You have just published the results of the first wave of surveys in Côte d'Ivoire, which were conducted during the health crisis. What initial conclusions can you draw from them?
The initial assessment is that the health crisis during this audience survey had an impact on viewers' behavior. On the one hand, we saw excessive consumption of news channels and channels that focus on current events, whether Ivorian or international media. On the other hand, viewers have favored channels that have been able to offer fresh and original content, to the detriment of channels that have had no choice but to offer reruns, mainly due to the shutdown of a number of film shoots as a direct result of health measures. Finally, the suspension of major sports championships in many countries had a direct impact on the consumption of sports and sports channels.
Can you give us some information about the new Ivorian channels? Will you be publishing results by channel?
We publish results for the television media as a whole. However, the decision to publish results by channel and the terms of publication must be taken by all Ivorian channels. Nevertheless, more generally and to answer your question, we can see that in May, the new Ivorian channels that are already broadcasting are performing very encouragingly, to varying degrees depending on how recently they were launched. Usually, the first indicator that comes into play in the early stages following the creation of a channel is its reputation. This awareness then translates into increased consumption and therefore audience share. This is what we are seeing today with the new Ivorian DTT channels. The next audience ratings at the end of June will confirm this trend, but the current results already give an idea of the full potential of DTT in Côte d'Ivoire.
A few months ago, you presented the market with a much more ambitious project in terms of sample size and frequency of publication of results. Is this still relevant for you and will it see the light of day soon?
The system presented a few months ago provides for samples of 1,750 people surveyed per wave, with one wave per month. This represents 21,000 interviews over a full year. Médiamétrie remains committed and ready to implement this methodology. It is up to the market to "press the button." The channels are aware that such audience measurement is essential, but the last two months have also forced them, quite naturally, to manage their short-term priorities. In this context, Médiamétrie has adapted to offer channels, agencies, and advertisers who so wish the first level of service we are discussing today, which provides for six waves of interviews between now and the end of the year. It is our responsibility to maintain this momentum, which is why Médiamétrie has taken the initiative to feed the channels' dashboard (with indicators for cumulative audience, average quarter-hour, audience share, listening time per individual, and listening time per viewer) so that they are not left to navigate on sight. But we are also aware that this dashboard will need to be expanded to enable both private and public sector players to make the most of the arrival of DTT.
See also: Médiamétrie – TV audience and Internet usage in Abidjan – May 2020