Schedule (broadcasting)

Broadcast programming is the practice of organizing and/or ordering of broadcast media programs (Internet, television, radio, etc. ) in a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly or season-long schedule.

Modern broadcasters use broadcast automation to regularly change the scheduling of their programs to build an audience for a new show, retain that audience, or compete with other broadcasters' programs. In the United Kingdom, this is known as TV listings.

Television scheduling strategies are employed to give programs the best possible chance of attracting and retaining an audience. They are used to deliver programs to audiences when they are most likely to want to watch them and deliver audiences to advertisers in the composition that makes their advertising most likely to be effective. Digitally based broadcast programming mechanisms are known as electronic program guides (EPG).

At a micro level, scheduling is the minute planning of the transmission; what to broadcast and when, ensuring an adequate or maximum utilization of airtime.

With the beginning of scheduled television in 1936, television programming was initially only concerned with filling a few hours each evening – the hours now known as prime time. Over time, though, television began to be seen during the day time and late at night, as well on the weekends. As air time increased so did the demand for new material. With the exception of sports television, variety programs became much more important in prime time.

Block programming occurs when the television network schedules similar programs back-to-back. The concept is to provide similar programming to retain viewership.

Bridging is being used when a station tries to prevent the audience from changing channels during a junction point - the main evening breaks where all channels stop programs and shift gear. This is achieved in a number of ways including: having a program already underway and something compelling happening at a junction point, running a program late so that people ‘hang around’ and miss the start of other programs, or using a television advertisement of the next program during the credits of the previous.

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