Mediaset surpasses Rai for the first time, average audiences decrease by 2.6%

Rai retains its lead in prime time but must take on the feared overtaking in 24 hours of audience. For the first time, Mediaset overtakes state TV for all-day programs. It was the Communications Authority, confirming the rumors of recent days and causing some annoyance in Rai (which gives a different reading of the results) to certify that the main competitor of Viale Mazzini has put its head forward. Fifty thousand more listeners: the average viewers of the Cologno Monzese company are 3.09 million against 3.04 million. The public broadcaster, compared to 2022, loses around 160 thousand daily listeners, while Mediaset shows a more limited decline of 20 thousand viewers. Between 2019 and 2023 – Agcom announced – Rai lost 510 thousand viewers (-14.4%) while Mediaset recorded a more marginal reduction of around 50 thousand viewers (-1.6%).

THE DATA

In general in the television sector, the average daily audiences for the whole of 2023 show, compared to 2022, a decline of 2.6% for the whole day (from 8.44 to 8.22 million viewers); a similar trend (-2.5%) is also recorded for the “prime time” slot (from 19.48 to 18.99 million viewers). It is the “minor” channels – it is explained – that mainly determine the greater reduction in the audience of the public broadcaster compared to that recorded by the Mediaset group. In the “prime time” segment, as mentioned, Rai confirms itself as the main television publisher with average daily audiences of 7.17 million (37.8% share), compared to 7.12 for Mediaset (37.5% share) . The decline in viewers, compared to the corresponding period of 2022, is equal to 450 thousand for Rai and 140 thousand for Mediaset. «The Rai Group confirms its television leadership. The Rai generalist networks – Rai 1, Rai 2, Rai 3 firmly maintaining their lead over the three generalist networks of the main competitor” specified Viale Mazzini, underlining that “from the comparison on an equal basis between the three generalist networks plus the all news channel in the In the year 2023, it emerges that Rai is the leader both throughout the day with a share of 31 percent and an average of 2 million 527 thousand viewers (against 26.8 and 2 million 184 thousand of its main competitor), and in prime time with a share of 32 percent and 6 million 12 thousand spectators (against 26.7 and 5 million 8 thousand of the competition)”. According to Rai, there is confusion about the data. «The record – continues Viale Mazzini – is unequivocally certified by the numbers. We reiterate that it is incorrect to include thematic networks in the calculation of the overall audience and to compare qualitatively and quantitatively different audience perimeters. Just as it is impossible to make comparisons with the past, even 2019, when the television offer was certainly different from the current one”.

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