Discovery vs Nat Geo vs History. Race for UK Gold, Part 3. How Far Behind Broadcast? Plus: Our New Global Doc Buyers' Guide

Here are my quick Takeaways before a summer getaway.

Business Model:

UK factual channels attract relatively small audiences compared with the broadcasters.
However: Advertisers are attracted to their relatively upscale viewers.
And the networks earn subscriber fees from Sky and other platforms.
On the cost side, all UK factual channels benefit from a business model that relies on imported US programs. These are mostly owned outright by the channels.
The big US franchise series and specials – like Deadliest Catch are by and large the top performers in the UK.
The UK channels also commission locally. Big, noisy American characters can’t dominate their schedules.
Nat Geo, Discovery and A+E have each set up a new pipeline for their international channels. They share costs for qualified new programs that will play across multiple territories.
They also create local and regional versions of a handful of hit US series.

I will cover these issues and developments in greater detail in the coming months.

Here are the top shows for the nonfiction channels versus the top-rated factual program for each broadcast channel.

And here are the average ratings with year-to-year changes:

Ratings (Average January 1 – June 26 0600-2600)
		2011	2011 Share (%)	2012	2012 Share (%)	Y-Y +/-	Y-Y +/- (%)
1	Discovery	29,800	0.26	34,100	0.30	4,300	15.38
2	History	16,500	0.15	25,600	0.23	9,100	53.33
3	Nat Geo	18,800	0.17	17,300	0.15	-1,500	-11.76
4	C&IN	18,600	0.16	16,700	0.15	-1,900	-6.25

Discovery

Discovery UK launched 1^st amongst American factual channel exports.
That was in 1988 when Clark Bunting led the Discovery team and, fresh from CBS International, I served as senior consultant.
The fairly consistent message we heard from UK ‘experts’ was “We Brits will never watch your (inferior) American programs. And anyway you won’t make any money!”
Wrong:
- Discovery International generates more than 40% of DCI’s revenues.
- UK is the jewel in the crown.
- And Discovery International gains importance by the day as Discovery Networks US recovers from the serious (half a $US billion!) opportunity costs associated with the OWN Oprah Winfrey Network debacle as well as the many challenges faced by Discovery Channel.

Top 10 Discovery UK Programs (2006-2012 YTD)
	Title	Date	Viewers	Share
1	Deadliest Catch	26-Oct-10	460,900	2.34
2	Gold Rush	22-May-12	430,600	1.69
3	My Shocking Story	15-Nov-07	390,400	1.92
4	Wheeler Dealers	11-Oct-11	378,000	1.45
5	American Choppers	16-Jan-06	284,500	1.46
6	Will Ferrell and Bear Grylls: Born Survivors	25-Jul-09	273,200	1.91
7	Killing Bin Laden	18-May-11	272,200	0.97
8	Alone in the Wild	5-Oct-11	253,900	0.95
9	Bear Grylls: Born Survivor	18-Jul-11	246,500	0.92
10	How It’s Made	23-Feb-06	245,400	1.31

History / A+E Networks

A+E Networks’ corporate parents napped for decades while Discovery invested heavily in going global.
History’s recent US hits are proving to be highly exportable. They are fueling a catch up in UK viewing versus Discovery.
The Kennedy’s – a scripted series that went pear-shaped in the US – is an international hit! That’s a big strategic message!
Crime & Investigation is a much stronger franchise in the UK than in US. It’s a reminder that there’s value in the content-driven, niche franchises.

Top 10 History UK Programs (2006-2012 YTD)
	Title	Date	Viewers	Share
1	Ice Road Truckers 2	16-Oct-08	389,100	1.86
2	The Kennedys	7-Apr-11	375,900	1.66
3	How Life Began	23-Mar-09	369,000	1.97
4	IRT – Deadliest Roads	16-Dec-10	345,100	1.58
5	Storage Wars	17-May-12	306,300	1.42
6	Pawn Stars	17-Oct-11	290,100	1.02
7	102 Minutes That Changed America	11-Sep-11	230,700	1.72
8	American Restoration (Series One)	1-Aug-11	222,700	0.84
9	American Pickers	24-Oct-11	222,000	1.03
10	The Lost JFK Tapes: The Assassination	3-Mar-11	194,100	1.00

Nat Geo

UK-centric Bloody Tales of the Tower is #1 in 2012, showing there’s value in local.
But the best performers on Nat Geo’s Top 10 list are the content-driven specials and series that are no longer the focus of Nat Geo US.
That foreshadows future struggles to align Nat Geo International’s yellow border legacy with the noisy characters coming from Washington.

C&I is an A+E Network

Top 10 Crime & Investigation Network Programs (2006-2012 YTD)
	Title	Date	Viewers	Share
1	Curious and Unusual Deaths	18-May-12	206,300	2.74
2	Born to Kill	29-Jan-12	190,800	3.54
3	The Krays By Fred Dinenage	15-Mar-10	184,100	0.68
4	Crimes that Shook Britain	18-Mar-12	170,000	0.59
5	Myra Hindleys Prison Years	12-Jun-11	163,000	1.35
6	At Home with the Noonans	22-Apr-12	155,400	5.89
7	Girl Fight	7-Jun-12	154,900	1.79
8	Steven Seagal: Lawman	5-Jan-10	152,900	0.54
9	Crime Re-Licences	7-Jan-12	152,100	5.50
10	Fred Dinenage: Murder Casebook	15-May-11	151,300	0.54

Editorial assistance: Alexander Watson

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International Documentary Buyers’ Guide 2012

Which channels worldwide buy docs?

The International Documentary Buyers’ Guide 2012 is an invaluable resource for producers who are working on strategies to pitch ideas or who are selling completed programs to channels.