'Grey's Anatomy' Most Popular Among TiVo Viewers

But Users Watched 'Sunday Night Football' Live in First Week of Fall Season

By Brian Steinberg, AdAge.com

"Grey's Anatomy," which boasts the costliest commercial time on broadcast TV, also was the most-watched program during the first week of the new fall season among TiVo viewers, according to the Alviso, Calif., company that makes and markets the digital-video-recording devices.

Nearly two-thirds of all viewing by TiVo users during premiere week, with the exception of sports programs, "was done on a time-shifted basis," said Todd Juenger, VP-general manager, TiVo Audience Research and Measurement.

TiVo generated the rankings using its StopWatch service, which tracks viewing behavior on a second-by-second basis via random sampling of its user base. ABC's "Grey's" finished first in total viewing, followed by "CSI" on CBS, "Desperate Housewives" on ABC, "Survivor: China" on CBS and "Heroes" on NBC. NBC's Sunday-night telecast of NFL football was the most-watched show on a live basis, according to TiVo.

"Grey's" also carried the day among viewers who watched on a time-shifted basis, followed by "CSI," "Desperate Housewives," "Survivor: China" and "The Office."