ABC's 'Revenge' Returns Up with its Top Numbers Since Early January

Written By Amanda Kondolojy

March 11th, 2013

Despite Facing Declining Daylight Saving Time TV Usage Levels,

ABC’s “Once Upon A Time” Posts Week-to-Week Demographic Gains

ABC’s “Revenge” Returns Up with its Best Numbers Since the Beginning of January

ABC’s “Red Widow” Retains 80% of its Week-Ago Debut and Posts Strong L+3 Gains

Please Note: On the first Sunday of Daylight Saving Time, overall TV usage declined notably during the opening hours of the night. Adult 18-49 PUTs were off -6% during the 7 o’clock hour (30.8 vs. 32.7) and down -7% in the 8 o’clock hour (35.7 vs. 38.2).

“Once Upon A Time” (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

Spiking over its Adult 18-49 lead-in (+57%) at 8:00 p.m., ABC’s “Once Upon A Time” ran neck-and-neck with CBS’ “Amazing Race” for the lead in the hour, closing the gap week to week and pacing within 1-tenth of a rating point (2.2/6 vs. 2.3/7).  The ABC drama once again won its time slot with key Women (W18-34/W18-49) to stand as Sunday’s top-rated broadcast series.

• Despite facing declining viewing levels week to week, “Once Upon A Time” was up 5% over its week-ago Fast Affiliate Adult 18-49 number.  “Once Upon A Time” was also up week to week in Total Viewers (+1%), Adults 18-34 (+6%) and Kids 2-11 (+11%).

“Revenge” (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

Up 11% in Adults 18-49 from its last telecast 3 weeks ago before “The Oscars,” ABC’s “Revenge” (2.0/5) returned with strong lead-in retention (91%), beating the first hour of NBC’s “Celebrity Apprentice” by 25% (1.6/4) and CBS’ “The Good Wife” by 33% (1.5/4) during the 9 o’clock hour.  In addition, the sophomore drama made ABC the No. 1 broadcaster in the hour with Adults 25-54 and across all key Women demos.

• Building for its 2nd airing in Total Viewers (+13%) and Adults 18-49 (+11%), “Revenge” posted its best numbers since the beginning of January – since 1/6/13.  Season to date, “Revenge” has gained 21% in Adults 18-49 over the same point in its freshman season.

“Red Widow” (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

During the 10 o’clock hour, ABC’s “Red Widow” retained 80% of its week ago 2-hour series debut in Adults 18-49 (1.2/3 vs. 1.5/4).  Based on the first 3 days of TV playback (Live + 3 Day Ratings), “Red Widow” (on 3/3/13 from 9:00-11:00 p.m.) grew over its Live +Same Day numbers by 1.8 million viewers (7.1 million to 8.9 million) and by 27% in Adults 18-49 (1.5 rating to a 1.9 rating).

A note about increasing DVR penetration and year-to-year rating comparisons: Year-to-year rating comparisons based on the Live + Same Day data stream are distorted by the level of DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample, which has jumped up to 47% currently, from 43% at the same point in 2011.

More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which may not be reflected in the overnight next day numbers. The only truly valid year-to-year comparison would be one based on the Live + 7 Day metric, once those stats are released by Nielsen.

Source: The Nielsen Company, Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings, 03/10/13.