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NEW YORK, Dec. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- SCI FI Channel's success grew to galactic proportions in 2003. In addition to taking home the Emmy for Outstanding Miniseries Event for Steven Spielberg Presents TAKEN, SCI FI secured development deals with Hollywood heavyweights Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Bryan Singer, Dean Devlin and Gale Anne Hurd. SCI FI also delivered its best-ever primetime rating, with an average 1.0 for the year. The Channel scored with viewers in nearly every key demographic, ranking within the Top 10 of all basic cable nets for P25-54, M25-54, M18-49 and W25-54.

Now fully-distributed at 83 million homes, SCI FI punctuated its phenomenal 2003 with the premiere of Battlestar Galactica, basic cable's highest-rated dramatic event of the year.

Highlights for 2003 include:* A 1.0 primetime average -- SCI FI's best-ever primetime performance, up 11% from 2002 * SCI FI's best-ever cable broadcast season with HH rating up 25% over last year's performance, 36% growth in average HH audience vs. 2002, and up 29% in total viewers over 4Q01-3Q02 * Driven by the continued success of Stargate SG-1, SCI FI had its best Summer ever with a 1.6 average for new episodes of this SCI FI Friday original series.* Primetime viewership (M-Su, 7-11pm) grew onsiderably among M18-34 (+11%) * Fueled by the Stargate SG-1 stack, Monday nights grew across every key demo: HHs (+31%), P25-54 (+18%), P18-49 (+17%)* While most networks struggled to find young male viewers, SCI FI jumped 24% among M18-34 for total day (M-Su, 6am-6pm)


Battlestar Galactica: This highly-anticipated miniseries event premiered to critical praise and stunning ratings. Battlestar Galactica earned an average 3.5/4,177,000 P2+. Cable's most-watched miniseries of 2003, Battlestar Galactica outdelivered HBO's Angels in America by more than 600,000 viewers. The two-night, four-hour drama drew a broad audience, garnering SCI FI's best demographic ratings for the year among: P25-54, P18-49, M18-49, M18-34, W25-54, W18-49 and W18-34. Night One of the miniseries, which premiered to a 3.2/3,902,000 P2+, was outdone by Night Two of the mini, which jumped to a 3.8/4,460,000 P2+ premiere. SCI FI's highest-rated program for 2003, Battlestar Galactica took its place as the 3rd-highest-rated original event in the Channel's history, behind only Steven Spielberg Presents TAKEN and Frank Herbert's Dune.

Frank Herbert's Children of Dune: This three-night epic, a continuation of the Dune saga, earned an Emmy Award (Outstanding Visual Effects) and drew an average rating of 2.41/2,700,000 P2+. The five airings of the miniseries delivered an aggregate audience of 18,200,000 P2+.

SCI FI Original Series: Stargate SG-1* SCI FI's highest-rated original series, new episodes averaged a 1.7, for the full year -- a 42% improvement over the 2002 time period average (Fridays 9pm, 1.2) * The season 7 premiere (June 13) set a number of SCI FI records: the highest HH audience (1,544,000) and most viewers (2,433,000 P2+) for a June telecast, and the highest viewership of any season premiere of any series on the Channel * The continuation of the SG-1 Monday stack (7-11pm) resulted in a 71% improvement in ratings (vs. January-September '02, 0.7)

Scare Tactics: This Shannen Doherty-hosted series continued to attract younger viewers, with original episodes averaging a 0.7 among P18-49 and a 0.8 among P25-54. The show's 0.6 among P18-34 is a 20% improvement over the April-December 2002 time period average. The show's two-episode series premiere on April 4 was watched by 1,370,000 A18-49 -- the largest audience in this demo for a series premiere in SCI FI history.

Movies & Specials: SCI FI premiered 20 original Saturday night movies in 2003, solidifying the Channel as the largest producer of original movies on television * Saturday night original movies averaged a 1.4 rating -- up 17% over the non-original movies that aired in the same time period, and 40% higher than the network's 1.0 primetime average * With a 2.2/2,735,000 P2+, Riverworld's March 22 premiere exceeded its time period average (Sat. 9pm-11pm) by a whopping 86% - and became the most-watched original movie to air on SCI FI on a Saturday night * The New Roswell: Kecksburg Exposed garnered a 1.5/1,835,000 P2+ (Oct. 24 at 9pm) -- the highest-rated non-fiction program to air on SCI FI in 2003

Source: Nielsen Media Research, qualifications available upon request.