The popular South African soapie, Skeem Saam, experienced a significant drop in viewership after its move to a new timeslot at 19:30. According to a statement from the SABC on Tuesday, the show achieved a historical audience rating of 3.2 million viewers on its first episode in the new timeslot.
However, this number is a far cry from the 4.5 million viewers the soapie achieved in January, indicating a loss of 1.3 million viewers between January and March.
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The move to the 19:30 timeslot was prompted by a plea from the SABC1 audience, who found the previous 18:30 timeslot inconvenient due to it coinciding with their travel time. However, it seems that the new timeslot has not been well received by viewers, as evidenced by the drop in viewership.
Skeem Saam now faces tough competition from e.tv’s long-running soapie, Scandal!, and Mzansi Magic’s popular telenovela, My Brother’s Keeper. It remains to be seen whether the show can regain its lost viewers and compete effectively in the new timeslot.
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Some viewers expressed their dissatisfaction with the timeslot change on social media. One Twitter user, @MotheoLebelo, criticised the decision, stating that Skeem Saam would never beat Scandal!’s timeslot.
It’s clear that the change in timeslot has had a negative impact on Skeem Saam’s viewership. The show’s producers will need to devise strategies to attract viewers back and ensure its continued success in the highly competitive soapie landscape.
