nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for monday, december 13, 2010)

Here are the highlights of the 14 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

CBS (11.55 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.5, #1) was the network to beat as its lineup of "How I Met Your Mother" (10.10 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.7, #T2), "Rules of Engagement" (10.08 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 3.3, #T4), "Two and a Half Men" (14.39 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.4, #1), "Mike & Molly" (12.49 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.7, #T2) and "Hawaii Five-0" (11.13 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.9, #6) all posted week-to-week gains.

The silver then went to NBC (7.81 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.6, #2) with a series high for "The Sing-Off" (9.43 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 3.3, #T4) followed by a repeat of "Chase" (4.57 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.3, #9).

Next up was FOX (6.67 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.1, #3) with repeats of "House" (7.36 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.4, #7) and "Lie to Me" (5.99 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.9, #8).

Meanwhile, ABC (4.62 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.0, #4) offered up its struggling "Skating With the Stars" (3.77 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.8, #12) alongside the holiday special "Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to You" (4.89 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.1, #11) and a repeat of "Castle" (5.20 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.2, #10).

And finally, repeats of "The Vampire Diaries" (1.41 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T13) and a second "The Vampire Diaries" (1.23 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T13) on The CW (1.32 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.5, #5) rounded out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): The Sing-Off (17.90%), Mike & Molly (8.80%), Hawaii Five-0 (7.40%), Two and a Half Men (7.30%), Rules of Engagement (6.50%), How I Met Your Mother (2.80%), Skating With the Stars (-20.00%)

In late-night metered market ratings, ABC's "Nightline" (3.0/7) took top honors ahead of CBS's "Letterman" (2.9/7) and NBC's "Leno" (2.9/7). Rounding out the night then were "Kimmel" (1.4/4) on ABC "Ferguson" (1.4/5) on CBS and "Fallon" (1.3/4) and "Daly" (0.7/3) on NBC.

Here are the highlights of the 15 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (12/14/09):

CBS (13.26 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.4, #1) coasted to victory on Monday thanks to new episodes of "How I Met Your Mother" (10.22 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.9, #4), "Accidentally on Purpose" (9.33 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 3.3, #5), "Two and a Half Men" (16.33 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.2, #2), "The Big Bang Theory" (15.56 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 5.6, #1) and "CSI: Miami" (14.06 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 4.1, #3).

Second place then went to FOX (6.64 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.2, #2) with a repeat of "House" (6.70 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.1, #9) and the fall finale of "Lie to Me" (6.59 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.2, #T7).

Next up was NBC (6.20 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.0, #3) with the premiere of "The Sing-Off" (7.43 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 2.4, #6), a second hour of "The Sing-Off" (6.39 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 2.2, #T7) and a new "The Jay Leno Show" (4.77 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.5, #10).

Meanwhile, ABC (5.10 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.2, #4) offered up its mix of "Jennifer Hudson: I'll Be Home For Christmas" (5.56 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.2, #12), "Find My Family" (5.44 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.4, #11) and a repeat of "Castle" (4.30 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 1.1, #13).

And finally, a repeat of "The Vampire Diaries" (1.62 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.7, #14) lead into another repeat of "The Vampire Diaries" (1.42 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.6, #15) on The CW (1.52 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.6, #5).

Source: Nielsen Media Research