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NBC's sweeps
strategy: Sacrifice play


Taking a hit in ratings as it shifts its top shows

May 7, 2008
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NBC is having a dreadful May sweeps, the worst of the Big Four networks. But that may be setting up the longtime fourth-place finisher for a stronger summer and fall.

NBC has kept several top shows off its May schedule, including “Heroes” and “American Gladiators,” opting instead to return them with longer runs later this year.

In their place, the network has subbed in low-rated extended editions of “Deal or No Deal” and unscripted leftovers like “Most Outrageous Moments.”

That’s left NBC far behind its competitors this month. For the week ended May 4, NBC finished a distant fourth with an average 2.0 rating and 6 share, 23 percent behind second-place CBS’s 2.6/7.

Among total viewers NBC was 2.7 million behind No. 3 ABC, averaging just 6.46 million last week and putting only one show, “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” in the top 25.

But while its May schedule certainly looks bad, with four nights per week including at least one rerun, the network won’t be bad off for long. It’s essentially sacrificed May for a better schedule going forward.

NBC held the second edition of “Gladiators,” its top-rated new show, off the schedule until later this month in order to help launch its summer schedule. “Gladiators” will serve as a lead-in for the relocated USA Network program “Nashville Star” on Mondays next month, part of a network strategy that includes new programming almost every night of the week.

That, of course, is a key part of NBC’s much-talked-about year-round programming strategy, which begins in a few weeks. It will have more than 300 hours of new summer programming.

But NBC also decided to leave three scripted series, “Chuck,” “Life” and “Heroes,” its No. 1 scripted show last fall, off the schedule this May. The network figured it would be smarter to hold new episodes of those programs, at least one of which ("Heroes") is highly serialized, and give them a splashy relaunch this fall.

That may prove to be a very smart decision.

The other networks have found that while the writers’ strike may be over, many viewers aren’t coming back to broadcast. Ratings for top shows like Fox’s “House,” CBS’s “CSI” and ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” are well off from last fall, and some theorize that’s because fans don’t know that fresh episodes are back on the air.

By waiting until fall to bring back a trio of programs, NBC may benefit from the premiere week bump, when viewers know for sure that their shows are coming back. What’s more, they won’t have missed any spring episodes because they didn’t know they were there.

***

Meanwhile, in broadcast ratings for the week ended May 4:
 
Among adults 18-49, Fox was first with a 3.5 rating and a 10 share, followed by ABC at 2.9/8, CBS at 2.6/7, NBC at 2.0/6, Univision at 1.6/5, CW at 1.1/3, MyNetworkTV at 0.5/1, Telemundo at 0.4/1, TeleFutura at 0.3/1, and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Among adults 18-34, Fox was first with a 2.9 rating and a 10 share, followed by ABC at 2.3/7, Univision at 1.9/6, CBS at 1.6/5, NBC at 1.5/5, CW at 1.2/4, Telemundo at 0.5/2, MyNetworkTV and TeleFutura at 0.4/1, and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Among adults 25-54, Fox was first with a 3.9 rating and an 11 share, followed by ABC at 3.5/9, CBS at 3.4/9, NBC at 2.5/6, Univision at 1.5/4, CW at 1.0/3, MyNetworkTV at 0.5/1, Telemundo at 0.4/1, TeleFutura at 0.3/1, and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Top five English-language Big Five shows (18-49s): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 9.0; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 8.4; 3. ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” 6.3; 4. ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” 6.1; 5. Fox’s “House” 5.8.
 
Top five English-language Big Five shows (total viewers): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 25.09 million; 2. Fox’s “American Idol – Wednesday” 22.8 million; 3. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” 18.22 million; 4. CBS’s “CSI” 18.01 million; 5. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars Results” 17.06 million.
 
Top five Live+7 English-language Big Five shows (households, week ended April 20): Fox’s “American Idol – Tuesday” 14.5; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 13.9; 3. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” 11.6; 4. ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” 10.9; 5. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars Results” 10.3.
 
Top five Live+7 English-language Big Five shows (18-49s, week ended April 20): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 9.4; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 9.2; 3. ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” 6.2; 4. CBS’s “Two and a Half Men” 5.8; 5. NBC’s “The Office” 5.7.
 
Show on the rise: “Hell’s Kitchen,” Fox, Tuesday 9 p.m. Chef Ramsay’s reality competition posted a 5.4 rating among viewers 18-49, up 10 percent from a 4.9 the previous week.
 
Show on the decline: “Law & Order,” NBC, Wednesday 10 p.m. Airing against an original of CBS’s “CSI: NY,” NBC’s crime procedural fell 19 percent week-to-week among viewers 18-49, from a 3.7 the previous week, when Jesse L. Martin exited, to a 3.0.

WEEKLY PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK
Ranked on Households
Week Ending May 4

Network

Households

People 2+

Adults 18-49

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

CBS

6.5

7300

11

3.5

9990

9

2.6

3390

7

ABC

6.0

6790

10

3.2

9170

9

2.9

3810

8

FOX

5.7

6450

10

3.3

9420

9

3.5

4610

10

NBC

4.3

4830

7

2.3

6460

6

2.0

2670

6

UNI

1.9

2180

3

1.3

3760

4

1.6

2120

5

CW

1.7

1880

3

0.9

2560

2

1.1

1390

3

MNT

0.8

910

1

0.4

1150

1

0.5

590

1

TEL

0.6

650

1

0.4

1020

1

0.4

560

1

TF

0.3

390

1

0.2

680

1

0.3

450

1

ION

0.3

350

1

0.2

450

0

0.1

120

0

AZA

0.1

80

0

0.1

150

0

0.1

90

0

* Each rating point is equivalent to 1. 114 million homes
Source: Nielsen Media Research 

 

SEASON-TO-DATE PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK
Ranked on Households
Week Ending May 4

Network

Households

People 2+

Adults 18-49

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

CBS

6.6

7500

11

3.6

10430

9

3.0

3900

8

FOX

6.6

7450

11

3.9

11200

10

4.2

5550

11

ABC

5.9

6680

10

3.2

9160

8

3.0

3920

8

NBC

5.3

5940

9

2.9

8250

7

2.9

3750

8

UNI

1.8

2050

3

1.2

3550

3

1.5

2000

4

CW

1.7

1880

3

0.9

2580

2

1.0

1370

3

MNT

0.8

860

1

0.4

1130

1

0.4

550

1

TEL

0.6

660

1

0.4

1050

1

0.4

580

1

ION

0.4

410

1

0.2

540

0

0.1

160

0

TF

0.4

400

1

0.2

660

1

0.3

420

1

AZA

0.1

100

0

0.1

150

0

0.1

100

0

* Each rating point is equivalent to 1. 114 million homes
Source: Nielsen Media Research 

TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST
Ranked on Households
Week Ending May 4

#

PROGRAMS

Net

HOUSEHOLDS

PERSONS 2+

Rtg%

Shr

(000)

#

Rtg%

(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

14.5

23

16366

1

8.8

25094

2

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

13.6

21

15343

2

8.0

22800

3

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

11.8

18

13364

3

6.4

18222

4

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

11.4

17

12815

5

6.0

17059

5

CSI

CBS

11.1

17

12500

4

6.3

18012

6

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

10.8

17

12186

6

5.9

16757

7

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

10.2

16

11549

7

5.3

15313

8

NCIS

CBS

9.4

15

10591

8

5.2

14763

9

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

9.2

15

10429

10

4.8

13880

10

HOUSE-MON 9P

FOX

8.8

13

9942

9

5.1

14641

11

WITHOUT A TRACE

CBS

8.7

15

9790

12

4.5

12834

12

CRIMINAL MINDS

CBS

8.3

13

9414

11

4.6

13030

13

LAW AND ORDER:SVU

NBC

8.2

14

9298

14

4.3

12313

14

TWO AND A HALF MEN

CBS

7.9

12

8918

12

4.5

12915

15

CSI: NY

CBS

7.6

12

8522

17

4.0

11508

15

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA

CBS

7.6

13

8525

14

4.3

12320

17

BROTHERS & SISTERS

ABC

7.3

12

8265

20

3.7

10463

17

COLD CASE

CBS

7.3

12

8222

17

4.0

11562

19

60 MINUTES

CBS

7.1

14

7978

20

3.7

10732

20

EXTREME MAKEOVER:HOME ED.

ABC

7.0

12

7855

17

4.0

11570

21

HELL'S KITCHEN

FOX

6.9

10

7805

16

4.2

11940

22

LOST

ABC

6.7

11

7508

20

3.7

10726

22

SHARK

CBS

6.7

10

7589

23

3.6

10165

24

LAW AND ORDER

NBC

6.6

11

7393

27

3.4

9648

24

SAMANTHA WHO?

ABC

6.6

10

7481

27

3.4

9870

Source: Nielsen Media Research

TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST
Adults 18-49
Week Ending May 4

Rank

Program

Net

Rtg%

(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

9.0

11764

2

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

8.4

11001

3

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

6.3

8202

4

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

6.1

8006

5

HOUSE-MON 9P

FOX

5.8

7566

6

HELL'S KITCHEN

FOX

5.4

7076

7

CSI

CBS

5.1

6678

8

TWO AND A HALF MEN

CBS

4.8

6228

9

LOST

ABC

4.7

6095

10

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

4.5

5916

11

EXTREME MAKEOVER:HOME ED.

ABC

4.2

5477

12

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

4.1

5370

12

LAW AND ORDER:SVU

NBC

4.1

5427

14

OFFICE

NBC

4.0

5290

14

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

CBS

4.0

5212

14

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA

CBS

4.0

5278

17

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

3.9

5168

17

FAMILY GUY

FOX

3.9

5129

19

BROTHERS & SISTERS

ABC

3.8

4930

19

HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER

CBS

3.8

5028

21

CRIMINAL MINDS

CBS

3.3

4261

21

WITHOUT A TRACE

CBS

3.3

4287

23

BONES-MON 8P

FOX

3.2

4203

23

CSI: NY

CBS

3.2

4180

25

AMERICAN DAD

FOX

3.1

4109

25

BIG BANG THEORY, THE

CBS

3.1

4021

25

MEDIUM

NBC

3.1

4101

25

SAMANTHA WHO?

ABC

3.1

4008

25

SIMPSONS

FOX

3.1

4041

Source: Nielsen Media Research

  

SPANISH-LANGUAGE TELEVISION (WEEKLY COLLAPSED)
Ranked on Households
Week Ending May 4

#

PROGRAMS

Net

NHTI

P2+ (000)

1

FUEGO EN LA SANGRE M-F

UNI

22.5

4980

2

AL DIABLO CON GUAPOS M-F

UNI

20.3

4467

3

CRISTINA MON

UNI

19.3

3927

4

AQUI Y AHORA TUE

UNI

19.0

3776

5

DON FRANCISCO PRESENTA WE

UNI

17.3

3188

6

NUESTRA BELLEZA FRI

UNI

16.2

3352

7

PREMIOS TV Y NOV'08 5/4(S)-05/04/2008

UNI

15.1

3019

8

YO AMO JUAN QUERENDON M-F

UNI

12.8

2494

9

AMAS CASA DESESPERADS THU

UNI

12.6

2446

10

SABADO GIGANTE SAT

UNI

10.5

2093

10

NOCHE ESTRLLS PTVNOV 5/4(S)-05/04/2008

UNI

10.5

2069

12

VICTORIA M-F

TEL

6.9

1239

13

PECADOS AJENOS M-F

TEL

5.6

1030

14

AHORA QUE HAGO SAT

UNI

5.4

1033

15

IDOLOS DE MEXICO III 5/4(S)-05/04/2008

TEL

5.2

1302

16

CHAVO ANIMADO SAT

UNI

5.1

962

17

TRAICION M-F

TEL

4.5

780

18

12 CORAZONES M-F

TEL

4.2

758

19

CINE DE IMPACTO

TEL

3.9

873

19

CINE DE IMPACTO II

TEL

3.9

813

21

CINE DE LAS ESTRELLAS M-THU

TF

3.6

791

22

VIDEOS ASOMBROSOS MDO FR

TF

3.4

685

22

FIESTA BROADWAY 2008 5/4(S)-05/04/2008

TEL

3.4

762

24

FUTBOL LIGA MEX SAT

TF

3.1

680

24

OBJETIVO FAMA SUN

TF

3.1

660

* Nielsen Hispanic Television Index; ratings based on 11.63 million Hispanic TV homes.
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

HISPANIC ENGLISH-LANGUAGE VIEWING
Ranked on Households
Week Ending May 4

#

PROGRAMS

Net

NHTI

P2+(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

5.6

981

2

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

5.4

993

2

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

5.4

880

4

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

5.0

863

5

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

4.8

762

6

FAMILY GUY

FOX

4.5

913

7

HOUSE-MON 9P

FOX

4.3

775

8

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

4.2

641

9

MEDIUM

NBC

4.0

653

10

HELL'S KITCHEN

FOX

3.9

755

10

AMERICAN DAD

FOX

3.9

702

* Nielsen Hispanic Television Index; ratings based on 11.63 million Hispanic TV homes.
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

AFRICAN AMERICAN AUDIENCE ESTIMATES
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 27

#

PROGRAMS

Net

Rtg

P2+(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

11.7

2049

2

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

11.6

2263

3

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

10.4

1861

4

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

10.2

1786

5

WITHOUT A TRACE

CBS

9.8

1651

6

LAW AND ORDER

NBC

9.4

1588

7

LAW AND ORDER:SVU

NBC

8.7

1400

8

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

8.5

1506

9

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

8.4

1423

10

CSI

CBS

8.2

1402

* Ratings based on 13.45 million African American TV homes.
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

TOP 30 NETWORK SPORTS PROGRAMS
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 27

#

PROGRAMS

Net

Episode

Households

Persons 2+

US Rtg%

Shr

(000)

(000)

1

FOX NASCAR SPRINT CUP

FOX

LIVE FROM TALLADEGA

5.7

13

6466

8992

2

FOX NASCAR SPRINT CUP PST

FOX

 

4.4

9

4949

7099

3

NBA PLAYOFFS ON ABC-SUN 2(S)-04/27/2008

ABC

SAN ANTONIO AT PHOENIX

3.5

8

3983

5156

4

FOX NASCAR SPRINT PRE

FOX

 

3.0

8

3389

4483

5

AARON'S 312 AT TALLADEGA(S)-04/26/2008

ABC

 

2.6

7

2972

4061

6

NBA PLAYOFFS ON ABC-SUN 1

ABC

CLEVELAND AT WASHINGTON

2.4

6

2732

3376

7

FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN

CW

 

2.4

4

2732

4296

8

FOX SATURDAY BASEBALL

FOX

VARIOUS TEAMS AND TIMES

2.0

5

2272

2773

9

BYRON NELSON GOLF-SU(S)-04/27/2008

CBS

 

1.8

4

2046

2611

10

NBC POKER SERIES

NBC

 

1.0

3

1177

1376

11

NBC NHL PLAYOFFS-SUN

NBC

NY RANGERS AT PITTSBURGH

1.0

2

1165

1603

12

GMC NBA-SUN 1 PLAYOFFS

ABC

 

0.9

3

1048

1135

13

BYRON NELSON GOLF-SA(S)-04/26/2008

CBS

 

0.9

2

1066

1226

14

NASCAR COUNTDWN-TALLADEGA(S)-04/26/2008

ABC

 

0.8

2

856

1067

15

CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR-SU

CBS

MONSTER JAM WORLD FINALS

0.7

2

825

1181

16

LIBERTY LEGEND GOLF-SUN(S)-04/27/2008

CBS

 

0.7

2

832

1012

17

POKER AFTER DARK MO-SAT

NBC

 

0.7

4

736

754

18

NBC NHL PLAYOFFS-SAT

NBC

COLORADO AT DETROIT

0.7

2

734

957

19

NBC SPORTS SPECIAL 4/27(S)-04/27/2008

NBC

ICONS FROM ARCHIVES

0.7

1

744

944

20

NBA ACCESS W/AHMAD RASHAD

ABC

 

0.6

2

704

892

21

NBC NHL PLAYOFFS-SAT-POST(S)-04/26/2008

NBC

COLORADO AT DETROIT

0.6

1

685

898

22

NBC NHL PLAYOFFS-SUN-POST(S)-04/27/2008

NBC

NY RANGERS AT PITTSBURGH

0.6

1

717

1015

23

THIS WEEK IN BASEBALL

FOX

 

0.5

2

587

717

24

REPUBLICA DEPORTIVA SUN

UNI

 

0.5

1

568

790

25

FUTBOL LIGA MEXICANA SUN

UNI

TOLUCA VS UAG TECOS

0.5

1

595

925

26

LIBERTY LEGEND GOLF-SAT(S)-04/26/2008

CBS

 

0.4

1

497

601

27

NBC SPORTS SPECIAL 4/26(S)-04/26/2008

NBC

JEEP WORLD ADVENTURE

0.4

1

420

484

28

STRIKE FORCE SATURDY NITE

NBC

 

0.4

2

411

421

29

FUTBOL LIGA MEX SAT

TF

GUADALAJARA VS PUEBLA

0.4

1

465

858

30

FUTBOL LIGA MEXICAN SUN

TF

NECAXA VS AMERICA

0.4

1

475

792

Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

***
 
 
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Toni Fitzgerald is a staff writer for Media Life.




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