Overall: During the week of 4/15/13, ABC was the 2nd-most-watched TV network to CBS, with a 1.0 million viewer advantage over both Fox and NBC. Ranking among the Top 4 most-watched TV shows, ABC’s two editions of Dancing outdrew both editions of Fox’s American Idol during the week. ABC was up week to week in Total Viewers (+12%) and Adults 18-49 (+8%).
Please Note: Some of ABC’s top shows were in repeats during the week, including Modern Family, Nashville, Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal. In addition, the Net’s Friday night lineup was pre-empted for coverage of the Boston man hunt, while on Sunday Revenge and Red Widow were pre-empted for a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie.
Monday: ABC earned second place on Monday night in Adults 18-49, finishing ahead of Fox’s original lineup (+10%). Dancing with the Stars was up week to week in viewers and young adults and Castle once again was the most-watched TV show in the 10pm hour and the night’s top scripted series. Gaining week to week in Total Viewers (+2%) and Adults 18-49 (+5%), ABC’s Dancing with the Stars nearly tied CBS’ original 8–10pm comedy block among Adults 18-49 (pacing within 1-tenth of a rating point and tied in audience share) and beat out Fox’s first-run dramas (Bones/The Forgotten) by 10%. Up for the 2nd week in a row with Women 18-34, DWTS delivered a best-since-premiere rating – since 3/18/13. During the 10 o’clock hour, ABC’s Castle was the most-watched TV show in its slot for its 6th straight original airing and was Monday’s #1 scripted series for its 5th consecutive telecast. In the hour, Castle defeated CBS’ Hawaii Five-0 by a season-best 2.5 million viewers and 11% in Adults 18-49.
Tuesday: Building from start to finish (+10%) in the 8pm hour against NBC’s The Voice, ABC freshman Splash drew more viewers than Fox’s Hell’s Kitchen (+8%) for the 5th week in a row. Growing week to week in Total Viewers (+5%) and Adults 18-49 (+10%), ABC’s DWTS: The Results Show moved up to #1 during the 9 o’clock hour on both measures. D.L. Hughley was the fourth celebrity to leave the competition this season. In addition to increasing over the prior week, the ABC dancing results program was up over its comparable fourth telecast of Season 15 in Adults 18-49 (+10%). For the 4th consecutive Tuesday, ABC’s Body of Proof stood as the most-watched TV show in the 10 o’clock hour, topping CBS’ first-run Golden Boy by 11% and more than tripling the second hour of NBC’s Ready for Love (+218%). In addition, the ABC drama beat NBC’s Ready for Love by 27% in Adults 18-49. Body of Proof held even week to week in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, while improving its hour over the same night last year with original drama programming by 37% in viewers.
Wednesday: At 8:30pm, ABC’s season finale of Suburgatory built on its lead-in by 13% and paced within 1-tenth of last week’s Adult 18-49 delivery. From 8:30-9pm, Suburgatory beat out the second half of Survivor among Women 18-34. At 9pm, ABC’s repeat Modern Family took second in Adults 18-49 to Fox’s American Idol and outdelivered its scripted competition in the half-hour on CBS by 25% (Criminal Minds) and on NBC by 100% (L&O: SVU). Up over its most recent repeat in viewers (+19%) and young adults (+11%), Modern Family generated its most-watched replay since the beginning of January – since 1/2/13. Retaining 100% of its Modern Family Adult 18-49 lead-in, ABC’s How to Live with Your Parents took second in the 9:30pm half-hour to Idol. And although its encore Modern Family lead-in was off 47% from last week’s original telecast, How to Live with Your Parents retained 80% of its week-ago Adult 18-49 delivery. During the 10 o’clock hour, ABC’s Nashville was up 33% over its last repeat in Adults 18-49.
Thursday: In the 8 o’clock hour, ABC’s Wife Swap was up for the 2nd week in row in both Total Viewers (+2%) and Adults 18-49 (+7%) to deliver its best performance since its season opener 4 weeks ago – since 3/21/13. Opposite Fox’s American Idol, Wife Swap grew by 7% among young adults from its first half-hour to its second half-hour. At 8pm, ABC’s unscripted series beat NBC’s original Community in the half-hour by 1.5 million viewers and by 8% in Adults 18-49 (NBC aired a repeat of The Office in the 8:30pm half-hour).
Saturday: In the 8 o’clock hour, ABC’s Bet On Your Baby dominated NBC’s original Smash by 42% in Total Viewers and by 50% in Adults 18-49. The new ABC series shot up over its week-ago debut by 17% in Total Viewers and by 20% among young adults, turning in its most-watched telecast yet.
Sunday: ABC took second place on Sunday night in Total Viewers with its biggest audience on the evening in 7 weeks – since 3/3/13. On its first regular original telecast in 1 month (since 3/24/13), ABC’s Once Upon a Time surged over its lead-in at 8pm by 62% to rank as the #2 series on Sunday in Adults 18-49, returning on par with its last first-run episode (pacing within 1-tenth of a rating point and even in audience share). The drama grew over the prior week’s recap show by 50% in Adults 18-49. Once Upon a Time won its hour over its broadcast competition with Women 18-34. From 9-11pm against original competition on CBS (The Good Wife/The Mentalist) and NBC (2-hour Celebrity Apprentice), ABC’s Hallmark Hall of Fame: Remember Sunday finished #1 with Women 18-49, building from its first half-hour to its final half-hour. Remember Sunday was up by double-digit percentages over ABC’s last Hallmark Hall of Fame movie (The Makeover on 1/27/13) in Total Viewers (+25%) and Adults 18-49 (+18%).
