GSN May ratings

[CaseyAbell]

GSN's May prime time numbers were rancid. The network stumbled below 200K average households for the first time in a while: 0.3/189K. Comparable numbers from last May: 0.4/207K. April numbers: 0.4/226K.

Based on recent and upcoming schedule changes, it looks like the network has decided to hunker down with hard-core game show fans, pinch pennies, and try to get rich off the niche.  This may be a sensible strategy, because GSN has never demonstrated a sustained ability to appeal beyond the traditional game show audience. (See Race, The Amazing.) But it probably means less-than-awesome audience numbers for the forseeable future.

In what may be a tiny bit of good news on the cable game show front, CNBC barely scraped into the top 50 in May. I can't be sure because separate program numbers aren't broken out, but those DoND reruns are probably the reason for the relatively good performance.

EDIT: In an odd echo of the soap vs. game war from the old days of broadcast dominance, which has been chatted about here lately, Soapnet did 0.6/275K for May. Its household availability is still lagging, but that 0.6 will get the network onto more systems sooner or later.

[Jimmy Owen]

There are only two genres of shows in all of the top 50. Sporting events and kid's shows.  What GSN needs is the NBA package and Sponge Bob.

[dad1153]

Why not bring Bill Cullen's 'Child's Play' from out of the vaults?  Voala, you get a show with cute and precocious kids to appeal to casual people (everybody loves kids!) and Cullen to attract the hardcore game show fans.

[GS Warehouse]

[quote name=\'dad1153\' post=\'122361\' date=\'Jun 24 2006, 01:35 PM\']Why not bring Bill Cullen's 'Child's Play' from out of the vaults?  Voala, you get a show with cute and precocious kids to appeal to casual people (everybody loves kids!) and Cullen to attract the hardcore game show fans.[/quote]
Considering one of these "cute and precocious kids" was Tara Reid, the word "hardcore" wouldn't describe the fans. :-)

/at Sean Combs's 35th birthday party, the paparazzi got all the presents

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'GS Warehouse\' post=\'122375\' date=\'Jun 24 2006, 11:53 AM\']
Considering one of these "cute and precocious kids" was Tara Reid, the word "hardcore" wouldn't describe the fans. :-)
[/quote]
Well, half of it might.

[Blanquepage]

Why not bring Bill Cullen's 'Child's Play' from out of the vaults?

That could make a nice little weekend fixture. It could take the slot currently occupied by Eubanks' Card Sharks. Heh.

--Jamie

[PYLW]

[quote name=\'Jimmy Fiono Coyne\' post=\'122397\' date=\'Jun 24 2006, 05:56 PM\']

Why not bring Bill Cullen's 'Child's Play' from out of the vaults?

That could make a nice little weekend fixture. It could take the slot currently occupied by Eubanks' Card Sharks. Heh.

--Jamie
[/quote]

I must agree, because an hour of Bill Rafferty's Card Sharks may be a bit too much.

[Blanquepage]

I must agree, because an hour of Bill Rafferty's Card Sharks may be a bit too much.

I'm befuddled; are both weekend CS episodes with Rafferty? I've yet to see a single episode since getting back GSN.

--Jamie

[SRIV94]

[quote name=\'Jimmy Fiono Coyne\' post=\'122419\' date=\'Jun 24 2006, 08:44 PM\']
I'm befuddled; are both weekend CS episodes with Rafferty? I've yet to see a single episode since getting back GSN.
[/quote]
When Perry and Eubanks CS rejoin the daytime line-up (whenever that is), Rafferty CS will move from 2:30 ET weekdays to weekend mornings at 9AM ET.  At least so says the Stever.  

Doug

[PYLW]

[quote name=\'Jimmy Fiono Coyne\' post=\'122419\' date=\'Jun 24 2006, 09:44 PM\']

I must agree, because an hour of Bill Rafferty's Card Sharks may be a bit too much.

I'm befuddled; are both weekend CS episodes with Rafferty? I've yet to see a single episode since getting back GSN.

--Jamie
[/quote]

Yes, Beverly's news bit said that Rafferty would be on the weekends for an hour for Card Sharks. I think it should atleast be Rafferty Card Sharks at 9 and his Blockbusters at 9:30...

[CaseyAbell]

Sorry to keep the sweet news coming, but GSN's May performance was the worst in the eighteen months that CableWorld has been publishing the numbers. The network also fell to number 44 of the fifty published networks, its lowest ranking over that time.

Last summer The Amazing Race perked up GSN's numbers, if only for a few months. I don't know if any help is on the way this summer.

The file I've accumulated from the CableWorld numbers does have a few nice surprises for me. Somehow, the History Channel keeps on keeping on, usually landing just outside the top ten basic cablers (13th in May). This is the network that does hour-long shows on earth-moving equipment. And God help me, I watch 'em.

[dad1153]

Interesting article about how all TV networks' median age keeps getting older and older: http://www.medialifemagazine.com/artman/pu...rinter_5638.asp

"UPN had the youngest median age among the Big Six at 31, followed by the WB at 37, Fox at 39, ABC at 46, NBC at 49 and CBS at 52. The median age of all six is 47. Meanwhile, GSN daytime, Fox News daytime and primetime, and CNBC daytime share the oldest median age among basic cable networks, at 65-plus[/u]. The youngest-skewing non-kids networks are music channels Fuse and MTV2 primetime at 18."