Overnights
Wager pays off for ABC's 'Wanna Bet'
By Toni Fitzgerald
Aug 13, 2008 - 11:48:28 AM

Airing opposite NBC’s dominant Olympics coverage, ABC’s newly relocated game show “Wanna Bet” nonetheless managed to see ratings gains last night.

“Bet” averaged a 1.4 adults 18-49 rating at 9 p.m. last night, according to Nielsen overnights, up 27 percent over its prior average of 1.1 on Mondays at 9. Though a 1.4 isn’t a great rating, it came against strong competition on NBC, where the Games averaged a 10.3 during the 9 p.m. hour.

“Bet” may have at least bought a few more weeks on the schedule. Though it declined 22 percent from lead-in “Wipeout,” which averaged a 1.8 for an 8 p.m. rerun, “Bet” matched its 10 p.m. leadout, “Primetime Medical Mysteries.”

ABC moved the game show to give it a better lead-in in "Wipeout," its top summer show. "Bet" had been airing behind "High School Musical: Get in the Picture," one of the summer's biggest bombs.

NBC was first for the night among 18-49s with an 11.1 average overnight rating and a 30 share. Univision was second at 1.7/4, CBS third at 1.6/4, ABC fourth at 1.5/4, Fox fifth at 1.2/3 and CW sixth at 0.4/1.

Ratings for NBC are approximate as fast nationals measure 8 to 11 p.m. timeslot data and not actual program data. The Olympics lasted well past 11 p.m.
 
At 8 p.m. NBC led with an 8.5 for the Olympics, with Univision second with a 1.9 for “Al Diablo con los Guapos.” ABC was third with a 1.8 for a repeat of “Wipeout,” CBS and Fox tied for fourth at 1.4, CBS for a repeat of “NCIS” and Fox for a “House” rerun, and CW was sixth with a 0.4 for a repeat of “Beauty and the Geek.”
 
NBC led again at 9 p.m. with a 10.3 for more Olympics, followed by CBS with a 2.4 for “Big Brother.” Univision was third with a 1.8 for “Fuego en la Sangre,” ABC fourth with a 1.4 for “Bet,” Fox fifth with a 1.0 for a repeat of “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” and CW sixth with a 0.4 for a “Reaper” repeat.
 
At 10 p.m. NBC was first with a 14.6 for Olympics, while ABC moved to second with a 1.4 for “Primetime.” Univision was third with a 1.3 for “Aqui y Ahora” and CBS fourth with a 1.1 for a repeat of “Without a Trace.”
 
NBC was also first for the night among households with a 19.2 average overnight rating and a 30 share. CBS was second at 4.1/6, ABC third at 2.9/5, Fox fourth at 2.2/4, Univision fifth at 2.1/3 and CW sixth at 0.7/1.