Ten announces shake up for Wake Up, denies it is losing its differentiation
Wake Up is to change its format with news presenter Nuala Hafner to leave her Melbourne news desk to join Natarsha Belling and James Mathison in the Manly studio.
The move is another attempt by new executive producer Steve Wood to revive Ten’s struggling breakfast program, which according to Fusion Strategy has averaged just 34,000 viewers in the official survey year to date.
It is another shift away the format established by former EP Adam Boland, who quit in January for health reasons, after the network quietly scrapped local news tailored to every state earler this year, with a spokesman telling Mumbrella: “it was not resonating with viewers”.
The network had sought to differentiate Wake Up from rivals Sunrise on Seven and Today on Nine based not only on its Manly beachside studio setting, but with its local news offering and Hafner being based in a studio overlooking Melbourne’s Federation Square, avoiding making it solely Sydney-centric.
The move was first reported on TV Tonight.
However, a Ten spokesman denied suggestions bringing Hafner into the studio now meant Ten was just mirroring their rivals.
He said: “No, Wake Up is clearly different to Sunrise and Today, and continues to offer an alternative for breakfast TV viewers. Our research shows Nuala Hafner is extremely popular with viewers.
“Having her on set in Sydney will improve the interaction between Nuala, Natarsha and James, and increase the appeal of Wake Up. Obviously we will retain the Wake Up studio in Melbourne’s Federation Square; it remains an important part of the program and will be used for news stories, interviews, etc.”
The breakfast program has struggled with its on-air chemistry with the network axing presenter Natasha Exelby just 16 days after its launch.
Ten said there was still a number of features which differentiated it from its rivals. “The points of difference are many, ranging from the obvious – that is, the beachside location of the main Wake Up studio, the hosts of the show, the regular guests on the show and so on – to the more subtle in terms of how the show is constructed and paced,” said the spokesman.
Fusion Strategy’s Steve Allen said Wake Up and its Mornings counterpart, which has managed a slightly better performance with an average audience of 42,000, were both struggling badly in the ratings. Both Sunrise and Today regularly break the 400,000 viewer mark.
“It is going nowhere and has done nothing in the ratings,” said Allen. “It has got an audience and Studio 10 has got a bigger audience but both have been successfully repelled by the incumbents. It is very difficult to break into an area well truly occupied by two competitors slugging it out.
“Ten’s problem is that it doesn’t know how to compete head-on in this particular area. They need a competitor to be weak and they’re not.”
A spokesman for Ten said they were not looking at replacing the show adding: “There has been no discussion about ‘putting something else in the timeslot’. In terms of audience targets and timeframes, clearly that is not something we would discuss publicly.”
Nic Christensen
Steve Wood “brought in to revive the show” suggests Channel 10 believes it had a pulse to begin with. They obviously didn’t see DOA written in the sand at Manly Beach.
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“Ten said there was still a number of features which differentiated it from its rivals.” The main one being that the others have audiences.
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34,000 viewers is approximately 10% of what Today and Sunrise regularly rate – around the 300,000 mark. How is anyone expected to differentiate against established opposition of decades, when what they are serving up is so poor. Steve Wood would need a southerly at his back and 10 will give it another 3 months and then see you later. I feel sorry for the staff trying their best to execute such a flawed strategy.
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This is why you fail Channel 10. You persist with shows that don’t go anywhere in the ratings. Nine and Seven would not hesitate to axe a show that performs as badly as Wake Up. If you are to ever going to be a serious competitor again, then you have to show some ruthlessness!
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How much money has Ten thrown at breakfast TV in the past few years with little/no real return?
Maybe they need to bring back Bert and GMA (could not do any worse)
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NEW Ch10 DAILY SCHEDULE
6.00am – 8.30am – ZZZZZZZ
( 2 ½ hrs of Shots of the News Limited Newspapers Pages . )
Hosted by ANDREW and GINA.
8.30am – 10.30am – SCIENCE IS CRAP
Hosted By Christopher Monckton
10.30 – 11 00 – CLIMATE CHANGE IS CRAP
Hosted by Tony Abbott and Ian Pilmer
11.00 am – 6.00 pm – THE IPA HOUR.
Hosted by The Commissioner of Free Speech
(Hey ! If speech is free, we are going to make sure we get more of it than anyone else.)
6.00pm – 7.00pm THE RIGHT NEWS
Hosted by Ray Hadley
7.00pm-7.10pm PRIME MINISTERS NIGHTLY ADRESS TO THE NATION
4.00pm – 6.00pm The BIGOTS LOSER
Hosted by George Brandis and Alan Jones
6.00pm – 7.00pm THE AGE OF ENTITLEMENT
(Never Ending Mini – Series )
7.10pm – 8.00pm SO YOU THINK YOU CAN PRANCE
Hosted by Christopher Pyne.
8.00pm – 9.00pm THE FAMILY
Hosted by Cory Bernardi
9.00pm – 10.00pm THE RELIGION HOUR
Hosted by Kevin Andrews
10.00pm – 11.pm MONEY MATTERS
Hosted by Arthur Sinadinous
11.00pm -6.00am LIVE FEED OF FOX AMERICA. LTD. INC.
Hosted by The KOCH BROS.
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James Mathison could do with time to show some talent that he is hiding very well . 10 sees it but everyone else is guessing. What could it be the 34,000 viewers wonder…???
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