Recently, Prospect Park issued a press release to let everyone know that the number of episodes of All My Children and One Life To Live have been cut. As of this post, the shows will air twice per week. Here's what they said:
For close to two years we have been working passionately to bring
first run premium content to an online platform with the creation of
brand-new versions of the two iconic series, All My Children and One
Life To Live. There was no precedent for this effort- we had no
history-no barometer for how our fans would respond. We always knew
there would quickly be new insights into how audiences would respond to
our shows and this new platform, and that our ability to adapt quickly
to audience needs would ultimately determine the long-term success of
the shows and our mission. This is a new medium, a new time and we have
always planned to make changes quickly by listening to you, our fans and
customers.
Today it is clear these shows have resonated, as many millions of
views have been logged since our April 29th debut, a mere two and a
half weeks ago. We’ve consistently been in the top ten shows viewed on
Hulu and viewers and critics alike have told us how impressed they are
with the quality of both programs. The past two weeks have been
invaluable in terms of learning about how you watch and when you watch
our shows on this new platform. We have gained enormous insight through
our actual viewing data and our research. And our research has revealed
the following:
In the past these shows had their vast majority of
views within the first 24 hours. Instead, our shows are primarily
consumed on different days then when they originally air. Primarily,
fans have been binge viewing or watching on demand, and as a result, we
feel we have been expecting our audience to dedicate what has turned out
to be an excessive amount of time to viewing these shows. (As an
example, for the substantial audience only watching on the weekends, we
are currently asking them to watch five hours of programming to keep
pace with our release schedule).
On ABC the shows shared a large percentage of their
viewers with each other. Yet, the majority of our viewers are watching
one show or the other, not both, and they aren’t viewing the shows when
they did before. Part of the reason for choosing between the shows may
be that the largest viewing takes place either between 12PM and 1PM
(when people generally can only fit one episode during lunch time) or
between 5PM and 7PM (when the vast majority of competing shows are a
half hour long). We are finding that asking most people to regularly
watch more than a half hour per day online seems to be too much.
During their ABC runs, viewers watched only 2-3
episodes on average a week and picked up with whichever day’s episode it
was. Our viewers seem to primarily start with the first episode and
then continue forward episode by episode. Like with primetime serialized
dramas as opposed to the traditional slower pacing of daytime, people
feel lost if they miss an episode. People are starting from the
beginning; the shows are designed for complete viewing from episode one.
Yet starting from the beginning with the amount of episodes we are
releasing is asking too much for viewers who need to catch up.
The clear conclusion is that while somewhat mixed, these viewing
patterns resemble more closely the typical patterns of online viewing
rather than how one would watch traditional television. This leads us to
believe we are posting too many episodes and making it far too
challenging for viewers to keep up. When it comes to online viewing,
most of us are just trying to find time to watch series comprised of 13
to 22 episodes a season-so asking viewers to assign time for over 100
episodes per show is a daunting task.
Therefore, we have chosen to revise our scheduling model
beginning this Monday, May 20th by introducing two new episodes from
OLTL and AMC each week- new episodes of AMC will now run on Mondays and
Wednesdays, and fresh episodes of OLTL will post Tuesdays and Thursdays.
MORE, our behind the scenes series, will run as a single show on
Fridays. This allows us to introduce a new episode of quality television
every Monday through Friday and gives the audience a chance to catch up
as we continue to build awareness and excitement around these new
shows. Because Hulu agrees with our findings, for the meantime they
will keep all of our episodes on Hulu.com for free to give viewers the
opportunity to find us and catch up.
We know our most dedicated viewers will be upset as they would
probably prefer more shows to less (we personally wish there were more
episodes of our favorite shows; we would love 50 episodes a year of
Homeland, Mad Men or The Simpsons). We apologize to these viewers and
ask them to please understand we are trying to ensure our shows succeed
and not meet the fate they experienced previously. We need to devise a
model that works for all viewers and follows how they want, and are
actually watching, online. When it comes to online, as with all new
technology, it’s adapt or fail. We feel fortunate to be an online
company and to have such an opportunity to adapt. Of course, we will
continue to evaluate all the data that comes in and will be vigilant
about revising our strategy as needed.
We want to be clear that this will in no way impact our feverish
pace of production - we will be filming new episodes through mid-June,
continue editing throughout July and until we go back into production in
August. It’s a frenetic schedule but all of us are up for the challenge
and excited to continue to deliver great shows.
As a new venture we felt obligated to address the needs of our
viewers head on and to make adjustments that we think will work for our
viewers. And as always, we thank you for your continued support and
encouragement.
Sincerely,
Rich Frank and Jeff Kwatinetz
Can you count the contradictions? How can a show be doing so well, yet cut back production? Isn't the point of online viewing the ability to choose when you watch? How can such a huge decision be made in the small amount of time the shows have been back? How can traditional format daytime drama stories be presented effectively with so little time? Where's the commitment? If, at the first sign of obstacle, you cut and run, how can you expect us to have faith? So confused...
Sorry to sound all doom and gloom, but I feel like we've all been taken for a ride. Looks to me as though PP is already getting sick of their new toys. I'm so tired of fighting, just to have the carrot dangled. Don't think I can do it anymore. Am devastated and heartbroken beyond any understandable expression. Will continue to enjoy and support my shows as long as they exist, but am expecting a cancellation notice at any moment. Can't believe this is happening again.
My Life to Live: How I Became the Queen of Soaps When Men Ruled the Airwaves by Agnes Nixon
