THE SERIES PREMIERE OF "ELEMENTARY" SWEEPS TIME PERIOD IN VIEWERS AND KEY DEMOS

"Elementary" Builds on its Lead-In and Improves Year-Ago Time Period in Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54 "The Big Bang Theory" is Thursday's #1 Program in Viewers and Key Demos

Time Period Premiere of "Two and a Half Men" Places First in Viewers, Adults 18-49 (tie) and Adults 25-54, and Improves the Year-Ago Time Period Premiere Across the Board

"Person of Interest" Wins Its Time Period in Viewers with Year-to-Year Increases CBS Sweeps Premiere Thursday in Viewers and Key Demos

The series premiere of ELEMENTARY won its time period in viewers and key demographics, building on its demo lead-in and improving the year-ago time period, according to Nielsen preliminary live plus same day ratings for Thursday, Sept.28.

From 10:00-11:00 PM, ELEMENTARY (P) was first in households (8.4/14), viewers (13.29m), adults 25-54 (4.0/10) and adults 18-49 (3.1/09). ELEMENTARY built on its PERSON OF INTEREST lead-in in both adults 25-54 (+3%) and adults 18-49 (+7%). Compared to the season premiere of THE MENTALIST last year (on Sept. 22), ELEMENTARY was up +3% in adults 25-54 (from 3.9/09) and up +11% in adults 18-49 (from 2.8/07).

At 8:00 PM, THE BIG BANG THEORY (P) swept its time period, finishing first in households (9.3/16), viewers (15.31m), adults 25-54 (6.1/17), adults 18-49 (4.8/15) and adults 18-34 (3.4/13). If the ratings hold, THE BIG BANG THEORY was the night's #1 program in households, viewers, adults 25-54 and adults 18-49. If the ratings hold, THE BIG BANG THEORY posted its largest audience ever for a season premiere.

TWO AND A HALF MEN (P) was first in households (7.7/12), viewers (12.37m) and adults 25-54 (4.6/11), and was tied for first in adults 18-49 (3.5/10, with FOX) at 8:30 PM. Compared to the time period premiere last year ("How to Be a Gentleman" on Sept. 29), TWO AND A HALF MEN was up +43% in households (from 5.4/09), +35% in adults 25-54 (from 3.4/09), +30% in adults 18-49 (from 2.7/07) and added +3.62m viewers (from 8.75m, +41%).

PERSON OF INTEREST (P) was first in households (8.8/14) and viewers (14.27m) and was second in both adults 25-54 (3.9/09) and adults 18-49 (2.9/08). Compared to the series premiere last year, PERSON OF INTEREST was up +6% in households (from 8.3/13) and added +940,000 viewers (from 13.33m, +7%).

For the night, CBS was first in households (8.6/14), viewers (13.80m), adults 25-54 (4.4/11) and adults 18-49 (3.4/10). CBS won Premiere Thursday for the third straight year in both household and viewers, and won in adults 18-49 and adults 25-54 for the second time in three years.

Thursday's premieres also propelled CBS.com to its third-highest day of traffic in the site's history, with a near-30% increase in unique visitors year-over-year. The debut of ELEMENTARY was a key driver of traffic, with the freshman series placing as the second-highest show section on CBS.com during any premiere week. THE BIG BANG THEORY also saw its biggest premiere date ever among unique visitors and page views, up double digits versus last year on CBS.com.

Note: DVR penetration is at 46%, up from 42% last season. Last fall, Live+7 audiences for original entertainment series on CBS averaged more than a +1.4 million viewer gain over live plus same day ratings, more than any other network. This season, we expect DVR usage to continue to expand, increasing DVR playback deliveries.

Updated Thursday ratings will be available later.