Frequently Asked Questions
What are the benefits of subscribing to AQUA/Overnights?
Subscription contracts offer considerable cost savings as well as the following benefits:
A world of information at your fingertips;
Access to Top Ratings reports: these allow clients to create a variety of Top Performance tables using selection criteria including genre, channel and timeslot.
If you are interested in talking to us about a subscription please call us on (+44) 1823 322 829.
HD Reporting: Most channels include figures for their HD version in their main (SD) channel figures. However, it should be noted that there are exceptions, including ITV1 HD, which is reported separately.
What is Transmission Checking?
The transmission checking process involves the recording of television channels (currently BBC1, BBC2, ITV1, Channel 4 and Five) and comparison of actual transmissions with the schedules we receive from our schedule suppliers. If there are differences, the schedules are updated where necessary. Differences include late schedule changes, programme titles and start and end times (and therefore duration). This transmission check is completed by 09:30 each morning before any reports are produced, to ensure accuracy of all reports (including overnight reports).
Schedules are checked against the London region schedule. We don't check transmissions on Bank Holidays and over holiday periods (Easter, Christmas etc). Schedules for these unchecked periods will therefore be based on published programme listings and start and end times. However, if there are changes over these periods that are brought to our attention, we will transmission check and reissue any reports affected.
Between 06:00 – 17:00 they are tape checked to the nearest 5 minutes. However, if requested by clients, there is the opportunity of checking to the minute, as some programmes can regularly be very different to the scheduled times.
Between 17:00 – 26:00 all programmes are tape checked to the nearest minute. It is important to note, however, that the ‘overnights’ data remains at a 5-minute resolution. Audience data for the previous night's viewing is supplied as 5-minute periods (e.g. 08:30-08:35). Therefore, although programme start and end times are to the nearest minute, the data their audiences are based on remain at a 5-minute resolution. How we select the 5-minute periods to be attached to a specific programme is detailed below.
When rounding to the nearest 5 minutes we round up if the end minute is 2:30 or greater and we round down if it is 2:29 or less, within each 5 minutes block.When rounding to the nearest minute, we round up if the end second is :30 or greater and we round down if it is :29 or less. Therefore, a programme starting at 08:32 would use five minute data from 08:30-08:35 as its first ‘block’ of audience data.
The start of a programme is the actual start time of the programme – after all ad-breaks and ad/programme sponsorship slots. The end of the programme is dealt with in the same way. We don’t include any ads at the beginning or end of a programme.
As far as we are aware, nobody else in the industry does this transmission check. This is not only a way of establishing the actual start and end times of programmes on the 5 channels checked (BBC1, BBC2, ITV1, Channel 4 and Five), but it also allows us to pick up on schedule time changes, overruns, and swapping between channels etc (as happens between BBC1 and BBC2 when sporting events overrun, for example). Our schedule suppliers do pick up on some changes, but not all.
A good example of the importance of accuracy is the X Factor final, on one edition of which we were able to identify a million more views to the show than anyone else because the programme overran – and we were right! There are many more examples of this.
Insider Information
We know that insider information, knowledge and contacts are key to success in the broadcast industry. With this in mind, here are some links to essential sites for news, events, organisations, skills and training.
News
Attentional's Screenwatch blog monitors new and returning programmes on UK television and reports on their performance using BARB overnight data.
Entertainment news about the biggest TV shows, films and celebrities, updated around the clock.
Broadcastnow is a premium subscription site featuring TV industry news, data, comment and analysis, along with The Commissioning Index (TCI) carrying up-to-the-minute information on the latest commissions.
C21Media provides the international entertainment community with daily news and analysis. Find out what’s going on in the world of content through a variety of online, print and live products and services.
Events
MIPCOM is the world's leading content market for creating, co-producing, buying, selling, financing and distributing entertainment across all platforms.
Knowledge
With close to half a billion pounds worth of British TV exported to the US each year, the importance of the US market to the British television industry continues to grow.
BARB (Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board) is the organisation responsible for providing the official measurement of UK television audiences.
TV Mole is a one-stop resource to help you originate, research, write and successfully pitch your ideas to broadcast, digital or cable TV channels.
State of the art image recognition technology with automatic 24/7 multi channel monitoring that can track content or brands reliably and efficiently, providing irrefutable evidence of transmission.
Business Development Partner for Attentional and Overnights.tv. Provides international business development, sales and marketing initiatives, entertainment and industry events for media, technology and not-for-profit organisations.