How Acasa TV turned into a station that beats even mainstream channels' viewing figures

Acasa TV, Romania’s first niche channel that launched ten years ago, has registered increasingly higher viewing figures – sometimes even surpassing mainstream channels, after adapting its content to suit its target audience.
Between August 2001 and December 2007, Acasa TV registered on the whole-day segment a 1.9 point rating and a 12.4 market share, figures valid on the segment of women aged between 15 and 49, living in urban areas. However, the channel was outranked by Antena 1 (2.2-point rating and a 13.9 market share), and by Pro TV (3.1-point rating and a 19.7 market share).
“Over time, the rise in viewing figures has led to a significant increase in the volume of advertising attracted by the channel. In the beginning, around 80% of clients regarded Acasa TV as a strictly niche channel, and only allocated budgets if they exclusively targeted female audiences. However, over the last three or four years, clients involved in sectors such as financial services, car imports and the pharmaceutical industry have bought advertising space,” explains Ruxandra Ion, managing director of Acasa TV. Since the beginning of the year Ion has also been a Channel and Content Strategist for Central European Media Enterprises (CME) – the American company that holds the controlling stake in PRO TV, Acasa TV, Pro Cinema, PRO TV International, Sport.ro, and also holds the licence for MTV in Romania.
She says for several clients in the FMCG and cosmetics sector, Acasa TV is the channel with the highest ratings.
“The content and the manner in which it is put across have been adapted to fit our target audience,” says Ruxandra Ion, explaining the success of the TV channel, whose 10-year anniversary will take place on February 2. Among the elements that make up the channel’s business strategy, Ruxandra Ion also counts meeting the planned revenue targets, preserving the profit margin, and the criteria considered when acquiring products from international markets, which has prevented Acasa TV from making errors. “Content producers regard us as a strategic partner on this market, and give Acasa TV the first choice when it comes to programmes,” says the director.