Primetime Ratings Report For the week of May 16, 2011 (Based on National Live + Same Day Program Ratings)

ABC Airs 5 of the Week's Top 15 TV Shows in Adults 18-49, More than Any Other Net, and Claims the No. 1 Scripted Show for the 3rd Week Running

In Adults 18-49, ABC Delivers the 2010-11 TV Season's No. 1 Comedy With "Modern Family" and the No. 1 Drama with "Grey's Anatomy"

ABC Dominates its 3rd Consecutive Monday During the 2011 May Sweep

Posting its Most-Watched Season Ever, "DWTS" Continues to Lead Monday Night

Hitting Season-Highs and its Top Finale, ABC's "Castle" Marks its Best-Ever Season

Up for the 2nd Week in a Row, ABC's "DWTS Results" Wins its Time Slot in Viewers and Young Adults, Scoring Double-Digit Percentage Year-to-Year Gains

TV's Most-Watched New Series of the 2010-11 Season, "Body of Proof" Attracts A Larger Audience Than NBC's "The Voice" Head to Head in Tuesday's 10p Hour

ABC's "The Middle" Draws the Series' Biggest Audience in 11 Weeks, its Top Adult 18-49 Number in 14 Weeks and Hits a 4-Month High with Key Men

TV's No. 1 Comedy and the Season's Fastest-Growing TV Show in Adults 18-49, "Modern Family" is the Night's No. 1 Scripted Show for its 23rd Straight Original

ABC's Spring "Wipeout" Finale Draws the Show's Biggest Audience in 5 Weeks

"Grey's" Season Finale Jumps by Double-Digits Week to Week in Young Adults

ABC's "Private Practice" Season Closer Hits a 5-Month High with Adults 18-34

ABC's "Primetime: What Would You Do?" Finale Hits its Top Number in 5 Weeks

ABC's "20/20" Surges Week to Week to Stand as Friday's No. 1 Show in Adults 25-54

The Season Finale of ABC's "America's Funniest Home Videos" Finishes No. 1 for the 2nd Week in a Row in the 7pm Hour Among Adults 18-49

ABC's 3-Hour Broadcast of "The 2011 Billboard Music Awards" Leads its Broadcast Competition, Earning the Net's Top Adult 18-49 Number in the Slot in 3 Months

ABC's Telecast of "The Billboard Music Awards" is Up Over its Most-Recent Telecast on Fox, Producing the Show's Biggest Overall Audience Since 2003

WEEK No. 35:

During the final complete week of the 2010-11 season (w/o 5/16/11), ABC (2.4/7) posted a solid second-place finish among Adults 18-49, beating third-place CBS by 20% (2.0/6) and fourth-place NBC by 33% (1.8/5). In fact, ABC delivered the No. 2 position to Fox on each of the final 6 weeks of the season. The Net also took second place for the week in Adults 25-54 (3.0/8) and Adults 18-34 (1.8/6).

Weekly Rankings: ABC claimed 5 of the week's Top 15 TV programs among Adults 18-49 (more than any other net), delivering TV's No. 1 scripted show for the 3rd week in a row with "Modern Family": "Dancing with the Stars" - No. 4, "Modern Family" - No. 7 (No. 1 scripted show), "Grey's Anatomy" - No. 10, "DWTS Results Show" - No. 13 and "Castle" - No. 15. In addition, ABC aired 4 of the week's Top 10 most-watched television programs overall, with "DWTS," "DWTS Results Show," "DWTS-TUE 8PM" and "Castle." In fact ABC's "DWTS" was the week's No. 2 show in viewers, outdrawing Fox's final Thursday telecast of "American Idol" this season.

· 2010-11 TV Season Program Rankings: ABC aired 5 of the Top 20 TV shows for the season in Adults 18-49, including the No. 1 comedy with "Modern Family" and the No. 1 drama with "Grey's Anatomy": "DWTS" and "Modern Family" tied at No. 5, "Grey's Anatomy" - No. 9, "DWTS Results Show" and "Desperate Housewives" tied at No. 17. In addition, ABC's "Body of Proof" qualified as TV's most-watched new show overall for the season.

Monday

Featuring the semi-finals of "DWTS" and the 3rd-season finale of "Castle," ABC towered over its competitors for the 3rd straight Monday of the 2011 May Sweep, more than doubling runner-up CBS with its season finales in Total Viewers (19.0 million vs. 8.2 million), and outrunning second-place Fox by 56% in Adults 18-49 (4.2/11 vs. 2.7/7). For the 2nd week in a row, the Net defeated its broadcast competition in all 6 half-hours of the night with viewers and young adults. In fact, ABC stood as Monday's most-watched television network for the 10th week in a row and delivered the No. 1 position on the evening in Adults 18-49 for the 9th time in 10 weeks.

· In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, ABC generated its best Monday results in 7 weeks - since 3/28/11.

· For the 3rd straight Monday, the Net substantially improved its year-to-year May Sweep returns, surging by 4.7 million viewers and by 31% with young adults over the same night a year ago (14.3 million and 3.2/9 in Adults 18-49 on 5/17/10).

"Dancing with the Stars" (8:00-10:01 p.m.)

Building week to week in viewers (+6%) and young adults (+10%), ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" once again won each of its half-hours in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 to finish No. 1 in its time period for the 9th time in as many weeks. The ABC dancing performance program continued to register as Monday's No. 1 TV show in Total Viewers (22.0 million - 9 of 9 telecasts) and Adults 18-49 (4.6/12 - 8 of 9 telecasts).

· "DWTS" built over the same night last year by 3.0 million viewers and by 12% in Adults 18-49 (19.0 million and 4.1/11 in Adults 18-49). On average, Season 12 of "DWTS" is up over the same point in Season 11 by 1.2 million viewers (22.4 million vs. 21.2 million) and by 7% in Adults 18-49 (4.9/13 vs. 4.6/11), standing as the franchise's most-watched-ever season overall.

"Castle" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)

Hitting season-highs, ABC's 3rd-season closer of "Castle" won the 10 o'clock hour, dominating CBS' season finale of "Hawaii Five-0" by 2.5 million viewers (12.9 million vs. 10.4 million) and by 22% in Adults 18-49 (3.3/8 vs. 2.7/7), as the ABC drama won their 5th straight head-to-head original matchup. In addition, on both counts "Castle" was the No. 1 TV series in its time period for 7th time in its past 8 original airings. On each of its final 7 first-run broadcasts this season, ABC's "Castle" finished as Monday's most-watched scripted TV program.

· Building its viewer and young adult numbers for the 3rd week in a row, "Castle" scored its best results in nearly 14 months (since 3/29/10, with the conclusion of a high-rated 2-part episode), qualifying as the series' 2nd-highest numbers ever.

· Posting its strongest finale ever, "Castle" was up sharply over its year-ago season closer in Total Viewers (+2.8 million - 12.9 million vs. 10.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (+38% - 3.3/8 vs. 2.4/7). In fact ABC's "Castle" marked its strongest season ever, building over its sophomore season averages in both Total Viewers (+8% - 11.3 million vs. 10.5 million) and Adults 18-49 (+4% - 2.9/8 vs. 2.8/7).

Tuesday

ABC (14.1 million) ranked as the 2nd-most-watched network on Tuesday to CBS with its season finale lineup, outdrawing NBC by 6.0 million viewers (8.1 million) and Fox by 7.4 million viewers (6.7 million). The Net also earned second place on Tuesday with Adults 25-54 and Women 18-49, while ranking No. 1 with Women 25-54.

· Rising on the evening for the 2nd week in a row, the Net improved its Tuesday numbers week to week by 8% in Total Viewers (14.1 million vs. 13.0 million) and 8% in Adults 18-49 (2.7/7 vs. 2.5/7).

· Building over the same night last May (9.8 million on 5/18/10) by 4.3 million viewers, ABC grew its overall Tuesday audience year to year for the 9th week running.

"Dancing with the Stars - TUE 8PM" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

Increasing ABC's numbers in the 8:00 p.m. hour week to week against CBS' season finale of "NCIS," ABC's "Dancing with the Stars Live: Freestyle Special" (13.8 million) topped Fox's "Glee" by 4.8 million viewers (9.0 million) and the opening hour of NBC's 2-hour "The Biggest Loser: Couples" by 7.5 million viewers (6.6 million).

· With the special, ABC drew its biggest audience in the hour since the beginning of November, representing its 2nd-largest audience in the time slot this season - since 11/2/10.

"DWTS Results Show" (9:00-10:01 p.m.)

Opposite all-original competition in the 9 o'clock hour, ABC's "DWTS Results Show" finished a definitive No. 1 for the 2nd week in a row, defeating the season finale of CBS' "NCIS: LA" by 2.5 million viewers (18.1 million vs. 15.6 million) and by 6% in Adults 18-49 (3.5/9 vs. 3.3/8). It was the most-watched television show in its hour for the 8th week running. The broad-appealing ABC unscripted series also delivered the No. 1 position in the hour with Adults 25-54 and Women 18-49, and stood as the top-rated broadcast program in its slot with Teens 12-17 and Kids 2-11. The ABC dancing results program registered as Tuesday's 2nd-most-watched TV show overall (behind only CBS' "NCIS" finale). Actor Ralph Macchio was the eighth celebrity dancer to be eliminated from the competition this season.

· In viewers and young adults, "DWTS Results Show" was up week to week for the 2nd consecutive Tuesday.

· On average this season, ABC's "DWTS Results Show" is growing by double-digit percentages from the same point a year ago in viewers (+29% - 17.6 million vs. 13.6 million) and young adults (+29% - 3.6/9 vs. 2.8/8).

"Body of Proof" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)

Despite facing the season finale of CBS' "The Good Wife" and NBC's "The Voice" in the 10 o'clock hour, ABC's freshman finale of "Body of Proof" built its overall audience week to week (10.3 million vs. 10.1 million) to post its most-watched telecast in 3 weeks - since 4/26/11.

· TV's most-watched freshman series this season, ABC's "Body of Proof" outdrew NBC's "The Voice" in the hour (+3% - 10.3 million vs. 10.0 million).

· "Body of Proof" continued to improve its hour year over year, bettering the season finale of "V" (5.5 million) on the same night last year coming out of "Lost" by 4.8 million viewers. On average, "Body of Proof" qualifies as ABC's most-watched series in the hour in 10 years - since the 8th season of "NYPD Blue" in 2001.

Wednesday

Up against Fox with a 2-hour "American Idol" during prime, ABC ranked No. 2 against its broadcast rivals on Wednesday night among Adults 18-49 (2.2/6-tie) and Adults 18-34 (1.9/6), beating CBS by 36% (1.4/4) and NBC by 46% (1.3/4) on the latter measure.

"The Middle" (8:00-8:30 p.m.)

At 8:00 p.m., ABC's "The Middle" finished No. 2 to "Idol" in viewers (7.7 million) and young adults (2.4/8).

· Building for the 3rd straight week in viewers (+7%) and young adults (+9%), "The Middle" drew its biggest audience in 11 weeks and equaled its top Adult 18-49 number in 14 weeks - since 3/2/11 and 2/9/11, respectively. In addition, the ABC sophomore comedy hit a 4-month high among key Men (M18-34/M18-49) - since 1/19/11.

· Season to date, ABC's "The Middle" stands as TV's 2nd-biggest year-to-year gainer (behind only "Modern Family") among returning broadcast series, surging by 23% in Total Viewers (8.1 million vs. 6.6 million) over its performance in the 8:30 p.m. half-hour last season.

"The Middle" (8:30-9:00 p.m.)

At 8:30 p.m., a repeat telecast of "The Middle" took second place against its broadcast competition in its half-hour among Adults 18-49 (1.8/5-tie), beating out CBS' replay "Criminal Minds" by 20% (1.5/4) and NBC's original "Minute to Win It" by 64% (1.1/3).

· Jumping 38% over its most-recent 8:30 p.m. encore (1.3/4 on 4/6/11) in Adults 18-49, ABC's "The Middle" posted its 3rd-highest repeat number this season.

"Modern Family" (9:00-9:31 p.m.)

Surging over its lead-in against the third half-hour of "Idol" at 9:00 p.m., ABC's "Modern Family" was the top-rated scripted show in its slot in Adults 18-49 (4.1/11), beating runner-up CBS' season finale of "Criminal Minds" by 28% (3.2/8).

· TV's No. 1 comedy and the highest-rated scripted series this season, ABC's "Modern Family" ran as Wednesday's No. 1 scripted show for its 23rd consecutive original airing this season in the key young adult sales demographic.

· Season to date, ABC's Modern Family is the fastest-growing television show on the broadcast nets, increasing over the same point last season by 24% in Total Viewers (11.7 million vs. 9.4 million) and by 23% in Adults 18-49 (4.8/12 vs. 3.9/10).

"Cougar Town" (9:31-10:00 p.m.)

In the 9:30 p.m. half-hour against the final segment of "Idol," ABC's "Cougar Town" grew its overall audience by 4% over the last time it faced "American Idol" in the time period (5.2 million vs. 5.0 million on 1/26/11).

"Happy Endings" (10:00-10:30 p.m.)

At 10:00 p.m., ABC's "Happy Endings" beat out the finale of CBS' "Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior" by 25% in Men 18-34 (1.0/3 vs. 0.8/2).

· The ABC freshman comedy improved its half-hour by 8% in Adults 18-34 year to year over original programming on the same night a year ago (1.4/4 vs. 1.3/4 on 5/19/10).

Thursday

Opposite Fox with its final "American Idol" telecast on the night this season, ABC posted its strongest Thursday since March among young adults (Adults 18-34 = 2.2/7 and Adults 18-49 = 2.6/7) - since 3/31/11.

"Wipeout" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

Rising for the 2nd week in a row, ABC's season closer of Spring "Wipeout" attracted the show's biggest audience (5.6 million) in 5 weeks - since 4/14/11.

· Despite going up against "American Idol" in the hour this year, "Wipeout" continued to improve its time slot for ABC, up by 8% in viewers (5.6 million vs. 5.2 million) and by 6% in Adults 18-49 (1.7/5 vs. 1.6/5) over original drama programming on the same night a year ago ("FlashForward" on 5/20/10).

"Grey's Anatomy" (9:00-10:01 p.m.)

In its 7th season finale, ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" beat out its season-finale drama competition during the 9 o'clock hour among Adults 18-49 (3.6/9), beating Fox's "Idol"-fueled "Bones" by 13% (3.2/8) and the opening hour of CBS' 2-hour "The Mentalist" by 44% (2.5/7). In addition, the ABC drama won its hour in Adults 25-54 (4.3/10) and stood as Thursday's No. 1 scripted series across all key Women (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54).

· "Grey's" was up week to week by 13% in Adults 18-49 (3.6/9 vs. 3.2/9) and by 15% in Adults 18-34 (3.1/9 vs. 2.7/8).

"Private Practice" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)

In the 10:00 p.m. hour, ABC's 4th season finale of "Private Practice" ran as the No. 2 series in viewers (7.5 million) and young adults (2.5/7), while delivering the No. 1 position with Women 18-34 and Women 18-49. In fact it was the ABC drama's 21st consecutive original broadcast to stand as the No. 1 scripted TV show in the slot with key Women (W18-34/W18-49).

· Building its viewer count for the 3rd week running, ABC's "Private Practice" marked its most-watched telecast in 8 weeks and its top Adult 18-49 rating in 7 weeks - since 3/24/11 and 3/31/11. Surging by 25% week to week (2.0/6 vs. 1.6/5), "Private Practice" equaled a 5-month high with Adults 18-34 - 12/2/10.

Friday

With a replay "Shark Tank," "Primetime: What Would You Do?" and "20/20," ABC earned second place among the major nets on the final Friday of the May Sweep and 2010-11 TV Season among Adults 18-49 (1.3/4).

"Shark Tank" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

In the 8:00 p.m. hour, ABC's repeat "Shark Tank" ran No. 2 versus its network rivals in Adults 18-49 (1.1/4) to Fox's season finale of "Kitchen Nightmares," beating CBS' original "Flashpoint" by 22% (0.9/3) and NBC's original "Friday Night Lights" by 22% (0.9/4).

"Primetime: What Would You Do?" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

Building on its lead-in at 9:00 p.m., ABC's season closer of "Primetime: What Would You Do?" defeated its newsmagazine competition, topping NBC's "Dateline" by 30% in Adults 18-49 (1.3/4 vs. 1.0/3) and by 14% in Adults 25-54 (1.6/4 vs. 1.4/4).

· Growing week to week by 8% in Adults 18-49, "What Would You Do?" posted its top-rated telecast in 5 weeks - since 4/15/11.

"20/20" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

Surging from its lead-in, ABC's "20/20" finished a solid No. 1 in the 10:00 p.m. hour among Adults 18-49 (1.5/5) and Adults 25-54 (2.0/6), beating out original newsmagazine competition on both CBS ("48 Hours Mystery") and NBC ("Dateline"). In fact, "20/20" stood as Friday's No. 1 TV show in the key Adult 25-54 news demographic. "20/20" featured reports on the sex scandals that are imploding the worlds of two superstar politicians - former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and former head of the IMF Dominique Strauss-Kahn. In addition, "20/20" and Consumer Reports teamed up for a special report on infomercials.

· "20/20" was up sharply week to week in Total Viewers (+1.3 million viewers - 5.6 million vs. 4.3 million), Adults 18-49 (+25% - 1.5/5 vs. 1.2/4) and Adults 25-54 (+25% - 2.0/6 vs. 1.6/4).

· The ABC newsmagazine built over is year-ago telecast by 1.1 million viewers and by 15% in Adults 18-49 (4.5 million and 1.3/4 on 5/21/10).

Sunday

ABC was the top-rated broadcaster the final Sunday of the 2010-11 TV Season and May Sweep in Adults 18-49 (2.6/7), beating Fox by 18% (2.2/6 - w/Animated Comedy season finales), NBC by 24% (2.1/6 - w/"Celebrity Apprentice" season finale) and CBS by 86% (1.4/4 - w/"Jesse Stone" movie).

· ABC posted its top-rated Sunday since the beginning of March in Adults 18-49 - since 3/6/11. And excluding the "Academy Awards," the Net scored its highest Adult 18-34 number (2.4/8) on the evening since November - since 11/21/10.

"America's Funniest Home Videos" (7:00-8:00 p.m.)

During the 7 o'clock hour, ABC's conclusion of a 2-part season finale for "America's Funniest Home Videos" finished as the No. 1 show in its slot for the 2nd week in a row in Adults 18-49 (1.6/5-tie).

"The 2011 Billboard Music Awards" (8:00-11:00 p.m.)

ABC's 3-hour broadcast of "The 2011 Billboard Music Awards" ran No. 1 against its broadcast competition in its 8:00-11:00 p.m. time period among Adults 18-49 (3.0/8), leading Fox by 11% (2.7/7), NBC by 25% (2.4/6) and CBS by 114% (1.4/4). In addition, the wide-appealing music awards show also finished No. 1 against its broadcast competition in the time period with Adults 25-54, across all key Women (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54) and Kids 2-11.

· Head to head from 9:00-11:00 p.m., ABC's "Billboard Music Awards" defeated NBC's season finale of "Celebrity Apprentice" by 3% in Adults 18-49 (3.1/8 vs. 3.0/7) and by 72% in Adults 18-34 (3.1/9 vs. 1.8/5).

· Opposite stiff end-of-season/sweep competition, "The 2011 Billboard Music Awards" produced ABC's top Adult 18-49 number in the time period in nearly 3 months - since 3/6/11.

· Rising over its most-recent telecast in 2006 (on 12/4/06) on Fox with viewers (+30% - 7.9 million vs. 6.1 million) and young adults (+11% - 3.0/8 vs. 2.7/7), "The Billboard Music Awards" drew its biggest audience since 2003 (on 12/10/03).

Source: The Nielsen Company (National, Live+ Same Day Program Ratings), week of 5/16/11, unless stated otherwise.