With the brackets set and first round matchups set to tip off on Thursday, Nielsen has released its first annual Guide To March Madness, which tracks a range of consumer and media information surrounding the event.
“The NCAA Tournament is very attractive to sports marketers even in tough economic times,” said Tom Ziangas, SVP for Nielsen Sports. “The games playing out over several weeks make it a sort of mini-series for viewers. There’s always some unexpected drama or Cinderalla story – like Davidson College last year – that makes March Madness a …

Not all networks are created equal when it comes to getting men and women together to watch prime time TV, according to a new study by Nielsen PreView. And advertisers can capitalize on this fact, particularly when it comes to promoting products like jewelry and even grooming products for men.
According to a new study by Nielsen PreView, ESPN ranks among the top networks and programs in its ability to draw both men and women to the same programming, allowing for these types of Valentine messages to have the greatest …

RANK
NAME
NETWORK
DAY
VIEWERS (P2+)

1
COLL FTBALL-BOWL GAME L(OKLAHOMA ST/OREGON)
ESPN
TUESDAY
6,220,000

2
COLL FTBALL-BOWL GAME L (MISSOURI/NORTHWESTERN)
ESPN
MONDAY
6,076,000

3
ICARLY
NICK
SATURDAY
5,943,000

4
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW)
USA
MONDAY
5,675,000

5
COLL FTBALL-BOWL GAME L(LSU/GEORGIA TECH)
ESPN
WEDNESDAY
5,635,000

6
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW)
USA
MONDAY
4,902,000

7
TRUE JACKSON, VP
NICK
SATURDAY
4,546,000

8
NCIS
USA
MONDAY
4,331,000

9
SPONGEBOB
NICK
SUNDAY
4,162,000

10
SPONGEBOB
NICK
SUNDAY
4,127,000

Source: The Nielsen Company (December 29, 2008 – January 4, 2009)

RANK
NAME
NETWORK
DAY
VIEWERS (P2+)

1
NFL REGULAR SEASON L (PACKERS/BEARS)
ESPN
MONDAY
13,803,000

2
COLL FTBALL-BOWL GAME L(WISCONSIN/FLORIDA STATE)
ESPN
SATURDAY
7,059,000

3
COLL FTBALL-BOWL GAME L(MIAMI (FL)/CALIFORNIA)
ESPN
SATURDAY
6,508,000

4
COLL FTBALL-BOWL GAME L(WEST VIRGINIA/NORTH CAROLINA)
ESPN
SATURDAY
5,881,000

5
COLL GAMEDAY SCOREBOARD
ESPN
SATURDAY
5,802,000

6
COLL GAMEDAY SCOREBOARD
ESPN
SATURDAY
5,675,000

7
COLL FTBALL-BOWL GAME L(BOISE STATE/TCU)
ESPN
TUESDAY
5,061,000

8
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (\WWE RAW)
USA
MONDAY
4,883,000

9
NCIS
USA
SATURDAY
4,781,000

10
NCIS
USA
SATURDAY
4,738,000

Source: The Nielsen Company (December 22, 2008 – December 28, 2008)

NBA fans will have quite a few presents to unwrap on Christmas Day, with none bigger than the Boston Celtics-Los Angeles Lakers matchup on ABC. The teams square off for the first time since last year’s NBA Finals. When the Celtics defeated the Lakers for their 17th championship in June, the series received an average of 14.9 million viewers, the most for the NBA Finals in five years.
Since ABC obtained NBA broadcasting rights in 2002, the network’s Christmas Day games have averaged a 4.1 rating and 6.9 million viewers nationally. …

RANK
NAME
NETWORK
DAY
VIEWERS (P2+)

1
NFL REGULAR SEASON L(BROWNS/EAGLES)
ESPN
MONDAY
9,882,000

2
NFL REGULAR SEASON GAME (2008 – RAVENS VS. COWBOYS)
NFLN
SATURDAY
5,759,000

3
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW)
USA
MONDAY
5,003,000

4
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW)
USA
MONDAY
4,982,000

5
SUNDAY MOVIE II (UNDERCOVER CHRISTMAS)
LIF
SUNDAY
4,725,000

6
SPONGEBOB
NICK
SATURDAY
4,441,000

7
SPONGEBOB
NICK
TUESDAY
4,174,000

8
SPONGEBOB
NICK
SATURDAY
4,165,000

9
NCIS
USA
MONDAY
4,137,000

10
SPONGEBOB
NICK
SATURDAY
4,099,000

Source: The Nielsen Company (December 15, 2008 – December 21, 2008)

NFL games airing in primetime are breaking records this season, and they share one common denominator: the Dallas Cowboys.
First it was the thrilling September 15th matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles on ESPN’s Monday Night Football.  The Cowboys prevailed in a 41-37 shootout watched by 18.6 million viewers, the most ever for a cable program.

RANK
NAME
NETWORK
DAY
VIEWERS (P2+)

1
NFL REGULAR SEASON L (BUCCANEERS/PANTHERS)
ESPN
MONDAY
11,582,000

2
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW)
USA
MONDAY
4,839,000

3
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW)
USA
MONDAY
4,745,000

4
SPONGEBOB
NICK
SATURDAY
4,508,000

5
SUITE LIFE ON DECK
DSNY
FRIDAY
4,287,000

6
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW)
USA
MONDAY
4,194,000

7
S SUITE LIFE ON DECK(S)-12/12/2008
DSNY
FRIDAY
4,183,000

8
HEISMAN TROPHY PRESENT L(2008 HEISMAN TROPHY PRESENTATION)
ESPN
SATURDAY
4,151,000

9
WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE
DSNY
SUNDAY
4,125,000

10
HALLMARK MOVIE (THE CHRISTMAS CHOIR)
HALL
SATURDAY
4,037,000

Source: The Nielsen Company (December 8, 2008 – December 14, 2008)

National Ratings [updated 12/12]
Last Saturday’s SEC Championship added another notch to a record-breaking year in sports television. The Florida Gators defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide in front of 15.1 million CBS viewers and 9.3% of the nation’s households, making it the most watched SEC Championship ever and the highest rating for a non-bowl college game since 2006.
Meanwhile, ABC’s Saturday Night Football had its own share of ratings success with six of the top seven rated contests this season. The network averaged 8.2 million viewers and a 5.0 household rating for …

RANK
NAME
NETWORK
DAY
VIEWERS (P2+)

1
NFL REGULAR SEASON L (JAGUARS/TEXANS)
ESPN
MONDAY
8,897,000

2
MERRY X-MAS, DRAKE & JOSH
NICK
FRIDAY
8,095,000

3
LIBRARIAN:CURSE/JUDAS(S)-12/07/2008
TNT
SUNDAY
5,440,000

4
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW)
USA
MONDAY
5,072,000

5
LEVERAGE
TNT
SUNDAY
4,987,000

6
SPONGEBOB
NICK
FRIDAY
4,932,000

7
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW)
USA
MONDAY
4,881,000

8
SPONGEBOB
NICK
SATURDAY
4,824,000

9
MERRY X-MAS, DRAKE & JOSH
NICK
SATURDAY
4,763,000

10
SPONGEBOB
NICK
FRIDAY
4,478,000

Source: The Nielsen Company (December 1, 2008 – December 7, 2008)