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in summer viewers.
Key 18-49s off 31%, boding ill for fall promos
By Kevin Downey
As the Big Four networks deal with varying degrees of viewer loss this summer, a more heated battle is brewing between UPN and the WB.
And the WB is losing by a long shot.
The WB’s adult 18-49 rating is down 31 percent this summer compared to what it averaged in the regular season.
That compares to a 13 percent drop for UPN, the slightest decline of any broadcast network.
Last week the WB had a 1.1 to UPN’s 1.3.
NBC, meanwhile, continues its summer sweep with a 3.4 adult 18-49 rating to ABC’s 2.9, Fox’s 2.5, and CBS’s 2.4.
For the summer, the WB has averaged a 1.1 rating in the demo and has dipped below a 1.0 in three out of the past 10 weeks and tumbled to a nearly non-existent 0.8 earlier this month.
UPN, in contrast, has averaged a 1.4 adult 18-49 rating.
The WB’s problems come down to a few simple facts. It has no original summer programming until next week, and it relies heavily on dramas.
"The dramas don’t repeat as well as sitcoms," explains Brad Adgate, senior vice president and corporate research director at Horizon Media. "And the WB’s target audience is not likely to sit around and watch repeats.
"Secondly, there has been a huge preponderance of reality shows targeting its audience, like ‘Fear Factor,’ ‘Big Brother 2,’ and ‘Spy TV.’ Some of its core viewers could be gravitating to those shows."
Reality is a big part of UPN’s strength this summer, with its top-rated "WWF Smackdown."
That wrestling show has original episodes all year and generates an audience that is about twice the size of the WB’s top programs.
The WB’s closest approximation to original summer programming is its relatively new Tuesday night movie series, "Flix from the Frog," which debuted in early June.
While the "Flix" movie last week, "Dumb & Dumber," was the WB’s highest-rated, at No. 87 with a 1.6 adult 18-49 rating, it had about 44 percent fewer viewers in the demo than "Smackdown."
Because it has original episodes, "Smackdown’s" total audience has dropped only 5.1 percent since the regular season.
The WB’s top-rated shows, on the other hand, have among the steepest declines of any broadcast shows when in repeat.
An analysis by Horizon Media, based on the 1999/2000 season, showed that the WB had eight shows among the 20 broadcast programs with the biggest ratings declines when repeated.
This summer, its top losers include "Buffy" and "Angel," both of which have had audience declines of 60 percent or more. "Dawson’s Creek" and "7th Heaven" have both lost about half their viewers.
Among its stronger performers are sitcoms, like "Nikki," which has only had a 15 percent drop, and the drama, "Gilmore Girls." That show is down just 11 percent.
The WB’s huge loss in ratings could potentially hurt it this fall, despite its having what most media buyers consider a solid schedule.
"If their viewers are not watching these shows in the summer, they’re not going to see the promos for the shows coming in the fall," says Adgate.
Meanwhile, on the other networks, original reality programs are generating the highest ratings in the 18-49 demo.
NBC’s two episodes of both "Fear Factor" and "Weakest Link" were the top-four-rated shows last week.
Multiple episodes of "Spy TV" did well, too, with three episodes making the top-15.
While that show is not doing as well as NBC’s two other reality shows, it often competes head-to-head with "Big Brother 2," which was CBS’s second-highest-rated show last week.
Both Fox and NBC premiered new reality shows last week with mixed results.
Fox’s "Murder in Small Town X" tied for No. 22 with a 3.5 adult 18-49 rating and was the network’s second-highest-rated show. A rebroadcast of "Murder" on Sunday had a 2.0 rating and ranked No. 75.
NBC’s "Downer Channel" struggled with a 2.9 rating and only ranked No. 45. It lost about 15 percent of its lead-in rating from "Spy TV."
ABC was No. 1 in household ratings on the strength of four episodes of "Millionaire" that made the top-10.
ABC had a 6.0 rating and 11 share. CBS had a 5.8/11, NBC had a 5.4/10, Fox had a 3.6/7, UPN had a 2.1/4, and the WB had a 1.8/3.
|
PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK |
|||||||||
|
|
HOUSEHOLDS |
PERSONS 2+ |
ADULTS 18-49 |
||||||
|
Net |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
|
ABC |
6.0 |
6140 |
11 |
3.3 |
8510 |
10 |
2.9 |
3590 |
9 |
|
CBS |
5.8 |
5950 |
11 |
3.0 |
7940 |
9 |
2.4 |
3000 |
8 |
|
NBC |
5.4 |
5550 |
10 |
3.0 |
7950 |
9 |
3.4 |
4220 |
11 |
|
FOX |
3.6 |
3660 |
7 |
2.0 |
5310 |
6 |
2.5 |
3100 |
8 |
|
UPN |
2.1 |
2130 |
4 |
1.2 |
3130 |
4 |
1.3 |
1630 |
4 |
|
WB |
1.8 |
1830 |
3 |
1.0 |
2590 |
3 |
1.1 |
1350 |
3 |
|
PAX |
0.9 |
930 |
2 |
0.5 |
1280 |
1 |
0.4 |
460 |
1 |
|
Source: Nielsen Media Research |
|||||||||
|
SEASON-TO-DATE |
|||||||||
|
|
HOUSEHOLDS |
PERSONS 2+ |
ADULTS 18-49 |
||||||
|
Net |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
|
CBS |
8.0 |
8190 |
13 |
4.4 |
11580 |
12 |
3.7 |
4550 |
10 |
|
ABC |
7.7 |
7860 |
13 |
4.3 |
11390 |
12 |
4.0 |
4980 |
11 |
|
NBC |
7.5 |
7650 |
13 |
4.2 |
10910 |
11 |
4.5 |
5610 |
13 |
|
FOX |
5.6 |
5720 |
9 |
3.3 |
8730 |
9 |
4.0 |
5000 |
11 |
|
UPN |
2.4 |
2420 |
4 |
1.4 |
3610 |
4 |
1.5 |
1910 |
4 |
|
WB |
2.4 |
2400 |
4 |
1.3 |
3470 |
3 |
1.5 |
1850 |
4 |
|
PAX |
0.9 |
960 |
2 |
0.5 |
1360 |
1 |
0.4 |
460 |
1 |
|
Source: Nielsen Media Research |
|||||||||
|
NETWORK TV |
||||||||
|
|
|
|
HOUSEHOLDS |
PERSONS 2+ |
||||
|
# |
PROGRAMS |
Net |
Rtg% |
Shr |
(000) |
# |
Rtg% |
(000) |
|
1 |
MILLIONAIRE- THU |
ABC |
9.3 |
16 |
9477 |
2 |
5.0 |
13193 |
|
2 |
MILLIONAIRE- TUE |
ABC |
9.2 |
17 |
9381 |
2 |
5.0 |
13068 |
|
3 |
60 MINUTES |
CBS |
8.4 |
17 |
8535 |
7 |
4.3 |
11338 |
|
4 |
WEAKEST LINK |
NBC |
8.3 |
13 |
8469 |
2 |
5.0 |
13150 |
|
5 |
FEAR FACTOR |
NBC |
8.2 |
15 |
8428 |
1 |
5.4 |
14124 |
|
6 |
EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND |
CBS |
8.1 |
13 |
8265 |
5 |
4.5 |
11658 |
|
6 |
MILLIONAIRE- FRI |
ABC |
8.1 |
16 |
8228 |
6 |
4.4 |
11631 |
|
8 |
MILLIONAIRE- SUN |
ABC |
7.9 |
13 |
8119 |
7 |
4.3 |
11229 |
|
8 |
PRIMETIME THURSDAY |
ABC |
7.9 |
14 |
8097 |
10 |
4.1 |
10695 |
|
10 |
20/20-FRI |
ABC |
7.8 |
15 |
7956 |
10 |
4.1 |
10855 |
|
11 |
CSI |
CBS |
7.7 |
13 |
7828 |
9 |
4.2 |
10987 |
|
12 |
48 HOURS- MONDAY |
CBS |
7.4 |
13 |
7564 |
13 |
3.9 |
10144 |
|
12 |
LAW AND ORDER |
NBC |
7.4 |
13 |
7538 |
14 |
3.8 |
10033 |
|
14 |
60 MINUTES II |
CBS |
7.3 |
13 |
7435 |
17 |
3.7 |
9661 |
|
14 |
ABC MONDAY NIGHT MOVIE ("The Edge") |
ABC |
7.3 |
12 |
7493 |
14 |
3.8 |
10006 |
|
16 |
WEAKEST LINK-SUN |
NBC |
7.1 |
12 |
7241 |
10 |
4.1 |
10840 |
|
17 |
BECKER |
CBS |
7.0 |
11 |
7119 |
14 |
3.8 |
9940 |
|
18 |
LAW AND ORDER:SVU |
NBC |
6.7 |
13 |
6897 |
21 |
3.4 |
9003 |
|
19 |
FRIENDS |
NBC |
6.6 |
13 |
6721 |
17 |
3.7 |
9588 |
|
20 |
48 HOURS- THURSDAY |
CBS |
6.4 |
12 |
6520 |
21 |
3.4 |
8917 |
|
20 |
CBS WEDNESDAY MOVIE ("Replacing Dad") |
CBS |
6.4 |
11 |
6511 |
31 |
3.1 |
8136 |
|
22 |
DATELINE NBC-TUE |
NBC |
6.3 |
11 |
6407 |
26 |
3.2 |
8375 |
|
23 |
BIG BROTHER 2 |
CBS |
6.2 |
12 |
6319 |
21 |
3.4 |
8875 |
|
24 |
TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL |
CBS |
6.1 |
11 |
6226 |
31 |
3.1 |
8090 |
|
25 |
CBS SUNDAY MOVIE ("The Staircase") |
CBS |
6.0 |
10 |
6133 |
31 |
3.1 |
8176 |
|
25 |
DATELINE NBC-MON |
NBC |
6.0 |
10 |
6120 |
26 |
3.2 |
8358 |
|
25 |
DHARMA & GREG |
ABC |
6.0 |
10 |
6151 |
26 |
3.2 |
8487 |
|
25 |
DHARMA & GREG SP-7/24(S) |
ABC |
6.0 |
10 |
6117 |
24 |
3.3 |
8543 |
|
25 |
E.R. |
NBC |
6.0 |
11 |
6176 |
26 |
3.2 |
8446 |
|
Source: Nielsen Media Research |
||||||||
|
CABLE TV |
|||||
| BASIC CABLE | |||||
|
House- |
House- holds |
Persons 2+ |
|||
|
# |
PROGRAM NAME |
Net |
(000) |
Rtg % | (000) |
|
1 |
RUGRATS |
NICK |
5885 |
5.8 |
11913 |
|
2 |
WWF ENTERTAINMENT |
TNN |
4499 |
4.4 |
7026 |
|
3 |
NEW ENGLAND 300 |
TNT |
4248 |
4.2 |
7182 |
|
4 |
PRIME MOVIE (DANGEROUS CHILD) |
LIF |
4159 |
4.1 |
5488 |
|
5 |
RUGRATS |
NICK |
4146 |
4.1 |
7697 |
|
6 |
RUGRATS |
NICK |
3915 |
3.8 |
7034 |
|
7 |
WWF ENTERTAINMENT |
TNN |
3620 |
3.5 |
5682 |
|
8 |
TNT ORIGINAL(S)- 07/16/2001 (MISTS OF AVALON PART 2) |
TNT |
3274 |
3.2 |
4783 |
|
9 |
FAIRLY ODD PARENTS |
NICK |
2779 |
2.7 |
4511 |
|
10 |
RUGRATS |
NICK |
2657 |
2.6 |
3943 |
|
11 |
RUGRATS |
NICK |
2622 |
2.6 |
3764 |
|
12 |
RUGRATS |
NICK |
2614 |
2.6 |
4003 |
|
13 |
RUGRATS |
NICK |
2613 |
2.6 |
3498 |
|
14 |
RUGRATS |
NICK |
2588 |
2.5 |
3771 |
|
15 |
BROTHERS GARCIA |
NICK |
2579 |
2.5 |
4250 |
|
PAY CABLE |
|||||
|
House- |
House- holds |
Persons 2+ |
|||
|
# |
PROGRAM NAME |
Net |
(000) |
Rtg % |
(000) |
|
1 |
SEX AND THE CITY(S)-07/22/2001 |
HBO |
4079 |
4.0 |
5796 |
|
2 |
SIX FEET UNDER |
HBO |
3778 |
3.7 |
5685 |
|
3 |
ARLISS(S)- 07/22/2001 |
HBO |
2381 |
2.3 |
3481 |
|
4 |
PERFECT STORM, THE |
HBO |
2109 |
2.1 |
2954 |
|
5 |
SEX AND THE CITY(S)-07/18/2001 |
HBO |
2052 |
2.0 |
2973 |
|
*Total
U.S. ratings and household projections are based on 102.2 million TV
homes. |
|||||
|
SYNDICATION |
||||
|
Households |
Households |
|||
|
# |
PROGRAM NAME |
Syndicator |
Rtg % | (000) |
|
1 |
WHEEL OF FORTUNE |
KIN |
8.3 |
8497 |
|
2 |
JEOPARDY |
KIN |
7.4 |
7592 |
|
3 |
OPRAH WINFREY SHOW (AT) |
KIN |
5.7 |
5817 |
|
4 |
ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT(AT) |
PRM |
5.6 |
5703 |
|
5 |
JUDGE JUDY (AT) |
PRM |
5.4 |
5501 |
|
6 |
FRIENDS-SYN (AT) |
WB |
5.0 |
5063 |
|
7 |
SEINFELD-WKND |
CTS |
4.7 |
4808 |
|
8 |
WHEEL OF FORTUNE WKND |
KIN |
4.4 |
4547 |
|
8 |
FRASIER-SYN (AT) |
PRM |
4.4 |
4499 |
|
10 |
SEINFELD |
CTS |
4.2 |
4273 |
|
Source: Nielsen Media Research |
||||
August 1, 2001 © 2001 Media Life
-Kevin Downey is a staff writer for Media Life.
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