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Foxtel: Free to Air networks “didn’t think Gogglebox would fly”

Brian Walsh recalls how networks reluctant to show footage from a competitor, have missed out on having a hit series.

Free to Air Networks were reluctant to get on board with Foxtel for Gogglebox, now one of the biggest hits for both LifeStyle channel and TEN.

Yesterday at the Australian International Documentary Conference, Foxtel’s Brian Walsh was responding to a compliment from SBS exec Joseph Maxwell who said the show was genius for the way it looked at topics through a new lens.

“When I spotted Gogglebox a couple of years ago, without mentioning the network because it wasn’t yours, Australian networks I spoke to dismissed it,” Walsh replied.

“They didn’t think it would fly. Australian television is often known as the ‘O.K. Corral.’ They couldn’t imagine that an Australian network would ever show product from a competitor.

“In fact that was the very attraction to us… the opportunity to show our product, our titles, on a second run window.”

6 Responses

  1. “Hi, here’s a program that includes clips from your competitors shows and may satirise your own shows, are you interested? OK, it’s probably suited to TEN, the lowest rating network, who are getting beaten by the opposition anyway and whose viewers have decided to watch TEN instead.”

  2. So they think of it as getting some of their stuff in front of a wider audience … and we think of it as seeing exactly how terrible some of their stuff is without having to watch it.

    Win-win!

    Maybe just once we’ve seen something on Gogglebox & said “we should watch that”, but every week we see many things that make us say “I’m glad we don’t watch that ….”

    1. Same here. Most of the programs on TV are just awful. I certainly don’t want to waste my time watching other people comment on them, even if occasionally some of those comments are humorous or insightful. Might as well read YT comments.

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