As college football kicks off its first full weekend of regular-season play, several major conferences will have new teams and new television outlets distributing their games. Also on deck is an expanded College Football Playoff organizers hope will create greater fan interest and viewership. 

ESPN Saturday will launch its new 10-year deal with the SEC with the highly anticipated Clemson-Georgia matchup on ABC. The deal for 15 additional SEC college football games will run concurrently with a separate 20-year agreement between ESPN and the SEC that also runs through 2033-34.

TNT Sports will offer a slate of live Mountain West Conference games on truTV under a multiyear agreement announced this past July. TruTV and sister streaming service Max will offer 14 Mountain West games, TNT Sports said.

Also Read: Comcast Customers Lose Big Ten Network Access to Pac-12 Refugees

In addition, The CW and Fox will air games from the diminished Pac-12 conference that now has just two teams, Oregon State and Washington State, as part of a one-year deal reached earlier this year. The deal comes amid the defection of 10 of the conference’s 12 teams after last season, including Washington, UCLA, USC and Oregon (Big Ten), Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah (Big 12), Cal and Stanford (ACC). 

Other high-profile schools changing conferences for the 2024-25 season include Oklahoma and Texas to the SEC from the Big 12 and SMU to the ACC from the American Athletic Conference.

Despite the changing landscape of college football, TV sports analyst Lee Berke said the sport should remain popular with fans who will see more marquee regular-season matchups. 

“I do think you’re going to have many more interesting matchups, with fans being treated to more pure, tier-one matches between ranked teams,” Berke said. 

The expansion of the College Football Playoff lineup to 12 teams from the previous four-team slate will provide more high-profile games for ESPN as well as for TNT. The drama network will distribute two Saturday-afternoon playoff games on December 21 as part of a five-year sublicensing deal struck with ESPN this past May. 

While the playoff games for TNT are limited — ESPN will handle production and ad sales of the two games — and both will compete against late-season NFL telecasts, Berke said TNT's games will attract its fair share of viewers.  

A Christmas Day lineup of NBA and NFL games highlights a holiday weekend schedule of live TV sports events.  

Christmas Day will feature three NFL games, beginning with CBS and Nickelodeon’s simulcast of the Las Vegas Raiders-Kansas City Chiefs game, followed by Fox’s coverage of the New York Giants-Philadelphia Eagles contest and ABC’s primetime telecast of the Baltimore Ravens-San Francisco 49ers game.

On the basketball court, the NBA has five games scheduled for December 25, including Milwaukee-New York Knicks (ESPN), Golden State-Denver (ABC), Boston-Los Angeles Lakers (ABC), Philadelphia 76’ers-Miami Heat (ESPN), and Dallas-Phoenix (ESPN).

The NFL also has a doubleheader matchup on Saturday featuring the Cincinnati-Pittsburgh (NBC) and Buffalo-Los Angeles Chargers (Peacock) games. On Sunday, Fox and CBS will air regional NFL coverage, while NFL Network will air a primetime AFC conference matchup between the New England Patriots and Denver Broncos. 

College football continues its bowl season Saturday with seven games across ABC and ESPN, while NBC, Peacock, and USA Network will feature six Premier League soccer games. 

Also on Saturday, DAZN will distribute a pay-per-view boxing card featuring former heavyweight champions Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder in separate bouts. The afternoon fight card will retail at $39.99.

Viewership numbers for live football games continue to increase as the regular season winds down.

Fox’s December 3 late afternoon NFL window, mostly featuring the Philadelphia Eagles-San Francisco 49’ers game, led all live events for the week of November 27-December 3 with 27.9 million viewers, the fifth-largest audience of the NFL season,  according to Nielsen numbers published by SportsMedia Watch. NBC’s Sunday Night Football telecast featuring the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs finished second for the week, averaging 23.56 million viewers.

CBS' Georgia Bulldogs-Alabama Crimson Tide SEC Championship game generated 17.51 million viewers – the second biggest audience for a college football game this year behind the November 25 Ohio State-Michigan game. Prime Video’s November 30 Thursday Night Football game between the Dallas Cowboys and Seattle Seahawks drew a record 15.25 million viewers for the streaming service.

TNT’s in-season tournament game between the Golden State Warriors and the Sacramento Kings was the most-watched non-football game this week, averaging 2 million viewers. The game was the most watched of the inaugural tournament, which averaged 1.35 million viewers across ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV, according to SportsMedia Watch.

The lineup of live sports events scheduled for the first weekend of December begins on the college football field with several conference championship games that will help determine the College Football Playoff lineup. 

Top-ranked Georgia will face No. 8 Alabama in the SEC Championship game on CBS, with second-ranked Michigan battling Iowa for the Big Ten title on Fox and fourth-ranked Florida State hosting Louisville in the ACC championship on ABC. Other games include No. 7 Texas battling Oklahoma State in the Big 12 Championship game on ABC. 

On Sunday, ESPN will air the College Football Playoff selection show, which will finalize the postseason matchups.

In Sunday NFL action, CBS and Fox will air regional games throughout the afternoon, followed by NBC’s Sunday Night Football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Green Bay Packers. 

On the golf links, NBC and Golf Channel will provide weekend coverage of the PGA Hero World Challenge, while on the soccer field the USA women’s soccer team plays China in an international friendly matchup Sunday on TNT. 

In the octagon, ESPN will stream a UFC Fight Night card headlined by the Beneil Dariush-Arman Tsarukyan bout. In the squared ring, the Ryan Garcia-Oscar Duarte junior welterweight bout headlines a DAZN primetime boxing card.  

Fox’s broadcast Saturday of the Big Ten rivalry showdown between No. 2-ranked Michigan and No. 3 Ohio State averaged 19.07 million viewers, according to Nielsen data published by Sports Media Watch, ranking it as the most watched regular-season college football game in 12 years. 

The November 25 game, which was placed in Fox’s top-shelf Big Noon Saturday slot, generated the largest regular season college football viewership since Southeast Conference foes LSU and Alabama faced off in Nos. 1-vs.-2 matchup back in 2011 that drew 20.01 million viewers. 

Notable: That 2011 game came before Nielsen began including out-of-home viewing in its audience tally. Out-of-home viewing reportedly represented a large portion of the eyeballs that watched Michigan beat OSU 30-24 Saturday.

Also notable: It wasn't even the largest Michigan-vs.-OSU audience in Nielsen-recorded history. That high-water mark came with the so-called “Game of the Century” in 2006, which averaged 21.06 million watchers. 

The first weekend of November’s list of live TV sports events starts on the race track with the finals of the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship race, featuring drivers Sam Mayer, Justin Allgaier, John Hunter Nemecheck and Cole Custer, will air live Saturday night on USA Network. On Sunday, NBC gears up for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship, pitting Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, William Bryon, and Kyle Larson in the final race of the season.

On the college football field, the first week of the season’s college football playoff rankings has Ohio State in the top slot going into their Saturday game with Rutgers on CBS. No. 2Georgia faces Missouri on CBS, while third-ranked Michigan battles Purdue on NBC. Fourth-ranked Florida State plays Pittsburgh on ESPN, and No. 5 Washington takes on USC on ABC.

The rest of the top 10-ranked teams in action include No. 6 Oregon-California (Pac-12), No. 7 Texas-Kansas State (Fox), No. 9 Oklahoma-Oklahoma State (ABC), and No 10. Ole Miss-Texas A&M (ESPN).

Weekend nine of the NFL season starts Sunday morning in Germany with the Miami Dolphins-Kansas City Chiefs game on NFL Network. CBS and Fox will offer Sunday afternoon games, while NBC’s Sunday Night Football telecast will feature the Buffalo Bills against the Cincinnati Bengals. 

This weekend’s lineup of live TV sports events begins on the football field as the second half of the college football season begins with a huge Big Ten Conference matchup between undefeated rivals.

Fox on Saturday will air the game between third-ranked Ohio State and No. 7 Penn State in a matchup of top ten-ranked teams. Other ranked teams in action include second-ranked Michigan against rival Michigan State on NBC, fourth-ranked Florida State hosting Duke on ABC, and fifth-ranked Washington taking on Arizona State on FS1. The schedule also includes No. 6 Oklahoma-UCF (ABC), No. 8 Texas-Houston (Fox), No. 9 Oregon-Washington State (ABC), and No. 10 North Carolina-Virginia (CW).

Sunday’s pro football slate includes afternoon regional matchups on Fox and CBS, as well as NBC’s Sunday Night Football game between the Miami Dolphins and the Philadelphia Eagles.

In the octagon, ESPN will distribute the UFC 294 pay-per-view event featuring a main event rematch between lightweight champion Islam Makhachev and featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. 

Major League Baseball’s march to the World Series continues on Saturday with Game 5 of the Philadelphia Phillies-Arizona Cardinals National League Championship Series on TBS and on Sunday with Game 6 of the Texas Rangers-Houston Astros American League Championship series on FS1.

On the racetrack, the NASCAR playoffs continue on Saturday with the Xfinity Series Contender Boats 300 race on NBC and USA Network, and on Sunday with the NASCAR Cup 4Ever 400 race also on NBC.

On the links, the CW will air weekend coverage of the LIV Royal Greens tournament, while on the soccer field USA, NBC and Peacock will feature live coverage of Premier League games throughout the weekend. 

NBC’s October 1 New York Jets-Kansas City Chiefs Sunday Night Football  game led the National Football League’s continuing dominance of the sports ratings charts last week.

The game, in which the Jets lost to the Chiefs 23-20 with pop star Taylor Swift in attendance, drew 24.83 million viewers, the largest audience for Sunday Night Football this season, according to Nielsen ratings published by SportsMedia Watch. NBC's Sunday Night Football telecasts are averaging more than 23 million viewers through the first four weeks, up 8% over last year's numbers, according to Sports Business Journal. 

Overall, NFL telecasts represented seven of the top 10 most-watched live sports telecasts for the week. 

On the college football front, Fox’s Colorado Buffaloes-USC Trojans game drew 7.24 million viewers, the eighth-largest audience for a college football game this season, according to Nielsen. 

Outside of football, NBC’s October 1 NASCAR Cup Series race from Talladega drew 2.50 million to top all non-football events. 

The live sports lineup for the penultimate weekend in September starts on the college football field with every Top 10 team in action on Saturday. 

Top-ranked Georgia will host UAB on ESPN2, second-ranked Michigan battles Rutgers on Big Ten Network, third-ranked Texas travels to Baylor on ABC, fourth-ranked Florida State takes on Clemson on ABC, and fifth-ranked USC travels to Arizona State on Fox. 

Colorado coach Deion Sanders will lead his 19th-ranked Buffaloes into Oregon to take on the 10th-ranked Ducks on ABC. The rest of the schedule featuring top-ranked teams include No. 6 Ohio State-No. 9 Notre Dame (NBC), No. 7 Penn State-Iowa (CBS) and No. 8 Washington-California (ESPN).

On the basketball court, the second round of the WNBA playoffs begins Sunday with the Connecticut Sun-New York Liberty contest on ESPN and the Dallas Wings–Las Vegas Aces games on ESPN2.

Week three of the NFL season continues on Sunday afternoon with regional action on CBS and Fox. NBC’s Sunday Night Football telecast features an AFC matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Las Vegas Raiders. 

On the racetrack, USA Network on Saturday will air the Andy’s Frozen Custard 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race, while on Sunday, ESPN will televise the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix race, and USA Network will air the NASCAR Cup AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400 contest. 

In the boxing ring, ESPN Plus on Saturday will feature a WBO heavyweight interim title fight between champion Zhilei Zhang and Joe Joyce, while DAZN offers a main event bout between junior welterweights Richardson Hitchins and Jose Zepaeda. 

On the soccer field, Peacock, USA and NBC will combine to offer 10 English Premier League games throughout the weekend, while Apple TV and FS1 televise two Sunday MLS contests.

On the baseball diamond, ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball telecast will air from Los Angeles as the Dodgers play their National League rivals, the San Francisco Giants.

Digital streaming service HBCU Go has inked a 10-year agreement to be the sports rights partner for the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (CIAA), the two parties announced.

The deal gives the Allen Media Group-owned digital service linear cable, streaming, broadcast, video on demand and pay-per-view rights to CIAA football, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, Olympics sports and the football championship game, according to HBCU Go. 

As part of the deal, HBCU Go will offer five CIAA football games on TheGrio Cable Television Network. HBCU will also distribute  the 2023 CIAA Football Championship on broadcast television stations throughout throughout the U.S. -- including CBS owned-and-operated duopoly stations in key television markets such as New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Dallas, Atlanta, Boston, San Francisco, Seattle, Detroit, Sacramento, Miami, Tampa, and Pittsburgh, said the service. 

As part of HBCU Go’s partnership with the CIAA, a portion of the funds will be invested to upgrade the CIAA’s 13 member schools' campus-wide sports and broadcast equipment to ensure everyone has equitable resources and to assure quality broadcasts across the conference, said HBCU Go. 

“We are proud to amplify the CIAA and all of their team sports. The rich heritage and legacy of the CIAA and the amazing athletes who have participated in the conference since its inception are a natural fit for HBCU GO,” said Allen Media Group Founder, Chairman and CEO Byron Allen in a statement. 

Added CIAA Commissioner Jacqie McWilliams-Parker: “This media deal with [Allen Media Group] is a game changer for the CIAA and unprecedented in Division II. We will expand the CIAA Sports Network platform through HBCU GO to give greater exposure for our 13 member schools and their student athletes.” 

Also: Byron Allen’s 'Comics Unleashed' Joins CBS Late Night Lineup

The opening week of the college football season dominated the sports ratings chart last week, securing the top 10 most-watched telecasts.

The onslaught was led by ABC’s September 3 LSU-Florida State telecast, which pulled in 9.16 million viewers -- the network’s second-best regular season game in the past five years, according to Nielsen ratings published by SportsMedia Watch. Fox’s September 2 Colorado-Christian University telecast – which marked former NFL star Deion Sanders’ debut as Colorado coach – finished second for the week with 7.26 million viewers. 

Among non-college football telecasts, USA Network’s September 3 NASCAR Cup playoff race from Darlington topped the list with 2.28 million viewers, followed by ABC’s September 3 coverage of US Open tennis and Fox’s September 2 Saturday baseball telecast, which drew 1.92 million viewers. 

Week one of the college football regular season headlines a busy Labor Day holiday weekend TV sports schedule.

The first official weekend of college football action features several top 10-ranked teams in the nation playing on Saturday, beginning with the top-seeded and defending champion Georgia Bulldogs facing UT Martin on the SEC Network and second-ranked Michigan facing East Carolina on Peacock. Third-rank Ohio State travels to Indiana to face the Hoosiers on CBS, while fourth-ranked Alabama hosts Middle Tennessee on the SEC Network. 

The rest of the top 10 includes No. 6 USC-Nevada (Pac 12 Network) and No. 10 Washington-Boise State (ABC.) On Sunday, fifth-ranked LSU battles No. 8 Florida State on ABC, while on Monday, No. 9 Clemson faces Duke on ESPN.

ESPN2 on Saturday will offer coverage of the U.S. Open tennis tournament featuring third-round men’s singles action, while on Sunday, ESPN and ABC will offer live coverage of the fourth round of women’s singles play. 

On the racetrack Sunday, USA will air the NASCAR Cup: Cook Out Southern 500 race, NBC will televise the IndyCar BitNile.com Grand Prix of Portland race, and ESPN will showcase the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix competition. 

On the baseball diamond, Peacock will stream the Philadelphia Phillies-Milwaukee Brewers game. ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball telecast will pit the New York Yankees against the Houston Astros. 

In the octagon, ESPN Plus will stream a UFC Fight Night card headlined by the Ciryl Gane-Serghei Spivac heavyweight match. 

Streaming service HBCU Go will air five Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) college football games this fall as part of an exclusive partnership with the Division II conference.

HBCU Go will launch its telecast schedule with the 15-member SIAC Conference with the September 9 Fort Valley State-Clark Atlanta contest and conclude October 28 with the Miles-Albany State game, said the Allen Media Group-owned service.

Also: Byron Allen Acquires HBCUGo.TV, Streaming Service for Historically Black Colleges

“The HBCU GO team is excited to partner with SIAC to bring their conference games to a broader audience,” HBCU Go president Curtis Symonds said in a statement. “We are committed to bringing the best of HBCU culture and sports to our growing audience and SIAC fans. We hope to develop a wide catalog of additional sporting events with the SIAC.”

SIAC Commissioner Anthony Holloman added: “"Through this innovative streaming platform, we invite fans from around the world to join us in celebrating the indomitable spirit of SIAC football. This new era of digital engagement opens doors to boundless opportunities and ensures that every thrilling moment will be etched in the memories of our dedicated supporters. We extend our sincere gratitude to HBCU GO for their invaluable collaboration, and we can't wait to share the excitement and passion of SIAC football with fans everywhere."

ESPN ended its coverage of the 2022 college football season at the top of the primetime ratings chart.

Bolstered by the more than 16 million viewers who tuned into Georgia’s blowout of TCU in the January 9 College Football Playoff National Championship game, ESPN averaged 3 million viewers in primetime during the week of January 9-15 to top all cable networks for the second week in a row, according to Nielsen.

Fox News Channel finished second with 2.2 million viewers, followed by MSNBC’s 1 million viewers, Hallmark Channel’s 870,000 viewers and HGTV’s 838,000 watchers. 

Rounding out the top 10 most watched networks in primetime were History (764,000 viewers), TBS (661,000), INSP (655,000), TLC (651,000) and TNT (624,000), said the network.

Fox News topped the total-day chart for the second week in a row, averaging 1.4 million viewers. ESPN was second with 881,000 viewers, followed by MSNBC (659,000), Hallmark Channel (461,000) and HGTV (459,000), reported Nielsen. ■  

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of January 9-15, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, the currency-grade smart TV ACR data provider and data technology division of Vizio with insights from a panel of more than 20 million opted-in TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

The NFL continues to reign supreme for the most-watched program on TV, with games during the first week of playoffs capturing 8.31% of all minutes watched (down from about 10% the previous week).

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• The College Football Playoff national championship takes second place on the ranking, capturing 1.68% of watch-time, while men’s college basketball lands in third place, down from No. 2 previously.
• NBA games increased their share of watch-time week-over-week, accounting for 1% this time around, up from 0.72% previously.
• Several news programs move up the ranking from their previous positions, including Fox & Friends (from No. 14 to No. 10), America’s Newsroom (from No. 23 to No. 12), CBS Mornings (from No. 17 to No. 16) and America Reports (from No. 25 to No. 17).
• Week-over-week ranking newcomers include The First 48, which moves from No. 41 to No. 20 thanks in part to a marathon on A&E, NFL on Fox Postgame (No. 21) and ABC World News Tonight With David Muir (No. 22).

Thanks in part to NFL games, news programming and the 80th Annual Golden Globe Awards telecast, NBC takes first place in our network ranking with 9.12% of minutes watched, up from 7.45% the previous week. 

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from January 9-15:

• Fox moves up a tick to third place from No. 4 previously, fueled by NFL games and post-game coverage.
• TNT has the biggest jump up the ranking, going from No. 24 to No. 16, capturing 1.18% of watch-time. NBA games accounted for a third of the minutes watched on the network.
• While TV Land and History maintain their chart positions week-over-week, both had an increase in watch-time: TV Land snagged 1.06% of minutes watched, up from 1.03% previously, while History had 1.0% (up from 0.98%).
• Week-over-week ranking newcomers include Comedy Central (No. 23 with 0.86% of minutes watched), Discovery Channel (No. 24, 0.85%) and A&E (No. 25, 0.84%).

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

The NFL was yards ahead of other programming on television when it came to share of TV ad impressions last week, although its 17.39% share was a slight decrease from the previous week’s 19.53%. College football (specifically the CFP national championship game) takes second place with a 4.02% impressions share.

More insights about the top programs by share of TV ad impressions:

• College basketball remains in third place week-over-week with a 2.09% share of impressions, while NBA jumps into fourth place with 1.82% (up from 1.25% the previous week).
• The 80th Annual Golden Globe Awards telecast lands at No. 22 on the ranking, capturing a 0.69% impressions share of voice.
• Several news and daytime talk programs have week-over-week rankings increases, including Fox & Friends (up to No. 10 from No. 13 previously), The View (No. 15 from No. 18), America’s Newsroom (No. 18 from No. 22) and Today With Hoda & Jenna (No. 19 from No. 20).
• Week-over-week chart newcomers include The Five (0.69% share of impressions), CBS Evening News With Norah O’Donnell (0.66%), The Talk (0.66%) and GMA3: What You Need to Know (0.64%).

CBS remains in first place but increased its share of impressions from 16.65% the previous week to 17.55%. NBC moves into second place from third last time, with a 15.8% share. Both networks benefitted largely from NFL games when it came to impressions. 

Additional notes on the top networks by share of TV ad impressions from January 9-15:

• Fox moves up a few notches to third place from sixth previously, with a 9.45% share of impressions. Although NFL games and related coverage contributed the lion’s share of impressions for the network, men’s college basketball and Friday Night SmackDown were two other top impressions-driving programs.
• Spanish-language networks Univision and Telemundo both move up a spot on the ranking, although Univision actually had a slight decrease in its share of TV ad impressions (down to 3.74% from 3.90%) while Telemundo increased its share (from 2.61% to 3.11%).
• TNT glides from No. 14 to No. 12 with a 1.02% share of impressions. The vast majority (nearly 80%) of TNT’s impressions came from NBA games.
• All of the week-over-week ranking newcomers were sports-related networks: ESPNU (No. 14), ESPNEWS (No. 19), Fox Deportes (No. 20) and SEC Network (No. 22).

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of January 2-8, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, the currency-grade smart TV ACR data provider and data technology division of VIZIO with insights from a panel of more than 20 million opted-in TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

The NFL finished its regular season strong, capturing nearly 10% of all minutes watched (up from about 5% the previous week) and maintaining its first-place position week-over-week.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• The college football playoffs wound down, with the Rose Bowl taking No. 4 (0.81% of minutes watched).
• Basketball jumps up in our ranking, with college games grabbing second place (up from No. 15 previously) and accounting for 1.19% of watch-time, while the NBA swished into seventh place from No. 29.
• Multiple news programs have week-over-week increases, including Fox & Friends (from No. 24 to No. 14), CNN Newsroom (from No. 28 to No. 16), CBS Mornings (from No. 23 to No. 17), Fox News Live (from No. 32 to No. 19), NBC Nightly News With Lester Holt (from No. 31 to No. 21), America’s Newsroom (from No. 38 to No. 23) and America Reports, which lands at No. 25 after not appearing in the top 50 shows the previous week.
• Other programs that weren’t in the top 50 last time but make the chart this week include Blue Bloods (0.47% of minutes watched), Chicago P.D. (0.44%) and Forensic Files (0.39%).

CBS is the most-watched network, with 7.77% of watch-time (up from 7.16% the previous week). NFL games led for minutes watched on the network, with The Price Is Right and CBS Mornings also delivering viewership.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from January 2-8:

• Across the other major broadcast networks, NFL games led for minutes watched, helping NBC, ABC and Fox each move up the ranking a tick.
• ESPN2 vaults into the chart at No. 17 (up from No. 40 previously), thanks in part to NFL and college football games, plus college basketball.
• While Fox News maintains its sixth-place position week-over-week, both CNN and MSNBC move up the ranking, into the seventh and eighth places, respectively.
• Week-over-week ranking newcomers include TNT (No. 24 with 0.95% of minutes watched) and TLC (No. 25, 0.92%).

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

The NFL is back on top this time around with a 19.53% share of TV ad impressions, up from 14% the week before. College football, which enjoyed a first-place position the previous week thanks to the playoffs and various bowl games, is No. 2 with a 3.49% impressions share.

More insights about the top programs by share of TV ad impressions:

• Things are heating up on the basketball courts, with college basketball moving into third place with a 2.15% impressions share, while NBA games accounted for 1.25% of TV ad impressions.
• Daytime favorites The Young and the Restless (1.12%), The View (0.69%) and The Bold and the Beautiful (0.60%) each move up the ranking with increases in impressions compared to the previous week.
• Week-over-week ranking newcomers include NFL Countdown, America’s Newsroom and Jesse Watters Primetime.
• Exatlón Estados Unidos: All-Stars is the only Spanish-language program on the ranking. The Telemundo reality show accounted for 0.66% of TV ad impressions during the week.

After being eclipsed by ESPN the previous week, CBS is back in first place for share of TV ad impressions (up to 16.65% from 14.97% the week before). A third of CBS’s TV ad impressions came from NFL games, followed by The Price Is Right (7.39%) and The Young and the Restless (6.29%). 

Additional notes on the top networks by share of TV ad impressions from January 2-8:

• News networks that saw week-over-week increases in TV ad impressions include Fox News (up to 7.40% from 6.78% previously), MSNBC (up to 4.43% from 3.92%), CNN (up to 3.94% from 3.52%) and CNBC (0.41%, not previously in top 25 networks by impressions share).
• Additional week-over-week ranking newcomers include TNT (No. 14), Hallmark Channel (No. 20), Bravo (No. 23) and Lifetime (No. 25).
• Weather Channel moves up to No. 21 from No. 25 previously, with America’s Morning Headquarters delivering over 37% of impressions for the network.
• Although Spanish-language networks Univision and Telemundo had decreases in share of TV ad impressions week-over-week, UniMás increased its impressions share to 0.83% from 0.56% previously.

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for December 26-January 1, highlighting network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

College football’s biggest bowl games helped the sport deliver the largest share of TV ad impressions from December 26-January 1. Major contests like the Orange Bowl and Sugar Bowl, and thrilling College Football Playoff semifinal matchups in the Fiesta Bowl and Peach Bowl, totaled 20.64% of TV ad impressions — up from 2.04% the previous week.

More insights about the top programs by share of TV ad impressions:

• This was the biggest week for college football all season by TV ad impressions. iSpot’s 2022 report also revealed college football was the No. 2 program on TV for the year, with 3.11%  impressions.
• The NFL vacated the top spot in our ranking for the first time since the regular season kicked off, but the sport was still No. 1 for the year, with 6.55% of TV ad impressions.
• Even up against the Peach Bowl’s exciting finish, New Year’s Eve specials were still among the week’s top programs, with New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash and Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve With Ryan Seacrest both making the cut.
• CNN Newsroom gets a week-over-week lift from No. 16 to No. 11 by share of TV ad impressions, in part due to 14% more ad airings.
• NBC’s The Wheel game show (a spinoff of the British show of the same name) climbs from No. 33 to No. 19 week-over-week in our ranking.
• Holiday breaks and big games helped fuel week-over-week growth for SportsCenter, up from No. 9 to No. 4 by TV ad impressions — a fitting close to the year after the program also increased impressions by 38% vs. 2021.

ESPN reaped the benefits of college football’s bowl blitz, as the network soars to No. 1 in our TV-ad-impressions-by-network ranking, with 17.35%. That’s a significant week-over-week increase versus 7.24% from December 19-25, when ESPN was No. 6 by TV ad impressions.

Additional notes on the top networks by share of TV ad impressions from December 26-January 1:

• CBS leaned on late-season NFL action to score nearly 15% of the week’s TV ad impressions; the NFL is also a big part of the network’s No. 1 ranking by share of TV ad impressions in 2022 (at 14.55%).
• Interest in football boosted cable networks, much as it did throughout 2022, with ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS and SEC Network all appearing among the top 25 networks by TV ad impressions from December 26-January 1.
• Continued winter storms around the country fueled another week of The Weather Channel in our ranking, at No. 25 (down from No. 18 the previous week in the lead-up to holiday travel).
• The Wheel and Sunday Night Football pace a week-over-week increase for NBC, from 9.78% to 10.74% of TV ad impressions; the network accounted for 11.83% of TV ad impressions in 2022 (No. 3 overall).

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of November 28-December 4, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, the currency-grade smart TV ACR data provider and data technology division of Vizio with insights from a panel of more than 20 million opted-in TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

Program schedules returned to normal following the holiday week, though football still reigned supreme with audiences. The NFL was the top TV program by watch-time from November 28-December 4, at 5.53% (down from 9.24% during the week of Thanksgiving).

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• College football’s championship weekend meant fewer games, but the sport still scored 3.80% of minutes watched to remain at No. 2 in our ranking.
• As the World Cup field narrows, viewership is still going strong. English-language games accounted for 2.55% of watch-time (No. 3 overall), while Spanish-language coverage (Copa Mundial de la FIFA) scored 0.81% (No. 6).
• Morning news programs leap in our ranking week-over-week, with Good Morning America jumping from No. 11 to No. 7, Today moving from No. 10 to No. 8, and CBS Mornings hopping from No. 20 to No. 16.
• The Price Is Right is another beneficiary of the normal TV schedule, experiencing the largest week-over-week climb in our ranking, moving from No. 31 to No. 15 by watch-time.

CBS hurdles back into the lead as the most-watched network, accounting for 8.66% of watch-time from November 28-December 4 (up from 7.83% the previous week). The network scored with a big NFL doubleheader on Sunday, as well Saturday’s SEC Championship Game between Georgia and LSU.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from November 28-December 4:

• Cable news saw benefits from audiences returning to their usual routines post-holiday, as Fox News moves from No. 6 to No. 5 week-over-week, MSNBC goes from No. 21 to No. 9 and CNN climbs from No. 20 to No. 14.
• Procedurals helped push USA Network into the top 10 week-over-week, with Law & Order: SVU reruns accounting for nearly 46% of minutes watched.
• Freeform’s holiday movie focus helped fuel a rise from No. 36 to No. 21 week-over-week, as viewers tuned into seasonal classics like Home Alone (12.75% of the network’s watch-time for the week).
• Family Feud helped pace The CW’s week-over-week climb into our ranking, from No. 27 to No. 22.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

Even without the benefit of Thanksgiving games, the NFL still claimed 12.25% of TV ad impressions from November 28-December 4. When combined with Friday and Saturday’s college games, American football accounted for nearly 21% of TV ad impressions for the week.

More insights about the top programs by share of TV ad impressions:

• In other “football” programming, Spanish-language telecasts of World Cup games served 2.39% of TV ad impressions, while the English-language telecasts of the games delivered 2.11%.
• NBC’s 90th Annual Christmas in Rockefeller Center tree-lighting special arrives at No. 23 in our ranking, with 0.67% of TV ad impressions.
• The Voice leads all reality TV programs, with 1.00% of ad impressions (No. 13 overall on the week), while Exatlón Estados Unidos: All-Stars appears at No. 21.
• The Young and The Restless is the lone daytime soap opera to make an appearance, sitting at No. 11 -- up from No. 20 the previous week.

CBS nabs 16.39% of TV ad impressions to sail into first place in our network ranking, increasing its share from 15.82% the previous week. NFL and college football coverage accounted for more than 46% of CBS’s TV ad impressions from November 28-Decmber 4.

Additional insights around the top networks by share of TV ad impressions:

• Snow forecasts around the country helped drive The Weather Channel impressions up by 219% week-over-week.
• Bravo jumps from No. 27 to No. 21 by share of ad impressions week-over-week, as Below Deck delivered 15.05% for the network.
• 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After? delivered over 37% of impressions for TLC, as the network increased TV ad impressions by 17% week-over-week.
• CNBC is another week-over-week newcomer in our ranking, jumping from No. 28 to No. 22 as the network returned to regularly scheduled programming.

Before ABC broadcasts the ACC championship football game between Clemson and North Carolina Saturday night, Disney Advertising and conference sponsors Bojangles, Food Lion, Subway and New York Life will be engaging fans at a FanFest.

The ACC Football FanFest starts Friday and runs up to gametime on Saturday in Romare Bearden Park in Charlotte and features games, photo opportunities and product giveaways.

Disney Advertising sells official sponsorships for the conference. Participating in the FanFest is one of the benefits of being an official sponsor, Theresa Palmieri, VP, Disney Advertising Sports Brand Solutions told Broadcasting+Cable.

Disney mounted an ACC FanFest last year, but it was limited by lingering COVID concerns. Still about 12,000 fans attended.

“It’s going to be bigger and better,” Palmieri said. “This is the first year we feel like we’re back to normal where the majority of our brands are activating from an in-person standpoint.”

Disney and the sponsors collaborate on designing the FanFest activations. “They've really put a lot of thought into creating activations that are going to be additive and enhance the fans' game day experience,” she said.

Fans who download the Bojangles app will be eligible for a chance to win Bojangles gift cards throughout the weekend. Additionally, the brand will sponsor interactive activities like biscuit sampling, a vertical leap for fans to test their athleticism, and a traveling tailgate tent. There will also be a Bojangles-themed Jeep Renegade on-site for fan photo opportunities.  

Food Lion recently renewed its position as the official grocer of the ACC for another three-year term. The supermarket chain is the longest-running official sponsorship for the conference. Food Lion will sponsor a quarterback challenge, a plinko game and a 360-cam photo opportunity. The grocery distributor will also host a Food Lion Fresh Produce Stand where fans can sample fresh produce.

The FanFest main stage will house a set for onsite studio programming and ACC Chalk Talk, sponsored by Subway. The sandwich chain will be the presenting sponsor of all studio shows recorded both inside the stadium and on the main stage throughout the weekend. ESPN analysts will be receiving sub deliveries on set during the ACC Huddle ahead of the big game Saturday. Other integrations into programming over the weekend are also planned.

At this year’s event, there will be a big TV screen -- presented by New York Life -- that will let attendees watch the other conference championship games being played before the ACC contest starts at 8 p.m. on Saturday. Disney is also planning on showing the U.S. national team's game against the Netherlands in the World Cup.

On TV, Subway is the presenting sponsors of the ACC football championship game. “Their brand is going to be prominent during the ABC telecast,” Palmieri said.

The other brands will have a presence on the Disney’s ACC Network, which will be showing studio shows and other programming leading up to the game. The network will also show scenes from the FanFest.

“That studio coverage is going to take us to 8:00 p.m. That's when we'll punt it over to ABC and they'll tackle what's happening on the field, Palmieri said. ■

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of November 21-27, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, the currency-grade smart TV ACR data provider and data technology division of Vizio with insights from a panel of more than 20 million opted-in TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

Thanksgiving Week programming focused on football of all kinds, as audiences tuned into the NFL, college football and World Cup coverage from November 21-27. But it was the NFL that won the week with 9.24% of watch-time (up from 5.68% from November 14-20), as the league was buoyed by three close games on Thanksgiving.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• English-language World Cup games debut at No. 3 in our ranking, with 2.66% of minutes watched as Fox and Fox Sports 1 aired four games per day.
• Spanish-language World Cup coverage (Copa Mundial de la FIFA) also scored with audiences, collecting 1.10% of watch-time on the week.
• NBC’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade coverage accounted for 1.12% of watch-time on the week (No. 5 overall), while CBS’s parade broadcast lands at No. 25.
• The Andy Griffith Show pops up to No. 17 in our ranking (from No. 46 the previous week) due to increased airings on TV Land and Sundance.

Fox assumes the lead as the most-watched network, accounting for 9.99% of watch-time from November 21-27 -- up from 5.22% the week before. The network benefited from big sporting events over the entire holiday weekend, from the World Cup to NFL action and the final weekend of the college football regular season.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from November 21-27:

• Paramount Network leaps from No. 18 to No. 8 week-over-week due in large part to a Yellowstone marathon over the holiday.
• Fox Sports 1 rides World Cup action from No. 40 to No. 9 week-over-week in our watch-time ranking, while Telemundo jumps from No. 41 to No. 10 thanks in large part to Spanish-language coverage of the event.
• TNT makes modest week-over-week gains by share of minutes watched (from 1.03% to 1.17%) thanks primarily to NBA action.
• Hallmark Channel stays at No. 7 week-over-week in our ranking, but holiday specials helped power a watch-time increase from 2.91% to 3.07%.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only. 

Thanksgiving games helped the NFL claim 19.39% of the week’s TV ad impressions, rising from 12.21% from November 14-20. On Thanksgiving Day itself, the league served over 47% of TV ad impressions -- 5.6 times the amount of the closest program.

More insights about the top programs by share of TV ad impressions:

• College football closed its regular season by accounting for 11.49% of TV ad impressions – as rivalry games across Thursday, Friday and Saturday helped power a week-over-week increase from 8.20%.
• Spanish-language World Cup action delivered 3.42% of TV ad impressions on the week (No. 3 overall), while English-language matches were 2.23% (No. 4).
• World Cup studio shows across Telemundo, Fox and Fox Sports 1 also delivered a combined 2.3% of TV ad impressions.
• Other Thanksgiving programming also delivered significant shares of TV ad impressions. NBC’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade coverage had 1.73% of impressions (No. 9), while its National Dog Show broadcast had 0.86% (No. 13).

Fox leaps into first place in our network ranking, increasing its share of TV ad impressions from 5.92% to 15.84% week-over-week. Along with select World Cup games, the network also aired the Thanksgiving game between the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants, NFL Sunday action, and Saturday’s big college football showdown between the Michigan Wolverines and Ohio State Buckeyes.

Additional insights around the top networks by share of TV ad impressions:

• NBC and CBS also increased TV ad impressions share week-over-week, largely on the strength of the NFL (each network aired one of the other Thanksgiving Day games) and holiday-specific programming like the Macy’s parade.
• Telemundo more than doubled its ad impressions share of voice from 2.72% to 6.25% week-over-week as the network leaned into Spanish-language World Cup coverage.
• Hallmark Channel TV ad impressions climbed by 109% week-over-week as audiences tuned in for holiday-centric specials to set the mood for the season.
• BET more than doubled its share of TV ad impressions week-over-week, from 0.21% to 0.44% as the 2022 Soul Train Awards telecast accounted for nearly one-fifth of impressions on the network.

Michigan’s victory Saturday (November 25) over Ohio State in “The Game” drew 17 million viewers on Fox, making it the most-watched regular-season college football game ever on the network.

Viewership was up 3% from last year's Michigan-Ohio State rivalry game and was part of a huge weekend for Fox Sports.

It was also the most-watched regular-season college football game on any network since 2011.

Viewership peaked at 19.6 million viewers, Fox said.

The markets with the highest ratings for the game were Columbus at 32.6 with a 70 share; Cleveland 26.9/67, Detroit 24.7/65, Cincinnati 20.1/52 and Indianapolis 13.4/39.

The game was part of a big sports weekend for Fox. It had its most-watched soccer telecast with the U.S.-England draw in the World Cup, attracting 15.4 million viewers, and with the Thanksgiving Day NFL game, where the Dallas Cowboys beat the New York Giants, drawing a regular-season record with 42 million viewers.

“Three evers in three days,” tweeted Mike Mulvihill, the Fox Sports ratings guru. ■

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of November 14-20, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, the currency-grade smart TV ACR data provider and data technology division of Vizio with insights from a panel of more than 20 million opted-in TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

While the NFL and college football retain their first and second place positions week-over-week, both had small decreases in minutes watched: NFL games accounted for 5.68% of watch-time (down from 5.87% previously), and college football slipped to 4.26% from 4.50% the week prior.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• The NBA and college basketball jump into the top 10 on the ranking, moving from No. 17 to No. 6, and No. 34 to No. 4, respectively.
• Just three programs have lower chart positions week-over-week: Fox & Friends, America’s Newsroom and America Reports.
• Below Deck moves into the ranking at No. 20, thanks to Bravo’s rerun marathons in the week leading up to the season 10 premiere on November 21.
• Additional week-over-week newcomers include Two and a Half Men, Paw Patrol, Family Feud, Ridiculousness and NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt.

CBS leads the list of most-watched networks, accounting for 8.77% of watch-time, up from 7.08% previously. NBC also saw a week-over-week gain in viewership, moving into second place with 7.19% of minutes watched (up from 6.81% the week before).

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from November 14-20:

• TNT is the sole week-over-week newcomer to the ranking, landing at No. 20 with 1.03% of watch-time. NBA games accounted for 16.78% of viewing time on the network.
• Although Hallmark Channel retains its seventh place position week-over-week, it had a slight increase in watch-time (up to 2.91% from 2.63% previously). Holiday fare continues to drive viewership, with the top programming including the original TV movies Three Wise Men and a Baby, Inventing the Christmas Prince and The Royal Nanny.
• History Channel continues to make gains, taking No. 22 with 1.00% of watch-time, up from No. 24 the week previously and No. 26 the week before that. Nearly a quarter (21.24%) of the network’s watch-time came from reruns as well as the first episode of season 10 of The Curse of Oak Island.
• Although Nickelodeon slips to No. 23 from No. 21 previously, it had a week-over-week increase in watch-time (from 0.97% to 0.99%).

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

The NFL continues to dominate TV ad impressions share, but with a slight week-over-week decrease, from 12.29% to 12.21%. College football also slipped, down to 8.20% from 9.02% previously.

More insights about the top programs by share of TV ad impressions:

• NBA basketball jumps into sixth place with a 1.09% impressions share, a notable increase from the previous week’s 0.44%.
• College basketball saw a similar increase, moving into ninth place with a 1.03% impressions share, up from 0.41% previously.
• Fueled by “Live Top 16 Performances” and “Live Top 16 Eliminations” episodes, The Voice takes 10th place, up from No. 22 previously.
• With two new episodes airing during the period measured, Bachelor in Paradise enjoys a ranking rise, taking No. 18 with a 0.75% share of TV ad impressions.

CBS takes first place in the network ranking with a week-over-week increase in TV ad impressions share, up to 18.77% from 14.06%. NFL games alone accounted for over 31% of the network’s total impressions during the week.

Additional insights around the top networks by share of TV ad impressions:

• While ABC and NBC retain their second- and third-place positions, respectively, both had week-over-week increases in impressions share: ABC went from a 12.03% share to 12.28%; NBC from 11.36% to 12.15%.
• ESPN moves up one place to No. 5 with a 6.80% share of impressions. Over half of the network’s total impressions came from college basketball and college football.
• History Channel makes a notable jump from No. 28 previously to No. 19, with new episodes of The Curse of Oak Island and its spin-offs (Digging Deeper and Drilling Down), as well as Pawn Stars Do America and Mountain Men, contributing top TV ad impression counts.
• TNT is another week-over-week ranking newcomer, doubling its impressions share and moving up to No. 21 from No. 37, with ad impressions primarily driven by NBA games.

The launch of the 2022 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament leads the lineup of live sports offerings hitting the small screen this weekend.  

Fox will offer English-language coverage of the World Cup tournament from Qatar, beginning Sunday with the Qatar-Ecuador matchup airing at 11 am (ET). Telemundo and streaming service Peacock will offer live Spanish-language feeds of the game. 

Also: Fox Sports’s World Cup Coverage Playing on Broadcast and Cable Field

On the gridiron, college football is inching closer to securing its four playoff teams going into week 12 of the season. Top-ranked Georgia takes on Kentucky on CBS, second-ranked Ohio State faces Maryland on ABC and third-ranked Michigan battles Illinois on ABC. Fourth-ranked TCU travels to Texas to take on Baylor on Fox and fifth-ranked Tennessee plays South Carolina on ESPN. 

Other games include No. 6 LSU-UAB (ESPN2), No. 7 USC-UCLA (Fox), No. 8 Alabama-Austin Peay (ESPN Plus), No. 9 Clemson-Miami (Fla) (ESPN), and No. 10 Utah-No. 12 Oregon (ESPN).

In the squared ring, DAZN will stream the Jaime Munguia-Gonzalo Gaston Coria middleweight fight, while ESPN Plus will stream the Zach Parker-John Ryder interim super middleweight title fight. ESPN Plus will also offer on Saturday a UFC Fight Night card featuring the Derrick Lewis-Serghei Spivac heavyweight main event mixed martial arts bout. 

Week 11 of the NFL season features Sunday afternoon regional games on Fox and CBS, as well as NBC’s Sunday Night Football telecast between the Kansas City Chiefs and division rival Los Angeles Chargers.■  

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of November 7-13, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio's Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, the currency-grade smart TV ACR data provider and data technology division of Vizio with insights from a panel of more than 20 million opted-in TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

While NFL and college football retain their first and second place positions week-over-week, Paramount Network's Yellowstone gallops up the ranking into third place (from No. 26 last time). The beloved Western drama accounted for 1.35% of all minutes watched during the week, thanks to rerun marathons and the two-hour season five premiere on November 13.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• Watch-time for NFL games was up slightly week-over-week, to 5.87% from 5.56%, while college football had a small decrease in minutes watched (from 4.70% to 4.50%). 
• Multiple election specials made the top 25 programs, including Fox News Democracy 2022: Election Coverage (1.14% of minutes watched), Election Night in America (0.92%) and Decision 2022 (0.39%).
• Other general news programs have week-over-week ranking increases, including Good Morning America (from No. 8 to No. 7), Fox & Friends (No. 10 to No. 9), America's Newsroom (No. 13 to No. 12), America Reports (No. 16 to No. 14) and The Five (No. 27 to No. 23).
• The 56th Annual CMA Awards telecast lands at No. 16 in the ranking, with 0.49% of watch-time.

Fox hops from No. 2 to No. 1 week-over-week in our list of most-watched networks, thanks in large part to NFL games, which accounted for 35.67% of minutes watched on the network. 

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from November 7-13:

• Election coverage helped boost watch-time across cable news networks: Fox News captured 6.44% of minutes watched (up from 5.48% the previous week), CNN had 2.24% (up from 1.39%) and MSNBC had 2.07% (up from 1.47%).
• Paramount Network jumps from No. 23 to No. 12, largely thanks to Yellowstone reruns and the season five premiere, which accounted for 58.54% of the network’s watch-time for the week.
• NFL Network scores a touchdown, jumping into the ranking at No. 22 from No. 42 previously, largely due to the Buccaneers vs. Seahawks game that took place in Germany.
• History Channel is another week-over-week newcomer, landing at No. 24 (0.87% of minutes watched).

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only. 

Once again the NFL takes first place for share of TV ad impressions, with a slight week-over-week increase, from 11.57% to 12.29%. College football, sitting squarely in second place, also had an increase (from 7.62% to 9.02%). 

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• The 56th Annual CMA Awards telecast takes fifth place with a 1.26% impressions share. It saw a 28.82% increase in impressions from 2021’s show.
• With many viewers following midterm election coverage on TV, multiple news programs had week-over-week increases in their share of TV ad impressions, including Fox & Friends, America’s Newsroom, NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir and America Reports.
• Speaking of the midterms, election-specific specials on Fox News, CNN and MSNBC make the top 25 ranking: Fox News Democracy 2022: Election Coverage (0.92% share of impressions), Election Day in America (0.85%) and Decision 2022 (0.72%).
• Morning talk shows Good Morning America and Today both move up the ranking week-over-week with impressions share increases: GMA takes third (up to 1.61% from 1.43% the previous week) and Today is fourth (up to 1.54% from 1.33%).

CBS takes first place in the network ranking, but had a slight week-over-week decrease in TV ad impressions share, down to 14.06% from 17.71%. Together, NFL and college football games accounted for over 26% of the network’s total impressions during the week.

Additional insights around the top networks by share of TV ad impressions:

• ABC takes second place, increasing its impressions share from 10.84% to 12.03% week-over-week. College football, Good Morning America and the 56th Annual CMA Awards telecast were the top impressions-driving programs.
• Although it remains steady in fifth place, Fox had a notable increase in impressions share compared to the previous week — up to 10.24% from 7.91% — with NFL games delivering over 58% of the network’s total impressions.
• Two sports networks — NFL Network (1.04% share of impressions) and SEC Network (0.39%) — are week-over-week ranking newcomers.
• The Weather Channel is another week-over-week newcomer, landing at No. 16 with 0.90% share of impressions, fueled in part by coverage of Hurricane Nicole.

The Veteran’s Day holiday weekend lineup of live TV sports events begins on the football field as the NFL travels to Germany on Sunday for a morning matchup between the Seattle Seahawks and the Tom Brady-led Tampa Bay Buccaneers on NFL Network. 

Also on Sunday, CBS and Fox will offer regional NFL afternoon telecasts, followed by NBC's Sunday Night Football contest between the Los Angeles Chargers and San Francisco 49’ers.

In the octagon, ESPN will distribute the UFC 281 pay-per-view fight card on Saturday, headlined by the Israel Adesanya-Alex Pereira middleweight championship fight. 

Also on Saturday via PPV is the return of retired undefeated champion Floyd Mayweather, as he steps into the ring to fight an afternoon exhibition bout against MMA fighter Deji Olatunji. DAZN on Saturday will deliver a fight card featuring a main event junior welterweight bout between Montana Love and Stevie Spark.

The weekend college football schedule begins Saturday with a new top-ranked team, Georgia, who will take on Mississippi State on ESPN. Second-ranked Ohio State will face Indiana on Fox, while third-ranked Michigan battles Nebraska and fourth-ranked TCU travels to meet Texas on ABC. Other games featuring top 10-ranked teams include No. 6 Oregon-Washington (Fox), No. 7 LSU-Arkansas (ESPN), No.9 Alabama-No. 11 Ole Miss (CBS) and No. 10 Clemson-Louisville (ESPN).

NBC will tip off its women’s college basketball coverage on Saturday with a matchup between California and Notre Dame in the inaugural Citi Shamrock Classic, the first live women’s college basketball game on NBC ever, and the first college basketball game of any kind since 1988, according to network officials. ■  

ESPN and CBS Sports have reached long-term distribution deals with Conference USA, which features a mid-week schedule for the college conference's October football games beginning in 2023.

The deal calls for CBS Sports Network to air 18 of C-USA's college football and college basketball games annually, along with televising the conference’s football, men’s college basketball semifinal and championship games, the women’s basketball championship game as well as baseball and softball championship games.

“Conference USA has been a key partner for nearly two decades and we are pleased to extend our longstanding relationship,” CBS Sports Executive VP of Programming Dan Weinberg said in a statement. “As the primary television home of Conference USA, we are exc ited to showcase the conference’s best across sports throughout the year. This new deal adds even more live games and events to our CBS Sports Network lineup and we look forward to crowning champions in football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball and softball for years to come.”

ESPN linear networks will carry eight football games per season, as well as a minimum of five regular season men’s basketball games and one regular season women’s basketball game. Streaming service ESPN Plus will stream over 450 live conference sporting events, including all additional regular season football games and the conference’s USA Olympic sports events, said officials.

“ESPN is thrilled to continue its association with Conference USA and improve its selections to offer better and more games than ever before,” ESPN VP of Programming and Acquisitions Nick Dawson said. “Our combination of industry-leading linear networks and digital platforms will feature hundreds of events across multiple sports each year, providing C-USA, its member institutions, student athletes and fans unmatched simplicity and access to their favorite C-USA teams and games.”

Also: Big 12 Conference Seals Stabilizing $2.28 Billion TV Rights Extension with ESPN and Fox

To create higher visibility for its college football games, the nine-team conference will offer its October games during the week, with CBS, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU sharing the weeknight schedule, according to the conference.

“This is a major step forward for Conference USA in terms of our multimedia rights as it relates to streamlined exposure, accessibility for our fans and greater financial resources for our members,” C-USA Commissioner Judy MacLeod said in a statement. “Building on our strong relationships with CBS and ESPN enabled us to provide increased exposure and consistent broadcast homes for our membership and fans as we continue to see the landscape of Conference USA and college athletics evolve.” ■

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of October 31 through November 6, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio's Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio’s TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

Sports continue to reign supreme, taking four of the top five spots for the most-watched programming during the week. NFL games accounted for 5.56% of minutes watched, down slightly from the previous week's 5.89%. On the other hand, college football saw an increase in watch-time, up to 4.70% from 3.95% previously.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• After six games, the Houston Astros defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series, which accounted for 3.12% of watch-time during the week.
• Chicago P.D. makes a notable jump up the chart, moving to No. 12 from No. 23, fueled by reruns on ION and USA Network, as well as a new episode that premiered on NBC on Nov. 2.
• Fox News programs America's Newsroom and America Reports both move slightly up the chart, to No. 14 and No. 16, respectively.
• Week-over-week newcomers include Chicago Fire (0.39%) and The First 48 (0.39%), shifting into the No. 20 and No. 24 chart positions, respectively.

On the network side of things, CBS is in first place, thanks in part to NFL and college football, with 9.04% of minutes watched (up from 7.32% the previous week). 

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from October 31 through November 6:

• Fox, benefiting primarily from the World Series, edges out NBC to take second place with 8.01% of watch-time.
• Although Fox News Channel, ESPN and Hallmark Channel all retain their chart positions week-over-week, each saw a slight uptick in minutes watched.
• Newcomers that didn't appear on the previous week's ranking include ESPN2, up from No. 27 to No. 22, and Paramount Network, up to No. 23 from No. 38.
• Paramount's notable jump came from a Yellowstone marathon over the weekend — the network's hit show, which returns for season five on November 13 — accounted for over 40% of Paramount Network's total watch-time for the week.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only. 

The NFL remains in first place, but saw a slight decrease in share of TV ad impressions, to 11.57% from 12.29% the previous week. College football is steady at No. 2 with an impressions share of 7.62%.

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• Although the World Series stays in third place week-over-week, it saw a notable increase in share of TV ad impressions (up to 5.41% from 3.09% previously), with a nearly 75% jump in total TV impressions compared to the week before.
• The Voice, which premiered two of its three "The Knockouts" episodes during the week, moves into eleventh place with 1.02% share of impressions, up from 0.94% last time.
• ABC World News Tonight with David Muir moves up one place, from No. 18 to No. 17 (from 0.55% share of impressions to 0.87%), while Fox & Friends remains in 10th but with a slight impressions increase (from 1.06% to 1.07%).
• Daytime soap opera General Hospital jumps up the ranking to No. 18 from No. 22 previously, increasing its share of impressions from 0.70% to 0.80%.

CBS takes first place in the network ranking, with a week-over-week increase in TV ad impressions share — up to 17.71% from 14.92%. NBC takes second place, with impressions fueled by NFL games, Today and The Voice.

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions share:

• ABC moves into third place, albeit with a slight week-over-week decrease in impressions (down to 10.84% from 11.55% previously).
• Discovery and The CW both have notable upward movement, from No. 22 to No. 17 and from No. 23 to No. 18, respectively. Street Outlaws, Gold Rush and Moonshiners delivered top impression counts for Discovery, while The CW benefited from Stargirl, Walker and Family Feud.
• Food Network moves up the chart from No. 24 to No. 20, with seasonal programming including Holiday Wars, Halloween Baking Championship and Christmas Cookie Challenge generating top impression counts.
• With a 0.44% share of impressions, History Channel was the sole week-over-week newcomer, landing at No. 24 from its previous place at No. 26.

The first weekend of November kicks off with a busy lineup of live TV sports events,  beginning with the conclusion of Major League Baseball's World Series.

The Houston Astros and Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday will meet in Game 6 of the World Series on Fox, with the Astros leading three games to two and looking to close out the Phillies. If the Phillies win, it sets up a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday, also on Fox.

On the soccer field, Fox on Saturday will televise the Major League Soccer Cup game between the Philadelphia Union and Los Angeles FC. On the Premier League front, Peacock, USA Network and NBC will offer a combined 10 live telecasts over the weekend.

Saturday kicks off a big weekend for college football as a number of ranked teams face each other as the sport gets closer to choosing its playoff-bound teams.

Top-ranked Tennessee battles No. 3 Georgia in a major Southeastern Conference matchup on CBS, while No. 2 Ohio State travels to face Northwestern in a Big Ten shootout on ABC. Also, fourth-ranked Clemson faces the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame on NBC and No. 5 Michigan battles Rutgers on Big Ten Network.

Also: Report: Live Sports May Not Be That Big a Driver of Pay TV Subscriptions

Other ranked teams in action include No. 6 Alabama-No. 10 LSU (ESPN), No. 7 TCU-Texas Tech (Fox), No. 8 Oregon-Colorado (ESPN), and No. 9 USC-Cal (ESPN).

On Sunday, week nine of the NFL season will feature regional coverage on Fox and CBS, as well as NBC’s Sunday Night Football telecast between the Tennessee Titans and the Kansas City Chiefs.

In the ring, Showtime will televise a fight card featuring super middleweight champion David Morrell Jr. defending his title against Aidos Yerbossynuly. Also, DAZN will feature a light heavyweight title matchup between champion Dmitry Bivol and Gilberto Ramirez.

On Sunday NBC will provide live coverage of the NASCAR Cup Series Championship, while CBSSN will offer coverage of the Professional Bull Riders’ Team Series Championship. ■ 

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of October 24-30, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio's Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio's TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

Football season is in full swing and nothing can unseat the NFL when it comes to viewership: Games accounted for 5.89% of all minutes watched from October 24-30, up slightly from the previous week's 5.34%.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• College football moves up a notch to second place from third the previous week, increasing its share of watch-time from 3.48% to 3.95%.
• The 2022 World Series takes third place over NBA games, with 1.35% and 1.10% of minutes watch, respectively.
• Two and a Half Men makes a notable jump up the chart, moving to No. 18 from No. 24 the previous week, fueled by reruns across TV Land, Paramount Network and IFC.
• Week-over-week newcomers include NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt (0.37%) and Hannity (0.36%), moving into the No. 24 and No. 25 chart positions, respectively.

With assists from NFL games, the World Series and college football, Fox scores a home run as the top network with 8.64% of minutes watched, unseating CBS, which had taken first place for weeks. 

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from October 24-30:

• There's incremental movement within the middle ranks compared to the previous week, with Hallmark Channel (2.58% of minutes watched), Ion (1.82%) and HGTV (1.64%), among others, rising to new heights.
• Speaking of Hallmark, the network continues its early Christmas obsession, with movies including Jolly Good Christmas, A Cozy Christmas Inn and Ghosts of Christmas Always among its top programming for the week. And that's not all: Sister network Hallmark Movies & Mysteries catapults into the ranking at No. 19 (1.09% of watch-time), also fueled by holiday content.
• Cable news saw a week-over-week increase, with MSNBC moving into 10th place from No. 13 with 1.50% of minutes watched, and CNN jumping from No. 15 to No. 11 (1.44%).
• Discovery was another week-over-week newcomer, capturing 0.86% of watch-time and landing at No. 25.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

Once again the NFL takes first place with a 12.29% share of TV ad impressions, an increase from the previous week's 10.09%. College football marches up the field with an impressions SOV of 7.94%, while the MLB World Series takes third place (3.09%). 

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• Good Morning America overtakes the NBA for fourth place, with 1.48% and 1.46% share of impressions, respectively.
• With Election Day rapidly approaching, various news programs saw week-over-week increases, including Fox & Friends (up from 0.90% share of impressions to 1.60%), NBC Nightly News With Lester Holt (from 0.77% to 0.95%), ABC World News Tonight With David Muir (from 0.55% to 0.77%), Jesse Watters Primetime (from 0.63% to 0.71%) and America Reports, which wasn’t on the previous week’s ranking but comes in at No. 25 with 0.60% share of impressions, up from 0.52%.
• Thanks to back-to-back nights of episodes, Bachelor in Paradise moves up the ranking from No. 18 to No. 17, with a 0.79% share of TV ad impressions.
• Programs maintaining their ranking spot week-over-week but seeing an increase in share of impressions include Today (up from 1.31% to 1.35%), SportsCenter (from 1.23% to 1.31%), The Price Is Right (from 1.11% to1.27%) and The Young and the Restless (from 1.04% to 1.10%).

CBS once again takes first place in our top-networks-by-impressions ranking, with a slight week-over-week increase in TV ad impression share -- up to 14.92% from 14.36%. Fox jumps into second place with a nearly 30% increase in total impressions week-over-week, thanks in part to the 2022 World Series. 

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• NBC scored a slightly higher share of TV ad impressions than ABC -- 11.55% vs. 11.41% -- with over a quarter of its total impressions coming from NFL games. ABC was buoyed by college football, which accounted for 18% of the network’s total impressions.
• Spanish-language networks Univision, Telemundo and UniMás all rise up the ranking with week-over-week share of impressions increases, with Telemundo having the largest (from 1.40% to 2.31%).
• The CW arrives in our ranking at No. 23 (up from No. 27 previously) with All American, Stargirl and All American: Homecoming as its top three impressions-driving shows.
• SEC Network was another week-over-week newcomer, landing at No. 19 with 0.59% impressions share, up from 0.36% the previous week.

The TV schedule for live sports programming airing during the last weekend in October begins at the diamond, with Fox televising Game 2 of the World Series between the Houston Astros and the Philadelphia Phillies.

Also on Saturday, Showtime will distribute via pay-per-view a boxing card featuring YouTube star Jake Paul and former UFC mixed martial arts champion Anderson Silva. In addition, ESPN Plus will feature a UFC Fight Night event featuring featherweights Calvin Kattar and Arnold Allen. 

Week nine of the college football season begins Saturday in Florida with the Florida Gators facing top-ranked Georgia on CBS and second-ranked Ohio State visiting 13th-ranked Penn State on Fox. Third-ranked Tennessee will face 19th-ranked Kentucky on ESPN, and fourth-ranked Michigan will take on in-state rival Michigan State on ABC. 

Other games include No. 7 TCU-West Virginia (ESPN), No. 8 Oregon-Cal (FS1), No. 9 Oklahoma State-No. 22 Kansas State (Fox) and No. 10 Wake Forest-Louisville (ACC Network).

On Sunday, Aaron Rogers and the Green Bay Packers will face Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills in NBC’s NFL Sunday Night Football telecast.

On the soccer field, CBS on Saturday will televise the National Women's Soccer League championship game between Portland and Kansas City. Also, USA Network, Peacock and NBC will distribute 11 live English Premier League games combined on Saturday and Sunday while ABC and FS1 will each televise an MLS game on Sunday. 

NBC on Saturday will televise the Xfinity Series Dead on Tools 250 race, and on Sunday will air the NASCAR Cup Xfinity 500. ■  

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of October 17-23, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio's Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio's TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

The NFL continues to score with watch-time, accounting for 5.34% of minutes watched from October 17-23, down slightly from the previous week's 6.83%.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• Major League Baseball moves up a notch to second place from third the previous week, although it had a slight decline in watch-time (down to 3.67% from 3.71%).
• The first games of the new National Basketball Association season racked up 1.60% of minutes watched, placing the NBA at No. 4 and making the top four programs by watch-time all sports.
• Week-over-week newcomers include NFL RedZone (0.38%) and Paw Patrol (0.35%), moving into the No. 20 and No. 25 chart positions, respectively.
• Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D. both jump up the chart, fueled by new episodes as well as reruns on Ion.

Yet again CBS is the most-watched network, with NFL and college football combined delivering 14.49% of its total watch-time.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from October 17-23:

• TNT has the most notable week-over-week rank increase, moving up to No. 9 from No. 22, with NBA games accounting for nearly half (45.51%) of minutes watched on the network.
• Fox moves from No. 4 to No. 3, with watch-time increasing by 1%, up to 6.94%. Over a third of the network’s minutes watched came from NFL and college football.
• Hallmark Channel, which has already started airing holiday and Christmas movies in earnest, moves into eighth place from No. 13, with 2.10% of watch-time (up from 1.60% the previous week).
• Bravo is the sole week-over-week newcomer to the chart, inching up to No. 24 from No. 26 previously.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

The NFL's winning streak continues as it again takes first place for share of TV ad impressions (10.09%), a slight decrease from the previous week's 12.92%. MLB and college football retain their positions at second (8.07%) and third place (6.60%), respectively.

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• NBA action jumps into the top five with a 1.97% share of impressions, but still lags behind football and baseball.
• Although The Voice maintained its 0.95% impressions share, it falls to No. 10 from No. 8 the previous week, while The Young and the Restless remains at No. 9 but had a slight increase in impressions share (from 0.91% to 1.04%).
• The Bold and The Beautiful moves up from No. 33 to No. 25 week-over-week, having increased its impressions share from 0.45% to 0.55%.
• Morning shows Good Morning America, Today and CBS Mornings each had modest impressions share increases from the previous week, and although Today moves into sixth place from seventh last time, GMA falls to fifth from fourth in the ranking. CBS Mornings stays at No. 15.

For the fifth week in a row, CBS takes first place for TV ad impressions share, although it saw a slight decrease week-over-week, falling to 14.36% from 18.49%. 

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• ABC moves into second place with an 11.58% impressions share, fueled in part by a 41.1% week-over-week impressions increase from college football.
• Thanks in part to the doubling of NFL impressions week-over-week, Fox also jumps up a spot, landing at No. 4 with a 9.29% impressions share, up from 6.81% the previous week.
• TNT vaults into the ranking at No. 12, up from No. 54 the previous week, propelled by the new NBA season, which had a 79.7% impressions share on the network.
• Hallmark Channel also had an increase in impressions share, up to 0.94% from 0.46% previously, driven by the premieres of three new Christmas movies.

This weekend’s lineup of live TV sports events features a rare Sports Equinox where on Sunday for just the 28th time all four major sports leagues will have regular-season or postseason games in play. 

Sunday’s action begins on the baseball field with Game 4 of the Major League Baseball American League Championship Series between the New York Yankees and the Houston Astros on TBS. Also on Sunday, the San Diego Padres and Philadelphia Phillies battle in Game Five of their National League Championship Series on Fox.

On the football field, week seven of the National Football League regular-season kicks off with afternoon regional game telecasts on CBS and Fox, as well as an NBC Sunday Night Football matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins.

The National Basketball Association enters the first weekend of its 2022-23 regular season with a Sunday primetime doubleheader on NBA TV featuring the Washington Wizards versus the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Phoenix Suns vs. the L.A. Clippers.    

On the ice, ESPN will air a National Hockey League matchup between the Anaheim Ducks and Detroit Red Wings. 

Pro soccer will also be in play Sunday with Peacock, CNBC and USA Network offering seven Premier League games combined, while ESPN is airing a Major League Soccer doubleheader.

Saturday’s events include a slate of college football games, beginning with second-ranked Ohio State hosting Iowa on Fox, No. 3 Tennessee playing UT Martin on SEC Network, and fifth-ranked Clemson battling No. 14 Syracuse on ABC. 

The lineup for the remaining top 10-ranked schools includes No. 6 Alabama-Mississippi State (ESPN), No.7 Ole Miss-LSU (CBS), No. 8 TCU-Kansas State (FS1), and No. 9 UCLA-No. 10 Oregon (Fox).

In the octagon, ESPN Plus will distribute the UFC 280 pay-per-view mixed martial arts fight card featuring the main event bout between Lightweight champion Charles Oliveira and Islam Makhachev. ■  

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of October 10-16, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio’s TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

Once again the NFL is dominating watch-time, accounting for 6.83% of minutes watched from October 10-16, up slightly from the previous week’s 6.31%. 

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• The top 10 programs all retain their positions week-over-week, although NFL and MLB were the only two that saw increased watch-time, with baseball being boosted by the division series.
• Murder, She Wrote jumps into the ranking as Hallmark Movies & Mysteries aired additional episodes in tribute to Angela Lansbury, who died on October 11 at the age of 96. The show captured over 41% of the network’s watch-time for the week.
• The only other week-over-week newcomer to our top 25 is The First 48, moving from No. 26 to No. 19.
• Blue Bloods, which recently kicked off season 13, moves up a spot to No. 11, although total watch-time had a slight decline (0.51% to 0.49%).

CBS continues to lead our network ranking, thanks mostly to football. NFL and college football combined for over 36% of the total watch-time on CBS, up from 19% combined the previous week.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from October 10-16:

• Fox Sports 1 rockets from No. 31 to No. 8 week-over-week, thanks in part to MLB games and the pre/post-game coverage.
• Other top 25 newcomers include TNT (from No. 27 to No. 22) and Discovery Channel (No. 26 to No. 24).
• TBS jumps up to No. 7 from No. 16, with MLB games delivering over 68% of the watch-time.
• Although TLC and TV Land both move up a spot, they had modest decreases in week-over-week watch-time (from 1.08% to 1.04% and 1.06% to 1.01%, respectively).

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only. 

The NFL maintains its upward trajectory, delivering the highest share of TV ad impressions (12.88%), a slight increase from the previous week's 12.51%. MLB overtakes college football, with 8.32% and 7.25% share in impressions, respectively. 

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• Although The Price Is Right maintained its 1.15% share of impressions from last week, it moves up to No. 5 (from No. 8 previously).
• News- and talk-related programs sit in 13 of the 25 spots in our ranking, led by Good Morning America at No. 4.
• General Hospital increased its ad impressions week-over-week, from 0.64% to 0.68%.
• Both ABC World News Tonight With David Muir and NBC Nightly News With Lester Holt increased their share of impressions and move up the ranking compared with the previous week.

CBS is No. 1 in ranking of networks by share of TV ad impressions for the fourth week in a row. The network delivered 18.6% on TV ad impressions from October 10-16, up from 16.1% the previous week. 

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• TBS and Fox Deportes are new week-over-week arrivals in our ranking, with ad impression increases driven by MLB games.
• Speaking of MLB, Fox Sports 1 grew its share of TV ad impressions from 1.57% to 3.79%, thanks in large part to baseball games.
• Hallmark saw a slight increase in impressions share, up to 0.46% from 0.42% the previous week, as it continued to lean into fall-themed programming.
• Bravo also grew its share of TV ad impressions from 0.67% to 0.70%, driven in part by new episodes of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and Below Deck Mediterranean.

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Oct. 3-9, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio's Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio's TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

The NFL is atop our watch-time ranking for the fifth straight week. NFL games accounted for 6.31% of minutes watched from Oct. 3-9, down slightly from 6.97% the previous week.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• MLB's new wildcard round helped boost baseball's minutes watched week-over-week from 0.65% to 1.82%.
• Blue Bloods' season 13 premiere helped drive the show from No. 24 to No. 12 by watch-time week-over-week.
• Syndicated sitcoms like Two and a Half Men (from No. 26 to No. 17) and The Golden Girls (No. 23 to No. 20) make week-over-week gains in our ranking.
• Other week-over-week newcomers to our top 25 include Ridiculousness (No. 21), Family Feud (No. 22), Tucker Carlson Tonight (No. 23), Love It or List It (No. 24) and The Voice (No. 31).

CBS is No. 1 on our list of most-watched networks for the second consecutive week, thanks in large part to football. College football and the NFL combined for over 19% of watch-time on CBS, with the Alabama vs. Texas A&M thriller catching a larger share of minutes watched than the network’s NFL games.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from Oct. 3-9:

• ION's slate of syndicated procedurals helped fuel a week-over-week jump from No. 11 to No. 7.
• ESPN2 vaults up to No. 14 (from No. 31 the previous week), as college football and MLB Playoff games pushed the network's watch-time up week-over-week.
• Additional week-over-week newcomers in our top 25 include History (from No. 27 to No. 24) and Bravo (from No. 28 to No. 25).
• Hallmark hops from No. 13 to No. 10 by minutes watched, as the network leaned into a combination of syndicated sitcoms and fall-focused seasonal movies.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

The NFL delivered the highest share of TV ad impressions once again, with 12.51% from Oct. 3-9. That's down from 14.45% the previous week as the MLB Playoffs helped baseball grab a larger share of the weekend's live sports audience (and impressions).

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• Speaking of MLB action, the weekend's wildcard round was a big part of why baseball nearly doubled its share of ad impressions week-over-week, from 0.89% to 1.84%.
• Bachelor in Paradise's two-night format on ABC helped fuel a week-over-week jump in TV ad impressions – from 0.44% to 0.94%.
• Univision's Los Ricos También Lloran reboot increased its ad impressions week-over-week – from 0.38% to 0.72%.
• The View is one of several news- and talk-focused programs to grow its week-over-week impressions – by 30%.

CBS is No. 1 in our TV-ad-impressions-by-network ranking for a third straight week. The network delivered 16.1% of TV ad impressions from Oct. 3-9, which is down from 18.1% the previous week.

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• Hallmark and Food Network are new week-over-week arrivals in our ranking, as both have been leaning into Halloween and fall-centric programs.
• Bravo TV ad impressions increased by 39% week-over-week, thanks to its typical slate of reality programming (including the season premiere of Real Housewives of Potomac).
• The top three Spanish-language networks (Telemundo, Univision, UniMás) all rise in our week-over-week, led by Univision, which moves from No. 10 to No. 8.
• Despite maintaining its No. 5 ranking week-over-week, Fox grew its share of TV ad impressions from 5.5% to 8.1% (with more than half of impressions coming from Sunday afternoon's NFL doubleheader).

This weekend’s lineup of live TV sports events begins on the baseball diamond as Major League Baseball’s first-ever Wild Card Series round concludes.

On Saturday, ESPN will televise the second game of the best-of-three game series featuring  the Seattle Mariners and the Toronto Blue Jays, after Seattle won the first game on Friday, as well as the second game of the San Diego Padres-New York Mets series.

Also Saturday, ESPN2 will air the second game of the Tampa Bay Rays-Cleveland Guardians series as the Rays look to even up the matchup, and the Philadelphia Phillies-St. Louis Cardinals series, in which the Phillies lead one game to none. 

On Sunday, ESPN, ABC and ESPN2 will combine to provide game three coverage from the four MLB Wild Card Series if necessary.    

On the racetrack, NBC on Saturday will air the NASCAR Xfinity Series Drive for the Cure 250 race, and on Sunday will televise the NASCAR Cup Roval 400 race. Also on Sunday ESPN2 will televise the Formula One Japanese Grand Prix race. 

College Football enters its sixth week of the regular season with top-ranked Alabama matching up against Texas A&M on CBS, second-ranked Georgia hosting Auburn on CBS, third-ranked Ohio State battling Big Ten rival Michigan State on ABC, fourth-ranked Michigan traveling to play Indiana on Fox and fifth-ranked Clemson facing  Boston College on ABC. Other games featuring top 10-ranked teams include No. 6 USC-Washington State (Fox), No.7 Oklahoma State-Texas Tech (FS1), No. 8 Tennessee-LSU (ESPN) and No. 9 Ole Miss-Vanderbilt (SEC Network).

In the boxing ring, Showtime will televise a super welterweight title fight between champion Sebastian Fundora and challenger Carlos Ocampo and a junior bantamweight championship bout between titleholder Fernando Martinez and Jerwin Ancajas.

USA, NBC, CNBC and Peacock will continue its weekend coverage of Premier League soccer matches with nine live game telecasts combined.

Sunday’s pro football coverage features a NFL Network Sunday morning telecast from London featuring the New York Giants and the Green Bay Packers, afternoon regional game coverage on Fox and CBS, and an NBC Sunday Night Football game telecast between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Baltimore Ravens. ■  

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Sept. 26-Oct. 2, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio's Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio's TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

The NFL stayed atop our watch-time ranking for the fourth consecutive week. Week Four NFL action accounted for 6.97% of minutes watched from Sept. 26-Oct. 2, which is up from 6.49% the previous week.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• With Hurricane Ian bearing down on the southeast U.S., audiences tuned into The Weather Channel coverage on shows including America’s Morning Headquarters (No. 15 by watch-time), Weather Underground (No. 18), Live Coverage: Tracking Ian (No. 20) and Storm Center (No. 21).
• Additional week-over-week newcomers to our ranking include CBS Mornings (climbing from No. 27 to No. 13 by minutes watched) and NBC Nightly News With Lester Holt (up from No. 33 to No. 25).
• Fox News programs Fox & Friends (from No. 22 to No. 12) and America Reports (from No. 25 to No. 14) also made sizable week-over-week jumps by watch-time.
• Western drama Gunsmoke returns to our top 10, jumping from No. 17 to No. 10 week-over-week.

CBS hops from No. 4 to No. 1 week-over-week in our list of most-watched networks, thanks in large part to football. The NFL and college football accounted for over 31% of watch-time on the network, helping fuel a climb to 8.94% of minutes watched – up from 7.33% the previous week.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from Sept. 26-Oct. 2:

• Hurricane Ian concerns created a surge in The Weather Channel viewership, as the network flies from No. 46 to No. 7 week-over-week.
• NFL interest is not just limited to the games themselves, as NFL Network hurdles up to No. 18 by watch-time on the week (from No. 34 the previous week).
• A Star Wars movie marathon helped power TNT’s rise from No. 30 to No. 25 week-over-week.
• CNN and Fox News both increased week-over-week watch-time, coinciding with more news interest overall.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company. Rankings are by TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

The NFL sits at No. 1 once again in our ranking, as live games delivered 14.4% of TV ad impressions. That’s up from 13.7% the previous week, as the league had just one Monday night game (vs. two overlapping contests the week before).

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• Hurricane tracking means The Weather Channel programming pops up throughout our ranking – led by America’s Morning Headquarters at No. 8, then Storm Center (No. 9), Live Coverage: Tracking Ian (No. 15) and Weather Underground (No. 19).
• Overall, news- and talk-related programming account for 16 (nearly two-thirds) of the shows in our ranking, compared to 13 the previous week.
• Aside from the weather-related programs, CBS Mornings is one of the biggest week-over-week risers in our ranking, moving from No. 28 to No. 14.
• The Voice is the lone reality TV show in our ranking this week, staying at No. 6 in the early weeks of the new season.

CBS benefits from the Sunday NFL doubleheader (which it typically alternates with Fox) to stay at No. 1 in our TV-ad-impressions-by-network ranking. The network had nearly 18.1% of TV ad impressions from Sept. 26-Oct. 2, up from 13.8% the previous week.

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• The Weather Channel’s share of TV ad impressions climbed by nearly 4x week-over-week, from 1.00% to 3.73%.
• Cable sports networks continued to cash in on football and baseball action, led by ESPN (No. 6), then Fox Sports 1 (No. 12), MLB Network (No. 13), NFL Network (No. 15), ESPN2 (No. 16), SEC Network (No. 19) and Big Ten Network (No. 23).
• Speaking of, both the SEC Network and Big Ten Network are new week-over-week arrivals in our ranking, thanks in part to airing games with top teams – with Georgia appearing on the SEC Network and Ohio State landing on the Big Ten Network.
• NBC’s share of impressions climbed from 12.7% to 13.4% week-over-week, with news programs accounting for nearly a third of that total.

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Sept. 19-25, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio’s TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

Week three of the NFL season kept the league’s games atop our watch-time ranking for another week. From Sept. 19-25, the NFL accounted for 6.49% of minutes watched (down slightly from 6.78% the previous week).

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• The NFL is not the only live sporting event in the top 10 of our ranking, as college football (No. 2), golf’s President’s Cup (No. 4) and Major League Baseball (No. 6) also make appearances.
• Beyond the President’s Cup, other week-over-week newcomers to our ranking include separate special TV events around Queen Elizabeth II's funeral (No. 12 and No. 13, respectively) and The Voice's season premiere (No. 15).
• Chicago Fire’s own season premiere also helped fuel a leap from No. 41 to No. 7 by minutes watched week-over-week.
• Chicago P.D. makes its own week-over-week jump too, as season 10’s debut pushed the show from No. 19 to No. 14 by watch-time.

NBC moves into the No. 1 spot in our list of most-watched networks, as the NFL and President’s Cup accounted for over a quarter of its watch-time. The network tallied 8.11% of watch-time, up from 7.37% the previous week.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from Sept. 19-25:

• ABC benefited from both the NFL and college football, which pushed minutes watched from 6.39% to 7.41% week-over-week.
• MSNBC progresses from No. 11 to No. 8 week-over-week, in part due to coverage of Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral (fourth by watch-time on the network).
• ESPN2’s college football coverage accounted for nearly 26% of minutes watched on the network, which climbs from No. 31 to No. 22 week-over-week.
• Discovery Channel is also a week-over-week addition to our ranking, rising from No. 27 to No. 25, due in part to programs like Expedition Unknown and Deadliest Catch.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company. Rankings are by TV ad impressions, for new episodes only. 

The NFL takes the No. 1 spot in our ranking for the third week in a row, as live games delivered nearly 13.7% of TV ad impressions. That’s down from the previous week, when it accounted for 15.7% (though overlapping Monday Night Football contests ultimately cut into TV ad impressions for both, while also removing a Sunday game from the slate).

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• Reality shows account for three spots in our ranking, led by The Voice (No. 6), then Big Brother (No. 14) and The Bachelorette (No. 15).
• The 2022 President’s Cup golf event delivered 1.63% of TV ad impressions, despite it being a one-sided affair in favor of the winning U.S. team.
• News- and talk-related programs sit in 13 of the 25 spots in our ranking, led by Good Morning America at No. 5.
• With the pennant race in full swing, MLB games leap from No. 19 to No. 8 by share of TV ad impressions week-over-week.

CBS retains its lead in our TV-ad-impressions-by-network ranking, even as its share drops from 15.84% to 13.79% week-over-week. Between pro and college games over the weekend, football accounted for over 23% of CBS TV ad impressions from Sept. 19-25.

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• Fox News jumps from No. 9 to No. 5 week-over-week, as both TV ad impressions and ad airings more than doubled on the network.
• Hurricane news has meant more ad impressions for The Weather Channel, which roars into our ranking at No. 15 (after not appearing at all the previous week).
• President’s Cup action lifts Golf Channel from No. 26 to No. 17 by TV ad impressions week-over-week.
• Fox’s share of ad impressions rose from 6.98% to 9.83% week-over-week, with nearly 65% of those delivered on Sunday.

The live TV sports schedule for the first weekend of fall begins on the baseball diamond, as ESPN on Sunday will showcase New York Yankees’ star Aaron Judge’s historic season as the Yankees host the rival Boston Red Sox. 

Going into Friday night’s Yankees-Red Sox game, Judge was one home run away from Tying Roger Maris’ American League regular-season record of 61 round trippers, and was on pace to become the league's first triple crown winner since Miguel Cabrera accomplished the feat in 2012.

On the college football front, top-ranked Georgia faces Kent State on ESPN Plus while second-ranked Alabama hosts Vanderbilt on the SEC Network. Third-ranked Ohio State plays Wisconsin on ABC and fourth-ranked Michigan hosts Maryland on Fox. Fifth-ranked Clemson battles No. 21 Wake Forest on ABC. 

Other games include No. 6 Oklahoma-Kansas State (Fox), No. 7 USC-Oregon State (Pac-12 Network), and No.10 Arkansas-Texas A&M (ESPN).

In the boxing ring, retired former boxing champion Floyd Mayweather will fight mixed martial arts fighter Mikuru Asakura Saturday night in a pay-per-view exhibition fight from Japan. PPV.com will distribute the event, which carries a suggested retail price of $29.99. 

On the soccer field, Peacock, USA and NBC will air eight live Premier League games on Saturday, while FS2 airs three UEFA Nations League games on Sunday.

On the links, NBC and Golf Channel will feature final round coverage of the President’s Cup golf tournament, while on Sunday CBS will televise coverage from the Professional Bull Riders.

Action from the the third week of the NFL season begins Sunday afternoon with regional game coverage on CBS and Fox, as well as NBC's Sunday Night Football telecast of the San Francisco 49'ers-Denver Broncos matchup.■ 

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Sept. 12-18, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio’s TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

Week two action guided the NFL to the top spot in our watch-time ranking for Sept. 12-18. Even with the Thursday night game streaming on Amazon Prime instead of broadcast or cable, the league’s games still accounted for 6.78% of minutes watched (down just slightly from 7.16% in week one).

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• Another busy Saturday guided college football to the No. 2 spot in our ranking again, with 4.45% of watch-time (down from 5.06% the previous week).
• Season 55 of CBS’s 60 Minutes premieres at No. 20 by minutes watched, as the show offered interviews with both U.S. President Joe Biden and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.
• The two-night season finale of America’s Got Talent fueled a week-over-week jump from No. 28 to No. 10 by watch-time.
• Among other week-over-week newcomers to our ranking: America’s Newsroom (from No. 27 to No. 14), Chicago P.D. (No. 34 to No. 19), America Reports (No. 36 to No. 22), Tucker Carlson Tonight (No. 32 to No. 24) and The First 48 (No. 39 to No. 25).

CBS takes the No. 1 spot in our list of most-watched networks, thanks to the NFL and 60 Minutes, among other programs. The network scored 8.35% of watch-time, up from 6.90% the previous week.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from Sept. 12-18:

• Airing a Monday Night Football simulcast, ABC increased watch-time week-over-week from 5.85% to 6.39% while hopping to No. 3 in our ranking.
• TLC moves from No. 20 to No. 16 week-over-week, thanks in large part to variations of the 90 Day Fiancé franchise.
• Three networks are week-over-week additions to our top 25, with INSP climbing from No. 27 to 23, while TNT leaps from No. 28 to No. 24 and Bravo migrates from No. 26 to No. 25.
• Three networks are week-over-week additions to our top 25, with INSP climbing from No. 27 to 23, while TNT leaps from No. 28 to No. 24 and Bravo migrates from No. 26 to No. 25.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company. Rankings are by TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

The NFL was No. 1 in our ranking for the second straight week, as live games accounted for more than 15.7% of TV ad impressions. That’s down from the previous week, when it accounted for 16.69% (though that’s to be expected with Thursday Night Football moving from NBC – where it aired in Week One – to Amazon Prime Video).

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• Despite airing directly against Monday Night Football on both ABC and ESPN, the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards still delivered 0.75% of TV ad impressions on the week (No. 20 overall).
• America’s Got Talent rises from No. 13 to No. 6 by TV ad impressions week-over-week thanks to its two-part finale.
• MSNBC’s Deadline: White House is new to our ranking week-over-week, climbing from No. 35 to No. 25 by share of TV ad impressions.
• Another MSNBC show, Morning Joe, also jumps in the week-over-week rankings, from No. 23 to No. 17.

CBS’s share of TV ad impressions increased from 12.32% to 15.84% week-over-week to take the No. 1 spot in our TV-ad-impressions-by-network ranking. Nearly 40% of CBS impressions from Sept. 12-18 were attributable to NFL action.

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• ABC ad impressions increased from 11.79% to 13.12% week-over-week, as the network leaned on both the NFL and college football, which together accounted for almost 30% of impressions for the network.
• Football also buoyed cable sports networks, including ESPN (No. 5), ESPN2 (No. 12), Fox Sports 1 (No. 13), SEC Network (No. 21) and NFL Network (No. 24).
• Coverage of Queen Elizabeth’s death was part of a week-over-week TV ad impressions increase for some cable news networks, as CNN grew from 4.68% of impressions to 4.80%, while MSNBC jumped from 4.78% to 5.67%.
• Speaking of cable news, HLN arrives in our ranking at No. 25 by TV ad impressions, up from No. 30 the previous week.

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Sept. 5-11, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio’s TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

The NFL's opening weekend secured the top spot in our watch-time ranking for Sept. 5-11. Across Thursday and Sunday broadcasts on NBC, CBS and Fox, the league accounted for 7.16% of minutes watched.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• Beyond NFL games, live sports occupies three more spots near the top of our ranking, including college football at No. 2, the U.S. Open at No. 3 and Major League Baseball at No. 9.
• Also making an appearance: NFL Red Zone, which jumps in at No. 23 as fans were anxious to tune into Sunday’s scoring plays.
• Other week-over-week newcomers to our ranking are Chicago Fire (from No. 26 to No. 13), Fox News Live (from unlisted to No. 21) and Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (from No. 29 to No. 25).
• Additionally, Chicago Fire is one of five procedurals among the top 15 programs by watch-time for the week, joined by Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (No. 4), NCIS (No. 10), Blue Bloods (No. 11) and Gunsmoke (No. 14).

NBC leaps to No. 1 on our list of most-watched networks, thanks to primetime NFL games on both Thursday (Los Angeles Rams vs. Buffalo Bills) and Sunday (Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Dallas Cowboys). The network scored 8.39% of watch-time – up from 5.34% the previous week. 

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from Sept. 5-11:

• HBO flies from No. 29 to No. 17 week-over-week in our ranking, thanks in large part to House of the Dragon, which accounted for over 28% of minutes watched on the network.
• A full weekend of football lifted Fox to No. 3 (from No. 6 the previous week), as the network increased watch-time from 4.01% to 6.31%.
• History makes a modest climb from No. 27 to No. 25 week-over-week, with Ancient Aliens and American Pickers combining for over 46% of those minutes watched.
• CNN hurdles from No. 11 to No. 8 week-over-week, increasing watch-time from 1.81% to 1.92%.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company. Rankings are by TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.

Week one of the NFL’s regular season delivered 16.69% of TV ad impressions to fly to the No. 1 spot in our ranking. Between NFL and college games, football accounted for nearly 27% of TV ad impressions on the week.

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• With back-to-back nights of fantasy suite episodes, The Bachelorette rises (rose?) from No. 31 to No. 9 by TV ad impressions week-over-week.
• New airings of La herencia episodes on Univision delivered 0.76% of TV ad impressions, as the telenovela more than doubled its share of impressions week-over-week.
• Additionally, four American daytime soap operas appear in this week’s ranking: The Young and The Restless (No. 7), Days of Our Lives (No. 16), General Hospital (No. 18) and The Bold and The Beautiful (No. 24).
• An abundance of live sports also means an abundance of highlights, helping SportsCenter increase its share of TV ad impressions by 47.5% week-over-week.

Thanks in large part to two NFL broadcasts on the week, NBC doubled its share of TV ad impressions week-over-week to take the top spot in our TV-ad-impressions-by-network ranking. NBC delivered 16.86% of impressions from Sept. 5-11, up from 8.22% the previous week.

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• CBS and Fox also benefited from week one of NFL action, as the former increased its share of TV ad impressions from 7.82% to 12.32% week-over-week, and the latter jumped from 2.40% to 8.68%.
• Speaking of sports, cable sports networks are all over this week’s ranking, including ESPN (No. 5), ESPN2 (No. 11), MLB Network (No. 13), Fox Sports 1 (No. 14), Big Ten Network (No. 19) and NFL Network (No. 24).
• Bravo hops from No. 19 to No. 16 week-over-week in our ranking, as The Real Housewives of Atlanta and The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills account for over 32% of impressions on the network.
• Lifetime TV ad impressions grew by over 89% week-over-week, due in large part to episodes of Married At First Sight.

ESPN's college football and U.S. Open tennis tournament coverage helped propel the sports network to its second straight weekly primetime cable ratings win during the first full week of September.

ESPN averaged 2.6 million viewers for the week of September 5 to September 11 to top all cable networks, according to Nielsen. Fox News finished second for the week with 2 million viewers, followed by MSNBC with 1 million viewers and HGTV with 877,000 viewers.

Hallmark Channel was the fifth most-watched network for the week with 800,000 viewers, followed by ESPN2 (773,000 viewers), INSP (753,000), TLC (747,000), CNN (696,000) and USA Network (668,000).

Fox News extended its total day winning streak to 36 weeks, averaging 1.3 million viewers for the period. ESPN (1 million viewers), MSNBC (721,000), CNN (605,000) and HGTV (491,000), finished among the top five most watched cable networks in the period, according to Nielsen. ■ 

This weekend’s busy lineup of live TV sports events begins on the gridiron as the National Football League kicks off its opening weekend of regular season games. 

Along with Sunday regional coverage of NFL games on CBS and Fox, NBC will air its first Sunday Night Football game featuring two of the league’s more popular teams, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Dallas Cowboys.

This weekend’s college football schedule begins with top ranked Alabama facing Texas on Fox and second-ranked Georgia taking on Samford on SEC Network. Third-ranked Ohio State will match up with Arkansas State on the Big Ten Network, fourth-ranked Michigan battling Hawai’i on Big Ten Network and fifth-ranked Clemson going up against Furman on the ACC Network.

The rest of the top ten ranked teams include No. 6 Texas A&M-Appalachian State (ESPN2), No. 7 Oklahoma-Kent State (ESPN Plus), No. 8 Notre Dame-Marshall (NBC), No. 9 Baylor-BYU (ESPN) and No. 10 USC at Stanford (ABC).

In the octagon, ESPN Plus will distribute the UFC 279 mixed martial arts pay-per-view event featuring the main event bout between welterweights Khamzat Chimaev and Nate Diaz. 

The U.S. Open tennis tournament will conclude this weekend with the women’s finals match airing on ESPN Saturday and the men’s finals airing live Sunday afternoon.

The Major League Baseball season continues to wind down with ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball coverage of the San Francisco Giants and the Chicago Cubs contest.■ 

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Aug. 29-Sept. 4, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio’s TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

Week one action stretching from Thursday through Sunday gave college football the top spot in our watch-time ranking for Aug. 29-Sept. 4. Across a variety of networks, the sport accounted for 6.05% of minutes watched -- up from 0.87% the previous week, when there were just a handful of games played.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• Serena Williams's impending retirement helped push U.S. Open tennis watch-time to No. 2 in our ranking, at 2.45%.
• A Labor Day weekend marathon on Paramount Network propelled Yellowstone to No. 6 in our watch-time ranking (after not being listed at all the previous week).
• Kids shows earn two spots among the top 25 programs for the week, as SpongeBob SquarePants jumps from No. 33 to No. 21 by watch-time week-over-week, while Paw Patrol hops from No. 27 to No. 22.
• The Golden Girls springs into our ranking at No. 24, up from No. 26 the previous week.

ABC flies to the top of our list of most-watched networks, thanks in part to the return of college football. The network secured 7.54% of watch-time from Aug. 29-Sept. 4, up from 6.08% the previous week.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from the week:

• College football was also a boost for ESPN and ESPN2, as the former increased week-over-week minutes watched from 2.56% to 4.34%, and the latter climbed from 0.75% to 1.48%.
• Paramount Network’s aforementioned Yellowstone marathon helped propel it from No. 46 to No. 20 week-over-week, as viewers continued to catch up on/rewatch the hit show.
• Bravo moves from No. 28 to No. 25 week-over-week, in part due to The Real Housewives of Atlanta season finale (it was the top show on the network by watch-time).
• Investigation Discovery leaps from No. 18 to No. 14 by minutes watched week-over-week.

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company. Rankings are by TV ad impressions, for new episodes only. 

College football’s first full weekend delivers 13.86% of TV ad impressions to take the No. 1 spot. That’s nearly 6x the share of impressions of the No. 2 program, the 2022 U.S. Open tennis tournament.

More insights about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• Telemundo’s Infiel: Historia de un engaño springs to No. 25 by TV ad impressions, as the thriller rises from No. 62 the previous week.
• Fox & Friends jumps from No. 11 to No. 6 in our ranking week-over-week, as it grew its share of impressions to 1.74%.
• America’s Got Talent moves into the top 10 of our ranking, with 1.24% of TV ad impressions on the week.
• Fellow reality competition show Big Brother also jumps week-over-week, from No. 20 to No. 14 in our ranking.

Disney-owned ABC scores the top spot in our TV-ad-impressions-by-network ranking, in part due to the return of college football. The network delivered 15.25% of impressions, up from 10.66% the previous week (when it was ranked No. 2).

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• College football offered a week-over-week boost for other Disney-owned networks as well, as ESPN (from No. 8 to No. 6), ESPN2 (from No. 18 to No. 10), SEC Network (from No. 80 to No. 20) and ESPNU (from No. 52 to No. 21) all rose.
• Bravo moves from No. 24 to No. 19 in our ranking week-over-week, thanks to new episodes of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Southern Charm and The Real Housewives of Atlanta, among other programs.
• HLN is a new addition to our ranking week-over-week, with Saturday programming accounting for nearly a quarter of the network’s ad impressions.
• USA Network nearly doubled its share of TV ad impressions week-over-week (from 0.70% to 1.38%), thanks in particular to the NASCAR Cup Series’ Cook Out Southern 500 race.

The first full weekend of the college football season highlights a busy Labor Day weekend of live sports programming on linear TV channels and streaming services.

Several of college football’s Top 10 teams will be in action Saturday, beginning with No. 1 Alabama, who will open the season against Utah State on the SEC Network. Second-ranked Ohio State travels to No. 5 Notre Dame in a primetime ABC-televised game, while No. 3 Georgia battles 11th-ranked Oregon, also on ABC. 

Other games on Saturday include No. 6 Texas A&M-Sam Houston (SEC Network), No. 7 Utah-Florida (ESPN), No. 8 Michigan-Colorado State (ABC), No. 9 Oklahoma-UTEP (Fox) and No. 10 Baylor-Albany (ESPN Plus).

Also: Heavyweights Take Over Fall PPV Boxing Schedule 

On Monday, fourth-ranked Clemson meets Georgia Tech on ESPN. 

On the tennis court, ESPN and ESPN2 will offer continuing coverage of the U.S. Open Grand Slam tennis tournament from New York. The biggest story of the early rounds has been the success of tennis legend Serena Williams, who announced last month  that the US Open will serve as her last major tennis tournament competition. If Williams wins her third U.S. Open match on Friday night against Ajla Tomljanovic, she would compete Sunday in the fourth round of the women’s singles division. 

The WNBA playoffs continue with game three coverage of the semifinal series between Chicago Sky and the Connecticut Sun (ESPN2) as well as the Las Vegas Aces and Seattle Storm (ABC). 

Major League Baseball moves into the final full month of its regular season with Sunday coverage on Peacock featuring the Toronto Blue Jays and the Pittsburgh Pirates, and Sunday Night Baseball coverage on ESPN showcasing the San Diego Padres-Los Angeles Dodgers game. 

NBC on Sunday will offer IndyCar coverage from the Grand Prix of Portland, while USA Network will air live the NASCAR Cup Cook Out Southern 500 race and ESPN televises the Formula One Dutch Grand Prix event. 

In the ring, Fox Sports on Sunday will distribute a pay-per-view boxing card featuring a main event fight between heavyweights Andy Ruiz and Luis Ortiz. ■

The lineup of live TV sports events for the last weekend of August kicks off on the football field with a number of college football games on the major broadcast and cable networks.

Fox will kick off the lineup with the Nebraska-Northwestern game from Ireland. ESPN will air the Howard and Alabama State game, while FS1 will televise the Connecticut-Utah State contest. 

On the baseball diamond, Peacock will stream the Sunday afternoon Los Angeles Dodgers-Miami game, and ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball telecast will feature the defending champion Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals.

On the racetrack, NBC on Saturday will air live coverage of the Coke Zero Sugar 400 NASCAR Cup series. In the boxing ring ESPN will televise a Jose Pedraza-Richard Commey junior welterweight bout.

Golf Channel and NBC will offer weekend coverage of the PGA Tour Championship golf tournament, while NBC, Peacock and USA Network will offer live coverage of Premier League soccer games throughout the weekend

Fox on Saturday will saddle up for live coverage of the Travers Stakes horse racing event.

On Saturday, ABC will televise the semifinals of the Little League World Series featuring Hawaii-Tennessee and Taiwan-Curacao games. ABC on Sunday will televise the Little League World Series championship game, with ESPN televising the consolation game prior to the final.

CBS will end the last weekend of NFL exhibition games with live coverage of the Detroit Lions-Pittsburgh Steelers game.

In a major college sports TV development, the Big Ten Conference has reached seven-year distribution deals with Fox, CBS and NBC for rights to the conference’s marquee football and basketball games.

The agreement, which goes into effect in 2023 and will pay the conference a reported $1 billion a year, is modeled after the NFL, which offers live games across multiple networks and platforms. As part of the deal, Fox, CBS and NBC will all air Big Ten football games on Saturdays beginning in the fall of 2023. 

The three networks will also split the Big Ten Football Championship game telecasts, with CBS airing the game in 2024 and 2028, Fox in 2023, 2025, 2027 and 2029 and NBC in 2026, according to the Big Ten. Fox and ESPN currently hold Big Ten rights deals.

“The new rights agreements are an incredible achievement for our entire conference and a true testament of what can be accomplished with teamwork,” Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren said in a statement.

The deal puts the Big Ten at the forefront of the college sports television landscape. The 14-team conference, which includes high-profile schools Penn State, Ohio State and Michigan, will add Pac-12 schools USC and UCLA to its lineup in 2024. 

TV sports analyst Lee Berke said the Big Ten deal is a huge deal for the conference and the TV sports category. “College football content stirs the TV sports drink and [the Big Ten] offers a lot of it,” he said. “With the additions of USC and UCLA, they will offer more of it in major markets with major audience appeal, particularly during the fourth quarter of the year. That’s a tremendous amount of content that every major network wants to go after, and you’re seeing that with the players involved in this deal."

As part of the agreement, Fox will continue to televise football and men’s basketball games, while the Fox Sports-owned Big Ten Network will continue to televise the conferences' football, basketball, and Olympic sports competition.

"We are proud to expand upon our long-standing partnership with the Big Ten Conference and further bolster our position as the premier rights holder of  the conference," Fox Sports CEO and executive producer Eric Shanks said. 

CBS will offer seven Big Ten football games in 2023, which will ramp up to 15 games beginning in 2024, including an annual Black Friday game in the afternoon. CBS will continue to air Big Ten regular-season and postseason men’s and women’s basketball games, including the Big Ten Men’s semifinals and final games, as well as, for the first time, the women’s basketball tournament final. Paramount Plus will stream the CBS Big Ten basketball and football games.

“The Big Ten has been a valued partner for more than three decades, as we're thrilled to expand that relationship by adding Big Ten football to our portfolio of marquee properties," CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus said. 

NBC and its streaming service Peacock will air 14 to 16 college football games as well as up to 47 regular season men’s college basketball games and 30 women’s basketball games. 

"We a re incredibly excited to be partnering with Kevin Warren and the Big Ten Conference on this robust package of sports," said NBC Sports chairman Pete Bevacqua. ■

The Big Ten is reportedly close to finalizing TV rights deals that will bring it $1 billion a year, and ESPN is out of the huddle after 40 years on the roster.

A source familiar with the situation said that ESPN has informed the conference that it is out of the bidding. The Big Ten is seeking $380 million a year for a secondary package of games, but ESPN couldn't justify the price tag because it is getting SEC football for Saturday afternoons (the top-rated package CBS has had for years) and has Pac-10 and Big 12 games for primetime. 

Fox has agreed to take the top package of Big Ten college football games, which will appear on Fox noon on Saturday and on cable channels FS1 and BTN, or the Big Ten Network. Fox owns a majority stake in BTN.

According to Sports Business Journal, CBS and NBC are close to sharing the secondary games package starting in 2024. CBS would get games at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturdays —replacing the SEC games moving to ESPN — and NBC would have primetime games, with Peacock carrying some of the contests.

ESPN has been carrying Big Ten games since 1982. ABC, which, like ESPN, is owned by The Walt Disney Co., started airing games from the Big Ten in 1966.

Without the Big Ten, Sports Business Journal said that ESPN would turn its focus to the Big 12 and Pac 12. It will also work on renewing games for the College Football Playoffs and championship game. ■

The plan to bring two West Coast college football powerhouses into the Big Ten Conference has brought Apple back to the TV-rights bargaining table, according to reports.

Expanding the Midwest-rooted Big Ten from its current 14 schools to 16 would create a national footprint stretching from Rutgers in New Jersey and Maryland to California, making its TV rights and its Big Ten Network (BTN) more valuable.

This has been noticed by Apple, which after dropping out of the bidding for a package of Big Ten football games, has reengaged, according to Sports Business Journal.

Apple's Apple TV Plus streaming platform has developed an appetite for sports. It already has a Friday-night doubleheader package of Major League Baseball games and struck a deal with Major League Soccer. It is also reportedly among the leading contenders for the NFL Sunday Ticket package of out-of-market games.

The vote by Big Ten school presidents to add UCLA and USC lead to the conference delaying the deadline for completing its media-rights negotiations. Those rights are now expected to top $1 billion, a record for college football.

Fox Sports, which helped launch BTN, reportedly already has a deal to carry half of the Big Ten’s games. A second package appeared to be going to CBS, which is losing its top-rated Sunday SEC college football franchise to ESPN in 2004.

Amazon Prime Video, ESPN and NBC were reportedly competing for a third package before Apple’s re-entry into the bidding.

College football is rapidly changing into a two-conference sport, with the Big Ten competing with the SEC, which has added Texas and Oklahoma.  

Notre Dame, which has long been independent with a contract with NBC paying the bills, may have to become part of one of the major conferences to maintain its status as a top-tier program. ■

CBS’s college football schedule starts September 3 with Arizona versus San Diego State, and continues a week later with Colorado against Air Force. Penn State encounters Auburn on CBS September 17, marking the start of the SEC on CBS campaign. 

CBS offers 22 college football games this year, with doubleheaders on October 1, October 8, November 5, November 12 and November 25. Besides airing on CBS, games stream live on Paramount Plus. 

Among the highlights on the CBS schedule, Navy plays Air Force October 1, defending champ Georgia plays Florida October 29, and Air Force faces off with Army November 5. Army and Navy play December 10. 

The schedule concludes with the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl December 30. 

Brad Nessler and Gary Danielson, along with reporter Jamie Erdahl, are CBS Sports’ lead college football announcer team. Gene Steratore is the rules analyst. ■

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of January 10-16, showcasing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks

Via Inscape, Vizio’s TV data product with glass-level insights from a panel of more than 19 million active and opted-in smart TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).

The NFL retains its dominance over TV viewer attention, scoring 10.36% of all watch-time from January 10-16 courtesy of five playoff games on Saturday and Sunday. And that’s despite the league shifting the final wild card round game (the Los Angeles Rams vs. Arizona Cardinals) to a weeknight kickoff on January 17.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

CBS airing two NFL playoff games – Saturday’s Buffalo Bills win over the New England Patriots, and Sunday’s San Francisco 49ers victory over the Dallas Cowboys – helped the network land atop our most-watched ranking for the week, with 10.04% of watch-time.

Also: Fox Is Selling 2023 Super Bowl Spots as Sports Ad Market Heats Up

More insights around the most-watched networks from January 10-16:

Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions

Via iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company. Rankings are by TV ad impressions, for new episodes only. 

The NFL playoffs are always a TV ad impressions draw, and it was no different for Wild Card Weekend 2022, as the five games delivered 19.7% of all impressions from January 10-16.

More data about the top programs by TV ad impressions during the week:

Airing football games of some sort definitely serves as an advantage in our ad-impressions-by-network ranking for January 10-16, as eight of the top 25 networks aired an NFL playoff game, part of the College Football Playoff National Championship simulcast, or both.

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions from the week:

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