TV3 in trouble?

The Herald reports:

Prime News out-rated its TV3 competitor last night, as the MediaWorks’ channel lost nearly half its audience in two weeks.

3 News drew an audience of 166,000 viewers last night – 13,000 less than Prime News, which screens half an hour earlier at 5.30pm.

Two weeks ago, 3 News attracted nearly double that figure, with 314,000 viewers tuning in.

Media commentator Martin Gillman says the numbers are surprising and will be the cause of serious concern at MediaWorks, which is currently examining its news and current affairs programming in a bid to maximise revenue.

“News makes up a significant part of the schedule and is too important for them to lose out so badly,” he said.

The ratings slide coincides with changes to TV3’s Sunday night schedule, which saw it move to a reduced half-hour news bulletin, ahead of the weekly current affairs programme 3D.

It’s only one night, and a Sunday night, but wow ranking lower than Prime News is unheard of.