Broadcast or narrowcast ? WHY DO YOU THINK THIS?

1. Broadcast or narrowcast? WHY DO YOU THINK THIS? On the left, all the channels are broadcast. This is because Sky 1 HD, BBC 1 and ITV 1 all broadcast a wide range of programs. For example ITV 1 broadcast soaps and documentaries. On the right, all of the channels are narrowcast. This is because BBC Three, Dave, G.O.L.D. and Sky Arts HD all show a specific genre. For example Dave shows comedy.

2. Type of programmes – and some examples… What could you say about the shows on the channel? The shows shown on alibi are all about crime and mysteries. Programs such as ‘The Inspector Lynley Mysteries’ and ‘New Tricks’ are shown on alibi which are both crime themed shows. The shows on Food are shows that encourage and help people to cook new and healthy meals. Programs such as ‘Masterchef’ are shown on Food as they’re all food related. The shows shown on Home are inspirational and guide people to a stylish homes. Shows such as ‘DIY SOS’ and ‘Extreme Make Over’ are shown on home as they are about creating stylish homes. The shows shown on Blighty are about Britain and celebrate Britainsuniqueness. Shows such as ‘Britain Isles: A Natural History’ are shown on Blighty, in which are about Britain. The shows on Really portray an insight into peoples lives. Shows such as ‘Mary, queen of shops’ and ‘I am Elephant man’ are shown on Really as they’re shows that give an insight into peoples lives. The shows shown on Yesterday are all about History. Shows such as ‘Coast’ and ‘Sharpe’ which are all History themed shows. The shows shown on Eden are shows that stimulates peoples minds and gives a brighter look on the world. Shows such as ‘Planet Earth’ are shown on Eden as it is a show that explores the natural things on Earth. The shows on Dave are all about witty humour and shows that appeal to men. Shows such as ‘Top Gear’ and ‘Lizard Lick Towing’ are both shown on Dave as they both portray the rebellious side to men. The shows on G.OL.D. are classical and old shows. Shows such ‘Allo ‘Allo!’ are shown on G.O.L.D. as it is an old show. The programs which are shown on Watch are sci-fi themed documentaries and crime. Shows such as ‘eauty and the Beast’ and ‘Who do you think you are?’ are shown on Watch as they are crime themed.

3. Choose 3 channels – and define the target audience – using CARGEL – explaining WHY you think they are the target audience… Look at the programme listings to help you and think about the name of the channel 1. 2. 3. Really- The target audience for Really, using CARGEL would be gender which is targeted at females. This is because Really shows female lifestyle programming. Also, Really is based on pop art style cartoon of women. Blighty- The target audience for Blighty using CARGEL would be location, which is in Britain. This is because Blighty only shows programs that have content which is related to Britain. Also Blighty’s logo is the union jack but which a variety of colours representing Britain. Dave- The target audience for Dave using CARGEL would be gender, which is targeted at males. This is because Dave shows witty and funny programs that would only appeal to men, not women. Your 3 Channel’s NARROWCAST to A NICHE audience – try to explain what this means Firstly, Narrowcasting means to transmit programs to a specific audience. They are transmitted most commonly by satellite, radio or cable TV. Cable TV narrowcast because the encrypted signals can only be viewed on a TV by first running through a descrambler provided by the cable company. Satellite radio narrowcasts as it does not have any advertisements and therefore you need to pay regularly. A niche audience means targeting a TV show/magazine/website etc to a specific audience to appeal to their interest. So these 3 channels narrowcast (you need a cable TV to be able to watch it) to a niche audience (they show programs of a specific genre).

4. Can you think of any other channels that narrowcast – to niche audiences What are the strengths and weaknesses of a ‘niche’ TV channel? Why do they show the same programmes day in day out? The channels show the same programs as they are a narrowcast channel which targets a niche audience. The channels will only show programs that are related to the theme that fits the channel. For example, Blightywill only show programs that are related to Britain and they target people who live in Britain and people who love Britain. Sky Sports narrowcast a niche audience. This is because they only show programs that are related to sports and sports only. They also target a niche audience as it will only be people who like sports to watch it. The strengths of a niche TV channel are that people who are interested in the channel enjoy it very much and are able to enjoy shows that consist of the same concept as much as they want. The weaknesses is that it excludes other people from watching the channel as some people may not be interested in watching shows that contain the same theme.

5. To conclude - explain how these channels (DAVE, GOLD etc) appeal to different ranges of audience than the films we have already looked at  - even though arguably they are all “mainstream”. How are they able to do this? (Cheaper, repeats, no production costs) Channels that show repeats of programs are capable of owning a variety of different channels. This is because showing repeats cost lost as there are no production cost. This means that they are saving a lot of money and are able to afford running variety of niche channels. As they are able to own a variety of niche channels, this means they don’t have to just own one channel with a variety of different programs which would cost more, they can instead own a range of niche channels which is beneficial for the channel because it means more viewers which then leads to more money. Some of you should attempt to comment critically - i.e. is a ‘niche’ TV channel a good idea? Why & why not? A niche can sometimes be good but at times it is not so good. This is because a niche TV channel may appeal to people that may enjoy watching a show dedicated to what they love. For example, if an aspiring forensic scientist wanted to learn ore about crime but didn’t have any people they knew that was one, they could just watch a channel dedicated to crime. However, at the same time there are people who prefer to watch a channel with a variety of programs so they don’t get bored of the same themed shows. Therefore, it is excluding other people and therefore losing viewers.

6. THE CHANNELS SHOW THE SAME TYPE OF PROGRAMMES BECAUSE THEY ARE TRYING TO APPEAL TO A SMALL AUDIENCE THAT LIKES SPECIFIC PROGRAMMES – KNOWN AS A “NICHE” AUDIENCE. THEY ARE “NARROWCASTING” THE PROGRAMMES TO A NICHE AUDIENCE. DEFINITIONS: NICHE AUDIENCE When a TV show (or website or magazine or radio station) is aimed at a person’s individual interests - they are said to be a “niche” audience. It appeals to a niche or small or specialist audience. NARROWCAST To transmit programmes (especially by cable / satellite television) confined to the interests of a specific group of viewers, subscribers, or listeners, such as business people, or teenagers. This is the opposite to BROADCAST - e.g. Eastenders appeals to a wide audience (it has 80 year old and 16 year old characters, of different classes and different ethnic groups) of 8 million per episode - therefore it is “broad”cast. Appealing to a wide (broad) audience.