VGA 2009 viewership down 5% from 2008

by Andrew Yoon on Jan 25th 2010 4:30PM

Spike TV's Video Game Awards show isn't simply about celebrating the best of the games industry. No, it plays host to numerous WORLD EXCLUSIVE trailers. But, just how many people tuned in to watch? According to a report by Variety's The Cut Scene, not too many: Roughly 647,000 viewers watched the broadcast in 2009, a 5-percent decrease from 2008's viewership, and a 30-percent decrease from 2007's. When accounting for DVR views, the total jumps to 691,000 viewers. (For comparison's sake, the most recent Golden Globe awards drew in 16.9 million viewers.)

The online numbers (via GameTrailers.com) should make it pretty clear what Spike TV is doing right -- and what it's doing wrong. The scene pictured above, featuring Mike Tyson and the cast of The Jersey Shore, got a paltry 16,000 views. The Halo: Reach trailer, on the other hand, got 584,000. Perhaps if the Video Game Awards focused on, y'know, video games, there would be more reason to stay tuned in.

Source

Tags: ratings, Spike-TV, spike-tv-video-game-awards, vga, vga-2009

Reader Comments (62)

Is that guy finding an excuse to unbutton his shirt?

Nah dawg, dats how we rowl in da NJS biotches yo

Funny little side-story here, only one of those people are actually from Jersey Shore. The rest are all Long Island douchebag guidos, something I saw too much when I lived in NY

I live in Long Island Guido Douchebag Central tmac

LOL look at that tard, even on a respected award show the man must show his
"Situation" to the world...

...did I just call the VGAs respected? Hell naw.

16,000 people were hoping beyond hope that Tyson takes a bite out of one of 'em and it just hadn't made the news yet.

I was personally hoping for a sequel to the video of that small chick getting the shit knocked out of her.

Only this time with about 1000000 times the force of the first one.

Here's a special version of the video. Can never be shown enough, and it's probably my favorite youtube video ever.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jy5U5E71Vs8

@tmacairjordan87

LMAO!!! Funniest thing I've seen all day. Surprised I haven't seen it before now...

Dude I'm Lizzing! I'm Lizzing!

You people watch too much MTV.

Now that's a freak show if I ever saw one.

Andrew, for the love of all that is good in the world of gaming, please don't ever post a picture of Snookie after a Castlevania post again. Some things just don't belong next to each other...

I get so angry seeing people like that getting paid to be on "reality" tv

I could see where they lost viewership there - I can only imagine how many more people would have watched if they knew Tyson would be beating them all to death.
Those guys are going to be darker than Iron Mike if they put on any more bronzer

The way I see it this is a good sign. Many of the candidates for the awards aren't justified, and the actor awards are often based on media other than video games, like Megan Fox winning for being a supermodel and obviously not for her voice acting.

This article is obsessed with five.

Viewership was down five percent. It was posted January 25th. There are five people in the picture, and all five have a combined IQ of...five!

the short one is a people?!

Okay, four and a half people.

Thanks for ruining my fun, Brian.

http://phillyist.com/attachments/philly_lou/thenumber23_poster.jpg

You forgot to mention that that guy has 5 undone buttons.

Yeah, and I also forgot to mention that all five IQ points belong to Tyson.

Remember, remember, the 5th of November :P

I don't want to scare anyone more than they already are, but look at each one of their hands... 5 FINGERS!

Okay, I'm freaking out!

Let's not forget....
Snooki has a 5 inch penis, her friend had to suck 5 penises to get on the show, the two other guys have a total of 5 inches erect and Iron Mike Tyson's penis is 5 inches wide.

Seriously. A bunch of tan douche-bags fulfilling a stereotype I’ve sought to escape my whole life does not conjure to my mind anything having to do with gaming.

Those bastards can rot in hell.

But they do rot in hell, it's called Jersey.

AKBlade13

Thank you for signing your post, I would've have been able to tell who posted it otherwise.

@Wcarnation

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAOoXN8LLC0

Even though most of them are dumb, the Situation is pretty hilarious. He made the show for me, I don't' give a shit about whiny Samantha or Ronnie when there's a situation going on.

The VGA's are a joke. Also, what's with the little person?

Actually she's just gradually falling into a hole.

I'm going to create an academy, similar to the one the Oscars have, to award games. There has to be some kind of rhyme or reason to how these are awarded and it needs to be respectable. A panel of experts or something like that. Until then, the VGA are as good as any magazine or website awards.

EGM > VGA

http://www.interactive.org/

Sounds like a plan

Joystiq Top 10 > EGM > VGA's.

They already have it, the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences. It's awards aren't nearly as widely followed in the game community. Really, none of the "legit" awards are (the GDC awards are similar to the SAG awards, for instance, but few people seem to care about them, too, and the AIAS awards are barely acknowledged)

I see why the viewership was down. The awards where pure crap to a extent, and if anything should be 50% based on public poles and 50% on actual game editors. Sorry as someone stated Megan Fox's award was just pitiful and a shameless ploy to get her on the air for a few moments. Also the voice acting award went to Jackman are you kidding? Also the shameless sad "cameo's" by the Jersey Shore and others was very sad and to me started to show that Spike lost sight of why Gamers watched the VGA's.

If they want viewership up they should concentrate on premiers and legit awards rather than what they have now. Toss in some music groups who played songs in some videogames that won a award, and I'm sure many of us wouldnt mind seeing a full orchestra playing some Final Fantasy music. Just some ideas they can steal I dont care.

I understand they are potentially trying to net more viewers by attempting to have a show with more "mass appeal". However, a regular person is not going to tune into a video game awards show, so they shouldn't try to have "stars" like these on to justify the shows existence. Cut the crap out of the show and bring on people relevant to games.

Bring Nolan North out to give an award or something. Hell if you MUST have a known celebrity on, try to get Martin Sheen or someone that is actually IN a game. Not some douchebags from a shitty reality show.

I think you mean, "Bring out Nolan North to give an award in character."

i think you mean bring out Nolan North to receive an award for a character, in character.

Mind. Blown.

Spike VGAs: Snoop Dogg awarded best rhythm game

twitter.com/gameheadlines

Mike Tyson was dressed horribly bad in that.

As long as he stays with that group, he'll be fine.

Who are the 4 douchbags standing next to Mike Tyson?

I have a solution for the next VGA. Less people, more video games, and more GOOD, world exclusives. Okay it did have a few that were good, but it wasn't enough to please our appetite.

"VGA 2009 viewership down 5% from 2008" - Second best news all day! Maybe this is the beginning of the end of that trash. In the words of the worlds greatest protagonist who is just moments away from his comeback, "Get that crap outta here".

(By the way, best news of the day goes to the deal Cartoon Network made with Weird Al...).

The VGA has always been a joke. Did you see the DLC category? Of all the DLC that was out this year they picked TWO Fallout and TWO GTA ones. When they start focusing on games rather than glitz, and they actually have some decent nominations, then I'll consider looking their way.

I thought that the Fallout 3 and GTA IV dlc were all pretty good, actually. What would you have picked?

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VGA 2009 viewership down 5% from 2008

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