The first installment of the last season of"Game of Thrones" is a record-breaker for the show and HBO.
The pay channel said the 17.4 million viewers who watched Sunday's episode on TV or on line signify a season-opening high for the fantasy saga.
Monday, HBO also posted its biggest streaming night the channel said.
The episode topped the 16.1 million who saw the seventh-season premiere and the 16.9 million who saw that year's finale.
For loading reflecting increasing audience fondness, HBO found in viewing about a 50 percent increase in contrast to last season's finale. In comparison to this season-seven premiere, the viewer doubled.
"Game of Thrones" ultimately averaged 32.8 million viewers per episode last year in accumulative TV and online viewership, HBO explained.