With Coverage of the NBA Finals Game 6, ABC Towers Over its Competition, Producing the Network’s Biggest Summer Tuesday Numbers in 6 Years. For the 6th Straight Broadcast This Year, the “NBA Finals on ABC” Is Primetime’s No. 1 TV Show in Viewers and All Key Adult Demos.
“JKL Game Night” Specials Top Last Year by 13%, the Program’s Best Results In its 3 Years on the Air, Increasing Exposure for the ABC Late-Night Talker.
ABC Marks its Best-Ever Game 6 Numbers in Viewers and Adults 18-49, While Scoring the Highest Adult 18-34 Rating for Any NBA Finals Telecast Since 2004. On Average, the NBA Finals is Generating its Top Numbers in 6 Years, Qualifying as the Series’ 2nd-Strongest-Ever Numbers in its 8 Years on ABC.
Tuesday Night (8:00-11:00 p.m.) Airing Game 6 of the 2010 NBA Finals (Celtics-Lakers), ABC won its 2nd consecutive Tuesday in Total Viewers (14.7 million) and across all key Adult demos: AD18-34 (5.8/19), AD18-49 (5.7/17) and AD25-54 (5.8/16). Posting a dominant primetime victory, the Network topped its nearest competition by 6.1 million viewers (14.7 million vs. 8.6 million – CBS) and by 104% in Adults 18-49 (5.7/17 vs. 2.8/8 – Fox). It was ABC’s 6th straight primetime win with coverage of the 2010 NBA Finals.
In viewers and young adults, ABC produced its strongest summer Tuesday numbers in 6 years – since its broadcast of the series-clinching Game 5 of the 2004 NBA Finals (Pistons-Lakers) on 6/15/04.
“Jimmy Kimmel Live Game Night 6” (Various Time Periods)
ABC’s 2010 “JKL Game Night” specials are up by 13% in Total Viewers (3.6 million vs. 3.2 million) over the 2009 5-telecast average, drawing the program’s biggest audience in its 3 years on the air.
The “Game Night” specials are generating greatly increased sampling and exposure for “JKL,” more than doubling its results in Viewers (+112% – 3.6 million vs. 1.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (+120% – 1.1/4 vs. 0.5/3) over its late-night 2009-10 TV Season averages.
“NBA Finals on ABC – GM 6” (9:04 – 11:43 p.m., ET)
The “NBA Finals on ABC – GM 6” overshadowed original network competition during prime, including NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” Fox’s 2-hour “Hell’s Kitchen,” to stand as Tuesday’s definitive No. 1 TV program in Total Viewers (18.0 million) and across each of the key adult demographics: A18-34 (7.3/24), A18-49 (7.1/21) and A25-54 (7.2/20). It was the 6th consecutive broadcast for the 2010 NBA Finals to finish as the No. 1 TV show of the evening in viewers and key adults. In a lopsided victory, the LA Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics by a score of 89-67, forcing a decisive Game 7 on ABC Thursday night (6/17/10). It’s just the 3rd time in the last 22 years for The Finals to go to a Game 7.
Despite the one-sided nature of the contest, as the Lakers led by substantial margins throughout the game, it was ABC’s highest-rated-ever Game 6 in the eight years of broadcasting the NBA Finals (starting in 2003) in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49. Additionally, it was the top-rated telecast for any NBA Finals game in 6 years among Adults 18-34 (7.3/24) and Teens 12-17 (5.6/20) – since the series-ending fifth game of the 2004 Pistons-Lakers NBA Finals on 6/15/04.
On average, the 2010 NBA Finals continues to attract the championship series’ strongest numbers in 6 years (since 2004), its 2nd-highest-ever on ABC in both Total Viewers (16.4 million) and Adults 18-49 (6.6/20). Versus the 5-game 2009 Lakers-Magic series, The Finals on ABC is up year to year by 2.1 million viewers and by 12% in Adults 18-49 (14.3 million and 5.9/17).
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 36% currently, from 31% 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: ABC The Nielsen Company (National, Live + Same Day Program Ratings), 6/15/10.)
