Kirk
Monday 21st August 2006 1:29pm
34 posts
I used to like Big Brother, but now it just bores me.
But, I can see the need for Channel 4 to have it. BB gets a very high audience share during the typically low summer months... therefore more ad revenue is generated. This means C4 can use the money made from BB to pump into other, higher quality programmes... such as comedy, sitcoms, documentary. I get the impression that new sitcoms (e.g. the IT crowd) struggle initially to gain a big audience share and can take a few series to build momentum. This is where the money from BB comes in: Like a superhero in a ill fitting costume, it supports the new sitcom until it can survive on its own.
This, I believe, is why genius sitcoms like Peep Show can survive despite relatively low audience figures. Sitcoms are integral in building a channel's identity - so even if they do lose bit on direct advertising revenue, at least they're sending out the right message about the channel!