Media & Marketing: They may have messed up their ticket allocation, but the GAA will be heartened to read the latest TV ratings for the All Ireland hurling final between Cork and Galway. The figures however will not provide as much comfort for the FAI, writes Emmet Oliver.
The Cork-Galway game reached 726,000 individuals on RTÉ2, which was 9,000 more than last year. However the World Cup qualifier, France versus Ireland, fell slightly short of this, reaching 713,000 individuals. Not surprisingly the figures from Nielsen Media Research indicate huge interest in both games among males aged between 15 and 34.
To be fair to the FAI, the Ireland versus France match was also shown on Sky Sports which is available to those prepared to subscribe via satellite or cable.
As pointed out this week by Dublin agency AFA O'Meara, the viewing figures produced by Nielsen are for "in home" viewing and do not include those who watched in pubs and clubs.
Research recently released by RTÉ television found that an additional 20 per cent of viewers watch their sport in pubs and clubs.
AFA said the All Ireland hurling final was still regarded as a "showcase programme" by advertisers in Ireland and it still attracts major advertising brands.
The half-time advertising breaks of last Sunday's game included such brands such as Guinness, Cadbury, Vodafone, The Irish Times and Bulmers.
We also discovered this week that the public is prepared to watch programmes with a business theme.
As advertising agency Saor Communications pointed out this week: "RTÉ1 will be pleased with the performances of two business-focused broadcasts late last Thursday night". The Mentor was watched by 24 per cent of ABC1 adult viewers and the show was followed by the Entrepreneur of the Year which secured the attention of more than 25 per cent of ABC1 adults.
A sporting chance for Setanta
Meanwhile one of the RTÉ's rivals, Setanta Sports, is finally making some inroads into the TV market after a bumpy first few months.
The latest figures from Nielsen indicate that the channel is achieving a 5.5 per cent market share (or 42,000 viewers) for key matches.
The company also recently surveyed Dublin bars during the recent Rangers-Celtic Scottish Premier League match and of the 79 bars surveyed, 37 were showing the match on Setanta.
Niall Cogley, chief executive, of Setanta Sports, said the company had made some significant changes in recent weeks, including launching a new national advertising campaign to promote the station, redesigning its website and reducing its prices in Northern Ireland. It has also launched a new nightly sports discussion programme called The Hub and introduced a new teletext service called Sportstel.
Mr Cogley, who used to head sport at RTE, said: "We have come an awful long way since our launch only eight months ago."
Virgin Express gets word in lengthwise
Virgin Express airline is currently showing off the world's longest outdoor billboard in Berlin which is 1,100 metres long.
Written in German, the headline on the poster says that "you can fly from Berlin to Brussels from as low as €41" and the line is then repeated over and over across the length of the poster - in between jokes to entertain pedestrians walking by.
It comes at a time when the future of the traditional printed outdoor posters may be under threat. A new outdoor trend emerging in the UK is the holographic advertisement.
A chain of pubs in London has just installed holographic screen displays showing advertising. The screens can show up to 70 frames of video and are fitted with motion sensors, enabling content providers to make a hologram flash and disappear as people walk past it, thus encouraging them to return and check what they see.
Brands such as Guinness, Baileys and Cadbury have already signed up to advertise on the new screens.
98FM highlights toll bridge delays
The National Toll Roads (NTR) may not be prepared to consider lifting the toll barriers at the west link, but the company is certainly providing plenty of promotional opportunities for various media companies.
Yesterday Dublin radio station 98FM claimed to have received about 50,000 texts from listeners calling for the toll barriers to be lifted tomorrow. The station is strongly promoting the idea that the NTR lift the barriers at peak periods if not permanently.
As a Dublin station, 98 may be slower to adopt the Progressive Democrats' idea of charging south-bound drivers double for using the west link and making it free for those travelling northside.
T-Rex ad scoops Shark award
Ennis was full of sharks over the last few days, but it was a different kind that swept the boards at the 43rd Shark advertising awards festival on Saturday night.
Irish production company Zanita Film's T-Rex commercial for DDB Canada won six awards, including best direction, best animation, best new director and the Palme D'Or for best production company.
It was also a night of success for the Irish office of McCann Erickson which scooped a Grand Prix for its Heineken 'China' campaign.
Meanwhile entries are still being accepted for the Marketer of the Year awards. The awards are run by Marketing magazine and sponsored by Edelman Public Relations.
The closing date for entries is Thursday, September 22nd and entry forms are available from cullen@marketing.ie
