ABC Takes Adults 18-49 in November Sweeps, Excluding Sports

Excluding sports to level the playing field for the NFL-boosted averages, ABC ranks a solid No. 1 in Adults 18-49 (2.1/6) for the 2014 November Sweep, leading CBS by 31% (1.6/5), NBC by 31% (1.6/5) and FOX by 62% (1.3/4). And based on all programming in Adults 18-49, the Net moved up a notch year to year to rank a strong No. 2 to an NFL-fueled NBC (2.0/6 vs. 2.3/7), while leading CBS by 11% (1.8/6) and FOX by 54% (1.3/4). ABC is the No. 1 network for the month across all key Women (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54).

• Up in Total Viewers and Holding Steady in Adults 18-49: Based on all programming, ABC is up November to November in Total Viewers (+1% - 7.9 million vs. 7.8 million) and is the only net to hold steady in Adults 18-49 (2.0/6). In fact, each of the other nets are trending down year to year in Adults 18-49: CBS -18%, NBC -12% and FOX -24%.

• No. 1 on 4 of 7 Nights of the Week in November in Adults 18-49: Wednesday -- No. 1, Thursday - No. 1, Friday - No. 1 and Saturday - No. 1. In fact, ABC won all 4 Thursdays of the November Sweep for the first time in at least 23 years - predating the 1991 start of Nielsen's electronic database.

• Highest-Rated TV Series: Based on Nielsen's Most Current ratings to include all available TV playback, ABC claims 6 of the Top 15 non-sports broadcast series during November in Adults 18-49 (the most for any net), including the top dramas ("Scandal" and "HTGAWM" are tied for No. 1) and the No. 1 freshman comedy ("black-ish"): "Scandal" and "How to Get Away with Murder" tie at No. 2, "Modern Family" - No. 5, "Upon a Time" - No. 7, "Grey's Anatomy" - No. 8 and "black-ish" - No. 14. ABC's "DWTS" is TV's most-watched unscripted series for the 2nd straight November, outdrawing both editions of NBC's "The Voice."

• No. 1 Network in the 10 o'clock Hour for 2nd Straight November in Key Adults: ABC is November's No. 1 network for the 2nd year in a row during the 10 o'clock hour on Monday-Friday, as a lead-in to affiliates' late-local news. ABC led the No. 2 networks by double digits in Adults 18-49 (+27% - 1.9/6 vs. 1.5/5-NBC) and Adults 25-54 (+20% - 2.4/6 vs. 2.0/6-CBS and NBC tied).

Source: The Nielsen Company, National Live + Same Day Program Ratings for 10/30-11/24/14, unless specified otherwise.