NBC has delivered five-month highs in both adults 18-49 and total viewers, averaging a 1.9 rating, 6 share in 18-49 and 6.7 million viewers overall for the week of June 17-23, the network’s top averages since the week of January 7-13, which was boosted by coverage of a primetime NFL Wild Card Playoff Game.
NBC is up 58 percent versus the same week last year in 18-49 rating (with a 1.9 vs. a 1.2) and up 47 percent in total viewers (6.7 million vs. 4.6 million), according to “live plus same day” viewing data from Nielsen Media Research. .
Tuesday’s finale of “The Voice,” Monday’s last “Voice” competition episode and Tuesday’s “America’s Got Talent” are the week’s #1, 2 and 3 non-sports telecasts respectively on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox in adults 18-49, and those three shows are also top-rated on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox for the week in total viewers, adults 18-34, adults 25-54, kids 2-11 and teens 12-17. Monday’s preview of “The Winner Is…” was #7 for the week among non-sports programs in adults 18-49.
“The Voice” finale matched the show’s year-ago conclusion in 18-49 rating (4.4 each), despite this year’s telecast facing rugged competition from ABC’s NBA Finals coverage and airing in mid June versus the year-ago early-May finale.
“The Voice” had its biggest finale ever in total viewers, up versus the year-ago conclusion by 31 percent or more than 3.6 million persons (15.6 million vs. 11.9 million).
In rankings that count sports programs, six NBC shows delivered top-10 ratings: Tuesday’s “The Voice,” #3; Monday’s “The Voice,” #4; Tuesday’s “America’s Got Talent,” #5; Wednesday’s Stanley Cup Hockey, #7; Saturday’s Stanley Cup Hockey, tied for #10; and Monday’s “The Winner Is…” tied for #10 (rankings exclude sports pre- and post-game shows).
Primetime averages for the week of June 17-23 in adults 18-49 are: ABC, 2.4/8; NBC, 1.9/6; Fox, 1.1/4; CBS, 0.8/3; and CW, 0.3/1. In overall total viewers, the weekly averages were: ABC, 6.9 million; NBC, 6.7 million; CBS, 5.1 million; Fox, 3.1 million; and CW, 0.8 million.
Averages for the 2012-13 Broadcast Year to date are: CBS, 2.7/8; Fox, 2.4/7; NBC, 2.3/7; ABC, 2.2/6; and CW, 0.7/2. In overall total viewers, the season averages are: CBS, 11.2 million; ABC, 7.7 million; NBC, 6.9 million; Fox, 6.7 million; and CW, 1.7 million.
NBC highlights for the week of June 17-23:
Monday: NBC easily won the night with a 3.1 rating in the 18-49 demo, more than doubling second-place ABC. The network also handily won in total viewers (10.7 million), again more than doubling ABC.
The season’s penultimate episode of “The Voice” drew a 3.7 rating, which was its best since May 13, and 12.7 million viewers overall, the show’s highest viewer total since April 23.
The second sneak preview of “The Winner Is” saw an increase from its debut. The telecast drew a 1.9, which was up one-tenth from the debut and 6.7 million viewers, also a slight increase. “The Winner Is” has been the top-rated new series this summer on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox in 18-49.
Tuesday: Thanks to the season finale of “The Voice” (9-11 p.m. ET) and “America’s Got Talent” (8-9 p.m.), NBC earned a 3.9 in the 18-49 demo, which was the network’s best Tuesday average since July 5, 2011 (excluding Olympics).
Despite tough competition from ABC with the NBA Finals, “The Voice” drew a 4.4 and 15.6 million viewers overall. The 4.4 tied last May’s “Voice” finale in the demo and Tuesday’s episode drew 3.7 million more viewers than a year ago. It was the most-watched “Voice” telecast since Feb. 20, 2012.
“America’s Got Talent” drew a 3.0 rating in 18-49 from 8-9 p.m. ET, which matches the prior week’s two-hour telecast in the higher-viewership time period of 9-11 p.m. ET, and the 11.7 million viewers signifies a small increase from the previous Tuesday.
Wednesday: NBC tied Fox for first place for the night, with each network earning a 2.2 rating in the 18-49 demo, while NBC was No. 1 in men 18-49 and total viewers.
The network aired Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins, which went into overtime. The game drew a 2.4 rating in 18-49, which was the highest for any Stanley Cup Game 4 since 2002. It attracted 6.5 million viewers overall, the most of any program Wednesday evening.
Thursday: “Hannibal” (0.8/2 in 18-49, 2.0 million viewers overall from 10-11 p.m. ET) grew 14% week to week in 18-49 rating despite the night’s tough competition from ABC’s coverage of Game 7 of the NBA Finals.
Friday: NBC won Friday night in total viewers, with “Dateline NBC” (1.0/4 in 18-49, 5.1 million viewers overall from 8-10 p.m. ET) ranking #1 in the time period among ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox in adults 25-54 and total viewers.
“Rock Center with Brian Williams” (0.9/3 in 18-49, 4.5 million viewers overall from 10-11 p.m. ET) matched its results of the prior week in adults 18-49 and adults 25-54 (1. 3 rating).
Saturday: NBC Sports’ coverage of the Boston Bruins-Chicago Blackhawks Stanley Cup Final Game 5 (1.9/8 in 18-49, 5.6 million viewers overall from 8:10-11 p.m. ET) ranked #1 in primetime among ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox in every key category – adults, men and women 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54, plus total viewers. It’s NBC’s top Saturday in 18-49 and total viewers since an NFL Playoff game on January 5.
The 5.6 million viewers makes Game 5 the top Stanley Cup Final Saturday telecast since 2001’s New Jersey-Colorado Game 7 (6.9 million on June 9, 2001). Versus the comparable year-ago coverage (Game 5 on Saturday, June 9, 2012), this year’s telecast is up 73% in 18-49 rating (1.9 vs. 1.1), up 69% or 2.3 million persons in total viewers (5.6 million vs. 3.3 million) and up 60% in household rating (3.2 vs. 2.0).
Sunday: The debut of “Crossing Lines” (0.7/2 in 18-49, 4.4 million viewers overall from 9-11 p.m. ET) ranked #1 in the slot in total viewers among ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox. From its first hour to its second, “Crossing Lines” grew by 14% in adults 18-49 (to a 0.8 rating from a 0.7) and 9% in adults 25-54 (1.2 vs. 1.1).
For its second hour from 10-11 p.m., the debut of “Crossing Lines” finished #1 among ABC, CBS and NBC in adults 18-49, adults 25-54, total viewers and other key categories versus encores of CBS’s “The Mentalist” and ABC’s “Castle.”
From 7-9 p.m. ET, an encore telecast of “America’s Got Talent” (0.9/3 in 18-49, 4.1 million viewers overall) grew from its first half-hour to its fourth by 100% in 18-49 rating (to a 1.2 from a 0.6) and 81% or 2.3 million persons in total viewers (5.2 million vs. 2.9 million). Excluding sports, “America’s Got Talent” scored NBC’s highest 18-49 rating in the slot since May 12 and biggest overall audience since March 31.
The “America’s Got Talent” encore won its second hour from 8-9 p.m. among ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox in total viewers.
WEEKLY AVERAGES
Average rating, share and audience in each category
ADULTS 18-49
ABC 2.4/8, 3.0 million
NBC 1.9/6, 2.4 million
Fox 1.1/4, 1.4 million
CBS 0.8/3, 1.1 million
CW 0.3/1, 0.4 million
Each rating point equals 1.27 million viewers
ADULTS 25-54
ABC 2.6/8, 3.1 million
NBC 2.4/7, 2.8 million
Fox 1.3/4, 1.6 million
CBS 1.3/4, 1.5 million
CW 0.3/1, 0.4 million
Each rating point equals 1.19 million viewers
TOTAL VIEWERS
ABC 2.4/7, 6.9 million
NBC 2.3/7, 6.7 million
CBS 1.7/5, 5.1 million
Fox 1.1/3, 3.1 million
CW 0.3/1, 0.8 million
Each rating point equals 2.89 million viewers
