Television shows attract legions of fans.  In fact for certain shows fans are to the point of fanatical.  In America if you were the fan of a certain Television show the amount of engagement options you have with the show are huge.  For example if you were a fan of the series Sex and the City then you have your choice of:

-  Online Web Content
-  Social Media
-  DVD and CD's
-  Online Streaming (not to mention reruns of the show)
-  Magazines

& of course Merchandise.  From their website I saw products like:
-  T shirts
-  Clothing for Pets (specifically small fluffy dogs)
-  Body Care items like - Printed shampoo sets, customised body lotions, conditioners, soaps and more
-  Books

and more!  Now if your a fan of some even more established shows then the amount of merchandise options is absolutely staggering.  Television shows like Star Trek and American Idol have an even bigger range of merchandise.  In fact they have products that even us have not seen or have thought about.

Which leads me to think about the T.V direction that Australia currently has.  I am a big fan of cooking shows.  Jamie Oliver is great and there are heaps of ways for me to engage with that show.  Cook books, cooking utensils like branded bbq sets and more!  Unfortunately when it comes to homegrown shows such as My Kitchen Rules or MasterChef I find the options available for me as a fan a bit lacking.  There simply is not a lot of merchandise available that I can purchase that can allow me as a fan to keep as a memento.  Once the shows finish airing in a few months time fans like myself have literally nothing to go on until the next season comes by again.

It is not just for the fans though.  For the show itself there are a lot of benefits.  By having an engaged interactive set of fans it can ensure that when next season arrives you have a lot of eager eyes and ears.  Also the amount of revenue that a show can generage can be potentially huge with all the product sales to fans.