Industry News Item
TiVo (remember them?) released a report about the current state of television watching which shows that while overall spending on television services is trending down, time spent watching has trended up. Here’s some of the findings with my thoughts:
The average number of paid services (this includes cable/satellite packages, virtual ‘cable’ packages known as vMVPDs like Sling and YouTube TV, and subscription VOD services like Netflix) dropped from 7.6 in Q4 2022 to 6.9 in Q2 2023, while average number of non-paid services (ad-supported VOD or free ad-supported television (FAST) like Tubi and Pluto TV) showed a steady increase over the course of a year from 3.1 in Q2 2022 to 4.0 in Q2 2023.
Brief aside - whenever a streaming service increases prices I often read complaints about how “streaming is just as expensive as cable!” and “it’s a pirate’s life for me!”, arguments I find as disingenuous since people don’t have to keep subscribing to every major streaming service every month. This might be blasphemy since I’ve made my career working for streaming services, but if you haven’t watched a streaming service in a while because the content doesn’t currently interest you then cancel your subscription. And while Internet edge lords proudly proclaim that you can just pirate content, the fact of the matter is that for the vast majority of consumers piracy is not easy, at least not easier than signing up for Max or Disney+. As long as streamers make sure that their user experience is better and easier than piracy they will keep the lion’s share of eyeballs looking for content.
THAT SAID, it’s clear that television watchers are continuing to be more cost-conscious and there’s more competition out there than ever before. I’ve said it before, there are generations of humans who have grown up with linear, ad-supported television so it’s no surprise to me that AVOD/FAST services are gaining ground. This is reflected not only in the AVOD/FAST category growing by 6% but also in the 7% decrease year-over-year in consumers spending time watching content using a traditional pay-TV cable/satellite service. These eyeballs aren’t all shifting to virtual MVPDs because the growth during the same time period was just 1%, making it clear that the rest likely contributed to the growth of time spent with AVOD/FAST offerings. Likewise when TiVo broke down how people watch live TV for cord cutters, 60.1% of people do so using vMVPDs but that decreased by 2% YoY while AVOD/FAST grew by 5% to 21.4%*.
This is where I think services like Max and their parent company WBD is playing a dangerous game with their removal of content and licensing it instead. Sure, they make money doing so, but why would consumers who primarily consume basic cable content pony up $19.99/month for Max when they can watch Westworld for free with ads on the likes of Freevee or Tubi, along with a large catalog of content they are already used to watching like classic sitcoms and police procedurals? Keep your eyes on the AVOD/FAST space in 2024 and beyond, as I think it will continue to grow its share of the television market at the expense of SVOD.
Take Star Trek Out Back and Shoot It
Since this is the first Friday of 2024 let’s talk about the phenomenon of what is known as the “Friday night death slot”, the perception that when a network television show either premieres or has its timeslot moved to Friday nights the show will inevitably be cancelled. But is this perception accurate?
The truth, as always, is more complicated. There have been numerous shows since the explosive growth of television in the 1950s through the present day that aired on Friday evenings that were subsequently cancelled, many of them having previous seasons scheduled on other weekdays. One of the theories supporting the idea of a “death slot” on Friday (and to a similar extent, Saturday) night was that young and single Americans would be out of the house Friday evenings and in the days before VCRs, DVRs, and next-day streaming, time shifted viewing wasn’t possible so naturally ratings would be lower for programs airing Friday nights.
One of the more notable early examples of the “Friday night death slot” was with Star Trek (1966-69). The 1966-67 season aired on NBC Thursdays at 8:30pm, and during the course of that first season overall ratings dropped. However, since networks had just started incorporating demographic information into their cancellation/renewal decisions, Star Trek had favorable ratings in certain demographics NBC was targeting such as younger, comparatively wealthier viewers (the types with more disposable income to spend on the products of NBC’s advertisers), however the 8:30pm slot meant that not as many youth viewers were staying up or allowed to stay up to watch it. The 1967-68 second season was moved to Fridays at 8:30pm, and actually did better than expected ratings-wise. Again, demographics came partially** to the rescue, as Star Trek continued to attract the types of viewers NBC wanted and the show also did better when compared to a number of other NBC series that season.
The show was renewed for a third season for 1968-69, with the original intent to move it to Mondays at 8:30pm, however this would have necessitated that Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In (1968-73) would have to start a half-hour later at 9:30pm, which infuriated producer George Schlatter, so the (boneheaded) decision was made to move Star Trek to Friday nights at 10pm instead. This prompted Trek creator Gene Roddenberry to exclaim "If the network wants to kill us, it couldn't make a better move”. This time slot proved to be too much of an obstacle, combined with further production budget cuts, and so the series was cancelled after its third season. Don’t worry, the franchise got better starting about a decade later.
Other examples of NBC shows to fall victim to the “death slot” include the final seasons of Knight Rider (1982-86), The A-Team (1983-87) and Highway to Heaven (1984-89). Series that launched their first seasons on Fridays sometimes found them to be their last, including Constantine (2014-15) and Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005).
This phenomenon occurred on other broadcast networks as well - CBS had a slew of one-and-done series on Friday nights in the 1970s including Calucchi’s Department, Roll Out!, Planet of the Apes, and Dirty Sally cancelled in 1974, Sara and Spencer’s Pilots in 1976, Code R, Hunter, and Nashville 99 in 1977, and sci-fi film spinoff Logan’s Run in 1978.
Fox is perhaps the most notorious for the “Friday night death slot” effect - notable series that were scheduled on Fridays and subsequently cancelled after, or in several cased, during their only season include Firefly (2002-03), The Adventures of Brisco County Jr. (1993-94), M.A.N.T.I.S. (1994), VR.5 (1995), Harsh Realm (1999-2000) and Fastlane (2002-03). Other Fox series that were moved to Fridays then cancelled include Prison Break (2005-09), Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008-09), Raising Hope (2010-14), and Sleepy Hollow (2013-17).
But Friday nights weren’t all doom and gloom. Part of the reason many of these series failed on Fridays is because there were very popular shows and programming blocks on other networks that simply outperformed their competition. From 1989 to 2000 ABC had a very successful block of family-friendly sitcoms under the ‘TGIF’ banner, including big cultural hits like Full House, Perfect Strangers, Family Matters, and Step By Step. During the 1980s CBS had a one-two ratings knockout on Fridays with nighttime soapy dramas Dallas and Falcon Crest, the former having the all-time most watched non-finale ep of all time with the second part of the “Who Shot J.R.?” storyline. Even Fox had a long-running Friday night hit with The X-Files.
So back to my original question - is the “Friday night death slot” a thing? Based on the available evidence, I’d have to say yes, although with broadcast shows now appearing on streaming services the next-day and time-shifted viewing being accounted for when looking at ratings I’d argue that a move to Friday nights isn’t always the death sentence it used to be. But if I were a showrunner I’d sure as hell not want my series anywhere near Friday nights, just to be safe.
Go Watch This!
Sherlock Holmes (1984-94) - I remember my parents letting me stay up late (8pm) to watch this show on the Disney Channel (!), back when at night they switched programming to attract the grownups. This series stars Jeremy Brett in the title role, and for many his portrayal of the famous fictional sleuth is the definitive article, and it’s difficult not to argue against that. From the first ep, an adaptation of “A Scandal in Bohemia”, all the Holmesian pieces are there - amazing deductive powers, his ability to change his appearance with makeup and wardrobe, a very competent aide in Dr. Watson, and even reference to Holmes’ drug habit. If you’ve become a Sherlock fan due to more modern performances such as Robert Downey Jr., Benedict Cumberbatch, or Johnny Lee Miller, you owe it to yourself to check out Jeremy Brett’s take on the character - you won’t regret it. Available to stream on BritBox and on physical media
Northern Exposure (1990-95) - Someone has been reading my posts because this great series is now streaming! Check out this classic fish out of water tale set in my home state, and if you dig it make sure to pick up a physical copy. Available to stream on Prime Video and on DVD
M.A.N.T.I.S. episode of “Set Your VCR” - The very first podcast episode Coulter and I did was on this example of Fox mashing that cancellation button. We watched and compared both pilots; yes, this show had two pilots and still got cancelled. Also I get real tired real quickly of typing M.A.N.T.I.S. with all the periods. Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts
Thanks for reading!
*11.3% reported they use an antenna to get free TV and the YoY change was zero percent, which is bonkers to me that this percentage is so low seeing as decent antennas are cheap, and if you invest in an over-the-air DVR like from the likes of HDHomeRun, Tablo (which I own), or even the old stalwart TiVo you can get your live TV needs met while also being able to record and watch content on your own schedule; y’know, kind of like streaming?
**As with the first season there was a letter writing campaign that pushed NBC to renew, however the campaign was much larger this time, surprising NBC execs