Fast National ratings for Sunday, July 29, 2012.
The first Sunday night of the London Olympics drew huge ratings for NBC, comfortably dominating primetime in all key measures.
While normally sporting events require the warning that numbers are preliminary and subject to change, NBC’s lack-of-liveness for the Olympics yields surprisingly accurate numbers.
Among adults 18-49, NBC averaged an 11.4 rating, easily topping the night in the key demographic. FOX averaged a 1.2 key demo rating, followed by CBS’ 0.9 key demo and the 0.6 key demo rating for ABC.
Overall, NBC averaged an estimated 35.45 million viewers and a 19.5 rating/32 share, far ahead of the 3.96 million viewers and 2.6/4 for CBS. FOX averaged a 1.5/3 and 2.5 million viewers compared to the 2.38 million viewers and 1.6/3 for ABC.
7 p.m. – NBC swept primetime starting in the 7 p.m. hour with 26.4 million viewers and a 7.9 rating among adults 18-49 for its Olympics coverage. CBS was second with the 5.73 million viewers and 0.8 key demo rating for “60 Minutes.” ABC’s repeat of “America’s Funniest Home Videos” averaged 3.35 million viewers and a 0.8 key demo rating, while FOX’s repeats of “American Dad” and “The Cleveland Show” averaged 1.73 million viewers and a 0.8 key demo rating.
8 p.m. – NBC’s Olympics coverage improved to 35.83 million viewers and a 11.0 rating among adults 18-49 in the 8 p.m. hour. CBS stayed second with 5.105 million viewers and a 1.8 key demo rating for “Big Brother.” ABC’s repeat of “Secret Millionaire” averaged 2.93 million viewers and a 0.6 key demo rating, while FOX’s repeats of “The Simpsons” and “Family Guy” averaged 2.64 million viewers and a 1.3 key demo rating.
9 p.m. – The Olympics telecast was up to 40.62 million viewers and a 13.2 rating among adults 18-49 for NBC. FOX was second with 3.14 million viewers and a 1.6 key demo rating for two repeats of “Family Guy.” CBS’ “3” is basically dead after averaging 1.76 million viewers and a 0.5 key demo rating for its time period premiere. ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition” repeat averaged 1.59 million viewers and a 0.4 key demo rating..
10 p.m. – NBC’s Olympics coverage averaged 38.95 million viewers and a 13.3 rating among adults 18-49 for the 10 p.m. hour. CBS’ repeat of “The Mentalist” averaged 3.26 million viewers and a 0.7 key demo rating, while ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition” repeat averaged 1.64 million viewers and a 0.5 key demo rating.
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.