ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" is Monday's Top Show/"Castle" is the #1 Scripted TV Program

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

Boosted by another strong turnout for Dancing with the Stars and Castle, ABC qualified as the Monday's most-watched TV network for the 2nd week running, outdrawing runner-up NBC with The Voice and Smash by 5.8 million viewers. Finishing a strong #2 on the night in Adults 18-49, ABC beat Fox with the 2-hour season finale of Alcatraz by 93% and CBS' encore line up by 53%.

The most-watched TV show on Monday for the 2nd week in a row, ABC's Dancing with the Stars topped its 2-hour time period by 5.8 million viewers over runner-up NBC's The Voice in head-to-head competition. Among Adults 18-49, Dancing more than doubled the delivery of Fox's 2-hour Alcatraz finale (+107%) in the time period.

· ABC's Dancing exhibited strong retention of its week-earlier season premiere in Total Viewers (94%) and Adults 18-49 (89%).

ABC's Castle won the 10 o'clock hour to stand as Monday's #1 scripted TV show in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49. ABC's Castle beat out NBC's Smash by its biggest-ever margins, topping the NBC drama by 5.8 million viewers and by 9% in Adults 18-49. The ABC drama also ranked #1 in the hour with Adults 25-54 for the 2nd consecutive week.

· In viewers and young adults, ABC's Castle produced its strongest results since October - since 10/31/11.

· Continuing to build its audience year to year, Castle surged by 2.1 million viewers over its year-ago broadcast.

Quick Take for Monday, March 26, 2012 (Fast Affiliate Live+ Same Day Ratings)

ABC is Monday's Most-Watched Net for the 2nd Week in a Row

ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" Ranks as Monday's Most-Watched Show, Outdrawing NBC's "The Voice" by 5.8 Million Viewers

ABC's "Castle" Stands as Monday's No. 1 Scripted Program, Topping NBC's "Smash" by Season-Best Margins in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49

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

Boosted by another strong turnout for "Dancing with the Stars" and "Castle," ABC qualified as the Monday's most-watched TV network for the 2nd week running, outdrawing runner-up NBC with "The Voice" and "Smash" by 5.8 million viewers (15.8 million vs. 10.0 million). Finishing a strong No. 2 on the night in Adults 18-49 (2.9/8), ABC beat Fox with the 2-hour season finale of "Alcatraz" by 93% (1.5/4) and CBS' encore line up by 53% (1.9/5).

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

The most-watched TV show on Monday for the 2nd week in a row, ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" topped its 2-hour time period by 5.8 million viewers over runner-up NBC's "The Voice" in head-to-head competition (17.6 million vs. 11.8 million). Among Adults 18-49, "Dancing" more than doubled the delivery of Fox's 2-hour "Alcatraz" finale (+107% - 3.1/8 vs. 1.5/4) in the time period.

· ABC's "Dancing" exhibited strong retention of its week-earlier season premiere in Total Viewers (94%) and Adults 18-49 (89%).

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

ABC's "Castle" won the 10 o'clock hour to stand as Monday's No. 1 scripted TV show in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49. ABC's "Castle" beat out NBC's "Smash" by its biggest-ever margins, topping the NBC drama by 5.8 million viewers (12.2 million vs. 6.4 million) and by 9% in Adults 18-49 (2.4/6 vs. 2.2/6). The ABC drama also ranked No. 1 in the hour with Adults 25-54 (3.5/8) for the 2nd consecutive week.

· In viewers and young adults, ABC's "Castle" produced its strongest results since October - since 10/31/11.

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), 3/26/12.