Kids' Choice Awards | Kevin Mazur/WireImage/Nickelodeon
While the complete set of data has not yet arrived, it appears that the 2017 Kids’ Choice Awards ceremony drew slightly fewer live+same-day viewers than the 2016 edition.
According to live+same-day data posted by Showbuzz, Saturday’s broadcast averaged 3.05 million viewers on Nickelodeon. Last year’s show drew 3.32 million viewers for the main Nickelodeon broadcast.
A simulcast on NickToons actually posted a year-over-year gain, but the increase does not completely close the gap. The 2017 show drew 0.34 million viewers on NickToons, while the 2016 edition averaged 0.31 million.
This year’s show also aired on TeenNick, but the viewership figure was not available at press time. It nonetheless seems highly unlikely that the TeenNick outdrew last year’s installment by enough to match or exceed last year’s total across the three networks.
The 2016 edition averaged 0.36 million viewers on TeenNick, resulting in an audience of 4.00 million across Nick, NickToons and TeenNick. To match that total, the 2017 show would have needed an audience of over 600,000 on TeenNick. All indications are that it fell short of that mark.
Along with the aforementioned three networks, the 2016 show aired concurrently on CMT and TVLand (the CMT airing was a nod to the fact that country superstar Blake Shelton hosted the show). Those simulcasts collectively added 0.43 million in viewership.
The 2017 did not air on those two networks.
While the 2016 edition seems to have won the live+same-day battle, it is worth noting that the 2017 show may end up with the larger final audience. The combination of DVR usage and digital/streaming impressions could tip the ultimate scale in favor of this year’s show.
The 2016 show featured host Blake Shelton and performances by Charlie Puth & Wiz Khalifa, Silento and DNCE.
This year’s ceremony featured host John Cena and performances by Machine Gun Kelly & Camila Cabello and Little Mix.