BARC Ratings: Sony stays ahead despite a poor week for sports genre

All-time record medal haul by India at the Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang, Test series in England and the traditional audience base for WWE content has failed to sustain the sports genre audience on Indian television. Sony Sports Cluster though continue to be the market leader in spite of a sharp decline in the audience during week 35 (August 25 to 31) of the Broadcast Audience Research Council ratings.

Sony Ten 3, the screen for Hindi language programming and live broadcast of the England-India Test series and the Asian Games, has held onto the number one position. However, gross impressions for the week have fallen to 125,983,000 – almost a 35% decline from 197,824,000 impressions in the previous week. Sony Ten 1, the English language platform for the Test series and Asiad feeds, too has lost significant eyeballs in the No. 2 position. Except for the decline in viewership, there has been no change in the Top 5 channels’ list.

Cricket and WWE content on the Sony Sports Cluster platforms have topped the Top 5 chart for sport genre shows. Not surprisingly though, when the Indian athletes were hunting medals at the Asian Games cricket and WWE action remained first choice the audience.

The sports genre ratings over the next week are likely to plunge down further. The three days of cricket will have the audience data for the Southampton Test, when India has crashed to defeat and allow England an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-Test series, and the first day of the insignificant Test. There will be no other significant action as the last two days of the Asian Games, which concluded on September, had no significant action for the Indian audience.

Also Read: BARC Ratings: Cricket, WWE consolidate Sony leadership; No big numbers for Asian Games