Primetime Ratings Report
For the week of January 12, 2009
(Based on National Live + Same Day Program Ratings)
For the 2nd Week in a Row, ABC is Up Over the Same Week
Last Year, Gaining 8% in Total Viewers and 20% in Adults 18-49
ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" Stands as TV's No. 1 Scripted Telecast in Adults 18-34
Net Airs 4 of the Week's Top 10 TV Shows Among Women 18-34, Including
"Grey's Anatomy," "Desperate Housewives," "Private Practice" and "The Bachelor"
Airing Against CBS' Original Comedies and Fox's Monday Premiere of "24,"
"The Bachelor" Grows from its Week-Earlier Premiere in Viewers and Adults 18-49, Generating ABC's Strongest Adult 18-34 Number in the Time Slot in 3-1/2 Months
Retaining Nearly All of its Debut Audience, "True Beauty" Beats NBC's "Momma's Boys" Monday from 10-11pm by 1.9 Million Viewers and by 68% in Adults 18-49
Making Inroads Opposite Fox's "American Idol" Premiere, ABC's Tuesday is Up by 15% in Viewers and by a Substantial 64% in Adults 18-49 Over the Year-Ago Night
"Homeland Security USA" Improves Tuesday's 8 O'clock Hour for ABC by 1.6 Million Viewers and by 50% in Adults 18-49 Over its Year-Ago Performance
ABC News' "Primetime: What Would You Do?" is Up from its Premiere in Viewers
And Adults 18-49, Hitting Series Highs in Adults 18-34, Men 18-34 and Men 25-54
Jumping Over its Lead-in and Building Sharply Opposite CBS' High-Profile "C.S.I."
Among Viewers and Young Adults, "Grey's" Grows Week to Week in Adults 18-49
Facing All-Original Competition This Week, "Private Practice" is Up from the
Prior Week's Thursday Night Premiere in Adults 18-34, Hitting a Season-High
"Private Practice" Wins Thursday's 10pm Hour in Adults 18-34 and Key Women
And Beats NBC's "ER" for the 2nd Week in a Row with Viewers and Young Adults
"Private Practice" Generates Best-Ever Retention for Any Series Telecast Out of an Original "Grey's" in Women 18-34 and Best-of-Season Retention in Adults 18-34
Opposite CBS' NFL AFC Championship Game, ABC is the No. 1 Non-Sports Net
On Sunday, Beating NBC and Fox by Huge Margins in Viewers and Young Adults
On its 100th Episode Telecast, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" is Sunday's No. 1
Non-Sports Program in Adults 18-49, Tying CBS' Special NFL-Fueled "The Mentalist"
WEEK No. 17:
During the week of January 12, 2009, which included the season premieres of "American Idol" on Fox and the NFL AFC Championship on CBS, ABC beat out NBC by 8% in Total Viewers (6.7 million vs. 6.2 million) and by 26% in Adults 18-49 (2.4/6 vs. 1.9/5).
� On a week that featured stiff competition from Fox with the Tuesday and Wednesday season premieres of "Idol" and from CBS with Thursday's high-profile exit of Grissom from "C.S.I." and its Sunday telecast of the NFL AFC Championship Game, ABC recorded its 2nd week in a row of year-to-year growth in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49. The Net was up from the same week last year (w/o 1/14/08) by 8% in Viewers (6.7 million vs. 6.2 million) and by 20% in Adults 18-49 (2.4/6 vs. 2.0/5).
Rankings: On a busy week with two installments of "Idol" and CBS' AFC Championship coverage, ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" (No. 7) and "Desperate Housewives" (No. 8) each finished among the Top 10 programs among Adults 18-49. In addition, "Grey's Anatomy" stood as TV's No. 1 scripted telecast for the week in Adults 18-34. The Network aired 4 of the Top 10 TV shows for the week in Women 18-34, including the Top 2 scripted shows with "Grey's" and "Housewives": "Grey's Anatomy" � No. 4, "Desperate Housewives" � No. 5, "Private Practice" � No. 8 and "The Bachelor" � No. 9.
A note about increasing DVR penetration and year-to-year rating comparisons: Year-to-year rating comparisons based on the Live + Same Day data stream are distorted by the level of DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample, which has jumped up to 29% currently, from 22% at the same point in 2008. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which may not be reflected in the overnight next day numbers. The only truly valid year-to-year comparison would be one based on the Live + 7 Day metric, once those stats are released by Nielsen.
Monday
Week 2 of ABC's new Monday lineup saw the Net hold 100% retention of the prior week's premiere delivery among Adults 18-34 (3.0/8) and Adults 18-49 (3.1/8). The Net ranked No. 1 on the night among Women 18-34 (4.2/11) for the second week in a row.
"The Bachelor" (8:00-10:00 p.m.)
Airing against original comedies on CBS and the 2-hour Monday premiere of "24" of Fox, ABC's "The Bachelor" saw week-to-week increases in both Total Viewers (9.1 million vs. 8.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.2/8 vs. 3.1/8). In addition, "The Bachelor" turned in ABC's highest ratings in the 2-hour time period among Adults 18-34 (3.2/8) and Women 18-34 (4.6/11) since season premiere Monday 3 1/2 months ago � since 9/22/08. "The Bachelor" topped NBC's "Superstars of Dance" from 8:00-10:00pm by nearly 2.0 million viewers and by 68% in the key young adult sales demo (7.2 million & 1.9/5 in Adults 18-49).
� "The Bachelor" dominated its time period and ranked as Monday's No. 1 TV program among Women 18-34 for the second consecutive week
� Against stiff competition, "The Bachelor" gained audience during each half-hour from 8:00-10:00pm, building by 1.3 million viewers (8.5 million to 9.8 million) and by 29% in Adults 18-49 (2.8/7 to 3.6/8) from start to finish.
"True Beauty" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
Taking second in the hour in viewers and young adults, "True Beauty" retained 86% in Total Viewers (6.5 million vs. 7.6 million) and 88% in Adults 18-49 (2.8/7 vs. 3.2/8) of its week-ago series debut. The new ABC unscripted series outperformed its unscripted competition in the 10 o'clock hour, NBC's "Momma's Boys," by 1.9 million viewers (6.5 million vs. 4.6 million) and by 65% in Adults 18-49 (2.8/7 vs. 1.7/5). "True Beauty" won its hour among Women 18-34 (3.5/9) for the second straight week.
� "True Beauty" saw its audience increase from first half-hour to its second half-hour across all key Adult demographics: Adults 18-34 (2.5/7 to 2.6/7), Adults 18-49 (2.8/7 vs. 2.9/8) and Adults 25-54 (3.0/7 vs. 3.1/8).
Tuesday
Opposite the season premiere of Fox's "American Idol," ABC was up over the same night last year (01/15/08) by 15% in Total Viewers (5.9 million vs. 5.1 million) and by a substantial 64% in the key Adults 18-49 sales demo (2.3/6 vs. 1.4/3).
"Homeland Security USA" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
Airing against the first hour of "American Idol," ABC's "Homeland Security USA" saw increases for the Net at 8:00 p.m. over the same night last year, up by 1.6 million viewers (6.0 million viewers vs. 4.4 million) and by 50% in Adults 18-49 (1.8/5 vs. 1.2/3).
� Despite the competition, "Homeland Security USA" grew from start to finish among Adults 18-34 (1.3/4 to 1.4/4) and Adults 18-49 (1.8/5 to 1.9/5).
"Scrubs" (9:30-10:00 p.m.)
At 9:30pm, the night's second episode of "Scrubs" retained 100% of its lead-in across each of the key Adult demographics: Adults 18-34 (2.5/6), Adults 18-49 (2.2/5) and Adults 25-54 (2.0/4).
"Primetime: What Would You Do?" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
Airing against established original dramas on NBC ("Law & Order: SVU") and CBS ("Without a Trace"), ABC News' "Primetime: What Would You Do?" was up over its week-ago season premiere in both Total Viewers (7.3 million vs. 7.0 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.8/7 vs. 2.7/7). The ABC newsmagazine ranked No. 2 in the hour, beating "Without a Trace" among Adults 18-34 (2.6/7 vs. 1.7/5) and Men 18-49 (2.4/6 vs. 2.2/6). "Primetime" ranked No. 1 among Men 18-34 (2.3/7-tied).
� "Primetime: What Would You Do?" hit series highs in Adults 18-34 (2.6/7), Men 18-34 (2.3/7) and Men 25-54 (2.8/7).
Thursday
On an atypical Thursday, with the Presidential Address pre-empting "Ugly Betty" in the 8 o'clock hour and with CBS' high-profile installment of "C.S.I." as a pivotal character left the show, ABC earned a solid second place in Total Viewers (9.3 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.6/9). ABC topped third-place NBC on the evening by over 2.0 million viewers and by 20% in Adults 18-49 (7.0 million & 3.0/8) and fourth-place Fox by 5.2 million viewers and by 100% in Adults 18-49 (4.1 million & 1.8/4). ABC dominated the evening among Adults 18-34, beating out its nearest competitor by 24% (3.6/10 vs. 2.9/8 � NBC and CBS tied).
"Grey's Anatomy" (9:00-10:02 p.m.)
Jumping from its lead-in coming out of the Presidential Address and a repeat "Scrubs," ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" earned second place in the 9 o'clock hour to CBS' highly-promoted "C.S.I," featuring the departure of Grissom, in Total Viewers (13.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (5.3/12). Dominating its time slot, "Grey's" registered as Thursday's No. 1 TV series in Adults 18-34 (5.2/14) for its 6th consecutive original airing this season and for the 8th time in the last 9 telecasts. From start to finish, "Grey's" grew by 1.1 million viewers (12.5 million to 13.6 million) and by 12% in Adults 18-49 (5.0/12 to 5.6/13).
� Opposite the increased competition week to week from CBS, "Grey's Anatomy" grew its Adult 18-49 audience (5.3/12 vs. 5.2/12), as well as across each of the key Men demographics: M18-34 +14% (3.2/9 vs. 2.8/8), M18-49 +15% (3.1/7 vs. 2.7/6) and M25-54 +9% (3.6/8 vs. 3.3/12).
"Private Practice" (10:02-11:00 p.m.)
Continuing to deliver improved lead-in retention for ABC in the 10 o'clock hour, "Private Practice" ranked No. 1 among Adults 18-34 (3.3/9) and Women 18-34 (4.9/13), beating all original competition on CBS ("C.S.I."/"Eleventh Hour") and NBC ("ER"). In fact the ABC sophomore series defeated "ER" for the second straight week, topping the NBC veteran drama by 1.5 million viewers (8.5 million vs. 7.0 million) and by 22% in Adults 18-49 (3.3/8 vs. 2.7/7).
� In Adults 18-34 (63%), "Private Practice" delivered best-of-season audience retention for any original series telecast coming out of an original "Grey's Anatomy." It was also the best-ever retention for any original series out of "Grey's" with Women 18-34 (66%).
� Although it faced original competition on CBS in the hour this week, "Private Practice" held 100% of its Adult 18-49 audience from its week-ago Thursday premiere and was up in Adults 18-34 and across the key Men demos. The show matched a season-high in Adults 18-34.
Sunday
Opposite CBS' primetime telecast of the NFL AFC Championship Game (Pittsburgh-Baltimore), ABC was Sunday's clear non-sports choice in Total Viewers (9.3 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.1/7), with its lineup of "America's Funniest Home Videos," "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," "Desperate Housewives" and "Brothers & Sisters." ABC topped its non-sports competitors on the evening by considerable margins, outpacing NBC by 4.0 million viewers and by 138% in Adults 18-49 (NBC = 5.3 million and 1.3/3) and Fox by 5.1 million viewers and by 72% in Adults 18-49 (Fox = 4.2 million and 1.8/4).
� On its 100th episode telecast, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" qualified as the No. 1 non-sports program of the night in Adults 18-49 (4.6/10), tying CBS' special telecast of "The Mentalist," despite the CBS program's enormous lead-in advantage coming out of a 14.7 rating, 36 share for the AFC Championship Game. In fact it was the 12th time in 13 original broadcasts this season for "Housewives" to stand as Sunday's top-rated entertainment series in the key young adult sales demo.
Source: Nielsen Media Research (National Live+Same Day Program Ratings), week of 1/12/09, unless stated otherwise.
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