For the 2nd Straight Week, ABC is No. 1 in Viewers and Adults 18-49
ABC Claims 5 of the Week’s Top 10 TV Shows in Adults 18-49, Airing Each of the Top 4 Programs in Viewers and Young Adults
ABC Produces its Most-Watched Summer Week in Nearly 10 Years
On Average, ABC’s 2011 Miami-Dallas NBA Finals Build Sharply Over the Last Time the Two Teams Met in 2006, Marking the 2nd Strongest Series in 7 Years
ABC Runs No. 1 on Each Night During the 2011 NBA Finals in Adults 18-49, as The Finals Stand as the No. 1 TV Show of the Evening for 25 Straight Broadcasts
ABC’s 2011 “Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night” Specials Generate Broad Prime Exposure, Doubling “JKL’s” Late-Night Averages Among Adults 18-49
“20/20” on Wednesday and Friday Tie as the Week’s No. 1 Newsmagazines
ABC Wins Monday for the 13th Straight Week in Viewers and 9th Straight Week In Adults 18-49, Hitting its Longest Viewer Winning Streak in Nearly 14 Years
“The Bachelorette” Ranks No. 1 in its 2-Hour Slot in Viewers and Young Adults, Standing as Monday’s Most-Watched Program for the 2nd Consecutive Week
“EM: Weight Loss Edition” Beats its Network Rivals for the 2nd Straight Week In Adults 18-49, Improving ABC’s Year-Ago Performance in the Hour by 22%
With the 2011 NBA Finals, ABC Wins its 2nd Straight Tuesday in Young Adults
ABC Builds its Summer Wednesday Results Year to Year for the 2nd Week Running
ABC’s 2011 NBA Finals Scores the Top-Rated Game 4 Since 2004 in Young Adults
ABC Shoots to the Top on Sunday with Coverage of the 2011 NBA Finals, Beating Its Combined Competition on CBS, NBC and Fox with Viewers and Adults 18-49
The Net Generates its Strongest Non-Oscar Sunday Numbers in More Than 5 Years
ABC’s Game 6 of the 2011 NBA Finals Qualifies as the Most-Watched in 13 Years
The 2011 NBA Finals on ABC Game 6 Outdelivers Fox’s Season Finale of “Idol” In Adults 18-49 to Become TV’s Top-Rated Telecast Since the Oscars in February
WEEK No. 38:
During the week of June 6, 2011, ABC finished a strong No. 1 for the 2nd week in a row, outdelivering its closest competition by 42% in Total Viewers (9.2 million vs. 6.5 million – CBS) and by 106% in Adults 18-49 (3.5/11 vs. 1.7/5 – NBC and Fox tied). ABC has ranked No. 1 or No. 2 with young adults on each of the last 9 weeks.
ABC marked its most-watched summer week (Memorial Day-Labor Day) in nearly 10 years and its highest rated among Adults 18-49 in 7 years – since w/o 8/20/01 and 6/7/04, respectively.
ABC surged over the year-ago week (w/o 6/7/10 = 8.0 million and 2.9/9) by 15% in Total Viewers and by 21% in Adults 18-49, growing its overall audience year to year for the 10th time in the last 11 weeks.
Weekly Rankings: ABC delivered 5 of the week’s Top 10 TV programs among Adults 18-49, placing each of the Top 4 shows: “NBA Finals on ABC Game 6” – No. 1, “NBA Trophy Presentation” – No. 2, “NBA Finals on ABC Game 5” – No. 3, “NBA Finals on ABC Game 4” – No. 4 and “The Bachelorette” – No. 9. In addition, with its coverage of the 2011 NBA Finals, ABC aired the week’s Top 4 most-watched television shows overall. ABC’s “20/20 SP Edition” on Wednesday and “20/20” on Friday tied as the No. 1 newsmagazines for the week in Adults 18-49.
Monday
With its winning combo of “The Bachelorette” and “Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition,” ABC dominated Monday night by 1.5 million viewers (7.3 million vs. 5.8 million – CBS) and by 67% among Adults 18-49 (2.5/7 vs. 1.5/4 – Fox) over its nearest competition. Extending its winning streaks on the evening, ABC finished as Monday’s most-watched television network for the 13th week in a row and ran No. 1 in Adults 18-49 for the 9th straight week. In fact ABC is generating its longest Total Viewer winning streak on the night in nearly 14 years – since a streak that ran from w/o 9/1/97 – w/o 12/22/97.
The Net was up over the same evening last year (6.9 million & 2.3/7 on 6/7/10) in both viewers (+6%) and young adults (+9%), growing its overall audience year to year for the 7th straight Monday.
“The Bachelorette” (8:00-10:01 p.m.)
Surging week to week by double-digit percentages in viewers (+13%) and young adults (+18%), ABC’s “The Bachelorette” won its time slot for the 3rd week running, outdelivering its closest competitors by 50% in Total Viewers (8.1 million vs. 5.4 million – CBS) and by 73% in Adults 18-49 (2.6/8 vs. 1.5/4 – Fox). In addition from 8:00-9:00 p.m., ABC’s “The Bachelorette” overshadowed Fox’s season opener of “Master Chef” by 3.5 million Total Viewers (7.9 million vs. 4.4 million) and by 33% in Adults 18-49 (2.4/8 vs. 1.8/6). Steadily gaining audience throughout its broadcast, “The Bachelorette” grew by 11% in Total Viewers (7.7 million to 8.5 million) and by 26% in Adults 18-49 (2.3/6 to 2.9/8) from its first half-hour to its final half-hour.
Monday’s No. 1 TV show in viewers and young adults, ABC’s “The Bachelorette” registered as the night’s most-watched show overall for the 2nd week in a row.
ABC’s “The Bachelorette” was up over the same night last year in Total Viewers (8.1 million vs. 7.9 million), while holding 100% of its Adult 18-49 audience (2.6/8).
“Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition” (10:01-11:00 p.m.)
Retaining nearly all of its week-earlier debut audience (92%), ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition” beat out its network rivals in the hour for the 2nd week in a row in Adults 18-49 (2.2/6), outpacing NBC’s original drama (“L&O: LA” – 1.3/3) by 69%. The new ABC unscripted series continued to exhibit strong retention of “The Bachelorette’s” lead-in among Adults 18-34 (91%) and Adults 18-49 (85%), while building its audience from start to finish in both counts. “EM: Weight Loss” stood as the No. 2 broadcast program of the night in Adults 18-49, behind only ABC’s “The Bachelorette.”
ABC’s “EM: Weight Loss” posted strong year-to-year improvement in the hour, up by 19% in Total Viewers (5.7 million vs. 4.8 million) and by 22% in Adults 18-49 (2.2/6 vs. 1.8/5) over original programming on the year-ago night (“True Beauty”).
Tuesday
With coverage of the 2011 NBA Finals (Miami-Dallas Game 4), ABC ranked No. 1 on Tuesday in Adults 18-49 for the 2nd week in row, beating NBC with “America’s Got Talent” leading into a 2-hour edition of “The Voice” (4.5/14 vs. 4.3/12). The Net also won the night for the 2nd week running with Adults 18-34 and across all key Men (M18-34/M18-49/M25-54).
“Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night 4” (Various Time Periods)
Airing around the NBA Finals in various time periods across the country, the “Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night” special produced broad exposure for the ABC late-night show in prime. On average, “JKL Game Night” more than doubled its late night ’10-11 season averages in Total Viewers (+106% – 3.5 million vs. 1.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (+120% – 1.1/4 vs. 0.5/3).
“2011 NBA Finals on ABC Game 4” (8:58 – 11:52 p.m. E.T.)
The 2011 NBA Finals on ABC Game 4, between the Miami Heat and the Dallas Mavericks, jumped over its primetime competition to stand as Tuesday’s No. 1 television program in Total Viewers (16.1 million) and across each of the key Adult demographics: A18-34 (6.9/22), A18-49 (6.7/19) and A25-54 (6.8/18). In the Adult 18-49 sales demo, The Finals on ABC have qualified as the No. 1 TV program of the night for 23 straight broadcasts. Dallas rallied in the 4th quarter to win the game by a score of 86-83 and tie up the best-of-seven series 2-2.
In Adults 18-49 and Adults 18-34, the 2011 NBA Finals on ABC scored the highest Game 4 numbers since 2004 with the Lakers-Pistons match-up.
Wednesday
With 4 comedy repeats and an original “20/20” special, ABC was up year to year for the 2nd summer Wednesday (6/9/10) in a row in Total Viewers (+8% – 4.1 million vs. 3.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (+8% – 1.3/4 vs. 1.2/4) over the year-ago night with the same mix of repeat an original programming.
“The Middle”/”The Middle” (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
From 8:00-9:00 p.m., ABC’s back-to-back repeats of “The Middle” defeated CBS’ repeat of “Undercover Boss” in the hour by 14% in Adults 18-34 (0.8/3 vs. 0.7/3) and by 10% in Adults 18-49 (1.1/4 vs. 1.0/3).
“Modern Family”/”Modern Family” (9:00-10:00 p.m.)
In the 9 o’clock hour, two encore telecasts of ABC’s “Modern Family” topped a rebroadcast of CBS’ “Criminal Minds” by 63% in Adults 18-34 (1.3/4 vs. 0.8/3) and by 45% in Adults 18-49 (1.6/5 vs. 1.1/3).
“20/20: Reality Rule$: When TV Gets Real” (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
A special edition of ABC’s “20/20: Reality Rule$: When TV Gets Real” took second in the 10 o’clock hour versus its CBS and NBC competition across all key Adult demos (AD18-34/AD18-49/AD25-54).
The “20/20” special improved ABC’s performance in the hour by 1.1 million viewers (3.6 million vs. 2.5 million) and by 50% in Adults 18-49 (1.2/3 vs. 0.8/2) compared to the same night last year with original drama programming (“Happy Town”).
Thursday
With coverage of the 2011 NBA Finals Game 5 (Dallas-Miami), ABC towered over Thursday’s primetime, outdrawing its nearest competitor by 5.6 million viewers (12.9 vs. 7.3 million – CBS) and beating its combined network competition on CBS, NBC, Fox and CW in Adults 18-49 (5.1/15 vs. 5.0/15). The Net finished No. 1 for the 5th consecutive night with its coverage of the NBA Finals among young adults (AD18-34/AD18-49) and across all key Men demos (M18-34/M18-49/M25-54).
Building week to week in viewers and young adults, ABC tallied its biggest Thursday numbers in nearly 1 year – since 6/17/10 with Game 7 of the 2010 Lakers-Celtics NBA Finals.
“Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night ” (Various Time Periods)
Airing around the NBA Finals in various time periods across the country, the “Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night” special drew broad exposure for the ABC late-night program in primetime. On average, “JKL Game Night” once again more than doubled its late night ’10-11 season averages in both Total Viewers (+124% – 3.8 million vs. 1.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (+160% – 1.3/5 vs. 0.5/3).
Posting the specials’ highest numbers yet this year, ABC’s “JKL Live Game Night 5” surged over its comparable year-ago telecast (2.7 million and 0.8/3 on 6/13/10) by big margins in Total Viewers (+41%) and Adults 18-49 (+63%). In fact among Adults 18-49, “JKL Game Night” equaled its best-ever number in its 4 years on the air – debuting in 2008.
“2011 NBA Finals on ABC Game 5” (8:58 – 11:51 p.m. E.T.)
Featuring the Miami Heat at the Dallas Mavericks, ABC’s 2011 NBA Finals Game 5 soared over its primetime competition to finish as Thursday’s dominant No. 1 TV program in Total Viewers (18.3 million) and across each of the key Adult demographics: A18-34 (7.7/25), A18-49 (7.4/22) and A25-54 (7.6/20). In the advertiser-coveted Adult 18-49 demographic, The Finals on ABC have registered as the No. 1 TV program of the night for 24 telecasts in a row. Dallas held off Miami’s 4th quarter rally to win 112-103 and go up 3-2 in best-of-seven series.
Similar to Tuesday’s Game 4, the 2011 NBA Finals on ABC produced the series’ biggest Game 5 ratings since 2004 (Pistons-Lakers) in Adults 18-49 and Adults 18-34. Furthermore in Adults 18-49, it was ABC’s 2nd-highest-ever non-series-clinching game in its 9 years of broadcasting The Finals.
Friday
Opposite Game 5 of the “NHL Stanley Cup Finals” on NBC, ABC finished second among the major nets on Friday in Adults 18-49 (1.0/4-tie). The Network grew its overall Friday audience by 15% week to week (3.9 vs. 3.4 million), drawing its biggest audience of the summer to date. In addition, ABC was up over same evening last year (6/11/10) in Total Viewers (+3% – 3.9 million vs. 3.8 million).
“Shark Tank” (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
At 8:00 p.m., ABC’s replay “Shark Tank” was the No. 1 regular program in the hour on the major nets in Adults 18-49 (1.1/4), topping Fox’s encore “Bones” by 38% (0.8/3) and CBS’ original “Flashpoint” by 10% (1.0/4).
“20/20” (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
At 10 o’clock, ABC’s “20/20” registered as Friday’s No. 1 regular program on the major nets in Adults 18-49. Jumping by 33% week to week in Total Viewers (5.2 million vs. 3.9 million) and by 9% in young adults (1.2/4 vs. 1.1/4), “20/20” posted its best numbers in three weeks on both Nielsen measures – since 5/20/11.
Sunday
Driven by its coverage of the 2011 NBA Finals Game 6 (Dallas-Miami), ABC shot to the top of Sunday’s primetime (according to Nielsen’s time-period based “Fast Affiliate Ratings”), outdelivering its combined competition on CBS, NBC and Fox by 29% in Total Viewers (19.1 million vs. 14.8 million) and by 114% in Adults 18-49 (7.7/22 vs. 3.6/10). In fact, the Net ranked No. 1 on all 6 evenings with its broadcasts of the 2011 NBA Finals among young adults (AD18-34/AD18-49) and across all key Men demos (M18-34/M18-49/M25-54).
In viewers and young adults, ABC produced its biggest non-Oscar Sunday in more than 5 years – since 2/26/06.
“Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night ” (Various Time Periods)
Airing around the NBA Finals in various time periods across the country, the 2011 “Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night” specials generated broad exposure for the ABC late-night program in primetime. On average, “JKL Game Night” essentially doubled its late night ’10-11 season averages in both Total Viewers (+94% – 3.3 million vs. 1.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (+100% – 1.0/4 vs. 0.5/3).
“2011 NBA Finals on ABC Game 6” (7:59 – 10:48 p.m. E.T.)
Based on Nielsen’s special-ordered program-based “Fast National Ratings,” the series-clinching 2011 NBA Finals on ABC Game 6 (Dallas at Miami) overshadowed the primetime landscape to register as Sunday’s dominant No. 1 TV program in Total Viewers (23.9 million) and across each of the key Adult demographics: A18-34 (9.7/29), A18-49 (9.7/26) and A25-54 (10.0/24). In the advertiser-coveted Adult 18-49 demographic, The Finals on ABC finished as the No. 1 TV program of the night for the 25th straight broadcast. The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat 105-95 to win the franchise’s first-ever NBA championship.
In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, the series-clinching game of 2011 NBA Finals generated the biggest-ever Game 6 results on ABC – since beginning carriage of The Finals in 2003. In fact, it marked the most-watched Game 6 overall for The Finals in 13 years – since the series-ending Game 6 of the 1998 Chicago-Utah match-up on 6/14/98.
Outperforming the season finale of Fox’s “American Idol” in Adults 18-49, Game 6 of the NBA Finals on ABC emerged as TV’s highest-rated telecast since the 2011 Academy Awards on ABC in February – since 2/27/11.
On average, the 2011 NBA Finals outperformed the first six games of last year’s huge Lakers-Celtics match-up among Total Viewers (+5% – 17.3 million vs. 16.4 million), Adults 18-49 (+8% – 7.1/20 vs. 6.6/20) and Adults 18-34 (+9% – 7.3/23 vs. 6.7/22), achieving the biggest non-seven-game series since 2004 (Lakers-Pistons). In addition compared to the last time the same two teams met in The Finals in 2006 (also a 6-game series), the 2011 Miami-Dallas NBA Finals was up by wide margins in Total Viewers (+33% – 17.3 million vs. 13.0 million) and Adults 18-49 (+34% – 7.1/20 vs. 5.3/16).
WEEK NO. 38: ADULTS 18-49 TOTAL VIEWERS
No.1 ABC 3.5 No.1 ABC 9,200,000
No.2 NBC 1.7 No.2 CBS 6,470,000
No.2 FOX 1.7 No.3 NBC 5,810,000
No.4 CBS 1.1 No.4 FOX 4,460,000
No.5 CW 0.3 No.5 CW 790,000
(Source: ABC – The Nielsen Company (National, Live+ Same Day Program Ratings), week of 6/6/11, unless stated otherwise.)
