ABC's "Wipeout" is #1 at 8pm for the 4th Straight Week

Some early info on ABC's Thursday, ahead of the regular press release.

ABC ran in a virtual tie for #1 with CBS on Thursday in Adults 18-49 (pacing within 1-tenth of a rating point and tied in audience share) and finished a strong #2 to a Big Brother-fueled CBS in Total Viewers. ABC also stood as the #1 broadcaster on Thursday in Teens 12-17 and Kids 2-11.

ABC's Wipeout won the 8pm hour in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 for the 4th week in a row, beating its unscripted time period competition on Fox (So You Think You Can Dance) by 1.2 million viewers and by 13% in young adults. The ABC unscripted show also topped the hour across all key Men demos (M18-34/M18-49/M25-54).

· The broad-appealing ABC series qualified as Thursday's top-rated broadcast show in Teens 12-17 and Kids 2-11.

At 9pm, ABC's Expedition Impossible took second in the hour in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, behind CBS' Big Brother 13, while finishing as the hour's #1 broadcast program in Teens 12-17.

During the 10 o'clock hour, ABC's Rookie Blue scored a first place win in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 for the 4th straight week, outdrawing NBC's Love Bites by 3.3 million viewers and dominating the NBC original drama by 100% in the key young adult demo.

· Rookie Blue improved its time period year to year for ABC, topping an original airing of Boston Med on the same night last summer (7/15/10) by 13% in viewers and by 8% in Adults 18-49.

Quick Take for Thursday, July 14, 2011 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

Dominating Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance" in the 8 O'clock Hour, ABC's "Wipeout" Wins its Slot 4 Weeks in a Row in Viewers and Young Adults

ABC's "Expedition Impossible" Ranks Second at 9pm, Behind CBS' "Big Brother"

Continuing to Score Year-Over-Year Gains for ABC in Thursday's 10pm Hour, "Rookie Blue" Wins its Time Period for the 4th Straight Week in Adults 18-49

Thursday Night (8:00-11:00 p.m.)

ABC ran in a virtual tie for No. 1 with CBS on Thursday in Adults 18-49 (pacing within 1-tenth of a rating point and tied in audience share - 1.5/5 vs. 1.6/5) and finished a strong No. 2 in Total Viewers (5.4 million) to a "Big Brother"-fueled CBS. ABC also led its broadcast rivals on Thursday in Teens 12-17 and Kids 2-11.

"Wipeout" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

ABC's "Wipeout" won Thursday's 8 o'clock hour in Total Viewers (6.4 million) and Adults 18-49 (1.8/7) for the 4th week in a row, beating its unscripted time period competition on Fox ("So You Think You Can Dance") by 1.2 million viewers and by 13% in young adults. The ABC unscripted show also topped the hour across all key Men demos (M18-34/M18-49/M25-54).

· The broad-appealing ABC series qualified as the top-rated broadcast show on Thursday in Teens 12-17 and Kids 2-11.

"Expedition Impossible" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

At 9:00 p.m., ABC's "Expedition Impossible" took second in the hour in both Total Viewers (4.6 million) and Adults 18-49 (1.3/4), behind CBS' "Big Brother 13," while finishing as the hour's No. 1 broadcast program in Teens 12-17.

"Rookie Blue" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

During the 10 o'clock hour, ABC's "Rookie Blue" scored a first place win in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 for the 4th straight week, outdrawing NBC's "Love Bites" by 3.3 million viewers (5.3 million vs. 2.0 million) and dominating the NBC original drama by 100% in the key young adult demo (1.4/4 vs. 0.7/2). The ABC sophomore drama also finished No. 1 in the hour with Adults 25-54 (1.7/5-tie).

· "Rookie Blue" improved its time period year to year for ABC, topping an original airing of "Boston Med" on the same night last summer by 13% in viewers and by 8% in Adults 18-49 (4.7 million and 1.3/4 on 7/15/10).

· "Rookie Blue" grew on its lead-in in Total Viewers and across all key Adult demos (AD18-34/AD18-49/AD25-54).

A note about increasing DVR penetration and year-to-year rating comparisons: Year-to-year rating comparisons based on the Live + Same Day data stream are distorted by the level of DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample, which has jumped up to 41% currently, from 36% at the same point in 2010. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which may not be reflected in the overnight next day numbers. The only truly valid year-to-year comparison would be one based on the Live + 7 Day metric, once those stats are released by Nielsen.

Source: The Nielsen Company (Fast Affiliate, Live + Same Program Ratings), 7/14/11.