ABC Delivers Thursday's Top Non-Sports Net

Posting its Best Results Since Mid-February, ABC is Thursday's Top Non-Sports Net. Delivering Strong Retention of its Week-Ago Return Numbers, for the 2nd Week in a Row "FlashForward" is the Most-Watched Series in the 8pm Hour.

Thursday's No. 1 Series in Viewers and Adults 18-49, "Grey's Anatomy" Grows its Overall Audience from its Most Recent Original Telecast

Generating its Highest Numbers in 6 Weeks, ABC's "Private Practice" is the No. 1 Non-Sports Show in the 10pm Hour with Total Viewers and Adults 18-49

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

Opposite CBS' NCAA Sweet 16 Basketball coverage, ABC earned second place on Thursday among Total Viewers (8.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.8/8). The Net ranked a dominant No. 1 on the night across all key Women demos: W18-34 (3.4/10), W18-49 (4.0/11) and W25-54 (4.7/12).

In viewers and young adults, ABC marked its strongest Thursday since early February since 2/11/10.

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

For the 2nd week in a row, ABC's "FlashForward" (6.2 million) was the most-watched non-sports program in the 8 o'clock hour, outdrawing NBC's original comedies ("Community"/"Parks and Recreation") by 1.4 million viewers (4.8 million). Building audience throughout its broadcast, "FlashForward" gained 3% in Total Viewers (6.1 million to 6.3 million) and 12% in Adults 18-49 (1.7/6 to 1.9/6) from its first to second half-hour. In fact as it built during its telecast, "FlashForward" ranked as the No. 1 non-sports show at 8:30 p.m. in Adults 18-49 (1.9/6-tie).

Delivering strong retention of its week-ago return to the time period, "FlashForward" held 96% of its Total Viewers week to week (6.2 million vs. 6.5 million) and 95% of its Adult 18-49 audience (1.8/6 vs. 1.9/6).

"Grey's Anatomy" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

Building sharply on its lead-in, ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" finished as Thursday's No. 1 series telecast in Total Viewers (11.4 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.6/10). It was also the night's most-watched program overall, topping CBS' NCAA Basketball coverage in the preliminary Fast Affiliate Ratings. It was "Grey's" 16th time in 17 original broadcasts this season to qualify as Thursday's No. 1 scripted series with young adults.

"Grey's Anatomy" was up from its most recent original airing by 5% among Total Viewers (10.9 million on 3/11/10).

"Private Practice" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

ABC's "Private Practice" ranked as the No. 1 non-sports program in 10 o'clock hour among Total Viewers (8.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.9/8). In addition, it was the 17th consecutive original telecast this season for "Private Practice" to register as the No. 1 scripted show in its slot in Adults 18-34, Women 18-34 and Women 18-49.

Growing for its 2nd straight original telecast, "Private Practice" was up from its most recent original airing by over 1.0 million viewers and by 4% in Adults 18-49 (7.7 million and 2.8/8 on 3/11/10). The ABC sophomore drama posted its strongest performance in 6 weeks since 2/11/10.

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 36% currently, from 30% at the same point in 2009. 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 Day Ratings), 3/25/10

 

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