Ratings for one of the year's most hyped music awards are in and they don't look good for MTV.

The 2017 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) reached just 5.68 million viewers across multiple networks in the US on Sunday night (local time).

That number might seem high, but it pales in comparison to the ratings of MTV's heyday - 11.9 million people watched the 2002 VMAs.

The most obvious reason for this year's ratings drop was a scheduling mishap that meant the Game of Thrones season finale aired the same evening.

It was an unplanned clash, with the hit fantasy show's seventh season premiering in July instead of April as in previous years.

The VMAs couldn't compete with the record-breaking Game of Thrones episode, which hauled in a reported 16 million viewers.

In addition to the scheduling clash, this year's ceremony seemed to be missing some of the excitement and scandal of previous years.

As a naughtier, younger version of the Grammys, the VMAs have included notable moments like Britney Spears performing with a python in 2001, Kanye West interrupting Taylor Swift in 2009 and Miley Cyrus' infamous twerking in 2013.

No such drama was to be found at this year's event.

Arguably the most exciting moment came from someone who wasn't even there, as Swift's music video for 'Look What You Made Me Do' premiered, but the singer herself was absent.

Host Katy Perry is also being blamed for the low views. Many of the singer's jokes fell flat as she made references to fidget spinners, The Handmaid's Tale and President Donald Trump.

This is the fourth year in a row that the ceremony, once the ratings star of the MTV network, has seen a decline in viewers.

According to the Nielsen company, 6.5 million watched the VMAs last year, which was a significant drop from 2015's 9.8 million viewers.

Newshub.