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THE Ten network is encouraged by its first week of ratings for its new high-definition sports channel, One, although the figures show humble and inconclusive beginnings.
The highest-rating program for the week was the AFL panel review show One Week At A Time, which attracted 59,000 viewers.
This compares with subscription TV's own AFL panel show, Fox Sports' On The Couch, which averages about 60,000-70,000 viewers each week, and Nine's Footy Classified, which had 242,000 viewers across three markets on Monday night.
Yet Ten's AFL coverage of the Easter Monday match or Saturday matches (Ten's night telecast averaged 655,000 viewers this weekend and its Easter Monday match 681,000) is likely to have attracted far more viewers to the HD start-up than any other program this week.
But in instances of such dual programming (where the network broadcasts matches on both One and Ten), the figures are combined and the One audience will not be released.
One's raw figures, on the surface, are weak.
Saturday night's first IPL Twenty20 Cricket match averaged an audience of 54,000, a figure which compares to a normal result for late-night English Premier League telecast on Fox Sports.
Some IPL matches on the Ten network last year drew between 200,000 and 300,000 viewers.
Nevertheless, One's initial audience reach promises to place it ahead of ABC2 and ahead of any subscription TV channel.
Among surprising good performers for the week for One were Tread BMX with 53,000 viewers (and 41,000 in repeat) and Poker: Asia Pacific Tour with 45,000.
This week's audience figures will give networks a far better idea of One's audience against subscription television's Fox Sports, ESPN and Setanta Sports as FA Cup semi-finals, key English Premier League matches, the NBA play-offs and as more IPL matches are broadcast live.
Source: The Australian
