TV RATINGS: Toronto FC vs Seattle...

[Carts]

Toronto FC vs Seattle...
2:00pm/et - CBC National: 188,000

- - - - Comparable Afternoon - - - -

Phoenix Coyotes @ Detroit Red Wings
2:20pm/et - TSN National: 715,000

Toronto Blue Jays @ Tampa
1:30pm/et - Sportsnet National: 279,000



Carts...

[TheRenter]

c'est bon, non?

[JonO]

My memory is muddy... is that good?

[dag]

The weather was such that people didn't/couldn't go outside, so they stayed in and watched the game?

[yellowfellow]

I left my TV on while I went to BMO.

[MartinUtd]

Wow.. approaching Jays numbers, impressive.

[tfcleeds]

Yeah, seems to me last year most TFC TV ratings were under the 100K mark. So things seem to be improving in that regard.

[ensco]

That is a decent number, probably comparable with last year. Most CBC games last year drew around 100-150K, usually on Saturday afternoons.

On the one hand, viewership numbers are always lower on Saturdays vs Sundays. On the other hand, it was head to head with NHL playoffs and the Jays.

So 188K is not bad (probably exceeding expectations given how bad the news flow for the team had been coming into the game).

[kodiakTFC]

188 is good but we've always done very well on CBC. Our problem is the games on other networks that barely bring in 50k.

[volunteer]

its roughly 9x more people than the number that tune in to watch 'little mosque'. i think its pretty good

[menefreghista]

188,000 is indeed a good number for TFC. But traditionally the teams first game on CBC does well. So the real question is can this number be sustained. In the past 3 seasons ratings dropped as the teams fortunes dropped as well. Hopefully people saw the great 2nd half and they are willing to come back. I bet the number would have been higher had their been less negativity surrounding the team.


its roughly 9x more people than the number that tune in to watch 'little mosque'. i think its pretty good

Really, TFC wishes it even got Little Mosque's worst ratings.

[GuelphStorm2007]

With all the competion at the same time slot I guess 188 000 is good I think. Hell it was just 90 000 less than the Jays game.

[rocker]

i wonder what those ratings would be like if it was a league game between two Canadian MLS sides .. should be more than 188K.

[TFCRegina]

i wonder what those ratings would be like if it was a league game between two Canadian MLS sides .. should be more than 188K.

Probably significantly higher.

[tfc2007]

Battle of Ontario ratings will be high.

... wishful thinking.

[bee dubya]

All TV ratings are up thanks to a new tracking system implemented by Nielsen. It's still great to see TFC getting close to 200K. Hopefully with Vancouver joining MLS next season, we'll see Vancouver/TFC games jump in the ratings.

[Damien]

188k is good i think... a couple years back we were drawing 30k-50k for games?

[troy1982]

188k is good i think... a couple years back we were drawing 30k-50k for games?

200K to 100K is in the area TFC has always gotten on CBC, the viewership is dramatically lower on the other channels though.
RSN was around 50-100K and GOL was around 20-50K I think.

[Macksam]

A Toronto/Vancouver game next season has the potential to bring in 300 000k viewers.

[Blizzard]

its roughly 9x more people than the number that tune in to watch 'little mosque'. i think its pretty good

In reality, if TFC drew as many viewers as Little Mosque, we'd be over the moon not to mention in total shock.

EDIT: ... and I see I'm only FIVE HOURS slower than Menefreghista with this reply.

[Blizzard]

200K to 100K is in the area TFC has always gotten on CBC, the viewership is dramatically lower on the other channels though.
RSN was around 50-100K and GOL was around 20-50K I think.

GOL is of course digital only so a direct comparison probably isn't totally fair.

[volunteer]

Really, TFC wishes it even got Little Mosque's worst ratings.


In reality, if TFC drew as many viewers as Little Mosque, we'd be over the moon not to mention in total shock.



guys chill.

there's still a slight hope the CBC might renew little mosque for a fifth season. if not you'll still have your DVD's and the memories

[Pachuco]

All TV ratings are up thanks to a new tracking system implemented by Nielsen. It's still great to see TFC getting close to 200K. Hopefully with Vancouver joining MLS next season, we'll see Vancouver/TFC games jump in the ratings.

If this is true then that sucks, I was happy to hear we got good ratings. Any idea the % that all TV ratings are up? any way to relate it to the old rating?

[Blizzard]

guys chill.

there's still a slight hope the CBC might renew little mosque for a fifth season. if not you'll still have your DVD's and the memories

Hey, I'm not a fan of the show. I had high hopes in the beginning but it wasn't that edgy humour I'd hoped it would be. I'll always wish success to Canadian programs though. People have to make a living.

... and as for ratings, truth is truth. CBC is probably happy with the 180k number but if it ever hit Mosque numbers, they'd be thrilled. Dragon's Den numbers are beyond contemplation.

[bee dubya]

If this is true then that sucks, I was happy to hear we got good ratings. Any idea the % that all TV ratings are up? any way to relate it to the old rating?

I think the jury is still out on just how much the ratings are up over the old system. The new system was put in place last fall and has caused a lot of numbers to jump, especially sporting events. I think people are still hoping for a year of numbers so they can accurately say what the effect has been on ratings overall.

[Section225]

I wonder what the average number is for games only aired on GolTV....must be pretty low in comparison.

The fact that you can only watch most games on a subscription channel is ridiculous, considering that it significantly impedes the growth of MLS and soccer in general here.:picard:

[menefreghista]

I think the jury is still out on just how much the ratings are up over the old system. The new system was put in place last fall and has caused a lot of numbers to jump, especially sporting events. I think people are still hoping for a year of numbers so they can accurately say what the effect has been on ratings overall.

Chris Zelkovich of the Star throws around a number like a 20% jump in ratings for sports.

I believe the reason for the jump is that they now count sport bars.

[rocker]

I wonder what the average number is for games only aired on GolTV....must be pretty low in comparison.

The fact that you can only watch most games on a subscription channel is ridiculous, considering that it significantly impedes the growth of MLS and soccer in general here.:picard:
Only 7 of 30 games are on GolTV... so that's not "most games" and not "ridiculous".

Given that most of those GolTV broadcasts are at the start of the season, I'm guessing GolTV is a necessity because the other networks are not willing to show TFC games during hockey playoffs.

[bee dubya]

Chris Zelkovich of the Star throws around a number like a 20% jump in ratings for sports.

I believe the reason for the jump is that they now count sport bars.

I believe that's right. The "co-viewing" ie watching at the bar or at your friend's house now gets included in the viewing figures where in the past those numbers weren't reported because they didn't have data for it.

[Pachuco]

Only 7 of 30 games are on GolTV... so that's not "most games" and not "ridiculous".

Given that most of those GolTV broadcasts are at the start of the season, I'm guessing GolTV is a necessity because the other networks are not willing to show TFC games during hockey playoffs.

I don't know how Sportsnet is on Rogers or Cogeco, but on Bell, it's worse then a subscription channel. You have to pay for a separate theme pack that has nothing but Sportsnet, atleast as far as most people are concerned. I'm will to bet if you ask anyone on Bell why they have that theme pack it's because of Sportsnet. That pack is more expensive then GoalTV itself. I know more then one person who will only be watching TFC games on CBC this year. Anyways, not saying you are wrong, but I'm saying that if they want to try and grow the sport then putting it on CBC is probably the best they can do.

[Kilgore Trout]

188,000 is indeed a good number for TFC. But traditionally the teams first game on CBC does well. So the real question is can this number be sustained. In the past 3 seasons ratings dropped as the teams fortunes dropped as well. Hopefully people saw the great 2nd half and they are willing to come back. I bet the number would have been higher had their been less negativity surrounding the team.

.
a bunch of games late in the year last year got over 200,000 on CBC. I remember the RSL game at BMO (last home game of the season) getting around 250,000.

In any case, yeah, let's hope the ratings stay somewhat steady.

[menefreghista]

a bunch of games late in the year last year got over 200,000 on CBC. I remember the RSL game at BMO (last home game of the season) getting around 250,000.

In any case, yeah, let's hope the ratings stay somewhat steady.

Actually, only the RSL game got a rating over 200,000 near the end and that was under the new system. The fact that it was an important do or die game helped the rating.

http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1044479&page=4

Taken from BS, TFC ratings in 2009:

April 4 - Seattle at Toronto: 140,000
April 11 - Dallas at Toronto: 135,000
May 2 - Columbus at Toronto: 261,000
May 16 - Chicago at Toronto: 56,000
May 23 - New England at Toronto: 76,000
June 6 - Los Angeles at Toronto: 100,000
July 18 - Houston at Toronto: 51,000
July 29 - Puerto Rico at Toronto: 25,000 (GOL TV)
- MLS All-Star Game: 41,000 (TSN)
August 7 - Real Madrid at Toronto: 91,000 (GOL TV)
August 22 - Toronto at Chivas USA - 40,000 (Sportsnet)
August 29 - Toronto at Seattle - 85,000 (CBC)
Oct. 10 - San Jose at Toronto - 145,000 (CBC)
Oct. 17 - Real Salt Lake at Toronto - 229,000 (CBC)

Sorry the list isn't comprehensive, but you get the general idea.

[Trax]

Well if they keep playing this way, you might see changes.

[I_AM_CANADIAN]

I think the jury is still out on just how much the ratings are up over the old system. The new system was put in place last fall and has caused a lot of numbers to jump, especially sporting events. I think people are still hoping for a year of numbers so they can accurately say what the effect has been on ratings overall.
How do TV ratings even work?! I've always wondered that. God, what a n00b I am.

[menefreghista]

Well if they keep playing this way, you might see changes.

I don't doubt that at all. If this team started to win consistently and played more attractive football while doing so, the ratings could be pretty good.

[menefreghista]

How do TV ratings even work?! I've always wondered that. God, what a n00b I am.

They work the same way election polls work. Take a survey of a small portion of the country and then extrapolate.

[I_AM_CANADIAN]

Ah... how does it work, though, in terms of how they gather their data? I've never been called on the phone asking what TV shows I watch..

[menefreghista]

Ah... how does it work, though, in terms of how they gather their data? I've never been called on the phone asking what TV shows I watch..

In the past a random selection of people would keep a journal of all the stuff they watched and then they would send it in to Neilsen's (or whoever it is that keeps the ratings).

Now they have an electronic device called a 'people meter' that does the work for them.

[deltox]

some people have a recording box attached to their tv....it sends the info to a company

so there wasnt that people watching the game....thats just what they figured it was based on the sample they had.


no...people do not know what your watching on TV

[TFCRegina]

Really, TFC wishes it even got Little Mosque's worst ratings.

Just gotta say it...that show is terrible.

[fergiejr]

I gotta say that I am pleased with the airtime that TFC is getting. Before the game on Sunday they were talking about the Reds' game that afternoon on the Edge. I also heard it on Q107 on Friday morning, and on Monday they talked about the win.

I didn't hear anything on any FM stations that I listen to (edge, Q107) last year at all, and now it's all over the place.

This is exactly what we need to expand the knowledge of the MLS.

[menefreghista]

Didn't want to start a new thread for this, but the game against RSL had a measly 25,000 rating.

http://thestar.blogs.com/sportsmedia/2010/05/tfc-22000-in-ontario-3000-in-pacific-up-against-hnic-but-really--madani--golf-pga-quail-hollow-championship-final-ro.html

[james]

Didn't want to start a new thread for this, but the game against RSL had a measly 25,000 rating.

http://thestar.blogs.com/sportsmedia/2010/05/tfc-22000-in-ontario-3000-in-pacific-up-against-hnic-but-really--madani--golf-pga-quail-hollow-championship-final-ro.html

not that suprised...saturday night head to head with the NHL and NBA playoffs. I even missed the game and i wasnt watching any sports, i was just hammered at a BBQ that night.

[Ladies Love Julius James]

"As for Toronto FC, who can explain the fact its game against Real Salt Lake on Sunday evening drew a paltry 25,000 viewers. Yes, the game was on only two Sportsnet channels (Ontario and Pacific) and it was up against hockey, but Slap Chop infomercials draw better than that."


hahahahaahahahaha

[gtaguy]

Didn't want to start a new thread for this, but the game against RSL had a measly 25,000 rating.

http://thestar.blogs.com/sportsmedia/2010/05/tfc-22000-in-ontario-3000-in-pacific-up-against-hnic-but-really--madani--golf-pga-quail-hollow-championship-final-ro.html


In defence of these paltry numbers i have to say that not alot of people have digital cable and if this game was aired on a basic channel the number of viewers would have been much much greater.. I had to stream this channel for my father and a few of my cousins becuase they don't suscribe to digital tv.

[Cowboy905]

ok a couple factors here.

Sure, TFC is creeping up to Jays numbers....but Jays was on Sportsnet and TFC was on CBC. CBC is a OTA network available in every home in Canada. Sportsnet is a cable channel that doesn't have the same household penetration.

If the jays were on CBC, those numbers would be way higher.

regarding the ratings spikes. Up until last year Nielsen used a Set Top Box where users logged in with their password and the box documented what they were viewing.

as of August 31st 2009, Nielsen switched to a new method called PPM (Personal People Meter) it's a pager that each member of a household wears and gets taken everywhere the person goes. it gets docked at the end of the night and downloads to Nielsen.

what does this mean?
in the old system, it tracked the one users viewing habits. In the new system, if dad is watching the game, then he's being counted, if mom is in the room or in the kitchen but the tv is loud and can be heard, she's being counted too. If the game is on in a bar and someone has the pager on them, they are being counted.

one thing to keep in mind is that, the program doesn't register if the volume is turned down. there absolutely has to be volume.

I work in Broadcast Advertising Sales so Nielsen and ratings and audiences are my language.

[gtaguy]

ok a couple factors here.

Sure, TFC is creeping up to Jays numbers....but Jays was on Sportsnet and TFC was on CBC. CBC is a OTA network available in every home in Canada. Sportsnet is a cable channel that doesn't have the same household penetration.

If the jays were on CBC, those numbers would be way higher.

regarding the ratings spikes. Up until last year Nielsen used a Set Top Box where users logged in with their password and the box documented what they were viewing.

as of August 31st 2009, Nielsen switched to a new method called PPM (Personal People Meter) it's a pager that each member of a household wears and gets taken everywhere the person goes. it gets docked at the end of the night and downloads to Nielsen.

what does this mean?
in the old system, it tracked the one users viewing habits. In the new system, if dad is watching the game, then he's being counted, if mom is in the room or in the kitchen but the tv is loud and can be heard, she's being counted too. If the game is on in a bar and someone has the pager on them, they are being counted.

one thing to keep in mind is that, the program doesn't register if the volume is turned down. there absolutely has to be volume.

I work in Broadcast Advertising Sales so Nielsen and ratings and audiences are my language.


if i am right.. and i didn't drink alot that night i do believe that the game was on rogers sportsnet which you actually have to have a digital box.. If the general public had the chance to view the game without having to purchase additional channels the ratings would have been much larger. I stand to be corrected here if im wrong..

What about online streams.. are they considered just pirate tv or do they actually take them into account.footy fans will find the easiest and best way to watch a match.. which leads me to believe that footy followers are the most intelligent and most knowlegeable fans of any sport..

[Blizzard]

In defence of these paltry numbers i have to say that not a lot of people have digital cable and if this game was aired on a basic channel the number of viewers would have been much much greater.. I had to stream this channel for my father and a few of my cousins because they don't subscribe to digital tv.

You don't need digital cable to see Sportsnet Ontario.

[shwade]

You don't need digital cable to see Sportsnet Ontario.

It wasn't on Ontario, it was on East and 1 other one.

[menefreghista]

It wasn't on Ontario, it was on East and 1 other one.

Um, yes it was on in Ontario. This was the MLS match v. RSL from last Saturday.

You are confusing this with the Voyageurs Cup game against Montreal. That game wasn't shown in Ontario.

And you do not need digital cable to get Sportsnet Ontario.

[Commie Red]

one thing to keep in mind is that, the program doesn't register if the volume is turned down. there absolutely has to be volume.

I work in Broadcast Advertising Sales so Nielsen and ratings and audiences are my language.

That's very interesting Cowboy. Thanks.

I knew the new "people meters" were being carried around by select people (oddly, I have never met one of these "Nielson families" nor met anyone who has ever met one) -- but I didn't realize that the volume on the TV sets mattered.

I'm surprized, therefore, that this has resulted in such large jumps in viewership. From my experience, unless there's a game in which absolutely everybody in the pub is there to watch (EPL on a Saturday morning, Canada gold medal hockey game, Grey Cup, etc) the sound is generally off in the places I drink. In fact, last night everybody in the pub I was at was watching the Habs v Penguins but none of the sets had the volume up.

I'm wondering, how is this "volume data" analyzed? Does the general din of a busy pub effect the ratings, etc? (Google is not helping me here).

[fetajr]

digital cable boxes in everyone's homes should be relaying back viewing information everytime a user flips a channel...its easy for them to do, i'd be suprised if they didn't

what can't be grasped are satellite receivers since all they do is receive.

[Commie Red]

I'm wondering, how is this "volume data" analyzed? Does the general din of a busy pub effect the ratings, etc?.

Hummm... I just found something that explains that these "portable people meters" detect hidden audio tones within a station or network's audio stream. Interesting...

I can see how this might effect the ratings of more marginal sports. You go to the bar with a few friends and ask for one television set to be switched to the MLS game while everybody else there watches hockey. Not only is your viewing not registered but because of the hidden audio tones emitted from the other sets you are counted as watching hockey. But I'm sure greater minds than mine have examined and dismissed this little hiccup in their carefully crafted methodology.

[Cowboy905]

it's been discussed and it is a hiccup. But, it's still 1000% more accurate than the old system.

as for digital boxes relaying info back everytime you flip the channel, that will never fly. Privacy advocates would shit all over that. Plus, how would it know if it's just you in the room (adult 25-54) or you in the room with your gf (woman 2554) or with your son (teen 12-17)

not sure if you guys watch the weather network or CP24, but if you do, you may notice text scrolling on their screens now saying "volume down? you're only getting half the news!" because they've seen huge drops in ratings as a lot of people watch that stuff with their TV's muted.

Every channel has a coded audio signal that the human ear can't detect. it sends out the signal to the people meters, so that it doesn't interfere with noisy pubs.

it's not a perfect system, but its much better than what it was. Ideally, the perfect system would be stats sent in everytime you flipped a channel, instead of using sample sizes for each demographic.

also, these People meters are only in Toronto, Calgary, and Vancouver. Every other market is still on 3 and 4 week diaries each of the 4 seasons. Example being in Edmonton, you fill out a journal of what you're watching and what time....it's terrible methodology and will eventually change all over to PPM (portable people meters)

back to ratings and audiences though, you'll ALWAYS see higher numbers on the Over the air channels like CBC, CTV, Global rather than sportsnet as Sportsnet is a specialty channel where you need cable or satellite to get.

[Inklink]

188 is good but we've always done very well on CBC. Our problem is the games on other networks that barely bring in 50k.

Yet they keep putting games on Gol TV.

[menefreghista]

Yet they keep putting games on Gol TV.

This isn't necessarily on purpose. Gol TV takes all the games that CBC and Sportsnet don't want. They've essentially replaced the leftover games that the Score use to show.

TFC would love it if CBC was willing to broadcast every game.

But CBC is only really interested in weekend afternoon games. Sportsnet only really wants games if they don't conflict with their other programming (particularly the Jays).

[Blizzard]

This isn't necessarily on purpose. Gol TV takes all the games that CBC and Sportsnet don't want. They've essentially replaced the leftover games that the Score use to show.

TFC would love it if CBC was willing to broadcast every game.

But CBC is only really interested in weekend afternoon games. Sportsnet only really wants games if they don't conflict with their other programming (particularly the Jays).

Exactly. Instead of being upset that Gol is showing TFC games, we should be bloody grateful that Gol exists in order to show us the TFC games that Sportsnet and CBC don't want ..... otherwise we'd be watching games on The Score with opposition broadcasters as we did in year one and two.

I'll take Gol thanks very much.

B

[menefreghista]

Exactly. Instead of being upset that Gol is showing TFC games, we should be bloody grateful that Gol exists in order to show us the TFC games that Sportsnet and CBC don't want ..... otherwise we'd be watching games on The Score with opposition broadcasters as we did in year one and two.

I'll take Gol thanks very much.

B

Don't forget Bold. I remember having to order that a few times in the first couple of seasons to make sure I could get all TFC games. It costs the same as Gol TV, but without all the other awesome content that channel provides.

[Blizzard]

Don't forget Bold. I remember having to order that a few times in the first couple of seasons to make sure I could get all TFC games. It costs the same as Gol TV, but without all the other awesome content that channel provides.

And that was an internal CBC decision. They already had the rights to those matches but when conflicts came up, they shifted us. Blame CBC in that case, not the club.

Thankfully we don't have to worry about that anymore. :D

[Borga]

More people have digital cable now than not... Penetration rates with most providers are exceeding 60-70%. And the satellite guys are all digital, so people not having digital cable is no longer a valid excuse.

[Cowboy905]

it's a very valid excuse. not all channels are carried by all distributors....and a lot of people have digital cable boxes but don't have the upper tiered channels. also, 60-70% also means that a full 30 or 40% still AREN'T getting the games.

Conventional is King is until Canada makes switch from Analogue to Digital requiring everyone to have a Box.

[Carter]

The CRTC has set August 31, 2011 as the deadline for over-the-air television broadcasting in Canada to move entirely to digital transmission.

Most of Canada is already Digital....

[rdroze]

The move to digital over-the-air still only affects the over-the-air part. It doesn't imply anything about the many channels that are currently only available via the digital distributors.

In September 2011, when Joe Schmo from Nowhereville finally heads down to Canadian Tire to buy that digital converter box for his 20-year-old CRT, he's not going to have any more channels than he did when he just had analogue. Is GolTV going to suddenly start broadcasting over-the-air? I'm not so sure.

[JonO]

I'm not sure, but I think cable companies still have to send out the analog signals, so it's not just OTA. That being said, I agree - specialty digital channels are not going to be broadcast OTA as a result of this change.

[menefreghista]

Is GolTV going to suddenly start broadcasting over-the-air? I'm not so sure.

I'm fairly certain that Gol TV wouldn't eve be allowed to broadcast over the air even if they wanted to.

Unless they wanted to go to the CRTC and ask for a new license.

[Blizzard]

I'm fairly certain that Gol TV wouldn't eve be allowed to broadcast over the air even if they wanted to.

Unless they wanted to go to the CRTC and ask for a new license.

You're right.

[Canary Canuck]

Don't know if it was posted yet but I read earlier today on Zelcovich's star.com sports media blog that last week's loss at Salt Lake drew only 25,000 viewers.

[Cowboy905]

specialty can't broadcast over the air, there's not enough spectrum for it. Once all the conventionals go Digital, expect to see another massive spectrum auction by the government.

i can't remember exactly, but apparently 1 digital station (standard def) takes up about 5% the bandwidth an analogue channel takes up on Cable.

as for that 25,000...that number is TINY