TBS, TNT, TLC, Discovery, HGTV, Food Network, Investigation Discovery, Cartoon Network/Adult Swim, OWN and Others In The Group Together Deliver Nearly One-Third of Nightly Cable Audience
The close to 30 networks that comprise the US Networks Group at Warner Bros. Discovery, including TBS, TNT, TLC, Discovery, HGTV, Food Network, Investigation Discovery, Cartoon Network/Adult Swim, OWN and others, delivered more than 138 million total viewers on average per month in 2022, with six of them ranking among the top 10 cable networks for the year. Together, the networks in the group accounted for nearly 31% of all P25-54/P18-49 primetime cable viewing and outperformed competitors with 17 of the top 30 top-rated unscripted freshman series in primetime, including I Am Shauna Rae (TLC), Fixer to Fabulous: Welcome Inn (HGTV), Hoffman Family Gold (Discovery), Ugliest House in America (HGTV), 1000-lb Best Friends (TLC) and Beat Bobby Flay Holiday Throwdown (Food Network).
“This strong performance is a testament to the power of our stellar brands, our unique content and our loyal fans who come to our networks because we have the content and the talent that fuels their passions,” said Kathleen Finch, Chairman and Chief Content Officer, US Networks Group, Warner Bros. Discovery. “We’re planning to commission over 4,000 premiere hours across our portfolio of networks in 2023, so we are well positioned to keep our momentum going.”
Here are performance highlights from the US Networks Group at Warner Bros. Discovery:
For 2022, TNT and TBS ranked as the #1 and #2 cable entertainment networks in prime among P25-54 and held three of cable’s top 10 dramas and comedies in the demo—TNT’s Animal Kingdom and TBS’s American Dad and Wipeout. AEW Rampage and AEW Dynamite reached nearly four million viewers each week across TNT and TBS, while TNT’s coverage of the 2022-23 NBA regular season to date is up 13 percent among P25-54 viewers (Q4’22 vs. Q4’21). On TBS, The Big Bang Theory remains cable’s #1 acquired series among P18-49, P25-54 and P2+.
Discovery Channel ended 2022 as a top 5 cable network among M25-54 and a top 10 cable network among P25-54, owning more than half of the top 10 unscripted cable series among M25-54—more than any other network. Driven by the popular Gold Rush franchise, it also ranked as the #1 non-sports cable network on Friday nights among P25-54 and M25-54.
In 2022, HGTV ranked as a top 10 cable network among P25-54 and W25-54 every night of the week in total day and prime as well as a top 5 cable network among W25-54 in both total day and prime. The smash hit competition series Rock the Block was the network’s highest-rated title of the year among P25-54 and W25-54 and posted its highest-rated season yet among both demos. Additional hits like Home Town Takeover, Celebrity IOU, No Demo Reno, 100 Day Dream Home, Bargain Block, Unsellable Houses, Fixer to Fabulous and Windy City Rehab are just a few of the series that helped the network maintain its position as the #1 non-news/sports network among ad-supported cable in total day with W25-54 in 2022.
Food Network ended 2022 as a top 5 cable network among W25-54 in total day and prime. Tournament of Champions was the network’s highest-rated title of the year among P25-54 and posted its highest-rated season yet among W25-54, while the latest season of Holiday Baking Championship ranked as the highest-rated title of the year among W25-54. Beat Bobby Flay Holiday Throwdown finished the year as Food Network’s highest-rated freshman launch since 2020. Popular series BBQ Brawl recorded its highest-rated season ever, and The Great Food Truck Race and Worst Cooks in America delivered their highest-rated seasons since 2020.
For the third year in a row, TLC, bolstered by smash hits including the 90 Day Fiancé franchise and Sister Wives, continued its run as the #1 cable primetime network without sports among W25-54, W18-49 and W18-34. Excluding both news and sports, TLC also ranked as the #1 primetime cable network among key demos, including P25-54 and W25-54. In addition, the fan-favorite net held the #1 spot on Sunday nights with total viewers throughout the year with P25-54, W25-54, W18-49 and W18-34.
At year’s end, ID, whose hit series include Evil Lives Here and Murder Under the Friday Night Lights, was the #6 ad-supported cable network in total day among W25-54 and a top 10 cable network in total day among other key demos, including P25-54. In December, ID improved its prime ad-supported cable ranking among W18+ to land in the top 10, and, for the last week of 2022, delivered the network’s most-watched prime and total day since August.
Adult Swim closed out 2022 as a top 10 cable network among P18-34, P18-49 and P25-54, with Rick and Morty solidifying its spot as the #1 cable comedy in P18-34, P18-49 and P25-54 for the year. American Dad and Bob’s Burgers also ranked among the top 5 acquired series in prime among P18-49.
With Queen Sugar and Love & Marriage: Huntsville, OWN was the only network to place a scripted and unscripted series among the year’s top 12 original cable series with African-American Women 18+. In addition, the Love & Marriage franchise drove OWN to be Saturday night’s #1 cable network with African-American Women 25-54/18-49/18+/2+ and the #1 non-sports cable net with African-American Persons 25-54/18-49/18+/2+ and Households.
About Warner Bros. Discovery
Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ: WBD) is a leading global media and entertainment company that creates and distributes the world’s most differentiated and complete portfolio of content and brands across television, film and streaming. Available in more than 220 countries and territories and 50 languages, Warner Bros. Discovery inspires, informs and entertains audiences worldwide through its iconic brands and products including: Discovery Channel, discovery+, CNN, DC, Eurosport, HBO, HBO Max, HGTV, Food Network, OWN, Investigation Discovery, TLC, Magnolia Network, TNT, TBS, truTV, Travel Channel, MotorTrend, Animal Planet, Science Channel, Warner Bros. Film Group, Warner Bros. Television Group, Warner Bros. Games, New Line Cinema, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Turner Classic Movies, Discovery en Español, Hogar de HGTV and others. For more information, please visit www.wbd.com.
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Media Contacts:
Chelsey Riemann / chelsey_riemann@discovery.com / 865-607-4188
Audrey Adlam /audrey_adlam@discovery.com