Syfy Viewership Numbers Question

[EmoBorg]

I was looking up the viewership numbers for Syfy miniseries,Ascension. The numbers were

Night One - 1.76 million
Night Two - 1.33 million
Night Three - 1.50 million

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascension_%28TV_series%29

I was wondering for a Sci Fi Tv Series to be successful on the Syfy channel, what are the ideal viewership numbers ?


Defiance season 2 had a range of 2.01 million to 1.35 million viewers per episode and it got renewed for a third season.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Defiance_episodes


Stargate Universe season 2 had numbers ranging from 1.222 million to 0.814 million and it got canceled.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Stargate_Universe_episodes


So can we say that going below 1 million viewers can get a show on Syfy canceled ?

 

[Vendikarr]

I was looking up the viewership numbers for Syfy miniseries,Ascension. The numbers were

Night One - 1.76 million
Night Two - 1.33 million
Night Three - 1.50 million

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascension_%28TV_series%29

I was wondering for a Sci Fi Tv Series to be successful on the Syfy channel, what are the ideal viewership numbers ?


Defiance season 2 had a range of 2.01 million to 1.35 million viewers per episode and it got renewed for a third season.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Defiance_episodes


Stargate Universe season 2 had numbers ranging from 1.222 million to 0.814 million and it got canceled.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Stargate_Universe_episodes


So can we say that going below 1 million viewers can get a show on Syfy canceled ?

They don't have a simple rule they go by. It's more a formula that a show has to show a profit based on its cost. Their reality series have stayed on the air for years because they are cheap to produce and make good ratings.

International shows they license are the same way. Canadian channels create shows like Lost Girl or Continuum, and Syfy just pays a per episode cost for US broadcast rights. That makes these series cheaper and can pull in lower ratings and stay on the air longer.

Shows they pay production costs for are the hardest ones for them to keep on the air. The show has to make them a decent profit after expenses. The more expensive the production, the higher the ratings it needs.

The cast cost wouldn't be that high, but if they weren't locked into a long term contract, it may be costly to get everyone back. It did look expensive however.

 

[cylkoth]

The overall ratings will no doubt get a bump when dvr usage within the 7 days of broadcast (Live+7 Day) are factored in.

Another factor is whether the show is corporate family owned or not. SGU was owned by MGM, and coming from an independent, the network would see no benefit continuing it as any profits from home video and foreign sales wouldn't go to them. Ascension was a co-production between Syfy and Lionsgate. So the network will be motivated to to renew a series if their sister production company/studio is an owner.