The top cable
network of 2011: USA
Finishes the year tops in 18-49s, 25-54s and total viewers
By Toni Fitzgerald
Jan 5, 2012
 |
| 'Psych': USA's weakest series still averages 4.29 million viewers
|
In a year when five of the top 10 cable networks saw declines in total viewers, USA cruised to another easy win in 2011 by essentially maintaining its audience.
The network finished No. 1 in primetime for the sixth straight year among adults 18-49 and 25-54 as well as total viewers.
USA averaged 3.276 million total viewers in primetime, up 1 percent over last year and nearly 600,000 more than Disney Channel, which finished second with 2.681 million, up 2 percent over last year.
They were two of just five top-10 networks to see gains last year, according to Nielsen data analyzed by Turner Networks.
That's a far cry from a few years ago, when it seemed every cable network was making gains. But there's only so long such growth could continue.
History, the No. 5 network, and FX, at No. 10, saw the biggest gains in the top 10, both up 21 percent, and No. 9 A&E was up 7 percent.
But ESPN, TNT, Fox News Channel, Nick at Nite and TBS all saw viewership fall.
ESPN and TNT were down modestly, 2 percent and 1 percent, and Fox News certainly was hurt by comparisons to 2010, an election year when news viewership was strong.
Nick at Nite saw the most notable dip, 18 percent, but that, too, is part of a bigger story. Nielsen and Nickelodeon parent company Viacom have been sparring over the jarring declines last year for Nick, which Viacom believes may be the result of a glitch in data collection.
As for how USA achieved its huge winning margin yet again, the story is a familiar one. It relied once more on cable's widest parade of hits, a group of mostly dramedies that accounted for six of the year's top 10 cable shows among total viewers.
USA's 10 original scripted programs averaged 5.39 million total viewers last year, with even its least-watched show, "Psych," still drawing a strong 4.29 million.
***
In cable ratings for the week ended Jan. 1:
Top five networks in primetime (18-49s): ESPN, TBS, TNT, USA, History.
Top five networks in primetime (total viewers): ESPN, TNT, Disney Channel, USA, TBS.
Top five cable news networks in primetime (25-54): Fox News Channel, MSNBC, CNN, CNBC, HLN.
Top five cable news programs (total viewers): 1 Fox News Channel's "The O'Reilly Factor" (Wednesday, 8 p.m.); 2. Fox News Channel's "The O'Reilly Factor" (Tuesday, 8 p.m.); 3. Fox News Channel's "All American New Years" (Saturday, 12 a.m.); 4. Fox News Channel's "The O'Reilly Factor" (Monday, 8 p.m.) 5. Fox News Channel's "O'Reilly Factor Special" (Thursday, 8 p.m.);
Top movie (18-49s): No movie during the week made the top 50 in 18-49s.
Top sporting event (total viewers): ESPN's "Monday Night Football: Atlanta/New Orleans" (Monday, 8:30 p.m.) 15.64 million.
Shows making the top 10 among 18-34s, 18-49s and 25-54s: ESPN's "Monday Night Football: Atlanta/New Orleans" (Monday, 7:30 p.m.); ESPN's "SportsCenter" (Monday, 11:52 p.m.); TNT's "NBA Basketball: Boston/Miami" (Tuesday, 8:16 p.m.).
Show on the rise: TBS's "The Big Bang Theory," Tuesday, 9:30 p.m. The sitcom averaged 2.50 million viewers 25-54, up 28 percent from 1.96 million for an episode in the same timeslot a week earlier.
Show on the decline: History's "Pawn Stars," Monday, 10:30 p.m. The reality hit was one of just a few top shows to show declines of any kind last week, slipping 6 percent among viewers 18-34 from 1.02 million to 964,000.
|
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Ranked on Household Rating
Week Ending Jan. 1 |
|
Rank |
Primetime |
Total Day |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1 |
ESPN |
3937 |
NICK |
1614 |
|
2 |
TNT |
1939 |
ESPN |
1580 |
|
3 |
USA |
1750 |
DSNY |
1406 |
|
4 |
DSNY |
1616 |
TNT |
1097 |
|
5 |
TBSC |
1548 |
USA |
1084 |
|
6 |
HIST |
1458 |
ADSM* |
1014 |
|
7 |
AEN |
1121 |
NAN * |
924 |
|
8 |
FOOD |
1121 |
TOON |
918 |
|
9 |
ADSM |
1008 |
HIST |
829 |
|
10 |
HGTV |
990 |
TBSC |
780 |
|
11 |
DISC |
989 |
FOXN |
768 |
|
12 |
FOXN |
984 |
AEN |
701 |
|
13 |
NAN |
925 |
HGTV |
643 |
|
14 |
LIF |
923 |
FOOD |
630 |
|
15 |
FX |
919 |
FX |
577 |
|
16 |
TLC |
856 |
DISC |
566 |
|
17 |
TRU |
851 |
TVLD |
541 |
|
18 |
SYFY |
815 |
LIF |
527 |
|
19 |
FAM |
799 |
TRU |
501 |
|
20 |
SPK |
764 |
SPK |
496 |
|
21 |
HALL |
743 |
TLC |
491 |
|
22 |
TVLD |
655 |
ID |
484 |
|
23 |
AMC |
643 |
MTV |
482 |
|
24 |
VH1 |
635 |
AMC |
471 |
|
25 |
MTV |
600 |
SYFY |
449 |
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE PROGRAMS
Ranked on Households
Week Ending Jan. 1 |
|
Rank
|
Program |
Net
|
(000) |
|
1 |
Atlanta/New Orleans |
ESPN |
10530 |
|
2 |
Washington/Baylor |
ESPN |
5062 |
|
3 |
The Closer |
TNT |
4485 |
|
4 |
Rizzoli & Isles |
TNT |
4229 |
|
5 |
Virginia/Auburn |
ESPN |
4129 |
|
6 |
Florida State/Notre Dame |
ESPN |
3763 |
|
7 |
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
3542 |
|
8 |
Iowa/Oklahoma |
ESPN |
3445 |
|
9 |
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
3394 |
|
10 |
Boston/Miami |
TNT |
3271 |
|
11 |
iCarly: iPsycho 2 |
NICK |
3240 |
|
12 |
Texas A&M/Northwestern |
ESPN |
3082 |
|
13 |
California/Texas |
ESPN |
3081 |
|
14 |
NCIS |
USA |
3056 |
|
15 |
Mississippi State/Wake Forest |
ESPN |
3048 |
|
16 |
NCIS |
USA |
3037 |
|
17 |
The Big Bang Theory |
TBSC |
2981 |
|
18 |
WWE Raw |
USA |
2958 |
|
19 |
Sportscenter |
ESPN |
2878 |
|
20 |
WWE Raw |
USA |
2862 |
|
21 |
College Football Scoreboard |
ESPN |
2841 |
|
22 |
American Pickers |
HIST |
2840 |
|
23 |
NCIS |
USA |
2834 |
|
24 |
The Big Bang Theory |
TBSC |
2766 |
|
25 |
Spongebob |
NICK |
2758 |
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 18-34
Week Ending Jan. 1 |
|
Rank |
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
ESPN |
952 |
ADSM* |
462 |
|
2
|
TBSC |
630 |
ESPN |
446 |
|
3
|
TNT |
557 |
NICK |
370 |
|
4
|
USA |
424 |
NAN * |
308 |
|
5
|
ADSM |
412 |
TBSC |
300 |
|
6
|
VH1 |
344 |
DSNY |
274 |
|
7
|
FX |
340 |
TNT |
267 |
|
8
|
MTV |
333 |
USA |
258 |
|
9
|
HIST |
317 |
MTV |
232 |
|
10
|
AEN |
310 |
TOON |
232 |
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 18-34
Week Ending Jan. 1 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Atlanta/New Orleans |
ESPN |
3112 |
|
2
|
Teen Mom II Season 2 |
MTV |
1911 |
|
3
|
Boston/Miami |
TNT |
1519 |
|
4
|
Kourtney & Kim Take New York |
EN |
1318 |
|
5
|
Family Guy |
ADSM |
1304 |
|
6
|
Utah/L.A. Lakers |
TNT |
1262 |
|
7
|
T.I. And Tiny |
VH1 |
1211 |
|
8
|
Family Guy |
ADSM |
1184 |
|
9
|
Sportscenter |
ESPN |
1180 |
|
10
|
New York/L.A. Lakers |
TNT |
1176 |
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 18-49
Week Ending Jan. 1 |
|
Rank |
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
ESPN |
2220 |
ESPN |
936 |
|
2
|
TBSC |
1198 |
ADSM* |
665 |
|
3
|
TNT |
1158 |
NICK |
590 |
|
4
|
USA |
902 |
TNT |
587 |
|
5
|
HIST |
846 |
TBSC |
558 |
|
6
|
AEN |
703 |
USA |
555 |
|
7
|
FOOD |
692 |
NAN * |
477 |
|
8
|
FX |
683 |
HIST |
463 |
|
9
|
DISC |
681 |
DSNY |
439 |
|
10
|
TRU |
676 |
AEN |
423 |
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 18-49
Week Ending Jan. 1 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Atlanta/New Orleans |
ESPN |
7112 |
|
2
|
Washington/Baylor |
ESPN |
2717 |
|
3
|
Boston/Miami |
TNT |
2589 |
|
4
|
Teen Mom II Season 2 |
MTV |
2466 |
|
5
|
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
2456 |
|
6
|
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
2410 |
|
7
|
The Big Bang Theory |
TBSC |
2289 |
|
8
|
Sportscenter |
ESPN |
2282 |
|
9
|
Virginia/Auburn |
ESPN |
2184 |
|
10
|
WWE Raw |
USA |
2150 |
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 25-54
Week Ending Jan. 1 |
|
|
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Rank
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
ESPN |
2488 |
ESPN |
978 |
|
2
|
TBSC |
1213 |
TNT |
618 |
|
3
|
TNT |
1191 |
USA |
575 |
|
4
|
HIST |
995 |
TBSC |
554 |
|
5
|
USA |
954 |
HIST |
531 |
|
6
|
DISC |
748 |
ADSM* |
477 |
|
7
|
AEN |
743 |
NICK |
466 |
|
8
|
FOOD |
742 |
AEN |
441 |
|
9
|
TRU |
706 |
DISC |
398 |
|
10
|
FX |
652 |
FOOD |
389 |
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 25-54
Week Ending Jan. 1 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Atlanta/New Orleans |
ESPN |
7918 |
|
2
|
Washington/Baylor |
ESPN |
3042 |
|
3
|
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
2827 |
|
4
|
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
2786 |
|
5
|
The Big Bang Theory |
TBSC |
2499 |
|
6
|
Virginia/Auburn |
ESPN |
2469 |
|
7
|
The Big Bang Theory |
TBSC |
2297 |
|
8
|
Boston/Miami |
TNT |
2274 |
|
9
|
The Big Bang Theory |
TBSC |
2251 |
|
10
|
Sportscenter |
ESPN |
2249 |
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
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