ABC's "GCB" Grows from its Debut to Rank #1 at 10pm in Adults 18-49

Some early info in ABC's Sunday, ahead of the regular press release.

As GCB grew from its debut telecast, ABC won its 2nd straight Sunday in Adults 18-49 over all-original competition on the other nets, beating CBS by 10%, Fox by 15% and NBC by 53%.

Please Note: With the change to Daylight Savings time, overall Adult 18-49 TV usage declined on Sunday night by -5% from the prior week (36.7 vs. 38.7).

Shooting up to more than double its lead-in 8pm (+115%), ABC's Once Upon a Time ranked #1 in its hour and tied as Sunday's #1 broadcast show among Adults 18-49. The Disney-owned drama also won its hour across all key Women demos (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54) and stood as the #1 broadcast program in its slot with Teens 12-17 and Kids 2-11.

ABC's Desperate Housewives led the pack in the 9 o'clock hour with young adults (tied w/Fox's comedies), dominating the first hour of NBC's Celebrity Apprentice by 39% and CBS' The Good Wife by 47%.

· Building its overall audience for its 3rd straight broadcast, ABC's Housewives generated its most-watched telecast in 9 weeks and matched a 7-week high with young adults - since 1/8/12 and 1/22/12, respectively.

Continuing to show impressive retention of its Housewives lead-in (92%), ABC's GCB grew over its week-ago debut and moved up into the #1 position during the 10pm hour in Adults 18-49, beating out the second hour of NBC's 2-hour Celebrity Apprentice by 5% and CBS' CSI: Miami by 10%. In addition for the 2nd week in a row, the new ABC drama ranked #1 in its time period with Adults 18-34 (building on its lead-in), and across all key Women (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54).

· ABC's GCB was up over its week-earlier series debut across all key Adult demos: AD18-34 +7%, AD18-49 +5% and AD25-54 +4%. In fact GCB stands as the season's only non-Idol led series to build on its debut telecast in Adults 18-49. The freshman drama once again produced the Net's best series performance in the hour since early-October with Adults 18-49 - since 10/2/11.

Quick Take for Sunday, March 11, 2012 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

ABC Wins its 3rd Consecutive Sunday Night Among Adults 18-49

More than Doubling its Lead-in at 8pm, ABC's "Once Upon a Time" Ranks No. 1 in its Hour in Adults 18-49 to Tie as Sunday No. 1 Broadcast Program

Building its Overall Audience for its 3rd Straight Broadcast, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" Produces its Most-Watched Telecast in 9 Weeks

ABC's "GCB" Ranks No. 1 in the 10 O'clock Hour in Adults 18-49 and Becomes the Season's Only Non-"Idol" Led Series to Grow from its Debut

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

As "GCB" grew from its debut telecast, ABC (2.3/6) won Sunday in Adults 18-49 over all-original competition on the other nets, beating CBS by 10% (2.1/6), Fox by 15% (2.0/6) and NBC by 53% (1.5/4). In fact, ABC has been No. 1 on Sunday for 3 weeks straight to post its longest winning streak on the evening since May 2010.

Please Note: With the change to Daylight Savings time, overall Adult 18-49 TV usage declined on Sunday night by -5% from the prior week (36.7 vs. 38.7).

"Once Upon a Time" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

Shooting up to more than double its lead-in 8:00 p.m. (+115% - 2.8/8 vs. 1.3/4), ABC's "Once Upon a Time" ranked No. 1 in its hour and tied as Sunday's top broadcast show among Adults 18-49. The Disney-owned drama also won its hour across all key Women demos (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54) and stood as the No. 1 broadcast program in its slot with Teens 12-17 and Kids 2-11.

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

ABC's "Desperate Housewives" led the pack in the 9 o'clock hour with young adults (2.5/6 - tied w/Fox's comedies), dominating the first hour of NBC's "Celebrity Apprentice" by 39% (1.8/4) and CBS' "The Good Wife" by 47% (1.7/4).

· Building its overall audience for its 3rd straight broadcast, ABC's "Housewives" generated its most-watched telecast in 9 weeks and matched a 7-week high with young adults - since 1/8/12 and 1/22/12, respectively.

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

Continuing to show impressive retention of its "Housewives" lead-in (92%), ABC's "GCB" (2.3/6) grew over its week-ago debut and moved up into the No. 1 position during the 10:00 p.m. hour in Adults 18-49, beating out the second hour of NBC's 2-hour "Celebrity Apprentice" by 5% (2.2/5) and CBS' "CSI: Miami" by 10% (2.1/5). In addition for the 2nd week in a row, the new ABC drama ranked No. 1 in its time period with Adults 18-34 (building on its lead-in), and across all key Women (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54).

· ABC's "GCB" was up over its week-earlier series debut across all key Adult demos: AD18-34 +7%, AD18-49 +5% and AD25-54 +4%. In fact "GCB" stands as the season's only non-"Idol" led series to build on its debut telecast in Adults 18-49. The freshman drama once again produced the Net's best series performance in the hour since early-October with Adults 18-49 - since 10/2/11.

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 43% currently, from 40% at the same point in 2011. 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), 03/11/12.