tv gameshows

[3Styler]

how can gameshows and the like afford to give away prizes and money all the time, surely their never going to make a profit giving away hundreds of thousands of pounds on a regular basis? and who's money is it anyway?

[dougielogan]

a lot of the prizes are sponsored ie, win a renault car, the car is mentioned umpteen times and that is what the manufacturer wants, advertisement, also quiz games and game shows get a good audience so the tv companies can put up advertising rates.

[Loosehead]

Also it's very cheap to make in comparison to drama's and soaps , it also can command high advertising revenue as the show are often very popular. TV stations love game shows. Also these days they can get more income by having a viewers "competition" and have millions phoning and texting at �1 a go. The prizes they give out are chicken feed compared to what they bring in, even if they have to pay out �1m, ever wondered why Tarrant looks so smug? He owns a big chunk of celador.

[Loosehead]

Also they sell the show all around the world, either directly or by license so other countries can make their own versions.

[QmunkE]

Also by charging people to apply to become contestants - Who Wants to be a Millionnaire charges �1 to call in, just think of the money they make on that!

[Supernick]

The TV stations do make a lot of money on calls and texts etc for competitions, but don't forget that this is all outsourced to specialist telecoms companies. They will receive a cut, but they certainly don't receive all of the money from viewers dialling in. However it is generally more than they will be giving away.

Prizes are generally sourced from either PR companies or through dealing direct with the manufacturer, and in many cases won't cost a thing as the company involved has plenty of good free advertising. Overall, a gameshow can actually prove profitable if it ends up very popular.