Quick Take for Wednesday, February 3, 2010 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

Posting its Best-Ever Repeat Numbers, ABC's Replay "Modern Family" Ties Fox's Original "Human Target" and Dominates NBC's "Mercy" at 8pm

Achieving a Series High in Adults 18-49, at 8:30pm "The Middle" Beats Fox's "Human Target" Slot Premiere by 8% and NBC's "Mercy" by 69%

Wednesday's No. 1 Scripted TV Show in Adults 18-49 for its 2nd Straight Telecast, "Modern Family" Builds Sharply on its Previous Airing Against "Idol"

Facing "Idol" for the First Time, "Cougar Town" is the No. 2 Scripted Show at 9:30pm and Grows from its Season Averages Despite the Increased Competition

"Modern Family � R" (8:00-8:30 p.m.)

ABC's repeat airing of "Modern Family" placed as the No. 1 series telecast at 8:00 p.m. in Adults 18-49 (2.4/7), tying Fox's original time-period premiere of "Human Target" (2.4/7) and beating NBC's original "Mercy" by 50% (1.6/5).

� In Total Viewers (6.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.4/7), "Modern Family" posted its best-ever repeat numbers.

"The Middle" (8:30-9:00 p.m.)

Building on its lead-in at 8:30 p.m. (+13%), ABC's "The Middle" (2.7/8) finished as the No. 1 regular program in its half-hour among Adults 18-49, beating the second half-hour of Fox's "Human Target" premiere by 8% (2.5/7) and NBC's "Mercy" by 69% (1.6/5).

� "The Middle" achieved series-high numbers among Adults 18-49 and across each of the key Women demos (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54).

"Modern Family" (9:00-9:30 p.m.)

Surging from its lead-in by 44% at 9:00 p.m. against "American Idol," ABC's "Modern Family" (3.9/10) ranked as the No. 1 scripted show in its half-hour among Adults 18-49 and as Wednesday's No. 1 scripted TV program for the 2nd telecast in a row, ahead of CBS' "Criminal Minds" (3.8/10).

� "Modern Family" was up nicely from its previous airing against "American Idol" (on 1/13/10), growing by 1.3 million viewers (9.1 million vs. 7.8 million) and by 18% in Adults 18-49 (3.9/10 vs. 3.3/8). In addition, although airing against "Idol," the ABC comedy marked a series high with Women 18-34 (4.4/12) for the 2nd consecutive telecast.

"Cougar Town" (9:30-10:00 p.m.)

Airing for the first time against "American Idol," ABC freshman "Cougar Town" finished as the No. 2 scripted show in its half-hour among Viewers (6.2 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.9/7) to CBS' veteran "Criminal Minds," while placing as the No. 1 scripted show in its slot with Women 18-34 (3.3/9).

� Despite facing the second-half of "American Idol," "Cougar Town" improved on its overnight season averages among young Adults: AD18-49 (+4% - 2.9/7 vs. 2.8/7) and AD18-34 (+4% - 2.5/7 vs. 2.4/7).

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 35% currently, from 29% at the same point in 2009. 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), 2/3/10.