BENGALURU: Numero uno is the position that Sun TV holds in Broadcast Audience Research Council’s (BARC) weekly television ratings for the top 10 channels across genre across in India for age 2+ almost throughout the year. The only exception so far has been during the IPL weeks that the highly cricket hungry Indians consume the dominant channel that airs that mega event. Last year it was Sony Max. Now back to Sun TV – besides the across genre weekly lists, the channel has headed BARC’s weekly ratings for top 5 Tamil channels in the Tamil Nadu/Puducherry markets. This was also the case in week 9 of 2018 (Saturday, 24 February 2018 to Friday, 2 March 2018) – as usual, the Sun TV Network’s flagship Tamil GEC channel topped BARC’s list of top 10 channels across genre, as well as BARC’s list of top 5 Tamil channels. And also, as has been a norm, all the five top Tamil programmes during primetime in week 9 of 2018 were aired on Sun TV. But at the same time, the channel’s ratings have been dropping and the gap in ratings between it and the second-ranked channel in the top 10 across genre channels has been narrowing.
Overall, the combined ratings of the top 10 channels across genre declined by about 2 per cent in week 9 as compared to week 8 of 2018. One Tamil channel, two Hindi movies channel and seven Hindi GEC channels made up BARC’s list of top 10 channels across genre. Week 9 of 2018 has seen a bit of a shakeup of sorts for BARC’s list of top 10 channels across genre. Three channels each from Sony Pictures Network India (SPN) and Star India, two channels from Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (Zeel) and one channel each from the Sun TV Network and Network 18 made up the list of the top 10 channels across genre during the week under review.
As mentioned above, Sun TV topped the across genre list, though with lower ratings of 895.453 million weekly impressions in week 9 of 2018 as compared to the previous week’s 958.551 million weekly impressions. Sun TV was followed by SPN’s women-focused FTA Hindi GEC Sony Pal which climbed up two ranks with 757.432 million weekly impressions. The channel had scored 682.137 million weekly impressions in the previous week. Sony Pal was also ranked one in BARC’s list of top 10 Hindi GEC channels list for week 9 of 2018 in the all India urban (U) and rural (R) Hindi speaking markets (HSM). The long-running crime show CID on Sony Pal was among the top 5 Hindi programmes and Balveer and Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah were also among the top 5 Hindi GEC programmes during primetime in HSM (R).
Trailing very close behind Sony Pal at third rank with a difference of just 4000 weekly impressions in week 9 of 2018 was Star India’s FTA Hindi GEC Star Bharat with 757.428 million weekly impressions. Star Bharat was ranked second in the top 10 Hindi GEC channels in HSM (U+R) and HSM (U) and was ranked third in HSM (R) in the week under review. Star Bharat was ranked second in the top 10 channels across genre in the previous week with 762.407 million weekly impressions.
At fourth rank in week 9 of 2018 was Zeel’s FTA Hindi GEC Zee Anmol with 686.766 million weekly impressions as compared to the previous week’s third rank and 715.586 million weekly impressions. The Balaji Telefilms produced family soap Kumkum Bhagya on Zee Anmol was among the top 5 Hindi GEC programmes during primetime in HSM (U+R) and HSM (R). Another soap Ganga that had been aired on the channel was among the top 5 Hindi GEC programmes in HSM (R).
SPN’s Hindi Movies channel Sony Max climbed up to fifth place in week 9 of 2018 with 562.587 million weekly impressions. The channel had been ranked tenth in the list with 507.975 million weekly impressions in week 8 of 2018. The channel also topped BARC’s lists of top 5 Hindi movies channels in HSM (U+R) and HSM (U) and was ranked fifth in HSM (R). The magnum opus Bahubali – The Beginning was among the top five Hindi movies programmes during primetime in HSM (U+R) and HSM (U) in week 9 of 2018. Other movies that were aired on Sony Max – Sultan and Kanchana 2 were among the top 5 Hindi movies programmes HSM (U) during the week under review.
Zeel’s Hindi GEC Zee TV was ranked 6 in week 9 of 2018 with 551.884 million weekly impressions as compared to the previous week’s rank 5 and viewership of 600.766 million weekly impressions. Kundali Bhagya, a spinoff of Kumkum Bhagya, which also aired on the channel, topped the list of top 5 Hindi GEC programmes in HSM (U+R) and HSM (U). Kundali Bhagya, which also aired in Zee TV, was among the top 5 Hindi GEC programmes in HSM (U+R) and HSM (U).
Another Star India FTA Hindi GEC channel Star Utsav climbed up a rank to seventh place in week 9 of 2018 with 536.603 million weekly impressions as compared to the previous week’s 543.582 million weekly impressions. Network 18’s flagship Hindi GEC Colors was ranked eighth with 508.570 million weekly impressions as compared to the previous week’s rank six and 574.408 million weekly impressions.
Another SPN Hindi movies channel Sony Wah, which entered the top 10 channels across genre list was ranked ninth in week 9 of 2018 with 592.512 million weekly impressions. Sony Wah was ranked first in HSM (R), ranked second in HSM (U+R) and ranked fifth in HSM (U) lists for top 5 Hindi movies channels in week 9 of 2018. Hindi feature film Yevadu 2 was among the top five Hindi movies programmes during primetime in HSM (U+R) and HSM (U) and HSM (R). Another HFF – Shivaji the Boss, which was aired on the channel, was also among the top 5 Hindi movies programmes during primetime in week 9 of 2018 in HSM (R).
Star India’s flagship Hindi GEC Star Plus was ranked tenth in week 9 of 2018 with 497.433 million weekly impressions as compared to the previous week’s rank 7 and 573.432 million weekly impressions. Another Balaji Telefilms produced soap – Yeh Hai Mohabbatein, which aired on Star Plus, was among the top 5 Hindi GEC’s in HSM (U) during the week. Star Plus was also ranked third in HSM (U) during the week.
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