or


[05/17/11 - 09:11 AM]
ABC's "Castle" Finale Hits a 14-Month High/"DWTS" Marks Most-Watched Season Ever
ABC spins the numbers for Monday, May 16.

[via press release from ABC]

ABC's "Castle" Finale Hits a 14-Month High/"DWTS" Marks Most-Watched Season Ever

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

Featuring the semi-finals of DWTS and the 3rd-season finale of Castle, ABC towered over its competitors for the 3rd straight Monday of the 2011 May Sweep, more than doubling runner-up CBS with its season finales in Total Viewers and outrunning second-place Fox by 52% in Adults 18-49. For the 2nd week in a row, the Net defeated its broadcast competition in all 6 half-hours of the night with viewers and young adults. In fact, ABC stood as Monday's most-watched television network for the 10th week in a row and delivered the #1 position on the evening in Adults 18-49 for the 9th time in 10 weeks.

· In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, ABC generated its best Monday results in 7 weeks - since 3/28/11.

· For the 3rd straight Monday, the Net substantially improved its year-to-year May Sweep returns, surging by 4.4 million viewers and by 28% with young adults over the same night a year ago (5/17/10).

Building week to week in viewers (+3%) and young adults (+7%), ABC's Dancing with the Stars once again won each of its half-hours in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 finish #1 in its time period for the 9th time in as many weeks. The ABC dancing performance program continued to register as Monday's #1 TV show in Total Viewers (9 of 9 telecasts) and Adults 18-49 (8 of 9 telecasts).

· DWTS built over the same night last year by 2.4 million viewers and by 7% in Adults 18-49. On average, Season 12 of DWTS is up over the same point in Season 11 by 1.1 million viewers and by 7% in Adults 18-49, standing as the franchise's most-watched-ever season overall.

Hitting season-highs, ABC's 3rd-season closer of Castle won the 10 o'clock hour, dominating CBS' season finale of Hawaii Five-0 by 3.4 million viewers and by 32% in Adults 18-49, as the ABC drama won in their 5th straight head-to-head original matchup. In addition, on both counts Castle was the #1 TV series in its time period for 7th time in its past 8 original airings. On each of its final 7 first-run broadcast this season, ABC's Castle finished as Monday's most-watched scripted TV program.

· Building its viewer and young adult numbers for the 3rd week in a row, Castle scored its best results in nearly 14 months (since 3/29/10, with the conclusion of a high-rated 2-part episode), qualifying as the series' 2nd-highest numbers ever.

· Posting its strongest finale ever, Castle was up sharply over its year-ago season closer in Total Viewers (+3.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (+38%). In fact ABC's Castle marked its strongest season ever, building over its sophomore season averages in both Total Viewers (+8%) and Adults 18-49 (+4%).

Quick Take for Monday, May 16, 2011 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

ABC Towers Over its Competitors for the 3rd Consecutive Monday Of the May Sweep in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49

Winning All 4 of its Half-hours, "DWTS" Qualifies as Monday's Most-Watched Program for the 9th Week in a Row and is No. 1 in Adults 18-49 in 8 of 9 Telecasts

Hitting a Season-Best and the Series' 2nd-Highest Numbers Ever, 3rd-Season Closer of ABC's "Castle" Tops CBS' "Hawaii Five-0" Season Finale in Viewers and Young Adults

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

Featuring the semi-finals of "DWTS" and the 3rd-season finale of "Castle," ABC towered over its competitors for the 3rd straight Monday of the 2011 May Sweep, more than doubling runner-up CBS with its season finales in Total Viewers (18.7 million vs. 8.0 million), and outrunning second-place Fox by 52% in Adults 18-49 (4.1/11 vs. 2.7/7). For the 2nd week in a row, the Net defeated its broadcast competition in all 6 half-hours of the night with viewers and young adults. In fact, ABC stood as Monday's most-watched television network for the 10th week in a row and delivered the No. 1 position on the evening in Adults 18-49 for the 9th time in 10 weeks.

· In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, ABC generated its best Monday results in 7 weeks - since 3/28/11.

· For the 3rd straight Monday, the Net substantially improved its year-to-year May Sweep returns, surging by 4.4 million viewers and by 28% with young adults over the same night a year ago (14.3 million and 3.2/9 in Adults 18-49 on 5/17/10).

"Dancing with the Stars" (8:00-10:00 p.m.)

Building week to week in viewers (+3%) and young adults (+7%), ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" once again won each of its half-hours in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 to finish No. 1 in its time period for the 9th time in as many weeks. The ABC dancing performance program continued to register as Monday's No. 1 TV show in Total Viewers (21.4 million - 9 of 9 telecasts) and Adults 18-49 (4.4/12 - 8 of 9 telecasts).

· "DWTS" built over the same night last year by 2.4 million viewers and by 7% in Adults 18-49 (19.0 million and 4.1/11 in Adults 18-49). On average, Season 12 of "DWTS" is up over the same point in Season 11 by 1.1 million viewers (22.3 million vs. 21.2 million) and by 7% in Adults 18-49 (4.9/13 vs. 4.6/11), standing as the franchise's most-watched-ever season overall.

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

Hitting season-highs, ABC's 3rd-season closer of "Castle" won the 10 o'clock hour, dominating CBS' season finale of "Hawaii Five-0" by 3.4 million viewers (13.2 million vs. 9.8 million) and by 32% in Adults 18-49 (3.3/8 vs. 2.5/6), as the ABC drama won their 5th straight head-to-head original matchup. In addition, on both counts "Castle" was the No. 1 TV series in its time period for 7th time in its past 8 original airings. On each of its final 7 first-run broadcasts this season, ABC's "Castle" finished as Monday's most-watched scripted TV program.

· Building its viewer and young adult numbers for the 3rd week in a row, "Castle" scored its best results in nearly 14 months (since 3/29/10, with the conclusion of a high-rated 2-part episode), qualifying as the series' 2nd-highest numbers ever.

· Posting its strongest finale ever, "Castle" was up sharply over its year-ago season closer in Total Viewers (+3.1 million - 13.2 million vs. 10.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (+38% - 3.3/8 vs. 2.4/7). In fact ABC's "Castle" marked its strongest season ever, building over its sophomore season averages in both Total Viewers (+8% - 11.3 million vs. 10.5 million) and Adults 18-49 (+4% - 2.9/8 vs. 2.8/7).

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 41% currently, from 36% 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), 5/16/11.





  [may 2011]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S


· CASTLE (ABC)
· DANCING WITH THE STARS (ABC)
· HAWAII FIVE-0 (CBS)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[10/03/25 - 02:17 PM]
ESPN's Record-Setting '25 MLB Wild Card Series
Across eight games, the MLB Wild Card Series is averaging 4.4 million viewers, up 65% from last year.

[10/03/25 - 12:07 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Continues to Shatter Records - Growing Two Weeks in a Row Since Season Premiere for First Time Since 2005
Plus: "High Potential" hit a season high in Total Viewers (4.24 million), growing by double digits over the show's comparable third episode from last fall.

[10/02/25 - 04:09 PM]
ESPN Delivers the Most-Watched WNBA Semifinals Ever
Game 5 between the Indiana Fever and the Las Vegas Aces averaged 1.8 million viewers, peaking at 2.1 million.

[10/02/25 - 02:51 PM]
ESPN's Record-Setting Day One of MLB Wild Card Series
Coverage of Red Sox versus Yankees averaged 6.5 million viewers, peaking at 9.9 million.

[10/02/25 - 11:00 AM]
"Survivor" and "The Amazing Race" Season Premieres Hit Their Largest 3-Day Streaming Viewerships Ever
The "Survivor" season 49 premiere grew to 6.83 million viewers with three days of multiplatform viewership; while "The Amazing Race" season 38 premiere grew to 4.01 million viewers.

[10/02/25 - 09:38 AM]
"Celebrity Wheel of Fortune" Scores on Friday Nights with Biggest Total Viewer Audience in Nearly Two Years
"Celebrity Wheel of Fortune" stood as the No. 1 program of the night, rising by double digits in Total Viewers over its previous season premiere.

[10/01/25 - 10:27 AM]
"Big Brother" Season Finale Is Most-Watched Episode in Over Three Years
The finale was up +33% from its year ago finale and up +33% from this season's average.

[09/30/25 - 03:44 PM]
ESPN and ABC Win College Football's Week 5; "College GameDay's" Most-Viewed Season Rolls On
ABC is off to its best start ever with 7.1 million average viewers per game, and the network has aired eight of the top 10 most-viewed games this season.

[09/30/25 - 02:08 PM]
Packers-Cowboys OT Thriller Averages 26.9 Million Viewers on NBC & Peacock, As NBC Sports Opens with Best Four-Week Audience Average in 20 Seasons of NBC "SNF"
The audience peaked at 29.9 million viewers in the second quarter (9-9:15 p.m. ET).

[09/30/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of September 22: "Wayward" Lures Viewers at No. 1, "KPop Demon Hunters" Sets Top 10 Record
New on Netflix this week is "House of Guinness," a historical drama series created by Steven Knight, which debuted at No. 3 on the English TV list with 5.2 million views.

[09/30/25 - 10:24 AM]
"High Potential" Season Premiere Vaults to Nearly 16 Million in First Week Across Platforms
This marks ABC's best season premiere for a drama among Total Viewers in five years.

[09/29/25 - 06:06 AM]
ESPN's 2025 MLB Game Viewership Up 21 Percent from Last Year
Coverage delivered 1.8 million viewers on average across 30 games this season.

[09/26/25 - 01:11 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Week Two Delivers Over 5 Million Total Viewers Rising Over Season Premiere for First Time in 14 Years
Once again, the show led its time period and stood as the No. 1 show of the night in Total Viewers (5.46 million) and Adults 18-49 (1.02 rating).

[09/25/25 - 02:05 PM]
Viewers Have Watched More Than 8 Billion Minutes of "Big Brother" This Summer - Up +27% from Last Year
Multiplatform average episode viewership grew to 5.1 million, up +23% versus last year in 35-days of viewing, outpacing the competition.

[09/24/25 - 02:47 PM]
"Jimmy Kimmel Live" Returned on Tuesday to 6.26 Million Total Viewers on Broadcast, According to Initial Live+Same Day Measurement
In addition to linear ratings, the monologue has garnered more than 26 million views across YouTube and social platforms.