NBA Playoffs Give Networks Strong Second Quarter Viewership
By Austin Karp, Research Associate
On the heels of a successful NBA playoffs, TNT saw Q2 primetime viewership jump 1.2% from the same period in '07. The network had eight NBA playoff games rank in the top 50 most-viewed shows on cable during Q2, each of which aired in primetime. On ESPN, the network saw a 22.1% gain in viewership in primetime during Q2 compared to '07, buoyed in large part by the success of the NBA playoffs, "SportsCenter" and the NCAA women's basketball tournament. For total-day audience, ESPN and ESPN2 also had their best Q2s ever. The following lists the top 10 cable networks in viewership (P2+) for Q2, along with viewership data for other sports nets.
|
MOST-VIEWED AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
IN PRIMETIME FOR Q2 OF '08
|
|
RK
|
NET
|
Q2 '08 - AVG. P2+ (000)
|
Q2 '07 - AVG. P2+ (000)
|
% +/-
|
|
1
|
USA
|
2,732
|
2,578
|
6.0%
|
|
2
|
TNT
|
2,433
|
2,405
|
1.2%
|
|
3
|
TBS
|
1,739
|
1,576
|
10.3%
|
|
4
|
ESPN
|
1,732
|
1,418
|
22.1%
|
|
5
|
Nick at Nite
|
1,711
|
1,290
|
32.6%
|
|
6
|
Fox News
|
1,589
|
1,476
|
7.7%
|
|
7
|
Lifetime
|
1,500
|
1,446
|
3.7%
|
|
8
|
Spike
|
1,382
|
1,193
|
15.8%
|
|
9
|
Discovery
|
1,270
|
1,344
|
-5.5%
|
|
10
|
A&E
|
1,262
|
1,292
|
-2.3%
|
|
29
|
ESPN2
|
657
|
618
|
6.3%
|
|
34
|
Versus
|
425
|
266
|
59.8%
|
|
40
|
WGN
|
365
|
338
|
8.0%
|
|
41
|
Speed
|
317
|
269
|
17.8%
|
|
60
|
Golf Channel
|
130
|
131
|
-0.8%
|
|
66
|
ESPN Classic
|
75
|
106
|
-29.2%
|
|
67
|
NFL Network
|
55
|
60
|
-8.3%
|
NOTES: Viewership is from Monday-Sunday, 8:00-11:00pm ET. The time frame for Q2 '08 is March 31- June 29, and Q2 '07 is April 2 - July 1. Networks are ranked by blend of Live+Seven Days and Live+Same-Day data.
TOP SPORTS EVENTS: On broadcast TV, CBS' telecast of the Kansas-Memphis NCAA men's basketball championship game was the most-viewed sporting event of Q2 with 19.5 million viewers. ABC took six of the top 10 spots with coverage of the NBA Finals, which also ranked as the six most-viewed programs on all of television for the month of June. The NBA playoffs also dominated on cable, as TNT had the three most-viewed sports telecasts for Q2. And the net's coverage of Lakers-Spurs Game Four proved to be the most-viewed telecast on all of ad-supported cable for the quarter. TNT also got strong performances from their NASCAR Sprint Cup coverage, as two of their races in June ranked in the top 10 for the quarter.
|
TOP TEN MOST-VIEWED BROADCAST TV SPORTS EVENTS FOR SECOND QUARTER 2008
|
|
RK
|
NET
|
DATE
|
TELECAST
|
RAT.
|
VIEWERS (000)
|
|
1
|
CBS
|
4/7
|
NCAA Men's Basketball Championship:
Kansas-Memphis
|
12.1
|
19,501
|
|
2
|
ABC
|
6/15
|
NBA Finals: Celtics-Lakers: Game Five
|
10.2
|
17,394
|
|
3
|
ABC
|
6/17
|
NBA Finals: Lakers-Celtics: Game Six
|
10.7
|
16,879
|
|
4
|
ABC
|
6/10
|
NBA Finals: Celtics-Lakers: Game Three
|
9.2
|
14,509
|
|
5
|
CBS
|
4/5
|
NCAA Men's Basketball: Final Four:
Kansas-North Carolina
|
8.8
|
14,435
|
|
6
|
NBC
|
5/3
|
Kentucky Derby: Race Segment
|
8.8
|
14,203
|
|
7
|
ABC
|
6/12
|
NBA Finals: Celtics-Lakers: Game Four
|
8.7
|
13,762
|
|
8
|
ABC
|
6/8
|
NBA Finals: Lakers-Celtics: Game Two
|
8.5
|
13,499
|
|
9
|
ABC
|
6/5
|
NBA Finals: Lakers-Celtics: Game One
|
8.7
|
13,384
|
|
10
|
CBS
|
4/5
|
The Masters: Final Round
|
8.6
|
13,148
|
|
TOP TEN MOST-VIEWED CABLE TV SPORTS EVENTS
FOR SECOND QUARTER 2008
|
|
RK
|
NET
|
DATE
|
TELECAST
|
U.S. RAT.
|
COV. RAT.
|
VIEWERS (000)
|
|
1
|
TNT
|
5/27
|
NBA Western Conference Finals:
Lakers-Spurs: Game Four
|
4.8
|
5.6
|
7,247
|
|
2
|
TNT
|
5/29
|
NBA Western Conference Finals:
Spurs-Lakers: Game Five
|
4.6
|
5.4
|
6,794
|
|
3
|
TNT
|
5/19
|
NBA Western Conference Semifinals:
Spurs-Hornets: Game Seven
|
4.3
|
5.0
|
6,547
|
|
4
|
ESPN
|
5/30
|
NBA Eastern Conference Finals:
Celtics-Pistons: Game Six
|
4.2
|
4.9
|
6,445
|
|
5
|
ESPN
|
5/28
|
NBA Eastern Conference Finals:
Pistons-Celtics: Game Five
|
4.3
|
5.1
|
6,434
|
|
6
|
TNT
|
5/21
|
NBA Western Conference Finals:
Spurs-Lakers: Game One
|
4.1
|
4.8
|
6,190
|
|
7
|
TNT
|
6/8
|
NASCAR Sprint Cup: Pocono 500
|
3.9
|
4.6
|
6,098
|
|
8
|
ESPN
|
5/26
|
NBA Eastern Conference Finals:
Celtics-Pistons: Game Four
|
4.0
|
4.6
|
6,086
|
|
9
|
TNT
|
6/22
|
NASCAR Sprint Cup: Toyota/Save Mart 350
|
3.7
|
4.3
|
6,015
|
|
10
|
TNT
|
5/25
|
NBA Western Conference Finals:
Lakers-Spurs: Game Three
|
3.7
|
4.3
|
5,729
|
CORRECTION: Coca-Cola should have been listed as an official NBA sponsor in yesterday’s chart presenting the top national TV spenders for NBA telecasts between November '07-April '08. THE DAILY regrets the error.
|
