Sports Programming Improves Share, Scripted TV Loses Out
- by Wayne Friedman , June 2, 2017
Looking for positive trends for the big broadcast networks? Think sports, news, and late-night programming.
Over the past five TV seasons, sports programming continues to improve its massive share lead for broadcast networks over other genres.
For the just-completed 2016-2017 TV season, sports now has a 37% share of Nielsen total day 18-49 ratings for the C3 metric -- the average commercial minute ratings plus three days of time-shifted viewing, according to MoffettNathanson Research.
This is up from sports 32% share for the 2012-2013 season.
News programming now commands a 18% share -- up from 17% in 2012-2013 and 16% from the 2013-2014 TV season.
Late-night programming -- with strong viewership gains from NBC “Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” and CBS “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” -- now earns a 5% share, up from 3% in 2012-2013.
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Those genres losing out? Prime-time drama, comedy and reality. Drama is at 15% share, down from its 19% in 2014-2015; comedy is at a 6% share, down from 8% in 2012-2013.
Reality TV on prime-time TV also has taken a hit -- largely because of the ending of Fox’s “American Idol” last season, according to MoffettNathanson. It now has a 5% of all 18-49 C3 total day rating points; it had been at a 9% share five years ago.
A somewhat silver lining comes when looking at all broadcast programming genres over the past five years: The share of live 18-49 C3 ratings points -- largely due to sports -- has grown. It now sits at a 65% share, up from 61% in 2012-2013 and 59% in 2014-2015.
Wayne, the stats you cite in your last paragraph are puzzling. You state that the share of live 18-49 C3 rating points for broadcast programming has grown to 65%, currently. Besides the obvious question about "live" or C3, surely you aren't suggesting that the broadcast TV networks garner 65% of all total day viewing by adults aged 18-49. They haven't attained that since the early 1950s. Even if you add in all local and syndicated show viewing on network affiliated stations, including all independents as well as PBS stations, broadcast, in its totality represents about 35% of all set usage and I would expect that the percentage for the 18-49 is lower than that.