ABC is the Biggest Gainer Among the Broadcasters, Posting Increases Over the Same Week Last Year for the 7th Time in 8 Weeks

As "Desperate Housewives" Holds the No. 1 Position for the Week, ABC Claims TV's Top-Rated Program in Adults 18-49 for the 5th Week in a Row

In Adults 18-49, ABC Produces its Top Non-sports Monday in 1 Year and its Strongest Adult 18-34 Non-sports Number on the Night in Nearly 3 Years

"How'd They Do That?" Generates ABC's Top Adult 18-49 Rating with an Entertainment Series in the Monday 8-9pm Hour in Nearly 7 Years

"George Lopez" Marks its Strongest Numbers in the Half-hour in 3 Months

ABC Leads Wednesday for the 6th Week in a Row in Viewers and Young Adults

The Top Wednesday Show in Viewers and Young Adults, ABC's "Lost" Draws Its Second-Largest Audience Ever and Hits New Highs Among Men and Teens

Holding on to the Lion's Share of its Season Premiere Audience the Prior Week, ABC's "Alias" Tops its Time Slot by Wide Margins in Viewers and Young Adults

ABC is No. 1 on Friday Among Adults 18-49 for the 5th Time in 6 Weeks

Logging its Best-ever Numbers in the Time Period, ABC's "8 Simple Rules" Wins Friday at 8pm, Dominating Fox's Season Premiere of "Bernie Mac"

"Complete Savages" Posts Series High Numbers in Viewers and Young Adults, While Ranking No. 1 in its Time Slot in the Key Adult 18-49 Sales Demo

Marking its Highest-Rated Sunday Since the 2004 "Oscars," ABC Dominates the Night in Adults 18-49, Beating NBC's "Golden Globes" and NFL Playoff-Fueled CBS

Topping the "Golden Globes" by 4 Million Viewers, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" Posts its Highest-Ever Numbers for the Second Week in a Row

WEEK No. 17:
The biggest gainer among the broadcasters in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, ABC was up over the same week last year for the 7th time in 8 weeks on both Nielsen measures. Versus the same week a year ago (w/o 1/12/04), ABC's delivery shot up 37% in Total Viewers (10.7 million vs. 7.8 million) and 41% in Adults 18-49 (4.1/10 vs. 2.9/8).

* Season-to-date, ABC is up 8% in Total Viewers (10.5 million vs. 9.7 million) and 11% in Adults 18-49 (3.9/11 vs. 3.5/10) over the same point last season. In fact, ABC is up the most among the networks, qualifying as the only broadcaster to show increases on both Nielsen measures.

Rankings: For the 5th straight week, ABC aired the No. 1 TV show among Adults 18-49. ABC claimed 4 of the Top 10 TV shows of the week in the key Adult 18-49 sales demo: "Desperate Housewives" (No. 1), "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (No. 4), "Lost" (No. 6) and "Alias" (No. 10). Additionally, ABC's "Desperate Housewives," "Lost" and "Home Edition" each ranked among the Top 5 most-watched television shows during the week. For its 10th straight telecast, "Desperate Housewives" stood as TV's top show in Adults 18-34. Hitting series highs across-the-board, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" was the week's No. 1 program in Teens 12-17 and Kids 2-11.

Monday
With the regular time period premiere of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition: How'd They Do That?" and the season opener of "The Bachelorette" with Jen, ABC took second place on Monday among Adults 18-34 (4.2/11) and ranked No. 1 on the night among Women 18-34 (6.0/14).

* ABC generated its highest non-sports Monday night performance in 1 year among Adults 18-49 (4.3/10), while producing its top Adult 18-34 rating with regular non-sports programming on the night in nearly 3 years - since 1/5/04 and 1/28/02, respectively.

* Compared to its average last season post-"Monday Night Football," ABC improved its delivery on the night by 1.8 million viewers (9.9 million vs. 8.1 million), by 65% among Adults 18-49 (4.3/10 vs. 2.6/7) and by 100% among Adults 18-34 (4.2/11 vs. 2.1/6).

"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition: How'd They Do That?" (8:00-9:00 p.m.) In its time period premiere, "How'd They Do That?" earned second place in its hour among Total Viewers (11.6 million) and Adults 18-49 (4.2/11 - tied w/NBC's "Fear Factor"). The new ABC show ranked No. 1 in its hour across each of the women demographics: Women 18-34 (5.1/13), Women 18-49 (5.4/13) and Women 25-54 (6.0/13).

* "How'd They Do That" produced ABC's highest Adult 18-49 rating with an entertainment series in the hour in close to 7 years - since 3/16/98, with a telecast of "America's Funniest Home Videos."

"The Bachelorette" (9:00 -11:00 p.m.)
Opposite stiff competition in its 2-hour time period, including the season premiere of Fox's "24" and NBC's combo of "Las Vegas" and "The Medium," the debut of "The Bachorette" with Jen delivered second place in the slot among Adults 18-34 (4.4/11). The show won the time period and ranked as the No. 1 TV show of the night among its core audience of Women 18-34 (6.4/15).

* With no exclusions, "The Bachelorette" produced ABC's best women numbers in the time period in 2 years - since 1/13/03, with the "AMAs." The program generated ABC's strongest Adult 18-34 rating in the time period with regular non-sports programming in almost 3 years - since 1/28/02.

* Despite the competition, "The Bachelorette" gained audience in each half-hour from 9:00-11:00 p.m. From start to finish the opener of the show grew by 2.3 million viewers (8.0 million to 10.3 million) and 39% (3.6/8 to 5.0/12).

* Compared to ABC's average in the time period last season post-"Monday Night Football," "The Bachelorette" boosted ABC's performance by 10% in Total Viewers (9.1 million vs. 8.3 million) and by 54% in Adults 18-49 (4.3/10 vs. 2.8/7).

Tuesday
ABC ranked No. 2 on Tuesday night among Adults 18-49 (3.6/9-tie).

"My Wife and Kids" (8:00-8:300 p.m.)
"My Wife and Kids" finished second in its half-hour among Adults 18-49 (3.4/9-tie) and Adults 18-34 (2.8/9), ranking No. 1 among Teens 12-17 (2.4/8).

"George Lopez" (8:30-9:00 p.m.)
"George Lopez" posted its best delivery in the time period in both Total Viewers (9.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.8/10) in 3 months - since 10/05/04.

"According to Jim" (9:00-9:30 p.m.)
Building on its lead-in, "According to Jim" took second in its time slot in Total Viewers (11.1 million) and Adults 18-49 (4.3/10), beating the first half-hour of CBS' "The Amazing Race 6" (10.3 million & 3.8/9).

"Rodney" (9:30-10:00 p.m.)
"Rodney" beat week 2 of NBC's new comedy, "Committed," among Men 25-54 (3.8/9 vs. 3.7/9), Teens 12-17 (2.8/5 vs. 1.6/5) and Kids 2-11 (1.5/7 vs. 1.2/5), despite the NBC comedy's strong lead-in from the final half-hour of "The Biggest Loser" season finale.

Wednesday
With strong performances from each of its programs on the evening, ABC led Wednesday night for the 6th week in a row among Total Viewers and Adults 18-49. ABC beat its closest competition during primetime by 3.6 million viewers (14.9 million vs. 11.3 million -- CBS) and by 74% among Adults 18-49 (6.1/15 vs. 3.5/9 - NBC). The Net ranked No. 1 on Wednesday evening among Total Viewers (14.9 million) and in each of the key adult demographics [Adults 18-34 - 4.9/14, Adults 18-49 -- 6.1/15 and Adults 25-54 - 6.9/16].

* For the second straight week, ABC claimed the Top 2 TV programs on Wednesday, with "Lost" and "Alias," across each of the adult demographics: Adults 18-34, Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54.

"Lost" (8:00-9:03 p.m.)
The No. 1 television program of the night in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, ABC's "Lost" defeated its nearest time period competition by 10.6 million viewers (20.8 million vs. 10.2 million - CBS) and by 193% in the key young adult demo (7.9/21 vs. 2.7/7 - Fox).

* Coming off the prior week's record-setting numbers, "Lost" delivered the series' second-highest numbers ever among Total Viewers (20.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (7.9/21). "Lost" achieved series-best ratings among Men 25-54 (8.4/21), Men 18-49 (7.1/20) and Teens 12-17 (4.1/13).

"Alias" (9:03-10:02 p.m.)
Retaining nearly all of its week-earlier season premiere delivery among Total Viewers (88%) and Adults 18-49 (89%), "Alias" ranked a dominant No. 1 in its time period. Versus its closest competition in the time slot, the ABC spy drama bested NBC's "West Wing" by 2.0 million viewers (13.9 million vs. 11.9 million) and Fox's "Nanny 911" by 44% in Adults 18-49 (5.9/14 vs. 4.1/10). It was the 3rd-strongest primetime performance ever for "Alias" on both counts.

* In its first two telecasts, ABC's "Alias" has improved the Wednesday 9:00-10:00 p.m. time period for ABC by 5.6 million viewers (15.7 million vs. 10.1 million) and by 50% among Adults 18-49 (6.6/16 vs. 4.4/11) over the same weeks last year.

"Wife Swap" (10:02-11:00 p.m.)
Utilizing its strong lead-in, ABC's "Wife Swap" was competitive in its hour among young adults, ranking No. 1 among Adults 18-34 (3.5/10-tie).

* "Wife Swap" grew from its most recent original telecast (12/15/04) by 5% in Total Viewers (9.6 million vs. 9.1 million) and by 11% in Adults 18-49 (4.2/11 vs. 3.8/10).

Thursday
"Extreme Makeover" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)
In is second week in its new time period, "Extreme Makeover" retained 100% of its time slot premiere audience (5.9 million) and grew 11% among Adults 18-49 (2.1/5 vs. 1.9/5). In addition, "Extreme Makeover" outperformed the season finale of Fox's "North Shore" in both Nielsen measures (4.0 million & 1.8/4).

Friday
ABC won Friday night in the key Adult 18-49 sales demographic (2.7/8), the Net's 5th time n 6 weeks to hold the No. 1 position on the night.

* ABC drew its largest Friday night audience this season (8.4 million) and matched its second- highest Adult 18-49 rating (2.7/8) of the season.

"T.G.I.F. Comedies" (8:00-10:00 p.m.)
ABC's 8:00-10:00 p.m. Friday comedies led the 2-hour time period by 13% among Adults 18-49 (2.6/8 vs. 2.3/7).

"8 Simple Rules" (8:00-8:30 p.m.)
At 8:00 p.m., ABC's "8 Simple Rules" led off the night with a win in its half-hour among Adults 18-49 (2.5/8). "Rules" topped its comedy competition in the time period, Fox's season opener of "Bernie Mac," by 3.6 million viewers (8.4 million vs. 4.8 million) and by 19% in Adults 18-49 (2.5/8 vs. 2.1/7).

* ABC's "8 Simple Rules" delivered the series' largest audience ever in the half-hour (8.6 million).

"Complete Savages" (8:30-9:00 p.m.)
ABC's "Complete Savages" ranked No. 1 in its time period among Adults 18-49 (2.4/7-tie), drawing 1.4 million more viewers than Fox's second episode of "Bernie Mac" (6.9 million vs. 5.5 million).

* "Complete Savages" logged the series' highest-ever numbers among Total Viewers (6.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.4/7).

"Hope & Faith" (9:00-9:30 p.m.)
Building on its lead, "Hope & Faith" won its half-hour by 15% among Adults 18-49 (3.0/9 vs. 2.6/8 - NBC). The ABC show also stood as TV's No. 1 comedy on Friday night.

* "Hope & Faith" produced the program's second-strongest performance this season in Total Viewers (8.7 million) and Adult 18-49 (3.0/9).

"Less than Perfect" (9:30-10:00 p.m.)
ABC's "Less than Perfect" earned a solid second place in its time period among Adults 18-49 (2.6/8).

* "Less than Perfect" drew its second-largest audience of the season (6.9 million).

Sunday
ABC delivered a dominant No. 1 finish on Sunday night in the advertiser-coveted Adult 18-49 demographic, although it competed against NBC's coverage of the "Golden Globe Awards" and NFL Playoff-fueled CBS during primetime. Among Adults 18-49 on the night, ABC (7.5/18) outpaced CBS by 15% (6.5/15), NBC by 56% (4.8/11) and Fox by 168% (2.8/6).

* ABC posted its highest-rated Sunday among Adults 18-49 in nearly 11 months, since the night of its 2004 "Oscar" telecast (2/29/04). Opposite the "Golden Globes," the Network drew its second-largest audience on the night this season (17.5 million).

* For the second straight week, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" and "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" qualified as the Top 2 shows in Sunday's primetime in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49.

"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (7:00-8:00 p.m.)
Up against the conclusion of CBS' high-rated NFL Playoff Game (Colts-Patriots), which ran well into the opening hour of primetime, part-one of a two-part edition of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" attracted an average audience of 11.4 million viewers and a 4.4 rating, 11 share among Adults 18-49 to place second in its time slot.

"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
In its regular time period, ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" posted an impressive first-place finish. Versus its nearest-competition, ABC's "Home Edition" topped the first hour of NBC's "Golden Globe" telecast by 4 million viewers (20.4 million vs. 16.4 million) and by 70% in Adults 18-49 (9.0/20 vs. 5.3/12).

* For the second week in a row, ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" achieved the series' highest-ever numbers in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49

"Desperate Housewives" (9:00-10:02 p.m.)
ABC's "Desperate Housewives" bested its nearest competition in the 9 o'clock hour by 8.4 million viewers (24.1 million vs. 15.7 million - CBS' "Cold Case") and by 122% among Adults 18-49 (11.1/24 vs. 5.0/11 - NBC's "Golden Globes").

* Against the "Globes," ABC's "Desperate Housewives" marked its second-highest ratings eer among Men 18-49 (8.7/20) and Men 25-54 (9.5/19).

"Boston Legal" (10:02-11:00 p.m.)
Opposite the final hour of NBC's awards show, ABC's "Boston Legal" drew the series' second-highest numbers ever among Total Viewers (13.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (5.5/13-tie).

WEEK NO. 17: ADULTS 18-49 TOTAL VIEWERS

No.1 NBC 4.5 No.1 CBS 13,920,000

No.2 CBS 4.4 No.2 NBC 12,280,000

No.3 ABC 4.1 No.3 ABC 10,710,000

No.3 FOX 4.1 No.4 FOX 9,790,000

No.5 UPN 1.3 No.5 UPN 3,420,000

No.6 WB 1.1 No.6 WB 2,720,000

Source: Nielsen Media Research, week of 1/10/05, or as dated.