Nothing boosts the bottom line of a television network like a #1 rated show.
Fox television has brought in the largest amount of advertising revenue of any series in television history with the cultural phenomenon, “American Idol.”
The show has created its own enterprise by driving record sales and digital downloads with a string of music superstars such as Carrie Underwood, Kelly Clarkson and Daughtry.
However, with Simon Cowell’s leaving, “Idol” has gone through a total remake. The new judge lineup has Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler joining original judge Randy Jackson. This has created a degree of uncertainty with regard to the show’s continued ratings success.
Executives at the Fox network indicated that when combining the two nights of the new-look show last week, “American Idol” audiences were down just 12 percent from last year's opening.
But “Idol” has lost about 6 million viewers since 2006. Album sales of recent winners have also dropped precipitously.
Last Thursday’s episode fell 16 percent from the previous year among the 18-49 year-old demographic, the population that advertisers are most interested in.
The second night of the show’s new season experienced a loss of 4 million viewers, ending up with 22.9 viewers total.
“Idol”’s competition held up better than in the past. CBS’s “The Big Bang Theory” brought in a respectable 13.6 million television watchers.
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