If NBC is about to crash back to Earth following its ratings spree with the Sochi Winter Olympics, it hasn’t happened yet. With the return of "The Voice" Monday night, the network coasted to a huge win over its broadcast rivals in prime time, based on Nielsen overnights for the key 18-49 demo.
TVbytheNumbers.com reports that NBC averaged a 4.2 rating in 18-49 for prime time, with its competition falling well short of that mark. ABC settled for a 2.2, followed by CBS with a 2.1 and Fox with a 1.6.
NBC’s two-hour "The Voice" was down one-tenth of a ratings point from the spring premiere a year ago with a 4.7 average in the 18-49 demo. Leading out from it, "The Blacklist" had a solid 3.1 average, up six-tenths of a point from the show’s previous original.
Meanwhile, NBC continued to flex its muscles in late-night. The first non-Olympic night for “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” averaged a 4.5 household rating, 12 share in results from the 56 Nielsen Media Research metered markets. NBC reported that it was "Tonight’s" highest Monday rating, excluding Olympic nights, in four years, since the return of Jay Leno on March 1, 2010, when the show delivered a 5.4.
Fallon continued to outdraw his top two rivals combined. His 4.5 rating was up 55% over “Tonight’s” non-Olympic season average (4.5 vs. 2.9, live plus same day). And it beat the combined metered-market household rating in the time period of CBS’s “Late Show with David Letterman” (2.2/6) and ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (2.1/6).
Monday night also saw the premiere of “Late Night with Seth Meyers” at 12:35 a.m. ET, with the broadcast averaging a 2.6 household rating, 9 share in metered markets. NBC noted that it was the highest “Late Night” rating on a Monday in nine years — since Jan. 24, 2005, for a “Late Night” encore that delivered a 4.2 when it followed a high-rated “Tonight Show” tribute to Johnny Carson.
NBC reported: "The debut of ‘Late Night with Seth Meyers’ is up 63% versus ‘Late Night’s’ season average (2.6 vs. 1.6, L+SD). Monday’s ‘Late Night’ retained 58% of its ‘Tonight Show’ lead-in (2.6 vs. 4.5), versus the show’s 55% season average (1.6 vs. 2.9). The 2.6 topped the combined ratings in the time slot of ABC’s ‘Nightline’ (1.4/5 for the first half-hour of the time period) and CBS’s ‘Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson’ (1.0/4)."
I have always like Seth Meyers, and last night, while he did seem nervous, I think he did well, and will continue to improve just like Fallon did when he first started on Late Night.
However, the set looks EXTREMELY cheap and cheesy; I felt like I was watching a show on local cable access. It also seemed as if they were using cheap, second rate cameras.