A clap-o-meter, clapometer or applause meter is a measurement instrument that purports to measure and display the volume of clapping or applause made by a studio audience or an audience at some other event. It is used to decide the result of competitions based on the popularity of the contestants, or at least give an indication of their popularity. It may or may not be based on an actual sound level meter. Clap-o-meters were a popular element in talent shows and television game shows in the 1950s and 1960s, most notably Opportunity Knocks[1], but have been since been supplanted by other, more sophisticated, methods of measuring audience response.
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The clap-o-meter made an early appearance in 1956 on the British TV game show Opportunity Knocks. The show format was the work of its presenter, Hughie Green. The clap-o-meter itself was a wooden box labelled "Audience Reaction Indicator". This is now part of the collection of the National Media Museum[2][3]. Clap-o-meters were used in many other TV shows and at live events.[4]
In 1989, Green unsuccessfully attempted to sue the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation for copyright infringement over a similar programme. The clap-o-meter was one of the distinctive features of the format by which Green sought to define it as copyrightable. The courts found that a loose format defined by catchphrases and accessories, such as the clap-o-meter, was not copyrightable[5].
Clap-o-meters continue to be used. They are often regarded as a novelty or item of amusement rather than an accurate method to measure popularity. Even so, they are sometimes used to judge winners in fairly serious competitions including battle of the bands[6][7][8].
In politics, a politician's popularity is sometimes gauged by the applause they achieve when giving speeches and news organisations sometimes use the concept of a clap-o-meter to describe this[9].
Clap-o-meter software is also available for computers and mobile devices which uses the device's microphone or audio input to determine the level of applause[6].
Quite often a clap-o-meter is a complete sham, having no real sound measuring equipment at all, and is manipulated by a person based on their estimation of the audience reaction. This is normally done semi-openly, with the audience under little or no illusion that the clap-o-meter is genuine. This was apparently the case on Opportunity Knocks, where the clap-o-meter was not used to actually determine the winners and was disclaimed with the phrase "Remember, folks! The clap-o-meter is just for fun!".[1][10][11]
A number of alternatives to the clap-o-meter exist. A studio audience can be polled by a simple show of hands, which can be given more visual impact by having them hold up different coloured cards indicating their preferred winner. They can also be polled by electronic means using individual voting devices with buttons for each option. These options are more accurate than a clap-o-meter but lack the element of excitement generated by frenzied applause.
In recent years, phone voting has become the main method of deciding popularity in talent shows. This has the advantage of allowing the TV audience to participate in the vote, not just the audience in the studio. It can also be used in programmes which do not have a studio audience and provides a significant source of additional revenue for the broadcasters from the use of premium rate phone numbers.[12]