or


[09/26/14 - 08:28 AM]
ABC's New Thursday Night Opens Big - 5 Year High
ABC spins the numbers for Thursday, September 25.

[via press release from ABC]

ABC's New Thursday Night Opens Big - 5 Year High

ABC Thursday Prime (8-11pm - 11.9 million and 3.5/11 in AD18-49): Opposite CBS' Thursday Night Football, ABC was the dominant non-sports net on season premiere Thursday in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.5/11). With its new drama lineup, the Net delivered the Top 3 entertainment shows of the night in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 with the debut of How to Get Away with Murder (14.0 million and 3.8/11), the premiere of Scandal in its new 9pm slot (11.9 million and 3.8/11), and the premiere of Grey's in its new 8pm slot (9.8 million and 3.0/10), respectively. How to Get Away with Murder was the night's most-watched show overall.

In fact, with How to Get Away with Murder and Black-ish, ABC has now delivered the season's Top 2 new TV shows in Adults 18-49, qualifying as the two highest rated debuts on any net since ABC's Resurrection opened in March - since 3/9/14. overall.

· In viewers and young adults, ABC marked its strongest Thursday night in 5 years - since 9/24/09.

Grey's Anatomy: Despite its earlier slot and facing Thursday Night Football, Grey's was up from its May finale in viewers and young adults (8.9 million and 2.6/8 on 5/15/14) and also topped its year-ago 2-hour season opener in Total Viewers (9.3 million on 9/26/13). In fact, Grey's earned its most-watched telecast overall in 2 years - since 10/4/12.

Scandal: Despite shifting back an hour into its new 9pm slot, Scandal scored series highs in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.8/11), building over the year-ago premiere by 13% and 6%, respectively.

How to Get Away with Murder: Building on its Scandal lead-in in Total Viewers (+18%) and holding 100% in Adults 18-49 at 10pm, ABC's How to Get Away with Murder (14.0 million and 3.8/11) opened as TV's most-watched 10pm drama debut in 2 years and tied and the highest among Adults 18-49 (matching last year's Blacklist debut) in 2 years - since 9/25/12 and 9/17/12, respectively.

L3 and L7 projections to follow....

Scandal Opens at Series Highs and How to Get Away with Murder is TV's Top 10pm Drama Debut in 2 Years

Thursday Night (9/25/14) - ABC Total Viewer and Adult 18-49 Projections

Grey's Anatomy: Live + 3 = 13.2 million/4.2 rating and Live + 7 = 13.9 million/4.5 rating

Scandal: Live + 3 = 15.6 million/5.0 rating and Live + 7 = 16.2 million/5.2 rating

How to Get Away with Murder: Live + 3 = 18.4 million/5.0 rating and Live + 7 = 19.0 million/5.2 rating

ABC Thursday Prime (8-11pm - 11.9 million and 3.5/11 in AD18-49): Opposite CBS' Thursday Night Football, ABC was the dominant non-sports net on season premiere Thursday in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.5/11). With its new drama lineup, the Net delivered the Top 3 entertainment shows of the night in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 with the debut of How to Get Away with Murder (14.0 million and 3.8/11), the premiere of Scandal in its new 9pm slot (11.9 million and 3.8/11), and the premiere of Grey's in its new 8pm slot (9.8 million and 3.0/10), respectively. How to Get Away with Murder was the night's most-watched TV show overall, topping the NFL game.

· In fact, with How to Get Away with Murder and Black-ish, ABC has now delivered the season's Top 2 new TV shows in Adults 18-49, qualifying as the two highest rated debuts on any net since ABC's Resurrection opened in March - since 3/9/14. overall.

· In viewers and young adults, ABC marked its strongest Thursday night in 5 years - since 9/24/09.

Grey's Anatomy: Despite its earlier slot and facing Thursday Night Football, Grey's was up from its May finale in viewers and young adults (8.9 million and 2.6/8 on 5/15/14) and also topped its year-ago 2-hour season opener in Total Viewers (9.3 million on 9/26/13). In fact, Grey's earned its most-watched telecast overall in 2 years - since 10/4/12.

Scandal: Despite shifting back an hour into its new 9pm slot, Scandal scored series highs in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.8/11), building over the year-ago premiere (10.6 million and 3.6/10 on 4/17/14) by 13% and 6%, respectively.

How to Get Away with Murder: Building on its Scandal lead-in in Total Viewers (+18%) and holding 100% in Adults 18-49 at 10pm, ABC's How to Get Away with Murder (14.0 million and 3.8/11) opened as TV's most-watched 10pm drama debut in 2 years and equaled the highest among Adults 18-49 (matching last year's Blacklist debut) in 2 years - since 9/25/12 and 9/17/12, respectively.

Quick Take for Thursday, September 25, 2014 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

ABC's New Thursday Drama Lineup Opens at a 5-Year High on the Night

In its New Slot, "Grey's" Posts ABC's Top Scripted Opener Since �09 in Adults 18-49

ABC's "Scandal" Opens its 4th Season at Series Highs in Viewers and Young Adults

"How to Get Away With Murder" is TV's Biggest 10pm Drama Debut in 2 Years

Thursday Night (9/25/14) - ABC Total Viewer and Adult 18-49 Projections

"Grey's Anatomy:" Live + 3 = 13.2 million/4.2 rating and Live + 7 = 13.9 million/4.5 rating

"Scandal:" Live + 3 = 15.6 million/5.0 rating and Live + 7 = 16.2 million/5.2 rating

"How to Get Away with Murder:" Live + 3 = 18.4 million/5.0 rating and Live + 7 = 19.0 million/5.2 rating

Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Results:

ABC Thursday Prime (8:00-11:00 p.m. - 11.9 million and 3.5/11 in AD18-49):

Opposite CBS' Thursday Night Football, ABC was the dominant non-sports net on season premiere Thursday in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.5/11). With its new drama lineup, the Net delivered the Top 3 entertainment shows of the night in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 with the debut of "How to Get Away with Murder" (14.0 million and 3.8/11), the premiere of "Scandal" in its new 9:00 p.m. slot (11.9 million and 3.8/11), and the premiere of "Grey's" in its new 8:00 p.m. slot (9.8 million and 3.0/10), respectively. In fact, "How to Get Away with Murder" was the night's most-watched TV show overall, topping CBS' NFL game.

· With "How to Get Away with Murder" and "black-ish," ABC has now delivered the season's Top 2 new TV shows in Adults 18-49, qualifying as the two highest-rated debuts on any net since ABC's "Resurrection" opened in March - since 3/9/14.

· In viewers and young adults, ABC marked its strongest Thursday night in 5 years - since 9/24/09.

"Grey's Anatomy" (8:00-9:00 p.m. - 9.8 million and 3.0/10 in AD18-49):

Despite its earlier slot and facing Thursday Night Football, "Grey's" season premiere was up from its May finale in viewers and young adults (8.9 million and 2.6/8 on 5/15/14) and also topped its year-ago 2-hour season opener in Total Viewers (9.3 million on 9/26/13). In fact, "Grey's" was ABC's top-rated scripted show to premiere/debut in the hour in 5 years among Adults 18-49 - since 9/24/09 with "Flashforward."

· "Grey's" marked the series' most-watched telecast overall in 2 years - since 10/4/12.

"Scandal" (9:00-10:00 p.m. - 11.9 million and 3.8/11 in AD18-49):

Shifting back an hour into its new 9:00 p.m. slot, "Scandal" opened its 4th season at series highs in Total Viewers (11.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.8/11), building over the year-ago premiere (10.6 million and 3.6/10 on 4/17/14) by 13% and 6%, respectively. "Scandal" was the most social prime program on broadcast TV Thursday with 718,436 tweets, making this the most social season premiere so far this season.

· "Scandal" generated ABC's best series numbers in the time period since January 2012 in Total Viewers and since October 2012 in Adults 18-49 - since 1/5/12 and 10/4/12, respectively.

"How to Get Away with Murder" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 14.0 million and 3.8/11 in AD18-49):

Building on its "Scandal" lead-in in Total Viewers (+18%) and holding 100% in Adults 18-49, ABC's "How to Get Away with Murder" (14.0 million and 3.8/11) opened as TV's most-watched 10:00 p.m. drama debut in 2 years and equaled the highest among Adults 18-49 (matching last year's "Blacklist debut) in 2 years - since 9/25/12 and 9/17/12, respectively.

· In Adults 18-49, "How to Get Away with Murder" and "Scandal" delivered Thursday's Top 2 drama telecasts on any net since October 2012 - since 10/4/12.

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 49% currently, from 48% at the same point in 2013. 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.

Projections Rationale:

Lifts vs. L+SD are based on the 2013-14 season for premiere telecast or an average for originals (excluding the premiere).

Returning shows: Profile based on same show (either premiere or averages for originals).

New Series: Based on similar series.

Source: The Nielsen Company, Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings, 09/25/14. Nielsen Social, total tweets, as dated.





  [september 2014]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
 


· GREY'S ANATOMY (ABC)
· HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER (ABC)
· SCANDAL (ABC)
· THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (AMAZON)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[07/02/25 - 02:38 PM]
Hallmark Channel Earns #1 Most-Watched Network on Weekends Throughout June with "Passport to Love" Programming Event
"Passport to Love" helped elevate Hallmark Channel to be the #1 most-watched network on weekends throughout the month of June.

[07/01/25 - 12:01 PM]
Top 10 Week of June 23: "Squid Game" Season 3 Takes Over with Record-Breaking Global Debut at No. 1
"The Waterfront" was a Top 10 hit once more as the No. 1 series on the English TV list (11.6 million views).

[07/01/25 - 10:26 AM]
ESPN Formula 1 Viewership Notes After Austrian Grand Prix
ESPN's live telecast on Sunday, June 29, averaged 1.1 million viewers, a two percent gain over last year's race and the largest audience ever for the event on U.S. television.

[07/01/25 - 09:16 AM]
ESPN's "Sunday Night Baseball" Featuring the Minnesota Twins vs. Detroit Tigers Averaged 2 Million Viewers - Up 66% from Last Year's Comparable Game
The audience peaked with 2,304,000 viewers in the 9:15 p.m. ET quarter hour.

[06/27/25 - 02:29 PM]
"Live with Kelly and Mark" Gears Up for Summer Rising Week to Week in All Key Measures
Wednesday, June 11, was the most-viewed day of the week among Total Viewers (2.164 million).

[06/27/25 - 10:31 AM]
"Jimmy Kimmel Live" Tops Late-Night in Adults 18-49 for Third Week in a Row
Winning three of five nights in Kimmel's final week before summer guest hosts, Thursday, June 19, was the show's strongest night among Adults 18-49 (0.35 rating).

[06/25/25 - 11:55 AM]
Prime Video Finishes Groundbreaking First Season of Exclusive NASCAR Coverage
According to Nielsen, NASCAR on Prime posted a season average of 2.16 million viewers (AMA P2+) across five events, and attracted droves of younger viewers to its live coverage.

[06/25/25 - 07:58 AM]
ABC News Primetime Special "Karen Read: The Verdict - A Special Edition of 20/20" Ranks #1 Across All of Broadcast and Cable in Adults 18-49
Plus: "Karen Read: The Verdict" placed No. 1 based on views among all titles on Hulu on Thursday (6/19), Friday (6/20) and Saturday (6/21).

[06/24/25 - 03:03 PM]
ABC News' "Nightline" Ranks No. 1 in All Key Target Demos 18-49 vs. CBS' "After Midnight" and NBC's "Late Night with Seth Meyers" for 2nd Consecutive Week, and Claims Top Spot in Total Viewers for the 5th Straight Week
On Monday (6/16/25), "Nightline" scored its most-watched telecast (1.112 million) in 5 months.

[06/24/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of June 16: "Tyler Perry's Straw" Leads Top 10 for Third Week, "The Waterfront" Swims to No. 1
Plus: "Ginny & Georgia" Season 3 racked up another 8.1 million views and felt peachy keen at No. 2, while Season 2 landed at No. 8 and Season 1 at No. 10, with an additional 2.7 million views each.

[06/24/25 - 08:42 AM]
Third Most-Watched WNBA Game Ever on ESPN: Indiana Fever vs Las Vegas Aces Averaged 1.7 Million Viewers, Up 52% from Last Year's ESPN Average
Said coverage peaked at 2.2 million viewers.

[06/23/25 - 12:09 PM]
Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Game 7 on ABC and ESPN+ Is Most-Watched NBA Finals Game in Six Years
The seven-game series averaged 10,266,000 viewers and delivered the seven most-watched broadcasts on all of television since the first week of May.

[06/18/25 - 09:01 AM]
Murder Mystery May Drives Acorn TV to the Most Successful Month In Its History
Total hours watched surpassed 20 million for the first time in Acorn TV history, with unique engaged subscribers also achieving an all-time high, up double digits from the streamer's average over the past 12 months.

[06/17/25 - 03:03 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"
On Wednesday, "Nightline" scored its most-watched telecast (1.049 million) in 5 months and strongest delivery in Adults 25-54 (404,000) in 1 year.

[06/17/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of June 9: "Tyler Perry's Straw" Has Biggest Week for a Film in 2025
"Ginny & Georgia's" third season maintained its No. 1 spot on the English TV List with 16.9 million views, as fans saw their favorite characters pushed "to the limit."