ABC Marks One of Its Strongest Sundays This Season

Some early points on ABC's Sunday, ahead of the regular press release.

Building week to week opposite substantial NFL competition, ABC attracted its biggest Sunday audience with its regular line-up on the night in 5 weeks and equaled its highest Adult 18-49 number in 10 weeks (3rd best this season) - since 11/7/10 and 10/3/10, respectively. With NBC (Sunday Night Football) and CBS (primetime NFL overrun) driven by the NFL, ABC outdrew its non-sports-fueled competition on the night by 3.2 million viewers (Fox).

Hitting season-highs at 7 pm against CBS with its huge NFL overrun in the hour, ABC's America's Funniest Home Videos achieved its top numbers in over 11 months with Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 (tie) - since 1/3/10 and 2/28/10, respectively.

Gaining week to week in viewers and young adults, ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition posted its best Adult 18-49 number in 4 weeks and matched its top Adult 18-34 number since mid-October - since 11/7/10 and 10/10/10, respectively.

During the 9 o'clock hour, ABC's Desperate Housewives made ABC the top non-sports network in its time period for the 8th consecutive original telecast with Total Viewers and Adults 18-49. In addition, Housewives qualified as Sunday's most-watched entertainment TV show overall for its 7th straight original airing.

Posting strong week-to-week increases against the end of NBC's big Sunday Night Football game (Philadelphia Eagles-Dallas Cowboys) in Total Viewers (+16%) and Adults 18-49 (+19%), ABC's Brothers & Sisters beat CBS' NFL-boosted programming (Undercover Boss/CSI: Miami) in the 10 �o'clock hour among Adults 18-34 and across all key Women demographics (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54).

Quick Take for Sunday, December 12, 2010 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

ABC Grows its Sunday Numbers Against Substantial NFL Competition on Both NBC and CBS, Posting One of its Strongest Performances on the Night This Season

"America's Funniest Home Videos" Marks its Best Results in Over 11 Months

ABC's "Home Edition" Garners its Highest Adult 18-49 Number in 4 Weeks

"Housewives" is Sunday's Top Entertainment TV Show for its 7th Straight Original

Opposite Stiff Competition, "Brothers & Sisters" Sees Strong Week-to-Week Gains

Sunday Night (7:00-11:00 p.m.)

Building week to week opposite substantial NFL competition, ABC attracted its biggest Sunday audience (9.4 million) with its regular lineup on the night in 5 weeks and equaled its highest Adult 18-49 number (2.7/7) in 10 weeks (3rd-best this season) - since 11/7/10 and 10/3/10, respectively. With NBC (Sunday Night Football) and CBS (primetime NFL overrun) driven by the NFL, ABC outdrew its non-sports-fueled competition on the night by 3.2 million viewers (Fox = 6.2 million).

"America's Funniest Home Videos" (7:00-8:00 p.m.)

Hitting season-highs at 7 pm against CBS with its huge NFL overrun in the hour, ABC's "America's Funniest Home Videos" achieved its top numbers in over 11 months with Total Viewers (8.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.2/6 - tie) - since 1/3/10 and 2/28/10, respectively.

"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

Gaining week to week in viewers (8.6 million vs. 8.2 million) and young adults (2.4/6 vs. 2.2/6), ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" posted its best Adult 18-49 number in 4 weeks and matched its top Adult 18-34 number (1.8/5) since mid-October - since 11/7/10 and 10/10/10, respectively.

"Desperate Housewives" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

During the 9 o'clock hour, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" made ABC the No. 1 non-sports network in its time period for the 8th consecutive original telecast with Total Viewers (11.5 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.5/8).

· "Housewives" qualified as Sunday's most-watched entertainment TV show for its 7th straight first-run airing.

"Brothers & Sisters" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

Posting strong week-to-week increases against the conclusion of NBC's big Sunday Night Football game (Philadelphia Eagles-Dallas Cowboys) in Total Viewers (+16% - 8.8 million vs. 7.6 million) and Adults 18-49 (+19% - 2.5/6 vs. 2.1/6), ABC's "Brothers & Sisters" beat CBS' NFL-boosted programming ("Undercover Boss"/"CSI: Miami") in the 10 o'clock hour among Adults 18-34 and across all key Women demographics (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54).

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 38% currently, from 34% 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: The Nielsen Company (Fast Affiliate, Live + Same Ratings), 12/12/10.