"Monday Night Football" Helps ESPN Win the Night among All Networks
Buoyed by Debut of Star Wars: The Force Awakens Trailer, "MNF" Viewership Peaks at 16,942,000
ESPN's Monday Night Football - a Philadelphia Eagles' 27-7 victory over the New York Giants - helped ESPN win the night among all networks - broadcast or cable - in households, viewers and all key male and adult demos. The game was the highest-rated program of the night in all key male and adult demos (18-34, 18-49 and 25-54).
ESPN has been the No. 1 network in prime time on all six Mondays of the 2015 MNF season.
Giants-Eagles averaged an 8.7 US household rating and 13,901,000 viewers (P2+), according to Nielsen. The game peaked from 9:45-10 p.m. ET with a 10.5 rating and 16,942,000 viewers. The 10-10:15 p.m. quarter-hour - which included halftime and the exclusive debut of Lucasfilm's new trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens (10:08 - 10:11 p.m.) - averaged a 9.7 rating and 15,887,000 viewers.
In New York, the game delivered a 9.4 rating on ESPN and a 4.6 on WPIX-CW, for a combined 14.0 rating in the market. In Philadelphia, the game delivered a 16.5 rating on ESPN and a 15.8 on WPHL-IND, for a combined 32.3 rating in the market.
The top 10 metered markets (not including those of the competing teams): West Palm Beach (14.1), New Orleans (13.9), Norfolk (13.7), San Diego (13.2), Raleigh-Durham (13.1), Las Vegas (12.8), Denver (12.7), Hartford-New Haven (12.4), Washington, D.C. (11.4), and Charlotte (11.2).
ESPN Deportes
The Spanish-language telecast of MNF on ESPN Deportes averaged a 0.4 Hispanic Household rating with 53,000 Hispanic Household impressions and 82,000 Hispanic viewers (P2+). Giants-Eagles ranks as the network's second highest-rated game this season behind the opening night 49ers-Vikings game (0.5 Hispanic Household rating and 107,000 Hispanic viewers). Season-to-date, MNF on ESPN Deportes is averaging a 0.3 Hispanic Household rating with 50,000 Hispanic Household impressions and 71,000 Hispanic viewers.
WatchESPN and ESPN Digital
Giants-Eagles logged the third-largest audience ever for MNF on WatchESPN, attracting an additional 214,000 average minute impressions to the TV audience, up 89 percent compared to last year's Week 6 MNF game. It also had 670,000 unique viewers watching 43,594,000 live minutes - up 96 percent and 85 percent, respectively.
The 2015 NFL season continues to drive record-breaking traffic across ESPN Digital platforms, logging its fifth best day ever on Sunday, October 18, with an average minute audience of 1,109,000 people across platforms, up 18 percent compared to last year's Week 6 Sunday. Specifically, 47 percent of time spent with ESPN Digital properties on Sunday was with the ESPN Fantasy Football app, which attracted 6,749,000 unique visitors and an average minute audience of 526,000 - up 27 percent and 56 percent respectively compared to the previous year.
Additionally, ESPN.com, ESPN apps and WatchESPN across platforms logged 38,867,000 unique visitors on Sunday, up two percent. NFL content specifically across digital platforms peaked at an average of 2,829,000 users during the average minute. Of Sunday's total NFL audience on digital platforms, 84 percent came from mobile devices.
This Week on MNF: Baltimore Ravens vs. Arizona Cardinals
This week, ESPN's MNF returns with Joe Flacco and the Baltimore Ravens traveling west to face Carson Palmer and the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium at 8:15 p.m. ET (kickoff at 8:30 p.m.).
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