Art & Entertainment

What Do The Rich Watch?

A survey on how the elite surf TV throws up some interesting facts

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What Do The Rich Watch?
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But here is a real surprise—god is big among the moneyed. Channels like Aastha and Sanskar are religiously watched by them. The TRP for such channels among the rich was 2.48 while for the general viewer it was 1.96. Also, most rich homes have more than one TV, making it possible for alternative viewing by different members of the household. So while a youngster may be watching the English Premier League, his parents could be listening to a Baba Ramdev sermon on Aastha.

How are media planners taking the survey? The findings might impact advertising on the general entertainment channels while benefiting niche channels, says Gopinath Menon, senior vice president, TBWA Anthem. "The survey might help news channels as they have been shown in good light. They could use the survey to garner greater shares from the general entertainment channels," he says. Also, he points out, it is clear that cricket money is being wasted. A smart advertiser will now focus his sights on other sports channels.

As far as the TV channels are concerned, the TAM survey has opened a window of opportunity for niche programming. Earlier, poor TRP ratings among the general viewership spelt doom for programmes that did not appeal to the masses. But now TV channels can be buoyant even if they have an upper-class viewership—it's small but has buying power. In the case of news channels, the findings appear to have already sparked off claims and counter claims of viewership. For instance, Times Now has been upbeat about its surprisingly high viewership.

This is the first time the creamy layer is being subjected to a sustained scrutiny as far as their viewership habits are concerned, says L.V. Krishnan, CEO, TAM. "The viewership study was in response to a query often posed by the media industry, namely how different is the elite viewership from the general mass?" says Krishnan. Soon, TAM will cover other metros as well with a similar survey.

This survey will make the golden rule followed by media planners and advertisers undergo a change. While in the past a TV channel got advertising solely based on the number of its viewers, the emphasis today is shifting to who is exactly watching the channel. This, many feel, will help advertisers zero in on the right target viewership.

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