Everywhere you look these days, the smiling face of Hannah Montana star Miley Cyrus pops out at you. Her face is on the television set, the magazine aisle, the CD and DVD racks, and soon you’ll be seeing her in the clothing racks as well. It’s a very good year to be Hannah Montana – or to just play her on TV. Just ask Miley Cyrus.
Hannah Montana‘s return to Disney Channel two weeks ago with brand new episodes gave Disney a huge boost in the ratings. That same week saw the release of a double-CD, including songs from both Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus, and the announcement of a new Hannah clothing line due to hit stores this Fall. Add to all that a new DVD containing some of the show’s most popular episodes, and any girl under the age of 14 can be guaranteed a complete Hannah birthday.
Normally, television ratings take a dive during the summertime, but not so over at the Disney Channel. The brand new double-episode of Hannah Montana on June 24 helped give Disney the best prime-time ratings over all other cable channels for that week. Not only were the numbers big for Disney Channel, but the 7.38 million viewers, including 3.4 million in the 9 to 14 “tween” age group, tuning in for the second half of doubleheader at 8:30 marked the largest audience for an episode of Hannah Montana to date.
Those numbers also gave the hugely popular program a second place amongst all top-rated cable shows, according to Nielsen’s list. The only other show not geared towards adults that regularly makes Nielsen’s Top 10 Cable TV Programs week-to-week is Spongebob Squarepants.
With the June 26 release of Hannah Montana – Pop Star Profile on DVD, young fans of the show can now see four of the most popular episodes, all of which chronicle the beginning of the relationship between Hannah Montana’s alter ego on the show, Miley Stewart, and Jake Ryan (Cody Linley).
Also included on the DVD is a performance by Hannah Montana of “Nobody’s Perfect” – one of the songs from the new CD set that was released the same day, and a special behind-the-scenes look at what life is like for the young Cyrus called “The Real Miley Cyrus.” Let’s just hope the “real” Miley Cyrus doesn’t let all of this marketing saturation and burgeoning popularity go to her head.
-Amy J. Johnston, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: Mediaweek.com and The-Trades.com
(Image courtesy of Disney Channel)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
