Spiked: The pod around the quota

What a fuss. Something that has been common practice in Germany for 50 years and in Austria for 22 years is still a cramp in Switzerland: the publication of TV ratings. This data is not insignificant for the advertising industry, as the ratings tell it in which environment it is worth advertising. And in which not. Hundreds of millions of advertising dollars are at stake. This is precisely why broadcasters have long been reluctant to reveal how their programs and their viewers are really doing. At least not if the statement is not nailed down and powdered and routed by the press department. Because while Switzerland is otherwise reasonably rigorous with Pestalozzi pupils, on television every jumping jack is allowed to try his hand at his own show. So much democracy is a must. The result: Sodom, Seich and sometimes even "The Last Judgement".

It was clear that as soon as Mediapulse was able (and allowed) to collect data on how many viewers watched which program, the sabre-rattling over advertising budgets would begin. Programs that don't make the coffers jingle will be abolished without further ado. So what? Quite normal competition, not nice, but normal. And for the benefit of the viewers. They vote on whether they want a show or not with their viewing behavior. It could hardly be more Swiss.
 
What must not be is not
 
The private broadcaster 3+ nevertheless finds so much transparency mean and at the end of March obtained a super-provisional injunction from the Nidwalden High Court that the audience figures collected may not be published for the time being and, above all, may not be passed on to advertising agencies. Reason: Doubts about the measurement method. Of course, one can assume that the broadcaster is disputing the results because the current ratings attest to a massive loss of viewers for 3+. And of course a broadcaster prefers not to make a big deal of this. But doubts about the Mediapulse data are indeed justified. After all, the company introduced a very error-prone system, did not test it in real operation and then pursued an unspeakable information policy. Nevertheless, the last judgment is approaching. And it remains to be seen who the quota bu(h)man is.

Classified audience

SRF was the first Swiss broadcaster to venture forward and publish its audience figures for the first quarter of 2013. "All in all, the figures are stable with the new measurement system," said SRF Director Ruedi Matter with satisfaction. The new formats "Der Bestatter" with 747,000 viewers and "The Voice of Switzerland " with 592,000 viewers (Saturday) were particularly well received, writes the Tages-Anzeiger. Blick, on the other hand, finds: "'Bestatter' top - 'The Voice' flop". Interpretation is a matter of luck. One thing is clear: SRF has viewers, 3+ no longer has many. Incidentally, 909,000 people watched the Lauberhorn race on SRF zwei on January 19, which is an impressive 78.1 percent market share. You can rely on Swiss viewers. If the program is right.
 
Tele Züri also announced its viewer figures: In general, the figures were better than the average for 2012, but a direct comparison was not possible due to the change in the measurement system. In addition, the figures only relate to the "advertising-relevant target group" of 15 to 49-year-olds. And the broadcaster does not yet have any data from its narrowest broadcasting area, the city and agglomeration of Zurich. Well, quota comes from torment.