ABC's MODERN FAMILY is Wednesday's No. 1 TV Show in Key Demos

ABC's "Modern Family" finished as Wednesday's No. 1 TV show in Adults 18-49, outdelivering Fox's "American Idol" on the night for the first time ever. ABC was up week to week on Wednesday (+5% - 2.2/6 vs. 2.1/6) to match a 5-week high on the night - since 1/23/13.

"The Middle" (8:00-8:30 p.m.)

Opposite the opening half-hours of "Idol" and CBS' "Survivor" at 8:00 p.m., ABC's "The Middle" outdelivered NBC's "Whitney" by 4.5 million viewers (8.0 million vs. 3.5 million) and nearly a full rating point in Adults 18-49 (2.1/6 vs. 1.2/4). The ABC comedy beat out "Survivor" for the 3rd week in a row in Adults 18-34 (+8%) and Women 18-34 (+21%).

"The Neighbors" (8:30-9:00 p.m.)

Like its lead-in at 8:30 p.m., ABC's "The Neighbors" dominated its comedy competition, defeating NBC's season finale of "Guys With Kids" by 3.0 million viewers (6.1 million vs. 3.1 million) and by 55% in Adults 18-49 (1.7/5 vs. 1.1/3).

"Modern Family" (9:00-9:30 p.m.)

More than doubling its Adult 18-49 lead-in at 9:00 p.m. (+129%) and holding even with its week-ago Fast Affiliate rating (3.9/10), ABC's "Modern Family" finished No. 1 in its half-hour with a 50% advantage over its nearest scripted competition (CBS' "Criminal Minds" = 2.6/7).

"Suburgatory" (9:30 -10:00 p.m.)

At 9:30 p.m., ABC's "Suburgatory" defeated NBC's "Law & Order" in the half-hour among Total Viewers (+7% - 6.3 million vs. 5.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (+28% - 2.3/6 vs. 1.8/5).

· The sophomore ABC sitcom surged week to week in viewers (+11%) and young adults (+15%) to its best numbers since January 9, 2013. Improving its slot year to year for the 3rd straight week, "Suburgatory" drew 7% more viewers for ABC to the half-hour this year.

"Nashville" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

Returning after the prior week's preemption for an Oscars special, ABC's "Nashville" came back to rank No. 1 in the 10 o'clock hour with Adults 18-34 (1.4/4) and, for its 6th straight broadcast, in Women 18-34 (2.1/6).

· Jumping 71% over its L+SD rating in the most recent week of L+7 data (w/o 2/4/13), ABC's "Nashville" stood as the biggest percentage gainer of any freshman series during the week, building to a 2.9 Adult 18-49 rating in the final playback numbers.

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 2012. 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), 02/27/13.