Cable Networks Tout Q2 Wins
Nickelodeon, Lifetime Television, The History Channel, Bravo, Oxygen, E! Entertainment Television, Style, G4 boast of ratings marks.
By Alex Weprin -- Broadcasting & Cable, 7/1/2008 5:13:00 PM
A number of cable networks -- including Nickelodeon, Lifetime Television, The History Channel and NBC Universal-owned Bravo and Oxygen -- said their second-quarter ratings are shattering records.
At Bravo, Top Chef: Chicago, the fourth installment of Project Runway, the Real Housewives franchise and the Bravo A-List Awards propelled the network to its highest demo and total viewer ratings in primetime ever. Bravo claimed 11 consecutive quarters of year-over-year growth among adults 18-49.
Lifetime was boosted by Army Wives, as well as original movies The Memory Keeper’s Daughter and The Tenth Circle. The network posted its largest Q2 demo audience since 2005.
Nickelodeon dominated kids’ daytime viewing for the 53rd consecutive quarter, with 46% of all kids 2-11 in total day. New shows such as iCarly and The Mighty B! joined franchises such as SpongeBob SquarePants to lead the network’s growth.
History had its best June ever, which, in turn, led the channel to its best Q2 ever, posting double-digit gains in the 18-49 and 25-54 demos the network targets.
Coming off its rebrand, including the new “Live Out Loud” slogan, Oxygen had its best quarter ever in primetime and total day in the key demos and in total viewers. The network’s top performers included Tori & Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood, Deion & Pilar: Prime Time Love and The Bad Girls Club.
Comcast networks E! Entertainment Television, Style and G4 also posted record-breaking Q2 numbers.
E!, helped by Keeping up with the Kardashians and reality series following Denise Richards and Dina Lohan, delivered its best Q2 ever among total viewers and persons 18-49, with both primetime and total day seeing double-digit gains.
Style posted its best Q2 ever, averaging 100,000 total viewers, boosted by Dress My Nest with Thom Felicia and Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane.
And G4 had its second-strongest Q2 ever among total viewer impressions, with two of its flagship programs, Attack of the Show! and X-Play, delivering increases compared with the same time slots last year.
