Are television companies getting lazy?

[Ashley Hill]

Many companies such as UKTV, That’s,E4 and also the lesser ITV and BBC channels are continuously repeating the same programmes over and over again. For years now U & Gold has repeated the same shows to the point of insanity. Take weekends, not one goes by where Only Fools & Horses is repeated to death for two days. Other channels are just as guilty. Has British television run out of ideas for new original shows?

 

[OhNoAPacer]

Run out of money is a likely explanation, it costs money to make new programmes but old ones are bought and paid for already.

 

[Ashley Hill]

Run out of money is a likely explanation

I suppose with so many channels to support the quality will slip. People often remark that when there was only 3 (or 4) channels that programs were far better. Money was spent on programming rather supporting minority channels.
As for repeating old programs let’s take the new ITV Quiz channel as an example. With decades of quiz shows in the archives it still chooses to show old episodes of Tipping Point and similar. If they still exist it would be great to see old ITV shows like Gambit or Name That Tune etc. Bullseye is regularly repeated on Challenge and I know several darts fans who still enjoy it.

 

[Andrew S]

Also many many more channels to fill, and presumably enough viewers and advertising revenue to make repeats still viable.

Netflix, Paramount, Sky etc invest lots in new programmes.

 

[Ashley Hill]

Also many many more channels to fill, and presumably enough viewers and advertising revenue to make repeats still viable

Possibly the case. U & Eden have today shown nothing else than The Architecture the Railways Built. A very cheap repeat plus endless Happy Tiger bingo adverts UKTV must be raking it in.

 

[GusB]

Constant repeats was one of the reasons why I stopped paying for a TV licence; I was so fed up with the amount of rubbish on the telly. I can watch the same programmes on-demand on various platforms and I actually get to choose whether or not I watch an episode that I've already seen.

There are certain programmes that I miss because they're only available on BBC iPlayer, but I've built up a YouTube subscription list that fulfils my need for educational content.

 

[dangie]

This probably depends on how good (or bad) your memory is, but I cant understand the reason for repeating quiz shows. If you’ve seen it before you’ll already know the answers

 

[Ashley Hill]

This probably depends on how good (or bad) your memory is, but I cant understand the reason for repeating quiz shows. If you’ve seen it before you’ll already know the answers

Like Pointless,a month of new episodes and the rest being repeats from earlier in the year. Bargain Hunt is the same.

Constant repeats was one of the reasons why I stopped paying for a TV licence; I was so fed up with the amount of rubbish on the telly.

There are often times when I look through the channel list and wonder why I’m paying for this.

 

[LYradial]

Isn’t a lot of TV just a fill in between the adverts that are aimed at a target market. You do a deal with the advertising agency then decide what to show to fill in the gaps that might attract your buyers

 

[Ashley Hill]

Isn’t a lot of TV just a fill in between the adverts that are aimed at a target market. You do a deal with the advertising agency then decide what to show to fill in the gaps that might attract your buyers

Yes 20 mins of show and 10 of adverts. All I ever seem to see is charity,adjustable beds,bingo and funeral plan adverts.
The BBC are no better with adverts for their shows and online platforms.

 

[Carnforth_24]

Plenty of fresh content on Netflix, Prime, Apple TV, etc.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Yes 20 mins of show and 10 of adverts.

Is that right? Thought it was meant to be a maximum of twelve minutes of adverts in any hour. Possibly less on Channels 3, 4 + 5.

 

[Dai Corner]

Isn’t a lot of TV just a fill in between the adverts that are aimed at a target market. You do a deal with the advertising agency then decide what to show to fill in the gaps that might attract your buyers

That's exactly what the free-to-air commercial channels are.

The BBC is different in that it shows what it thinks we ought to watch.

Sky and the streaming services like Netflix show what we'll pay to watch.

 

[Ashley Hill]

Is that right? Thought it was meant to be a maximum of twelve minutes of adverts in any hour. Possibly less on Channels 3, 4 + 5.

By the time you factor in in-house advertising (think of E4s Simpsons promos) it seems like 10 mins.

The BBC is different in that it shows what it thinks we ought to watch.

I rarely find anything of value on the BBC these days.

Sky and the streaming services like Netflix show what we'll pay to watch.

And I wouldn’t pay for most of that! We had Netflix on trial but we hardly watched it.

Have just timed an ad break on ITV3, 6 mins including two adverts for ITV X.

 

[dosxuk]

For years now U & Gold has repeated the same shows to the point of insanity.

Another way of looking at it would be that for years now Gold has gained a big enough audience to make a profit from showing repeated programming.

It may not be things that you want to watch, but if people weren't tuning in them, advertisers wouldn't be spending money on booking adverts on those channels / slots.

 

[Harpo]

I’d happily pay a small one off to watch selected events such as the Lions games this last month but every organisation seems to want me as a source of continuous income through subscriptions. Only Netflix has succeeded but then I’m not it’s main user.

 

[Ashley Hill]

Another way of looking at it would be that for years now Gold has gained a big enough audience to make a profit from showing repeated programming.

It may not be things that you want to watch, but if people weren't tuning in them, advertisers wouldn't be spending money on booking adverts on those channels / slots.

Milking them for all they are worth. With UKTV being part of the BBC (I believe) it’s not like that are having to pay for licensing programmes.
Even the independents like TPTV can get repetitive at times.

 

[m0ffy]

UKTV pretty much exists to show BBC repeats (and previously those from Telewest’s various ventures - the former partner in the project).
ITV is cash strapped, largely due to a huge over-investment in drama and soaps, which they are trying to claw back through their new Quiz channel. And ITVX is a disaster, too.
Let’s ignore 5 for now, as it has always been very repeat heavy.
I’m in complete agreement about subscriptions. £30+ per month to watch cycling and winter sports? No thanks.

 

[Ashley Hill]

their new Quiz channel

Today ITV Quiz are showing the same four modern quiz shows all day. Would it be really so bad to show old quizzes like 321 or Give Us a Clue if they haven’t been wiped? Would there be a market for such nostalgic shows, or are the public content to watch four year old repeats of still current programs?

 

[LYradial]

As someone who has profound hearing loss quiz shows are hard for me, i would like to go back to the days when television was a visual media and commentary incidental.

so long as it’s not Bruce Forsyth, but many old tv programs are very politically incorrect, think John Cleese and faulty towers

 

[Dai Corner]

I’d happily pay a small one off to watch selected events such as the Lions games this last month but every organisation seems to want me as a source of continuous income through subscriptions. Only Netflix has succeeded but then I’m not it’s main user.

Now TV will sell you a day's access to Sky Sports for £14.99 or a month's for £34.99 but it doesn't go any more granular than that as far as I know. You can't pay a couple of quid to watch one rugby match, for example.

 

[dosxuk]

Milking them for all they are worth. With UKTV being part of the BBC (I believe) it’s not like that are having to pay for licensing programmes.
Even the independents like TPTV can get repetitive at times.

The BBC still has to pay the various rights holders to broadcast programmes that it originally commissioned. Even programmes that were originally in-house productions will have a bunch of licensable material in it, from library music and stock images through to clips of other programmes or performance rights with contributors to the programme.

Furthermore, UKTV falls under the commercial arm of the BBC - they have to pay the non-commercial arm for anything they use that is/has been produced by them. For licensing / finances, the commercial arm of the BBC is treated no differently to any third party who might want to deal with the BBC.

So no, they're not milking free material, they're showing programmes that attract a big enough audience that advertiser's are willing to spend enough money on that it more than covers the acquisition and broadcast costs.

 

[m0ffy]

The BBC still has to pay the various rights holders to broadcast programmes that it originally commissioned. Even programmes that were originally in-house productions will have a bunch of licensable material in it, from library music and stock images through to clips of other programmes or performance rights with contributors to the programme.

Furthermore, UKTV falls under the commercial arm of the BBC - they have to pay the non-commercial arm for anything they use that is/has been produced by them. For licensing / finances, the commercial arm of the BBC is treated no differently to any third party who might want to deal with the BBC.

So no, they're not milking free material, they're showing programmes that attract a big enough audience that advertiser's are willing to spend enough money on that it more than covers the acquisition and broadcast costs.

As an added complication, UKTV’s parent is BBC Studios which acts as the Beeb’s rights holder, and makes commercial decisions about where to place a programme. There is a lot of current, BBCS-commissioned content only available on commercial platforms, or only partially available on iPlayer etc.

 

[Ashley Hill]

but many old tv programs are very politically incorrect, think John Cleese and faulty towers

Companies can get around this with a disclaimer at the start of the show. That’s TV regularly do this as does TPTV and Rewind TV. Whilst you will never see Love Thy Neighbour or Curry & Chips, Till Death do us Part with Alf Garnett is often shown. Anything offensive is usually bleeped or the worst words cut,you will notice a slight jump in the program whilst watching.

 

[simonw]

I suppose with so many channels to support the quality will slip. People often remark that when there was only 3 (or 4) channels that programs were far better. Money was spent on programming rather supporting minority channels.
As for repeating old programs let’s take the new ITV Quiz channel as an example. With decades of quiz shows in the archives it still chooses to show old episodes of Tipping Point and similar. If they still exist it would be great to see old ITV shows like Gambit or Name That Tune etc. Bullseye is regularly repeated on Challenge and I know several darts fans who still enjoy it.

I don't think there were better programmes back in the day. That's just nostalgia kicking in.

Every now and then on face book or similar I see tv pages from days gone by and the amount of poor quality programmes was high.

A number of the channels you quote like u, are there to make money out of repeats.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

I don't think there were better programmes back in the day. That's just nostalgia kicking in.

I'm with you there. Some of the 1970s era "classic comedy" programmes now being re-aired were dross. Laugh? I nearly did!

 

[dangie]

I just wonder what future television viewers will think of reruns of Michael McIntyre & Mrs Brown’s Boys?

Let’s be honest, they are atrociously unfunny first time round

 

[simonw]

I just wonder what future television viewers will think of reruns of Michael McIntyre & Mrs Brown’s Boys?

Let’s be honest, they are atrociously unfunny first time round

I've avoided watching them, in the US they'd be banned as cruel or unusual punishments

 

[Ediswan]

The only show that annoys me as a repeat is Have I Got News for You. It is a topical show. I am no longer interested in Rishi Sunak's activities as PM.

 

[rmHawk765]

I don't even watch live TV anymore. It's an absolute joke, full of some unbelievably terrible content. All the good stuff is either hanging from a string or gone forever from being shown live.