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TV ratings report: DVRs make the rich (and poor) richer
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About a third of American homes with televisions now also have at least one DVR, so it's no surprise that the seven-day DVR ratings would grow by more than they did at this time last year.Nor is it really a huge surprise that the most-watched shows on live TV -- at least those that aren't sporting events -- also tend to gain the most in terms of raw numbers of viewers in DVR. That's been the pattern for the past couple of seasons, and it was the case for the first week of the 2009-10 season.
Nielsen has released its "live plus 7" numbers for the first official week of the season (Sept. 21-27) and in general the shows at the top of the same-day ratings are also at the top of the seven-day list too. "Grey's Anatomy" was the biggest gainer in raw numbers, adding 2.97 million viewers from its same-day total, while "The Mentalist" picked up an additional 2.95 million people.
The biggest gainers in terms of percentages are farther down the ratings: "Dollhouse" grew by 36.5 percent (2.5 million to 3.42 million), and "Fringe" went up by 34.1 percent (5.77 million to 7.73 million). Thirteen shows grew by 20 percent or more during premiere week.
Adding viewers is never a bad thing. But none of the biggest biggest percentage gainers is now suddenly a hit as a result. "Fringe" and "NCIS" each added about the same amount of people, but because "NCIS" was starting off at a much higher level (20.6 million), the 1.93 million viewers it gained is a much smaller percentage of the total.
The DVR numbers also don't necessarily mean a ton to advertisers, since DVRs also let people skip commercials (advertisers tend to use "C3" ratings, which measures how many people actually watch an ad within three days of its airing, as the standard for setting ad rates). The seven-day numbers could, however, help indicate which borderline shows might be worth supporting.
It's also pretty clear that a crowded night of TV makes for a lot of DVR use -- six of the top 10 shows in terms of viewers added aired on Thursday night.
Below are the top 10 shows in the seven-day ratings for Sept. 21-27 in total viewers added; this gallery has the leaders by percentage.
- "Grey's Anatomy": 17.06 million to 20.03 million viewers, added 2.97 million
- "The Mentalist": 15.09 million to 18.04 million, added 2.95 million
- "House": 17.27 million to 20.15 million, added 2.88 million
- "CSI": 16.04 million to 18.26 million, added 2.22 million
- "FlashForward": 12.5 million to 14.47 million, added 1.97 million
- "Fringe": 5.77 million to 7.73 million, added 1.97 million
- "NCIS": 20.61 million to 22.54 million, added 1.93 million
- "Criminal Minds": 15.85 million to 17.76 million, added 1.91 million
- "CSI: Miami": 14.22 million to 16.12 million, added 1.9 million
- "Bones": 9.15 million to 11.02 million, added 1.87 million
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'Dollhouse,' 'Fringe,' 'Melrose Place': The most-DVR'd shows of premiere week
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Nice numbers. But that was the season premiere week for most shows, so the numbers changed a lot in the following weeks for most shows.
Fringe is a special case. It went from the best possible spot to the hardest one out there. I really hope they move it soon to a "normal" spot, otherwise it will be a prime candidate for cancellation after this season.
I couldn't agree with you more Anonymous!
Where are the cable show? Along with downloads they get better ratings than many major network shows.
Mike, you make a great point about Premiere Week being only a small part of the puzzle. :)
I disagree a bit with you about Fringe, which really showed it was a "time period hit" (and not much of one at that) when it was moved away from its protective lead-in.
Also, the idea that Fridays are a horrible time-slot to be in is fallacious. When Saturadays were programmed, the networks dumped most of the shows they didn't believe in on Saturdays and ended up killing it to justify their bad picks.
They are now doing that with Fridays and are programming fewer and fewer hours, making it harder and harder to find real hits.
It's almost as if those executives don't care about (of think they can find - or both) real hits.
By the way, the next time you read about a show doing "gangbusters on DVR" and other hype, do remember this article (kudos to Rick for telling it like it is!).
DVR use doesn't make a bomb a hit.
A high percentage of DVR use, however, seems to be closely related to shows doing poorly overall, which always made sense to me as a show you can't wait to watch will be watched the same day (duh! ;) ) while shows that are so-so may or may not be watched later.
My view on DVR use is that I am sick of the networks telling me what time I watch a show. Especially considering after long days at work I might not necessarily feel motivated to what it on THEIR timetable.
Combine that with the fact that often 2 or more shows I enjoy are now on competing for the same viewers in the same timeslot I find the use of Tivo (well, lets say I use Tivo and not media computer that I built and hooked into my TV) very beneficial
tell the truth eliza. 36.5 is not 50 percent dvr rating. dollhouse is still a bomb.
I DVR shows because I work nights and am not home to watch prime time TV so I think DVR numbers should count more. I'm sure there are a lot of people like me who watch shows later because they have to.
I record everything as i work evenings and Thursday nights @9 is my most recorded hour and i dont even record GA or CSI.
I agree steven. No matter how you spin those numbers Dollhouse is an embarassment.
Of course, the media is all-too-eager to help hype failures and zap2it is now showcasing pictures of Dollhouse as a "most DVR'd show" even though it's entirely misleading to imply that Dollhouse is doing well in any way.