And Then There Were Three: The Decline of Soap Operas on Broadcast TV
In these Days of Our Lives, daytime dramas just don’t grip broadcast TV executives like they used to. Last week, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming announced that the long-running soap opera Days of Our Lives would be moving to Peacock after nearly 57 years on NBC.
That shift, scheduled for September 12, means that fans will have to start paying at least $4.99 per month, the current price of a Peacock Premium subscription, to watch a show that used to be available for free. It also means that NBC will be the first of the Big Three television networks not to have a daytime drama on its airwaves, with General Hospital still making its rounds on ABC and The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful still holding down the fort on CBS.
And to think that in 2010, there were still seven daytime dramas on broadcast TV. At the start of the millennium, there were 10. And in 1990, fans had a dozen options to choose from. See how daytime dramas have petered out since 1990 in the chart below (blue indicates the years the series spanned between ’90 and now).
Speaking to BBC News in 2019, Miami University sociology professor C. Lee Harrington pegged the beginning of the end of the soap opera genre to the O.J. Simpson trial in 1995, the coverage of which interrupted regular soap opera airings. Then, cheaper, unscripted TV shows became popular. Viewers have since developed shorter attention spans that are ill-suited to daytime dramas’ years-long storylines. “People just wanted shorter narratives, they wanted shorter books,” Harrington added.
Plus, as NPR reported in 2011, there aren’t as many stay-at-home parents for advertisers to target as there were in the mid-20th century, and those who remain can now watch anything, thanks to streaming and on-demand television. Perhaps, then, it’s no surprise that Procter & Gamble had transitioned from producing soap operas to advertising on social media by 2010, per Consumerist.
In any case, TV Insider commenters are already mourning Days of Our Lives’ impending move to streaming. “It’s terrible how our regular stations are taking away our shows and charging us for them when we already pay high cable prices,” one wrote. “Taking Days of Our Lives away from seniors [who] have watched from day one really is not nice.”
Another person wrote, “Yet another bad, bad decision by a major network. You are taking a show that has had a loyal fanbase for 57 years off the platform where it built that fanbase. How do you possibly think this could be a smart move? It just proves that senior citizens are irrelevant to corporate America.”
We’ll soon see how many folks tune into Days now that it’s on Peacock, and as for the fate of the remaining soaps, time will tell.
Days of Our Lives, Streaming Premiere, September 12, Peacock
Conversation62 Comments
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Please don't ruin my last years. I'm sure I am not alone
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O
With the major networks it’s all about the bucks, not loyal viewers!!
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G
Why they just move them all too Peacock 🦚
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O
They're businesses. You know the saying - "if it don't pay, it don't stay."
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G
Exactly. It stinks, but tv networks are in show business to MAKE MONEY. They're not going to keep something on the air that is losing money, no matter how upset fans are and how much they complain. They care about their bottom line.
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G
Duh. They're businesses, not charities. Fan loyalty doesn't keep the lights on, especially when you're airing on NBC - a free channel anybody can get over the air with an antenna. You're not paying for CBS, ABC, NBC, Fox or the CW in your cable bill. Those are local stations. You're paying for CABLE - USA, TNT, TBS, FX, Paramount, Lifetime, etc. and PRESTIGE SUBSCRIPTION CABLE - HBO, STARZ, ENCORE, Showtime, etc. and all their 3-5 subsidiary channels (like HBO2, HBO West, etc.).
NBC Universal is a business. Naturally, they care about making money. Days of Our Lives no longer makes a profit for them on free tv, because the advertising revenue isn't enough to justify the cost. The ratings are terrible, they've been in last place for years and on the brink of cancellation since like 2007. Not to mention, the audience that soap operas are for - suburban housewives at home during the day - hardly exists anymore. Women are working now, not home alone watching soaps and cleaning the house.
If I remember correctly, Sony and Ken Corday Productions actually fought in court over Corday asking Sony for a bigger budget. Sony refused to fork over more money, because the ratings are so low. This has been a long time coming.
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R
I think it stinks. Daytime has more talk shows, News and courtroom shows, and less soap operas in their schedules. This is the worst decision ever made by network television.
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Hey, Days of Our Lives fans: let's jump ship to General Hospital! We don't have to pay to watch it, and they win all the Emmy's anyway. I watched Days to escape reality--why would I watch a news show?!?!?
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G
Don't be so quick to pin all your hopes on General Hospital. There are already rumors ABC's planning on doing this with GH on Hulu.
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I have watched Days since the beginning I was 13 years old. I am sad that it is moving to a streaming service but I can’t afford to add another bill to my cost of living
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TV has always been about money. People are dropping cable and satellite at a rate of about 5 million a year. Over 55 % of American households will have cut the cord by the end of this year. The change to move shows from over the air to streaming is just getting started.
And who knows... I have watched shows I never thought I would have had an interest in on Netflix, Hulu, Paramount+, and Disney... Maybe, just maybe, they will get lots of new viewers. And if not I guess some people will have an hour of free time to read a good book or take a nice walk outside.
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Yep, this is the future of television. People will either have to adapt or be left behind.
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O
You left out my high school afternoon addiction, Dark Shadows. It was on from 1996-1971 and practically had a cult following. C’mon, surely you remember Quintin’s Theme!
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I remember I couldn't wait to get home from school to watch Dark Shadows. I still miss it.
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I watch the show on my Alexa Show. You can pull up all the old Dark Shadow episodes.
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Well been watching Days forever, but as of September 12 guess I'm done cause I'm not paying n additional cost to Peacock when I can hardly afford cable as it is. To bad. Days will lose so many dedicated watchers who have supported to keep them on air for so many years. Hope you big wheels find it was worth it...NOT. So good by Days.
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What Happened to The Edge of Night???
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For many of us older people watching our soaps is something we really look forward to. Please does take DOL off NBC. Can’t afford Peacock when you live on a fixed income
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I got my father 73 hooked on days 15 yrs ago. He has cable not wifi. He is devastated so is my daughter and I we are in canada and I don't know if we can even get peacock.
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Global has the Canadian rights to Days. Peacock is not available in Canada, so I think NBC will continue to sell the Canadian rights of the soap to Global, assuming they still want it.
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Sony sells the rights to Global, not NBC. Days is owned by Sony. NBC pays Sony a licensing fee to broadcast it.
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This does not affect Canada, only the United States. Days of Our Lives is owned by Sony. NBC pays SONY for the broadcasting rights, so whatever NBC does is irrelevant to foreign markets. Sony will continue to sell Days of Our Lives to whoever is willing to air it. Global TV's broadcasting licensing agreement is with Sony, not NBC.
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I have watched DOOL since the Horton's were the "TRUE HORTON'S", the very beginning.
When DOOL quits NBC and me, in September, NBC and I will quit DOOL!!!
Bad move, DOOL!!!
I'm so overjoyed for another FAILED TALK SHOW or STUPID NEWS BROADCAST, that wants to try to tell me how and what to think!!!!
So much for afternoon entertainment, NOT!!!!
See you in the funny papers, we're done!
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The show that replaced AW didn't last long.
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G
I agree why do we have to pay extra to watch a network program when we already pay 100s a month for cable . I maybe be cutting the cable cord if they contuine to raise prices and move beloved shows to pay per view basically is what it amounts too. I will go to netflix and dump cable if they keep this up.
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Because, the whole reason they're moving Days over to Peacock is that the advertising revenue isn't covering costs. They are not making a profit airing DOOL on free tv anymore.
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O
"Days of Our Lives" is a really FUN drama, with a cast that really gels and clearly enjoys putting on the show for us. Hopefully the young subscribers to Peacock will discover it and adult children will help their elderly parents find Peacock.
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Who's going to pay for it???
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If all it takes is 5 bucks a month to make my elderly grandmother/mother/aunt, etc happy, I would pay for it myself.
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I am happy to hear that. I am subscribed with Peacock. I have been for 1 year and I enjoy it. I have been trying to get people to do the same thing so that they can continue to enjoy watching Days. There are a lot of TV shows and movies to watch also.
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Won’t be buying peacock to follow them. To me not an issue of lack of fan interest or rating slum. It’s a money grab by NBC and too bad for Days, a long loved show.
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Nope, I will not pay for something I've watched for over
years 40. Obviously you don't care about loyal customers.
So I'll start watching
CBS
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really sad to hear; guess that's that; forced to pay for programing :((
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Days best bet is to stay put and hire a new head writer who is familiar with Days rich history and respects it along with loyal fans who kept it on the air through some less than stellar storylines. Currently they have a head writer who has an agenda that is incompatible with audience and appears they would rather replace audience than him. Strange. Sad Days.
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TV does NOT NEED another judge show, insipid talk show, or "design/sell/reno my house" show. Maybe people liked soap operas because they AREN'T stupid like these shows that are on other channels during the afternoons.
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LOL Soap operas are the definition of stupid. How many times can Marlena be possessed, Princess Gina be kidnapped, or somebody be brought back from the dead. They've always been melodramatic, that's the point.
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J
But soaps are INTENTIONALLY melodramatic. The producers of those shows know that the storylines are unrealistic and strain credibility, but that's the way soaps have always been, and they've always been popular. In the afternoons viewers want to be transported to other places where the problems that characters face are worse than the problems they themselves face. I'd rather watch a hoky, melodramatic soap than an actual stupid person on a judge show, or yet another "designer" talking about taking down walls and granite-top counters.
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I watched it as well its on Pluto TV
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it hasn't made a profit in years none of the soaps have I'm surprised they haven't canceled before their was a peacock streaming service tbh
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because peacock is for nbc stuff but i can see them moving to like hulu or something in the coming years if not canceled outright
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Days of our lives will last the longes out of all soap operas.
Because they are smart and they have a great name. And they have a Super story line.General Hospital who wants to watch People die in a hospital. Young and the restless sounds really!. see how long it stays on. I love days of our lives!
I'm a devoted fan! Since 1968
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Starting in my middle school days I watched All My Children, One Life to Live and General Hospital. While it was on I watched Ryan’s Hope too and when I was a little girl, I remember my mother watching The Edge of Night. My girl friends all watched the soaps too. I think it’s sad that they are almost all gone because there is so much garbage on daytime TV. I mean how many talk shows can you watch in a day? I like to keep the TV on while I’m doing stuff in the house. I don’t sit on the couch all day! Lol.
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I won't pay not bad, so sad!
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Also may I say I would watch Y&R's prior seasons but Paramount+ only allows one season
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Now that soap operas are streaming, and people can watch the entire season, maybe it will make a comeback. No more DVR or VHS, just watch. The notion that people have short attention spans is a misnomer.
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Who’s brilliant idea was this? Did they even ask ANY of the viewers how they feel about this ? NO, the most relevant people , the fans, were not asked . But these same fans, are just expected to follow blindly, and pay for what used to be free and in a recession at that.. Well Days, this biggest fan will miss you.
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I have watched Days of our Lives since I was 12 yrs old......I just turned 62. Thank you DOOLs for showing me how greedy you have gotten. I already pay out the nose for cable....or I wouldn't even get you now....so I refuse to pay another $4.99 to watch it. I'm truly disappointed. Im willing to bet my cable bill for a month that your ratings will fall because most people won't or can't pay more to watch your show. Its a shame 😒
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I have peacock free till Jan so after that will have to reevaluate if its worth keeping. Loved watching days on tv.
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Why should I have to pay for a show that is have watched for over 30 years when I already pay for Dish. This is not good.
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Because, the advertising revenue on free tv isn't enough to pay for the show. Hence, the move to Peacock. NBC can't air DOOL for free anymore, because they are losing money on it. It no longer makes a profit on NBC.
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My guess is that most of you who refuse to pay Peacock $4.99 a month are probably paying $10:a month for Netflix. From the comments I am reading if you people were really a true Days of Our Lives fan than you would give up something to watch this show. $4.99 a month is not that much. Sacrifice something to continue watching this show and stop complaining. How many of you go out and spend money on coffee before going to work? Why don't you go out and buy coffee and make it at home? That's what I am doing. Stop the excuses. Stop being so cheap. Most of you are probably bringing in more of an income than me and is probably wasting on useless things. From what I read NBC cancelled Days because there are more people streaming Days on Peacock than watching on NBC. Well I am on of those viewers and we will continue to support Days and make it a success with or without you. I am subscribed with Peacock and proud of it. I am just sick and tired of hearing how cheap you are and your complaints. Peacock has so many TV shows and movies to stream and watch. Give it a try. You just may enjoy it. There are still 4 daytime soap shows not 3. Days just moved.
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O
Not everyone can afford internet which you have to have to stream anything--so it's not just $4.99 a month!
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That's unfortunate, and it is the reality for a lot of people. However, this is the future of television. It stinks that some people can't afford it, but internet is pretty much the future for anything nowadays. That's the way things are going.
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It really does come back to priorities. If Days of Our Lives is so important to you, you'll find the $4.99/month to pay for it. That means giving up another streaming service or another luxury you might be paying for at the moment. If $4.99/month is still too much for you, because of basic necessities, then that's okay. That's the reality of the economy right now. It means you've got your priorities straight, and Days isn't that important to you.
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There's no reason to gloat
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Of course Americans living near the Canadian border could watch Days on Global with an outdoor antenna. Global also runs Y&R one day ahead of the CBS broadcast.
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This is a good point, since Global's licensing agreement is with Sony. NBC does not own Days of Our Lives, Sony does. They simply pay the fee to broadcast it in the States.
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CBS has renewed Y&R and B&B until the end of 2024. ABC has yet to make a decision on the future of GH.
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Don't forget about "Texas" (1980-1982).
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And "Capital" ...got bumped by "Bold and the Beautiful"....
And "Another Life" that was on in the early 80's for a few years.
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It's all about money. Ignoring fans whose loyalty has made Days and kept it on the air. Being done under the guise of attracting new viewers ie young crowd who have short attention spans and will move on rather than sit through insipid story lines to get to the good ones and characters you like. This is the worst decision since hiring Ron Carlivanti who ONLY cares about indoctrinating everyone into the gay world. I hate that it came to this. Have been P&G supporter since coming home from school and being quiet while my mom watched Edge of Night amid Tide commercials. Sad Days.
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Well, that is generally the goal of a BUSINESS. To make money.
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