The distribution footprint and average primetime audience of Cab/Sat channels are key measures of scale and performance.
These metrics are of intense interest as Realscreen West kicks off in LA and Sunny Side of the Doc approaches in La Rochelle, France.
Today’s coverage and ratings snapshot is for 40+ U.S. networks, from Factual leaders like Discovery to those that are barely hanging on, like Viceland.
Read below about my collaboration with Byron Media’s Dr John Morse to provide our clients with strategic insights based on deep audience analysis.
Primetime Ratings, 1Q 2019
Selection of U.S. Factual Channels
Mon-Sun 8-11PM Live +7 Days Playback
| Distribution | Average Prime | Households | |
| Channel | Households (‘000) | MC CVG AA % | MC US AA Proj |
| Fox News | 85,943 | 2.33 | 2,001,000 |
| MSNBC | 86,080 | 1.90 | 1,635,000 |
| ESPN | 85,458 | 1.40 | 1,192,000 |
| HGTV | 88,757 | 1.27 | 1,131,000 |
| History | 88,436 | 1.20 | 1,065,000 |
| ID Investigation Discovery | 83,280 | 1.15 | 960,000 |
| TLC | 86,045 | 1.13 | 972,000 |
| USA | 89,662 | 1.12 | 1,002,000 |
| Discovery | 88,111 | 1.07 | 945,000 |
| CNN | 89,512 | 1.01 | 901,000 |
| A&E | 87,834 | 0.98 | 856,000 |
| Bravo | 86,827 | 0.91 | 792,000 |
| Food | 89,830 | 0.85 | 766,000 |
| Lifetime | 87,492 | 0.70 | 611,000 |
| Mtv | 83,332 | 0.58 | 487,000 |
| VH1 | 83,972 | 0.53 | 445,000 |
| Travel | 82,121 | 0.51 | 416,000 |
| WEtv | 83,682 | 0.50 | 417,000 |
| SYFY | 87,152 | 0.50 | 433,000 |
| OWN | 73,069 | 0.48 | 354,000 |
| Animal Planet | 85,414 | 0.46 | 391,000 |
| Science | 60,181 | 0.45 | 269,000 |
| Nat Geo Wild | 60,687 | 0.44 | 265,000 |
| Nat Geo Channel | 88,046 | 0.42 | 374,000 |
| Oxygen | 71,671 | 0.35 | 251,000 |
Source: Nielsen Media Research
Primetime Ratings, 1Q 2019
Selection of U.S. Factual Channels (continued)
Mon-Sun 8-11PM Live +7 Days Playback
| Distribution | Average Prime | Households | |
| Channel | Households (‘000) | MC CVG AA % | MC US AA Proj |
| BET | 80,348 | 0.35 | 280,000 |
| E! | 87,349 | 0.34 | 298,000 |
| Motor Trend | 73,328 | 0.33 | 241,000 |
| DIY | 52,889 | 0.33 | 174,000 |
| TRU | 85,228 | 0.27 | 231,000 |
| ReelzChannel | 58,709 | 0.23 | 135,000 |
| Smithsonian | 38,849 | 0.22 | 84,000 |
| American Heroes | 47,227 | 0.21 | 98,000 |
| Cooking Channel | 58,858 | 0.20 | 120,000 |
| Weather | 77,339 | 0.20 | 156,000 |
| FYI | 52,841 | 0.17 | 91,000 |
| Ovation | 43,827 | 0.14 | 62,000 |
| Destination America | 44,126 | 0.14 | 60,000 |
| UP | 62,839 | 0.13 | 80,000 |
| LOGO | 41,298 | 0.12 | 50,000 |
| Discovery Life Channel | 41,775 | 0.12 | 48,000 |
| Viceland | 65,930 | 0.09 | 58,000 |
| Baby First | 55,291 | 0.07 | 38,000 |
| FUSE | 54,032 | 0.05 | 27,000 |
Source: Nielsen Media ResearchFor Deeper Analysis
The Selection
- Our list is not apples-to-apples.
- It includes channels that are dedicated to Documentary and Unscripted, and others that include Scripted in the mix.
- Fox News, ESPN and MSNBC are included to provide context for the factual sector versus the leaders in News and Sports.
Quantity Not Quality
- Most ad-supported channels sell media based on their target demos.
- However the quarterly ‘average prime time’ is a very useful measure of scale and performance.
More Custom Research
- Contact me directly if your bus dev efforts will benefit from detailed audience data, for example to develop your strategy, or help with a pitch or analyze the performance of your program / series, or the programs of your competitors.
5-Year Winners & Losers
- Check out my 2014 post “Who’s Hot? Who’s Not!” who lost in the 5-year decline in viewing for most Cab/Sat channels.
- Discovery’s ID network swam strongly against the tide of cord-cutting, earning a 31% increase in audience.
My Sweet Spots Study is a valuable source of additional information covering the audience for factual channels, plus what they pay for programs.
