Season six ratings

[Penguin]

Didn't see a thread for this already, so...

Just posted: Also:

(C) VARIETY

'Stargate' Levitates for Sci Fi
Tue Aug 27, 4:10 AM ET
By John Dempsey

NEW YORK (Variety) - The Sci Fi Channel's "Stargate SG-1" is averaging
the best series ratings in the history of the network and stabilizing
its Friday-night lineup of original series.

Sci Fi has scheduled original episodes of "Stargate" Fridays at 9 p.m.
since June 7, following the network's purchase of the rights after the
series had completed a five-year run on Showtime.

For the 10 episodes through Aug. 18, "Stargate" has averaged 1.32
million households, making it the seventh highest-rated scripted
series in all of basic cable. The Richard Dean Anderson starrer does
even better in adults 18-49, averaging 1.063 million, good for fifth
place overall.

And last Friday the summer finale of "Stargate" harvested 1.588
million homes, or a 2.0 rating, the best household performance for a
one-hour episode of a series in Sci Fi's history.

With repeats of USA Network's "The Dead Zone" Friday at 8 and the
original series "Farscape" at 10, "Stargate" has become Sci Fi's
tentpole for the night. "Farscape" is averaging only 958,000
households (a 1.2 rating) for the same 10 weeks, but its adults 18-49
number is a gaudy 913,000.

Shot in Vancouver, the f/x-dependent "Stargate" costs producer MGM a
strapping $1.3 million an hour to make. The series goes into rerun on
Sci Fi until January, when another 11 original episodes will be
available for scheduling.

-thanks to simon for the tip

From: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sg1_spoilme/

 

[Rowan]

ratings

It's nice to see things finially begin to climb, but it's also the right time of year for it. Mid-summer is always hard on ratings - most folks would rather be out on a Friday night than stay home and watch TV.

Rowan

 

[webmouse]

Except, of course, for us world-weary types who want nothing more on a Friday night than a cold beer (cold cider for me ) and easily available escapist entertainment. So there we are with SciFi Channel from "Dead Zone" through both runs of "SG1" and "Farscape" right up to 1am.

Now I'm curious as to what SG1 SciFi will be running before finishing S6 in 2003.

 

[Jobeth]

I still say that 1.58 million household viewers for a heavily promoted, prime-time episode isn't all that impressive when you consider that some of the 2 year old eps, on their THIRD syndication run have gotten 2.4 million households to tune in. Especially when you consider that syndicated eps tend to be run at odd hours and suffer from a lack of promotion.

(Yes, I know that the Scifi Channel is only available in about 75% of the USA. However, that translates to about 1.98 million of the known syndicated viewers having access to the Scifi Channel.)

I also question the wisdom of a 5 month hiatus now that the show is finally picking up steam in the ratings. I've read posts from former Farscape fans who gave up on that show because of the split seasons. I think there's a real danger that the less than dedicated Stargate fans might lose interest in the interim.

 

[CynVision]

I suppose they're just stoked to get near to all the SF fans that exist in the US which have SciFi Channel cable to watch it each week. Just pleased to have more people watching on the "free" cable channel than the "premium" Showtime.

Showing stuff in the summer has long been non-traditional TV practice. The common wisdom was that you did not do it because your main audiences are:
off on vacation,
off at camp,
out enjoinging the summer nights on the front stoop.

It's impressive they got so many eyeballs to view when competing with so much real-life going on. Conversely, someone at SciFi Channel may have said that early September is equally unsettled with everyone coming back from vacation, going back to education, competition with atheltic finals, various holidays all autumn pulling people on the road again, maybe watching OTHER CABLE SHOW PREMIERES in the fall (it might be seeming they'd lose some viewers to the Saprannos or something else, or they've done us a favor not having to stress which to tape first), and again sitting outside enjoying the last breath of summer. But there has to be the upside of having a captive audience from October to Feburary. Most of the TV shecduling used to be based around this "in-home entertainment" "boob-tube" "couch potato" "dark and stormy night" concept. And, for kids, the new fall lineup sure made going back to school a less bitter pill.

January is too far away. Unless the PTB (bless their creative hearts) just plain welcome a chance to work "in peace" without constant criticism from us board posters nit-picking their way through the season. We have rare praise for anything they do. The last three eps have not rocked anyone's boat by any means, so they'll feel they're on the right track. By January they'll be 80% done with all the episodes (I think some of the following eps will have aired in the UK by then and so some people will have seen downloads of a few upcomming eps...) and they can sit back and watch the fur fly secure in the knowledge they did what they wanted, as they wanted to, without bending to fan pressure.

 

[Penguin]

Ratings are totally subjective, as I've seen fans bicker about them so much I usually avoid the threads. You can spin 'em whatever way you'd like. The ratings are for advertising dollars only, when it comes down to it. If they say that xxx amoutn of people are watching the show, they can charge for ad space accordingly.

As to TPTB being left in peace, they can work in peace if they choose to avoid spending too much time online. Amazingly, it's what producers always did before the internet came along

 

[HeyLynny]

Showtime really lost out by giving up Stargate. Oh well...sucks for them. But, I like SciFi better anyway...so yeah! Now "SciFriday" has new meaning!


Webmouse...I also look forward to SciFi Friday night (with a bag of microwave popcorn!!!) It is my way of winding down from the work week.