‘Dancing with the Stars’ grew every half hour Wins Monday for ABC

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With season premiere of Dancing with the Stars (most-watched ever) leading into Castle (series highs), ABC delivered a dominant Monday night victory, winning all 6 half-hours of primetime and beating its nearest competition on the evening (CBS) by 9.2 million viewers (20.2 million vs. 11.0 million) and by 38% in Adults 18-49 (5.4/15 vs. 3.9/11).  The Network drew its biggest Monday night audience since January 2001 – since 1/1/01 with the Rose Bowl. 


Against original competition during its 10th season premiere (including CBS’ Monday comedy block/NBC’s Chuck and Trauma/Fox’s 24), ABC’s broad appealing Dancing with the Stars drew an average audience of 23.9 million viewers and a 6.3/17 in Adults 18-49 to win its time period and finish as Monday’s #1 TV program on both Nielsen measures. 

Growing steadily throughout its broadcast, DWTS won each of its half-hours in viewers and young adults, outdrawing second-place CBS in the 2-hour time period by 12.7 million viewers and by 47% in Adults 18-49 (CBS = 11.2 million and 4.3/11) .  DWTS was up nicely over its year-ago season opener (22.8 million and 6.1/15 on 3/9/09), while leaping over its most-recent season premiere in Fall ’09 by 6.1 million and 54% in Adults 18-49 (17.8 million and 4.1/10 on 9/21/09).  In fact it was Dancing’s most-watched season opener ever and second-highest ever in Adults 18-49. 

In addition, the DWTS Season 10 premiere represents ABC’s most-watched regular entertainment telecast since November 2007 (11/27/07).  Excluding only the 2001 Rose Bowl, Dancing produced ABC’s biggest audience in the time slot in nearly 10 years, while generating its highest Adult 18-49 number in more than 3 years –  since 5/1/00 and 3/19/07, respectively.
 
ABC’s Castle finished #1 in the 10 o’clock hour over original drama competition in Total Viewers (12.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.6/10), beating a first-run episode of CBS’ veteran CSI: Miami (10.7 million and 3.2/9) for the first time ever, and more than doubling the overall audience of NBC’s Law & Order (5.9 million and 1.8/5) and beating the NBC veteran by 100% in Adults 18-49.  Surging over its performance on the year-ago night in Total Viewers (+42%) and Adults 18-49 (+44%), Castle achieved the series’ highest numbers ever.   In fact Castle delivered ABC’s biggest audience in the time period with a scripted series telecast since 2001 and its top Adult 18-49 number since 2006 – since 3/12/01 and 3/27/06, respectively.

(source: information from ABC)