Audience Results - Television

While funding results in this annual report illustrate activities in the 2014-2015 fiscal year, audience results reflect the most recently completed broadcast year, specifically, 2013-2014.

Overall English-language Viewing Trends

Canadian vs. foreign programs

Domestically-produced programs accounted for 40% of full-day viewing in English-language television, up three share points from previous year, and a five-year high. During peak-viewing hours, 38% of English-language television viewing was devoted to Canadian programming, up four share points from the previous year and also a five-year high. This growth is attributed primarily to the Sochi 2014 Olympic Games and FIFA World Cup broadcasts, which are classified as Canadian programming in the Numeris audience database system.

CMF-funded genres vs. other genres

Overall viewing to English-language programs (both domestic and foreign produced) in the four CMF-supported genres (Children’s & Youth, Documentary, Drama and Variety & Performing Arts) dropped two points to 40% for full day, a five-year low dating back to 2009-2010. The share to CMF-supported genres’ peak-hour viewing hours dropped one point compared to the previous year to 45%, also a five-year low.

CMF-funded programs vs. non-funded Canadian programs

When examining full-day viewership to Canadian programs in only the CMF-supported genres, share to CMF-funded programs dropped one point from the previous year to 53%. In peak-viewing hours however, CMF-funded programs rose by one share point to a 59% share, setting a five-year record and a seventh-straight consecutive year of growth.

Overall Viewing of English-language programs in CMF-supported Genres

CMF-financed English-language programs posted 5-year highs in total viewing hours as well as share of viewing during peak periods. However much of this growth is being fueled through significant increases in hours of CMF content scheduled, primarily as a result of corporate group consolidation and exploitation across multiple assets. As evidence of this trend, the volume of CMF-funded content available across conventional, specialty, and digital services has grown consistently over the past 6 years. In 2013-2014, total hours of CMF programming scheduled was 26% higher than in the previous year.

In Children’s & Youth, the share of full-day viewing to CMF-funded programs dropped by three share points to 32%, lowest in 3 years, while viewing to non-CMF Canadian programs increased by five share points to 9%.  In peak viewing hours, viewing to CMF-funded programs declined by two share points to 45%. An overall softening of audiences to CMF-financed projects, especially among returning series, appears to be primarily responsible for the decline. Despite the drop in CMF-funded share, the total share to domestic Children’s & Youth programming (CMF and non-CMF funded Canadian) rose to its highest level in five years in both full day and peak hours viewing at 41% and 48% respectively.  

In Documentary, the share of full-day viewing to CMF-funded programs grew by six share points to 23%, highest in 5 years, while viewing to non-CMF Canadian and foreign programs dropped by three share points each. In peak-viewing hours, viewing to CMF-funded programs increased by four share points to 21%, highest in 5 years, while viewing to non-CMF financed Canadian projects declined five share points to 27%. The growth posted here has largely been driven by an exponential increase in scheduled hours of CMF content (up 51% from last year), and primarily from documentary series projects that are being aired across multiple broadcasters within corporate groups.

In Drama, the full-day share of viewing to CMF-funded programs remained stable at 8%, while shares to viewing in peak hours also remained stable at 10%. The stability in share masks however the dramatic increase in hours of CMF-financed content aired, which was up 35% from last year. This suggests a general softening in the average audience per episode of CMF-financed content.

In Variety & Performing Arts, the share of full-day viewing to CMF-funded programs increased by one share point to 20%, while viewing to non-CMF Canadian projects also rose by one share point to 2%; foreign programs dropped two points to 78%. During peak-viewing hours, viewing to CMF-funded programs dropped by one share point to 11%, while viewing to non-CMF Canadian programs rose by one point to 2%.

Top Performing CMF-funded English-Language Programs

The following is a list of the Top 10 English-language programs funded by the CMF which aired during the 2013-2014 broadcast year.  

Eight CMF-funded programs airing in the 2013-2014 broadcast year achieved average audiences of over 1 million viewers. Eight of the top ten programs were from the Drama genre, achieving audiences that ranged from 0.9 to 1.6 million viewers. Two Variety & Performing Arts programs, with average audiences ranging from to 1.1 to 1.3 million viewers, made the Top Ten list.  

The top performing CMF-funded English-language series, Rookie Blue, averaged 1.6 million viewers, followed by Saving Hope also at just under 1.6 million. The top domestic program overall was the CFL Grey Cup at 4.5 million viewers, followed by the NHL Playoffs Round 3 at 3.1 million and The Amazing Race Canada at just under 3.0 million. Other Canadian programs with audiences that out-performed the top CMF projects include Hockey Night in Canada and Masterchef Canada.

By way of comparison, the top performing foreign series in a CMF-supported genre, The Big Bang Theory, attracted an average audience of over 4.1 million viewers during the regular season, while eight other drama series (N.C.I.S., Criminal Minds, C.S.I., Marvel Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., N.C.I.S.: Los Angeles, Grey’s Anatomy, Under the Dome, The Blacklist) delivered over 2 million viewers on average. For added context, the program with the largest audience overall in 2013-2014 was the NFL Super Bowl at 7.3 million viewers.

Source: CMF Research (Numeris) 2013-2014 Broadcast Year, Original Airings Only

Overall French-language Viewing Trends

Canadian vs. foreign programs

Canadian programs continued to account for the majority of viewing in the French-language market with a 60% share of full-day viewing, stable from the previous year.  More significant however is the ongoing trend over the past several years where viewing to foreign programs (both CMF-supported and non-CMF-supported genres) has taken an increasing share of full-day viewing in the French-language market.  In peak-viewing hours, the share of viewing to foreign programs fell by one point to 37% in 2013-2014, although this still represents its second highest share in the past 5 years. 

Domestically produced programs have traditionally dominated weekly schedules of French-language broadcasters.  However, versioned foreign programs are becoming more prevalent on French-language broadcasters’ schedules, with seven versioned foreign projects averaging at least 500,000 viewers in 2013-2014.  While typically drawing less than half the audience of top performing domestic projects, foreign projects have nevertheless posted share gains in the French market at the expense of Canadian-produced programs.

CMF-funded genres vs. other genres

Share of viewing to CMF-supported genres in the French-language market was at 44% for full-day and 43% for peak-hour viewing in 2013-2014. This is down 1 share point each from the previous year, and represents a slow but steady decline in the proportion of viewing going towards CMF-funded genres. The uptick in non-CMF viewing came primarily from amateur and professional sports genres reflecting tuning to the Sochi 2014 Olympics and the NFL Super Bowl.

CMF-funded programs vs. non-funded Canadian programs only

When examining viewership to Canadian programs in CMF-supported genres only, CMF funded programs captured a 49% share of full-day viewing, steady from last year but a fifteen percentage point gain since 2009-2010.  In peak-viewing hours, CMF-funded programs captured a 66% share, also steady from last year but an eighteen percentage points gain from 2009-2010. Changes in the definition of eligible CMF projects to include in-house programming as well as the broadening of the VAPA genre definition, coupled with several marquee VAPA programs attracting record number of viewers have contributed to these significant gains in audience share over the years.

Overall Viewing of French-language programs in CMF-supported Genres

Among French-language programs in the CMF-supported genres, the overall share of viewing to CMF-funded programs was stable from last year in both full day and peak viewing hours. Note that the total amount of CMF-financed programming aired has increased by close to 13% in 2013-2014 compared to the previous year, suggesting that per episode average audiences may have softened.  

In Children’s & Youth, the share of full-day viewing to CMF-funded programs decreased by nine points to 50% from the previous year while viewing to foreign programs grew by an equivalent nine points. In peak viewing hours, the share of CMF-funded programs slipped seven percentage points to 62%. The share to foreign programs grew by 8 points to 34%, due to a much larger availability of new original content including feature length animated films. 

In Documentary, full-day viewing to CMF-funded programs increased by two share points to 11%, while peak-hours viewing to CMF-funded programs also increased by two share points to 15%. Overall, CMF financed Documentaries scheduled during peak-hours attracted 23% higher hours tuned with a 13% increase in episodes aired vs the previous year, suggesting that viewership is on the rise. The increase to CMF Documentaries came from both Other Canadian and Foreign programs, each having lost one share point in both peak and full day viewing.

In Drama, full-day viewing to CMF-funded programs grew by two share points to a five-year high of 23%. In peak viewing hours, share viewing to CMF-funded programs remained steady at 37%, matching its five-year high from last year. Viewing to foreign produced dramas remained relatively consistent during the full day and peak hours, dropping two and one share points respectively. However, viewing levels to foreign projects is still higher than five years ago, demonstrating the general growth in foreign acquisitions versioned for the French-language market.  

In Variety & Performing Arts, full-day viewing to CMF-funded programs grew by three share points to 87%, a five-year high. In peak-viewing hours, viewing to CMF-funded programs increased five share points to a five-year high of 89%. The strong performance in share has been greatly aided by the broadening of the definition of CMF-eligible Variety & Performing Arts, allowing for projects such as La Voix to be counted as a funded project.

Top Performing CMF-funded French-Language Programs

The following is a list of the Top 10 French-language programs funded by the CMF which aired during the 2013-2014 broadcast year.  

All titles on the Top 10 list achieved audiences of more than 1 million viewers, a further seven titles have also met this criterion, bringing the number of CMF programs with over one million viewers to seventeen in total. The top two CMF-financed projects (Bye Bye 2013, La Voix) were also the top projects overall, in any genre, foreign or domestic, in 2013-2014. 

Four of the Top 10 programs were from the Variety & Performing Arts genre, achieving audiences that ranged from 1.3 to 4.1 million viewers.  Six programs on the Top 10 list were Drama projects, with audiences that ranged from 1.3 to 2.1 million viewers. No programs from either Documentary or Children’s & Youth genres made the Top 10 list.

The top performing CMF-funded French-language project, Bye Bye 2013 was watched by close to 4.1 million viewers, while the top performing series, La Voix, was watched by over 2.7 million viewers. By way of comparison, the top performing foreign series in a CMF-supported genre, Du talent à revendre (aka America’s Got Talent), attained on average 719,000 viewers, while six other foreign series (Downton Abbey, Vengeance, Chicago Fire: Caserne 51, Broadchurch, Mildred Pierce, Esprits Criminels) posted audiences of at least 500,000 viewers on average.

Source: CMF Research (Numeris) 2013-2014 Broadcast Year, Original Airings Only