AMC Networks International

CBS UK CHANNELS CONTINUE TO GROW AND DELIVER RECORD AUDIENCE TO ADVERTISERS IN 2016

The portfolio’s share of commercial impacts stands at 2.50%

107% growth in views recorded in the past two years

CBS Reality Original Series “Murderers and Their Mothers” premiere viewed by 244K

London, 12 January 2017: UK Channels CBS Reality, CBS Action, CBS Drama and Horror Channel, which are owned by CBS Studios International and AMC Networks International – UK have reported another record breaking year of SOCI (share of commercial impacts) growth for advertisers, resulting in a delivery of 2.50% of the UK’s adult commercial TV audience in 2016. This is a 14% increase against 2015 and a 107% increase in the past two years.

The CBS UK Channels also garnered an overall UK audience share of 1.45% in 2016, up 12% on 2015 according to official BARB data. The channels’ record-breaking month was March with 1.55% share of UK viewers, and the strongest ever share of UK viewers was reached on 4th June 2016 with 2%.

Mike Moriarty, President, AMC Networks International UK said, “We have wrapped up yet another momentous year for the CBS UK channels. 2016 is the second year in a row for us to have achieved a record audience share, which amounts to an over 100% increase over the two-year period. To maintain this growth in 2017, we will continue to bring our audiences the best in original real-life crime content on CBS Reality with 51 hours produced in 2016; a carefully selected mix of horror and sci-fi on Horror Channel; some of the world’s best crime dramas on CBS Action; and well-loved CBS classics on CBS Drama.”

Reed Manville, EVP International Channels, CBS Studios International said, “2016 has been another terrific year for the CBS UK channel portfolio, delivering outstanding results for both advertisers and viewers. With its winning mix of original content and classic library programming, we are looking forward to further growth for the channels in 2017.”

CBS Reality has been consistently the biggest factual entertainment channel in the UK amongst adult women and the tenth most watched non-PSB channel amongst all adults[1] in 2016.  The channel experienced significant growth year-on-year with full year audience share delivery up by 6% on 2015 to 0.65%.

The channel invested heavily in original programming consisting of in-depth and relevant real life crime stories that resonate well with CBS Reality’s loyal audience. “Murderers and Their Mothers” debuted to 244K viewers, and “Killer Clergy” delivered 163K adults across its premiere run.

Other CBS Reality originals during the year included “Stalkers Who Kill,” “The Day I Should Have Died,” “Uncovering Melanie’s Murderer” and “Encounters with Evil.”

Our latest original series, “Killer Cops,” premiered on Sunday, 8 January.

Horror Channel has reinforced itself as the TV destination for the lovers of expertly curated horror and science-fiction, and consistently rates as the second most popular movie channel amongst our key 25-54 audience demographic in the UK behind Film4. The channel grew its audience by 16% year on year.

Horror Channel recently announced that it will become the new exclusive UK television broadcaster of “Star Trek: The Original Series” as of January 2017. Upcoming premieres also include The Signal with Lawrence Fishbourne, Into the Grizzly Maze with Billy Bob Thornton and And Soon the Darkness starring Amber Heard and Karl Urban.

Over 4.4 million adults tuned in to CBS Action every month during 2016 for their daily dose of such channel favourites as “NCIS” and “Walker, Texas Ranger.” This translates to a 12% year on year growth amongst the channel’s adult audiences.

In 2017, CBS Action will feature even more top quality crime shows including “NCIS Los Angeles”, “Scorpion,” “CSI Miami,” and “Diagnosis Murder.”

CBS Drama enjoyed its first full year on the Freeview platform, driving adult audience growth of 44% year on year. The channel continues to air classic CBS programming including “Matlock”, “Streets of San Francisco,” “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman” and “The High Chaparral.”

***ENDS***

About CBS AMC Networks UK Channel Partnership

The CBS AMC Network UK Channels are a portfolio of six entertainment channels owned by the CBS AMC Network UK Channels Partnership established in September 2009 between CBS Studios International and AMC Networks International – UK.

The channels include CBS Reality, CBS Reality +1, CBS Drama, CBS Action, Horror Channel and Horror Channel +1 and feature a broad assortment of drama, reality and long form content from CBS’s extensive television library, complemented by entertainment programming from third party suppliers. CBS AMC Networks Channels reach viewers in more than 25 million homes throughout the UK via the Sky, Virgin Media, Freesat and Freeview platforms.

CBS Studios International, the leading supplier of programming to the international television marketplace, is a division of CBS Corporation.

AMC Networks International – UK is a business unit of AMC Networks International, a leading producer and distributor of television channels reaching subscribers in more than 140 countries and territories, including Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America and spanning a range of genres, including movie, lifestyle, entertainment, sports, children’s and factual.  AMC Networks International is the global division of AMC Networks. For more information, visit: www.www.amcnetworks.com/amcni

Press Contacts