The new “Tatort” crime thrillers on ARD followed an average of half a million fewer in 2023 than in the same period in 2022. How and why Germany’s favorite television series is weakening.
Germany’s most popular television series is weakening: The average number of viewers of the ARD ratings hit “Tatort” has fallen noticeably this year – especially compared to the TV boom times during the Corona crisis. On average, 8.7 million people watched the first broadcasts between January 1 and the end of May, as the ARD program directorate in Munich told the German Press Agency. The reach fell by more than half a million compared to the same period in 2022. From New Year’s Day to the end of May 2021 – a peak of the Corona crisis – an average of 9.8 million watched each episode.
The number of viewers has fluctuated enormously so far in 2023: For example, only around 5.8 million saw the Viennese “crime scene” on the very sunny Whit Monday, but around 13.9 million saw the Münster thriller in March.
Two crime scenes with over 10 million TV viewers
Of the 20 previous “crime scenes” in 2023, only two films had more than 10 million TV viewers: in addition to the Münster film “MagicMom” from March 5th, there was also the Cologne crime thriller “Abbruch Kante” from March 26th.
Four of the previous “Tatort” thrillers even landed under the 7 million mark this year: in addition to the Viennese crime thriller “Azra” from May 29th, this was also the Zurich film “Seilschaft” from April 30th.
But not only the cases from Austria and Switzerland scored particularly little with the German television audience. The new RBB investigator Susanne Bonard, played by Corinna Harfouch, also started below average. The unusual double episode from Berlin, “Nothing but the Truth”, about right-wing structures and conspiracies within the security apparatus had a difficult time at Easter. There were 6.9 million viewers on Easter Sunday (April 9), and 6.7 million on Easter Monday (April 10).
ARD can be quite satisfied
With the market share of around 28 percent on average so far, ARD can be quite satisfied in 2023. In 2016, for example, the average market share in the first five months was “only” 25 percent per new episode, even though the average viewership was 9.3 million.
The social development that overall fewer and fewer people watch linear television can definitely mean higher market shares and ratings than in previous years with less reach.
Two new “Tatort” thrillers will be released before the 2023 summer break (from June 18): “Hochamt für Toni” from Franconia (June 4) and “Die Nacht der Kommissar” from Stuttgart (June 18).
On the Sunday in between (June 11), the first shows the Munich “Polizeiruf 110: Paranoia”. It is the last case with Verena Altenberger.
Declining audience already in 2022
The “crime scene” had already experienced a slight decline in viewers for the whole of 2022. The average audience shrank to 8.9 million (calendar year 2021 still 9.18 million). The average number of viewers for 36 crime novels was thus lower in the 2022 calendar year than it has been since 2018.
The ARD “crime scene” with around 20 different teams is by far Germany’s most popular TV series. It has been around since 1970. Since then, 1239 films have been broadcast with the label.
The “Tatort” experienced a particularly large number of audience and media responses in 2014 and 2015. At that time, each new episode was followed by an average of almost 10 million viewers on TV.
This time of hype, when every “crime scene” topic of conversation and every personal detail within the Sunday crime cosmos seemed to be a big topic, is probably over for good.
Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
