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In addition, KI.KA reached its highest number of viewers in millions in 2007 and enjoyed its best image ratings. The channel was particularly successful with older children and teenagers through its afternoon scheduling of live-action series.
Across all target groups, KI.KA significantly increased its average market share compared with the previous year: by more than two percentage points* each among preschool and primary-school children, and by 1.3 percentage points among 10- to 13-year-olds.
With daily market shares among three- to 13-year-olds of 25.3% on November 9, 22.9% on November 16 and 22.6% on December 17, KI.KA was market leader and outperformed its private-sector competitors three times.
In 2007, KI.KA averaged 2.04 million daily contacts* (children aged three to 13 who watched KI.KA continuously for at least one minute), increasing the number of contacts by 150,000 compared with the previous year (1.89 million).
Beutolomäus: the most successful live-action series in German children’s television
Among preschool children, after a continuous rise in market share KI.KA was market leader in November with 32.7%* (Super RTL: 31.4%)*. Beutolomäus, the one true gift sack of Father Christmas, made a major contribution. The KI.KA Christmas story is a programming highlight for the whole family: on several occasions, more than one million viewers* aged three and older watched the programme. In the preschool target group, up to 66.5%* watched Beuto’s adventures daily at 18:40.
In the ranking of the 100 best programmes, KI.KA’s “Unser Sandmännchen” (RBB) ranked second among three- to 13-year-olds, immediately after the Handball World Cup final*. A total of 15 KI.KA programmes appear in the top 20. “Unser Sandmännchen” also achieved peak figures among three- to five-year-olds over the full year, with a market share of more than 77%.
10 years of KI.KA – Germany’s biggest children’s birthday party
With a special programming offering and successful off-air events, KI.KA demonstrated the quality of public-service children’s television in its anniversary year.
The highlight of all anniversary activities was the major celebration in Erfurt’s old town on July 8. More than 130,000 visitors met their favourite characters at six stages along the party mile from Petersberg to the main railway station. For everyone unable to join the celebrations in KI.KA’s home town, the channel broadcast live from the event in “Die KI.KA-Geburtstagsshow,” watched by 25%* of viewers aged three to 13.
The festival also launched the “KI.KA Summer Tour,” which welcomed more visitors than ever in 2007: more than 760,000 guests accepted KI.KA’s invitation, were entertained by shows with their favourite KI.KA characters and celebrated the tenth birthday of their favourite channel in ten cities.
KI.KA is an important point of contact for children
That KI.KA is a point of contact for children was also shown by the many letters it received in its anniversary year. Around 500,000 submissions reached the channel in 2007. Alongside many birthday wishes and original crafts for the 10th anniversary, they included numerous messages from children sharing their worries and problems with KI.KA. Through the “KI.KA Kummerkasten,” more than 37,000 children have received individual help to date.
With “Platz für Helden!”, a joint project by KI.KA, NDR and the ARD television lottery, KI.KA advocated for children’s interests and encouraged children to stand up for the rights of their peers. More than 400 committed children registered at http://www.platz-fuer-helden.de from September 1, and 52 projects received the “Platz-für-Helden!” banner. “Platz für Helden!” was shown on air from September 24 to November 22. For example, up to 280,000* viewers aged three to 13 watched the four-part documentary “Platz für Helden! – Ein Schiff für Flensburg” (NDR).
KI.KA also appeals to older viewers
For older viewers, KI.KA scheduled live-action series in the afternoon in 2007. The double episodes of “Schloss Einstein” (MDR), shown Monday to Friday at 14:15 from March 26, were watched by an average 20.4% of 10- to 13-year-olds, with peak values above 48%. Teenagers aged 12 to 18 were also enthusiastic: with an average 11%* market share since this scheduling began, KI.KA ranked ahead of RTL (6.9%) and SAT.1 (9.1%) among 12- to 18-year-olds.
October was all about crime drama. Across 15 suspenseful episodes of “KRIMI.DE” – including nine new productions – from Jena (MDR), Erfurt (KI.KA) and Hamburg (NDR), up to 19.8% of 10- to 13-year-olds followed the stories.
The “KI.KA Sunday fairy tale” delighted the whole family at 12:00 and repeatedly reached more than one million* viewers and more than 10 percent* of viewers aged three and over in 2007. With the fairy tale “Hansel and Gretel” (ZDF), KI.KA was market leader in this target group ahead of all other channels. The fact that KI.KA appeals to older people is shown by the average age of a KI.KA viewer: 24.#
KI.KA stronger in the evening
The continuing positive response to the high-quality programmes in KI.KA’s evening schedule also counted in 2007. With KI.KA LIVE at 20:00, the channel scored with the older target group and achieved peaks of up to 19.6% market share among 10- to 13-year-olds and up to 290,000 viewers aged three to 13. The evening schedule’s success was also supported by the knowledge magazine “Wissen macht Ah!” (WDR) and the children’s news programme “logo!” (ZDF), which reached highs of 27.7% and 24.3% market share respectively among three- to 13-year-olds in 2007.
