AMC Networks is expecting the return of its monster hit The Walking Dead to give a lift to its premium subscription service AMC Premiere.

AMC Premiere, which costs $4.99 a month and gives subscribers access to commercial-free versions of AMC’s series plus extras including bonus footage, sneak peeks of future episodes and exclusive behind-the-scenes features, launched with Comcast last June.

YouTube TV, though, has also agreed to distribute AMC Premiere. It will begin rolling out over the next few months. AMC continues to talk to other distributors about carrying the service.

While he wouldn’t provide specific subscriber numbers for Premiere, Mac McKean, executive VP of innovation at AMC Networks, said, “We’re happy with the response to date and we’re about where we expected to be in terms of the business.”

Momentum Building
The return of The Walking Dead for the second half of its eighth season on Feb. 25 is “going to be a great moment for Premiere, and then that’s going to be followed by McMafia,” the upcoming British organized-crime drama, McKean said.

This past weekend, Comcast offered a free preview of AMC Premiere, giving Xfinity TV subscribers access to AMC’s current programs, including the first half of The Walking Dead’s current season.

AMC also is loading Premiere with exclusive Walking Dead content such as previews and features that should appeal to the show’s huge fan base. The first half of the interstitial featurette Red Machete has also been stitched together to make it easy to watch on Premiere.

After the first episode of McMafia debuts on the AMC linear network on Feb. 26, AMC Premiere subscribers will be able to watch all eight episodes, the first time AMC has enabled that kind of early binge watching for one of its series.

“We’re learning from our experiences and we’re fine-tuning the service, and so one of the things we’re going to try based on user feedback is to make a whole season of a show available starting with the day of premiere,” McKean said. “We think because it is so thrilling and suspenseful, it will be a good fit to make the entire season available as a binge for viewers.”

McKean said Premiere is designed to complement and extend the linear AMC — generating revenue and elevating the network’s shows within a new environment.

The subscription service also facilitates a direct connection with viewers and fans. “We’re talking to our users, to our subscribers, and we’re analyzing the data and we’re looking at what features and elements are resonating and are delivering on that promise,” he said. “And we’ll continue with that process through these new upcoming seasons.”

Features and Fixes
Features popular with early AMC Premiere users include the ease with which it can be accessed on any device and that the content plays in a premium manner.

Among the things AMC needs to fix is that viewers aren’t aware of much of the exclusive content offered. “You’re just not used to getting that,” McKean said. “People don’t know to look for it.”

Because AMC shows are already appointment viewing for fans, AMC Premiere viewing tends to peak as new episodes debut, even though on-demand viewers can watch whenever they want.

The most popular shows on Premiere have largely been the same ones as on the linear channel, although the older-skewing Revolutionary War drama Turn has shown some extra strength.

McKean said AMC Premiere does not seem to be stealing many viewers from ad-supported AMC: “Having an extension of linear like Premiere is raising the profile of both. When we promote Premiere, we’re promoting the shows.

“Comcast has been an incredibly great partner,” he added. “They’re supporting AMC as a whole, and that shows up in greater engagement with the network as a whole.”

Pasadena, Calif--AMC will return its zombie-themed series Fear The Walking Dead on April 15, the network announced during its Television Critics Association winter press tour session.

Season four of the prequel to The Walking Dead will feature the first crossover character between the the shows in Morgan Jones, played by actor Lennie James. The series is executive produced by Scott Gimple, showrunners Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg, as well as Robert Kirkman, David Alpert, Gale Anne Hurd and Greg Nicotero.

The announcement comes on the heels of AMC’s renewal of The Walking Deadfor a ninth season.

Read More: MCN's Complete Coverage of #TCA18

AMC also announced the premiere date for new original series McMafia (Feb. 26). Immediately after its premiere, the entire first season of the series will be available on the network’s AMC Premiere premium service, according to AMC, SundanceTV and AMC Studios President Charlie Collier.

Also getting premiere dates are AMC’s new horror series The Terror (March 26); its original special James Cameron’s Story Of Science Fiction (April 30), as well as returning series Into The Badlands (April 22).

In other AMC Networks news, SundanceTV said it has picked up a second season of its thriller series Liar. Also announced yesterday during the TCA, IFC renewed its horror/comedy series Stan Against Evil for a third season and set an April 15 premiere date for the second season of sports comedy series Brockmire.