Primetime Ratings Report For the week of May 21, 2007
ABC Registers its 6th Straight Week to Grow its Overall Audience from Last Year, and is the Only Network Up in Adults 18-49 from the Year-Ago Week
Placing the Most Shows for Any Network in the Week's Top 10, ABC
Claims 4 of the Top 7 TV Programs in the Key Adult 18-49 Sales Demo
Capping Off the Final Monday of the TV Season with a Dominant Win, ABC
Tops the Night for 10 Weeks in a Row in Viewers and 7 Straight in Adults 18-49
With ABC's Best Results in the Monday 8-9pm Hour Since March, "Dancing with
the Stars" Dominates its Slot, Standing as Monday's Most-Watched Television Show
The Season Finale of ABC's "The Bachelor" Wins its 2-Hour Time Period in Viewers And Young Adults, Marking the Most-Watched Telecast for the Franchise in 3 Years
In an End-of-Season Upset, ABC Tops the Final Tuesday of the Season, Outdrawing Fox by 1.2 Million Viewers on the Evening of the Tuesday Finale for "American Idol"
Hitting Season Highs, the Season Closer of "Dancing with the Stars" Towers Over
Its 2-Hour Time Slot, Winning by 10.0 Million Viewers and by 72% in Adults 18-49
"DWTS'" Finale Generates ABC's Largest Non-Sports Audience in the Time Period
In 8 Years, While Delivering its Top Adult 18-49 Number in Over 6-1/2 Years
Opposite the "Idol" Finale, ABC's "Lost" Surges from its Lead and Gains Audience Throughout its Telecast to Mark the Net's Best Results in the Time Slot in 7 Months
ABC's "Lost" Finishes the 2006-07 Season as Wednesday's No. 1 Scripted Show
And as the Seasons' Top-Rated 10 O'clock Series on Any Network in Adults 18-49
ABC Wins Friday in Adults 18-49, as "American's Funniest Home Videos" and "National Bingo Night" Tie as Friday's No. 1 TV Show in the Key Sales Demographic
Retaining 100% of its Premiere Audience Among Adults 18-49, ABC's
"National Bingo Night" Builds on its Week-Earlier Debut in Adults 18-34
ABC's Saturday NBA Playoff Coverage Ranks No. 1 in Adults 18-34 and Key Men
WEEK No. 36:
On a transitional Nielsen week spanning the end of the official TV Season and beginning nights of post-season leading into Memorial Day weekend, ABC delivered a solid second place to Fox across the key adult demographics (AD18-34/AD18-49/AD25-54). Among Adults 18-49, ABC (3.0/9) outpaced third-place CBS by 36% (2.2/7) and fourth-place NBC by 58% (1.9/6). It was ABC's 7th consecutive week to hold second place to an "Idol"-driven Fox among young adults.
� ABC was up from the same week last year (w/o 5/22/06) by 1.6 million viewers (8.9 million vs. 7.3 million) and by 11% in Adults 18-49 (3.0/9 vs. 2.7/8). It was the Net's the 6th straight week to grow its overall audience from the comparable week last year. ABC was the only network to improve from the year-ago week in Adults 18-49, as CBS, NBC and Fox were each down.
Weekly Rankings: In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, ABC placed more shows in the weekly Top 10 than any other network. The Network aired 4 of the week's Top 7 highest-rated TV shows in Adults 18-49: "Dancing with the Stars Results-TU" � No. 3, "Lost" � No. 5, "Dancing with the Stars-MON" � No. 6 and "The Bachelor: Officer and a Gentleman" � No. 7. ABC claimed 4 of the Top 10 most-watched television programs during the week: "DWTS Results Show-TU" � No. 3, "Dancing with the Stars-MON" � No. 4, "Lost" � No. 6 and "The Bachelor: Officer and a Gentleman" � No. 10. In fact it was the Net's 6th straight week to deliver the most shows in the Top 10 with Total Viewers, and the 7th consecutive week in Adults 18-49.
Monday
ABC won all 4 Mondays during the 2007 May Sweep in viewers and young adults. Posting a definitive victory on the final Monday of the season, ABC beat second-place NBC by 4.4 million viewers (15.2 million vs. 10.8 million) and by 17% in Adults 18-49 (4.9/13 vs. 4.2/11) during prime. ABC registered its 10th straight Monday as the most-watched television network, while ranking No. 1 on the evening in Adults 18-49 for 9th time in the past 10 weeks � 7 consecutive weeks in the key sales demo.
� Extending its winning run on the night, ABC is enjoying its longest Monday Total Viewer winning streak in well over 7 years � since a streak during the 1999-00 season, from 10/18/99-1/09/00. The Net is seeing its longest winning streak on the evening since at least 1991 with Women 18-34 (11 weeks consecutive) and Women 18-49 (10 weeks consecutive) � predating the start of Nielsen's electronic database.
� ABC delivered its best Monday numbers in 8 weeks � since 3/26/07. The Net was up from the same night last May by 6.9 million viewers and by 58% in Adults 18-49 (8.3 million & 3.1/8 on 5/22/06).
"Dancing with the Stars" (8:00-9:01 p.m.)
The Monday finale of "Dancing with the Stars" beat its nearest competition during the 8 o'clock hour by 10.3 million viewers (20.2 million vs. 9.9 million � NBC's "Deal or No Deal) and by 47% in Adults 18-49 (5.3/15 vs. 3.6/10 � Fox's "24" season finale). ABC's "DWTS" was Monday's most-watched TV program and also ranked as the No. 1 TV show of the night in Women 18-49 (7.8/21) and Kids 2-11 (2.9/11).
� In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, "DWTS" generated ABC's best numbers in the time period since March � since 3/19/07 and 3/26/07, respectively.
"The Bachelor: Officer and a Gentleman" (9:01-11:00 p.m.)
The season finale of ABC's "The Bachelor: Officer and a Gentleman" ranked No. 1 in its time period in Total Viewers (12.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (4.8/12).
� Growing for the 3rd straight week, "The Bachelor: Officer and a Gentleman" saw season-highs in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49. In fact it was the most-watched telecast for the franchise in 3 years and top in Adults 18-49 since Feb. 2006 � since 5/19/04 and 2/27/06, respectively.
Tuesday
With "The Bachelor: After the Final Rose" leading into the season finale of "Dancing with the Stars," ABC delivered an upset victory on the final Tuesday of the season, outdrawing Fox by 1.2 million viewers on the night of the Tuesday season finale for "American Idol" (18.0 million vs. 16.8 million). In fact ABC became the first network ever to draw more viewers than Fox on a Tuesday night with "American Idol" since the show became a part of its regular season schedule in 2003. ABC posted a strong second-place finish on the evening in Adults 18-49 (5.4/14), pacing 93% ahead of third-place CBS (2.8/7) and 100% ahead of fourth-place NBC (2.7/7).
� In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, ABC produced its strongest Tuesday in more than 6 months � since 11/14/06.
� Versus the year-ago night last May, the Network's results improved by 10.5 million viewers and by 116% in Adults 18-49 (7.5 million & 2.5/7 on 5/22/06). In fact it was the Net's biggest Tuesday during any May Sweep period in 7 years in viewers and young adults � since 5/2/00 and 5/16/00, respectively.
"The Bachelor: After the Final Rose" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
Despite airing opposite the Tuesday season closer for "American Idol," ABC's "The Bachelor: After the Final Rose" special posted ABC's highest Adult 18-49 (2.7/8-tie) and Adult 18-34 numbers (2.1/7) in the hour in 5 months � since 12/19/06.
"Dancing with the Stars the Results Show - TU" (9:00-11:00 p.m.)
ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" shot to the top of its time period during its 2-hour season finale, beating out its nearest competitors by 10.0 million viewers (23.0 million vs. 13.0 million � CBS' "Jesse Stone" movie) and by 72% in Adults 18-49 (6.7/17 vs. 3.9/10 � Fox's series debut of "On the Lot" from 9:00-10:00 p.m.) "DWTS" marked season-high numbers in viewers and young adults. Olympic speed skating Gold Medalist Apolo Anton Ohno emerged as the winner of the fourth season of the ABC dance competition. In viewers and young adults, "DWTS" stood as the second-highest-rated program of the evening, behind only "Idol's" Tuesday finale.
� Excluding sports, the season ender of "Dancing with the Stars" attracted ABC's largest audience in the time period in 8 years and its top Adult 18-49 number in over 6-1/2 years � since 5/25/99 and 10/10/00, respectively.
Wednesday
With its third season finale for "Lost," ABC took second place to Fox on the night of the season closer of "American Idol" in Total Viewers (11.2 million) and Adults 18-49 (4.6/12).
� On the final night of the '06-07 TV Season, ABC marked its top Wednesday results in 6 months in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 � since 11/15/06.
"Lost: The Answers" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
In Adults 18-49 (2.1/6), ABC's repeat of "Lost: The Answers" clip-show took second place to Fox with the first hour of the "Idol" finale.
"Lost" (9:00-11:00 p.m.)
Jumping from its lead-in against "Idol" and gaining audience during each half-hour of its 2-hour telecast, the third season finale of "Lost" stood as the No. 1 scripted show of the night in Total Viewers (13.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (5.9/15). "Lost" delivered the series' best viewer and young adult numbers since its return telecast on 2/7/07 with its premiere in the 10 o'clock hour.
� In its third season finale, "Lost" produced ABC's largest audience and highest Adult 18-49 rating in the time period in more than 7 months, its second-highest numbers of the season � best since 10/4/06. The "Lost" finale generated ABC's best results in the slot in 1 year across viewers 18-34: AD18-34 (5.6/15), M18-34 (4.9/16) and W18-34 (6.3/15) � since 5/24/06.
� In the key Adult 18-49 sales demographic, the ABC drama beat its regular competition in Wednesday's 10 o'clock hour on all 16 telecasts this season � on every occasion since entering the hour in early February (2/7/07). On average, it ranked as No. 1 scripted program on Wednesday for the season and was the top-rated scripted series of the night in viewers and young adults. Furthermore, "Lost" was the No. 1 10 o'clock series on any network during the '06-07 TV Season among Adults 18-49.
� Despite starting out against and competing opposite the season finale of "American Idol" during the 9 o'clock hour, "Lost" gained viewers and young adults in each half-hour, growing by 3.1 million viewers (12.5 million to 15.6 million) and by 26% among young adults (5.3/13 to 6.7/18) from its first half-hour to its final half-hour.
Friday
ABC took the top spot on the first Friday after the end of the TV season among Adults 18-49 (1.7/6).
� ABC's "America's Funniest Home Videos" and "National Bingo Night" tied as the No. 1 programs on Friday in Adults 18-49.
"America's Funniest Home Videos" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
An encore "America's Funniest Home Videos" won its time period in Adults 18-49 (1.8/7), beating its unscripted and second-place competition, NBC's "1 vs. 100" (1.5/6), by 20%.
"National Bingo Night" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)
Retaining 100% of its young adult lead-in, week 2 of ABC's "National Bingo Night" delivered perfect retention among Adults 18-49 (1.8/6) from its series premiere the prior week. The show posted increases over its debut performance among Adults 18-34 (1.4/6 vs. 1.3/5), Women 18-34 (1.8/7 vs. 1.5/5) and Men 18-49 (1.4/5 vs. 1.3/5).
"20/20" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
ABC News' "20/20" took second place in the 10 o'clock hour among Adults 18-49 (1.6/6-tie).
Saturday
ABC Sports' broadcast of the 2007 NBA Western Conference Finals, between the Utah Jazz and the San Antonio Spurs, took the Net to the top spot among Adults 18-34 (1.3/6) and across each of the key men demographics: Men 18-34 (1.8/9), Men 18-49 (2.0/8) and Men 25-54 (2.2/8).
Source: Nielsen Media Research, NTI (Live + Same Day or Most Current), week of 5/21/07, or as dated.
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