For Terminator, Dollhouse and Chuck fans, Robert has a comparison of their 18-49 DVR numbers. The numbers below are average viewers.
For the week of February 23 – March 1, Fox’s Wednesday American Idol had the largest audience via DVR viewing with 4.632 million viewers via DVRs.
Fox’s House was again second with a DVR viewing audience of 4.116 million. Rounding out the top ten for the largest DVR audiences were Thursday’s American Idol, Lost, 24, Heroes, CSI, Criminal Minds, NCIS and Survivor:Tocantins.
Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles had the highest share of its overall viewing by DVR with 34.9% of all viewing by DVR. Rounding out the top 10 for highest share of total audience viewing via DVR viewing were Heroes, Dollhouse, Lost, Privileged, 30 Rock, House, 24, Life and Chuck.
Note: The numbers in these lists are total viewers, not any particular age demographic.
To see past weeks DVR viewing lists click here.
Those of you interested in DVR viewing numbers might enjoy:
When Do DVR’d Shows Get Watched? Same Night or After?
Doing My Part To Combat DVR Misinformation.
Largest DVR Audiences for Broadcast TV Shows:
| Rank | Programs | Net | Persons Live+7 (000s) | Persons Live+SD (000s) | Persons Live (000s) | Same Day DVR Viewers (000s) | DVR Viewers (000s) | % of All Viewing By DVR | % of DVR Viewing On Airdate |
| 1 | AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY | FOX | 26,140 | 24,591 | 21,508 | 3,083 | 4,632 | 17.7% | 66.6% |
| 2 | HOUSE | FOX | 16,721 | 14,904 | 12,605 | 2,299 | 4,116 | 24.6% | 55.9% |
| 3 | AMERICAN IDOL THU (S)-2/26 | FOX | 22,035 | 20,826 | 18,200 | 2,626 | 3,835 | 17.4% | 68.5% |
| 4 | LOST | ABC | 12,078 | 10,120 | 8,536 | 1,584 | 3,542 | 29.3% | 44.7% |
| 5 | 24 | FOX | 13,372 | 11,718 | 10,128 | 1,590 | 3,244 | 24.3% | 49.0% |
| 6 | HEROES | NBC | 9,021 | 7,089 | 5,990 | 1,099 | 3,031 | 33.6% | 36.3% |
| 7 | CSI | CBS | 19,679 | 17,774 | 16,740 | 1,034 | 2,939 | 14.9% | 35.2% |
| 8 | CRIMINAL MINDS | CBS | 15,709 | 13,958 | 13,020 | 938 | 2,689 | 17.1% | 34.9% |
| 9 | NCIS | CBS | 19,494 | 18,307 | 16,816 | 1,491 | 2,678 | 13.7% | 55.7% |
| 10 | SURVIVOR: TOCANTINS | CBS | 13,013 | 12,060 | 10,553 | 1,507 | 2,460 | 18.9% | 61.3% |
| 11 | 30 ROCK | NBC | 7,648 | 6,361 | 5,488 | 873 | 2,160 | 28.2% | 40.4% |
| 12 | AMAZING RACE 14 | CBS | 11,251 | 10,609 | 9,226 | 1,383 | 2,025 | 18.0% | 68.3% |
| 13 | GHOST WHISPERER | CBS | 12,527 | 11,569 | 10,586 | 983 | 1,941 | 15.5% | 50.6% |
| 14 | BROTHERS & SISTERS | ABC | 12,928 | 11,985 | 11,038 | 947 | 1,890 | 14.6% | 50.1% |
| 15 | MEDIUM | NBC | 9,742 | 8,470 | 7,869 | 601 | 1,873 | 19.2% | 32.1% |
| 16 | HELL’S KITCHEN | FOX | 10,757 | 9,884 | 8,925 | 959 | 1,832 | 17.0% | 52.3% |
| 17 | CHUCK | NBC | 7,522 | 6,612 | 5,792 | 820 | 1,730 | 23.0% | 47.4% |
| 18 | E.R. | NBC | 9,961 | 8,792 | 8,232 | 560 | 1,729 | 17.4% | 32.4% |
| 19 | DOLLHOUSE | FOX | 5,280 | 4,181 | 3,614 | 567 | 1,666 | 31.6% | 34.0% |
| 20 | NUMB3RS | CBS | 10,838 | 9,625 | 9,225 | 400 | 1,613 | 14.9% | 24.8% |
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Greatest % Of DVR Viewing for Broadcast TV Shows:
| Rank | Programs | Net | Persons Live+7 (000s) | Persons Live+SD (000s) | Persons Live (000s) | Same Day DVR Viewers (000s) | DVR Viewers (000s) | % of All Viewing By DVR | % of DVR Viewing On Airdate |
| 1 | TERMINATOR: SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES | FOX | 4,401 | 3,379 | 2,864 | 515 | 1,537 | 34.9% | 33.5% |
| 2 | HEROES | NBC | 9,021 | 7,089 | 5,990 | 1,099 | 3,031 | 33.6% | 36.3% |
| 3 | DOLLHOUSE | FOX | 5,280 | 4,181 | 3,614 | 567 | 1,666 | 31.6% | 34.0% |
| 4 | LOST | ABC | 12,078 | 10,120 | 8,536 | 1,584 | 3,542 | 29.3% | 44.7% |
| 5 | PRIVILEGED | CW | 1,840 | 1,531 | 1,319 | 212 | 521 | 28.3% | 40.7% |
| 6 | 30 ROCK | NBC | 7,648 | 6,361 | 5,488 | 873 | 2,160 | 28.2% | 40.4% |
| 7 | HOUSE | FOX | 16,721 | 14,904 | 12,605 | 2,299 | 4,116 | 24.6% | 55.9% |
| 8 | 24 | FOX | 13,372 | 11,718 | 10,128 | 1,590 | 3,244 | 24.3% | 49.0% |
| 9 | LIFE | NBC | 5,840 | 4,906 | 4,445 | 461 | 1,395 | 23.9% | 33.0% |
| 10 | CHUCK | NBC | 7,522 | 6,612 | 5,792 | 820 | 1,730 | 23.0% | 47.4% |
| 11 | LIFE ON MARS | ABC | 5,947 | 4,889 | 4,604 | 285 | 1,343 | 22.6% | 21.2% |
| 12 | FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS | NBC | 4,822 | 4,158 | 3,807 | 351 | 1,015 | 21.0% | 34.6% |
| 13 | MEDIUM | NBC | 9,742 | 8,470 | 7,869 | 601 | 1,873 | 19.2% | 32.1% |
| 14 | SURVIVOR: TOCANTINS | CBS | 13,013 | 12,060 | 10,553 | 1,507 | 2,460 | 18.9% | 61.3% |
| 15 | AMAZING RACE 14 | CBS | 11,251 | 10,609 | 9,226 | 1,383 | 2,025 | 18.0% | 68.3% |
| 16 | UGLY BETTY | ABC | 7,665 | 6,741 | 6,300 | 441 | 1,365 | 17.8% | 32.3% |
| 17 | AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY | FOX | 26,140 | 24,591 | 21,508 | 3,083 | 4,632 | 17.7% | 66.6% |
| 18 | AMERICAN IDOL THU SP-2/26(S)-02/26/2009 | FOX | 22,035 | 20,826 | 18,200 | 2,626 | 3,835 | 17.4% | 68.5% |
| 19 | E.R. | NBC | 9,961 | 8,792 | 8,232 | 560 | 1,729 | 17.4% | 32.4% |
| 20 | CRIMINAL MINDS | CBS | 15,709 | 13,958 | 13,020 | 938 | 2,689 | 17.1% | 34.9% |
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The % of Total viewing by DVR table ranks which of the Top 150 broadcast shows [by Live+7 viewers] had thelargest % of viewing by DVR in their Live+7 audience numbers from viewers watching shows later on their digital video recorders (DVRs).
Definitions:
DVR (Time-shifted) Viewing – Program ratings for national sources are produced in three streams of data –Live, Live+Same Day (Live+SD) and Live+7 Day. Time shifted figures account for incremental viewing that takes place with DVRs which are currently in approximately 24.4% of all U.S. TV households. Live+Same Day(Live+SD) include viewing during the same broadcast day as the original telecast, with a cut-off of 3:00AM local time when meters transmit daily viewing to Nielsen for processing. Live+7 Day ratings include incremental viewing that takes place during the 7 days following a telecast.
Same Day DVR Viewers - How many people watched the show on their DVRs prior to 3AM the day following the airdate,
DVR Viewers - How many people watched the show on their DVRs within 7 days following the airdate
% of All Viewing By DVR - Of the total viewing of that particular episode, what percentage was done via DVR.
% of DVR Viewing On Airdate - Of the DVR viewing of that particular episode, what percentage was done prior to 3AM the day following the airdate.
Nielsen TV Ratings Data:©2009 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.
I would have thought having a larger percent of your total viewing audience doing DVR would be a bad thing because DVR’s can skip the ads->less interest from advertisers.
Is this true or am I over thinking?
djm, small numbers of viewers do not skip commercials. Since advertising is today priced for the number of viewers that watch the commercials within 3 days of airdate, DVR viewing is possibly a tiny benefit to a marginal show, but we have not seen any evidence of that as yet.
so basically it dosen’t mean much to advertisers.
djm, we see very little commercial ratings data, but from what little we’ve seen it matters little.
I heard in the future they’ll be able to tell emotional attachment to a show and to the adverts: now that will be the 18-49 twin. Plus its will make compelling dramas get ahead better. Apparently though something like 40% of people don’t skip threw the adverts when they DVR: so surely theres some money in that.
Dollhouse is wow doing really good.
If DVR really counts, it is so NOT getting canned!!!
anil, check out dollhouse’s live +7 numbers. they are still lower than most shows that they were behind with live +SD. in other words if they were, say, #80 in weekly live+sd, they may be #76 in live+7. i doubt that it will return
@ anil
DVR viewing is possibly a tiny benefit to a marginal show, but we have not seen any evidence of that as yet
Glad to see that Dollhouse has a decent amount in absolute numbers of DVR’ing and is a bit above 5 million. Now if only it would start trending above 2.0 in 18-49…
Eh. I’m prepared to have this show be my second Wonderfalls (my 4th favorite show): a show that gets just 13 episodes, but 13 episodes that I adore forever. Though I admit the first ep of Dollhouse was just okay and the eps since then have been good but not amazing. Wonderfalls’ wonderfulness didn’t start until episode 9, but the eps before were solid and they wonderfully help in building towards the climaxes and payoffs in the last few eps.
Perhaps Fox will consider that since TSCC is a serialized show, and the DVR numbers and ratings are growing even on the deadly friday night. It means that in subsequent seasons the fanbase can only grow as more people find out about the show.
I was just reading an article over at B&C magazine about a report due out on March 26th, that is suppose to explode TV viewing myths. I was wondering if you guys have read the article or heard about the report and how it may impact the way advertisers may use the information?
In case you have not read the article here’s the link > http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/190106-Major_Research_Report_Expected_To_Explode_TV_Viewing_Myths.php?nid=2228&source=title&rid=6301967
ravenu, http://tvbythenumbers.com/2009/03/16/look-for-more-tv-is-still-king-stories-on-march-26/14649
Wow i just noticed cChuck actually gets to its last season average with DVR numbers.
How often do networks look at DVRs Bill/Robert?
I don’t understand comments from some TSCC fans that people don’t know the show exists. How can they not? Either they never watch Fox, don’t have a Fox affiliate in their area, or never read TV listings. Otherwise the show has been on two seasons, albeit a short first season, so I can’t understand how its lack of numbers can be attributed to people not knowing it exists.
I could be in that boat because I don’t have a TV – I watch via downloads. In fact, I just went through a huge list of available TV downloads and checked out what each show was about with Wikipedia. And in the end, I only see a few more shows than the four I download now (TSCC, Fringe, Leverage and Dollhouse) that I might care to explore.
But anybody who owns a DVR presumably owns a TV and therefore should be reasonably familiar with what’s on the main networks, if not everything on cable. So a show’s fanbase will only grow if word of mouth on the QUALITY of the show attracts new viewers who know it exists but haven’t decided to watch it yet. And presumably some people will randomly watch a show, like it and become regular viewers – but that’s likely to be an insignificant number compared to word of mouth recommendations.
Richard, it seems a popular train of thought among fans of low rated shows that the show is “low rated” simply because no one knows about it.
This could occasionally be true with an obscure show on a tiny cable network somewhere but, IIRC, TSCC started out with nearly 20M people watching the premiere and now we’re down to 3M+ watching it. I’d say plenty of people know about it and just don’t care for it, especially season 2.
When is New Amsterdam gonna air?
Oh right, it’s not.
With a show like Dollhouse and Fringe where it tells you how long the commercial is going to be, if it’s only going to be 60 seconds, I don’t bother with the fast forward button.
The only way I can stand AI is recorded. Between the irritating high number of commercial breaks and fluff during the show, it’s the only way I can stand it.
Case example-Idol gives back, now that was f***ing stupid and a waste of everybody’s time.