nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, january 1, 2010)

Here are the highlights of the nine ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

Delayed coverage of the "NHL Winter Classic" (4.56 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.8, #1) was enough to put NBC (4.56 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.8, #1) on top on the first night of 2011.

FOX (4.77 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.6, #2) then had to settle for the silver with its mainstays "Cops" (4.71 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.6, #3) and "America's Most Wanted" (4.82 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.7, #2).

Next up was CBS (6.14 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.2, #3) with repeats of "CSI: Miami" (5.49 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T7), "48 Hours Mystery" (5.92 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.1, #5) and another "48 Hours Mystery" (7.00 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.5, #4).

And finally, encores of "V" (3.07 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.8, #9), another "V" (3.09 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T7) and yet another "V" (3.27 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.0, #6) on ABC (3.14 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #4) closed out the evening.

Here are the highlights of the 10 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (1/2/10):

Mainstays "Cops" (5.40 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.9, #1) and "America's Most Wanted" (5.54 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.8, #2) once again lifted FOX (5.47 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.8, #1) to Saturday's top spot.

The silver then went to CBS (5.59 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.5, #2) with its mix of "I Get That A Lot" (4.97 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T5), "Criminal Minds" (5.32 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.5, #4) and "48 Hours Mystery" (6.47 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.7, #3).

Next up was NBC (4.01 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.9, #3) with its own repeats of "Mercy" (2.49 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.5, #10), "Law & Order" (4.37 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.9, #7) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (5.17 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.4, #T5).

And finally, encores of the last two episodes of "Desperate Housewives" (2.32 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T8) and a repeat of "Castle" (3.41 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T8) on ABC (2.68 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4) rounded out the evening.

Source: Nielsen Media Research