Rai 4

If the initial aim of Rai 4 was to accompany the technological innovation of DTT with new content, the last year was characterised by the launch of a new phase of growth in broadcasting: the decisive strengthening of the points that already qualify the channel’s offering and identity (which continues to revolve around the fantasy, crime/thriller and action macro genres) accompanies the fortunate experimentation of new products and renewed attention to European and Asian genre production.

Looking at the trend in average monthly viewing figures during 2011, the first thing that we notice is the clear increase in out-of-guarantee periods of the general-interest calendar – June and December – in a complementary dynamic already noticed during the previous year.

As in 2010, the physiological drop in viewers in the summer – accompanied by high levels of share, considering the considerable season reduction of the audience – was followed by a constant recovery in autumn, reaching viewing figures and shares in January 2012 that were higher than those of the same month of the previous year.

Specifically, the share over the full day was 1.17%, while that on the 8:30 p.m.- 10:29 p.m. Auditel slot was 1.20%.

Moving on from the aggregate figures to the results of the single broadcasts, the best performances in terms of viewers were recorded on products with the strongest editorial content.

With reference to the most watched films in prime time during 2011, the major title (The Forbidden Kingdom, 751,624 viewers and 2.71% share on 27 December 2011) was broadcast within the scope of cycle Missione:
Estremo Oriente, a weekly appointment with East Asian genre films.

Supplied only partly – as in this case – by films from the Rai Cinema catalogue, most of the titles proposed by the cycle were brand new and purchased specifically for the occasion, such as – looking once again at the recordbreaking audiences – Ip Man and Ip Man 2, film rewarded with outstanding public success again when they were repeated, just three months after being broadcast for the first time.

The other top results include French action and crime films (Largo Winch, Sky Fighters and the diptych Banlieue 13), in the programming line of the new cycle All’ultimo respiro, dedicated to the most appealing and exciting new productions on the transalpine film scene.

More action films, with Jean-Claude Van Damme (Kickboxer, Timecop, Derailed, Replicant and Wake of Death), the heist – or so-called ‘robbery films’ genre, often included in the channel’s programming – fantasy, crime/thriller and adventure films, as well as the Wednesday films, always strongly appealing due to the actors featured and their high production values.

Looking at the viewing figures for television series, two programming strategies were most rewarded: the repeat ‘in sequence’ – in most cases during the access slot to prime time – of series already aired during the evening programming of the general-interest channels (Supernatural, Lost, Desperate Housewives, Flashpoint); or the choice of new products – from the recovery of the adventure series The Lost World, broadcast for the first time ever ten years after production, to the series based on the work of Stephen King Haven, and the two new series from the BBC, Doctor Who and Torchwood, a spin-off of the longest running science fiction production of the UK’s national television network, both recently promoted to prime time after a successful run-in period in the early evening slot.

The in-house production effort launched in 2011 is also addressed to the imaginary genre visited by the channel’s film and serial programming: the experience of the ‘paging’ formats of the offering was launched, and received successfully by both audiences and critics, by the review on fantastic film Wonderland (record viewing figures of 241,343 with a 1.10% share, on 10 February 2012 in the evening slot).

Launched on-line on 1 December 2010, the Rai 4 web portal currently offers a showcase of programming, with descriptive/critical datasheets on all the film and tv series in the programming (about 500 new pages in just over a year), always accompanied by pictures and, where possible, the link to the relative promo.

The website’s largely informative structure has been developed towards a constant interaction with the public, using different but complementary tools, such as the channel’s e-mail, social networks, mini-websites for analysis and publication, like video on demand on the Rai.tv website of the programmes Wonderland and Il Male Cabaret.
In the last thirteen months, the total number of pages viewed has exceeded 24 million, of which 13,452,493 in live streaming and 10,535,331 with regard to the Rai 4 portal text pages. In the priority aim of implementing multiplatform broadcasting of the programmes, the launch of a mobile and iPad application is currently being examined.

Five definitions of Rai 4

Auteur tv: the most award-winning tv series from American cable tv, Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Roma and Boardwalk Empire.

Cult Tv: the most popular genre series, from the evergreen Star Trek and Streghe to the new phenomena fed by the fandom via web, like the BBC’s science-fiction series Doctor Who and Torchwood or the latest cyberpunk cartoon innovations.

Expanded tv: a tv that continues on the web with programmes on-demand, datasheets and analytical texts and ongoing communication with the public, also through new channels, like mobile applications.

Global imagination tv: the new frontiers of film and tv genre production, from oriental action (Cycle Missione: Estremo Oriente), to French crime (All’ultimo respiro cycle) and Spanish- American fantasy.

Brand tv: analytical productions dedicated to the main genres offered by the channel (Wonderland); in the multimedia age, the strongest identity wins.