Opposite Increased Competition from CBS’ “Survivor” Premiere, ABC Grows Its Thursday Audience and is No. 1 in Adults 18-34 for the 6th Time in 7 Weeks
“Deep End” Posts Double-Digit Week-to-Week Gains in Viewers and Young Adults
Building its Overall Audience from the Prior Week, ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” Wins the 9 O’clock Hour in Adults 18-34 and Across All Key Women Demos
“Private Practice” Dominates the 10 O’clock Hour Among Adults 18-34, Standing as No. 1 Series in the Slot for the 12th time in 13 Telecasts this Season
Thursday Night (8:00-11:00 p.m.)
ABC finished a solid second on Thursday in Total Viewers (9.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.0/8) to CBS with its airing of the highly-promoted 2-hour premiere of “Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains.” The Network ranked No. 1 on the evening with Adults 18-34 (2.6/8-tie) for the 6th time in 7 weeks. ABC also topped the evening with Women 18-34, leading its nearest competition by 34% (3.9/11 vs. 2.9/8-CBS).
Despite the heightened competition on the night, ABC increased its overall Thursday audience (9.1 million) for the 2nd consecutive week.
“The Deep End” (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
From 8:00-9:00 p.m. against the opening hour of “Survivor,” ABC’s “The Deep End” posted week-to-week gains in both Total Viewers (+12% – 5.7 million vs. 5.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (+15% – 1.5/4 vs. 1.3/4).
“Grey’s Anatomy” (9:00-10:00 p.m.)
Opposite the second half of “Survivor,” ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” ranked No. 1 in its time slot with Adults 18-34 (3.9/11) and all key Women: W18-34 (5.9/16), W18-49 (6.3/15) and W25-54 (6.9/15).
“Grey’s” was up was up week to week in Total Viewers (12.7 million vs. 12.6 million) and Adults 25-54 (5.0/12 vs. 4.9/12).
“Private Practice” (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
ABC’s “Private Practice” won Thursday’s 10 o’clock hour among Adults 18-34, leading its nearest competition by 29% (2.7/9 vs. 2.1/7 – CBS’ “The Mentalist”). It was the 12th time in 13 original telecasts this season for the ABC sophomore drama to hold the No. 1 series position in the hour with Adults 18-34.
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 35% currently, from 29% at the same point in 2009. 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.
(Source: information provided by ABC. – The Nielsen Company (Fast Affiliate, Live + Same Day Ratings), 2/11/10.)
