Will the Olympic glow help Today beat Sunrise?
The Olympics are over but Nine is still going for Gold by stretching out the celebrations well past the finish line.
Not surprisingly, the Olympics were a smash success for Nine, with a whopping 19.5 million Aussies tuning into the broadcast over the two weeks across Channel 9, 9Gem and 9Now.
By the end of the first week, 17.5 million viewers had tuned in, with the second week reaching 16.6 million Australians – with an average of 9.9 million each day.
The highest rating session was on the second day, when Mollie O’Callaghan and Ariarne Titmus both qualified for the semi-finals of the Women’s 200m Freestyle. This drew 5.741 million to tune in, with an average audience of 2.3 million.
Where this has arguably been of most value to Nine is in the perennial fight for TV breakfast viewers.
Throughout the entire two-week run of the Olympics, Today in Paris outrated Sunrise each day – which has held the top breakfast spot for two decades. During the second week, Today in Paris hovered between a total audience of 1.7million and 2 million each day, with average audiences sitting between 640,000 and 740,000, ramping up as the week progressed.
Sunrise drew a steady audience, starting at 975,000 total reach and an average audience of 371,000 on Monday August 8, and ending the week on 940,000 and 379,000 respectively.
But, has the post-Olympic glow remained for Today?
Tuesday night saw 60 Minutes: Our Heroes of Paris reach 1.423 million, with a national average audience of 455,000 – so Nine are still winning Gold for their post-Olympics coverage. But Tuesday morning saw Sunrise back on top, with 1.02 million viewers and an average audience of 417,000. By comparison, Today drew 892,000 and 338,000.
Wednesday morning saw Today broadcasting the return of the Australian Olympic team, so it’s possible we’ll see another bump when those ratings are released this morning. And if not – Nine still have another ace up their sleeve.
In the words of Michael Healy, director of television for Nine: “Bring on the Paralympics in two weeks’ time!”
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Nathan Jolly is the Features Editor at Mumbrella. He joined the team in July, 2023.
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Just wondering what is the definition of “whopping 19.5 million Aussies tuning into the broadcast over the two weeks across Channel 9, 9Gem and 9Now.”
I’m guessing that means that they watched at least once in the two weeks, which is fair. But how much time did they need to watch to be counted? Were they skipping through for a few seconds or maybe something more likely at least a 5 minute period?
Just wondering if anyone knows.
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They just need to have tuned in for 15seconds.
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