ABC's GREY'S ANATOMY Finishes as Thursday's No. 2 TV Series in Adults 18-49

ABC Thursday Primetime (8:00-11:00 p.m. - 6.1 million and 1.7/6 in AD18-49): Opposite the GOP debate on CNN, ABC finished in a close race with Live + Same Day Adults 18-49 for the broadcast lead (1.7/6 - tied in share with CBS and Fox), and in the Live + 3 Day numbers is projected to emerge as Thursday's entertainment leader for the 5th week in a row with Nielsen's release of that data on Tuesday. Last week, ABC's primetime Adult 18-49 rating jumped 1.1 points from L+SD to L+3, putting it 17% ahead of runner-up FOX (2.8 rating vs. 2.4 rating).

"How to Get Away with Murder" continues to deliver record-setting playback lifts. Last week's telecast of "HTGAWM" scored its largest-ever L+3 lift with Adults 18-49, soaring 86% over its L+SD rating (to a 2.6 rating) and moving from the No. 9 series of the night up to No. 2, behind only "Grey's Anatomy." And in the most recent round of L+7 (for 2/18/16), "Murder" delivered back-to-back triple-digit playback gains among Adults 18-49 (to a 3.0 rating), with another 100% increase over its L+SD rating (tying the prior week as its biggest L+7 jump ever).

Live + Same Day Results:

ABC aired Thursday's Top 3 dramas for the 5th week running in Adults 18-49, with steady performances from "Grey's" (2.1/7), "Scandal" (1.6/5) and "How to Get Away with Murder" (1.4/5). In addition, "Grey's" was the No. 2 series on Thursday in Adults 18-49 (tie), behind only CBS' "The Big Bang Theory."

"Grey's Anatomy" (8:00-9:00 p.m. - 7.6 million and 2.1/7 in AD18-49):
At 8:00 p.m., ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" held steady week to week in Total Viewers (7.6 million vs. 7.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.1/7 vs. 2.2/8).

"Scandal" (9:00-10:00 p.m. - 6.0 million and 1.6/5 in AD18-49):
At 9:00 p.m. opposite the first hour of the GOP Debate, ABC's "Scandal" returned from the prior week's preemption with a 3% gain in Total Viewers (6.0 million vs. 5.8 million) and steady with Adults 18-49 (1.6/5 vs. 1.7/5).

"How to Get Away with Murder" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 4.8 million and 1.4/5 in AD18-49):
The No. 1 series on Thursday at 10:00 p.m. for the 5th straight week in Adults 18-49, ABC's "How to Get Away with Murder" (1.4/5) beat out NBC's "Shades of Blue" by 40% (1.0/4) and CBS' "Elementary" by 27% (1.1/4). "Murder" grew 7% week to week in Total Viewers (4.8 million vs. 4.5 million) and was even in Adults 18-49 (1.4/5).

Projections Rationale:
Lifts vs. L+SD are based on 2015-16 season averages for originals (excluding the premiere).
Returning shows: Profile based on same show (either premiere or averages for originals).
New Series: Based on similar series.

A note about DVR penetration: DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample is currently at 48% in U.S. TV Homes. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which are increasingly not reflected in the overnight Live + Same Day numbers. As a result, the Live + 7 Day ratings are the most accurate Nielsen measure to gauge the size of the TV audience.

Source: The Nielsen Company, Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings for 03/10/16, unless otherwise specified.

Image courtesy of ABC