Sci-fi series Extant is a streaming hit, says Amazon UK
The pilot episode of Steven Spielberg’s sci-fi mystery thriller Extant has become Amazon Prime Instant Video’s most successful launch ever – attracting three times more streams on release day than the first episode of any previous show on the service, including original series Vikings, according to Amazon UK.
The series, which stars Halle Berry as an astronaut who returns to Earth after a year in orbit to learn that she is pregnant, debuted on July 9 the on CBS network in the US to 9.4 million viewers and mixed reviews.
In the UK, it was available to Amazon Prime Instant Video subscribers from July 10.
As with Netflix, Amazon does not release actual viewer numbers, claiming the lack of traditional advertisers and marketers that traditional broadcasters have to appeal to via ratings.
“Extant is a new frontier for our service,” Amazon Prime UK marketing and merchandising director Russell Morris said in a statement.
“With its Hollywood pedigree and star-studded cast, this exclusive marks our commitment to offering customers access to some of the most anticipated shows in the world. Extant looks set to be the television event of the summer.”
Meanwhile, Amazon Prime has announced that it plans to follow the method of fellow streaming service Netflix by releasing all episodes of an upcoming series at once.
The online streaming service says it will release all 10 episodes of its new comedy Transparent at the same time in September.
Netflix has previously released full series of House of Cards and Arrested Development simultaneously for users to “binge” on.
