We've got our first look at DVR viewing data for the fall (for the week ending September 20) and The Jay Leno Show, which NBCU head Jeff Zucker previously touted as being "DVR Proof", really was.
I've included a special table first in addition to the DVR viewing tables we typically feature with the shows with the least DVR viewing as a % among adults 18-49. All the episodes of The Jay Leno Show in its first week were among the 25 least DVR viewed for the adults 18-49 demo. All had a lower % of demo DVR viewing than any new scripted show for the week. Note that the week of September 20 had mostly new episodes from the CW, Fox and NBC, but mostly repeats from CBS and ABC.
The other DVR viewing lists don't hold too many surprises. CW shows, as usual, feature prominently among "highest DVR %" both for the 18-49 demo and average viewers. Fox, targeting a younger demo this fall than last season, also had more shows near the top of the "high % DVR" list than last fall. NBC's The Office, a consistent DVR magnet was also near the top of the % DVR viewing lists, as was NBC's new Community.
Note that shows that were designated "specials" or repeats by their network are missing from this list.
Note that the first two tables below contains adults 18-49 demo program ratings, and the other two contain average viewership data.
To see previous weeks most DVR'd TV Shows lists click here.
Those of you interested in DVR viewing numbers might enjoy:
When Do DVR’d Shows Get Watched? Same Night or After?
Doing My Part To Combat DVR Misinformation.
Smallest 18-49 Demo Increase From DVR Viewing for Broadcast TV Shows (Sept 14-20):
| Rank | Programs | Net | 18-49 Live (rating) | 18-49 Live+SD (rating) | 18-49 Live+7 (rating) | Increase From DVR Viewing | % of All Viewing By DVR | % of DVR Viewing On Airdate |
| 1 | FOOTBALL NT AMERICA PT 3 | NBC | 4.85 | 4.93 | 4.94 | 2% | 2% | 89% |
| 2 | FOOTBALL NT AMERICA PT 2 | NBC | 2.64 | 2.69 | 2.70 | 2% | 2% | 83% |
| 3 | CBS NFL NATL POST GAME | CBS | 5.10 | 5.22 | 5.22 | 2% | 2% | 100% |
| 4 | SUNDAY NIGHT NFL PRE-KICK | NBC | 7.04 | 7.20 | 7.21 | 2% | 2% | 94% |
| 5 | SAT NIGHT FTBL PRE-GAME | ABC | 1.10 | 1.13 | 1.14 | 4% | 4% | 75% |
| 6 | NBC Sunday Night Football | NBC | 9.48 | 9.84 | 9.85 | 4% | 4% | 97% |
| 7 | SAT NIGHT FOOTBALL | ABC | 2.15 | 2.22 | 2.24 | 4% | 4% | 78% |
| 8 | AMW: AMERICA FIGHTS BACK | FOX | 1.65 | 1.71 | 1.72 | 4% | 4% | 86% |
| 9 | MEDIUM | CBS | 0.92 | 0.96 | 0.99 | 8% | 7% | 57% |
| 10 | SMARTER THAN 5TH GRADER | FOX | 1.01 | 1.06 | 1.09 | 8% | 7% | 63% |
| 11 | CRASH COURSE | ABC | 1.40 | 1.43 | 1.52 | 9% | 8% | 25% |
| 12 | JAY LENO SHOW-FRI | NBC | 2.05 | 2.15 | 2.25 | 10% | 9% | 50% |
| 13 | 20/20-FRI | ABC | 1.35 | 1.41 | 1.49 | 10% | 9% | 43% |
| 14 | SHAQ VS. | ABC | 1.63 | 1.72 | 1.80 | 10% | 9% | 53% |
| 15 | JAY LENO SHOW-WED | NBC | 3.28 | 3.49 | 3.64 | 11% | 10% | 58% |
| 16 | COPS | FOX | 1.32 | 1.37 | 1.47 | 11% | 10% | 33% |
| 17 | JAY LENO SHOW-THU | NBC | 2.54 | 2.75 | 2.84 | 12% | 11% | 70% |
| 18 | Dateline FRI | NBC | 1.66 | 1.74 | 1.88 | 13% | 12% | 36% |
| 19 | JAY LENO SHOW-TUE | NBC | 3.15 | 3.40 | 3.62 | 15% | 13% | 53% |
| 20 | MORE TO LOVE | FOX | 1.54 | 1.69 | 1.77 | 15% | 13% | 65% |
| 21 | 48 Hours Mystery | CBS | 1.24 | 1.35 | 1.44 | 16% | 14% | 55% |
| 22 | AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 9P | NBC | 3.08 | 3.46 | 3.65 | 19% | 16% | 67% |
| 23 | JAY LENO SHOW-MON | NBC | 4.75 | 5.28 | 5.65 | 19% | 16% | 59% |
| 24 | BEAUTIFUL LIFE | CW | 0.59 | 0.63 | 0.72 | 22% | 18% | 31% |
| 25 | SNL WKND UPDATE-PRIME | NBC | 1.74 | 1.96 | 2.14 | 23% | 19% | 55% |
Largest 18-49 Demo Increase From DVR Viewing for Broadcast TV Shows (Sept 14-20):
| Rank | Programs | Net | 18-49 Live (rating) | 18-49 Live+SD (rating) | 18-49 Live+7 (rating) | Increase From DVR Viewing | % of All Viewing By DVR | % of DVR Viewing On Airdate |
| 1 | 90210 | CW | 0.86 | 1.18 | 1.52 | 77% | 43% | 48% |
| 2 | OFFICE | NBC | 2.97 | 4.11 | 5.23 | 76% | 43% | 50% |
| 3 | MELROSE PLACE | CW | 0.78 | 0.99 | 1.27 | 63% | 39% | 43% |
| 4 | SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-WED | FOX | 1.82 | 2.44 | 2.96 | 63% | 39% | 54% |
| 5 | Vampire Diaries | CW | 1.31 | 1.62 | 2.13 | 63% | 38% | 38% |
| 6 | FRINGE | FOX | 2.43 | 2.98 | 3.95 | 63% | 38% | 36% |
| 7 | Bones | FOX | 2.49 | 3.09 | 3.85 | 55% | 35% | 44% |
| 8 | Glee | FOX | 2.57 | 3.16 | 3.88 | 51% | 34% | 45% |
| 9 | Gossip Girl | CW | 1.11 | 1.36 | 1.67 | 50% | 34% | 45% |
| 10 | COMMUNITY | NBC | 3.00 | 3.78 | 4.47 | 49% | 33% | 53% |
| 11 | AMERICA'S Top Model 7 | CW | 1.14 | 1.37 | 1.66 | 46% | 31% | 44% |
| 12 | SUPERNATURAL | CW | 1.05 | 1.24 | 1.50 | 43% | 30% | 42% |
| 13 | Parks and Recreation | NBC | 1.77 | 2.10 | 2.48 | 40% | 29% | 46% |
| 14 | One Tree Hill | CW | 0.97 | 1.17 | 1.35 | 39% | 28% | 53% |
| 15 | BIG BROTHER 11-TUE | CBS | 2.29 | 2.84 | 3.14 | 37% | 27% | 65% |
| 16 | Biggest Loser 8 | NBC | 3.20 | 3.85 | 4.33 | 35% | 26% | 58% |
| 17 | Wipeout | ABC | 1.99 | 2.16 | 2.46 | 24% | 19% | 36% |
| 18 | SNL WKND UPDATE-PRIME | NBC | 1.74 | 1.96 | 2.14 | 23% | 19% | 55% |
| 19 | BEAUTIFUL LIFE | CW | 0.59 | 0.63 | 0.72 | 22% | 18% | 31% |
| 20 | JAY LENO SHOW-MON | NBC | 4.75 | 5.28 | 5.65 | 19% | 16% | 59% |
| 21 | AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 9P | NBC | 3.08 | 3.46 | 3.65 | 19% | 16% | 67% |
| 22 | 48 Hours Mystery | CBS | 1.24 | 1.35 | 1.44 | 16% | 14% | 55% |
| 23 | MORE TO LOVE | FOX | 1.54 | 1.69 | 1.77 | 15% | 13% | 65% |
| 24 | JAY LENO SHOW-TUE | NBC | 3.15 | 3.40 | 3.62 | 15% | 13% | 53% |
| 25 | Dateline FRI | NBC | 1.66 | 1.74 | 1.88 | 13% | 12% | 36% |
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The 18-49 Demo Increase From DVR Viewing ranks which of the top broadcast shows [by Live+7 viewers] had the % of increase in viewing by DVR in their adults 18-49 Live+7 audience numbers from viewers watching shows later on their digital video recorders (DVRs).
Largest DVR Audiences for Broadcast TV Shows (Sept 14-20):
| Rank | Programs | Net | Persons Live (000s) | Persons Live+SD (000s) | Persons Live+7 (000s) | Same Day DVR Viewers (000s) | Total DVR Viewers (000s) | % of All Viewing By DVR | % of DVR Viewing On Airdate |
| 1 | OFFICE | NBC | 6,370 | 8,228 | 10,104 | 1,858 | 3,734 | 37.0% | 49.8% |
| 2 | FRINGE | FOX | 6,728 | 7,821 | 9,961 | 1,093 | 3,233 | 32.5% | 33.8% |
| 3 | Bones | FOX | 9,000 | 10,366 | 12,225 | 1,366 | 3,225 | 26.4% | 42.4% |
| 4 | COMMUNITY | NBC | 6,527 | 7,899 | 9,168 | 1,372 | 2,641 | 28.8% | 52.0% |
| 5 | Glee | FOX | 5,604 | 6,705 | 8,069 | 1,101 | 2,465 | 30.5% | 44.7% |
| 6 | SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-WED | FOX | 4,499 | 5,690 | 6,828 | 1,191 | 2,329 | 34.1% | 51.1% |
| 7 | JAY LENO SHOW-MON | NBC | 17,323 | 18,455 | 19,445 | 1,132 | 2,122 | 10.9% | 53.3% |
| 8 | Biggest Loser 8 | NBC | 8,833 | 9,905 | 10,824 | 1,072 | 1,991 | 18.4% | 53.8% |
| 9 | BIG BROTHER 11-TUE | CBS | 6,718 | 7,790 | 8,421 | 1,072 | 1,703 | 20.2% | 62.9% |
| 10 | Vampire Diaries | CW | 3,236 | 3,777 | 4,705 | 541 | 1,469 | 31.2% | 36.8% |
| 11 | AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 9P | NBC | 14,735 | 15,793 | 16,204 | 1,058 | 1,469 | 9.1% | 72.0% |
| 12 | Parks and Recreation | NBC | 4,324 | 4,895 | 5,540 | 571 | 1,216 | 21.9% | 47.0% |
| 13 | 90210 | CW | 1,798 | 2,325 | 2,892 | 527 | 1,094 | 37.8% | 48.2% |
| 14 | JAY LENO SHOW-TUE | NBC | 10,569 | 11,095 | 11,635 | 526 | 1,066 | 9.2% | 49.3% |
| 15 | Wipeout | ABC | 5,740 | 6,073 | 6,750 | 333 | 1,010 | 15.0% | 33.0% |
| 16 | JAY LENO SHOW-WED | NBC | 12,916 | 13,368 | 13,845 | 452 | 929 | 6.7% | 48.7% |
| 17 | Gossip Girl-MON | CW | 2,178 | 2,555 | 3,094 | 377 | 916 | 29.6% | 41.2% |
| 18 | AMERICA'S Top Model 7 | CW | 2,394 | 2,793 | 3,279 | 399 | 885 | 27.0% | 45.1% |
| 19 | JAY LENO SHOW-THU | NBC | 8,326 | 8,826 | 9,137 | 500 | 811 | 8.9% | 61.7% |
| 20 | NBC Sunday Night Football | NBC | 24,049 | 24,818 | 24,857 | 769 | 808 | 3.3% | 95.2% |
| 21 | SUPERNATURAL | CW | 2,436 | 2,797 | 3,232 | 361 | 796 | 24.6% | 45.4% |
| 22 | MELROSE PLACE | CW | 1,494 | 1,813 | 2,280 | 319 | 786 | 34.5% | 40.6% |
| 23 | One Tree Hill-MON | CW | 2,159 | 2,459 | 2,838 | 300 | 679 | 23.9% | 44.2% |
| 24 | SNL WKND UPDATE-PRIME | NBC | 5,099 | 5,469 | 5,778 | 370 | 679 | 11.8% | 54.5% |
| 25 | JAY LENO SHOW-FRI | NBC | 7,350 | 7,599 | 7,915 | 249 | 565 | 7.1% | 44.1% |
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The Largest DVR Audiences ranks which of the top broadcast shows [by Live+7 viewers] had the largest number average viewers by DVR in their Live+7 audience numbers from viewers watching shows later on their digital video recorders (DVRs).
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Greatest % Of DVR Viewing for Broadcast TV Shows (Sept 14-20):
| Rank | Programs | Net | Persons Live (000s) | Persons Live+SD (000s) | Persons Live+7 (000s) | Same Day DVR Viewers (000s) | Total DVR Viewers (000s) | % of All Viewing By DVR | % of DVR Viewing On Airdate |
| 1 | 90210 | CW | 1,798 | 2,325 | 2,892 | 527 | 1,094 | 37.8% | 48.2% |
| 2 | OFFICE | NBC | 6,370 | 8,228 | 10,104 | 1,858 | 3,734 | 37.0% | 49.8% |
| 3 | MELROSE PLACE | CW | 1,494 | 1,813 | 2,280 | 319 | 786 | 34.5% | 40.6% |
| 4 | SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-WED | FOX | 4,499 | 5,690 | 6,828 | 1,191 | 2,329 | 34.1% | 51.1% |
| 5 | FRINGE | FOX | 6,728 | 7,821 | 9,961 | 1,093 | 3,233 | 32.5% | 33.8% |
| 6 | Vampire Diaries | CW | 3,236 | 3,777 | 4,705 | 541 | 1,469 | 31.2% | 36.8% |
| 7 | Glee | FOX | 5,604 | 6,705 | 8,069 | 1,101 | 2,465 | 30.5% | 44.7% |
| 8 | Gossip Girl-MON | CW | 2,178 | 2,555 | 3,094 | 377 | 916 | 29.6% | 41.2% |
| 9 | COMMUNITY | NBC | 6,527 | 7,899 | 9,168 | 1,372 | 2,641 | 28.8% | 52.0% |
| 10 | AMERICA'S Top Model 7 | CW | 2,394 | 2,793 | 3,279 | 399 | 885 | 27.0% | 45.1% |
| 11 | Bones | FOX | 9,000 | 10,366 | 12,225 | 1,366 | 3,225 | 26.4% | 42.4% |
| 12 | SUPERNATURAL | CW | 2,436 | 2,797 | 3,232 | 361 | 796 | 24.6% | 45.4% |
| 13 | One Tree Hill-MON | CW | 2,159 | 2,459 | 2,838 | 300 | 679 | 23.9% | 44.2% |
| 14 | Parks and Recreation | NBC | 4,324 | 4,895 | 5,540 | 571 | 1,216 | 21.9% | 47.0% |
| 15 | BIG BROTHER 11-TUE | CBS | 6,718 | 7,790 | 8,421 | 1,072 | 1,703 | 20.2% | 62.9% |
| 16 | Biggest Loser 8 | NBC | 8,833 | 9,905 | 10,824 | 1,072 | 1,991 | 18.4% | 53.8% |
| 17 | Wipeout | ABC | 5,740 | 6,073 | 6,750 | 333 | 1,010 | 15.0% | 33.0% |
| 18 | SNL WKND UPDATE-PRIME | NBC | 5,099 | 5,469 | 5,778 | 370 | 679 | 11.8% | 54.5% |
| 19 | JAY LENO SHOW-MON | NBC | 17,323 | 18,455 | 19,445 | 1,132 | 2,122 | 10.9% | 53.3% |
| 20 | JAY LENO SHOW-TUE | NBC | 10,569 | 11,095 | 11,635 | 526 | 1,066 | 9.2% | 49.3% |
| 21 | AMERICA GOT TALENT-WED 9P | NBC | 14,735 | 15,793 | 16,204 | 1,058 | 1,469 | 9.1% | 72.0% |
| 22 | JAY LENO SHOW-THU | NBC | 8,326 | 8,826 | 9,137 | 500 | 811 | 8.9% | 61.7% |
| 23 | JAY LENO SHOW-FRI | NBC | 7,350 | 7,599 | 7,915 | 249 | 565 | 7.1% | 44.1% |
| 24 | JAY LENO SHOW-WED | NBC | 12,916 | 13,368 | 13,845 | 452 | 929 | 6.7% | 48.7% |
| 25 | NBC Sunday Night Football | NBC | 24,049 | 24,818 | 24,857 | 769 | 808 | 3.3% | 95.2% |
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The % of Total viewing by DVR table ranks which of the top broadcast shows [by Live+7 viewers] had thelargest % of viewing by DVR in their Live+7 audience numbers from viewers watching shows later on their digital video recorders (DVRs).
Definitions:
DVR (Time-shifted) Viewing – Program ratings for national sources are produced in three streams of data –Live, Live+Same Day (Live+SD) and Live+7 Day. Time shifted figures account for incremental viewing that takes place with DVRs which are currently in approximately 24.4% of all U.S. TV households. Live+Same Day(Live+SD) include viewing during the same broadcast day as the original telecast, with a cut-off of 3:00AM local time when meters transmit daily viewing to Nielsen for processing. Live+7 Day ratings include incremental viewing that takes place during the 7 days following a telecast.
Same Day DVR Viewers - How many people watched the show on their DVRs prior to 3AM the day following the airdate,
DVR Viewers - How many people watched the show on their DVRs within 7 days following the airdate
% of All Viewing By DVR - Of the total viewing of that particular episode, what percentage was done via DVR.
% of DVR Viewing On Airdate - Of the DVR viewing of that particular episode, what percentage was done prior to 3AM the day following the airdate.
Nielsen TV Ratings Data:©2009 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.
What if anything does it say that Dollhouse is nowhere to be found on these lists?
It says that I’m an idiot who didn’t see that it was for the week ending September 20th. Mea culpa.
that this list is for the week of 9/14-9/20 and Dollhouse didn’t premiere until 9/25
Wow. Fringe’s audience didn’t leave the show, they’re just not watching it live. That’s a huge bump.
I added in the week’s dates many more times to prevent some of the confusion.
You know, I think you guys might want to hold off on any Fringe Deathwatch posts or the like for awhile with these DVR numbers.
From the looks of things, it’s getting 1.5 points in the 18-49 demos and has a pretty large viewing by DVR. That’s gotta be telling FOX that a lot of people are watching Grey’s Anatomy or CSI live and DVRing the show to watch later.
I don’t believe there has been a single Fringe deathwatch post even with the L+SD numbers (though I don’t remember what Bill said in the Renew or Cancel Index).
My sense from FOX is that so far they are happy with the Thursday results — at least based on the week above, and that was even before they saw the L+7 #s.
Have there been any improvements in monetizing DVR viewers? Do you have any idea on how many 18-49 dvr viewers would equal 1 live 18-49 viewer in monetary terms?
i am Fringe DVR vewier
Quinn, for now it seems like unless they watch commercials (and from the numbers that have been made available, the number of people who watch commercials live+DVR for 3 days is roughly equal to Live+SD ratings), DVR viewers are worthless. This is something that probably really needs to change, but it’s going to be slow going to get it there. And it will probably mean very intrusive commercials during programming at some point.
Quinn, not really. These aren’t good numbers to sort that out, either and sadly we don’t see the C+3 commercial ratings that the ads are sold on.
Using the program #s are flawed for such analysis because they exclude any fast-forwarding of commercials (both the L+SD and Live+7). In other words, the DVR minutes spent skipping the commercials have already been factored out of these numbers.
That list gave me some good hope on Community, Fringe and Glee.
Community timeslot move is kinda unpredictable. It could earn more viewers due to a little weaker competition or get hurt because the lack of Office lead-in. I like the show but I don’t think it’s getting renewed unless it pulls a 2.0+ and builds a solid fanbase. Fringe is doing fine and it should stay there if it does constant ratings like Bones.
Anyway, how are the DVR numbers going to hurt (if they are) Jay Leno Show?
Many of these programs are on Comcast On-Demand. No need to DVR them if you have the service. I often watch NCIS and CSI from the On-Demand service.
So if the DVR numbers in this chart include only the minutes of people who didn’t fast-forward, does that mean that the Office really does get a nice profitable bump from the 3.7mil who DVR’d it and still watched the commercials? Sorry, just trying to clarify for at least myself. That seems like a lot of DVR viewing without fast-forwarding.
Quinn, if you watch a show on your DVR and FF through 30 min of a 60 min show you are counted as half an average viewer for the hour. What really matters is how much the average commercial minute gets watched. These numbers don’t measure that exactly though. The numbers we have seen indicate DVR viewing adds almost no commercial viewing.
Ah, I gotcha. Thanks for the clarification.
The numbers we have seen indicate that the C+3 numbers for the COMMERCIAL viewing aren’t much different than the live PROGRAM viewing. But because commercial viewing and program viewing are two different sets of numbers and because we have never (ever) seen numbers for LIVE commercial viewing there’s no practical way for us to triangulate the data.
Unlike Bill, I don’t think DVR viewing “adds almost no commercial viewing”. All of the studies I’ve seen indicate 75% to 80% of all the commercials get skipped/fast forwarded during DVR viewing. But that means 20%-25% get watched. While overwhelmingly commercials aren’t watched, I don’t view 20%-25% as “almost no commercial viewing”. Though i doubt it is extremely meaningful, either, and not meaningful at all if the commercials are viewed on DVR more than 3 days after the program aired.
I was using the search feature and I found this article http://tvbythenumbers.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/TiVo_ARM_May2009.pdf you guys posted awhile back with TiVo data for commercial viewing. Using the data for their 10 ten Pure Program rated shows it appears that commercial viewing averaged 19.1%. I guess that’s small but it still seems like a statistically significant amount.
Assuming of course that TiVo’s data set tracks with Nielsen’s.
Quinn, the data we have seen on a handful of occasions from Nielsen with C+3 commercial ratings indicates that the C+3 commercial ratings for most shows are very close to the Live program ratings for those shows (these DVR posts are the only ones on our site that contain Live viewing numbers any longer, everything else is Live+Same Day DVR viewing).