How much do ratings change from Preliminary to Adjusted numbers?
Why the numbers you read in the morning are not always the full picture.
- Published by David Knox
- on
- Filed under News, Top Stories
How much do TV show ratings change from Preliminary figures to Adjusted numbers?
Overnight ratings by OzTAM are Preliminary, coded according to their original broadcast time.
But sometimes shows have late changes, particularly those surrounding Live events, which will entail an adjusted number reflecting their actual broadcast time.
Last week, for example, a number of shows were adjusted from their Preliminary figure to their actual broadcast number.
Bones was originally scheduled on Sunday July 3rd, but only screened in Perth due to a late change for Wimbledon. On Nine The Voice Live also ran overtime, impacting on 60 Minutes.
Here are some of the top movers in last week’s shows, as they appeared in OzTAM daily top 20s.
| Title | Preliminary* | Adjusted* | Difference* |
| Bones | 323,000 | 36,000 | -287,000 |
| 60 Minutes late | 720,000 | 526,000 | – 194,000 |
| Sunday Night | 740,000 | 640,000 | -100,000 |
| The Chaser’s Election Desk | 655,000 | 644,000 | – 11,000 |
| Have You Been Paying Attention? | 803,000 | 793,000 | – 10,000 |
| NCIS | 724,000 | 715,000 | – 9,000 |
| Mad as Hell | 677,000 | 670.000 | – 7,000 |
| Getaway | 492,000 | 485,000 | – 7,000 |
| The Voice | 1.00m | 993,000 | -7,000 |
| Criminal Minds | 550,000 | 544,000 | – 6,000 |
| Love Child | 726,000 | 719,000 | – 5,000 |
But there were some shows that increased their audiences too.
| Title | Preliminary* | Adjusted* | Difference* |
| House Rules Winner Ann. | 1.19m | 1.25m | +60,000 |
| Nine News Sun | 1.26m | 1.28m | +20,000 |
| Border Security Int. | 368,000 | 380,000 | +12,000 |
| House Rules Grand Final | 1.14m | 1.15m | +10,000 |
Of course, these numbers only represent the first stages of a show’s life cycle in data. There are also updated figures for 7 day and 28 Timeshifted viewing, plus a separate number for video plays.
Here is an example of how some of those shows have fared in 7 day Timeshifted viewing:
| Title | Preliminary* | Timeshifted +7* | Difference* |
| Love Child | 719,000 | 896,000 | +177,000 |
| House Rules Winner Ann. | 1.25m | 1.32m | +70,000 |
| MasterChef Australia Sun | 936,000 | 1.00m | +64,000 |
| Have You Been Paying Attention? | 793,000 | 852,000 | +59,000 |
| The Voice | 993,000 | 1.05m | +57,000 |
| Home and Away (Mon) | 754,000 | 811,000 | +57,000 |
| House Rules Grand Final | 1.15m | 1.2m | +50,000 |
You can read more Timeshifted reports here.
© OzTAM Pty Limited 2016. The Data may not be reproduced, published or communicated (electronically or in hard copy) without the prior written consent of OzTAM.
* includes rounding.
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- Tagged with 60 Minutes, Bones, The Voice, Wimbledon
4 Responses
I had no idea “have you been paying attention” was so popular. Good for those guys!
Just shows how the practice of running shows like the Voice and the like late artificially inflates shows that air after them to the point where they end up in the top 20 when they really shouldn’t. As most people look to, and react to first preliminary overnight ratings, that’s the figure they remember and have no regard for adjusted, consolidated etc…
Headlines are definitely geared to preliminary. For instance, if I wrote a headline that last week’s episode of Offspring just got another 50,000 (for example) who would click on it? Networks know perception is important, and on occasions run a show overtime to inflate another’s figures -especially at debut. Sometimes networks reach out to tell me a show’s figure will go up, but never to say it will go down. Transparency is kinda rare.
Interesting stats, thanks for sharing.