End of the telenovela boom soon?

ZDF wants to do without further telenovelas in the future, as the market is obviously saturated. This was reported by the industry magazine Werben und Verkaufen on Tuesday. After the ratings flop "Tessa - Leben für die Liebe" (Tessa - Life for Love), ZDF does not want to show any more telenovelas in the early evening or in the afternoon. Apparently, there are not enough viewers who want to watch a daily afternoon series on a regular basis. ZDF program director Thomas Bellut admitted that the potential for telenovelas had been overestimated. ZDF had had a huge success in 2004 with "Bianca - Wege zum Glück" and had expected a sequel. This expectation has now turned out to be a mistake. The sequel "Julia - Ein Leben für die Liebe" will continue to be broadcast, while the third ZDF telenovela "Tessa" will be shortened by 100 episodes. It will also be moved from 2.15 p.m. to a slot shortly after midnight from May.