or


[06/12/09 - 02:48 PM]
ABC Tops Its Nearest Competitors by 2.9 Million Viewers and by 64% in Adults 18-49
ABC spins the numbers for Thursday, June 11.

[via press release from ABC]

Quick Take for Thursday, June 11, 2009 (National Live + Same Day Program Ratings)

Towering Over Thursday for the 2nd Week in a Row with the NBA Finals, ABC Tops its Nearest Competitors by 2.9 Million Viewers and by 64% in Adults 18-49

In Viewers and Young Adults, ABC Posts its Best Summer Thursday Since 2005

For the 4th Consecutive Airing, 2009 NBA Finals Stand as Night's No. 1 TV Show

Hitting its Best-Ever Numbers, "Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night" Specials Grow Year to Year by 13% in Viewers and by 20% in Adults 18-49 on Average

With the Top Game 4 Since '04, the NBA Finals Grow Year to Year in Viewers and Key Adults, Posting Strong Gains with Younger Viewers

The '09 NBA Finals Account for the Top 4 Telecasts Since May in Viewers And Young Adults, and as TV's Top 3 Airings in Men 18-34 Since February, Topping Tens of Thousands of Primetime Telecasts in Hard-to-Reach Young Men

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

Driven by coverage of the 2009 NBA Finals Game 4 (Magic-Lakers), ABC took full control of Thursday night for the 2nd week in a row in Total Viewers (10.4 million) and across all key Adult demos: AD18-34 (4.2/14), AD18-49 (4.1/13) and AD25-54 (4.2/12). Towering over the night, ABC outpaced its closest Thursday competitors in prime by 2.9 million viewers (CBS = 7.5 million) and by 64% in Adults 18-49 (Fox = 2.5/8).

� In viewers and young adults, ABC tallied its top summer Thursday since 2005 � since 9/8/05.

"Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night" (Various Time Periods)

Posting its best-ever numbers in viewers (3.8 million) and young adults (1.3/4), "Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night" increased its overall audience from the year-ago evening for the 4th telecast in a row (3.8 million vs. 3.0 million on 6/12/08). On average this year, the "JKL Game Night" specials have gained 13% in Total Viewers (3.4 million vs. 3.0 million) and 20% in Adults 18-49 (1.2/4 vs. 1.0/3), over the same four telecasts last year.

"2009 NBA Finals Game 4" (9:02 p.m. � 12:23 a.m. E.T.)

Game 4 of the NBA Finals on ABC soared to the top on Thursday evening, overshadowing all competitors to register as Thursday's No. 1 TV program with Total Viewers (16.0 million) and across each of the key Adult demos: A18-34 (6.4/22), A18-49 (6.4/20) and A25-54 (6.5/18). It was the 4th straight broadcast for the 2009 NBA Finals to register as the night's No. 1 TV show in viewers and key adults. In a game that went into overtime, the Los Angeles Lakers won Game 4 by a score of 99-91, bringing Los Angeles' lead in the best-of-seven series to 3-1.

� ABC's 2009 NBA Finals Game 4 outperformed the year-ago high-profile 2008 Lakers-Celtics contest by 16% in viewers and by 12% in young adults (13.8 million & 5.7/16 on 6/12/08), representing the biggest Game 4 since 2004. On average through four games, The Finals are up year to year in both Total Viewers (+4% - 14.4 million vs. 13.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (+5% - 5.9/18 vs. 5.6/17), tracking as the 2nd-highest-ever 4-game averages on ABC � highest since 2004 and ABC began carriage in 2003. Some of biggest year-to-year gains for the NBA are coming among younger viewers, as the 2009 Finals are up with viewers under 35: Adults 18-34 +5% (6.0/20 vs. 5.7/19), Men 18-34 +8% (7.9/26 vs. 7.3/25), Teens 12-17 +29% (4.0/16 vs. 3.1/12) and Kids 2-11 +11% (2.0/9 vs. 1.8/9). In fact the '09 Finals are generating the youngest median age for the NBA Championships in 5 years (since '04), trending 1.5 years younger than last year's series (40.4 years vs. 41.9 years).

� In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, the games of the 2009 NBA Championship Series account for each of the Top 4 telecasts since the end of the TV Season in May (5/20/09) and Summer '09. In addition, the '09 NBA Finals have registered TV's Top 4 telecasts since ABC's Oscar broadcast in February among hard-to-reach Men 18-34 � literally topping tens of thousands of primetime TV telecasts on broadcast and cable over the 4-month period.

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 31% currently, from 25% 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 (National, Live + Same Day Program Ratings), 6/11/09.





  [june 2009]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
 


· SHOWATCH
(series past and present)
· DEVWATCH
(series in development)
· MOVIEWATCH
(tv movies and mini-series)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[12/11/25 - 03:15 PM]
ABC News' "Nightline" Ranks No. 1 in All Key Target Demos
The series also saw gains on the same week last year in Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49.

[12/10/25 - 02:59 PM]
FOX NFL Scores Massive Week 14 Viewership
28 million viewers watched FOX Sports' Week 14 "America's Game of the Week," featuring the Green Bay Packers divisional win over the Chicago Bears.

[12/10/25 - 12:08 PM]
NBCU's November to Remember Showcases the Power of Company's Programming
"All Her Fault" became the most-watched original series launch in Peacock history with 46 million hours.

[12/10/25 - 09:54 AM]
ABC Unwraps Holiday Presentations of Fan Favorite Shows
"Dancing with the Holidays" was the top-performing holiday-themed special across the broadcast networks among Adults 18-49 in two years.

[12/09/25 - 04:11 PM]
"College GameDay" Delivers Second Most-Watched Conference Championship Episode Ever; ABC/ESPN Score Second Most-Watched Conference Championship Week Since 2014
The SEC Championship delivered 16.9 million viewers on Saturday, December 6.

[12/09/25 - 02:03 PM]
18.3 Million Viewers Tuned in for Big Ten Championship Game on FOX
Indiana's win peaked with 19,993,000 viewers from 11:00-11:15 PM ET.

[12/08/25 - 11:30 AM]
College Football on The CW Network Sees Double Digit Year-Over-Year Viewership Gains for 2025 Season
ACC football experienced the largest year-over-year growth, up 26% in total audience compared to 2024.

[12/05/25 - 03:31 PM]
ABC News' "Nightline" Ranks No. 1 in Total Viewers
"Nightline" improved on the previous week in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, hitting nine-week highs in both measures.

[12/05/25 - 02:05 PM]
ESPN Networks Deliver Best College Football Regular Season Since 2011; "College GameDay Built by The Home Depot" Scores Most-Watched Season Ever
ESPN networks aired the most-watched game in 34 of 42 key Saturday windows, including seven of 14 noon windows, 13 of 14 late afternoon windows and all 14 prime windows.

[12/05/25 - 12:35 PM]
2025 CFB Viewership Surges on FOX & FS1
The 2025 regular season wrapped with big numbers for "Big Noon Saturday," "Big Noon Kickoff" and more - including year-over-year gains across the board.

[12/05/25 - 11:00 AM]
CBS Premiere Week Episodes Post Gains and Lead In Live Plus 35-Day Multiplatform Viewership
"Tracker" delivered 17.3 million viewers, up +6% versus its year-ago premiere.

[12/05/25 - 08:45 AM]
ESPN Delivered Most-Watched Women's College Volleyball Season on Record
Said coverage averaged 190,000 viewers, up 36% from the 2024 season.

[12/04/25 - 04:19 PM]
"College GameDay Built By The Home Depot" Delivers Second-Best Regular Season Episode Ever; ESPN Scores Best Rivalry Week Since 2012
The Lone Star Showdown drew over 13 million viewers, peaking with 14.3 million viewers.

[12/04/25 - 03:45 PM]
"Big Noon Kickoff" Scores 4.36 Million Viewers on FOX
The 2025 season was "Big Noon Kickoff's" most-watched season in history.

[12/04/25 - 02:41 PM]
18.4M Viewers Tuned in for Ohio State-Michigan on FOX
Ohio State's win over Michigan scored 18,424,000 viewers on FOX.