I believe the view_count is a very simple implementation of the eZPersisanceObject and it stores it's data in the ezview_counter table.
Maybe you can check if the records are actually being updated. Also, checkout the cronjob file as it's structure is pretty simple on how it retrieves and updates the records.
My main issue with it is that the view_counts obviously favours the oldest items in your site. It would be great to extend this functionality to add stats of views today, this week, this month and this year in addition to general views.
Regards,
Felipe
Felipe Jaramillo
eZ Certified Extension Developer http://www.aplyca.com | Bogotá, Colombia