English Entertainment
Fox wins the season in 18-49 demographic
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MUMBAI: Buoyed by the success of its music based reality show American Idol, US broadcaster Fox got its first ever win for a TV season in the 18-49 demographic. This age group is highly sought after by advertisers and Fox came out on top for the September 2004-May 2005 season. |
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CBS scored its third consecutive victory in the total viewers column by a comfortable margin. American Idol took the top spot in the top 10 shows of the season in the 18-49 age group. ABC’s Desperate Housewives was next. What is interesting is that Fox started the season on a bad note. Its reality show The Next Great Champ fared so poorly that it was quickly shipped off to Fox Sports.
At the start of the season another flop for Fox was The Rebel Billionaire. Hosted by Richard Branson, the Rupert Murdoch owned broadcaster had been hoping that the show would prove to be a rival to NBC’s The Apprentice. The race to win the 18-49 category was close. Early projections showed that Fox was slightly ahead of CBS in that group by one-tenth of a demo rating point (4.1 versus 4.0), according to data from Nielsen Media Research. Third-place ABC (3.7) was been bolstered by Desperate Housewives and the medical soap Grey’s Anatomy. NBC lost 19 per cent of its viewership in the 18-49 demographic. One show that did not work was The Contender. Its failure along with Fox’s previously mentioned Next Great Champ puts a question mark over the future of sports based reality shows.  Speaking of The Contender, another big loser on the boxing reality show was Japanese auto giant Toyota, which had shelled out a whopping $ 16 million as part of a product placement deal. |
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The 2004-05 TV season went out with a bang when the two-hour season finales of Fox’s American Idol and ABC’s Lost drew a collective average of 51 million viewers to broadcast television. Another notable feature during the season was that the sitcom continued its decline. ABC cancelled its show 8 Simple Rules. It lost 43 per cent of its viewership in the 18-49 age group. NBC‘s Will And Grace lost 38 per cent of its share because there was no Friends lead in. NBC suffered the blows of losing Friends at the same time that viewership of other established programmes on its schedule took a dive in the ratings. The situation was very different in August 2004 when the network was doing well with its coverage of the Athens Olympics. During the recently concluded season even established shows like Law And Order struggled in the face of competition from CBS’ ratings winner CSI: NY and ABC’s Desperate Housewives. With The Apprentice suffering from viewer fatigue with a 37 per cent drop in viewership, the hospital drama ER ended up being NBC’s top-rated programme overall. It came in at number nine as far as ratings for the season in the 18-49 age group was concerned. Meanwhile, as far as the May Sweeps are concerned CBS won for total households, with an 8.8 rating and a 15 share, while Fox won the 18 to 49 segment with a 4.5 rating and a 13 share. One show that benefited from American Idol is the show that immediately follows it on Fox – the medical drama House. The question for the other broadcasters is how they will counter the Idol effect next year. ABC is said to be moving Lost into that slot. |
English Entertainment
ZEE5 UK partners Narrative Entertainment to add UK channels
Six FAST channels added as platform sharpens hybrid play in Britain
LONDON: ZEE5 UK struck a first-of-its-kind deal with Narrative Entertainment, bringing mainstream UK television channels onto an Indian streaming platform as it pushes to deepen its footprint in a crowded, mature market.
The partnership adds six of Narrative’s FAST channels to the service, including Great! Movies, Great! Romance, Great! Mystery and kids brands POP, Tiny Pop and POP UP, widening ZEE5 UK’s appeal across genres and age groups.
The move reflects a clear shift in strategy. ZEE5 UK is betting on a hybrid model that blends on-demand content with curated, always-on channels to drive discovery and increase time spent on the platform.
“This partnership represents a meaningful evolution in how we serve audiences in mature markets like the UK, where viewers are defined by habits, convenience and choice rather than geography or language alone,” said Parul Goel, territory head, Europe, Zee Entertainment. “By bringing trusted mainstream UK channels together with our premium originals, movies and kids’ content, we are building a more consumer-centric platform that simplifies viewing while increasing depth and relevance.”
Fateha Begum, commercial director, Narrative Entertainment, said the tie-up would fuel growth for both sides. “Our portfolio of quality programming, with such wide and enduring appeal, is a perfect complement to ZEE5 UK. This is a strong partnership that will support growth for both parties, and we share Zee Entertainment’s vision of an increasingly partnership-led future for the industry.”
ZEE5’s global library spans over 4,000 films and more than 500 originals, with over 130 new titles added annually. The addition of Narrative’s channels strengthens its kids offering and introduces genre-led linear experiences alongside its on-demand catalogue.
The deal also gives Narrative access to ZEE5 UK’s fast-growing user base, extending reach without diluting brand identity, while reinforcing ZEE5 UK’s network of more than 40 live channels.
As streaming wars intensify, ZEE5 UK is widening its playbook, blending content, convenience and partnerships in a bid to win screen time in one of the world’s toughest markets.
