or


[09/26/14 - 08:28 AM]
ABC's New Thursday Night Opens Big - 5 Year High
ABC spins the numbers for Thursday, September 25.

[via press release from ABC]

ABC's New Thursday Night Opens Big - 5 Year High

ABC Thursday Prime (8-11pm - 11.9 million and 3.5/11 in AD18-49): Opposite CBS' Thursday Night Football, ABC was the dominant non-sports net on season premiere Thursday in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.5/11). With its new drama lineup, the Net delivered the Top 3 entertainment shows of the night in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 with the debut of How to Get Away with Murder (14.0 million and 3.8/11), the premiere of Scandal in its new 9pm slot (11.9 million and 3.8/11), and the premiere of Grey's in its new 8pm slot (9.8 million and 3.0/10), respectively. How to Get Away with Murder was the night's most-watched show overall.

In fact, with How to Get Away with Murder and Black-ish, ABC has now delivered the season's Top 2 new TV shows in Adults 18-49, qualifying as the two highest rated debuts on any net since ABC's Resurrection opened in March - since 3/9/14. overall.

· In viewers and young adults, ABC marked its strongest Thursday night in 5 years - since 9/24/09.

Grey's Anatomy: Despite its earlier slot and facing Thursday Night Football, Grey's was up from its May finale in viewers and young adults (8.9 million and 2.6/8 on 5/15/14) and also topped its year-ago 2-hour season opener in Total Viewers (9.3 million on 9/26/13). In fact, Grey's earned its most-watched telecast overall in 2 years - since 10/4/12.

Scandal: Despite shifting back an hour into its new 9pm slot, Scandal scored series highs in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.8/11), building over the year-ago premiere by 13% and 6%, respectively.

How to Get Away with Murder: Building on its Scandal lead-in in Total Viewers (+18%) and holding 100% in Adults 18-49 at 10pm, ABC's How to Get Away with Murder (14.0 million and 3.8/11) opened as TV's most-watched 10pm drama debut in 2 years and tied and the highest among Adults 18-49 (matching last year's Blacklist debut) in 2 years - since 9/25/12 and 9/17/12, respectively.

L3 and L7 projections to follow....

Scandal Opens at Series Highs and How to Get Away with Murder is TV's Top 10pm Drama Debut in 2 Years

Thursday Night (9/25/14) - ABC Total Viewer and Adult 18-49 Projections

Grey's Anatomy: Live + 3 = 13.2 million/4.2 rating and Live + 7 = 13.9 million/4.5 rating

Scandal: Live + 3 = 15.6 million/5.0 rating and Live + 7 = 16.2 million/5.2 rating

How to Get Away with Murder: Live + 3 = 18.4 million/5.0 rating and Live + 7 = 19.0 million/5.2 rating

ABC Thursday Prime (8-11pm - 11.9 million and 3.5/11 in AD18-49): Opposite CBS' Thursday Night Football, ABC was the dominant non-sports net on season premiere Thursday in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.5/11). With its new drama lineup, the Net delivered the Top 3 entertainment shows of the night in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 with the debut of How to Get Away with Murder (14.0 million and 3.8/11), the premiere of Scandal in its new 9pm slot (11.9 million and 3.8/11), and the premiere of Grey's in its new 8pm slot (9.8 million and 3.0/10), respectively. How to Get Away with Murder was the night's most-watched TV show overall, topping the NFL game.

· In fact, with How to Get Away with Murder and Black-ish, ABC has now delivered the season's Top 2 new TV shows in Adults 18-49, qualifying as the two highest rated debuts on any net since ABC's Resurrection opened in March - since 3/9/14. overall.

· In viewers and young adults, ABC marked its strongest Thursday night in 5 years - since 9/24/09.

Grey's Anatomy: Despite its earlier slot and facing Thursday Night Football, Grey's was up from its May finale in viewers and young adults (8.9 million and 2.6/8 on 5/15/14) and also topped its year-ago 2-hour season opener in Total Viewers (9.3 million on 9/26/13). In fact, Grey's earned its most-watched telecast overall in 2 years - since 10/4/12.

Scandal: Despite shifting back an hour into its new 9pm slot, Scandal scored series highs in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.8/11), building over the year-ago premiere (10.6 million and 3.6/10 on 4/17/14) by 13% and 6%, respectively.

How to Get Away with Murder: Building on its Scandal lead-in in Total Viewers (+18%) and holding 100% in Adults 18-49 at 10pm, ABC's How to Get Away with Murder (14.0 million and 3.8/11) opened as TV's most-watched 10pm drama debut in 2 years and equaled the highest among Adults 18-49 (matching last year's Blacklist debut) in 2 years - since 9/25/12 and 9/17/12, respectively.

Quick Take for Thursday, September 25, 2014 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

ABC's New Thursday Drama Lineup Opens at a 5-Year High on the Night

In its New Slot, "Grey's" Posts ABC's Top Scripted Opener Since �09 in Adults 18-49

ABC's "Scandal" Opens its 4th Season at Series Highs in Viewers and Young Adults

"How to Get Away With Murder" is TV's Biggest 10pm Drama Debut in 2 Years

Thursday Night (9/25/14) - ABC Total Viewer and Adult 18-49 Projections

"Grey's Anatomy:" Live + 3 = 13.2 million/4.2 rating and Live + 7 = 13.9 million/4.5 rating

"Scandal:" Live + 3 = 15.6 million/5.0 rating and Live + 7 = 16.2 million/5.2 rating

"How to Get Away with Murder:" Live + 3 = 18.4 million/5.0 rating and Live + 7 = 19.0 million/5.2 rating

Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Results:

ABC Thursday Prime (8:00-11:00 p.m. - 11.9 million and 3.5/11 in AD18-49):

Opposite CBS' Thursday Night Football, ABC was the dominant non-sports net on season premiere Thursday in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.5/11). With its new drama lineup, the Net delivered the Top 3 entertainment shows of the night in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 with the debut of "How to Get Away with Murder" (14.0 million and 3.8/11), the premiere of "Scandal" in its new 9:00 p.m. slot (11.9 million and 3.8/11), and the premiere of "Grey's" in its new 8:00 p.m. slot (9.8 million and 3.0/10), respectively. In fact, "How to Get Away with Murder" was the night's most-watched TV show overall, topping CBS' NFL game.

· With "How to Get Away with Murder" and "black-ish," ABC has now delivered the season's Top 2 new TV shows in Adults 18-49, qualifying as the two highest-rated debuts on any net since ABC's "Resurrection" opened in March - since 3/9/14.

· In viewers and young adults, ABC marked its strongest Thursday night in 5 years - since 9/24/09.

"Grey's Anatomy" (8:00-9:00 p.m. - 9.8 million and 3.0/10 in AD18-49):

Despite its earlier slot and facing Thursday Night Football, "Grey's" season premiere was up from its May finale in viewers and young adults (8.9 million and 2.6/8 on 5/15/14) and also topped its year-ago 2-hour season opener in Total Viewers (9.3 million on 9/26/13). In fact, "Grey's" was ABC's top-rated scripted show to premiere/debut in the hour in 5 years among Adults 18-49 - since 9/24/09 with "Flashforward."

· "Grey's" marked the series' most-watched telecast overall in 2 years - since 10/4/12.

"Scandal" (9:00-10:00 p.m. - 11.9 million and 3.8/11 in AD18-49):

Shifting back an hour into its new 9:00 p.m. slot, "Scandal" opened its 4th season at series highs in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.8/11), building over the year-ago premiere (10.6 million and 3.6/10 on 4/17/14) by 13% and 6%, respectively. "Scandal" was the most social prime program on broadcast TV Thursday with 718,436 tweets, making this the most social season premiere so far this season.

· "Scandal" generated ABC's best series numbers in the time period since January 2012 in Total Viewers and since October 2012 in Adults 18-49 - since 1/5/12 and 10/4/12, respectively.

"How to Get Away with Murder" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 14.0 million and 3.8/11 in AD18-49):

Building on its "Scandal" lead-in in Total Viewers (+18%) and holding 100% in Adults 18-49, ABC's "How to Get Away with Murder" (14.0 million and 3.8/11) opened as TV's most-watched 10:00 p.m. drama debut in 2 years and equaled the highest among Adults 18-49 (matching last year's "Blacklist debut) in 2 years - since 9/25/12 and 9/17/12, respectively.

· In Adults 18-49, "How to Get Away with Murder" and "Scandal" delivered Thursday's Top 2 drama telecasts on any net since October 2012 - since 10/4/12.

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 49% currently, from 48% at the same point in 2013. 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.

Projections Rationale:

Lifts vs. L+SD are based on the 2013-14 season for premiere telecast or an average for originals (excluding the premiere).

Returning shows: Profile based on same show (either premiere or averages for originals).

New Series: Based on similar series.

Source: The Nielsen Company, Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings, 09/25/14. Nielsen Social, total tweets, as dated.





  [september 2014]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
 


· GREY'S ANATOMY (ABC)
· HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER (ABC)
· SCANDAL (ABC)
· THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (AMAZON)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[03/31/25 - 11:03 AM]
"When Calls the Heart" Wraps Season 12 as #1 Most-Watched Program on Entertainment Cable This Year To-Date
"'When Calls the Heart' delivers the charm, warmth, and community of Hallmark's signature storytelling, and we're pleased that the series continues to drive stellar ratings after 12 seasons and counting," said Samantha DiPippo.

[03/28/25 - 02:26 PM]
Universal Pictures' Global Cinematic Event "Wicked" Debuts as Streaming's #1 Film
Per preliminary Nielsen data, "Wicked" is the #1 film across all of streaming with 882 million minutes viewed for the week of March 17-23.

[03/28/25 - 02:22 PM]
ESPN's Exclusive Coverage of Milwaukee Brewers vs. New York Yankees Game on March 27 Generated Largest National Opening Day Audience in Seven Years
The Brewers vs. Yankees game averaged 1.93 million viewers, peaking with 2.23 million viewers.

[03/27/25 - 11:00 AM]
"Survivor" Hits Broadcast and Live Streaming Season Highs
The telecast averaged 4.50 million broadcast viewers up +7% from its season-to-date average, and up +13% from its season-to-date average live streaming on Paramount+.

[03/25/25 - 03:24 PM]
ESPN Platforms Scores Second Most-Watched First and Second Rounds of the NCAA Women's Tournament on Record
Through two rounds, the 2025 Women's Division I Basketball Tournament is averaging 602,000 viewers, the second-highest audience through this point since 2009.

[03/25/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of March 17: "Adolescence" Grips Viewers for Second Week at No. 1
Checking in at No. 2 on the English TV list was "The Residence," the latest series from Shondaland; the screwball whodunit racked up 6.4 million views.

[03/25/25 - 11:01 AM]
Investigation Discovery's "A Body in the Snow: The Trial of Karen Read" Reaches More Than 6.3 Million Viewers Across Linear and Streaming
In its time period, the series helped ID rank as the #2 non-sports/news cable net among W25-54, averaging a .47 W25-54 L3 rating and increasing the time period's ratings by +58%.

[03/21/25 - 01:30 PM]
"Live with Kelly and Mark" Grows Remarkably in All Key Measures During Show's Festive Post-Oscars Week
The annual Monday morning post-Oscars show from the famed Dolby Theatre in Hollywood scored 2.650 million Total Viewers and was the show's second most-watched telecast of the entire season.

[03/21/25 - 10:10 AM]
"Opry 100: A Live Celebration" Drew 5.3 Million Viewers Wednesday Night Across NBC and Peacock
It was the most-watched program of the night among all the broadcast networks against mostly original programming.

[03/18/25 - 02:02 PM]
ESPN Earns Event Record Viewership for Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix
ESPN's live telecast of the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix this past weekend drew an average of 1.1 million viewers, the largest U.S. television audience ever for the event.

[03/18/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of March 10: "The Electric State" Energizes, "Adolescence" Excels in This Week's Top 10
Viewers also sought laughs from the Mindy Kaling comedy "Running Point" - starring Kate Hudson and set to return for Season 2 - which scored the No. 2 spot in English TV (6 million views).

[03/18/25 - 10:49 AM]
NBA on ABC Regular Season Viewership Up Double-Digits From Last Year
The "NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC" series won the night among all viewers seven out of 10 times, and among viewers younger than 50 eight out of ten times.

[03/17/25 - 11:08 AM]
"The Way Home" Finishes Thrilling Third Season as #1 Most-Watched Program on Entertainment Cable Among Women 25-54
The riveting finale was the #1 most-watched program on Friday with Women 18+, leaving viewers eager to dive back into the time-traveling pond filled with rich family history and spellbinding mystery.

[03/14/25 - 09:31 AM]
Return of AMC's "Dark Winds" Attracts 2.2 Million Premiere Night Viewers
On AMC+, the series continued its trajectory of viewership growth every season, with the season three premiere up more than 50 percent in viewership over season two, and doubling subscriber acquisition over the previous season.

[03/12/25 - 10:06 AM]
"The Last of Us" Season 2 Trailer Shatters Records, Becoming HBO and Max's Most-Watched Original Trailer with 158 Million Views
The trailer outperformed previous "The Last of Us" trailers and teasers by a margin of at least 160%.