The Bachelor up for ABC

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Monday Night (8:00-11:00 p.m.)
Opposite NBC’s “The Voice” and CBS’ original Monday schedule, ABC’s combination of “The Bachelor” and “Castle” defeated Fox’s original drama lineup (“House”/”Alcatraz”) during primetime in Total Viewers (8.3 million vs. 6.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.3/6 vs. 2.1/5).   The Net once again held the No. 2 position on the night with Women 18-34 and was the 2nd-highest-rated broadcaster with Teens 12-17.   


“The Bachelor” (8:00-10:00 p.m.)
Facing “The Voice” and CBS’ first-run comedy block, ABC’s “The Bachelor” grew its audience from its first hour to its second hour, beating out Fox’s dramas in head-to-head competition from 8:00-10:00 p.m. by an even wider margin this week of 1.3 million viewers (8.0 million vs. 6.7 million) and by 19% in Adults 18-49 (2.5/6 vs. 2.1/6).  The ABC unscripted series earned second in its time slot with its core audience of Women 18-34, beating CBS’ comedy block by 15% (3.1/8 vs. 2.7/7).  

“Castle” (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
During the 10 o’clock hour, ABC’s “Castle” built on its lead-in to draw 10% more viewers than NBC’s “Voice-“fueled “Smash” (8.9 million vs. 8.1 million).  “Castle” also finished as the No. 2 drama in the hour with Women 18-34.

* ABC’s “Castle” grew its overall audience week to week and was also up over the same week last year.

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 43% currently, from 39% at the same point in 2011.
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: The Nielsen Company (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings), 2/13/12.

(Source: ABC)