Gaming cable channel G4TV is extending the length of one of its most popular shows, X-Play, on a trial basis this holiday.
Coming off the momentum from its December 2007 show revamp, G4TV’s X-Play, one of the few gaming-related shows left on the network, will be adding an extra half hour of content this winter to accommodate all the extra content that comes out around the holiday season.
G4 President Neil Tiles explained in a post on G4’s Open Source, “I’m excited to announce that X-Play will expand to one full hour each weeknight for the month of December as we take a look at all the holiday releases and look forward to 2009 titles… this is a trial as well with the hope that if X-Play experiences marked growth during the month we will seek to expand the show permanently later on in early 2009.”
Beyond simply covering more content, the move to lengthen one of the network’s highest-rated shows might be to improve viewership network-wide. Tiles admitted that G4 saw a 43 percent drop in its male 18 to 34 year-old target demographic.
This summer, Tiles tested the “G4 Rewind,” a block of gaming shows that are true to the network’s original concept before Cops and Cheaters hijacked airtime. Rather than end the videogame blitz, Tiles confirmed that it will be continued as a 90-minute daily morning morsel of entertainment before more Wired for Sex is shown.
