THIS WEEK: Corrie to lift Sunday TV ratings

Advertisers are to gain a weekend ratings boost as ITV plans to

broadcast the fourth weekly episode of Coronation Street on a Sunday

evening.

The move will potentially bring in millions of extra viewers to the ITV

spot. Since January, ITV’s Sunday scheduling has fallen behind BBC1’s,

with average viewing during peak time of 12.8 million compared with the

BBC’s average of 14 million.

The biggest loser will be Carlton TV, which will miss out on millions of

pounds in revenue as the show falls into the weekend airtime of Granada-

owned LWT.

Granada wants LWT to scoop up the extra advertising revenue in London,

and has provisionally scheduled the additional Sunday episodes to begin

in the autumn at the usual time of 7.30pm.

ITV will be breaking with tradition with a Sunday showing of the Street,

which is the first soap ever to be scheduled for the weekend. ITV said

the change in Sunday trading laws partly influenced its decision, as it

lent legitimacy to the Rover’s Return being open on the day of

screening.

This article was first published on Marketing