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Cable Ratings Soared on Sunday Night, Which Used to Be a Broadcast Stronghold

Apr 2, 2013  •  Post A Comment

Ratings for programs shown on cable TV soared this past Sunday night. Sunday used to be a stronghold of broadcast TV.

To begin, the History channel announced: "The much anticipated finale of History’s ‘The Bible’ on Sunday March 31st from 8-10 p.m. ET/PT drew blockbuster ratings for the network with 11.7 million total viewers; 4.6 million Adults 25-54 and 3.8 million Adults 18-49. This is up +14% among total viewers, +18% among A25-54 and +12% among A18-49 vs. last week.

"In addition, head to head, the 9-10 p.m. portion of ‘The  Bible’ edged out the 9-10 p.m. portion of [AMC’s] ‘The Walking Dead’ (12.33 Million total viewers vs. ‘Walking Dead’ with 12.29). During the 9-10 p.m. hour ‘The Bible’ focused on The Resurrection."

Noted B&C: "The third season finale of AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead’ drew a series-best 12.4 million viewers Sunday at 9 p.m., just ahead of this year’s midseason premiere in February (12.3 million),"

B&C added, "That was also 38% higher than last year’s finale (9 million). The third-season ender also drew a series-high with 8.1 million adults 18-49, up 5% over the midseason premiere and up 35% over last year in that demo. The series’ season average of 7.03 million adults 18-49 is also No. 1 for the broadcast season among all networks, season-to-date.

In a separate story B&C also noted that "HBO returned ‘Game of Thrones’ Sunday night for its third season to a series-best 4.4 million viewers for its 9 p.m. premiere.

"That was up 13% over last year’s premiere (3.9 million) and also 4% higher than where the show left off (4.2 million). Across three plays, ‘Game of Thrones’ drew a series-high 6.7 million viewers, up 7% vs. last year’s 6.3 million."

2 Comments

  1. I believe that TV is entering a new Golden Age. Much of the work being done on paid and free cable is original and outstanding. The new emphasis on 10-week and 13-week series has brought talent to the writing and acting side that would not have been available for a longer broadcast network season. This has resulted in tighter scripted storylines that are creating better dramas and many more of them. Justified, Mad Men, Shameless, Game of Thrones and many more are providing truly outstanding viewing for everyone.

  2. The second Golden Age of Television began with the Sopranos. That’s really the show that started the ball rolling. Mad Men already has six seasons under their belt, so we are well into it. Let’s hope it lasts this time.

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