The numbers are in for Amazon Prime Video’s exclusive Thursday Night Football live streams.
Key Details
- Nielsen reports an average of 13 million viewers tuned into the first game, exceeding Amazon’s estimate of 12.5 million that it told advertisers to expect.
- Amazon knew that its football streams were successful with its September 15 debut but rating numbers were not initially available.
- It struck a deal with Nielson in August to report rating numbers for its football live streams.
- “By every measure, Thursday Night Football on Prime Video was a resounding success,” says Amazon’s global head of sports Jay Marine.
- Amazon Prime Video streamed Game 5 of Thursday Night Football last Thursday, between the Indianapolis Colts at Denver Broncos. The Colts won 12 to 9.
- Game 6 streams tomorrow, between the Washington Commanders and Chicago Bears.
Why it’s important
Amazon has been celebrating the success of its foray into sports streaming for the past several weeks, but we finally have the numbers now to back up its success.
“The average for the September 15 matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers surpassed the viewership of 8.84 million on the NFL Network from the same week in 2021, according to data released by Amazon. The stream was the most-watched program of the night, the Amazon release added. Number two was CBS’ Young Sheldon, with 3.5 million viewers,” says CNBC.
Backing up a bit
The change in venue was a big one for sports fans, as the initial broadcasts were met with technical difficulties that impeded the experience such as sound quality, video synchronization, buffering, and delays.
“Amazon’s game stream provides viewers with the company’s so-called next-generation statistics as well as the play-by-play stylings of former Sunday Night Football announcer Al Michaels and college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit,” says CNBC.
The reaction overall was mostly positive though. Some of the changes took getting used to, such as the lack of alcohol commercials, which were not permitted by Amazon’s advertising policies.
Thursday Night Football games are still being broadcast locally on television, although Amazon Prime Video currently owns the streaming rights through 2033.
Notable quote
“The company reported that the average age of the audience was six years younger than the typical linear NFL audience, at 47 years old versus 53 years old. The stream was also reportedly rated 18% higher than any other NFL telecast thus far this season,” says CNBC
