Primetime Ratings Report
For the week of November 9, 2009
(Based on National Live + Same Day Program Ratings)
ABC Wins the Week in Adults 18-49, Adults 25-54 and All Key Women
The Network Marks its Most-Watched Week in Well Over 1 Year
ABC is the Adult 18-49 Non-Sports Leader for the Season and November Sweep
Attracting its Largest Audience Since its Season Opener, "DWTS"
Is Monday's Most-Watched Series Program for the 8th Week Running
ABC's "Castle" Dominates NBC's "Jay Leno" by its Largest Margin to Date
Boosting the 8pm Hour Year-to-Year for ABC by 81% in Adults 18-49, "V" Defeats Time-Slot Veterans on NBC and Fox and is Tuesday's No. 2 TV Show to CBS' "NCIS"
Season-High "DWTS Results" Tops Fox's "Dance" by a Best-Yet 52% in Adults 18-49
"In the Spotlight with Robin Roberts" Draws ABC's Best Results in the Tuesday
10pm Hour in 7 Weeks and Gives ABC its Best-Ever Advantage Over NBC's "Leno"
With "The 43rd Annual CMA Awards," ABC Dominates Wednesday Evening,
Beating Second-Place CBS by 5.7 Million Viewers and by 66% in Adults 18-49
"CMAs" Draw Biggest Audience in 4 Years and Hit a 6-Year-High in Women 18-34
ABC Wins 8 Straight Thursdays in Adults 18-49 Against Regular Competition
Marking a 6-Week-High in Adults 18-49, "Grey's Anatomy" Qualifies
As Thursday's No. 1 TV Series in Adults 18-49 for the 8th Straight Week
Turning in a Best-Since-Premiere Performance, "Private Practice" Wins
Thursday at 10pm in Adults 18-49, Improving the Hour by 50% Year to Year
On Friday, "Supernanny" Posts Season-Highs and "20/20" Wins 3rd Straight Week
ABC Generates Sunday Season-Highs in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49
"America's Funniest Home Videos" Draws its Biggest Audience Since March
"Home Edition" Logs its Biggest Overall Audience in the Hour in Over 1 Year
Generating its Biggest Audience Since March, ABC's "Desperate Housewives"
Stands as Sunday's Most-Watched Entertainment Show for 8 Weeks Running
"Brothers & Sisters" Garners its Most-Watched Telecast in Nearly 8 Months
WEEK No. 8:
ABC finished No. 1 during the week of November 9, 2009 among Adults 18-49 (3.2/9), Adults 25-54 (3.9/10) and across each of the key Women demographics: W18-34 (3.3/10), W18-49 (4.0/11) and W25-54 (4.8/12).
� Marking a season-high performance in Total Viewers (11.2 million), ABC generated its most-watched week in well over 1 year � going back to the year-ago September season-premiere week w/o 9/22/08. The Network hit a 7-week-high with Adults 18-49 � best since season-premiere week w/o 9/21/09.
� ABC was up over the same week last year by 7% in Total Viewers and by 3% in Adults 18-49 (10.5 million and 3.1/8 on w/o 11/10/08).
� Season to date excluding sports, ABC stands as the No. 1 TV network among Adults 18-49 (3.3/9), leading CBS by 6% (3.1/8), Fox by 10% (3.0/8) and NBC by 50% (2.2/6). ABC (3.2/9) is also pacing a strong No. 1 for the '09 November Sweep (through 18 of 28 nights) in the non-sports Adult 18-49 averages, outdelivering No. 2 CBS by 14% (2.8/8), No. 3 Fox by 39% (2.3/6) and No. 4 NBC by 60% (2.0/5).
Rankings: ABC aired 3 of the week's Top 4 non-sports television programs in Adults 18-49, including the week's No. 1 scripted series for the 7th time in 8 weeks this season: "Grey's Anatomy" � No. 1 scripted/non-sports show, "CMA Awards" � No. 2 non-sports show and "Desperate Housewives" � No. 4 non-sports show. The Network placed 5 of Top 15 most-watched television programs overall during the week: "Dancing with the Stars" � No. 3, "CMA Awards" � No. 5, "DWTS the Results" � No. 7, "Grey's Anatomy" � No. 10 and "Desperate Housewives" � No. 11. ABC claimed the Top 3 TV shows for the week across all key Women demos (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54) with "Grey's," "Housewives" and the "CMA Awards." ABC's "V" qualified as TV's No. 1 new drama for the week in Adults 18-49.
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 33% currently, from 28% 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
For the 4th time in the last 5 weeks, ABC stood as the night's most-watched network (15.1 million), beating CBS by 3.0 million viewers (12.1 million), Fox by 4.7 million (10.4 million) and NBC by 10.2 million viewers (4.9 million). Further, ABC logged a season high in Total Viewers, drawing its largest audience on the night in 6 months � since 5/11/09.
"Dancing with the Stars" (8:00-10:02 p.m.)
Attracting its largest audience since its season premiere, ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" stood as Monday's No. 1 telecast in viewers (17.6 million), ranking as TV's most-watched series program on Monday for the 8th time in 8 weeks this season. The ABC dance competition built its audience from its first hour to its second hour in both Total Viewers (17.3 million to 17.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.3/9 to 3.6/9). In fact, in the 9 o'clock hour, "Dancing with the Stars" outperformed original dramas on Fox (+20% - 3.0/7 with "Lie to Me") and NBC (+100% - 1.8/4 with "Trauma").
� "DWTS" won its 2-hour time period for the 7th consecutive week among Women 18-49 (4.9/12) and Women 25-54 (6.7/15).
"Castle" (10:02-11:00 p.m.)
For the 3rd week in a row, ABC's "Castle" outperformed NBC's "Jay Leno" in the 10 o'clock hour with its largest margin to-date in Total Viewers (+5.7 million viewers � 9.8 million vs. 4.1 million), while doubling its performance among Adults 18-49 (+100% - 2.4/6 vs. 1.2/3).
� One of TV's biggest gainers in the 10 o'clock hour this season, ABC's "Castle" is generating substantial increases over its first-reported numbers through DVR playback, picking up an average 1.7 million viewers and an additional 6-tenths of an Adult 18-49 rating point (+26%) from the initially reported Live + Same Day Numbers to the Live + 7 Day DVR finals.
� On average, "Castle" is improving the time period year to year for ABC, growing its hour over the same nights last year with "Boston Legal" in both Total Viewers (+1.6 million � 10.6 million vs. 9.0 million) and Adults 18-49 (+13% - 2.7/7 vs. 2.4/6).
Tuesday
ABC earned second place on Tuesday to CBS in both Total Viewers (12.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.2/8).
� ABC's Tuesday results were up over the same night last November Sweep by 6% in viewers and by 28% in Adults 18-49 (11.4 million and 2.5/6 on 11/11/08).
"V" (8:00-9:01 p.m.)
ABC freshman "V" earned second place in the 8 o'clock hour to CBS' top-performer "NCIS" in Total Viewers (10.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.8/10), beating NBC and Fox time-slot regulars by strong margins. From 8:00-9:00 p.m., ABC's newcomer "V" outdelivered NBC's "Biggest Loser" by 1.6 million viewers and by 12% in Adults 18-49 (9.1 million and 3.4/9) and "Fox's So You Think You Can Dance" by 4.6 million viewers and by 65% in Adults 18-49 (6.1 million and 2.3/6).
� The ABC drama stood as Tuesday No. 2 program in Adults 18-49, behind only CBS' "NCIS." In addition, "V" ranked No. 1 in the hour in Men 18-34 (3.1/10) and Men 18-49 (4.1/12-tied) and stood as Tuesday's No. 1 TV show for the 2nd week in a row in both key Men demos.
� Versus the year-ago November Sweep night, "V" improved the hour year to year for ABC by an enormous 81% in Adults 18-49 (2.1/5 on 11/11/08).
"Dancing with the Stars the Results" (9:01-10:01 p.m.)
Ranking No. 1 in its time period in Total Viewers (16.2 million-tied), Tuesday's most-watched unscripted TV show, ABC's "Dancing with the Stars the Results" outdrew NBC's "Biggest Loser" (10.2 million) in direct competition during the 9 o'clock hour by best-ever 6.0 million viewers. In addition, the ABC dance competition dominated Fox's dance program in the hour, beating the second hour of "So You Think You Can Dance" by a best-ever 10.8 million viewers (16.2 million vs. 5.4 million) and by 52% in Adults 18-49 (3.5/9 vs. 2.3/6).
� Growing its young adult numbers for the 2nd straight week, "DWTS the Results" hit season-highs with Total Viewers and Adults 18-49.
"In the Spotlight with Robin Roberts" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)
An ABC News Special, "In the Spotlight with Robin Roberts," took a strong second in the 10 o'clock hour to CBS' "Good Wife," beating NBC's "Jay Leno" by 3.5 million viewers (9.3 million vs. 5.8 million) and by 21% in Adults 18-49 (2.3/6 vs. 1.9/5) - representing ABC's widest-ever-advantage over "Leno" in the hour in viewers and young adults. "In the Spotlight with Robin Roberts: Bright Lights. Big Stars. All Access Nashville" took viewers into the private lives of country music's biggest stars. The special featured Carrie Underwood, Tim McGraw and Martina McBride.
� "In the Spotlight with Robin Roberts" generated ABC's biggest audience and highest Adult 18-49 number in the hour in 7 weeks (since 9/22/09).
Wednesday
"The 43rd Annual CMA Awards" (8:00-11:00 p.m.)
With the Network's broadcast of "The 43rd Annual CMA Awards," ABC overshadowed Wednesday's prime, beating out second-place CBS on the evening by 5.7 million viewers (17.2 million vs. 11.5 million) and by 66% in Adults 18-49 (5.3/14 vs. 3.2/8). ABC ranked No. 1 in all 6 half-hours of the night in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49. In fact it was a clean sweep on the night, as the Network also took top honors on the evening across all key Adults, Men and Women demographics (18-34/18-49/25-54) and Teens 12-17, as well as registering as the top-rated broadcaster with Kids 2-11.
� ABC attracted its biggest Wednesday audience with non-sports programming in well over 4 years and its highest Adult 18-49 number in 2 years � since 9/21/05 and 11/07/07, respectively.
� Year to year, the "CMA Awards" gained 1.3 million viewers and grew 6% in Adults 18-49 (2008 = 15.9 million and 5.0/13 on 11/12/08). It was the most-watched "CMA Awards" telecast in 4 years, while the annual awards show marked its highest Adult 18-34 number in 5 years (4.2/12) and top Women 18-34 number in 6 years (5.8/16) � since 2005, 2004 and 2003, respectively.
� ABC's telecast of the "CMA Awards" outperformed CBS' 2009 telecast of the "ACM Awards" in April by 2.4 million viewers and by 39% in Adults 18-49 (CBS' "ACM Awards" on 4/5/09 = 14.8 million viewers and 3.8/10 in AD18-49).
� An estimated 35.8 million viewers watched at least some portion of "The 43rd Annual CMA Awards" during its 3-hour telecast � unique Viewers 2+ that watched 6 minutes or more of the program.
Thursday
Growing week to week, ABC finished as Thursday's No. 1 network among Adults 18-49 (4.0/10) for the 2nd week in a row. In fact ABC has been the highest-rated network on the evening against regular competition on 8 of 8 Thursdays this season.
� ABC was up week to week in both Total Viewers (+6% - 11.2 million vs. 10.6 million) and Adults 18-49 (+8% - 4.0/10 vs. 3.7/10).
� Surging 11% from the year-ago November Sweep Thursday in Adults 18-49 (3.6/9 on 11/13/08), ABC registered year-to-year gains on the evening for the 4th time in 5 weeks.
"FlashForward" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
ABC freshman "FlashForward" saw week-to-week increases in Adults 18-34 (+5% - 2.3/7 vs. 2.2/7) and across all key Women demographics: W18-34 (+13% - 2.7/8 vs. 2.4/7), W18-49 (+10% - 3.2/8 vs. 2.9/8) and W25-54 (+3% - 3.8/9 vs. 3.7/9).
� The top gainer overall for any new series this season in DVR playback, "FlashForward" surges over the first-reported numbers by 1.9 million viewers and by 8-tenths of an Adult 18-49 rating point (+24%) from the Live + Same Day Numbers to the Live + 7 Day DVR finals.
"Grey's Anatomy" (9:00-10:01 p.m.)
ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" (5.6/14) stood as Thursday's No. 1 series telecast in Adults 18-49 for the 8th week in a row. Winning the 9 o'clock hour by wide margins, "Grey's" defeated CBS with the concluding part of its "CSI" cross-over trilogy event by 37% (4.1/10), NBC's comedy combo "The Office"/"30 Rock" by 56% (3.6/9) and Fox's "Fringe" by 155% (2.2/5). "Grey's" was also once again Thursday's highest-rated show in Adults 18-34 (5.3/15).
� "Grey's" drew its biggest audience (14.9 million) in 3 weeks and its highest Adult 18-49 number (5.6/16) in 6 weeks � since 10/22/09 and 10/1/09, respectively.
� TV's most-popular show in DVR playback, "Grey's Anatomy" jumps over the first-reported numbers by 2.9 million viewers and by an additional 1.4 Adult 18-49 rating points (+24%) from the Live + Same Day Numbers to the Live + 7 Day DVR finals.
"Private Practice" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)
ABC's "Private Practice" won the 10 o'clock hour among Adults 18-49 (3.9/11) and Adults 18-34 (3.8/11). In fact the ABC drama has been the No. 1 series in the final hour of Thursday night for 7 weeks running in Adults 18-34 and on 6 of 7 weeks in Adults 18-49.
� "Private Practice" turned in a best-since-premiere Adult 18-49 number (3.9/11) and its largest overall audience (10.3 million) in a month � since 10/1/09 and 10/15/09, respectively.
� Versus the year-ago night (11/13/08), "Private Practice" improved ABC's delivery in the 10 o'clock hour by 50% in Adults 18-49 (3.9/11 vs. 2.6/7 � original "Life on Mars").
� Like its lead-in, "Private Practice" sees impressive DVR gains from the first-reported numbers, shooting up by 1.8 million viewers and by 0.9 Adult 18-49 rating points (+23%) from the Live + Same Day Numbers to the Live + 7 Day DVR finals.
Friday
"Supernanny" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
"Supernanny" hit season highs in Total Viewers (4.8 million) and in Adults 18-49 (1.4/5).
"20/20" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
Surging from its lead-in (+2.8 million viewers/+67% in AD18-49), ABC News' "20/20" won its time period across each of the key Adult demographics: Adults 18-34 (1.4/5), Adults 18-49 (2.0/6) and Adults 25-54 (2.5/7). It was the 3rd straight week that the ABC news magazine won its hour with young adults.
� "20/20" stood as Friday's No. 1 TV show among Adults 18-49 for the 2nd week in a row.
Sunday
Hitting Sunday season highs up against substantial sports competition on the evening, with Fox's big NFL overrun (Dallas-Green Bay) into the 7 o'clock hour and another huge turnout for NBC's down-to-the-wire Sunday Night Football game (Patriots-Colts), ABC beat its non-sports driven competition on CBS by 7% in Total Viewers (11.3 million vs. 10.6 million) and by 46% in Adults 18-49 (3.5/9 vs. 2.4/6).
� ABC drew its biggest non-sports audience on the night (excluding the Oscars) in nearly 1 year and its best Adult 18-49 number in 6 months � since 11/30/08 and 5/17/09, respectively.
"America's Funniest Home Videos" (7:00-8:00 p.m.)
In the 7 o'clock hour against Fox's NFL overrun, ABC's "America's Funniest Home Videos" drew its biggest audience (8.5 million) since the beginning of March (since 3/1/09), while tying its highest Adult 18-49 number (2.3/6) this season.
"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
In the 8 o'clock hour, ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" defeated its CBS unscripted competition in the time slot ("Amazing Race") in Total Viewers (11.7 million) and across each of the key Adult demos: AD18-34 (2.6/7), AD18-49 (3.7/9) and AD25-54 (4.5/10).
� Earning season highs in Total Viewers (11.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.7/9), ABC's "Home Edition" equaled its biggest audience in the hour in more than 1 year and its highest young adult number since early January � since 10/26/08 and 1/4/09, respectively.
"Desperate Housewives" (9:00-10:01 p.m.)
ABC's "Desperate Housewives" once again finished as Sunday's No. 1 non-sports television program in Total Viewers (14.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (5.0/12), qualifying as the night's most-watched entertainment program on all 8 weeks this season and for 6 straight weeks among Adults 18-49.
� Growing week to week in Total Viewers (+7%) and Adults 18-49 (+14%) and hitting season-highs, "Desperate Housewives" marked its strongest performance since March � since 3/22/09 and 3/15/09, respectively.
� "Housewives" is generating an even bigger increase this season than last over its first-reported numbers through DVR playback, picking up an average 1.7 million viewers and an additional 7-tenths of an Adult 18-49 rating point from the initially reported Live + Same Day Numbers to the Live + 7 Day DVR finals.
"Brothers & Sisters" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)
Surging week to week in viewers (+11%) and young adults (+10%), ABC's "Brothers & Sisters" continued to beat out its drama competition in the 10 o'clock hour, topping CBS' "Cold Case" by 5% in Total Viewers (10.1 million vs. 9.6 million) and by 52% in Adults 18-49 (3.2/8 vs. 2.1/6).
� Producing its biggest audience this season, "Brothers & Sisters" generated its most-watched telecast in nearly 8 months � since 3/22/09.
� Like its lead-in, "Brothers & Sisters" is seeing a sizeable uptick this season over its first-reported numbers through DVR playback (also bigger than last season), picking up an average 1.3 million viewers and an additional 5-tenths of an Adult 18-49 rating point from the initially reported Live + Same Day Numbers to the Live + 7 Day DVR finals.
Source: Nielsen Media Research (National Live+Same Day Program Ratings), week of 11/9/09, unless stated otherwise.
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