For the week of August 25-31, CBS's Big Brother had the 3 largest audiences via DVR viewing with 1.62 million (Sunday), 1.56 million (Thursday), and 1.444 million (Tuesday) viewers via DVRs.
Big Brother also had the three top shows for percentage increase over their Live audience with increases of 34.1% (Sunday), 30.7% (Thursday) and 27.3% (Tuesday).
While that week was filled by summer offerings and repeats, it is still very rare to see a show occupy so many of the top spots in both DVR viewing rankings lists.
Largest Time-Shifting Audiences for Broadcast TV Shows:
| Rank | Programs | Network | Persons Live+7 (000s) | Persons Live (000s) | Time-shifted Audience (000s) | % increase from Live to Live+7 |
| 1 | BIG BROTHER 10-SUN | CBS | 6,347 | 4,732 | 1,615 | 34.1% |
| 2 | BIG BROTHER 10-THU | CBS | 6,645 | 5,083 | 1,562 | 30.7% |
| 3 | BIG BROTHER 10-TUE | CBS | 6,739 | 5,295 | 1,444 | 27.3% |
| 4 | AMERICA'S GOT TALENT | NBC | 11,748 | 10,562 | 1,186 | 11.2% |
| 5 | AMERICA'S GOT TALENT-WED | NBC | 10,881 | 9,770 | 1,111 | 11.4% |
| 6 | Wipeout | ABC | 6,816 | 5,865 | 951 | 16.2% |
| 7 | SWINGTOWN | CBS | 4,283 | 3,455 | 828 | 24.0% |
| 8 | GREATEST AMERICAN DOG | CBS | 5,988 | 5,378 | 610 | 11.3% |
| 9 | MOMENT OF TRUTH 8/28-9P | FOX | 5,589 | 4,991 | 598 | 12.0% |
| 10 | MOMENT OF TRUTH 8/28-8P | FOX | 4,033 | 3,504 | 529 | 15.1% |
| 11 | AMERICA'S TOUGHEST JOBS | NBC | 7,510 | 7,074 | 436 | 6.2% |
| 12 | DEAL OR NO DEAL-MON | NBC | 11,183 | 10,788 | 395 | 3.7% |
| 13 | Criminal Minds | CBS | 7,147 | 6,753 | 394 | 5.8% |
| 14 | Friday Night Smackdown | CW | 4,049 | 3,662 | 387 | 10.6% |
| 15 | Bones SP-8/27 9P | FOX | 6,226 | 5,883 | 343 | 5.8% |
| 16 | Two and a Half Men | CBS | 9,144 | 8,807 | 337 | 3.8% |
| 17 | How I Met Your Mother | CBS | 5,676 | 5,340 | 336 | 6.3% |
| 18 | AMW: AMERICA FIGHTS BACK | FOX | 5,165 | 4,849 | 316 | 6.5% |
| 19 | Bones SP-8/27 8P | FOX | 5,811 | 5,504 | 307 | 5.6% |
| 20 | NCIS | CBS | 7,582 | 7,286 | 296 | 4.1% |
The absolute time-shifting audience size table ranks which of the Top 150 broadcast shows [by Live+7 viewers] had the largest absolute number of viewers watching shows later on their digital video recorders (DVRs)
Greatest % Increase from Time-Shifting for Broadcast TV Shows:
| Rank | Programs | Network | Persons Live+7 (000s) | Persons Live (000s) | Time-shifted Audience (000s) | % increase from Live to Live+7 |
| 1 | BIG BROTHER 10-SUN | CBS | 6,347 | 4,732 | 1,615 | 34.1% |
| 2 | BIG BROTHER 10-THU | CBS | 6,645 | 5,083 | 1,562 | 30.7% |
| 3 | BIG BROTHER 10-TUE | CBS | 6,739 | 5,295 | 1,444 | 27.3% |
| 4 | SWINGTOWN | CBS | 4,283 | 3,455 | 828 | 24.0% |
| 5 | Wipeout | ABC | 6,816 | 5,865 | 951 | 16.2% |
| 6 | MOMENT OF TRUTH 8/28-8P | FOX | 4,033 | 3,504 | 529 | 15.1% |
| 7 | SUPERNATURAL | CW | 1,475 | 1,295 | 180 | 13.9% |
| 8 | MOMENT OF TRUTH 8/28-9P | FOX | 5,589 | 4,991 | 598 | 12.0% |
| 9 | AMERICA'S GOT TALENT-WED | NBC | 10,881 | 9,770 | 1,111 | 11.4% |
| 10 | GREATEST AMERICAN DOG | CBS | 5,988 | 5,378 | 610 | 11.3% |
| 11 | AMERICA'S GOT TALENT | NBC | 11,748 | 10,562 | 1,186 | 11.2% |
| 12 | Friday Night Smackdown | CW | 4,049 | 3,662 | 387 | 10.6% |
| 13 | Smallville | CW | 1,997 | 1,807 | 190 | 10.5% |
| 14 | MY FRIDAY NIGHT MOVIE | MNT | 1,329 | 1,224 | 105 | 8.6% |
| 15 | HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL-MON | ABC | 2,537 | 2,342 | 195 | 8.3% |
| 16 | REAPER | CW | 1,702 | 1,588 | 114 | 7.2% |
| 17 | Gossip Girl-MON | CW | 1,615 | 1,509 | 106 | 7.0% |
| 18 | Chuck-SAT | NBC | 2,517 | 2,357 | 160 | 6.8% |
| 19 | Smallville-8/26 | CW | 1,436 | 1,348 | 88 | 6.5% |
| 20 | AMW: AMERICA FIGHTS BACK | FOX | 5,165 | 4,849 | 316 | 6.5% |
The % Time-shifting table ranks which of the Top 150 broadcast shows [by Live+7 viewers] had the largest % increase in viewing between Live audience and Live+7 audience numbers from viewers watching shows later on their digital video recorders (DVRs).
Definitions:
Rating: Estimated percentage of the universe of TV households (or other specified group) tuned to a program in the average minute. Ratings are expressed as a percent.
Share (of Audience): The percent of households (or persons) using television who are tuned to a specific program, station or network in a specific area at a specific time. (See also, Rating, which represents tuning or viewing as a percent of the entire population being measured.)
LIVE: The number that watched a program while it was broadcast.
LIVE+SD: The number that watched a program either while it was broadcast OR watched via DVR on the same day the program was broadcast.
LIVE+7: The number watched while a program was broadcast or via DVR within 7 days of original broadcast.
For more information see Numbers 101.
Nielsen TV Ratings Data:©2008 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.
Nice to see Swingtown near the top. Although it would be nice if the show managed to pull much more viewers…
Swingtown is dead. No drama that pulls so few viewers survives. Most of the ads for that show consist of promos for other CBS shows – they had a hard time retaining sponsor due to the nature of the show. Many advertisers pulled their ads after being deluged with complaints from customers. Im suprised they didnt pull it. Since it ended Numbers reruns pulled almost 50% more viewers in the same time slot – and that show has no shortage of real companies sponsoring the episodes.
Odds are that CBS wont say anything more about Swingtown and it will just go away. The same sort of thing happened to KID NATION, another controversial show, though they took applications for Season 2 there never was a Season 2 and no official cancellation announcement.
Swingtown was a great show that should not have been cancelled. there are plenty of other shows out there that should have been cancelled a long time ago. there are too many reality shows that should have been cancelled many years ago. I am tired of these reality shows.