SOAPnet's Night Shift Premiere Breaks Ratings Records

By Anne Becker -- Broadcasting & Cable, 7/13/2007 6:04:00 PM

The debut of SOAPnet’s original series General Hospital: Night Shift ranked as the network’s most-viewed telecast ever with total viewers and in its target demo, women 18-49. The show was also SOAPnet’s most-watched premiere with those groups and with women 18-34.

Night Shift, which tells of the nighttime escapes of the characters on the ABC daytime drama General Hospital, averaged 1 million total viewers, 498,000 of them women 18-49 from 11 p.m. to midnight, according to Nielsen Media Research. It drew 192,000 women 18-34.

In addition to posting 63% audience growth over its lead-in, the show ranked as the second most-viewed cable program for the hour with women 18-49, something of a coup for SoapNet since only 64 million homes carry the network, compared to the 94 million that carry USA, the top network in the demo that night.

Night Shift is one of several new originals SOAPnet has planned. The Disney/ABC-owned cable network primarily runs same-day reruns of soaps at night, including General Hospital and the other ABC daytime dramas.