or


[05/23/06 - 12:00 AM]
Primetime Ratings Report for the Week of May 15-21, 2006

[via press release from ABC]

Primetime Ratings Report For the week of May 15-21, 2006

During the Final Complete Week of the Official 2005-06 TV Season, ABC Earns Second to Fox Across Each of the Key Adult Demographics and Claims 4 of the Top 12 TV Shows in Adults 18-49, Including the Top 2 Scripted

ABC Delivers its Strongest Viewer and Young Adult Performance in 11 Weeks

ABC Finishes �05-06 with its Best Season in 5 Years in Viewers and Young Adults, Standing as the Only Network to Grow its Adult 18-49 Audience Over Last Season

ABC Dominates Monday, as the Concluding Part 2 of the �Grey�s Anatomy� Season Finale Towers Over its Time Period and Ranks as Monday�s No. 1 TV Show

Excluding Sports and Awards Shows, �Grey�s Anatomy� Produces ABC�s Top Numbers in the Monday 9-11pm Time Period in Exactly 11 Years

The Season Finale of �Boston Legal� Logs ABC�s Strongest Time Period Performance In Over 2 Months, as the Drama Brings ABC Solid Increases on Tuesday This Season

TV�s Top Scripted Series on Wednesday Night, ABC�s �Lost� Stands as the Evening�s No. 1 Scripted Show in Adults 18-49 on All 22 of its Original Telecasts This Season

During its Run in the Ultra Competitive Thursday 9-10pm Hour, �American Inventor� Improves the Time Slot for ABC by 3.4 Million Viewers and by 89% in Adults 18-49

ABC�s Longest Running Entertainment Series, �America�s Funniest Home Videos� Wins in its Friday Finale in Adults 18-49, Beating CBS� Finale of �Close to Home�

ABC News� �20/20� Equals its Second-Strongest Adult 18-49 Rating Since January And Posts the Newsmagazine�s Highest-Rated Telecast Among Men 18-49 in 1 Year

ABC Concludes the 2005-06 TV Season Winning 17 Straight Sundays in Adults 18-49

In its Sunday Finale, �Extreme Makeover: Home Edition� Defeats Season Finales Of CBS� �Cold Case� and Fox�s �The Simpsons� to Win in Viewers and Adults 18-49

ABC�s �Desperate Housewives� Concludes its Sophomore Season as Sunday�s No. 1 Program, Dominating its Time Period with its Largest Audience in 4 Months

WEEK No. 35:

During the final complete Nielsen week of the official 2005-06 TV Season (w/o 5/15/06), ABC took second place to Fox across each of the adult demographics: Adults 18-34 (3.4/10), Adults 18-49 (4.0/11) and Adults 25-54 (4.5/11). ABC ranked No. 1 during the week, beating �Idol�-fueled Fox, among Women 18-49 (5.1/13) and Women 25-54 (5.7/13).

� ABC delivered its highest viewer and young adult numbers in 11 weeks � since the week of �Academy Awards� telecast, w/o 2/27/06.

� ABC�s primetime delivery was up over the final complete week of last TV Season (w/o 5/16/05) by 6% in viewers (10.5 million vs. 9.9 million) and by 5% in Adults 18-49 (4.0/11 vs. 3.8/11). ABC will conclude the 2005-06 Television Season with its second consecutive year of growth among Total Viewers (+7% -10.8 million vs. 10.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (+8% - 4.0/11 vs. 3.7/10), representing its strongest season in 5 years � since 2000-01. In fact ABC is the only network to increase its delivery this season in the key Adult 18-49 sales demographic.

Rankings: ABC aired 4 of the week�s Top 12 TV programs in the key Adult 18-49 sales demographic, including the Top 2 scripted series: �Desperate Housewives� and �Grey�s Anatomy� tied at No. 3 (tied for No. 1 scripted), �Lost� � No. 9 and �Extreme Makeover: Home Edition� � No. 12. With the season closers of �Desperate Housewives� and �Grey�s Anatomy� during the week, ABC also claims the Top 2 finales this season in Adults 18-49. Additionally, �Housewives� (No. 4) and �Grey�s� (No. 5) finished among the week�s Top 5 most-watched television programs. ABC�s �Grey�s Anatomy� stood as the week�s No. 1 TV program with Women 18-34, outperforming both editions of Fox�s �American Idol.�

Monday

With the concluding part 2 of the sophomore season finale of �Grey�s Anatomy,� ABC turned in a dominant Monday night victory, beating its nearest competition on the evening by 5.7 million viewers (19.0 million vs. 13.3 million - NBC) and by 71% in Adults 18-49 (8.2/19 vs. 4.8/11 - Fox).

� ABC delivered its most-watched non-sports Monday night in more than 6 years and its top-rated among Adults 18-49 in over 8 years � since 5/1/00 and 3/23/98, respectively.

� Versus the same night last May, ABC�s delivery shot up by 9.7 million viewers and by 110% in Adults 18-49 (9.3 million & 3.9/10 in Adults 18-49 on 5/16/05).

�Grey�s Anatomy� (9:00-11:00 p.m.)

Part 2 of the season finale for �Grey�s Anatomy� attracted an average audience of 22.5 million viewers and earned a 9.9 rating, 22 share among Adults 18-49 to rank a definitive No. 1 in its time period on both Nielsen measures. Building on its lead-in and gaining audience during each half-hour of its 2-hour telecast, the ABC drama dominated each half-hour from 9:00-11:00 p.m. in viewers and young adults. �Grey�s� stood as Monday�s No. 1 TV program in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49.

� Excluding sports programming and award shows, �Grey�s Anatomy� garnered ABC�s strongest Total Viewer and Adult 18-49 numbers in the time period in exactly 11 years � since 5/15/95.

� In its conclusion, �Grey�s� posted the series� highest Adult 18-34 rating (9.5/23) in 11 weeks � since 2/26/06. In Adults 18-49, the drama matched its strongest performance since February � since 2/26/06.

Tuesday

�Boston Legal� (9:00-11:00 p.m.)

Building on its lead-in, the 2-hour season finale of �Boston Legal� attracted 9.3 million viewers and a 2.6 rating, 6 share among Adults 18-49. The drama posted ABC�s strongest numbers in the 2-hour time period with series programming in over 2 months � since 3/7/06.

� �Boston Legal� gained viewers throughout its telecast, growing by 2.7 million viewers (7.9 million to 10.6 million) and by 48% among Adults 18-49 (2.1/5 to 3.1/8) from its first half-hour to its final half-hour.

� Compared to ABC�s average with original series programming in the hour last season (�NYPD Blue�/�Blind Justice�), �Boston Legal� improved the Net�s time period performance this season by 12% in Total Viewers (10.6 million vs. 9.4 million), by 11% in Adults 18-34 (2.0/6 vs. 1.8/5) and by 5% in Adults 25-54 (4.2/10 vs. 4.0/10), on average.

Wednesday

�Lost� (9:00-10:04 p.m.)

Going up against an extended 1-hour edition of Fox�s �American Idol� results show (9:00-10:00 p.m.), ABC�s �Lost� built considerably on its lead-in and then went on to grow its audience from its first half-hour to its second half-hour. Holding second place to �Idol� during the 9 o�clock hour, �Lost� beat out third-place CBS, with the concluding hour of its 2-hour �Amazing Race IX� season finale, by 5.5 million viewers (14.7 million vs. 9.2 million) and by 79% in Adults 18-49 (6.1/14 vs. 3.4/8).

� Although it faced extraordinary competition, self-starter �Lost� jumped from its �Alias� lead-in by 9.3 million viewers and by 239% in Adults 18-49. Then from its first to its second half-hour, the ABC drama increased its audience among viewers (14.1 million to 14.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (5.9/14 to 6.2/14).

� ABC�s �Lost� qualified as TV�s No. 1 scripted program on Wednesday in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49. The ABC sophomore series has been the top-rated scripted program on Wednesday in the key Adult 18-49 sales demographic in all 22 of its original telecasts this season.

Thursday

�American Inventor� (9:00-10:01 p.m.)

Up against the season finale of CBS� �C.S.I.� and the series finale of NBC�s �Will & Grace,� the season finale of ABC�s �American Inventor� built on its lead-in by 1.6 million viewers and by 41% among young adults and then went on to gain viewer and young adult audience from start to finish, drawing an average audience of 6.6 million viewers and a 2.4/6 in Adults 18-49.

� During its run, �American Inventor� has improved the 9 o�clock hour for ABC by 3.4 million viewers (8.9 million vs. 5.5 million) and by 84% in Adults 18-49 (3.5/9 vs. 1.9/5), as compared to the Net�s performance over the same date range last year.

Friday

ABC nearly tied CBS for first place on the final Friday of the season in Adults 18-49 (2.5/8 vs. 2.6/9). The Network also took second place on the evening among Total Viewers (7.8 million), representing its biggest audience on the night in 6 weeks � since 4/7/06.

� ABC was up over the same Friday last May in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 (7.6 million & 2.2/7 on 5/20/05).

�America�s Funniest Home Videos� (8:00-10:00 p.m.)

In its season finale, ABC�s �America�s Funniest Home Videos� won its 2-hour time period among Adults 18-49 (2.4/8). The venerable ABC video clip show also took the No. 1 position in the slot among Adults 25-54 (2.9/9) and Kids 2-11 (1.9/7). Gaining audience throughout its telecast, ABC�s �Funniest Home Videos� beat CBS� season finale of time period regular and returning drama �Close to Home� in the key Adult 18-49 sales demographic from 9:00-10:00 p.m. (2.7/9 vs. 2.6/8). Finishing up its 17th season on the air, �America�s Funniest Home Videos� becomes ABC�s longest running entertainment series.

� �America�s Funniest Home Videos� produced ABC�s largest audience (7.6 million) and top Adult 18-49 rating (2.4/8) in the time period in 6 weeks (since 4/7/06), its second-strongest numbers in the slot since February (since 2/24/06).

�20/20� (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

ABC News� �20/20� delivered a solid second place during the 10 o�clock hour in Total Viewers (8.0 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.9/9). �20/20,� which explored the many aspects of making money, beat CBS� season finale of �Numbers� in the time period among Men 18-34 (1.5/6 vs. 1.4/5) and Men 18-49 (2.4/8 vs. 2.3/7).

� The ABC newsmagazine matched its second-highest Adult 18-49 rating since January, while posting its best rating in 1 year among Men 18-49 � since 1/20/06 and 5/13/05, respectively.

Sunday

ABC delivered a dominant victory on the final Sunday of the 2005-06 TV Season, beating its nearest competitors by 6.1 million viewers (17.6 million vs. 11.5 million - CBS) and by 103% in Adults 18-49 (7.1/19 vs. 3.5/9). ABC�s Sunday lineup experienced growth during each half-hour of the night among Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, building by 17.5 million viewers (7.8 million to 25.3 million) and by 253% in Adults 18-49 (3.0/10 to 10.6/26) from the first to the final half-hour of the evening. ABC won all 4 hours of the night in Adults 18-49 for the 5th time in 6 weeks.

� ABC finished out the 2005-06 TV Season enjoying its longest Sunday winning streak in at least 15 years, standing as the No. 1 network on the night in Adults 18-49 for 17 consecutive weeks � its longest streak since at least September 1991, the beginning of Nielsen�s electronic database. The Network was the consistent leader on Sunday throughout the season in the key young adult sales demo, holding the top network position on 30 of 35 weeks.

� In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, the Network marked its strongest Sunday in 10 weeks � since 3/12/06.

� ABC claimed the Top 2 TV shows on Sunday in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, with �Desperate Housewives� and �Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,� respectively.

�Extreme Makeover: Home Edition � 7P� (7:00-8:00 p.m.)

A 7:00 p.m. installment of ABC�s �Extreme Makeover: Home Edition� topped its hour Adults 18-49, leading second-place Fox by 28% (3.2/11 vs. 2.5/6).

� The ABC unscripted series generated ABC�s largest audience in the time period in 8 weeks and its top Adult 18-49 rating in 9 weeks � since 3/26/06 and 3/19/06, respectively.

�Extreme Makeover: Home Edition� (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

In its third season finale, �Extreme Makeover: Home Edition� won its time period among Total Viewers (13.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (5.3/14). In the key Adult 18-49 sales demo, �Home Edition� outpaced second-place Fox with the season finale of �The Simpsons� and �Family Guy� in the hour by 35% (5.3/14 vs. 4.0/11).

� The broad appealing ABC unscripted series was a strong draw in its season finale among TV�s youngest viewers. It ranked as the No. 1 broadcast of the night among Kids 2-11 (3.5/12). In addition, �Home Edition� achieved its highest Teen 12-17 rating in 4 months (4.5/14 � best since 1/29/06), its second-highest number in that demographic this season.

�Desperate Housewives� (9:00-11:00 p.m.)

In its sophomore season finale, �Desperate Housewives� towered over its nearest competition. From 9:00-11:00 p.m., ABC�s �Desperate Housewives� outdelivered its nearest competitors by 13.2 million viewers (24.2 million vs. 11.0 million - CBS) and by 154% in Adults 18-49 (9.9/23 vs. 3.9/9 � Fox from 9:00-10:00 p.m.).

� �Desperate Housewives� drew its biggest audience since January and its top Adult 18-49 rating since February � since 1/22/06 and 2/12/06, respectively.

Source: Nielsen Media Research (Live+SD), week of 5/15/06, or as dated.





  [may 2006]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
 


· 20/20 (ABC)
· ALIAS (ABC)
· AMAZING RACE, THE (CBS)
· AMERICAN IDOL (ABC)
· AMERICAN INVENTOR (ABC)
· AMERICA'S FUNNIEST HOME VIDEOS (ABC)
· BLIND JUSTICE (ABC)
· BOSTON LEGAL (ABC)
· CLOSE TO HOME (CBS)
· COLD CASE (CBS)
· CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION (CBS)
· DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (ABC)
· EXTREME MAKEOVER: HOME EDITION (HGTV)
· FAMILY GUY (FOX)
· GREY'S ANATOMY (ABC)
· LOST (ABC)
· NUMB3RS (CBS)
· NYPD BLUE (ABC)
· SIMPSONS, THE (FOX)
· WILL & GRACE (NBC)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[12/05/24 - 05:53 PM]
Hallmark Channel's "Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story" Wins Most-Watched Cable Movie of the Year!
The Merry Thanksgiving Weekend premieres were the #1 most-watched entertainment cable programs on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, as the programming stunt reached 8.4 million unduplicated total viewers.

[12/05/24 - 02:23 PM]
ABC Dominates Fall Season with Top 3 Shows in Adults 18-49 in Cross-Platform Broadcast Series Rankings
ABC owned the top three broadcast series this fall among Adults 18-49, including freshman hit "High Potential" (No 1 - 2.33 rating), award-winning comedy "Abbott Elementary" (No. 2 - 2.15 rating) and popular first-responder drama "9-1-1" (No. 3 - 1.85 rating).

[12/05/24 - 08:31 AM]
ESPN and ABC Deliver Record-Breaking College Football Viewership in 2024 - ABC Scores Top Two Most-Watched Windows with "ABC Saturday Night Football" More Than Doubling the Competition
ABC reached historic milestones in 2024, with viewers consuming 58 billion minutes of live college football, the most ever for a single network during a regular season.

[12/04/24 - 11:21 AM]
"The Agency" Delivers the Most Streamed New Series in Showtime History with 5.1M Global Viewers
The series has been renewed for a season two on the heels of its highly anticipated debut on Friday, November 29.

[12/03/24 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of Nov. 25: "Our Little Secret" Shines at #1; "Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey?" Takes the Top Spot
The conspiracy thriller "The Madness," starring Colman Domingo, debuted at #2 (9.3M views) on the English TV List.

[11/29/24 - 05:03 PM]
2024 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Delivers 31.3 Million Viewers Across All Platforms
With 23.6 million viewers watching on NBC during the live telecast (8:30 a.m.-12 p.m.), it's the most watched entertainment show on linear television since the 2020 Academy Awards on ABC.

[11/29/24 - 03:47 PM]
More Than 26 Million Thanksgiving Night NFL Viewers for Record Third Consecutive Year on NBC, Peacock, and Telemundo, as Dolphins and Packers Continue NBC Sports' Holiday Tradition
Viewership for last night's game peaked at 31.3 million viewers in the second quarter (9:00-9:15 p.m. ET).

[11/27/24 - 05:15 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Season 33 Finale Delivers Largest Audience in Over Four Years
Season to date, "Dancing with the Stars" stands as the No. 1 entertainment series among Adults 18-49 (0.77 rating) - the first time for the show to take the top spot for the broadcast season in its entire history.

[11/26/24 - 04:55 PM]
"Abbott Elementary" Season 4 Return Skyrockets +321% in Total Viewers and +846% in Adults 18-49 Over Initial Live+Same Day Audience
The season four premiere of "Abbott Elementary" stands as the top multiplatform telecast in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 since the show's post-Oscars episode (3/10/24).

[11/26/24 - 01:15 PM]
ABC News' "Nightline" Ranks No. 1 in Total Viewers, Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49 vs. CBS' "After Midnight" and NBC's "Late Night with Seth Meyers"
"Nightline" posted double-digit gains week to week across the board, hitting a 6-week high in overall viewers and 7-week highs in both key Adult demos.

[11/26/24 - 12:03 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of Nov. 18: "The Merry Gentlemen" and "A Man on the Inside" Take the Top Spots
Season 2 of the animated series "Arcane" laid siege to #2 (6.4M views), while Season 1 took #5 with 2.2M views.

[11/21/24 - 01:12 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Semifinals Is Top Program of the Night in Adults 18-49 and All Key Women Demographics
The spectacular season 33 penultimate episode grew over the previous week's 500th episode celebration in both Total Viewers (5.19 million vs. 5.13 million) and Adults 18-49 (0.75 rating vs. 0.71 rating), hitting a season high in Total Viewers.

[11/21/24 - 10:32 AM]
Taylor Sheridan's "Landman" Explodes with Over 5M Global Viewers Across Paramount+ and Linear Preview
The series also secured the #1 spot for a U.S. premiere in Paramount+ history within its first three days.

[11/19/24 - 01:38 PM]
Food Network's "Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking" Conjures Ratings and Reach with Series Premiere
The new series launched on Thursday, November 14, and posted a 0.57 P25-54 / 0.74 W25-54 L3 rating, more than doubling prior six-week benchmarks (+148% and +124% respectively) and is on pace to be Food Network's highest rated freshman series of the year.

[11/19/24 - 12:58 PM]
"Abbott Elementary" Hits Season Highs in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 with 6.33 Million Total Viewers and 2.21 Adults 18-49
After seven days of viewing on ABC, Hulu, Hulu on Disney+ and digital platforms, "Abbott Elementary" hit season highs in both Total Viewers (6.33 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.21 rating) with its November 6 episode.