• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, September 18, 2008

ESPN said "Monday Night Football" on Sept. 8 saw viewership jump 10%, when people watching in bars and elsewhere were added to the traditional on-air figure. ESPN is the only known network currently subscribing to Nielsen's new out-of-home ratings, which produced the added viewership tally.

The Minnesota vs. Green Bay game--the first of a doubleheader--pulled in 8.4 million viewers in the 12-to-54 demo, according to Nielsen's traditional ratings. Add in the 831,000 in the 13-to-54 demo viewing outside their homes, and the combined figure increases to 9.2 million, up 10%.

Of course, while the figures use demos that encompass the target male 18-to-34 demo, total consumption is actually higher when all viewers--those ages 2-plus--are counted. That figure for solely on-air viewing was 12.5 million.

The second Monday game Sept. 8 between Denver and Oakland saw a similar dynamic. Traditional on-air viewing in the 12-to-54 demo was 6.9 million, while out-of-home brought 589,000 more. That was a 9% lift, leading to a 7.5 million total. (Total ages 2-plus on-air-only viewing was 9.6 million.)

The two games, marking the sole Monday doubleheader a year that ESPN carries, opened "Monday Night Football" for the season.

ESPN has long argued--and it's difficult to dispute--that the groups that gather in bars and elsewhere on Mondays for the NFL, as well as for college football and basketball games at other times, account for a considerable block of viewers that Nielsen ratings were not tracking. That oversight was hurting the network when it cut deals with advertisers.

ESPN and agency Zenith are the only two known entities subscribing to the just-launched out-of-home metrics. Those ratings track consumption in bars, hotel rooms and college campuses--three areas with a high concentration of young males.

The out-of-home ratings are a joint project between Nielsen and Integrated Media Measurement. The measurement is conducted as viewers carry a mobile phone, which has the technology to capture exposure to TV, radio and movies wherever they go.