ABC's ROOKIE BLUE Marks Best-Ever Season Finale

Closing Out "Shark Tank Week" with a Strong Finish, ABC's Replay, "Shark Tank" Beats NBC's "Million Second Quiz" in Viewers and Young Adults. ABC's "Wipeout" Surges Week to Week in Viewers and Young Adults, and "Rookie Blue" is Up Over its Year-Ago Finale with its Best-Yet Season Ender, Earning its Largest Audience in Nearly 4 Months and a Season High in Adults 18-49.

"Shark Tank" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

On the fifth and final night of ABC's "Shark Tank Week," a special repeat "Shark Tank" beat out NBC's "Million Second Quiz" by double digits in both Total Viewers (+21% - 5.1 million vs. 4.2 million) and Adults 18-49 (+18% - 1.3/4 vs. 1.1/4) in the 8:00 p.m. hour. Gaining strong additional sampling despite facing "The X Factor" season premieres on each of the past two evenings, "Shark Tank" built audience on each night to finish out with its biggest audience of the week.

In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, "Shark Tank" delivered ABC's strongest non-sports results in the slot since the final Thursday of the season on 5/16/13.

"Wipeout" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

At 9:00 p.m., ABC's "Wipeout" surged week to week in Total Viewers (+23% - 4.3 million vs. 3.5 million) and Adults 18-49 (+18% - 1.3/4 vs. 1.1/3), matching a season high with young adults.

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

During the 10 o'clock hour, ABC's season finale of "Rookie Blue" rose sharply week to week in viewers (+36% - 5.7 million vs. 4.2 million) and young adults (+40% - 1.4/4 vs. 1.0/3) to deliver its biggest audience in nearly 4 months and hit a season high in Adult 18-49 with its top rating since last July - since 5/30/13 and 7/26/12, respectively. "Rookie Blue" ranked as the No. 1 most-watched series in its hour for the 10th straight week. The ABC drama also won its hour with Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54.

Up over its year-ago finale (5.1 million and 1.2/3 on 9/6/12) in Total Viewers (+12%) and Adults 18-49 (+17%), "Rookie Blue" posted its strongest-ever season closer.

On average during its fourth season run, "Rookie Blue" was up 10% summer to summer in Total Viewers (6.8 million vs. 6.2 million), posting its most-watched season in 3 years - since Summer 2010.

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 48% currently, from 45% at the same point in 2012. 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, 09/12/13.

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