ABC is Monday's Most-Watched Net/"The Bachelor" Hits a Season High

Some early info on ABC's Monday night ratings, ahead of the regular press release.

With The Bachelor followed by Castle, ABC stood as the most-watched TV network on Monday night. The Net beat its Monday rivals in Women 18-34 for the 4th straight week.

· Surging week to week in viewers (+19%) and young adults (+17%), ABC equaled its highest-rated Monday in 9 weeks among Adults 18-49 - since 11/22/10.

Growing its overall audience for the 2nd week in a row, ABC's The Bachelor was the top draw in its 2-hour time period with Total Viewers. In addition, the ABC veteran unscripted series dominated its 8-10pm time slot across all key Women demos (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54), registering as Monday's #1 regular TV series Women 18-34 for the 4th week running. Gaining young adult audience from its first hour to its second hour, The Bachelor finished #1 the 9 o'clock hour with Adults 18-49.

· The Bachelor generated its most-watched telecast this season and also hit a season-highs with Women 18-49, Women 18-34 and Teens 12-17

During the 10 o'clock hour, ABC's Castle ranked #1 in Adults 18-49, Adults 18-34 and across all key Women demos (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54). In fact in the key Adult 18-49 sales demo, ABC's Castle beat out second-place NBC's competing drama, Harry's Law, by 14%.

· Castle jumped up over its most-recent original (1/10/11) by 14% in Adults 18-49, matching its top-rated telecast since mid-November - since 11/15/10. In addition, the ABC drama tied its highest Women 18-34 number in 3 months - since 10/25/10.

Quick Take for Monday, January 24, 2011 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

ABC Stands as the Most-Watched Network on Monday Night and Equals its Top Adults 18-49 Performance Since November

Building its Overall Audience for the 2nd Straight Week, ABC's "The Bachelor" Leads its Time Period with a Season-High Delivery in Total Viewers

ABC's "Castle" Beats NBC's "Harry's Law" by 14% in Adults 18-49, Ranking No. 1 at 10pm in Key Adult and All Key Women Demos

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

With "The Bachelor" followed by "Castle," ABC stood as the most-watched TV network (9.2 million) on Monday night. The Net beat its Monday rivals in Women 18-34 (3.4/9) for the 4th straight week.

· ABC's mid-season Monday lineup matched its strongest performance to date in both Total Viewers (9.2 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.7/7). In fact, surging week to week in viewers (+19%) and young adults (+17%), ABC equaled its highest-rated Monday in 9 weeks among Adults 18-49 - since 11/22/10.

"The Bachelor" (8:00-10:00 p.m.)

Growing its overall audience for the 2nd week in a row, ABC's "The Bachelor" was the top draw in its 2-hour time period with Total Viewers (9.2 million). In addition, the ABC veteran unscripted series dominated its 8:00 - 10:00 p.m. time slot across all key Women demos (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54), registering as Monday's No. 1 regular TV series Women 18-34 for the 4th week running. Gaining young adult audience from its first hour to its second hour, "The Bachelor" finished No. 1 in the 9 o'clock hour with Adults 18-49 (2.9/7).

· "The Bachelor" generated its most-watched telecast this season and also hit season-highs with Women 18-49, Women 18-34 and Teens 12-17

"Castle" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

During the 10 o'clock hour, ABC's "Castle" ranked No. 1 in Adults 18-49 (2.4/7), Adults 18-34 (1.7/5) and across all key Women demos (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54). In fact in the key Adult 18-49 sales demo, ABC's "Castle" beat out second-place NBC's Harry's Law (2.1/6) by 14%.

· "Castle" jumped up over its most-recent original (1/10/11) by 14% in Adults 18-49, matching its top-rated telecast since mid-November - since 11/15/10. In addition, the ABC drama tied its highest Women 18-34 number in 3 months - since 10/25/10.

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 39% currently, from 35% at the same point in 2010. 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 Day Ratings), 1/24/11.