ABC's CMA COUNTRY CHRISTMAS Up for 2nd Straight Year

During the week of December 1, 2014, ABC delivered 5 of the Top 20 TV programs in Adults 18-49: "Saturday Night Football" - No. 4, "Modern Family" - No. 8, "black-ish" and "Charlie Brown X-Mas" tied as No. 14 and "Once Upon a Time" - No. 19. The Net was up 14% week to week in Adults 18-49 (1.6/5 vs. 1.4/4).

2014-15 Season to Date (11 Weeks Most Current - All Programming): ABC is up 5% in Total Viewers (9.1 million vs. 8.7 million) and holding steady in Adults 18-49 (2.5/8), making it the top gainer in viewers and the only network not losing ground in key sales demo. CBS (-4%), NBC (-6%) and FOX (-16%) are each down this season with young adults.

Monday
With "CMA Country Christmas" and "Castle," ABC took second on Monday night among the broadcasters to NBC ("The Voice"/"State of Affairs") in Total Viewers (8.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (1.5/5). For the 2nd week in a row, ABC's "Castle" was Monday's most-watched scripted TV show, topping runner-up NBC's "The Voice"-led "State of Affairs" by 1.4 million viewers (8.4 million vs. 7.0 million).

"CMA Country Christmas" (8:00-10:00 p.m. - 8.9 million and 1.6/5 in AD18-49):
Despite going head to head with NBC's "The Voice" from 8:00-10:00 p.m. (on the year-ago night, it aired from 9:00-11:00 p.m. against the final hour of "The Voice" into "Blacklist"), CMA "Country Christmas" was up for the 2nd consecutive year in both Total Viewers (+20% - 8.9 million vs. 7.4 million) and Adults 18-49 (+7% - 1.6/5 vs. 1.5/4). In fact, "CMA Country Christmas" delivered its 2nd-best-ever numbers in viewers and young adults. The ABC special was the night's No. 2 entertainment show in viewers and young adults, behind only NBC's "The Voice."

"Castle" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 8.4 million and 1.5/5 in AD18-49):
Although airing out of a smaller lead-in at 10:00 p.m. (after following the "Dancing" finale the prior Monday), ABC's "Castle" was the most-watched series in its hour, drawing a larger audience than NBC's "State of Affairs" for the 3rd time in as many tries (8.4 million vs. 7.0 million) and ran in a virtual tie with Adults 18-49 (1.5/5 vs. 1.6/5). In addition, the ABC drama beat NBC's "State of Affairs" in Adults 18-34, Men 18-34 and key Women (W18-34/W18-49).

Tuesday
ABC ran in a virtual tie for No. 1 on Tuesday in Adults 18-49 with NBC's original lineup of "The Voice" and "Chicago Fire" (pacing within 1-tenth of a rating point - 1.7/5 vs. 1.8/6).

"S.H.I.E.L.D." and "Forever" Hit Playback Highs: Based on the most recent week of Live + 7 Day data (w/o 11/10/14), ABC's "Forever" doubled its L+SD Adult 18-49 rating (+100%), growing to a 2.0 rating in L+7 and "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." catapulted +93% over its first-reported L+SD rating to deliver a 2.9 rating in L+7 (up from a 1.5). Both series scored their largest-ever playback increases among Adults 18-49.

"Toy Story that Time Forgot" (8:00-8:30 p.m. - 6.8 million and 1.9/6 in AD18-49):
At 8:00 p.m. opposite "The Voice," ABC's premiere of "Toy Story that Time Forgot" took second in Adults 18-49 (1.9/6) to deliver a season high in the half-hour. In addition, the Disney special dominated the slot with Kids 2-11 (3.3/12) and posted the Net's highest rating in the half-hour in 2 years - since 11/27/12.

"A Charlie Brown Christmas" (8:30-9:00 p.m. - 6.8 million and 2.1/6 in AD18-49):
Building on its lead-in at 8:30 p.m., ABC's annual encore of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" took second to "The Voice" in Adults 18-49 to earn a season high in the time period. The Christmas PEANUTS special increased 11% from last year's telecast in Adults 18-49 (1.9/5 on 12/02/13).

"Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." (9:00-10:00 p.m. - 5.4 million and 1.8/5 in AD18-49):
On its return after the prior week's preemption for the "Dancing" Finale, ABC's "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." was up by double digits in Total Viewers (+17% - 5.4 million vs. 4.6 million) and Adults 18-49 (+13% - 1.8/5 vs. 1.6/5) to earn its best numbers since its season premiere 10 weeks ago - since 9/23/14. From 9:00-10:00 p.m., "S.H.I.E.L.D." ranked No. 1 in Adults 18-49, beating original comedies on FOX by 50% ("New Girl"/"The Mindy Project" = 1.2/4) and NBC by 50% ("Marry Me"/"About a Boy" = 1.2/4).

"Forever" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 5.2 million and 1.2/4 in AD18-49):
At 10:00 p.m., ABC's "Forever" surged over its most recent telecast two weeks ago in Total Viewers (+18% - 5.2 million vs. 4.4 million) and Adults 18-49 (+20% - 1.2/4 vs. 1.0/3), earning an 8-week high in viewers and equaling a 9-week high in young adults - since 10/7/14 and 9/30/14, respectively. Season to date, "Forever" is improving its hour for ABC by 105% in Total Viewers (7.6 million vs. 3.7 million) and by 73% in Adults 18-49 (1.9/6 vs. 1.1/3).

Wednesday
ABC ran in a near 3-way tie for No. 1 on Wednesday in Adults 18-49 (1.8/5) with CBS (1.9/6 - 2-hour "Survivor" into "Stalker") and NBC (1.9/6 - "Christmas at Rockefeller Center"/"SNL Christmas"). ABC's "Modern Family" (2.8/8) and "black-ish" (2.1/6 - tied w/"Survivor") ranked as the Top 2 TV shows of the night. In fact, "Modern Family" was Wednesday's top-rated TV series for its 9th straight telecast this season.

Season to date (10 complete weeks Most Current), ABC is the No. 1 network on Wednesday night in Adults 18-49 and is up year to year (+3%).

"The Middle" (8:00-8:30 p.m. - 7.0 million and 1.6/5 in AD18-49):
At 8:00 p.m. opposite "Survivor" and "Christmas at Rockefeller Center," ABC's "The Middle" beat Fox's "Hell's Kitchen" by 33% in Adults 18-49 (1.6/5 vs. 1.2/4) and was the No. 1 broadcast program half-hour with Teens 12-17.

"The Goldbergs" (8:30-9:00 p.m. - 6.6 million and 1.7/5 in AD18-49):
Improving on its young adult lead-in for its 8th consecutive telecast at 8:30 p.m. (+6%), "The Goldbergs" continued to pace well ahead of its year-ago benchmarks in Adults 18-49. The ABC sophomore comedy boosted its half-hour year to year by 21% (1.7/5 vs. 1.4/4 for "Back in the Game" on 12/4/13) and also topped its own year-ago Tuesday 9:00 p.m. telecast by 21% (1.4/4 on 12/3/13).

"Modern Family" (9:00-9:31 p.m. - 9.0 million and 2.8/8 in AD18-49):
At 9:00 p.m., "Modern Family" spiked over its Adult 18-49 lead-in (+65%) to win its half-hour by 33% over its nearest competition (2.8/8 vs. 2.1/6 - NBC's "SNL Christmas").

"black-ish" (9:31-10:00 p.m. - 6.8 million and 2.1/6 in AD18-49):
In the 9:30 p.m. half-hour, ABC's "black-ish" was the No. 1 series in its slot for its 7th straight broadcast in Adults 18-49 (2.1/6-tie). "black-ish" delivered strong year-to-year time-period improvement for ABC, topping the year-ago telecast of "Super Fun Night" (on 12/4/13) by 42% in Total Viewers (6.8 million vs. 4.8 million) and by 31% in Adults 18-49 (2.1/6 vs. 1.6/4).

"Nashville" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 5.3 million and 1.3/4 rating in AD18-49):
During the 10:00 p.m. hour against "SNL Christmas" on NBC, ABC's "Nashville" was competitive with CBS' "Stalker" in Adults 18-49 (1.3/4 vs. 1.5/5) and beat the CBS drama in Women 18-34 (+11%). A big gainer in TV playback, "Nashville" (+71%) could move up into a tie with "Stalker" (+63%) in the Live + 7 Day Adult 18-49 ratings.

Thursday
"The Taste" (8:00-10:00 p.m. - 3.3 million and 0.9/3 in AD18-49):
From 8:00-10:00 p.m. opposite NBC's much-hyped "Peter Pan Live!" and nearly all-original competition on the other nets, ABC's season premiere of "The Taste" (3.3 million and 0.9/3) was up from its Season 2 finale in Total Viewers (+3%) and held steady in Adults 18-49 (3.2 million and 0.9/3 on 2/20/14), outdrawing the final 3 telecasts of its second season - best since 1/30/14. Please Note: "The Taste" premiered last season on the first Thursday of January (1/2/14) against much lesser competition from NBC and repeats on Fox.

Despite the highly-promoted NBC competition, "The Taste" built 13% from its first hour to its second hour in Adults 18-49 (0.8/3 to 0.9/3) to move up into a tie with Fox's time-slot regular "Gracepoint" from 9:00-10:00 p.m., which had nearly twice the lead-in coming into THE HOUR from "Bones" at 8:00 p.m.

Friday
Opposite Fox's Pac 12 Championship COLLEGE FOOTBALL game, ABC ranked as the No. 1 non-sports network by a wide margin in Adults 18-49, leading NBC's all-original lineup by 56% (1.4/5 vs. 0.9/3). In addition, ABC was the most-watched network overall on the night (6.4 million).

ABC's "Shark Tank" was Friday's No. 1 TV series in Total Viewers (7.2 million) and Adults 18-49 (1.8/6), delivering the top series position on the evening for its 10th consecutive original telecast this season in young adults.

Season to date, ABC's Friday is up in Total Viewers (+10%) and Adults 18-49 (+6%), marking a 7-year high on the night on both counts - since the comparable weeks of 2007-08.

"Last Man Standing" (8:00-8:31 p.m. - 6.7 million and 1.2/5 in AD18-49):
At 8:00 p.m., "Last Man Standing" returned after the prior week's preemption at No. 1 in the half-hour with Total Viewers (6.7 million) in Adults 18-49 (1.2/5-tie).

"Cristela" (8:31-9:00 p.m. - 4.6 million and 0.9/3 in AD18-49):
At 8:30 p.m., "Cristela" came back as the 2nd-most watched show (4.6 million) in its half-hour to CBS' "The Amazing Race" and improved its slot from the year-ago night by 10%.

"Shark Tank" (9:00-10:01 p.m. - 7.2 million and 1.8/6 in AD18-49):
Doubling its Adult 18-49 lead-in at 9:00 p.m. (+100%), ABC's "Shark Tank" beat its nearest regular competition in THE HOUR by 50% (1.8/6 vs. 1.2/4 - NBC's "Grimm"). The ABC unscripted series was also by far the most-watched show overall in the slot (7.2 million).

"20/20" (10:01-11:00 p.m. - 6.3 million and 1.4/5 in AD18-49):
ABC's "20/20" was the No. 1 regular program in the 10:00 p.m. hour for the 5th straight week in Adults 25-54 (2.0/6) and Adults 18-49 (1.4/5).

The ABC newsmagazine was up by double digits week to week in Total Viewers (+21% - 6.3 million vs. 5.2 million), Adults 25-54 (+33% - 2.0/6 vs. 1.5/4) and Adults 18-49 (+17% - 1.4/5 vs. 1.2/4).

Saturday
With coverage of the ACC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (Florida St at Georgia Tech), ABC dominated Saturday night in Total Viewers (9.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.0/10), towering over FOX with football coverage of the Big 10 Championship (6.4 million and 1.8/6). ABC delivered its 2nd-best performance on the night so far this season in viewers and young adults.

Airing from 8:07-11:39 p.m., ABC's ACC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME was easily the evening's No. 1 program in Total Viewers (10.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.1/11), dominating runner-up Fox's "Big 10 Championship Game" (6.1 million and 1.7/6).

This year's final game of "Saturday Night Football" was up over last year's championship game (5.7 million and 1.7/5 on 12/7/13) by 4.4 million viewers and by 82% in the young adult demo.

"Saturday Night Football" finished the season with its 2nd-strongest numbers in both viewers and young adults.

Sunday
Opposite SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (Patriots-Chargers) on NBC and another big NFL primetime overrun on FOX (Seahawks-Eagles), ABC built week to week in Total Viewers (+4% - 5.2 vs. 5.0 million) and Adults 18-49 (+8% - 1.4/4 vs. 1.3/3).

ABC's "Once Upon a Time" (51,332 tweets), "Revenge" (30,243 tweets) and "Resurrection" (5,042 tweets) ranked as the Top 3 most social series on Sunday.

"America's Funniest Home Videos" (7:00-8:00 p.m. - 5.9 million and 1.3/4 in AD18-49):
During the 7:00 p.m. hour, ABC's "America's Funniest Home Videos" gained 8% week to week in Adults 18-49 (1.3/4 vs. 1.2/3).

"Once Upon a Time" (8:00-9:00 p.m. - 6.2 million and 2.0/5 in AD18-49):
From 8:00-9:00 p.m. ABC's "Once Upon a Time" finished as Sunday's No. 1 drama in Adults 18-49 (2.0/5) and held steady with its week-ago number (2.1/5).

"Resurrection" (9:00-10:01 p.m. - 4.0 million and 1.0/3 in AD18-49):
At 9:00 p.m., ABC's "Resurrection" was up week to week in viewers (+8% - 4.0 million vs. 3.7 million) and young adults (+11% - 1.0/3 vs. 0.9/2).

"Revenge" (10:01-11:00 p.m. - 4.6 million and 1.2/3 in AD18-49):
During the 10 o'clock hour, ABC's "Revenge" posted double-digit increases from the prior week in Total Viewers (+12% - 4.6 million vs. 4.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (+20% - 1.2/3 vs. 1.0/3). "Revenge" continued to deliver substantial time-period improvement for ABC from the same night last year (3.1 million and 0.7/2 on 12/8/13) in viewers (+48%) and young adults (+71%).

WEEK NO. 11: ADULTS 18-49 TOTAL VIEWERS
No.1 NBC 2.4 No.1 NBC 8,730,000
No.2 FOX 1.9 No.2 CBS 7,160,000
No.3 ABC 1.6 No.3 ABC 6,470,000
No.4 CBS 1.3 No.4 FOX 5,810,000
No.5 CW 0.7 No.5 CW 2,000,000

Source: The Nielsen Company, National, Live+ Same Day Program Ratings for week of 12/01/14.