The Net Ranks No. 1 in the Non-Sports Adult 18-49 Averages, with 6 of the
Top 15 Entertainment Series, the No. 1 New Comedy and No. 1 New Drama
ABC Grows Year to Year in Total Viewers and Holds Steady in Adults 18-49
The Network is No. 1 in Upscale Adults 18-49 with 8 of the Top 20 TV Series
Opposite the NFL, ABC's Thursday Marks its Strongest Start in 5 Years
ABC's Primetime Numbers Surge via TV Playback, Gaining
29% in Viewers and 47% in Adults 18-49 from L+SD to L+7
ABC Primetime 2014-15 (09/22/14-10/26/14)
Based on non-sports programming (to account for the inflated averages from sports coverage), ABC is No. 1 this season in Adults 18-49: ABC (2.5/8), CBS (2.3/7), NBC (2.2/7) and Fox (1.9/6).
· ABC Grows its Overall Audience Year to Year and Holds Steady in Adults 18-49: Season to date, ABC is up 5% in Total Viewers (8.7 million vs. 8.3 million) and holding steady in Adults 18-49 (2.4/8). The Net is up year to year in Adults 18-49 on Thursday (+24%), Friday (+6%) and Sunday (+10%).
· Season's Highest-Rated TV Series: The Net delivers 6 of the Top 15 entertainment series on broadcast TV this season in Adults 18-49 (more than any net), including the No. 1 freshman show ("How to Get Away with Murder"), the No. 1 new comedy ("black-ish") and the Top 2 dramas ("HTGAWM" and "Scandal"): "Modern Family" (4.9 rating) - No. 2, "HTGAWM" (4.6 rating) - No. 3, "Scandal" (4.2 rating) - No. 7, "Once Upon a Time" (3.6 rating) - No. 12, while "black-ish" (3.5 rating) and "Grey's Anatomy" (3.5 rating) tie at No. 14. In addition, "HTGAWM" is the season's highest-rated show with key Women (W18-34/W18-49).
· Strongest Thursday Start in 5 Years Opposite the NFL: Facing CBS' Thursday Night Football, ABC dominates its non-sport competition on the night and is up by double digits versus the same point last season in Total Viewers (+34%) and Adults 18-49 (+24%). On both Nielsen measures, ABC is off to its strongest start on the night since the beginning of the 2009-10 season.
· ABC is Up on Friday in Viewers for the 3rd Straight Year to an 11-Year High: Building for the 3rd straight year on Friday in Total Viewers (+13%) and increasing its Adult 18-49 delivery (+6%), ABC is delivering its most-watched Friday start in 11 years and best in 6 years with young adults - since the beginning of the 2003-04 and 2008-09 seasons, respectively. The Net ranks No. 1 on the night with "Shark Tank" as Friday's No. 1 TV show in Adults 18-49.
· ABC's 2-Hour Comedy Block Ranks a Strong No. 1 in Adults 18-49 at a 3-Year High: On average, ABC's 2-hour Wednesday comedy block leads its 8:00-10:00 p.m. time period by 13% in Adults 18-49 over its nearest competition (CBS). Growing year to year in viewers (+9%) and young adults (+6%), the block is off to its best start in 3 years - since the opening weeks of the 2011-12 season. "Modern Family" and "black-ish" are the Top 2 TV shows of the night in Adults 18-49.
· Growing Returning Programs and Shows Improving Time Periods for ABC: In Adults 18-49, ABC's "The Goldbergs" (+7%), "Scandal" (+8%), "Once Upon a Time" (+16%) and "20/20" (+7%) are each up over their performance at the same point last season. In addition, ABC's "S.H.I.E.L.D." (+9%), "Forever" (+64%), "The Goldbergs" (+38%), "black-ish" (+25%), "Grey's" (+119%), "How to Get Away with Murder" (+18%), "Cristela" (+18%) and "Revenge" (+29%) are each improving their respective time periods with young adults.
· ABC Leads Season with Upscale Young Adults: Among Adults 18-49 in homes with $100K+ Annual Income in the non-sports numbers, ABC (3.39 rating) ranks No. 1 this season, leading NBC by 15% (2.94 rating), CBS by 27% (2.67 rating) and Fox by 66% (2.04 rating). ABC airs 8 of the Top 20 highest-rated entertainment series (the most for any net) among high-income young adults, placing 5 of the Top 10 including the No. 1 series overall with "Modern Family" and the No. 1 new show with "How to Get Away with Murder:" "Modern Family" (8.96 rating) - No. 1, "HTGAWM" (6.32 - No. 1 drama) - No. 3, "Scandal" (6.10) - No. 5, "Grey's Anatomy" (4.89) - No. 9, "black-ish" (4.83 - No. 1 new comedy) - No. 10, "Once Upon a Time" (4.21) - No. 14, "The Goldbergs" (4.07) - No. 16 and "The Middle" (3.67) - No. 19.
· ABC Series Among Most Popularly Recorded and Played Back: On average during primetime, ABC's numbers for original programming jump from the first-reported Live + Same Day averages to the finalized Live + 7 Day ratings by 29% in Total Viewers (7.5 million to 9.7 million) and by 47% in Adults 18-49 (1.9/6 to 2.8/9), making it the biggest percentage gainer among the broadcast nets in young adults. With a rise in DVR penetration year to year (48% to 49%), ABC's series remain among the most popularly recorded and played back TV shows again this season, as it delivers 3 of the Top 10 biggest broadcast gainers in Total Viewers, including the season's No. 1 biggest freshman gainer ("How to Get Away with Murder"). A total of 13 ABC series add 2 million viewers or more from their initially reported totals via time-shifted viewing: "HTGAWM" (+6.1 million), "Modern Family" (+4.8 million), "Castle" (+4.3 million), "Scandal" (+3.8 million), "Grey's" (+3.5 million), "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." (+3.4 million), "Forever" (+3.3 million), "black-ish" (+3.0 million), "Once Upon a Time" (+2.9 million), "Revenge" (+2.8 million), "Resurrection" (+2.6 million), "Nashville" (+2.5 million) and "The Goldbergs" (+2.0 million). Among Adults 18-49, 9 of ABC's series register substantial ratings increases of at least 1.0 rating points: "HTGAWM" (+2.3 rating), "Modern Family" (+2.2 rating), "Scandal" (+1.6 rating), "Grey's" (+1.5 rating), "S.H.I.E.L.D." (+1.3 rating), "black-ish" (+1.3 rating), "Once Upon a Time" (+1.2 rating), "Castle" (+1.0 rating) and "Nashville" (+1.0 rating).
Source: The Nielsen Company, (National, Most Current Program Ratings), 09/22/14-10/26/14, or as dated. Upscale data based on regular non-sports programming. DVR/VOD Playback based on regular, original telecasts only in Live + 7 Day ratings for 09/22/14-10/12/14.
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