GC TV Numbers at 4.6M

Just like the season the GC numbers although pretty good and for which the other leagues including the NHL would die for, is also down

[url=http://ctvmedia.ca/tsn/releases/release.asp?id=14550&yyyy=2011]http://ctvmedia.ca/tsn/releases/release ... &yyyy=2011[/url]

Here's what I posted in another thread ArgoT:

Grey Cup ratings were 4.6 million.
Not bad, but less then last year.

The fact the NHL had three Canadian teams going head to head with the Grey Cup didn't help.
As I alluded to earlier in this thread.

Cohon should call Bettman and give him the what for on this one.
YOu figure the Grey Cup lost at least 3-500,000 potential viewers to the hockey games.

Grey Cup won't be as big as the Super Bowl because first its on a cable channel.
Second it goes against the NFL, and Canadian NFL fans won't watch CFL.
And lastly Bettman won't schedule games even in Canada on Super Bowl Sunday.

All the above has to change.

what were the numbers last year?

The SB being in the dead of winter picks up so many extra viewers on that factor alone.

6.2 million.

Precisely Earl, there is no competing CFL game when the SB is played and conviently all other leagues are stupid not to play the same time.
I would as there are many fans who would watch instead of the Super Snooze.

Agreed.
Like you and me have been saying, the next TV contract must mandate all playoff and GC games to be scheduled on the main network if TSN retains the rights.
Also, I was going to post but since you partially covered it, how about that low life Eugene Melnyk purposely scheduling his team to play at 5pm in Ottawa and trying to rub it in the face of the CFL.
I hope others have noticed.

Thats right.
It was Ottawa, not Calgary who was the third team.
You figure most people in the three cities watched hockey since they didn't have teams in the Grey Cup.
When you see what the Leafs especially draw for their games, I figure that the NHL games cost the Grey Cup
at least 500,000 more viewers.
Even i was switching to the Leafs game when the football game dragged.
But I see this as a lack of respect to the CFL from the NHL.

They also had no problem not scheduling any NHL games on American Thanksgiving.

The fact this was a western grey cup didn't help. I doubt you had many people East of the Manitoba-Ontario border who were all that captivated with what in honest terms was an inferior match-up. One team has dominated the league for 3 months, the other backed in to the Grey Cup, play a boring style and were overwhelming underdogs.

In a sense, it was fitting. This season was dull. Thus the dull (relatively speaking) ratings. Next year, ratings will be up, provided the level of play is up.

that is a disconcerting drop in viewers and hopefully just a transient blip.

Is the TSN contract up this off season or subsequent to the following season?

From Canada Newswire as well:

  • Fourth most-watched GREY CUP on record; more than 11 million viewers watched some part of the broadcast -
  • Game records an impressive 65 Share in the Vancouver market -
  • Becomes TSN's fifth largest TV audience of all time; online streams increase 65% -
[url=http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/886011/99th-grey-cup-delivers-an-audience-of-4-6-million-viewers-on-tsn-and-rds]http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/886011/ ... sn-and-rds[/url]

what is there to be worried about? Those numbers look just fine to me. Who cares about the NHL or NFL playing. Doesn’t matter. :rockin:

The agreement between the CFL and TSN/RDs was signed late in 2007/early in 2008. It was a 5 year agreement and TSN has the option for a sixth year. 2012 will be year 5 and TSN will definitely opted for another year.

A new agreement should not be in place before the 2014 season. I then expect that it will be for no less than $27.0 millions a year no more $32.0 millions.

With regards to TV numbers for the Grey Cup, they were at 6.1 millions in 2009, 6.04 millions in 2010,including 1.1 millions on RDS and 4.6 millions in 2011,including RDS. Two factors explain this decline of 1.44 millions.They are:

Number 1: The absence of Montreal/the Als have substantially reduce the RDS numbers; while I don't have the 2011 numbers. I am positive that the decline is no less than 750,000 and as much as 825,000. During the Grey Cup game, there were popular programs in Quebec,programs that attracted large audience/high TV numbers.On connait la chanson had: 1,902,000,Occupation double au Portugal had 1,779,000 and Tout le monde en parle had 1,386,000. First was between 19 hours and 20 hours, whereas the other 2, on different stations, were between 20 hours and 22 hours. The Vanier Cup on Friday probably
attracted more vierwers on RDS than the Grey Cup did.

Number 2: Absence of Saskatchewan Riders definitely resulted in decline of no less than 250,000 and as much as 300,000 on TSN.

The decline of numbers has nothing to do with hockey; there are hockey games every Grey Cup.

We must be extremely satisfied with the numbers. The Super Bowl would have to attract roughly 48.0 millions TV viewers,in

the United States to compare with our numbers in Canada,for the Grey Cup.

Richard

The agreement between the CFL and TSN/RDs was signed late in 2007/early in 2008. It was a 5 year agreement and TSN has the option for a sixth year. 2012 will be year 5 and TSN will definitely opted for another year.
now is the option year of the contract at the same monetary rate as the first 5 seasons?

I think Richard has it right, the drop in Quebec viewers was the biggest factor in the decline. It seems RDS drew about 200,000 viewers (if you subtract the 4.4M TSN ratings from the 4.6M overall number). That is pretty consistent with previous Grey Cups, where Quebec numbers are huge if the Als are playing (like last year with 1.1M francophone viewers) but drop off precipitously with an all-Anglo final.

These are very strong ratings in English Canada, but I always find it amazing how many more people watch the Grey Cup each year (11 million this year) than watch the games during the regular season?

All the more reason to try to get two teams in Quebec.

I wonder whether the weather problems in Calgary affected the ratings. There are such a small number of people who have the meters that if even one or two participating households changed their plans it would have an effect on the numbers.

And one in Atlantic Cananda for more viewership.

Yes yours is a good summary Richard.
I agree how the number one reason was the province of Quebec drop of nearly one million.
The other and here in Southern Ontario and especially in Toronto is the lack of an eastern team as yes Winnipeg is still regarded as a western team.
As for your guess into the new TV contract, I hope you are wrong and that it will be close to my figure of $50M.