Thanks to concurrent broadcasts across a myriad of Viacom networks, the 2015 Video Music Awards ceremony reached a total of 9.8 million viewers. It drew a combined 4.6 in the adults 18-49 demographic.
The MTV version of the broadcast, however, was down sharply from last year’s corresponding broadcast.
While MTV’s airing of the 2014 edition drew a 4.2 adults 18-49 rating with 8.257 million viewers, its 2015 broadcast posted a mere 2.6 with 5.025 million.
In addition to sharply trailing last year’s broadcast, this year’s deflated MTV edition allowed AMC’s “Fear The Walking Dead” to rank as the #1 individual cable telecast. That show posted a 4.1 with 8.184 million viewers.
As noted, the numerous Viacom broadcasts combined for 9.8 million total viewers. That number only slightly trails the 10.3 million drawn by last year’s concurrent airings.
The comparison is not entirely apples-to-apples. Last year’s ceremony only aired concurrently on MTV2, VH1 and Logo; this year’s show aired on considerably more networks, with stations like TV Land, Comedy Central, CMT and BET also in on the action. Additional availability positively impacts viewership; there are some CMT or BET viewers, for instance, that would not have sought out the program on MTV.
Granted, the wide array of simulcast options also serves to partially explain why this year’s MTV broadcast took a sizable year-over-year hit. Some who caught the show on CMT or BET surely would have watched on MTV if it were their only option.
