All that Skate

[Layfan]

The other thing I noticed was how much Michelle's presence was emphasized, not just on the ice but in the off-ice moments. Clearly this was a move to attract general American viewers, who might not have a clue about who YuNa Kim is even with her gold medal. I thought that was very savvy, and also very gracious of YuNa to give another skater such a prominent role.

I think Johnny probably has a chance if he can team up with other personalities, not necessarily skating ones. (I foresee a role for Lady Gaga!)

Okay, does anyone else think Johnny Weir and Christian Siriano from Project Runway seem like the same person? Honestly, they should co-host radio or TV show about fashion and and sports like skating and gymnastics. Christian took ballet growing up. Although they might spend the whole hour trying to out-diva each other.

 

[R.D.]

Some of you were interested in ratings?

Here are the weekend overnights from Sports Media Watch (scroll to the bottom table under "Other")

http://www.sportsmediawatch.net/2010/10/weekend-overnights.html

So ATS did a 0.5, which is actually lower than what some of the Disson shows have gotten in the past.

 

[Mathman]

^ I really don't know why NBC did absolutely no promotional work for this show. Not a peep. No one would have known it was coming on TV unless they hang out on figure skating boards.

In contrast, I can get CBC from Canada and they advertised Battle of the Blades all over the place, for weeks in advance.

Edited to add: By the way, I think Disson is now owned by IMG. IMG is trying to get into major TV enterprises like college football. They have a large PR staff in the U.S. that has contacts with the big shot television folks. I suppose it takes lots of time and effort to build up these contacts. It will be interesting to see if All That Sports is interested in trying to develop that kind of staying power in the U.S. market.

 

[R.D.]

Then again, NBC never advertises the Disson shows either. Usually, the only time they get promoted is during other skating shows (which makes sense). The only event that I noticed that got any real promotion outside of skating shows was 2008 Nationals. (I saw ads for that during shows like The Apprentice and Deal or No Deal)

 

[janetfan]

Then again, NBC never advertises the Disson shows either. Usually, the only time they get promoted is during other skating shows (which makes sense). The only event that I noticed that got any real promotion outside of skating shows was 2008 Nationals. (I saw ads for that during shows like The Apprentice and Deal or No Deal)

Before any Yuna fans get dismayed - here are the ratings from last season's Natls - for Saturday night and the Ladies LP.
I believe last year was better than 2009 but still pretty dismal.

Figure skating did win later in the evening (the Sasha effect) but still with so any other things to watch and do it appears skating broadcasts have lost their lustre with American viewers.

http://tvbythenumbers.com/2010/01/2...s-americas-most-wanted-duo-wins-for-fox/39934

 

[R.D.]

keep in mind that just about any sport that is not the NFL has experienced declining ratings over the years.

 

[janetfan]

keep in mind that just about any sport that is not the NFL has experienced declining ratings over the years.

But I can't think of any that have taken the type of nose dive that figure skating has.
Actually soccer/football is on the rise in USA as is Lacrosse. Other winter sports like snowboarding and halfpipe are doing OK and World Cup skiing is still broadcast on network TV.

Golf and Tennis - two sports frequently seen on network TV also have their own cable channels.
Every minute of every game from last summer's World Cup was broadcast on ESPN with ABC picking up some of the coverage plus there were hours of analysis via pregame and post game shows.
Even the Tour de France gets very good coverage on cable.

Women's sports have been getting more coverage and we see more TV coverage of softball, field hockey, college and Pro basketball and soccer.

I think there is more sports coverage on TV than ever before in the USA. It gets down to the product and ratings.

Last weekend the equestrian event beat Yuna and Michelle.
Seems in 2010 more Americans would rather watch horses jumping than skaters jumping.

Maybe it is time for this show to make a comeback:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVm-HwAkVp8&feature=related

 

[csunny7]

Anyway, ATS show itself is a huge success. I think it is the positive influence of ATS that is really significant now. :thumbsup:
Was it posted? Brian said it was Yuna show that made him rebound in his interview with icenetwork.com

Brian Joubert: Skating exhibitions last summer in Korea was a great boost for me, something completely unique. You have to live it by yourself. I do not think there is one other place on earth where you can live the same thing. Even when I skate at home in France, it is not the same. The show Yu-Na Kim produced was just unique, one dimension higher than everywhere else. The audience was special. The atmosphere was special, we even had fireworks. Even the way I was taken in charge was special: I was offered to travel first class!

Once I was there, I got the feeling that I was like a pop star. I must admit that I felt really good. I really wanted to skate well throughout. It boosted me tremendously and helped me come back this season. Such events give you the will to keep going and get results. If you do not have results, you are not invited there anymore!

 

[Olympia]

What a lovely comment Brian made! It shows the huge reverence for skating in Korea. It makes me feel sorry for American skaters right now. They work as hard as they did in the glory days--harder, considering the jumps and all the CoP stuff--and just a tiny band of loyal fans are paying attention. I wish there were something we fans could do to give skating more impact in this country.

 

[janetfan]

What a lovely comment Brian made! It shows the huge reverence for skating in Korea. It makes me feel sorry for American skaters right now. They work as hard as they did in the glory days--harder, considering the jumps and all the CoP stuff--and just a tiny band of loyal fans are paying attention. I wish there were something we fans could do to give skating more impact in this country.

Sometimes it seems hard to believe that the '94 Ladies Olympic Freeskate received a 48. rating making it one of the most viewed TV events of all-time.

Yuna's show is very good and what ashame it wasn't seem by more people here.
Let's hope NBC, ATS and the show's sponsors were satisfied enough with the 0.5 rating and will try again.

Next time a little promotion could make a difference as well.

 

[OS]

I am surprised how little promotion the show received in the US to be honest - I went to see the LA show live. Nobody I talked to in LA knew about it! From the custom officer at the airport, to the cab driver, to the hotel receptionist, to the bell boy, to the waiter at the restaurant, and even my local LA friends who are usually quite media savvy. And all these people are suppose to be the social nodes (sort of)! Michelle the great champion is back on ice after being away for 4 years - Yet nobody knew - how strange! Ofcourse they all knew and love Michelle Kwan when I told them just not that she is performing in LA again.

I still consider the show a great success though. A little foreign show, independently produced by a new company, that were able to bring together the best skaters in the world all delivering amongst the highest quality entertainment all under one roof and it even got the US Network Coverage and seemed to won over many of the most cynical fans of the figure skating world, as well as attracted many new ones (there were many little girls in the audience all bringing their entire family). Pretty good for a first try...

 

[prettykeys]

csunny7, that's a nice quote to hear! I'm glad Brian Joubert found the shows motivational.

What a lovely comment Brian made! It shows the huge reverence for skating in Korea. It makes me feel sorry for American skaters right now. They work as hard as they did in the glory days--harder, considering the jumps and all the CoP stuff--and just a tiny band of loyal fans are paying attention. I wish there were something we fans could do to give skating more impact in this country.

I totally feel ya. Can we please please funnel some of the funds in baseball, basketball and the NFL into figure skating, please?

 

[blue_idealist]

I finally watched this! It was great. It was good to see Michelle again but I was the most impressed with Stephane Lambiel. Even JW's Poker Face was tolerable, hahaha.

 

[R.D.]

I chalk it up to ATS being international- perhaps they don't have the roots in the US to do a wide-spread promotion campaign. Or, maybe the show hypes itself so much in Korea that they figured it would more or less do the same overseas. Who knows.

 

[Virtuous Circle]

I chalk it up to ATS being international- perhaps they don't have the roots in the US to do a wide-spread promotion campaign. Or, maybe the show hypes itself so much in Korea that they figured it would more or less do the same overseas. Who knows.

One, a success of live performance or performing arts (i.e., concerts, broadway musicals, or ice shows) is basically measured by ticket sales (Of course, high TV ratings can be a hefty bonus in case it's broadcasted). Considering it was the first time ATS went into a US market, ATS-LA attracted quite large audiences for each of the 2 shows. So I wouldn't say it's just a "local" hype.

Two, a success of live performance or performing arts shouldn't be necessarily measured only with financial factors. We have to evaluate it qualitatively as well. And I think ATS was a high-quality, top-notch, one of a kind ice show and who knows? It may help resuscitate the dying ice show business and also the sport of figure skating itself in the long run? Who knows? ATS-LA might have taken its first step toward figure skating renaissance in North America. As a loyal figure skating fan, I really hope it's not just a daydream.

 

[prettykeys]

You make good points, Virtuous Circle. By the way, welcome to the forum.

I was thinking along a similar line of thought. The general consensus among skating fans is that it was a very good show. It created a lot of buzz, and many who couldn't attend watched the clips and had comments and opinions to share. My only hope for the next American show by ATS is that it incorporates a few more Americans into its cast. There's nothing like local stars to create more hype and excitement. If only Jeremy Abbott and Mirai Nagasu could have participated.

 

[parma]

One, a success of live performance or performing arts (i.e., concerts, broadway musicals, or ice shows) is basically measured by ticket sales (Of course, high TV ratings can be a hefty bonus in case it's broadcasted). Considering it was the first time ATS went into a US market, ATS-LA attracted quite large audiences for each of the 2 shows. So I wouldn't say it's just a "local" hype.

Two, a success of live performance or performing arts shouldn't be necessarily measured only with financial factors. We have to evaluate it qualitatively as well. And I think ATS was a high-quality, top-notch, one of a kind ice show and who knows? It may help resuscitate the dying ice show business and also the sport of figure skating itself in the long run? Who knows? ATS-LA might have taken its first step toward figure skating renaissance in North America. As a loyal figure skating fan, I really hope it's not just a daydream.

I was there in person and I sensed that the total number of admissions for the two days were about 20,000. I might be wrong but that's how I felt. Also I know that many people in the audience came from all over the US; I met one lady at LAX and shared a van from LAX to downtown, and she said she came all the way from Florida to see the show. When was the last time in the US a figure skating gala show attracted an audience of that size with that much enthusiasm? After the show was over, I heard many people waiting in line to get out giving rave recaps of the show they just saw. The live show was a success and there is no doubt about it.

As far as TV ratings go, I think they neither really expected nor prioritized to make much out of the broadcast considering low US public interest in figure skating. If ATS or NBC were really serious about getting a high viewership and generate revenue from advertisement, they would have invested a lot more by putting show promotional ads on TV two or three weeks before the show was aired, and then rely on the buzz the show ads create to get big sponsors for ad slots. There is a lot more risk involved with this approach because they wouldn't know how much buzz their initial investment in the show promotion would generate. Clearly they didn't go for this strategy and just got ad owners mostly from Korea and Seoul metropolitan government who Yuna is serving as a goodwill ambassador, an easy and safe bet. I think they made a smart decision, considering this is ATS's first trial in a foreign market. Considering their small initial investment in the TV show promotion, I don't see 0.5 is a bad number at all.

 

[R.D.]

Considering [ATS'] small initial investment in the TV show promotion, I don't see 0.5 is a bad number at all.

Maybe that's how they see it too. Ticket sales I bet were much more of a factor.

 

[janetfan]

Maybe that's how they see it too. Ticket sales I bet were much more of a factor.

Reading through some of the last few posts made me wonder if PBS has ever considered broadcasting skating?

Imagine the ATS show - all of it - being used as a fundraiser with no commercials other than the breaks which PBS uses to talk about or interview people involved with the show along with selling DVD's of the program.

Just a thought and since Yuna is known for her charitable donations it seems reasonable that ATS (or other skating shows) might benefit from working with PBS.

I think the profile of many skating fans might be well suited for a PBS audience. Many of us are appreciative of art, music, dance and the performing arts in general.

As far as building goodwill for Yuna/ATS in the USA I can't think of many things better than being involved with public broadcasting. It is possible this could create a conflict with stations that are in broadcasting for the profit only. The problem is at this time there does not seem to be as much profit in broadcasting skating as in years past.

 

[R.D.]

It appears that ABC is attempting a spinoff of Dancing with the Stars later this year, called Skating with the Stars- so the attempts to launch a successful skating show/franchise have not ended.