Korean drama Legend of the Blue Sea and adventure-reality series The Amazing Race Asia Season 5 drive massive ratings spike
SINGAPORE (November 22, 2016) – Sony Pictures Television Networks’ powerhouse channels ONE and AXN packed a punch in Singapore and Malaysia last Thursday, with the highly anticipated Korean drama Legend of the Blue Sea premiere winning the timeslot across all pay-TV channels, and The Amazing Race Asia topping the international English channels.
In Singapore, ONE’s Legend of the Blue Sea, starring reigning king and queen of Korea Lee Min Ho and Jun Ji Hyun, made its premiere splash on November 17 at 8:10pm, and achieved a 52 per cent higher rating than the premiere of ONE’s blockbuster, top rated drama series Scarlet Heart. During its telecast, ONE was the top rated pay-TV channel with a 47 per cent higher rating than the next channel and scooping an 81 percent share amongst the four Korean general entertainment channels.
Legend of the Blue Sea also outperformed all other channels in Malaysia, achieving a whopping 92 per cent share amongst the four competing Korean channels. The series is ONE’s highest rating premiere episode in 2016, 84 per cent higher than the premiere of Scarlet Heart.
Switching genres to AXN, the adrenaline-fueled antics of the remaining six teams captivated audiences in both markets, making The Amazing Race Asia Season 5 the top rated program of the day amongst the English general entertainment channels. In Singapore, the episode achieved a 38 per cent share in its genre, which was two and half times higher than AXN’s closest competitor.
The Amazing Race Asia Season 5 continued its winning streak in Malaysia helping AXN dominate the Thursday night 9pm timeslot as the top rated English channel on Astro, garnering a 63 per cent share of viewing in its genre.
“Sony Pictures Television Networks’ channels offer viewers the very best in premium Asian and English content. Legend of the Blue Sea and The Amazing Race Asia Season 5 are vastly different viewing experiences so we are thrilled to cater to the diverse preferences of our audiences in Singapore and Malaysia. We remain plugged into the demands of the market and will keep delivering drama, variety and reality series that viewers live, breathe and crave,” said Virginia Lim, Senior Vice President and Head of Content, Production and Marketing.
Legend of the Blue Sea airs every Thursday and Friday at 8.10pm / 7.10pm (JKT), within 24 hours of its Korean telecast. It is available first and exclusively on ONE. For more information, visit www.onetvasia.com/Legend; and join in the conversation on social media with the official hashtag #TheLegendIsReal.
The Amazing Race Asia Season 5 airs every Thursday at 9.00pm/8.00pm (JKT) first and exclusively on AXN. More information and behind-the-scenes snippets are available at www.AXN-Asia.com/TARA and on social platforms at #AXNTARA and @TheAmazingRaceAsia.
About Sony Pictures Television Networks, Asia
Sony Pictures Television (SPT) Networks, Asia is a leading operator of ad-supported channels including English general entertainment powerhouses AXN and Sony Channel; and Asian content giants Animax, GEM and ONE. SPT Networks’ portfolio collectively features the biggest and best titles from Korea, Japan and the U.S that are first run, exclusive and aired close to the original telecast. Taking the content beyond the screen, SPT Networks immerses viewers in its premium entertainment via large-scale festivals, celebrity fan meets and social platform conversations. In Asia, SPT Networks’ portfolio is available across 19 territories and in over 42 million homes.
www.SonyPicturesTelevision.com
Media Contact
Jennifer Doig / Sony Pictures Television Networks, Asia
Jennifer_doig@spe.sony.com / +65 6622 4278
Source: GfK Singapore SG-TAM, target: Pay TV 4+, combined rating of ONE Mandarin and One Malay / Kantar Malaysia Astro DTAM, target: Astro individual 4+, combined rating of AXN SD and AXN HD (Data as of 22 November 2016)