national, but the audience shares it quotes are metro. Nine cannot have it both ways. Its inconsistent approach is confusing and undermines what story it is trying to tell.
“Seven, on the other hand, has a clear focus and consistent approach: we look at national audience shares, national audience growth and the national performance of our shows.”
Seven claimed that nationally, in the calendar year-to-date, Seven is the fastest-growing network with prime time total TV audience up 6% compared to Nine’s 3%.
“In terms of audience shares, Seven has a total TV share year-to-date of 40% compared to Nine’s 41.9% and Ten’s 18.2%,” the spokesperson concluded.
As the end of Q1 looms at Nine, Michael Healy, director of television, reported Married at First Sight has grown the number of people watching by 3.1% year-on-year to record a Total TV audience of 2.074 million. On BVOD, 9Now stands at 714,000 viewers per episode, up 16.2% from last year. National cumulative reach stands at 12.14 million viewers.
Other key shows for the network include A Current Affair (up 6.5%), Today (up 5.7%), and The Hundred with Andy Lee (up 13.8%).
Healy added: “These results vindicate the commitment from the team at Nine and our partners to deliver content Australians want to watch in greater numbers.”
At Paramount, the broadcaster reported 10 Play as having its biggest start to the year ever, with viewing up 19%. Live stream viewing was up 46%, boosted by the addition of Live with Pluto TV FAST channels.
Paramount also said that February was 10 Play’s biggest viewing month ever, reaching 2.3 million Australians, up 20% on 2022.
Rod Prosser, chief sales officer at Paramount Australia told Mediaweek that the remaining content on the slate to round out the quarter is predicted to continue driving growth.
“We’re now in pole position, ready to race with the F1 in Melbourne and then we’re heading to South Africa for the launch of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!. Our new co-host Robert Irwin joins Julia Morris, a pairing that’s had overwhelming market response, embraced by existing partners and attracting a swathe of new brands to the jungle.
“We’ve seen incredible sponsor uptake for both the F1 and I’m A Celebrity, in all categories, and we’re excited to deliver advertising excellence and market-leading brand integrations that drive results for our partners.
“And we’re just getting started. Our One Paramount strategy is about to go to the next level with the addition of Paramount+ ad tiers giving our partners even more utility to connect with younger audiences across our powerful content ecosystem.”