Prime time slump hits early in 2020

Viewer boredom — the fate that befell Seven’s reality programs in 2019 — hit House Rules last night, its second ep of the current series.

After a weak national start on Monday with 1.01 million for the entire program, last night saw the national audience dip under a million to average 935,000, where it will now stay for the rest of the series with perhaps a pick up at the end.

It is what happened to My Kitchen Rules, although the slump was more noticeable. Seven won the night in total people and the main channels from Nine, the ABC and Ten because there was nothing really interesting on after 8pm. When a 5.30pm program like The Chase Australia makes it to number five on the national most watched list, you know it was a crap night of TV (and Nine’s Hot Seat at 5.30pm squeezed into number ten!)

In breakfast, the shift in viewing continues and for the second morning in a row ABC News Breakfast with 394,000 national and 265,000 metro easily moved past Nine’s Today — 379,000/246,000. It was still well behind Sunrise with 590,000 and 348,00.

Network channel share:

1. Seven (27.3%)
2. Nine (26.1%)
3. ABC (18.6%)
4. Ten (17.4%)
5. SBS (10.6%)

Network main channels:

1. Seven (19.3%)
2. Nine (15.9%)
3. ABC (13.2%)
4. Ten (10.6%)
5. SBS ONE (6.2%)

Top 5 digital channels: 

1. 10 Bold (4.3%)
2. Gem (4.2%)
3. 7mate (3.4%)
4. 7TWO (3.1%
5. ABC Kids/Comedy, GO (2.6%)

Top 10 national programs:

1. Seven News  — 2.016 million
2. Seven News 6.30 — 1.870 million 
3. Nine/NBN News   — 1.546 million
4. 7pm ABC News —1.494 million
5. Nine/NBN News 6.30   — 1.448 million
6. The Chase Australia 5.30pm (Seven) — 1.125 million
7. 7.30 (ABC) —1.110 million
8. ACA (Nine) — 1.030 million
9. House Rules (Seven)  — 935,000
10. Hot Seat (Nine) — 854,000

Top metro programs: 

1. Seven News — 1.305 million
2. Seven News 6.30 — 1.215 million
3. Nine News — 1.182 million
4. Nine News 6.30 — 1.090 million
5. 7pm ABC News — 1.047 million

Losers: House Rules

Metro news and current affairs:

1. Seven News — 1.305 million
2. Nine News — 1.215 million
3. Seven News  6.30 —  1.182 million
4. Nine News 6.30 — 1.090 million
5. 7pm ABC News — 1.047 million
6. 7.30 (ABC) — 801,000
7. ACA (Nine) — 749,000
8. ACA 7.30, The Project 7pm (Ten) — 562,000 
9. Ten News First — 524,000

Morning (National) TV:

1. Sunrise: National: 590,000, Metro: 348,000 
2. News Breakfast (ABC, ABC News) — 394,000/265,000
3. Today: National: 379,000, Metro: 246,000 
4. The Morning Show (Seven) —360,000
5. Today Extra (Nine) — 266,000
6. Studio 10 (Ten) — 90,000

Top five pay TV programs:

1. The Bolt Report (Sky News) — 116,000
2. Paul Murray Live (Sky News) — 92,000,000
3. Jones & Credlin (Sky News) — 89,000
4. Credlin, (Sky News) — 85,000