Viewers are switching off the TV because the content is awful, not because of summer

In the 1990s, people were sick of unrealistic soap operas so the reality TV show genre grew.  It started with the Survivor series which is still going today and has moved far beyond that to cooking shows, home renovation shows and other mindless reality TV.

The newspapers such as Melbourne's Herald Sun and the networks are asking where the viewers have gone?  They attribute the poor viewing to summer saying that people typically stay outside and don't watch TV during the warmer months when the daylight hours are longer.  I however completely disagree that summer is why the viewers are leaving.  Viewers are ditching television because honestly, it's not worth watching.

Why would you watch a show about someone doing up their homes when you could renovate your own home or hang out with friends, or online?  Why would you watch mindless reality TV when you could download programmes from overseas websites?  And why would you watch TV when the quality is so poor and appalling?

I broadcast on Twitter a few days ago that I haven't owned a TV in eight years.  So how does one live without a TV?  It's simple really.  I get all my news online.  Back in 2001 only 37% of households in New Zealand had access to the internet.  I was in that 37%.  That compared with 80% in 2012.  The statistics are very similar in Australia with 37% of households having access to the internet.  In 2012 that number had more than doubled to 83%.

Given the high internet usage in both Australia and New Zealand one might wonder why we even need a television these days.  Unlike other mediums, computers in whatever format - desktop, lap top, tablet, mobile phone (yes, mobile phones are included because today they're more computer than telephone), can do so much more.  One minute on a computer you could be writing an article, the next you could be watching your favourite TV show or movie or reading some news.  Computers are a multi faceted device.

Given this, is it any wonder that TV viewership rates are declining?  Not really, especially when the Australian networks receive television content months after it has screened overseas and when there huge amounts of ads.  in a 6 minute period you're looking at around 14 minutes of advertising time.  Why would you watch TV when you could either download from a site like Netflix or when you could just wait for it to be released in the iTunes or Google Play store?  It's a no brainer really.

Sadly the networks, like mainstream news organisations don't understand that by producing cheaper content they're actually shooting themselves in the foot.  If you want viewers to watch so you can charge a premium for advertising then you must deliver a quality product.  The executives at television networks seem to think that people have nothing better to do with their time than watch mindless rubbish.  This isn't true, and could partially explain why people spend more and more time on their computers/phones/tablets.  Computers etc offer a more interactive experience and you can choose exactly how you use it, without being dictated to by someone else's timetable and what they deem worthy of watching......A prime example of this is The Bachelor, but even the newspapers have jumped on the bandwagon with the Black/Sam/Louise saga gaining traction following the end of the show.  Even if you didn't watch the programme, you may be drawn into reading the drama unfold.  It's being told as a soap opera, so that begs the question, why aren't people commissioning genuine soap operas anymore?  If you want the viewers to come you have to deliver content they want to watch.

Until the networks start delivering new worthwhile viewing, the statistics are going to continue to decline until television eventually dies in its current format.  Will dramas become episodic movies/films, that are watched online or will TV find its way again?  I'm not sure to be honest.  I think it depends on the programmers and if they start listening to what the public wants, because it's not reality TV.  Reality TV has been done to death and the networks need to start producing in house dramas and comedies.

Until they do, more and more people, like me, who hasn't owned a TV in eight years, will switch off.