Draft:Tipping Point Australia

Tipping Point Australia is Australian television game show based on the British version of the same name. It is hosted by former tennis player and Olympic gold medallist Todd Woodbridge and began airing on the Nine Network on 24 December 2023 as a Christmas special, and as a replacement for Millionaire Hot Seat.

History
The Nine Network began broadcasting the original British version of Tipping Point in 2019 to replace afternoon news bulletin Nine News Now. Shortly afterwards, Nine's parent company Nine Entertainment, published a news article on 2 Australians (Eden and Peter), reviewing the UK version of Tipping Point on Australian television. In April 2023, TV Blackbox reported that an Australian version of Tipping Point is in the works. On 10 August 2023, it was announced that the Nine Network would be ending Millionaire Hot Seat in 2024, following years of the show consistently trailing The Chase Australia in the ratings (which therefore affected national ratings for its flagship 6:00 pm news bulletin) and would replace it with a local version of Tipping Point to be filmed in Melbourne and hosted by Todd Woodbridge. Casting for contestants began at the same time. On 17 December 2023, it was announced that the first pilot episode of Tipping Point Australia would premiere on 24 December 2023 (Christmas Eve), before the annual Carols by Candlelight event. On 19 January 2024, it was announced that the regular game show would premiere on 29 January 2024, airing in the 5:00 pm timeslot on weeknights.

Gameplay
In each episode, three contestants answer general knowledge questions asked by the host Todd Woodbridge. Then they push a button that will launch a coin fall in a giant coin machine in front of them. Each coin dropped to the "win zone" will add money to the bank of whoever is in control of the machine. Only one contestant will have a chance to win, while the others will be eliminated before the final round, leaving with only mystery prizes if they have acquired any during the game.

Each counter is worth $100, and there are also two each of the double and mystery counters in the machine. Additionally, the value of a mystery prize that was won is told, unlike in the original British version. A double counter that drops into the win zone doubles the value of each counter to $200 within the same drop.

Bank Builder
Each contestant is given three counters. Answering a question correctly gives the player an opportunity to either play a counter or pass to another player. An incorrect answer or a time-out takes a counter away from the contestant who buzzed in. Unlike in the original British version, the penalty pot does not exist, so there is no opportunity for contestants to play for the stolen counters. The round ends once no counters remain for all contestants.

Quickfire
Each contestant has thirty seconds to get as many correct answers as they can from a series of rapid-fire questions. Each correct answer gives the player a counter to play; they are dropped one by one by the contestant until they run out. The contestant with the least amount of money at the end of this round is eliminated. The contestant in the lead after the previous round decides who will play first. In case of a tie before their turn, the contestant who gave a correct answer in the Bank Builder round first has priority.

Head to Head
The two remaining contestants are asked four questions (as opposed to three each in the British version); two directed to each contestant alternately. After hearing the question, the contestant in control may either answer or pass to their opponent. The contestant who answered receives a counter for a correct answer, while their opponent receives one for a wrong answer. The counter is played immediately as soon as it is earned. The contestant with more money at the end of this round goes through to the jackpot round. If the contestants are tied going into this round, the contestant who was leading at the previous round has priority.

Jackpot round
The last remaining contestant is given a jackpot counter (larger than the others used in the game and coloured gold with a red star) and chooses a zone from which to drop it into the machine. The goal of this round is to win a $20,000 jackpot by getting the counter into the win zone. In order to do so, the contestant must earn counters by answering one multiple-choice question from each of five categories in any order desired.

Questions have three answer options and may be played for one, two or three counters, with higher-value questions being more difficult. The correct answer awards the chosen number of counters, which the contestant immediately plays into the machine.

Counters that enter the win zone during this round are worth $100 apiece, including any that fall during the initial playing of the jackpot counter. Once the jackpot counter is in the machine, ambient drops are not voided, but are added to the contestant's winnings; however, they are voided otherwise and after all categories been used. If the jackpot counter enters the win zone, the contestant's cash winnings are augmented to $20,000, $40,000 if the double counter falls with the jackpot counter, or $80,000 if both double counters fall in the same drop.

Jackpot Temptation
If the contestant fails to win the jackpot after using up all five categories, they may either trade the accumulated money for an offer specified by the host or take the money, which ends the game. In this version, Jackpot Temptation can increase the value of the jackpot counter above the usual $20,000 and may also offer non-cash prizes, and the number of counters is also variable. Below is an example of the offers the contestant can take, when the jackpot counter is at the bottom and is at least one counter away from being dropped (in the pilot episode):


 * Three counters for a chance to win $20,000 cash
 * Two counters for a chance to win $20,000 cash and a holiday
 * One counter for a chance to win $40,000 cash

The possible offers vary with episode, and it depends on the location of the jackpot counter. If the contestant chooses to take an offer, all regular counters have no value, and they walk away with no money if the jackpot counter remains in the machine after all trade counters have been used. The double and mystery counters remain in effect only if they fall with the jackpot.

The largest value of the jackpot counter ever given by the host is $100,000 on an episode that aired on 25 June 2024, though that offer was not taken.

Olympic Specials
Ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, which Nine will broadcast, a primetime special series of Tipping Point featuring Australian Olympic and Paralympic medallists was announced. Episodes air at the 7.30 p.m. timeslot on Tuesdays. In the set, the host, Todd Woodbridge, was seen wearing the gold medal that he won for Australia in the men's doubles tennis event at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Contestants may also be seen wearing Olympic or Paralympic medals that they won in their respective events.

In these special episodes, contestants play Tipping Point to raise money for their chosen registered charities. Counters are worth $300 each, and the value of the jackpot counter is $40,000. Mystery counters, when dropped, give $3,000 bonus money for their chosen charity determined by who is in control of the machine, although the cash value of the mystery prize has no effect on a contestant's score. Contestants eliminated before reaching the jackpot round still raised money for their chosen charities.

The contestant who played the jackpot round is shown in bold text.

Ratings and reception
Since January 2024, Tipping Point Australia competes in ratings with The Chase Australia on the Seven Network. Within weeks of the premiere, it started to surpass Seven's program in the same timeslot in nationwide viewership. Later ratings show it is either comparable to or exceeding The Chase Australia, with the report on 2 July 2024 stating that the daytime episode of Tipping Point Australia attained a nationwide viewership figure of 862,000, compared to The Chase Australia's 698,000.

Margaret Pomeranz on The Weekly with Charlie Pickering reviewed the show unfavourably, calling it "more than a mindless parlour game, deftly spreading 12 minutes of content over a one hour programme..."