While Game Of Thrones may be busy shattering pirate viewing records, it seems there are still countless millions of people across the world watching it ‘legally’ too.
British satellite broadcaster Sky, which has the rights to show Game Of Thrones in the United Kingdom, has revealed that the final episode of Season 5 was enjoyed by 3.1 million viewers, making it the subscription-based broadcaster’s most watched entertainment programme ever.
As if that wasn’t enough, Sky also announced that it had racked up an astonishing 23 million downloads - another unprecedented figure - of its on-demand Game Of Thrones Seasons 1-4 boxsets between March 1st 2015 and May 31st 2015, as people geared up for the launch of Season 5.
The 3.1 million viewers figure for the Season 5 finale includes the live audiences for the UK’s 2 a.m. simulcast and 9 p.m.-evening broadcasts on June 15th, as well as the Sky customers who watched recordings of the show they’d made to their Sky receiver’s hard disk drives, and those who caught up with the finale on demand in the seven days after the initial air date. But it’s still a hugely impressive figure for a UK-based subscription-based broadcast platform - especially as it does not include viewers who may have watched the show via Sky’s associated Sky Go and NOW TV streaming services.
To further underline just how much of an entertainment juggernaut Game Of Thrones has become, the latest viewing figures revealed by Sky show a rise of 42% over the audience for Season 4, with the sustained nature of this rise seemingly proving that the show wasn’t seriously hurt by what some saw as a rather slow and unfocused feel to some of Season 5’s early episodes.
Sky’s Managing Director of Content Gary Davey had this to say about what he sees as Sky’s role in GOT’s popularity in the UK: “We know our customers love being able to choose how, where and when they watch their favorite show – whether that’s staying up until 2am for the global simulcast or re-watching every episode from the very beginning–and we’re thrilled to offer them that flexibility. Re-defining the meaning of ‘must-see TV’, we’re proud to be a part of the Game of Thrones phenomenon. In the aftermath of a record-breaking end to the fifth season on Sky, we can’t wait to see what will happen next.”
With Season 5 finishing on a series of cliffhangers it’s hard to see how anything short of a mass fan revolt could see Season 6 failing to be at least as successful as its predecessor when it launches next spring.
