With the May Sweeps and the “official” 2001/2002 TV season almost at an end, ad-supported cable continues to rack-up double-digit percentage gains in primetime viewership. According to a
Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau analysis of Nielsen data for Week #34 (May 13–19), ad-supported cable’s average primetime U.S. household delivery increased by 14.9% (+3.6 million homes) versus the
same period last year; rating rose 11.3% (+2.7 points); and share climbed 9.3% (+3.8 points). While up modestly in primetime delivery in Week #34 (+2% versus the year before), the seven broadcast
networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, WB, UPN, PAX) had a collective primetime rating decline of 1.2%; and were down 3.0% in share. The delivery gain can be attributed mostly to the final episodes of CBS’
“Survivor” and NBC’s “Friends.” Once again, the overall gain for Week #34 in Homes Using Television (HUT) during primetime was once again driven primarily by viewers tuning into cable.
