Stargate ratings

[gategrrl]

Okay. I have a question for those of you who follow the ratings for Stargate.

This is what This Person is saying on a Certain Forum:

In this case of season 9, the ratings for the first time have gone significantly downward in the second half of the season. TPTB probably still don't care, but I would think ratings speak volumes that some changes have not been good.

And even though some fans did not like seasons 7 and 8, they did do well in the ratings--particularly the second half of season 7 and all of 8. As long as ratings do well, why change things. Well, in season 9, they haven't gone as well, so maybe they will get their act together

This person repeats these "facts" like a Mantra as she's justifying the Greatness that is Sam Carter.

So, what's the real deal with the first run ratings these past three seasons?

Comments

[nialla]

I think the number of people with access has leveled off the last two years, but it does mean that ratings before that time have a different value.

I know it's been said that Stargate had good ratings on Showtime, but it wasn't enough of a draw to get people to subscribe when they could wait a year and watch it for free. Since Showtime has a smaller potential audience than Sci Fi (because Sci Fi is often part of basic cable, while Showtime is extra), it was probably fewer people overall watching, but more people were watching out of the potential that could get the channel.

Another thing we don't know is which SG-1 episode is making the top ten each week. During first run, we assume it's that one, but even when there's no SG-1 on Friday, it still makes the top ten. One has to assume that's part of the Monday night or weekday lineup, but that calls into question just how high the ratings are for the repeats, since Sci Fi only lists the highest one. It's quite possible that repeat episodes have beaten new ones, and not just new ones for SG-1 either.

I'm pretty sure that SG-1 and SGA are rather symbiotic in their budgets, using some of the same sets, and sharing the same pool of writers, producers and directors. However, repeats of SGA aren't in the top ten. It doesn't seem to have the "legs" that SG-1 does in repeat showings. If SG-1 goes down with the ship, I'm not sure SGA could stay afloat on its own.