NBA Cup Championship Viewership Increases on Prime Video

In its debut year on Prime Video, the NBA Cup Championship attracted a solid viewership, slightly edging out last year’s numbers. The matchup between the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks in Las Vegas pulled in an average of 3.07 million viewers on Prime, marking a 3% increase from last year’s Bucks-Thunder showdown on ABC. However, the inaugural championship game between the Pacers and Lakers on ABC still holds the crown with an average of 4.58 million viewers.

Interestingly, this year’s championship drew a younger audience, with a median age of 45.4, compared to the NBC Opening Night doubleheader, which had a median age of 53.9 despite attracting more viewers.

While some may have expected a larger viewership boost this year, the move to Prime Video was a new experience for the event. Last season’s championship had the advantage of broadcast television’s broader reach. Despite the overall increase in viewership due to Nielsen’s new Big Data standard, the knockout rounds averaged 1.54 million viewers on Prime Video, down by 6% from the previous year when games were split across TNT, ESPN, and ABC.

One positive change from the shift to streaming was an uptick in viewership among younger demographics, with adults 18-34 and 25-54 showing increases of 23% and 15%, respectively. Furthermore, the global accessibility of Prime Video allowed the NBA Cup to reach over 103 million unique devices worldwide.

Overall, NBA games on Prime Video in the U.S. this season are averaging 1.31 million viewers, although it’s still early to compare this to last year’s numbers. Moving forward, it will be interesting to see how this new streaming platform continues to impact the viewership and accessibility of the NBA Cup Championship.