KEY POINTS:
Record ratings for Prime Television are encouraging for owners Sky Television and worrying for the free-to-air digital TV platform Freeview.
Sky is stalling its decision to put Prime on the Freeview platform with other free-to-air channels like TVNZ and TV3 which Freeview claims is part of a Sky bid to slow its progress.
Freeview has acknowledged the absence is slowing its efforts to encourage people to buy Freeview set top boxes.
Sky released the first AGB Nielsen weekly ratings of 2008 which showed that of television viewers aged over 5 during the week to January 6, 8 per cent watched Prime.
That is Prime's highest weekly share and compares with 5.5 per cent for the same week last year.
The channel is aimed at 25 to 54-year-olds and in that demographic it is up from a 5.5 per cent share to 7.6 per cent. TV One drew the biggest share in that demographic - 28.4 per cent, followed by 20 per cent for TV3 and 18.4 per cent for TV2.
Prime channel manager Karen Bieleski said: "Our summer launch of new series such as Don't Forget the Lyrics, Antiques Roadshow, Rick Stein's Mediterranean Escapes and Lisa Williams - Life Among the Dead has managed to draw new viewers to the channel."
Television viewing in summer holidays is notoriously volatile.
TV3 says the Prime results are due to the success of a mid-week movie, The Thomas Crowne Affair. Sky TV shares closed down 4c at $5.72.
