TNT'S NBA Playoffs off to best start in cable history

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NETWORK AVERAGING A 2.7 U.S. HH RATING AND 4.3 MILLLION AVERAGE TOTAL VIEWERS, UP +29% AND +33%, RESPECTIVELY
 
TNT’s NBA Playoffs coverage delivering over 48% Growth in Affluent Viewers for
P18-34, P18-49 and P25-54, Tops Among Professional Sports Leagues
 
Coming off its most watched and highest-rated season in its 27 years of airing NBA basketball, Turner Sports announced today that through Tuesday, April 26, its 2011 NBA Playoffs coverage on TNT is also delivering the most watched and highest rated postseason to date in cable television history. TNT’s first 19 games of coverage have averaged a 2.7 U.S. HH Rating, (+29%, 2.1 U.S. HH Rating last year), 4,259,000 Total Viewers (+33%, 3,194,000 last year) and 3,136,000 Households (+29%, 2,432,000 last year). TNT is also delivering strong double-digit growth across all key demos, including:
·         A18-34   +39%   (1,426,000 vs. 1,026,000)
·         A18-49   +39%   (2,456,000 vs. 1,774,000)
·         A25-54   +34%   (2,175,000 vs. 1,662,000)
·         M18-34   +37%   (1,009,000 vs. 739,000)
·         M18-49   +40%   (1,770,000 vs. 1,265,000)
·         M25-54   +37%   (1,551,000 vs. 1,136,000)
 
The NBA Playoffs on TNT to-date are also delivering significant double digit growth with affluent viewers with a household income of $100,000+ or +$125,000 across P18-34, P18-49 and P25-54. The growth for both affluent categories is the most of any professional sports league, playoffs or regular season. Data below is through Monday, April 25.
Affluent Household of $100,000+:
·         P18-34           +78%    
·         P18-49           +60%  
·         P25-54           +48%  
 
Affluent Household Income of $125,000+:
·         P18-34           +98%
·         P18-49           +78%
·         P25-54           +60%
 
During its 52 games regular season, the NBA on TNT averaged a 1.6 U.S. household rating (+45% vs. 1.1 for last year’s corresponding coverage); 2,453,000 total viewers (+42% vs. 1,723,000); and 1,826,000 households (+39% vs. 1,315,000). In addition, this season’s audience is +30% larger than Turner’s second-best regular-season audience from 1995-96 (1,885,000).  Also, TNT aired three of the top five all-time most watched NBA regular season games in cable television history this season.
 
TNT’s coverage of the NBA Playoffs continues this evening with the Philadelphia 76ers @ Miami Heat (Game #5) at 7 p.m. ET, followed by the Denver Nuggets @ Oklahoma City Thunder (Game #5) at 9:30 p.m. ET. TNT will also air home-market exclusive Conference Semi-Finals coverage and the 2011 NBA Eastern Conference Finals exclusively.
 
Turner Sports, a division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., is an industry leader in televised and online sports programming, airing championship level sporting events on TBS, TNT and truTV, and managing some of the most popular sports sites on the Internet. Turner Sports’ television line-up includes the NBA, Major League Baseball, the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship, NASCAR and professional golf. The company’s digital portfolio includes SI.com, NASCAR.COM, NCAA.com, PGATOUR.COM, GOLF.com and PGA.com, as well as an accompanying collection of mobile websites and connected device apps. Turner Sports and the NBA also jointly manage NBA Digital, which includes NBA TV, NBA.com, NBA LEAGUE PASS, NBA Mobile, the NBA Game Time App, NBADLEAGUE.com and WNBA.com. 
 
TNT, one of cable’s top-rated networks, is television’s destination for drama.  Seen in 100.5 million households, the network is home to such original series as The Closer, starring Emmy® winner Kyra Sedgwick; Rizzoli & Isles, starring Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander; Leverage, starring Timothy Hutton; Hawthorne, with Jada Pinkett Smith; Memphis Beat, with Jason Lee; Men of a Certain Age, with Ray Romano, Andre Braugher and Scott Bakula; and Southland, from Emmy®-winning producer John Wells (ER); as well as the upcoming Falling Skies, starring Noah Wyle, and Franklin & Bash, with Mark-Paul Gosselaar and Breckin Meyer.  TNT also presents such powerful dramas as Bones, Supernatural, Las Vegas, Law & Order, CSI: NY, Cold Case and Numb3rs; broadcast premiere movies; compelling primetime specials, such as the Screen Actors Guild Awards®; and championship sports coverage, including NASCAR, the NBA and the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.  TNT is available in high-definition.
 
Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, animation and young adult media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world. 
 
Source: Nielsen Media Research. Based on Live + SD. NBA Playoffs on TNT Round 1 to-date; 19 games each (04/17/2011 – 04/26/2011) vs. (04/18/2010-4/27/ 2010).  Historical comparisons for NBA Round 1 Final averages on Cable only for seasons: 1984-2011. Affluent Source: Nielsen Media Research National TV Toolbox. Based on Live + SD data. NBA Playoffs on TNT, ESPN and ABC to date=4/16/11-4/25/11 vs. 4/17/10-4/26/10, includes live telecasts only. NBA Regular Season on ABC and ESPN=10/26/10-4/13/11 vs 10/27/09-4/14/10, includes live telecasts only. MLB STD on ESPN and FOX=3/31/11-4/25/11 vs. 4/4/10-4/26/10, includes live telecasts only. MLB Playoffs on FOX=10/16/10-11/1/10 vs 10/16/09-11/4/09, includes all World Series and LCS telecasts. NHL Regular Season on VS and NBC=10/7/10-04/10/11 vs. 10/1/09-4/11/10, includes live telecasts only. NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs to date on VS and NBC=4/13/11-4/25/11 vs. 4/14/10-4/26/10, includes live telecasts only. NFL 2010-11 season 9/9/10-1/2/11 vs. 2009-10 season 9/10/09-1/3/10 on CBS, FOX, NBC, ESPN and NFLN, includes live telecasts only. NFL 2011 Playoffs 1/8/11-2/6/11 vs NFL 2010 Playoffs=1/9/10-2/7/10, includes all live telecasts on FOX, ABC and NBC.


(Source: TNT)