Why does MeTV have higher ratings than Antenna TV? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Merry24 · 01-11-2023, 08:08 PM

Is it programming?
Is it time slots?
Is it their promotion?
Is it the credit crunch?

Or is it the fact it antenna tv hasn’t been around as long as Me TV? What would it take for antenna tv to see the success as Me TV?

Personally I love both Stations. Like anything Me TV & antenna tv both have their pros & cons.

What would you like to see Me TV & antenna tv improve on? What do you enjoy about both stations?

Please keep an open mind.

cd637299 · 01-11-2023, 08:21 PM

I have both.

MeTV just has better marketing. They have an online store, and they market, market, market. *If* they can get a celebrity from one of their classic shows (cough Carol Burnett cough), they do their best. It shows that they are head over heels into classic TV. They aren’t limited to just sitcoms either.

MeTV also retains the closing credits, for classic TV geeks like me.

MeTV also has joined the 21st Century (for better or worse), by re-fitting for 16:9. Seeing as I still use analog TV for the most part for viewing, it *can* be a handicap.

MeTV’s owner, Weigel, has branched out considerably: they own Story TV, Decades, MeTV+, StartTV (oh well), etc. Weigel knows how to use TV subchannels.

As to AntennaTV, apparently they have a much harder time procuring “new classic TV” shows. One can only watch Hazel, Dennis, Dad Knows Best etc. so much. They *did* score quite the coup 7 years ago this month, grabbing Johnny Carson. Unfortunately the Carson shows with musical guests are quite limited—licensing rights and all that. Even when Johnny is bombing and he goes into the tap dance, the original “Tea for Two” is dubbed over! I remember when Buddy Rich was a guest, but no music played; all I remember was him arguing with the band. All in all, it’s great to have Carson, for those who never saw him and can see what late night USED to be!

Also—I don’t think that all shows on Antenna are digitized.

As to MeTV improving, what I’d like to see mainly are:

CHANGES 7-8 pm & 10-11 pm EST (even a Weigel CEO admits he cannot watch Hogan anymore, in so many words). With MeTV getting the Warner cartoon library, I’d like to see MORE cartoons, maybe one hour more on Saturday mornings.

cd

merlinjones · 01-11-2023, 08:56 PM

(my notes are about digital broadcast not cable)
MeTV (MeTv+, Decades) has better classic shows on the whole
Antenna's classics are confined to mornings and late night
MeTV has HD 720p in my market
MeTV shows the complete opening and closing and theme for every show without interruption and shrinkage (otherwise great H&I also loses points on their shrunken end titles lately)
MeTV mostly uses better fresher digital masters
Antenna is not in HD (401i) or in the right aspect ratio (I have to change it from the norm to avoid stretching or squeezing) in my market
MeTV has more clever and playful bumpers and marketing (reminds me of old Nick at Nite)
Antenna plays a lot of 80s shows that haven't aged as well as 50s-70s (for me anyway)
Antenna's best shows are Bewitched, Jeannie and other Screen Gems that should play in prime time (or on MeTV channels)

Alan Brady's Hair · 01-11-2023, 09:36 PM

MeTV just has better and more diverse programming. Even the better Antenna offerings - like the Dick York Bewitcheds and That Girl - sort of get lost amid their more bland programming.

stevea · 01-11-2023, 09:57 PM

I also like both MeTV's and Antenna TV's programs. MeTV's promotions are way better, they are innovative, and my perception of Antenna TV is that they are "schlock." Their ads are gutter ads, so what did they do several years ago? They cut the credits to squeeze in 30 seconds more of them. They also follow the TV Land practice of inserting their breaks anywhere but where the program logically breaks. Their affiliate (at least here) doesn't sync their clock so the local breaks always cut off dialog, but no one cares. Like some podunk local station would do. So MeTV is more 'big time."

When Antenna TV was part of Tribune they were in a struggling media company. Now I think Nexstar probably just has them on auto-pilot and hardly even knows they exist. Their results are probably on page 789 of a report, and the big boys at corporate don't even read that far in.

stevea · 01-11-2023, 10:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cd637299

They *did* score quite the coup 7 years ago this month, grabbing Johnny Carson. Unfortunately the Carson shows with musical guests are quite limited—licensing rights and all that. Even when Johnny is bombing and he goes into the tap dance, the original “Tea for Two” is dubbed over! I remember when Buddy Rich was a guest, but no music played; all I remember was him arguing with the band. All in all, it’s great to have Carson, for those who never saw him and can see what late night USED to be!

Yes, Carson was a coup, but that music is a problem. Not their fault, licensing all the performances would be prohibitive. But we'll never see Stump the Band, for fear someone jackal out there would make some kind of claim. Have someone put their silly lyrics to music that was obscure but under copyright--they couldn't chance it. Someone had to clear "Tea for Two" or blanket-clear via some service Stump the Band for the original broadcast, but alas, they never thought to clear it for a 2023 syndicated airing.

I agree, it was a great score for Antenna TV, even as it is.

cd637299 · 01-11-2023, 11:12 PM

Yes that’s true—no Stump the Band. AND, one thing that I HATED on Carson was “The Edge of Wetness,” where normal folk are picked out by camera and are told by “the narrator” that he/she is the town drunk, the town pervert, et al. But I guess that stays, unless the background organ music is copyrighted too….

At least we have Carnac! He never had to sing….

Back to the topic at hand….

cd

stevea · 01-11-2023, 11:26 PM

Carnac, Aunt Blabby, and the Teatime Movie segment and other Mighty Carson Art Players bits.

Meanwhile, yes, back on topic--I haven't done a count, but with their ratings, MeTV also probably has a higher affiliate count. Not to mention their national feed for areas that have no affiliate.
The local affiliate affiliate here, WTHR, dropped NBC SN for MeTV several years ago.

I did read somewhere, MeTV went from 4:3 SD to 16:9 HD a few years back, due to advertisers' ads in 16:9. Most affiliates can't do the HD, since many are on digital subchannels, which lack the bandwidth for HD. I'm quite happy that the TIWM cartoons are 4:3 aspect ratio, undoubtedly since they are rebroadcast on MeTV+.

brtcmfn · 01-12-2023, 04:27 AM

IMO- Antenna TV focuses primarily on sitcoms- prefer it over METV
METV is ok- but has other type of shows, and way to top heavy with Westerns.

METV: Launched nationally: 12/10/2010
Number of Affiliates: 555
Population Covered: 291,645,283
Percent of Total: 93.34%

ANTENNA TV: Launched: 1/1/2011
Number of Affiliates: 479
Population Covered: 280,974,457
Percent of Total: 89.92%

(Also there are more affiliates that feature METV as there main channel and not on a sub channel compared to Antenna TV)

1960'sTVfan · 01-12-2023, 08:05 AM

I am surprised that there are still people who rely on and watch the retro channels for classic TV shows.

For several reasons, I've stopped watching the retro channels and since I have DVD's of most of my favorite shows, I watch those for classic TV entertainment.

The last time I relied on one of the retro channels for anything was in 2017/18 when I was recording episodes of The Joey Bishop Show from Antenna TV.

stevea · 01-12-2023, 08:47 AM

For me it's laziness. If I'm doing other stuff, I'll just have Beaver or Father Knows Best (for example) on TV, rather than bothering to load up the DVD.

But if you're just going to view the program, the DVD versions are far superior, most often unedited, and of course without those annoying ads.

PaperClips · 01-12-2023, 09:10 AM

The video quality and Svengoolie, They make a lot of money off of Svengoolie. If they keep doubling down on The beverly Hillbillies they are on the road to nowhee.. They really need to start working shows like Early Edition into the line-up

BeatleMoe · 01-12-2023, 09:10 AM

What I like about MeTV and the Weigel channels is that most of their half hour programs without commercials run 23 minutes while most hour long dramas run 46 without commercials. When a 25 to 26 minute program is compressed, about a minute is gone and so there is approximately 1:00 to maybe 1:45 of content missing from an episode. Antenna TV time compresses the already edited for syndication episodes of their programs and they come out to 21:00 approx. (I timed a Three’sCompany episode including the credit crunch. Plus what everyone else has pointed out, the quality is better, the episodes have been reformatted to 16:9, etc. I do like Antenna TV too, (and Rewind which is just a more updated version of Antenna TV).

PaperClips · 01-12-2023, 09:22 AM

Antena TV runs basically every program you can get for free on the Roku. With endless commercials and horrendous video quality. They make their money off of the endless commercials they run.

MeTV has good video but depends on Svengoolie. They put the Beverly Hillbillies at the 9 spot. Prime-Time - uh.....n I don't think they will ever move MASh.

merlinjones · 01-12-2023, 11:33 AM

While it's great to have DVDs blurays and streaming options to access specific shows and episodes, I also value the experience of random broadcast TV surfing as I often catch things I never would have thought to watch by choice. There are lots of surprises and episodes forgotten and things to learn beyond the preplanned expectations. I feel it broadens my horizons - though within the era/genre/tone of programs I find comforting (why I like MeTV, MeTv+, Decades, H&I, Antenna, Movies!, Story, Cozi, etc.).

01-11-2023, 08:08 PM	#1
Merry24 Member Senior Member Join Date: Dec 10, 2017 Location: beach Posts: 2,045	Why does MeTV have higher ratings than Antenna TV? Is it programming? Is it time slots? Is it their promotion? Is it the credit crunch? Or is it the fact it antenna tv hasn’t been around as long as Me TV? What would it take for antenna tv to see the success as Me TV? Personally I love both Stations. Like anything Me TV & antenna tv both have their pros & cons. What would you like to see Me TV & antenna tv improve on? What do you enjoy about both stations? Please keep an open mind.

01-12-2023, 09:10 AM	#13
BeatleMoe Member Forum Regular Join Date: Sep 13, 2002 Location: Nashville TN Posts: 615	What I like about MeTV and the Weigel channels is that most of their half hour programs without commercials run 23 minutes while most hour long dramas run 46 without commercials. When a 25 to 26 minute program is compressed, about a minute is gone and so there is approximately 1:00 to maybe 1:45 of content missing from an episode. Antenna TV time compresses the already edited for syndication episodes of their programs and they come out to 21:00 approx. (I timed a Three’sCompany episode including the credit crunch. Plus what everyone else has pointed out, the quality is better, the episodes have been reformatted to 16:9, etc. I do like Antenna TV too, (and Rewind which is just a more updated version of Antenna TV).
	__________________ BeatleMoe

01-11-2023, 08:21 PM	#2
cd637299 cd637299 Forum Regular Join Date: Dec 14, 2022 Location: South Florida Posts: 861	I have both. MeTV just has better marketing. They have an online store, and they market, market, market. If they can get a celebrity from one of their classic shows (cough Carol Burnett cough), they do their best. It shows that they are head over heels into classic TV. They aren’t limited to just sitcoms either. MeTV also retains the closing credits, for classic TV geeks like me. MeTV also has joined the 21st Century (for better or worse), by re-fitting for 16:9. Seeing as I still use analog TV for the most part for viewing, it can be a handicap. MeTV’s owner, Weigel, has branched out considerably: they own Story TV, Decades, MeTV+, StartTV (oh well), etc. Weigel knows how to use TV subchannels. As to AntennaTV, apparently they have a much harder time procuring “new classic TV” shows. One can only watch Hazel, Dennis, Dad Knows Best etc. so much. They did score quite the coup 7 years ago this month, grabbing Johnny Carson. Unfortunately the Carson shows with musical guests are quite limited—licensing rights and all that. Even when Johnny is bombing and he goes into the tap dance, the original “Tea for Two” is dubbed over! I remember when Buddy Rich was a guest, but no music played; all I remember was him arguing with the band. All in all, it’s great to have Carson, for those who never saw him and can see what late night USED to be! Also—I don’t think that all shows on Antenna are digitized. As to MeTV improving, what I’d like to see mainly are: CHANGES 7-8 pm & 10-11 pm EST (even a Weigel CEO admits he cannot watch Hogan anymore, in so many words). With MeTV getting the Warner cartoon library, I’d like to see MORE cartoons, maybe one hour more on Saturday mornings. cd

01-11-2023, 08:56 PM	#3
merlinjones Member Forum Regular Join Date: Dec 30, 2019 Location: los ángeles Posts: 933	(my notes are about digital broadcast not cable) MeTV (MeTv+, Decades) has better classic shows on the whole Antenna's classics are confined to mornings and late night MeTV has HD 720p in my market MeTV shows the complete opening and closing and theme for every show without interruption and shrinkage (otherwise great H&I also loses points on their shrunken end titles lately) MeTV mostly uses better fresher digital masters Antenna is not in HD (401i) or in the right aspect ratio (I have to change it from the norm to avoid stretching or squeezing) in my market MeTV has more clever and playful bumpers and marketing (reminds me of old Nick at Nite) Antenna plays a lot of 80s shows that haven't aged as well as 50s-70s (for me anyway) Antenna's best shows are Bewitched, Jeannie and other Screen Gems that should play in prime time (or on MeTV channels)

01-11-2023, 09:36 PM	#4
Alan Brady's Hair Member Senior Member Join Date: Aug 30, 2014 Posts: 1,838	MeTV just has better and more diverse programming. Even the better Antenna offerings - like the Dick York Bewitcheds and That Girl - sort of get lost amid their more bland programming.

01-11-2023, 09:57 PM	#5
stevea 22 Years On Sitcoms Moderator Forum Legend Join Date: Aug 13, 2003 Location: Indy Posts: 45,336	I also like both MeTV's and Antenna TV's programs. MeTV's promotions are way better, they are innovative, and my perception of Antenna TV is that they are "schlock." Their ads are gutter ads, so what did they do several years ago? They cut the credits to squeeze in 30 seconds more of them. They also follow the TV Land practice of inserting their breaks anywhere but where the program logically breaks. Their affiliate (at least here) doesn't sync their clock so the local breaks always cut off dialog, but no one cares. Like some podunk local station would do. So MeTV is more 'big time." When Antenna TV was part of Tribune they were in a struggling media company. Now I think Nexstar probably just has them on auto-pilot and hardly even knows they exist. Their results are probably on page 789 of a report, and the big boys at corporate don't even read that far in.

01-11-2023, 11:12 PM	#7
cd637299 cd637299 Forum Regular Join Date: Dec 14, 2022 Location: South Florida Posts: 861	Yes that’s true—no Stump the Band. AND, one thing that I HATED on Carson was “The Edge of Wetness,” where normal folk are picked out by camera and are told by “the narrator” that he/she is the town drunk, the town pervert, et al. But I guess that stays, unless the background organ music is copyrighted too…. At least we have Carnac! He never had to sing…. Back to the topic at hand…. cd

01-11-2023, 11:26 PM	#8
stevea 22 Years On Sitcoms Moderator Forum Legend Join Date: Aug 13, 2003 Location: Indy Posts: 45,336	Carnac, Aunt Blabby, and the Teatime Movie segment and other Mighty Carson Art Players bits. Meanwhile, yes, back on topic--I haven't done a count, but with their ratings, MeTV also probably has a higher affiliate count. Not to mention their national feed for areas that have no affiliate. The local affiliate affiliate here, WTHR, dropped NBC SN for MeTV several years ago. I did read somewhere, MeTV went from 4:3 SD to 16:9 HD a few years back, due to advertisers' ads in 16:9. Most affiliates can't do the HD, since many are on digital subchannels, which lack the bandwidth for HD. I'm quite happy that the TIWM cartoons are 4:3 aspect ratio, undoubtedly since they are rebroadcast on MeTV+.

01-12-2023, 04:27 AM	#9
brtcmfn Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Dec 10, 2002 Location: colorado Posts: 323	IMO- Antenna TV focuses primarily on sitcoms- prefer it over METV METV is ok- but has other type of shows, and way to top heavy with Westerns. METV: Launched nationally: 12/10/2010 Number of Affiliates: 555 Population Covered: 291,645,283 Percent of Total: 93.34% ANTENNA TV: Launched: 1/1/2011 Number of Affiliates: 479 Population Covered: 280,974,457 Percent of Total: 89.92% (Also there are more affiliates that feature METV as there main channel and not on a sub channel compared to Antenna TV)

01-12-2023, 08:05 AM	#10
1960'sTVfan Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Sep 30, 2009 Posts: 6,163	I am surprised that there are still people who rely on and watch the retro channels for classic TV shows. For several reasons, I've stopped watching the retro channels and since I have DVD's of most of my favorite shows, I watch those for classic TV entertainment. The last time I relied on one of the retro channels for anything was in 2017/18 when I was recording episodes of The Joey Bishop Show from Antenna TV.

01-12-2023, 08:47 AM	#11
stevea 22 Years On Sitcoms Moderator Forum Legend Join Date: Aug 13, 2003 Location: Indy Posts: 45,336	For me it's laziness. If I'm doing other stuff, I'll just have Beaver or Father Knows Best (for example) on TV, rather than bothering to load up the DVD. But if you're just going to view the program, the DVD versions are far superior, most often unedited, and of course without those annoying ads.

01-12-2023, 09:10 AM	#12
PaperClips Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Feb 09, 2021 Posts: 316	The video quality and Svengoolie, They make a lot of money off of Svengoolie. If they keep doubling down on The beverly Hillbillies they are on the road to nowhee.. They really need to start working shows like Early Edition into the line-up

01-12-2023, 09:22 AM	#14
PaperClips Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Feb 09, 2021 Posts: 316	Antena TV runs basically every program you can get for free on the Roku. With endless commercials and horrendous video quality. They make their money off of the endless commercials they run. MeTV has good video but depends on Svengoolie. They put the Beverly Hillbillies at the 9 spot. Prime-Time - uh.....n I don't think they will ever move MASh.

01-12-2023, 11:33 AM	#15
merlinjones Member Forum Regular Join Date: Dec 30, 2019 Location: los ángeles Posts: 933	While it's great to have DVDs blurays and streaming options to access specific shows and episodes, I also value the experience of random broadcast TV surfing as I often catch things I never would have thought to watch by choice. There are lots of surprises and episodes forgotten and things to learn beyond the preplanned expectations. I feel it broadens my horizons - though within the era/genre/tone of programs I find comforting (why I like MeTV, MeTv+, Decades, H&I, Antenna, Movies!, Story, Cozi, etc.).