The "Apprentice" has made a few changes this year in response to continually plummeting ratings. From a high of a 10.1 rating among the 18-to-49 demographic in 2004, it has now plunged to a 4.0 last spring. A number of critics say that it's because of the outrageous amount of commercialization of the show.
For the ratings, the show has decided to change its location to try to get it growing in viewers again. This year it will be shot in Los Angeles, in contrast to New York in the past.
To show its plunge in the ratings and draw as an advertiser, former clients like PepsiCo (PEP), Burger King (BKC), Proctor & Gamble (PG), General Motors (GM) and Microsoft (MSFT) aren't returning as sponsors. While there are a few new ones that are big like Toyota (TM), Dial Corp. and GNC (GNC), they also include some pretty small ones like Sue Bee Honey and Trina Turk; showing that the cost of participation has dropped considerably from its former pricing of $2.5 million to $3 million per episode.
The show is also not going to be on the fall schedule, showing the slowing appeal. Still, when sponsors have bought time on the show, it has increased sales dramatically for the companies; even the lower priced ads may work well now.
The question still remains of how far NBC (GE) will allow the show to drop in viewership before it decides to get rid of it. If it drops at the rate in the past, it may be difficult to justify keeping it on the schedule. It may depend on how many sponsors they can keep on lining up in spite of it. So far they're still not doing too bad.
Comment Preview