THE PREMIERE OF 'THE BIGGEST LOSER 7' IS THE #1 SHOW TUESDAY IN 18-49, PACING NBC TO A NIGHTLY WIN IN PRIMETIME'S KEY DEMO

'THE BIGGEST LOSER 7' ATTRACTS THE HEFTIEST VIEWERSHIP EVER FOR A DEBUT EPISODE OF THE SERIES

NBC WINS EVERY HALF-HOUR OF PRIMETIME IN ADULTS 18-49, AS 'LAW & ORDER: SVU' LOCKS UP A NEW SEASON HIGH IN THE KEY DEMOGRAPHIC

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. � January 7, 2009 � Last night, the premiere of "The Biggest Loser 7" won its highly competitive two-hour time period in adults 18-49 and other key measures and attracted the biggest overall viewership ever for a debut episode of the series, according to "fast affiliate-based" "live plus same day" viewing figures from Nielsen Media Research. Pending updates, NBC won the night and all six half-hours of primetime in the key demographic of adults 18-49.

Last night from 8-10 p.m. ET, the debut of "The Biggest Loser 7" (4.4 rating, 11 share in adults 18-49, 11.8 million viewers overall) won its time period in adults, men and women 18-49 and adults, men and women 18-34, against tough competition that included first-run episodes of CBS's "NCIS" and "The Mentalist," the ABC debuts of "Homeland Security USA" and "Scrubs" and Fox's encore telecasts of "House" and "Fringe."

"The Biggest Loser" was the top-rated show of the night on any network last night in adults 18-49.

This performance matches the top rating ever for a "Loser" debut in adults 18-49 and represents a new high for a "Loser" premiere in total viewers. In fact, excluding finales, this is the biggest "Biggest Loser" ever in total viewers and is the top-rated "Loser" non-finale telecast in adults 18-49 since the penultimate episode of the first "Biggest Loser" cycle on January 4, 2005.

Versus the series' most recent debut ("The Biggest Loser 6" on September 16, 2008), last night's telecast was up 38 percent in 18-49 rating (4.4/11 vs. 3.2/9) and 49 percent in total viewers (11.8 million vs. 7.9 million). Last night's telecast matched the year-ago debut of "The Biggest Loser 5" in adults 18-49 (a 4.4/10 on January 1, 2008) and was up 13 percent in total viewers versus that year-ago debut (11.8 million vs. 10.5 million).

From its first half-hour to its fourth, "Biggest Loser" increased by 35 percent in 18-49 rating (to a 5.0/12 from a 3.7/10) and its overall viewership increased by 24 percent or 2.5 million persons (to 12.8 million from 10.3 million).

At 10 p.m. ET, "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (3.9/10 in 18-49, 10.6 million viewers overall) locked up a new season high in adults 18-49 and attracted its second-highest overall viewership of the season to date. "SVU" won its hour in adults 18-49 and all other key demographics opposite a first-run "Without a Trace" on CBS and the debut of "Primetime: What Would You Do" on ABC.

Preliminary 18-49 averages for Tuesday night are: NBC, 4.3/11; CBS, 3.4/9; ABC, 2.7/7; Fox, 1.8/5; CW, 1.1/3. In overall total viewers, January 6 preliminary results are: CBS, 17.3 million; NBC, 11.4 million; ABC, 7.2 million; Fox, 4.6 million; CW, 2.3 million

Note that all national ratings are "live plus same day" unless otherwise indicated.