ANIMAL PLANET’S MONSTROUS MAY WAS DRIVEN BY MONSTER WEEK AND THE LAST ALASKANS
June 8, 2015
--THE LAST ALASKANS Premiere Drew in 1.7 Million Viewers in Latest Episode Premiere
And Averaged 1.3 Million Viewers Across Two Episodes -
-- MONSTER WEEK Specials THE CANNIBAL IN THE JUNGLE Devoured 1.6 Million Viewers; RIVER MONSTERS Season Finale "Jurassic-sized Prehistoric Terror" Reeled in 1.5 Million Viewers --
(June 8, 2015, Silver Spring, Md.) - Animal Planet had a huge May 2015 (+9% vs. YAGO with P2+ viewers), and the network ranked among the top-20 ad-supported cable networks with M25-54 (#18) for the sixth consecutive month. M25-54 posted an increase of 12 percent versus YAGO. This performance largely was driven by MONSTER WEEK and the breakout new series THE LAST ALASKANS and MONSTER WEEK hit programs THE CANNIBAL IN THE JUNGLE. The season finale of RIVER MONSTERS and THE LAST ALASKANS in week of May 25, which bookended MONSTER WEEK, generated even stronger prime viewership than the week of May 18 among several key demos, making it Animal Planet's best weekly prime delivery in more than a year with P25-54, M25-54, P18-49 and M18-49.
THE LAST ALASKANS is Animal Planet's latest breakout hit series that critics have hailed as the next evolution in Alaska programming. On a Live+3 basis, the program averaged 1.3M P2+ viewers across the first two episodes that premiered May 25 and May 31. The May 31, 8 PM episode premiere - "The Hunted" -- drew in a hefty 1.7M P2+ viewers, which ranks as Animal Planet's third-most-watched telecast in 2015 to date, only behind the PUPPY BOWL XI and the RIVER MONSTERS season-seven debut. This performance helped the network rank seventh in its time slot on Sunday night.
Animal Planet's 4th Annual MONSTER WEEK (May 17-25) was a ginormous success, driven by monstrous performances by the network scripted movie event THE CANNIBAL IN THE JUNGLE and the season finale of its most-watched series ever RIVER MONSTERS, which delivered 1.6M and 1.5M P2+ viewers respectively on a Live+3 basis. Across the nine nights, Animal Planet averaged nearly 1M (951K) P2+ viewers, which is an increase of 13 percent over MONSTER WEEK 2014. The event placed the network among the top-10 ad-supported cable networks in prime with M25-54 and M18-49.
Additional Animal Planet May premieres that delivered 1 Million or more P2+ viewers on a Live+3 basis include returning fan favorites FINDING BIGFOOT (1.2M) and TANKED (1M).
About THE LAST ALASKANS:
In 1980, the US government banned new human occupation in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, a protected area home to thousands of native animals and pristine terrain that's roughly the size of South Carolina. Currently, only a handful of families spread across seven permitted cabins is allowed to remain in the refuge. In fewer than 100 years, all remaining permits will reach expiration, and there will be no human presence left. THE LAST ALASKANS is an eight-part special event that documents the lives of some of the most isolated people in America - the last of their kind - as they struggle and thrive in Alaska's untouched wilderness, which is located hundreds of miles from roads and civilization.
About MONSTER WEEK:
MONSTER WEEK is nine nights of programming that features some of the most terrifying beasts to ever have inhabited Earth and our imaginations. From Sunday, May 17, through Monday, May 25, Animal Planet terrifies the nights with the bone-chilling two-hour scripted movie event THE CANNIBAL IN THE JUNGLE, the RIVER MONSTERS season finale "Jurassic-sized Prehistoric Terror" and many other monstrous premieres.
About Animal Planet:
Animal Planet, a multi-media business unit of Discovery Communications, is the world's only entertainment brand that immerses viewers in the full range of life in the animal kingdom with rich, deep content via multiple platforms and offers animal lovers and pet owners access to a centralized online, television and mobile community for immersive, engaging, high-quality entertainment, information and enrichment. Animal Planet consists of the Animal Planet television network, available in more than 94 million homes in the US; online assets www.animalplanet.com, the ultimate online destination for all things animal; Animal Planet L!VE, the go-to digital destination for round-the-clock, unfiltered access to the animal kingdom; and other media platforms including a robust Video-on-Demand (VOD) service, and merchandising extensions.
*All data is reported on Nielsen Live+3 data stream.