Note: Any prior rating results are based on the final nationals. Since the level of DVR penetration has increased from 13 percent at this same point last year to approximately 23 percent at present, the overall results may be negatively impacted.
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-Saturday’s Winners: Nothing
-Saturday’s Losers (excluding repeats): Saturday Night Football (ABC) and the night overall
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-Ratings Breakdown: Fox led in both total viewers and adults 18-49 on this typically mundane Saturday care of old standbys Cops and America’s Most Wanted. Cops opened the evening with an average 4.83 million viewers (#1) and a 1.6 rating/6 share among adults 18-49 from 8-9 p.m. (#1), while America’s Most Wanted followed with 5.21 million viewers (#2) and a first-place 1.7/ 5 in the demo at 9 p.m.
CBS finished first in households, second in total viewers and third overall among adults 18-49 with its combination of a repeat of The Unit (Viewers: #3, 3.54 million; A18-49: #4, 0.6/ 2), a repeat of NCIS (Viewers: #1, 5.62 million; A18-49: #3, 1.4/ 4) and 48 Hours Mystery (#1: 5.41 million; A18-49: #1t, 1.3/ 4). And Saturday Night Football on ABC (Georgia vs. Arizona State) finished third overall in total viewers (3.72 million) and second among adults 18-49 (1.3/ 4) from 8-11 p.m.
Last was NBC’s encore combination of Chuck (Viewers: #4: 2.35 million; A18-49: #4, 0.6/ 2) and two episodes of Law & Order: Criminal Intent as follows:
Law & Order: Criminal Intent R (NBC) 9:00 p.m. – Viewers: 3.56 million (#4), A18-49: 0.8/ 3 (#3) 10:00 p.m. – Viewers: 5.05 million (#2), A18-49: 1.3/ 4 (#1t)
After six nights of Week 51, The CW and ABC are still tied for fourth place in A18-49 (both have a 1.6 rounded), and The CW is not that far behind CBS and NBC either. ABC will surge upwards tonight by virtue of 'The Emmy Awards', but The CW is on track to having its third good week in a row.
Week 51, Monday to Saturday averages: (finals, except for Friday & Saturday nights) Rank. Network A18-49 (viewers in millions) ================================== 1. FOX 2.60 (7.160) 2. NBC 1.90 (6.218) 3. CBS 1.82 (7.067) 4. CW 1.62 (3.608) 5. ABC 1.55 (4.877) 6. MNT 0.43 (1.133) -> 4 nights only
I cannot understand why CBS and NBC maintain a Saturday strategy of encore programming that serves no purpose other than to diminish their weekly averages. FOX has been quietly succeeding for 20 years now with its reality programming, ABC does good with football, MyNetworkTV OK with movies, but CBS and NBC really need to re-visit their Saturday night programming plans because encores are having a hard time breaking above 1.0 in the demo.
The networks have a belief that they can't make it on Saturdays with original programming. Besides sports and odd specials, no one but FOX attempts to program. Even FOX's Saturday lineup could use some updating as now its struggling to get 5 million (although with the problems FOX is having, they can't even bother with Saturdays until Fall 2009). Cops/AMW is getting old and tiresome. I'm not convinced that Saturdays are as dead as the networks think they are. Unscripted fare and cheap co-productions will do better than the subpar to horrible ratings Chuck and procedural repeats are doing.
quote:
Originally posted by dumont:
I cannot understand why CBS and NBC maintain a Saturday strategy of encore programming that serves no purpose other than to diminish their weekly averages.
Originally posted by WlcmLAPD: The networks have a belief that they can't make it on Saturdays with original programming. Besides sports and odd specials, no one but FOX attempts to program. Even FOX's Saturday lineup could use some updating as now its struggling to get 5 million (although with the problems FOX is having, they can't even bother with Saturdays until Fall 2009). Cops/AMW is getting old and tiresome. I'm not convinced that Saturdays are as dead as the networks think they are. Unscripted fare and cheap co-productions will do better than the subpar to horrible ratings Chuck and procedural repeats are doing.
quote:
Originally posted by dumont:
I cannot understand why CBS and NBC maintain a Saturday strategy of encore programming that serves no purpose other than to diminish their weekly averages.
At the very least, Saturday night would be much more interesting if it had burn-offs of discontinued series (some of which got decent ratings), and there are stacks of unaired episodes available for all six networks to program.
NBC: Fear Itself (5x1), 20 Good Years (9x0.5), Joey (10x.05)
CBS: Creature Comforts (3x0.5), Love Monkey (3x1), Smith (3x1), 3 lbs (3x1), Viva Laughlin (6x1), Waterfront (4x1, never preemed)
ABC: Cavemen (7x0.5), Crumbs (8x0.5), Emily’s Reasons Why Not (5x.05), Jake in Progress (12x0.5), Less than Perfect (8x0.5), What About Brian (3x1)
CW: Runaway (3x1), Misconceptions (13x0.5, never preemed)
FOX: Anchorwoman (4x0.5), Return of Jezebel James (6x0.5), Happy Hour (?x0.5)
I looked back at the ratings that the networks used to get for various umbrella series for unsold pilots (ABC Comedy Theatre, etc.), and they always did pretty good summer numbers.
Networks seem to be very content to blow off so much investment in product that justs sit on the shelf...it offends my waste-not sensibilities.
I hope to see MyNetworkTV overtake CBS and NBC on Saturdays, because at least MNT programs in an effort to try to win over viewers.
I think Saturdays could do better if the Nets would just package it better. The audience is around, they're just all watching cable or catching up on their DVR. People don't think there is anything worth watching on broadcast Saturdays, so they don't tune in, it's a low HUD night so the nets don't program. It's an ever-descending circle of doom.
Yes, many people go out on Saturday nights. But this is a nation of over 250 million people...and the nets can't find 15 million people combined? Seriously?
I have an idea. Send the game shows back to daytime, drop the reality stuff and go back to scripted mysteries that star older protagonists (something similar to Matlock, Murder She Wrote and Father Dowling Mysteries) and sell it as a block. I swear that broadcast tv is the only business that ignores the "customers" they do have, in order to attract "customers" that they will never have.
You can't attract a specific audience, until you actually attract an audience.
(Yes I know, we aren't the customer, we're the product)
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Ammit,
I usually have no use for the Emmy's but they got something right this year. Congrats to Zeljko Ivanek winning for best supporting actor in a drama series for the first-year FX series “Damages.” He was fantastic but I never actually thought he would win.
Whoa! And Bryan Cranston too! I may even forgive them for not nominating Mary McDonnell. Yeah, right!
Originally posted by Ammit: I usually have no use for the Emmy's but they got something right this year. Congrats to Zeljko Ivanek winning for best supporting actor in a drama series for the first-year FX series “Damages.” He was fantastic but I never actually thought he would win.
