I have to admit that “Sons of Anarchy” — FX Network’s mega-hit drama series — isn’t really my “cup of tea”, but there are certainly enough young viewers out there drinking it all in. How else to explain its return for a seventh and final season, breaking one ratings record after another – season after season?

While I wasn’t quite yet born when the outlaw biker film, “The Wild One” (starring a young Marlon Brando) made its debut in the early 1950s, I’ve seen enough of the re-runs to know the violence portrayed in this cult classic doesn’t touch what the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club dishes out as they go about protecting their legal and illegal business ventures.

But violence alone can’t fully explain the appeal of “Sons of Anarchy”, which casts main protagonist Jackson “Jax” Teller (Charlie Hunnam) as President of a motorcycle club that elicits both his love for the comradeship and his disenchantment with their lawless ways. Each season engages the viewer with plot lines of “Jax” Teller’s personal life intertwined with the illegal gun-running activities of SAMCRO – the acronym for “Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club, Redwood Original”.

Make no mistake about it — “Sons of Anarchy” is an original that viewers keep flocking to in droves. Over the past two seasons, practically every episode surpassed the rating of its prior season (same) episode and the 2014 season (after four episodes) is off to the same start:

^{Source: Viamedia analysis of Rentrak TV Essentials Data (Telecast Summary Report) for “Sons of Anarchy” first run new programming for 13 episodes that ran in 2012 and 2013 (September – December), as well as first four episodes in 2014.}

Record-Setting Local Cable Advertising Levels

This captivating drama has attracted local cable advertising at a record-setting pace.

In the 26 Viamedia markets that have run local cable commercials on “Sons of Anarchy” over the past two seasons, advertisers have increased their investment by 84%! That represents not only an increase in the sheer number of spots purchased (+34%), but also a 37% increase in unit pricing:

^{Source: Viamedia internal analysis of High Profile Tracker data for “Sons of Anarchy” for the months of September – December, 2012 and 2013 across the 26 markets that had “Sons of Anarchy” ad revenues for both years.}

A few more local cable advertiser stats: 122 advertisers appeared on “Sons of Anarchy” in 2013 – 20% more than the prior year. And over 30% of advertisers re-upped their commitment in 2013, increasing their investment by over +10%.

Favorite “Sons of Anarchy” Markets

Two-thirds of 2013 advertising revenues came out of three Viamedia markets: Detroit, Chicago and Boston. And while many factors can impact local cable revenues at the local market level, it is probably not a coincidence that these three markets view “Sons of Anarchy” at a much higher rate than nationally:

^{Source: Viamedia analysis of Rentrak TV Essentials Data (National Telecast Detail / TV Market) for the September 9th, 2014 premiere episode entitled “Black Widower”.
Young Audiences Flock to “Sons of Anarchy”}

Based upon Acxiom PersonicX Clusters (that have been appended to Rentrak set-top-box households), the “Sons of Anarchy” attracts a relatively young audience:

   2014 Premiere Episode of “Sons of Anarchy”

                     Top 10 PersonicX Clusters

^{Source: Viamedia analysis of Rentrak TV Essentials Data (National Telecast Detail / Series Demographics) for the September 9th, 2014 premiere episode entitled “Black Widower”.  * Asterisk means cluster HH rating is based on either < 1000 HH OR < 100 hours.Local Cable Advertising Categories}

The “Sons of Anarchy’s” young audience is of particular interest to other cable networks; indeed, over the past two seasons, 10 out of the Top 25 largest local cable advertisers on this show have been cable networks. These “tune-in” dollars are well spent. Overall TV P.U.T. levels are relatively low for young adults, and (all else being equal) a large cost-per-thousand premium is often paid to reach young adults watching TV. Advertising on “Sons of Anarchy”, in other words, is a great way for other cable networks to attract this desirable demographic thereby raising the value of their own audience!

Below is a breakout of local cable ad category expenditures over the past two seasons. The largest categories after TV/Radio/Media (i.e., “Tune-In”) are Automotive; Restaurants; Travel & Entertainment; Boats/Bikes/RVs and Schools/Recruitment. Practically all of these categories are targeting either young and/or male audiences:
 

The Last Hurrah

“Sons of Anarchy” began its seventh and final season this past September, bolting out of the gates with an average U.S. HH rating of 1.89 over the first four episodes — that’s 20% higher than last season’s fast start (1.57). At Viamedia, we expect local advertisers to purchase air time right up to the very last episode – scheduled for early to mid-December. And, if advertisers miss the boat for the series finale, there may still be another chance! In November of last year, Kurt Sutter (the show’s creator) entered into talks with FX to make a prequel of “Sons of Anarchy” circa 1960. For many young adult households, that would fill a void that will surely be created when the curtain finally falls on ”Sons of Anarchy.”

– Written by Jonathan Sims, VP Media Research, Viamedia