Why there is nothing good on TV

In a process of ever diminishing returns, locally made drama is only going one way says CONSTATINOS PSILLIDES

How often did you catch yourself saying: “Man, there is NOTHING good on TV”! Good news, you are not a grumpy old person, you are absolutely right. There is almost nothing good on TV and I’m not the only one saying that: I have numbers on my side.

The average television viewership in Cyprus is in a free fall, with no end in sight. According to Nielsen ratings, the average viewership for a TV channel is currently 13 per cent, down from 60 per cent only 10 years ago. The reason is of course the rise of streaming platforms such as Netflix and Prime Video, that produce easily accessible, high-quality content.

Apart from some shows and major global events (Eurovision, World Cup, Olympics to name a few), TV is losing the game and in response to that, TV execs opted for cheap, mass produced programming that is only good if you want something playing in the background.

But why don’t they invest in more quality TV? Why insist on trash shows that is proven to drive viewers away?

The only thing keeping the TV industry alive is advertising money. Companies in Cyprus spent hundreds of thousands on advertising knowing full well that viewership is down. Why do they do it? Lack of access.

Local advertisers cannot currently pay streaming platforms for ad time to tap the people watching content there, so they use the medium they can. But that won’t last for long. Covid-19 and lockdowns pushed digital literation into high gear and nowadays alternative advertising is gaining traction. Influencers, micro-influencers, YouTube channels, podcasts, are now being considered in yearly ad budgets and that number will only go up.

Additionally, streaming platforms are fully aware of the massive potential of tapping into local markets on a global level. Once they figure out the kinks and put a process in place to allow for local advertising, companies will turn their backs to TV stations.

TV channels meanwhile seem to have little to no concern over the quality of their programming. This is not because they are bad at their job, it’s because their job is to fill time slots, not deliver quality programming. This is why every single Cypriot production is at best a glorified soap opera: you don’t have time for artistic vision and direction when you have to deliver three to four episodes per week. The higher the number of episodes, the lower the overall quality. And speaking of quantity over quality… reality TV was a godsend.

Reality TV checks every single one of the boxes on a TV exec’s Christmas wish list: it’s ridiculously easy to produce, can be on constantly so there is less time slots to fill and people like it. Let’s face it, we like looking through the keyhole into other lives. That has been established, don’t get all indignant on me. There’s a reason Big Brother keeps on coming back.

And the best thing about reality TV? It’s cheap. No reason to hire actors or a scriptwriter, when you could just have Candy screaming at Chad because he called her a tramp behind her back. It’s way cheaper and way more effective.

And the size of the budget is something that really matters. Netflix announced this week that is not renewing its live action adaptation of Cowboy Bebop. The series only season cost around 70 million (not including marketing). For Netflix, 70 million is a rounding error. For Cyprus, this is more money spent on content for all TV stations combined for the last 20 years. Netflix spends 13.6 billion on content alone, annually. There is simply, no comparison. No Cyprus series will ever be good enough to compete on that level. So it is fiscally more responsible for them to churn out low quality series than to invest in a high production value one.

There will never be anything good on TV, compared to the competition. TV content will only get progressively worse, until the only thing left is news bulletins and the occasional talk show. Globalisation makes our lives easier but unfortunately, it comes at a price.