Soap viewers have always been lower in summer, but soaps viewers in general are not as strong as they once were. Even this section of the forum is quieter than usual and the strong passions about soaps don't seem to be the same.

This appears to be for all soaps, Corrie had 6.2 million viewers last night and Emmerdale and EE are coming in just under 6million viewers.

What can soaps do to pull in more viewers? Or do you believe the figures are flawed with many people watching or catching up via different viewing methods?

They might not be necessarily - I think the way ratings are reported is a bit out dated. I personally tend to rely on catch up viewing as I find the soaps are on quite early. I would only tend to watch as they air during big story lines such as last week in Emmerdale.

I don't think the viewing figures are falling that much, it's just people are using different methods to watch them. I NEVER watch live anymore, always on catchup or recordings if I'm home and I remember.

I think the days of 16-20m are gone but that was at a hayday when families sat around the TV together of an evening. That just doesn't happen anymore in most homes.

I think that nowadays with more TV choice and the option of catch-up, soap viewers are less loyal. If they don't like the storylines or the characters, they just won't watch- though they might come back again when characters exit or storylines have ended.

Odd that Hollyoaks gets small viewing figures and is still on. However I do think it's achieved a lot; as a young people's soap it has survived amongst all the changes of young people's lives.

Just comes down to more choice. Plus too many ways to catchup and watch whenever you like rather than "live".

It's because C4 doesn't place as much importance on ratings as ITV or BBC. They can through social media etc how popular Hollyoaks is - god knows why!

I'm glad it's on and I don't think channels should be a slave to viewing figures, otherwise all the programmes will just be middle-of-the-road conventional fare and niche programming will die out.

Hollyoaks also got best soap in the soap awards and it allegedly has far less viewers. It obviously more popular than what viewing figures paint.

I often sky+ some soaps and watch them when its convenient, do sky+ records go towards viewing figures?

They show them so many times on repeat then there's demand. You don't have to watch them at the time of air anymore.

It's just the sign of the times really, not many families sit and watch TV together of an evening anymore. Some people watch the soaps online or another method but it doesn't say the soaps are having poor ratings because if you tallied them up with the other methods, the figures are still very high.

I rarely watch soaps live, I prefer watching a bunch of episodes in one go. I also think that soaps are still bringing in high ratings on a regular basis.

Quite honestly, I only use my TV for gaming now, I can't remember the last time I watched TV on it, its so much easier to just use catch up now, plus its easier to focus on than on a TV across the room.

You can't turn the clocks back. Whether it's the internet or mobile phones they're here to stay and peoples habits have changed for ever. I can see TVs becoming as redundant as phone boxes one day.

I think the way viewing figures are taken needs to change as I think its a outdated method to see who is watching what.

Good point, they should tally it up between all the methods THEN give a rating figure. Each soap will certainly have more ratings.

I wonder if it's just become too complicated for them to bother. I understand that there are going to be changes in the near future though. I suspect that the soaps are still doing pretty well. When it comes to other programmes they seem to be considered a success if they get 5 mil + under the present system.

Personally I think people just have busier lives thesedays, I know I do so committing hours upon hours each week just for soaps isn't practical and most of the time I watch via catch up. I used watch all the soaps but now the only one I make time for is EastEnders (but even then I'm missing episodes) and I occasionally watch Hollyoaks.

Viewers are fed up of the likes of Tracy ( Flipping Murderer) Barlow.

They keep announcing the story-lines. We cant open the laptop or walk past a paper shop without having the programmes spoiled!
I cant remember the last time I was surprised.

Oh I like Tracey (Flipping Murderer) Barlow, and I am hoping Fizz annoys her very soon.

Even the catch up figures are tending to be down to be honest

More people are realising that soaps are crap?

I still regularly watch Hollyoaks and Eastenders but with my work pattern and my life these days I never tend to watch them live and I am sure that is the way for many others these days. I know on Tuesday the share for EE was at 31% which shows that there was just less people watching TV that night. I think the BBC could have boosted EE by having it follow or on before the Great British Bake off which certainly is pulling in the viewers.

I think people have just realised they're absolute shit, and you'd be better of watching your dog curl one out.

I think that people devote much less time to TV and soaps aren't 'must watch' TV, they're casual viewing really.

I'd rather have soaps than abysmal docusoaps such as MIC, TOWIE, etc.

EastEnders & Hollyoaks seem to be the only soaps I bother to watch now, don't watch Emmerdale since the E4 Hollyoaks episode is on at the same times & Corrie is not worth 30 minutes of my life.