VIACOM'S ENTERTAINMENT BRANDS COMEDY CENTRAL, PARAMOUNT NETWORK AND TV LAND ALL CLOSE FISCAL YEAR WITH OVERALL GROWTH AND HIT SCRIPTED SERIES
Paramount Network Turnaround Marked by Two Consecutive Quarters of Year-Over-Year Ratings Growth, a First Since 2014
Comedy Central Records Largest Rating Growth Among Young Men 18-34 Since 2014
TV Land Scores its Best Fiscal Year Since 2013
Comedy Central Digital Grows +72% with 14 Billion Minutes of Video Watched
NEW YORK, NY, October 1, 2019 - Comedy Central (+5% with P18-49), Paramount Network (+7% with P18-49) and TV Land (+7% with P25-54, +4% with P18-49), led by President Kent Alterman, all recorded share growth for the 2018-19 Viacom fiscal year, which closed on September 30. All three brands also featured top-rated and critically acclaimed original programming throughout the fiscal year (October 2018 - September 2019):
South Park (Comedy Central) is the #1 rated cable comedy of the fiscal year.
Younger (TV Land) is the #1 ad-supported cable comedy among W18-49 and W25-54 during the fiscal year. Season six holds a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Yellowstone (Paramount Network) was the #1 scripted series across cable and broadcast TV in the key P18-49 and P25-54 demos and the most-watched 2019 summer series on cable TV among total viewers. It's also the brand's most-watched scripted series ever and Viacom's most-watched scripted series since 2010. Season two holds a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
South Side (Comedy Central) is the #1 new cable comedy of the fiscal year among African American viewers. It is 100% Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
I Am Patrick Swayze (Paramount Network) is cable's #1 personality documentary of 2019.
Comedy Central Stand-Up holds six of the top-10 rated stand-up specials from the fiscal year.
"Whether it's comedy or drama, we're producing some of the best scripted content on TV across our three brands and it's showing in the massive ratings and critical acclaim for our laudatory series," said Kent Alterman, President of Comedy Central, Paramount Network and TV Land. "We've successfully leveraged these originals into overall growth for the brands over the past year."
At Paramount Network, the brand recorded two consecutive quarters of year-over-year ratings gains for the first time since 2014. Additionally, Paramount Network recorded eight consecutive months of year-over-year share gain, which is also the enterprise's longest streak since 2014. The turnaround was led by key original series and the strategy of leaning into the brand's film history. In addition to summer 2019's biggest TV success story, Yellowstone, Paramount Network invested in acquired films, leading to a +11% P18-49 ratings increase from films over the previous fiscal year. On Memorial Day, Paramount Network was the #1 rated basic cable network due to a John Wick programming stunt.
At TV Land, the brand recorded its highest rated fiscal year since 2013 with P25-54. In addition to the strong ratings of Younger, the brand saw great performance among acquisitions including Two and a Half Men and The King of Queens.
Comedy Central recorded its largest ratings growth (+3%) since 2014 among M18-34 and remains the #1 full day entertainment network with that demo. In the P18-49 demo, Comedy Central recorded its largest share since the 2015 fiscal year and the brand has posted 10 consecutive quarters of year-over-year share growth in the demo, the longest streak since tracking began. Comedy Central also secured eight nominations in the 2018-2019 Primetime Emmy(R) Awards competition, with three series receiving Outstanding Series/Program nominations: The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Drunk History and Hack Into Broad City.
Comedy Central also recorded massive social and digital growth for the fiscal year, with 6.7 billion video views (+41% year over year) and 14 billion watch minutes (+72% year over year). Highlights include both extensions of linear series and digital originals:
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah is the #1 most-engaging late night franchise on social media. The series recorded its best fiscal year ever for social streams with 2.6 billion, up +49% from the previous year. The Daily Show also gained more than 4.3 million new social followers across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
South Park boasts over 48 million fans across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram andYouTube, making it the most-popular cable comedy series on each platform.
The "Brooklyn Ball Barber" episode of the Comedy Central original digital series Mini-Mocks was the most-watched video in FY19 from the TV Universe on social platforms, with 241 million streams on Facebook.
The Comedy Central Stand-Up YouTube channel amassed more than 1 billion watch minutes and 684,000 subscribers in its first year.
Paramount Network and TV Land digital generated 1.7 billion streams together (up +88% year over year) and 1.9 billion watch minutes (+88% year over year).
About Comedy Central
Available on-air, online and on the go, Comedy Central gives viewers access to a world of super funny, provocative and relevant comedy that tell the funny truths of life, every day and everywhere. From award-winning late-night, scripted and animated series to stand-up specials, short-form and sketch, Comedy Central has it all. A subsidiary of Viacom Inc., Comedy Central is available to more than 300 million households in over 150 countries across the globe.
About Paramount Network
Paramount Network is a premium entertainment destination that pushes the limits of storytelling with bold original scripted and non-scripted series. Inspired by over a century of cinema, Paramount Network is where today's brightest stars bring the experience of the big screen to every screen with stories that are immersive, inclusive, and deeply personal. A subsidiary of Viacom Inc., Paramount Network has a global reach of 234 million households across 117 countries. For up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs visit Paramount Network's press site at paramountnetwork.com/press and follow us on Twitter at @ParamountNetPR for the latest in breaking news updates, behind-the-scenes information and photos.
About TV Land
TV Land is a curated lineup of time-tested sitcoms topped off by breakout hit original series Younger from Darren Star, all available on air, at TVLand.com and on the TV Land app. Younger continues to thrive with a winning combination of comedy and drama, making it the #1 original ad-supported cable sitcom with women 18-49 and women 25-54 in 2017 and 2018. In addition, TV Land continues to reign as the destination for the best of memorable television series and modern-day classic sitcoms with a programming slate that includes the hit comedies Everybody Loves Raymond, The Goldbergs, The Golden Girls and Two and a Half Men. For up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs visit the TV Land press site and follow us on Twitter at @TVLandPR for the latest in breaking news updates, behind-the-scenes information and photos.
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