Quick Take for Wednesday, February 11, 2009 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

Despite Facing an Extended 2-hour Installment of "Idol" This Year, ABC Marks Its 4th Straight Week of Year-to-Year Wednesday Increases in Young Adults

For the 4th Straight Wednesday, "Lost" is TV's No. 1 Scripted Show in Adults 18-49

Opposite the Second Hour of "Idol," "Lost" Surges from its Lead-in, Gains Audience From Start to Finish and Dominates its 9pm Drama Competition in Young Adults

"Lost" Matches its Highest Men 18-34 Number in Nearly 1 Year

"Life on Mars" Beats Originals of "CSI: NY" and "Law & Order" in Men 18-34

Up in Men 18-34 for the 2nd Week in a Row, "Life on Mars" Hits a Series High and ABC's Best Number in the Time Slot with Regular Programming Since October 2007

Wednesday Night (8:00-11:00 p.m.)

ABC earned second place on Wednesday among Adults 18-34 (2.6/7) to an "American Idol"-driven Fox, beating CBS by 44% (1.8/5) and NBC by 100% (1.3/4). The Net also finished No. 2 to Fox on the evening in Men 18-49 (2.5/7), Men 18-34 (2.7/8) and Women 18-34 (2.4/6).

� Although it faced stiffer demographic competition year to year from a 2-hour edition of Fox's "American Idol," versus an "Idol"/"Moment of Truth" combo a year ago, ABC's Wednesday results were up from the same night last year (2/13/08) by 8% in Adults 18-49 (2.6/7 vs. 2.4/6) and by 18% in Adults 18-34 (2.6/7 vs. 2.2/5). In fact it is ABC's 4th straight week to deliver year-to-year Wednesday gains among young adults, up on each week since the season premiere of "Lost."

� ABC was up week to week in both Adults 18-34 and Men 18-34, posting its best numbers in 3 weeks � since the season opener of "Lost" on 1/21/09.

"Lost" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

Despite going up against the second hour of an extended 2-hour installment of "American Idol," self-starter "Lost" shot up from its lead-in by 5.4 million viewers (9.8 million vs. 4.4 million) and by 175% in young adults (4.4/10 vs. 1.6/4) and built its audience from start to finish. "Lost" registered as Wednesday's No. 1 scripted TV show for the 4th week in a row among Adults 18-49. In its hour, "Lost" beat out its CBS drama competition ("Criminal Minds") by 33% in Adults 18-49 (4.4/10 vs. 3.3/8) and by 132% in Adults 18-34 (4.4/11 vs. 1.9/5). The ABC drama was also the night's highest-rated scripted series with Adults 18-34 for the 3rd consecutive week.

� "Lost" matched its highest-rated telecast in nearly a year with Men 18-34 (4.5/12) � since 2/28/08.

Please Note: Based on the first round of DVR data for the show this season released earlier this week, "Lost" saw its overall audience grow by 1.9 million viewers and jump 18% in Adults 18-49 (+0.9) from its first-reported Live + Same Day and finalized Live + 7 Day numbers, making it one of the most-recorded and played back shows on TV.

"Life on Mars" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

"Life on Mars" won the 10 o'clock hour among Men 18-34 (2.0/6), beating originals of CBS' "C.S.I.: NY" and NBC's "Law & Order" by 25% (1.6/5 � CBS and NBC tied).

� Posting its 2nd consecutive week of gains among young men, "Life on Mars" posted a series-high number among Men 18-34. In addition, "Life on Mars" generated ABC's top Men 18-34 number in the time period with regular programming since October 2007 (since 10/10/07).

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 30% currently, from 23% 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.

Source: Nielsen Media Research (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings), 2/11/09.