CBS’s coverage of a PGA Tour golf tournament topped the sports ratings chart for a second straight week as NFL pre-season games dominated the top 10 most watched sports events last week.

CBS’s August 20 PGA FedExCup BMW Championship tournament averaged 3.03 million viewers, topping USA Network’s August 20 coverage of the NASCAR Cup at Watkins Glen auto race, which averaged 2.31 million viewers, according to Nielsen numbers published by SportsMedia Watch.  CBS’s August 19 coverage of the PGA tournament finished fourth for the week with 2.00 million viewers, while USA Network's NASCAR Cup Series' pre-show finished sixth for the week.   

NFL Network placed four of its pre-season games in the top 10, including the August 20 New Orleans Saints-Los Angeles Chargers games, which drew 2.01 million viewers for third place.

Fox’s August 20 Spain-England Women’s World Cup final telecast scored a fifth-place finish with 1.81 million viewers. The game was the most watched non-USWNT, English-language Women’s World Cup Final in history. Overall, Fox and FS1 averaged 669,000 viewers for the 64-game tournament, down 60% from 2019, according to Sports Media Watch. 

Univision’s August 19 coverage of the Leagues Cup finals soccer match between Inter Miami and Nashville -- featuring soccer great Lionel Messi -- finished 10th for the week with 1.45 million viewers. 

CBS’s PGA Golf coverage swung its way to the top of last week’s live sports ratings chart that was otherwise dominated by preseason National Football League games.

CBS’s August 13 coverage of the PGA FedEx St. Jude Championship averaged 3.20 million viewers to top the chart for the week of August 7 to August 13, per Nielsen numbers published by Sports Media Watch. CBS’s pre-event telecast also finished in the top 10 most-watched events for the week with 1.89 million watchers.

NBC’s August 13 NASCAR Cup Series Race finished second for the week with 2.83 million, followed by Fox’s August 12 Saturday baseball coverage with 2.30 million viewers. 

NFL Network placed four preseason game telecasts in the top 10, led by the August 13 San Francisco 49ers-Las Vegas Raiders game with 2.22 million viewers. 

Fox’s  coverage of the August 10 Spain-Netherlands FIFA Women’s World Cup quarterfinal match was the eighth-most-watched event for the week with 1.77 million viewers. 

Falling short of the top 10 was ABC’s August 13 coverage of the Little League Softball World Series Championship Game, which drew 861,000 viewers, placing it behind only the 2002 championship game historically, according to ESPN.  

The CW said the merger of rivals LIV Golf and the PGA Tour means no changes for LIV events on the network this year. The CW began airing LIV events in February. Next up is one at Real Club Valderrama in Spain June 30-July 2, then the Centurion Club in London July 7-9, The Greenbrier in West Virginia August 4-6, Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey August 11-13, Rich Harvest Farms in Chicago September 22-24, Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami October 20-22 and Royal Greens Golf & Country Club in Saudi Arabia November 3-5. 

The CW said in a statement: “This is an exciting day to unify and grow the game of golf. There is no change to the LIV Golf event schedule for 2023 on The CW. We look forward to broadcasting seven more exciting tournaments this year featuring the world's best golfers.”

The surprise deal will unite the long-established PGA and the DP World Tour with the Saudi Arabia-based Public Investment Fund, which owns LIV Golf, under a single owner, according to a press release.

The deal ends all litigation disputes between the parties. LIV Golf last year sued the PGA Tour alleging that the PGA Tour used its monopoly power to shut down competition. The PGA countersued LIV alleging that it illegally impeded contracts with PGA players.

“After two years of disruption and distraction, this is a historic day for the game we all know and love,” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said in a statement.

In a statement, LIV Golf and PGA Tour said the pair would “implement a plan to grow these combined commercial businesses, drive greater fan engagement and accelerate growth initiatives already underway.”

LIV Golf’s financing has drawn attention to human rights issues in Saudi Arabia.

LIV talent includes Cameron Smith, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau and Sergio Garcia.

Immediate reaction from golf fans — and observers who felt for Rory McIlroy who publicly defended the PGA against the Saudi-backed newcomer — was mostly negative. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) also had a sarcastic tweet about the move after PGA officials had lobbied against allowing Saudis to have a major stake in an American sport. “I guess maybe their concerns weren't really about human rights?” he tweeted.

The list of live TV sports events airing during the first full weekend of January starts on the football field with the NFL’s final week of the 2022-23 regular season.

Week 18 of the NFL season kicks off Saturday with two games with playoff implications airing on both ABC and ESPN: the Kansas City Chiefs facing the Las Vegas Raiders and the Tennessee Titans battling the Jacksonville Jaguars.

On Sunday CBS and Fox will offer regional game coverage, with NBC airing its final Sunday Night Football telecast of the regular season featuring a matchup between the Detroit Lions and the Green Bay Packers.

On the links, NBC will air the final rounds of the PGA Tournament of Champions on Saturday and Sunday, while also airing the high school football All-American Bowl on Saturday.

This weekend’s men’s college basketball schedule includes Sunday games featuring top-ranked Purdue facing Penn State on the Big Ten Network and second-ranked Houston traveling to Cincinnati to face the Bearcats on ESPN.

Saturday’s hoops action features third-ranked Kansas against West Virginia on the Big Ten Network, fourth-ranked UConn battling Creighton on Fox, and fifth-ranked Arizona taking on Washington State on ESPN Plus. Other games include No. 6 Texas-Oklahoma State (Fox), No.7 Alabama-Kentucky (ESPN), and No. 8 Tennessee-South Carolina (SEC Network).

In the ring, Showtime on Saturday will distribute the first pay-per-view boxing event of 2023 when lightweight champion Gervonta Davis steps into the ring to face challenger Hector Luis Garcia.■ 

Atmosphere, which streams entertainment programming into businesses, said it signed a content agreement with the PGA Tour.

Atmosphere has launched a dedicated PGA Tour channel showing tournament highlights and recaps, as well as iconic moments from legends of the game. Golf content will also be included on the Atmosphere Sports channel.

"Atmosphere has built an innovative platform with significant reach and an active, engaged audience," said Norb Gambuzza, PGA Tour senior VP of media and gaming. "We're excited to work with Atmosphere to deliver a dedicated PGA TOUR channel onto its platform with a goal of engaging more fans."

Also: Atmosphere Picks SpringServe To Handle Programmatic Out-Of-Home Ads

Atmosphere also recently added RealMadrid TV, a channel dedicated to the top Spanish league soccer club.

"With golf being one of the most watched sports in the world, we’re immensely proud to be partnering with the PGA Tour to provide businesses with a viewing experience tailored to their spaces," says Blake Sabatinelli, chief operating officer at Atmosphere. "The addition of golf to our platform has been one of the biggest requests of our fans, but also one of the hardest to obtain, so to have the world’s most competitive golf tour on Atmosphere shows just how far we’ve come in 2022, and how much further we can grow in 2023."

Atmosphere is available in 45,000 restaurants & bars, gyms and health clubs, medical waiting rooms and other businesses, reaching 60 million household viewers. ■

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of July 11-17, 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 PGA Tour’s Open Championship (British Open) scored the most watch-time on TV for the week of July 11-17. Cameron Smith’s one-stroke victory fueled the event toward 2.21% of minutes watched on the week -- over 2.5x more than the next most-watched program.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• Syndicated shows account for half of the top 10 in our ranking, led by Law & Order: Special Victims Unit at No. 2, airing on ION, USA Network, NBC and MyNetworkTV.
• NBA Summer League drives watch-time for audiences looking to get a glimpse of the Association’s top young stars, en route to 0.62% of the week’s minutes watched (No. 8 overall).
• Track and field sprints into our ranking at No. 11, thanks to the World Athletics Championships taking place in Eugene, Oregon.
• Oxygen show Snapped pops into our ranking at No. 24, after the true crime program didn’t appear among the top 50 the previous week.

NBC’s coverage of the Open Championship fuels its leap to the top of our list of most-watched networks. Following a No. 3 finish the previous week with 5.41% of watch-time, NBC scored 6.79% from July 11-17.

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

• IFC rides syndicated comedies and classic movies like A League Of Their Own from No. 9 to No. 6 week-over-week.
• USA Network hops from No. 13 to No. 7 week-over-week, courtesy of the Open Championship, Tour De France and NASCAR Cup Series.
• Family Feud helped push The CW from No. 28 to No. 24 week-over-week.
• Bravo glides from No. 24 to No. 20 week-over-week as audiences flocked to various iterations of the Below Deck franchise.

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 Open Championship’s four days of action gave the PGA Tour a TV ad impressions win for the week. The golf event accounted for 3.88% of impressions from July 11-17 – more than double the share of impressions the Scottish Open earned the previous week.

More data about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• Good Morning America retains its spot at No. 2 by impressions, but increases its week-over-week share, from 2.39% to 2.49%.
• A three-episode week drives Big Brother up from No. 25 to No. 15 week-over-week in our ranking.
• Speaking of reality TV: The Bachelorette’s season premiere -- with two Bachelorettes -- arrives at No. 25 in our ranking.
• Morning Joe’s share of TV ad impressions climbs from 0.67% to 0.90% week-over-week as the program ranks No. 23 from July 11-17.

Fox News sits at No. 1 in our ad-impressions-by-network ranking for a third straight week, delivering 12.55% of impressions (up slightly from 12.44% the previous week).

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• NBC’s share of impressions leaps from 10.00% to 11.81% week-over-week, as golf delivers for advertisers.
• Peacock hit Below Deck Down Under arrived on Bravo on July 11, spurring new interest from linear TV audiences and a jump from No. 24 to No. 14 week-over-week in our ranking.
• ABC’s share of impressions grows from 10.53% to 11.95% week-over-week between The Bachelorette and a return to a normal weekly schedule following the July Fourth holiday.
• National Geographic’s share of impressions increases by more than 4x week-over-week due in part to the start of the network’s month-long SharkFest event.

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of May 30-June 5, 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 NBA Finals are just two games in, but that’s enough to secure a watch-time lead for the association’s championship round. Games one and two between the Boston Celtics and Golden States Warriors combined for 1.68% of all minutes watched from May 30-June 5 — No. 1 among all programs during the timeframe.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• French Open action swings to No. 2 by watch-time as audiences watched Rafael Nadal take the men’s title (the 14th time he’s done so), while Iga Świątek won her second French Open in three tries.
• Our rankings are littered with live sports, especially at the top. Beyond the NBA Finals and French Open, the NHL (No. 4), MLB (No. 7) and PGA Tour (No. 9) all finish in the top 10 as well.
• Seinfeld soars to No. 18 in our rankings thanks to a Comedy Central marathon, after not appearing among the top 50 programs by watch-time the previous week.
• Among the other syndicated sitcoms included in this week’s rankings: Friends (No. 12), The Golden Girls (No. 20) and Two and a Half Men (No. 23).

ABC leaps to the top spot as the most-watched network, thanks in part to the NBA Finals. The network had 7.23% of watch-time on the week, up from 6.14% from May 23-29, when it placed third in our rankings.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from May 30-June 5:

• HGTV climbs the ladder into the top 10 in our rankings, as audiences tuned into an abundance of Love It or List It episodes.
• Hallmark Channel also hops into the top 10 by minutes watched with an assist from the premiere of new movie Hidden Gems.
• History Channel bounds from No. 25 to No. 18 by watch-time week-over-week, in part due to a two-night documentary on Theodore Roosevelt.
• Paramount Network continues to lean into hit show Yellowstone, fueling a modest move from No. 23 to No. 21 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. 

The NBA Finals scored the most TV ad impressions on the week, with 2.23 billion — 5.3% of the total. Those impressions are up nearly 40% year-over-year compared to the first two games of last year’s Finals, which took place in early July.

More data about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• Despite the short week with the Memorial Day holiday, Good Morning America still increased TV ad impressions by over 6% compared to the previous week.
• MLB impressions increased by 63.7% week-over-week despite just four additional minutes of ad time (but this week featured action on ESPN, while the previous week had games on ESPN2 instead).
• The French Open’s later rounds led to more TV ad impressions, as the event delivered 175% more week-over-week.
• America’s Got Talent’s 17th season premiered on NBC on May 31, to the tune of 364.4 million impressions (0.86% of the total for the week and No. 18 in our ranking).

ABC nabs the top spot in our ad-impressions-by-network ranking, with 15.53 of impressions on the week. The NBA Finals accounts for over 32% of those after airing in primetime on Thursday night and Sunday night, respectively.

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• With new episodes almost nightly, La Casa de los Famosos helped fuel Telemundo’s move from No. 11 to No. 9 by impressions week-over-week.
• College baseball and the Women’s College World Series combined for almost 29% of TV ad impressions on ESPN2, pushing the network from No. 17 to No. 14 by impressions week-over-week.
• Lifetime more than doubled impressions week-over-week, thanks in part to the most recent “where are they now?” episode of Married at First Sight (30% of Lifetime impressions on the week).
• Bravo impressions rose by 29% week-over-week as the Real Housewives of Dubai premiered as the newest addition to the successful franchise.

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of May 23-29, 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).

With conference finals concluded, the NBA once again keeps its watch-time lead with 2.81% of all minutes watched from May 23-29. That’s up from 2.69% the previous week despite fewer games, as the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors both secured trips to the NBA Finals.

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• Beyond the NBA, live sports remains hot, making up seven of the top 25 programs – including the NHL (No. 3), college softball (No. 9), college baseball (No. 11), PGA Tour golf (No. 13), French Open tennis (No. 15) and MLB (No. 16).
• Good Morning America and Today both make week-over-week moves by minutes watched, with the former jumping from No. 7 to No. 4 in our ranking.
• “Regular” SportsCenter is joined by SportsCenter With Scott Van Pelt in our ranking. The two combined for 1.29% of minutes watched from May 23-29.
• NCIS moves from No. 6 to No. 2 in our ranking week-over-week, securing 0.90% watch-time.

CBS keeps the top spot as the most-watched network, thanks in part to the PGA Tour’s Charles Schwab Challenge, which featured Sam Burns besting Scottie Scheffler in a playoff. The network had 6.61% of watch-time on the week.

Additional insights around the most-watched networks from May 23-29:

• Watch-time increased for both CNN and MSNBC amid coverage of the tragic school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
• In anticipation of Memorial Day cookouts, Food Network leaned into holiday-specific content – and saw total minutes watched rise from 1.23% to 1.36% week-over-week.
• Yellowstone wins again as Paramount Network climbs from No. 40 to No. 23 by watch-time week-over-week thanks in large part to marathon viewing of the show.
• NBC and ABC flip-flop as the former benefits from the Indy 500 (among other programming) to hop from No. 3 to No. 2 in our ranking 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. 

NBA TV ad impressions rose by over 6% week-over-week, with the conference finals delivering 3.25 billion impressions – or nearly 3.5 times more impressions than the nearest program (SportsCenter).

More data about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• With an assist from its two-part season 18 finale, Grey’s Anatomy arrives in our ranking at No. 25 by impressions, after finishing outside the top 50 the previous week.
• Speaking of finales, Survivor wrapped up season 42 and delivered 0.95% of TV ad impressions on the week (No. 18 in our ranking).
• National MLB game TV ad impressions climbed by nearly 5% week-over-week, while minutes of advertising climbed by slightly more (over 7% on the week).
• Today made big moves week-over-week, as impressions soared by almost 15% week-over-week, and the show’s third hour saw a 16% climb.

CBS leads our ad-impressions-by-network ranking once again, with 14.37% of impressions on the week. Quiz and giveaway shows (including The Price Is Right and Let’s Make A Deal) account for close to 20% of the network’s impressions for the week.

Additional insights around the top networks by impressions:

• ESPN jumps from 6.3% to 7.7% of TV ad impressions week-over-week, with the NBA and NHL combining for nearly half of the network’s impressions from May 23-29.
• Discovery Channel boosts impressions by 18.7% week-over-week, leaning on new episodes of shows such as Expedition Unknown: Uncovered, Deadliest Catch and Street Outlaws: America’s List.
• Spanish-language networks Univision, Telemundo, and Galavision all make week-over-week gains by impressions share of voice, with Univision leading the way at 4.46% (No. 7 overall).
• History Channel climbs to No. 22 in our ranking (up from No. 24 the previous week), with TV ad impressions for The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch nearly doubling week-over-week.

Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of April 4-10, 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 Masters, one of the PGA Tour’s premier events, drives to the top spot in this week’s watch-time ranking. From April 4-10, the Masters accounted for 3.39% of TV minutes watched — more than three times the next most-watched program (the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament).

Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:

• March Madness closed out strong, as the national title game between Kansas and North Carolina netted 0.98% of the week’s watch-time.
• Along with the Masters itself, coverage from the tournament was also a major draw for viewers, with Golf Channel’s Live From the Masters finishing No. 3 by minutes watched.
• Despite the regular season only starting on Thursday, Major League Baseball still caught 0.82% of the week’s watch-time (No. 7 overall).
• TLC’s 90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days was another newcomer to our rankings this week, picking up 0.41% of minutes watched.

Masters coverage was a boost to CBS watch-time, as the network collected 8.14% of all minutes watched from April 4-10. That’s the fifth straight week that CBS has led in our ranking, due at least in part to major sporting events (the Masters and the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament).

More insights around the most-watched networks from April 4-10:

• ESPN remained at No. 6 in this week’s rankings, but also increased watch-time from 2.64% to 3.40% week-over-week thanks to its own Masters coverage -- including both early-round tournament play and special SportsCenter airings on location at the event.
• On a similar note, Golf Channel jumped into the top 50 (thanks, again, to Masters coverage) after not being listed the previous week.
• TBS’s airing of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament’s national title game kept the network among the top 10 by minutes watched for the week.
• Leaning on its typical syndicated comedy programming, TV Land made modest week-over-week watch-time gains, climbing from No. 23 to No. 22 by minutes watched.

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. 

Courtesy of a simulcast across TBS, TNT and truTV, the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament’s championship game delivered the most TV ad impressions, with over 2.6% of the total for the week.

More data about the top programs by TV ad impressions:

• With four days of golf action across four different networks, the Masters scored the third-most impressions for the week (1.85% of the total).
• Speaking of sports, it‘s a major point of emphasis for the week, as five of the top 10 programs by impressions are sports-related.
• Another week with two shows (April 4 and 10) meant another week of American Idol finishing in the top five for TV ad impressions.
• The arrival of the regular season meant Major League Baseball games returning to national TV, where matchups served up more than 450 million ad impressions from Thursday through Sunday.

CBS parked itself at No. 1 again in our ad-impressions-by-network ranking for April 4-10, delivering 13.7% of TV ad impressions during the time period.

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

• Talk and news programs accounted for nearly 50% of ABC TV ad impressions from April 4-10, led by Good Morning America (14.9% of ABC impressions).
• The Masters had a competitor on CBS, as The Price Is Right delivered 10.97% of impressions to lead all programs on the network (The Masters was second with 10.11%).
• From April 4-10, nearly 18% of Fox News Channel impressions for the week came during Monday programming (almost as much as Saturday and Sunday combined).
• Bravo TV ad impressions leapt by more than 20% week-over-week, with shows in the Real Housewives franchise accounting for 40% of impressions from April 4-10. ▪️

Below, our snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of July 5-11, shining a spotlight on the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio's Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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 NBA Finals are well underway between the Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns, and after the first three games of the series, the NBA once again leads in minutes watched on TV. During the week of July 5-11, the NBA Finals remained in first place with 1.77% of watch-time (down just slightly from the week prior, when both conference finals series were still going on).

Entering its own final round, the 2021 Wimbledon Championships vault up to second place this week with 1.19% of minutes watched. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Good Morning America come in third and fourth, respectively. MLB games round out the top five shows by watch-time, with 0.75% of minutes watched.

Sports programming peppers the rest of the top 25 as well. ESPN’s SportsCenter sits at No. 10 with 0.55% of watch-time, while the NHL’s Stanley Cup Final is No. 15 after the Tampa Bay Lightning took home the franchise’s second straight championship. The 2020 European Championships (soccer) culminated with an Italy win and a No. 21 ranking by minutes watched. PGA Tour action follows closely behind at No. 22.

Love It or List It and Two and a Half Men are both new to this week’s top 25, as the former jumped up from outside the top 50 shows by watch-time to claim No. 24. The latter was No. 28 the previous week, and finished No. 23 this time around.

Also Read: Summer 2021 TV Premiere Dates

Following three straight weeks with NBC leading the watch-time ranking, ABC makes a one-spot jump back to No. 1. The network benefits from the NBA Finals en route to 7.09% of total minutes watched. NBC's down just one spot to No. 2 with 5.60% of watch-time, followed by CBS (5.29%), Fox News (3.76%) and Fox (3.50%). Baseball, primetime reality TV and game shows are what helped push Fox up from sixth the previous week.

Hallmark makes the chart’s biggest move of the week, from No. 17 to No. 10, followed by Univision from No. 16 to No. 11. The start of Shark Week helps Discovery Channel swim upstream from No. 25 to No. 20, with 1.24% of minutes watched. Bravo was No. 25 this week, with 1.07% of watch-time.

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. 

As one would expect, the NBA Finals deliver the most TV ad impressions, keeping the NBA atop this list once again. The Finals had nearly 2.5 billion TV ad impressions from July 5-11 — almost 1.6 billion more than the No. 2 show, Good Morning America (925 million on the week). Today remains in third with 744 million TV ad impressions, followed by The Young and the Restless (636 million) and Major League Baseball games (595 million) to close out the top five.

Sports-related programming also takes up the next two spots, with the Stanley Cup Finals at No. 6, and 2021 Wimbledon Championships at No. 7. Airing all of the highlights from the aforementioned events, SportsCenter is No. 11 on the week, with 451 million TV ad impressions. PGA Tour Golf is No. 16.

News also remains a fixture among the top 25 shows by TV ad impressions. About half of the shows in this ranking are news-related, including four of the top 10. Reality TV is also a factor, representing three of the top 25 shows: America’s Got Talent (No. 13), Love Island (No. 22) and Big Brother (No. 23).

ABC and NBC switch places yet again, with ABC leaping over NBC for the No. 1 spot in this week’s ad-impressions-by-network ranking. ABC benefits from the NBA Finals while taking a sizable (6.4 billion to 4.1 billion) lead. NBC still earns second place on the week with the Summer Olympics right around the corner.

After the top two spots, CBS lands at No. 3 with 3.9 billion TV ad impressions, followed by Fox News at No. 4 with 3.8 billion, then CNN at No. 5 with 2.3 billion. Thanks in part to baseball, Fox climbs from No. 13 to No. 13 while increasing impressions by 9% week-over-week. HGTV is up three spots from No. 15 to No. 12, and Discovery rides the start of Shark Week from No. 16 to No. 13.

Food Network closes out the weekly ranking at No. 25 after not appearing in the previous week’s list.

Below is our snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of June 28-July 4, shining a spotlight on the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio's Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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).

Heated Eastern and Western Conference Finals series mean that the NBA Playoffs once again lead by minutes watched on TV. During the week of June 28-July 4, the NBA stayed in first place with 1.86% of watch-time. While that’s down from 2.1% of minutes watched the week prior, the week also features fewer total games by comparison.

Audiences are also hooked on watching other sporting events on TV, too. The 2021 Wimbledon Championships are third this week with 0.93% of minutes watched, followed closely by MLB games at 0.89%. Knockout round matchups have the 2020 European Championships (soccer) remaining in sixth with 0.82% of watch-time. The 2021 Stanley Cup Final notably rounds out the top 25 shows, with 0.42% of minutes watched as the Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning battle it out.

Summer also appears to involve tuning in to syndicated fare for a lot of viewers. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit reruns make up 1.00% of minutes watched on TV, while Chicago P.D. is No. 8 with 0.75% and Chicago Fire is No. 10 with 0.60%. Friends is No. 9 at 0.66% of watch-time, and MTV air-time juggernaut Ridiculousness jumps from No. 16 to No. 12 on the week, with 0.58% of minutes watched.

Also Read: ESPN Finishes NBA Playoffs Coverage on High Note

The aforementioned Chicago Fire is one of the weeks’ top newcomers to not appear in the top 50, along with Wimbledon matches and Paramount Network’s Yellowstone. HGTV’s Home Town also moves up, from No. 35 to No. 16, while NCIS migrates from No. 32 to No. 18.

NBC claims a third consecutive week leading the watch-time ranking, at 5.86% of minutes watched. ABC isn’t too far behind at 5.75%, followed by CBS (5.47%) and Fox News Channel (4.13%). Week-over-week, the top six networks stay exactly the same, in order, with ESPN (3.60% of watch-time) and Fox (3.49%) occupying the fifth and sixth positions, respectively. Immediately below that group, TNT and HGTV swap places, with the former moving up to seventh and HGTV settling in at eighth.

With kids home from school, Nickelodeon climbs from 16th to 14th, at 1.52% of minutes watched. Discovery Channel is No. 25 with 1.09% of watch-time.

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 NBA’s conference finals concluded by delivering the most TV ad impressions once again. NBA Playoff games had over 1.84 billion TV ad impressions from June 28-July 4, which is nearly two times the total for the No. 2 show: Good Morning America (988 million on the week). Today sits in third with 786 million TV ad impressions, followed by The Young and the Restless (722 million) and Major League Baseball games (668 million) to round out the top five.

PGA Tour golf moves up a spot to 10th this week, while Wimbledon and the Stanley Cup Final are newcomers among the top 15 shows by TV ad impressions. The conclusion of the College World Series winds up at 18th, hitting it out of the park despite losing a game or two due to COVID protocols.

Reality TV typically isn’t a fixture among the top shows by impressions, but America’s Got Talent is 15th with 398 million and The Bachelorette now sits at No. 25 with 329 million.

NBC and ABC flip-flop once again, as the former is No. 1 in this week’s ad-impressions-by-network ranking. NBC arrives at the top spot by way of news and the aforementioned America’s Got Talent. ABC similarly banks on news, along with The Bachelorette, before becoming the home of the NBA Finals for the coming week. 

Following the top two spots, CBS is No. 3 with 4.2 billion TV ad impressions, then Fox News is No. 4 with 3.9 billion, while CNN is fifth at 2.3 billion. TNT and ESPN2 both tack on more impressions week-over-week by way of major sports programming. CNN’s total also climbs by about 10% compared to the prior week.

Spanish language sports channel TUDN and The Weather Channel are both week-over-week newcomers to the ranking, appearing in 24th and 25th place, respectively. UniMás shifts up two spots from No. 24 to No. 22. And Golf Channel leaps from No. 20 to No. 16. 

Below is our snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of June 21-27, shining a spotlight on the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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).

There are just four teams left in the NBA Playoffs, but having fewer games hasn’t eliminated the NBA’s lead by minutes watched on TV. During the week of June 21-27, the NBA retained first place with 2.1% of minutes watched — though that is down from 3.54% the previous week. Meanwhile, audiences are starting to catch Olympic fever, with U.S. Olympic Trials taking second place for the week, with 0.95% of watch-time.

Once again, sports are a fixture in the top 10 of the rankings. Beyond the NBA and Olympic Trials, MLB games are third with 0.94% of watch-time. The 2020 UEFA European Championship is No. 6 with 0.84%, while the College World Series is No. 7 with 0.82% of minutes watched. SportsCenter sits at ninth, with 0.74%.

A week after the U.S. Open, the PGA Tour Golf is still going strong at No. 15, while SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt and Below Deck Mediterranean are newcomers among the top 25. The College World Series also jumps 23 spots from the previous week. Two and a Half Men (syndicated reruns) closes out the top 25 this week, with 0.40% of minutes watched.

Also Read: NBCU Plans Record 7,000 Hours of Olympic Programming

NBC stays atop the watch-time rankings for the second consecutive week, with 5.95% of minutes watched — just barely edging out ABC, which had 5.94%. The top four all stay the same week-over-week, with ABC followed by CBS (5.67% of watch-time) and Fox News (4.07%). ESPN is up two spots to No. 5, with 3.86% of watch-time. 

NBC Sports Network is the biggest mover, up five spots on the strength of the Olympic Trials and Stanley Cup Playoff action, to sit in 25th overall. History Channel also moves up three spots from No. 25 to No. 22, with 1.25% of minutes watched.

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. 

Early conference finals games in the NBA Playoffs delivered plenty of TV ad impressions, keeping the league on top of these rankings once again. There were over 2.1 million TV ad impressions during the NBA Playoffs from June 21-27 — 2.4 times the total for No. 2 show Good Morning America. U.S. Olympic Trials had the third-most TV ad impressions (786 million), followed by The Price Is Right (759 million) and SportsCenter (744 million) to round out the top five for the week.

Though it doesn’t crack the top 10, the College World Series still climbs all the way to 12th (from 59th the previous week) while more than tripling TV ad impressions week-over-week.

And while live sports take up plenty of real estate near the top of the charts, soap operas are also all over the rankings. The Young and the Restless are among the top 10 shows by TV ad impressions, and General Hospital, Days of Our Lives and The Bold and the Beautiful all make the list as well.

After a week out of the top spot, ABC overtakes NBC once again for No. 1 in these ad-impressions-by-network rankings for the week. ABC’s top programs are largely news (morning shows and evening), along with The Bachelorette. Beyond ABC (5.1 billion TV ad impressions), CBS is second with 4.8 billion. NBC (4.8 billion), Fox News (4.3 billion) and ESPN (2.8 billion) rank third, fourth and fifth, respectively, in the timeframe.

NBC Sports Network continues its week-over-week climb, from 15th to 12th and now 11th, as a result of the NHL and Olympic Trials. ESPN2 also rises due in part to College World Series games airing on the network. The CW climbs four spots on the week, and Food Network is up two. CNBC is No. 25 in the rankings for the second straight week.

Welcome to our quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of May 24-30, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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 NBA Playoffs were a fixture on TVs over the last week, as the games stayed in first place for watch-time once again, with a 4.33% share of minutes watched (up from 3.04% the week before). Sports maintained a large presence overall, as five of the top 10 shows by watch-time were sports-related. Beyond the NBA, NHL hockey (0.80%), MLB baseball (0.70%), college softball (0.65%) and PGA Tour golf (0.63%) were the other sports programs in the top 10.

Drafting off the Friends reunion show on HBO Max, reruns of the beloved sitcom  jumped all the way to third by minutes watched, with 0.88% of the total; that’s up from No. 11 the previous week. Good Morning America (0.89% of watch-time) was No. 2, followed by Friends, Today (0.82%) and the NHL.

Week-over-week, some of the biggest movers were Home Town (unranked to No. 18), The Voice (up from No. 28 to No. 13) and SpongeBob SquarePants (No. 24 to No. 15). More generally, PGA Tour golf was new to the top 50 this week, but only because it was replacing the PGA Championship (second the week before).

On the strength of the Indy 500 and The Voice’s two-part season finale, NBC jumped up to No. 1 in the network rankings (from third last week), with 7.13% of watch-time. ABC stayed in second with 6.52% of minutes watched, buoyed by the ongoing NBA Playoffs, while TNT (which also airs the playoffs) climbed from eighth to sixth. Lifetime moved up to 25th, with 1.01% of watch-time on the week, to close out the top 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. 

Now fully in the swing of the playoffs, NBA games reigned supreme again, delivering nearly 4.6 billion TV ad impressions from May 24-30 (a 49% jump from the previous week). Good Morning America moved up one spot to second, with 873 million TV ad impressions, followed by Today (820 million), The Price Is Right (772 million) and NHL hockey (762 million). 

NASCAR programming saw major increases for the week, fueled by both the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600. The latter paced a TV ad impressions increase of 153% week-over-week for the NASCAR Cup Series.

CBS remained atop the ad-impressions-by-network rankings, with over 6.4 billion TV ad impressions — nearly 500 million more than NBC (which moved up one spot from the previous week, to second). Despite the NBA playoffs — partly airing on the network — ABC moved down one spot to third.

Fox News and TNT (another NBA Playoffs TV partner) rounded out the top five on the week. TNT’s impressions more than doubled week-over-week with the NBA’s first-round series all heating up. ESPN2 maintained a spot within the top 25 on the strength of NCAA postseason action for softball and baseball. And History Channel closed out the ranking in 25th place, up one spot from the week before.

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of May 17-23, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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).

With the playoffs officially in full swing, NBA basketball remained in first place for watch-time -- increasing its share of minutes watched to 3.04% (up from just over 1% the week before). Sports were parked atop the charts beyond the No.1 spot as well. The 2021 PGA Championship was second with 2.51% of all minutes watched, followed by NHL hockey (also in the midst of the playoffs now) with 1.08%.

Good Morning America (0.90% of watch-time) and SportsCenter (0.85%) rounded out the top five, with the latter jumping up from No. 11 the week before on the strength of playoff highlights and Phil Mickelson’s surprising win in the PGA Championship.

Also Read: NBA Launches ‘That’s Game’ Campaign During Playoffs

CBS moved up to No. 1 in the network rankings this week (from second last week) with 7.69% of watch-time, powered by the exciting final round of the PGA Championship. ABC climbed to second, with 6.76% of minutes watched -- in part due to game one of two separate NBA playoff series (as well as the American Idol season finale). TNT climbed from No. 11 to No. 8 week over week due to the NBA Playoffs as well. A&E closed out the weekly rankings in 25th, with 0.91% of watch-time.

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. 

Between late regular season games, play-in contests and the start of playoff series over the weekend, NBA basketball was far and away the top source of TV ad impressions from May 17-23, with 3.06 billion (a 266% increase week over week). Second was the PGA Championship, with 1.34 billion TV ad impressions. Good Morning America was No. 3 with 866 million impressions -- a slight increase of a little over 3% compared to the week before.

Leaping from eighth to fifth, NHL hockey started its own playoffs with a 69.1% increase in TV ad impressions week over week. In its final week of the season, American Idol went from 29th in terms of impressions to 18th with 492 million.

CBS remained in first place by network rankings with 7.9 billion TV ad impressions (a very slight decline of 1.7% compared to the previous week). The American Idol finale and NBA games were a big part of ABC’s 21.7% week over week increase, and jump to second place overall. NBC saw a minor week over week decline (3.2%) while moving down from second to third in the rankings. ESPN leapt from eighth to fifth with some help from NBA play-in and playoff games, increasing TV ad impressions by nearly 72% from the previous week. Finishing 24th this week, USA Network had its own major increase in impressions (over 57%) due to WWE Monday Night Raw and the NHL Playoffs.

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of May 10-16, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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).

NBA basketball held on to first place for watch-time, receiving 1.04% of all minutes watched during the week. Elsewhere in the sports world, MLB baseball and PGA Tour golf both saw week-over-week decreases, while NHL hockey, which wasn’t previously in the top 50 by watch-time, jumped into the ranking at No. 14. Thanks in part to syndicated reruns on USA Network and ION, Chicago P.D. rose up the ranking to fourth place, surpassing Today.

NBC took first place on the network ranking (7.24% of watch-time), fueled in part by NHL hockey and The Voice. ABC remained steady in third, while Fox News surpassed Fox with 4.30% and 4.14% of minutes watched, respectively. TNT had the biggest week-over-week ranking increase, up to No. 11 from No. 16, thanks in part to NBA basketball games. And although it had less than 1% of network watch-time (0.99%), MTV landed in the ranking at 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. 

For the second week in a row, Good Morning America was No. 1 for TV ad impressions, with its 892.3 million constituting a modest 5.67% week-over-week decrease in impressions. NBA basketball was also down. Its 827 million impressions represented an 8.55% decrease from the previous week. MLB baseball’s 549.5 million impressions was a slight uptick from the previous week, while PGA Tour Golf had a 23.8% week-over-week decrease in impressions and NHL hockey rocketed into eighth place with 503.9 million TV ad impressions. The Voice — which aired two episodes — jumped up to No. 11 from No. 24 the previous week, with 485 million impressions.

CBS stayed in first place on the network ranking, edging up from 7.5 billion impressions last week to 7.9 billion. Thanks in part to The Voice and NHL hockey, NBC had an 18.17% week-over-week increase, with its 6 billion impressions landing it in second place. Fox News also saw a bump, with its 4.4 billion impressions representing a 15.40% increase from the previous week. After a week absent from the top 25, Lifetime rejoined the ranking with 305.9 million impressions, fueled by new episodes of Married at First Sight and Married at First Sight Australia.

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of May 3-9, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio's Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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).

NBA basketball was back in first place for watch-time, capturing 1.10% of all live, linear minutes watched during the week. Good Morning America rose to second place (0.94%), bumping Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (0.94%) down to third. MLB baseball and PGA Tour Golf rose up the rankings week over week, as did Mom and ABC World News Tonight With David Muir, which were not previously in the top 25. Criminal Minds made an appearance at No. 22 after previously not being in the top 50.

CBS was back on top of the network ranking, grabbing 6.92% of watch-time for the week, while NBC slipped to second place (6.66%). ABC remained steady and Fox surpassed Fox News, 4.06% vs 3.70% of minutes watched. ION had one of the largest week-over-week increases, up to 10th from No. 15 the previous week, and A&E, which wasn’t in the ranking previously, snuck in at No. 25 (0.98%).

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. 

Good Morning America took first place for TV ad impressions, with its 945.9 million representing a 13.73% increase from the previous week. NBA basketball also saw a week-over-week increase, up 33% to 904.2 million impressions. Both PGA Tour Golf and MLB baseball made the top 10, at sixth and seventh places, respectively. The Voice had a decrease in impressions from the previous week, down 25.72% to 321.2 million TV ad impressions.

CBS continues to reign supreme on the network ranking, racking up 7.5 billion TV ad impressions, followed by ABC (5.3 billion), NBC (5.1 billion) and Fox News (3.8 million). Spanish-language network Galavision, which wasn’t previously on the ranking, landed at No. 25 with 254.8 million impressions. Univision and Telemundo each had over 1 billion, while UniMás generated 431.5 million impressions. TNT, which was absent from the top 25 the week before, jumped up to No. 17, with 85.5% of its 428.7 million impressions coming from NBA games.

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of April 26 through May 2, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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 Draft jumped into first place, capturing 2.66% of all minutes watched during the week. The Kentucky Derby also made the top 10, coming in at No. 8 with 0.67% of watch-time. Home Town on HGTV rocketed up the ranking from No. 25 to No. 15, while Food Network’s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives also saw a notable week-over-week increase.

Thanks in part to the 147th Kentucky Derby, NBC took first place on the network ranking, with 6.69% of all minutes watched. CBS moved up a notch to No. 2, while ABC and Fox both slipped down one place; TNT was another network that dropped in the chart week-over-week, down to No. 18 from No. 11 previously. Bravo, which wasn’t on the ranking last time, moved into No. 23 with 1.07% of watch-time for the 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. 

The 2021 NFL Draft was the only program to generate over 1 billion TV ad impressions during the week, with the top count (615.4 million impressions) coming from ESPN. Both NBA basketball and MLB baseball slipped in the rankings: NBA was down from first place to No. 6 with a 45.8% week-over-week decrease in impressions, while MLB saw a 11.63% decrease, down to 564.6 million TV ad impressions.The 147th Kentucky Derby landed in the top 10 with 573.9 million impressions and PGA Tour Golf had an 11% week-over-week impression increase.

Once again, CBS takes first place, and saw a 32.61% week-over-week increase in TV ad impressions, up to 7.7 billion. Thanks in part to the NFL Draft, ESPN also had an increase in impressions, up to 2.3 billion from 1.8 billion the previous week. Lifetime and The CW were two newcomers to the ranking. Lifetime delivered 327.5 million TV ad impressions, 42% of which came from Married at First Sight. The CW generated 304.8 million TV ad impressions, led by new episodes of All American, Kung Fu, William & Kate’s Royal Anniversary and Supergirl.

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of April 19-25, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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 top of the show ranking was steady week-over-week, with NBA again taking first place with 1.40% of all minutes watched, an increase from the previous week’s 1.26% share duration. MLB baseball games also scored more watch-time, 0.83% vs. 0.80% the week before. The Oscars snagged No. 15 (0.45%), while The Big Bang Theory jumped into 18th place from No. 26 the previous week. NCIS, which wasn’t in the top 50 before, came in at No. 21 with 0.39% of all minutes watched.

ABC took the top spot for the second week in a row, capturing 6.85% of watch-time, while NBC jumped into second with 6.77% and Fox grabbed fourth (4.41%). TNT was another network that marched up the chart, moving into 11th place from No. 18, thanks in part to NBA basketball games and reruns of NCIS: New Orleans. The Discovery Channel also had a notable upswing, from No. 27 to No. 22; on the flip side, ION dropped from No. 11 to No. 19 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. 

NBA basketball remains king of TV ad impressions, with games generating nearly 1.3 billion impressions during the week. MLB baseball moved up the ranking, with its 638.9 million impressions constituting a 6.78% week-over-week increase. Elsewhere in the sports world, PGA Tour Golf had an 18.3% decrease in impressions, while NASCAR Cup Series jumped into the ranking with 382.4 million impressions. The Oscars made the cut as well, coming in at No. 20 with 337.3 million TV ad impressions.

CBS continues to be a TV ad impression powerhouse, although it saw a 14.01% week-over-week decrease in impressions. MSNBC surpassed CNN to move up one position in the ranking, taking fifth place with 2.5 billion impressions. MLB Network saw a week-over-week increase, up to 945.3 million impressions from 786.6 the previous week. A&E was a newcomer to the ranking, coming in at No. 24 with 297 million impressions, fueled in part by Biography: "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, The First 48 and Hoarders.

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of April 12-18, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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).

NBA basketball jumped to the top of the ranking, scoring 1.26% of all live, linear minutes watched during the week, followed by Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1.00%) and Good Morning America (0.94%). MLB baseball made the top five (0.80%), while the 56th Academy of Country Music Awards took No. 20 with 0.42% of watch-time. Only two shows saw a ranking decrease week-over-week: SportsCenter, which dropped to No. 14 from No. 11, and Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, which took No. 25 after being at No. 20 the previous week.

ABC ousted long-time ranking leader CBS, capturing 6.77% of watch-time, compared to the latter’s 6.70%. Fox News, Fox, Hallmark, ION, TNT and TV Land all maintained their positions week-over-week, while MSNBC had the biggest change, up to No. 9 from No. 16 the previous week. Thanks in part to reruns of Rizzoli & Isles, Lifetime also moved up a few places, taking No. 21 with 1.16% of minutes watched. Bravo and A&E were two newcomers to the chart, landing at No. 23 and No. 25, respectively.

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 only programming to surpass one billion TV ad impressions during the week was NBA basketball, with 1.2 billion. MLB baseball and PGA Tour Golf scored top marks, with MLB delivering 598.3 million TV ad impressions and PGA generating 464.1 million. American Idol rose from 10th to sixth place, with its 627.9 million TV ad impressions constituting a 5.66% increase from the previous week. The 56th Academy of Country Music Awards came in at No. 15 with 446.6 million TV ad impressions, while The Voice took No. 19 (406.3 million).

On the network side of things, once again, CBS claimed first place with 6.7 billion TV ad impressions, a little over one billion fewer than the previous week. Daytime programming delivered top impression-counts for the network, led by The Price Is Right (708 million impressions) and The Young and the Restless (645.7 million impressions), while the ACM awards delivered about 6.7% of CBS’ impressions for the week. Fox had an 85.75% week-over-week increase in impressions, up to 1.1 billion. NASCAR Cup Series delivered 230.6 million impressions for the network, while The Masked Singer generated 129.1 million. Headline News moved up the ranking slightly week-over-week, with coverage of the Derek Chauvin trial accounting for 57% of the network’s total impressions.

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Mar. 22-28, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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).

For the second week in a row, March Madness led for watch-time, capturing 4.78% of all minutes watched during the week. PGA Tour golf swung into second place (1.16%), while the NCAA women’s basketball tournament took No. 6 (0.74%) and NBA games were right behind with 0.71% of watch-time. American Idol, which was previously not in the top 50 shows watched, broke into the ranking at No. 16 (0.46%).

CBS maintained its hold on first place for the network ranking (8.27% of minutes watched), with an assist from March Madness games, CBS This Morning and The Price Is Right. Marathons of Ridiculousness helped move MTV into the ranking, up to No. 24 from No. 27 the previous week, while Lifetime benefited from reruns of Rizzoli & Isles, taking No. 23 with 1.10% of the week’s watch-time.

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 basketball was the primary driver of impressions during the week, but its 7 billion was a 24.37% decrease from the previous week. PGA Tour golf and NBA basketball also made the top five shows by impressions, with 906.1 million and 627 million, respectively, while women’s college basketball games came in at No. 7 (568.6 million). The top non-news or sports show by impressions was American Idol (623.9 million); others included The Price Is Right (542.3 million), The Young and the Restless (510.3 million), General Hospital (386.1 million), The Voice (366.8 million), Let’s Make a Deal (328.5 million) and Days of our Lives (326.9 million).

There was no shuffling among the first eight positions of the network ranking week-over-week: CBS led the pack with 9.9 billion impressions, followed by ABC (6 billion) and NBC (4.6 billion). Not only did March Madness deliver half of the total impressions on CBS (4.5 billion), games also accounted for 94.5% of all of the impressions from new programming on TBS, and 41.3% of TNT’s impressions. History Channel had a 54.17% week-over-week increase in impressions, moving from No. 28 the previous week up to No. 17, thanks in part to the Barrett-Jackson Live Auction. Hallmark also saw an increase in impressions, up 14.8% to 310.4 million, fueled by the network’s new original movie Don't Go Breaking My Heart (183.9 million impressions) and a new episode of When Calls the Heart (110 million impressions).

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Mar. 15-21, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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).

March Madness captured the most watch-time during the week by far, accounting for 6.65% of all minutes, with 3.17% coming from games broadcast on CBS. Other sports-related programming that rose up the ranking included NBA basketball, PGA Tour golf and SportsCenter. Police procedurals Chicago P.D., Blue Bloods and NCIS moved up the chart, while shows that slipped week-over-week included Friends, Two and a Half Men, Home Town and The Voice. 

Also Read: NCAA March Madness Tourney Generating Record Ad Sales, Execs Say

The 2021 NCAA Basketball Tournament helped propel CBS into first place, with the network capturing 8.25% of all minutes watched during the week. March Madness also fueled a few other networks’ move up the ranking, including TBS (2.75% of watch-time), TNT (2.10%) and truTV (1.07%). Bravo got a slight bump up, taking No. 22 with 1.13% of minutes watched, thanks in part to reruns of Below Deck Mediterranean.

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. 

Thanks to March Madness, college basketball games generated an astounding 9.3 billion TV ad impressions — nearly as many as CBS had in total for new episodes (10.1 billion). It was the only programming to receive over a billion impressions for the week; Good Morning America took second place with 883.3 million, a 15.92% increase from the previous week. The Bachelor saw an 81.89% week-over-week increase in impressions, up to 567.4 million, while The Voice’s 430.6 million impressions constituted a 26.76% decrease from the previous week.

CBS had nearly twice as many TV ad impressions (10.1 billion) as the second-place network, ABC (5.2 billion), and half of those impressions came from college basketball. MSNBC saw a 59.73% increase in impressions week-over-week, up to 3.1 billion and edging out CNN (2.5 billion impressions). After a week off the ranking, TBS came back strong with 2.3 billion impressions, primarily fueled by March Madness games. TNT and truTV also benefited from the tournament, with 1.5 billion and 840 million impressions, respectively.

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Mar. 8-14, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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).

College basketball retained its grip on the top of the ranking, capturing 2.64% of all minutes watched during the week. The PGA Tour’s 2021 Players Championship came in second place (1.42%), followed by Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (0.98%). The Voice rose from tenth to seventh place week-over-week, and essentially tied with the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, both with 0.63% of watch-time. Dateline: Secrets Uncovered was a new entrant to the ranking, taking No. 23 with 0.43%.

Thanks in part to the 2021 Players Championship and The Voice, NBC moved into first place, capturing 7.72% of all minutes watched last week. ABC, Fox, Fox News Channel, CNN, Nickelodeon, Bravo and TV Land all maintained their ranking positions week-over-week, while Ion Television had the biggest increase among the networks, moving from No. 15 to No. 12, thanks in part to reruns of Blue Bloods and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. 

Top Shows and TV 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. 

March Madness is approaching, and TV ad impressions for college basketball are going up: There was a 44.57% week-over-week increase, up to 2.3 billion, for games during the last week. The Voice rose up the ranking to fourth place with 587.8 million TV ad impressions, while the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards snagged seventh place with 506.3 million TV ad impressions. Impressions for The Bachelor edged up to 312 million, a 9.86% increase from the previous week. 

CBS continues to rule the network rankings, with its 5.9 billion TV ad impressions constituting a slight 1.61% increase from the previous week, driven in part by The Price Is Right, college basketball and the Grammys. Thanks in part to The Voice and the 2021 Players Championship, NBC rose up to second place with 4.2 billion impressions. TLC was another network with a week-over-week increase: it snagged 494.9 million impressions, with top shows including 90 Day Fiancé, Sister Wives and My 600-Lb. Life. Notably absent is TBS, which was No. 14 on the ranking the previous week but dropped to No. 63 (44.2 million impressions). 

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of March 1-7, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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, college basketball takes first place, with 1.65% of all watch-time during the week, followed by PGA Tour Golf (1.0%). NBA basketball, which was second place the previous week, dropped to No. 9 with 0.58% of minutes watched, while the 2021 NBA All-Star Game took No. 15 with 0.52%. The season 20 premiere of The Voice on NBC made the top 10 (0.57% of watch-time), while Oprah’s interview with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry on CBS came in at No. 12 (0.55% of all minutes watched during the week). It’s also worth noting that for March 7, the Oprah interview was the No. 1 most-watched show that day (3.44% of all minutes watched).

Also Read: ‘Oprah With Meghan and Harry’ Was the Top Live, Linear Program on Sunday

On the network side of things, CBS took first place with 7.07% of minutes watched, thanks in part to college basketball games and Oprah’s interview with Meghan and Harry. With an assist from NBA basketball, TNT rose up to 10th place from No. 13 the previous week, capturing 1.80% of watch-time. TBS also saw a week-over-week ranking increase, taking No. 11 with 1.71%, thanks in part to reruns of Friends and The Big Bang Theory, as well as the NBA All-Star Game.

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 basketball games generated nearly 1.6 billion TV ad impressions during the week, while NBA games had 1.2 billion impressions. PGA Tour Golf came in third with 704.8 million impressions. The premiere of The Voice came in at No. 8 (533 million TV ad impressions), while Oprah With Meghan and Harry: A CBS Primetime Special took ninth (515.8 million impressions). The Bachelor squeaked into the top 25, with 284 million TV ad impressions, a 19.62% week-over-week decrease.

The top of the rankings was steady week-over-week, with CBS on top. Its 5.8 billion TV ad impressions constituted a 12.30% increase from the previous week, fueled in part by The Price Is Right and Oprah’s interview with Meghan and Harry. TNT saw a notable 101.27% increase in impressions week-over-week, with NBA basketball games accounting for over 63% of impressions. Discovery Channel was another network with a week-over-week increase, up 32.44% to 625.1 million, thanks in part to new episodes of Naked and Afraid: Gimme Shelter and Gold Rush.

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of  Feb. 22-28, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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 capture the most watch-time, led by college basketball (1.56% of all minutes watched), followed by NBA games (1.16%) and PGA Tour Golf (0.92%). SportsCenter also saw increased viewership (0.51%), up to No. 13 from No. 23 the previous week. Thanks in part to marathons, Home Town and The First 48 jumped up the ranking, to No. 10 and No. 23, respectively. Aside from college basketball, only three other programs maintained their ranking week-over-week: Good Morning America, Ridiculousness and ABC World News Tonight With David Muir.

Thanks in part to PGA Tour Golf and the 78th Annual Golden Globe Awards, NBC rose into first place with 6.84% of minutes watched during the week. Hallmark had the biggest ranking jump compared to the previous week, up to No. 10 from No. 16, with help from marathons of The Golden Girls. Chart newcomers compared to the previous week included MTV and A&E, taking No. 24 and No. 25, respectively, fueled by marathons of their own (Ridiculousness and The First 48).

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 basketball squeezed past the NBA to take first place for TV ad impressions, with games generating over 1.44 billion impressions vs. 1.41 billion. PGA Tour Golf took third place with 778 million impressions, a 50.12% week-over-week increase. The 78th Annual Golden Globe Awards generated 346.8 million TV ad impressions while American Idol, which aired at the same time, generated 282 million impressions.

CBS maintained its first-place position, receiving slightly more TV ad impressions (5.2 billion) compared to the previous week (4.9 billion), driven in part by new episodes of The Price Is Right, The Young and the Restless and CBS This Morning — although college basketball also contributed 351 million TV ad impressions to the network’s total. Golf rose up the ranking to No. 12 with 511.1 million TV ad impressions, 67% of which came from PGA Tour broadcasts. HGTV also saw a week-over-week increase, up to 446.2 million impressions from the previous week’s 379.8 million, with Home Town delivering the top impression-count for the network (89.1 million).

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Feb. 15-21, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Vizio’s Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with 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 17 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).

Various sports marched up the ranking, led by college basketball which took first place for watch-time (1.19%). NBA games captured 1.15% of all minutes watched, putting it in third place, while PGA Tour golf grabbed 0.82%, securing it No. 5. NHL hockey squeaked into the ranking at No. 25 with 0.38% of all minutes watched. After a week off, Ridiculousness came back into the top 25 in seventh place, while Rizzoli & Isles jumped from No. 43 to No. 24 week-over-week.

On the network side of things, ABC and NBC both rose up the ranking, taking first and second places with 6.70% and 6.65% of watch-time, respectively, while CBS slipped to third (6.61%). Among the networks that maintained ranking positions: Fox (No. 4), ESPN (No. 9), the Discovery Channel (No. 22) and Lifetime (No. 23); Hallmark had the biggest week-over-week drop, down to No. 16 from No. 10. Bravo was the one newcomer compared to the previous week, at No. 24 with 1.07% of minutes watched.

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. 

Impression-counts for both NBA and college basketball games stayed mostly steady week-over-week, and as such, they remained in first and second place, respectively. The Price Is Right jumped into third place with 734.1 million TV ad impressions, a 25.58% increase from the previous week. That show, along with The Young and the Restless, were the only non-sports or news programs in the top 10. Weather Channel’s live coverage of Winter Storm Shirley came in at No. 14 with 397.8 million TV ad impressions, while The Bachelor generated 330.6 million impressions, putting it at No. 22. American Idol just missed the ranking, coming in at No. 26 (292 million TV ad impressions).

Once again, CBS took first place on the network ranking with 5 billion TV ad impressions, followed by ABC (4.6 billion). Fox News was third with 4 billion, a 20.13% week-over-week increase. Bravo picked up steam, with a 16.43% increase in impressions from the previous week, thanks in part to Below Deck, while TNT rebounded compared to the week before, with 426.4 million of its 536 million TV ad impressions coming from NBA basketball games. MTV rounded out the ranking with 249.6 million TV ad impressions, fueled in part by The Challenge and Jersey Shore: Family Vacation.

The PGA Tour said during the Golf Channel’s coverage of The CJ Cup Oct. 15-18, BetMGM will provide live betting odds to viewers.

The move is another step as legalized gambling seeps into television coverage of sports events.

BetMGM content will appear twice per hour, featuring leaderboards with open and current odds to win, along with odds for head-to-head matchups, winning margins, top finishes, holes in one and playoffs.

“We are excited to build upon our recently announced Official Betting Operator relationship with BetMGM by activating this partnership at the CJ Cup @ Shadow Creek,” said Norb Gambuzza, PGA Tour senior VP, media and gaming. “The focus of our sports betting partnerships is to engage fans in new and creative ways. As an element of that strategy, we began integrating live odds onto Tour digital platforms in August and now we look forward to learning from this first-time test in a live telecast.”

The PGA signed a deal to make BetMGM an official betting operator of the PGA Tour. BetMGM offers a variety of betting options including moneyline, point spreads, parlays and futures.

BetMGM is licensed in Colorado, Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, Nevada and West Virginia. It plans to be in 11 stated by the end of the year.

“The PGA Tour has been a great partner for BetMGM. Being the first sports betting platform to integrate betting odds into a live PGA tour telecast speaks to the innovative nature of our partnership," said Matt Prevost, BetMGM chief marketing officer. "We look forward to continuing to move the needle and work closely with the Tour to produce great content.” 

PGA Tour Live, the PGA Tour’s OTT streaming platform, integrated live betting odds during the opening two rounds of the Wyndham Championship on Aug. 13-14. 

NBC Sports has named veteran sports executive Pete Bevacqua chairman of NBC Sports Group, the company announced Thursday.

Bevacqua, who joined NBCUniversal in 2018 as president of NBC Sports Group, succeeds current NBCUniversal Television and Streaming chairman Mark Lazarus in the position. 

During his tenure at NBC Sports, Bevacqua led a nine-year extension of the company’s PGA Tour rights and also helped facilitate a deal with the NFL in which NBCUniversal acquired the rights to a new Sunday night Wild Card playoff game beginning in January 2021.  

“In his time with NBC Sports, Pete has been exceptional working with our league and organizational partners, as well as in collaboration with other NBCUniversal leaders to strengthen our sports production and overall business in a challenging environment,” Lazarus said in a statement.

Prior to joining NBC Sports Group, Bevacqua served as CEO of the PGA of America from 2012-2018. Before that, Bevacqua served as Global Head of Golf at Creative Artists Agency (CAA Sports); Chief Business Officer for the USGA; and Managing Director of the U.S. Open Championship.

The following is a snapshot of television by the numbers for the week of Aug. 10-16, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks 

Via Inscape.tv, the TV data company with insights from a panel of more than 15 million 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).

Examining shows, of all the minutes watched by smart TVs that Inscape measured in all dayparts, 0.82% of the time was spent on NBCSN’s broadcast of NHL hockey (specifically, the Stanley Cup Playoffs). ABC’s Good Morning America (0.67%) and MTV’s Ridiculousness (0.62%) finished second and third, respectively, by share duration.

For networks, of all minutes watched last week, 6.32% of the time was spent on Fox News -- a one-spot jump from the previous week, when the network was No. 2. The second-place spot went to NBC (5.57%), then ABC (5.36%) was third, followed by CBS (5.08%) and CNN (3.26%). The week’s top mover was Discovery Channel (1.96%), which climbed from 19th to 10th partly on the strength of its annual “Shark Week” special.

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. 

NBA basketball remained atop the rankings, with 1.8 billion TV ad impressions on the week, followed by NHL hockey (1.4 billion), Today (816 million) and America’s Newsroom (801 million). Sports-related programming once again made its presence known among the top shows. Five of the top 12 by impressions were sports-related (NBA, NHL, plus MLB baseball at No. 6, PGA Tour golf in ninth and SportsCenter in 12th). But it was news that saw the biggest footprint on the rankings, with 15 of the top 25 spots.

Fox News was still the highest impression-generating network, with 5.8 billion impressions, followed by NBC (4.3 billion), CNN (3.5 billion) and ABC (3.4 billion). Sports-focused networks also ranked highly, with ESPN (1.9 billion impressions), NBC Sports (1.2 billion), Golf Channel (519 million) and MLB Network (374 million) all among the top 25 networks by impressions during shows with new episodes. TNT (933 million) saw high impression totals as well airing plenty of NBA games during the week.

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of Aug. 3-9, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks 

Via Inscape.tv, the TV data company with insights from a panel of more than 15 million 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).

Looking at shows, of all the minutes watched by smart TVs that Inscape measured in all dayparts, 1.63% of the time was spent on the 2020 PGA Championship on CBS and 1.17% was spent on the PGA Championship on ESPN. NBA basketball games on TNT took third place with 0.95% share duration.

On the network side of things, of all minutes watched last week, 6.06% of the time was spent on CBS — a move up from the previous week where it was No. 4. Second and third places go to Fox News (6.04%) and ABC (5.46%). Notably, NBCSN zoomed into the No. 21 spot (previously it hadn’t been in the top 50).

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. 

Sports led the ranking, with NBA basketball taking first place with over 2.5 billion TV ad impressions, followed by the 2020 PGA Championship (1.8 billion) and NHL hockey (1.2 billion). Aside from SportsCenter at No. 9, the rest of the top 10 spots all go to news-related programming. Non-news, talk or sports programming to make the top 25 include General Hospital, Days of our Lives, 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After? and Big Brother.

Fox News (5.7 billion impressions) continues to reign supreme when it comes to the highest impression-generating networks, followed by NBC (3.5 billion) and CNN (3.4 billion). Sports-centric networks also made the top 25, including ESPN (2.8 billion impressions), NBC Sports (1.3 billion), MLB Network (412 million) and Golf (334.4 million).

This is a quick snapshot of linear TV trends for the week of July 13-19, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks 

Via Inscape.tv, the TV data company with insights from a panel of more than 15 million 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).

Looking at shows, of all the minutes watched by smart TVs that Inscape measured in all dayparts, 1.08% of the time was spent on PGA Tour Golf, an increase from the previous week’s percent share duration of 0.88%. Ridiculousness (0.82%) and Friends (0.79%), which both aired over 200 episodes last week, surpassed morning talk shows to round out the top three.

On the network side of things, of all minutes watched last week, 6.27% of the time was spent on NBC — a move up from the previous week where it was No. 2. Second and third places go to ABC (6.07%) and Fox News (6.02%). Other networks rising in the ranks compared to the previous week include Hallmark Channel, Investigation Discovery, Nickelodeon, Univision, TNT, The Golf Channel and TV Land. 

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. 

Although the show ranking was mostly dominated by news and morning talk shows, sports programming makes an appearance — PGA Tour Golf was No. 1 by TV ad impressions (849.5 million), while NASCAR Cup Series was No. 11 with 466.7 million impressions. Meanwhile, America’s Got Talent and Days of our Lives both made the top 15; those two along with CMA Best of Fest were the only non-news or sports programming on the ranking.

For the second week in a row, Fox News took first place with over 6 billion TV ad impressions, a slight increase from last week’s 5.9 billion. CNN followed with nearly 4 billion impressions, and ABC (3.7 billion) edged out NBC to be the top broadcast network. Three Spanish-languge networks also made the top 25 list: Univision (1.4 billion impressions), Telemundo (814.1 million) and UniMás (237.2 million). 

This is a quick snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of July 6-12, revealing the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Inscape, and the top shows and networks by TV ad impressions with insights via iSpot.tv.

Most-Watched Shows and Networks 

Via Inscape.tv, the TV data company with insights from a panel of more than 15 million 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).

Looking at shows, of all the minutes watched by smart TVs that Inscape measured in all dayparts, 0.88% of the time was spent on PGA Tour Golf, putting it in first place, a move up from last week when it was No. 11. Morning talk shows Good Morning America and Today followed with 0.88% and 0.87% share duration, respectively. They held the same positions last week.

On the network side of things, of all minutes watched last week, 6.11% of the time was spent on Fox News Channel — a move up from the previous week where it was No. 2. Second and third places go to NBC (5.91%) and ABC (5.85%). There was no week-over-week change in the network rankings for third through ninth place.

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. 

Morning talk shows and other news programs dominated the top 25 list, with the sole two outliers being Days of Our Lives and SportsCenter. Good Morning America took first place with over 930.6 million TV ad impressions, followed by Today (846.8 million) and America’s Newsroom (726.7 million).

Looking at networks, cable news took three of the top five spots: Fox News was first with nearly 5.9 billion TV ad impressions, CNN was at No. 2 with just over 4 billion impressions and MSNBC captured fifth place with 2.5 billion impressions. It’s also worth noting that Spanish-language network Univision was in seventh place with 1.6 billion impressions.

The Golf Channel today (June 11) begins its live coverage of the four-day Charles Schwab Challenge PGA golf tournament, the first PGA Tour event since play was halted in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Golf Channel and CBS will offer 59 live hours of tournament coverage from the Colonial Country Club in Ft. Worth, Texas, all while implementing health screenings and safety protocols as well as a reduced on-site footprint.

Golf Channel executive producer Molly Solomon spoke to me on the eve of the tournament regarding the network’s production strategy -- Golf Channel and CBS for example will share one announcing crew -- as well as the network’s plans for covering a very busy PGA tournament schedule that is scheduled to extend into the fall. An edited version of the interview appears below.

What does the return of the PGA Tour to full time play mean for the Golf Channel?

It’s going to be great for golf fans and all of us who produce television to be back in the chair again. We have 11 hours of consecutive news and coverage from the tournament beginning at 9 am. (today). CBS produces the broadcast, including first and second round coverage for the Golf Channel, so this has been a collaborative process over the last month and a half to create a unified, linear broadcast production. CBS has had to reduce its personnel footprint, and yet they are going to give us everything we want in terms of three hours of coverage. Because they can’t have all of their announcers together, Jim Nantz is going to host all four rounds from Colonial and announcers Nick Faldo, Ian Baker-Finch and Frank Nobilo will be announcing from Golf Channel’s Morning Drive set in Florida. We wanted to give them the best technical setup to succeed remotely, so we were anxious to lean in and help our partners in whatever way we could.

Other than the lack of spectators, will viewers see anything different from a production standpoint with the tournament coverage?

We’re able to try some things like putting mics on the players and framing the action more intimately. We’ve always been interested in what the players say to their caddies and the interactions with their playing competitors. There is some hesitation from some players about wearing a mic, so we’re hopeful some of the players will lean in, and we'll get conversations that we haven’t had in the past. The audiences are in the loop in terms of what the restraints are for production, so I think imperfect is going to be accepted during this pandemic. All of us in television production really pride ourselves on the excellence and quality of the broadcasts, and CBS is going to be charged with providing the same amount of hours but with less people. They have a terrific production plan, so we’ll just be happy to see the sport back in action. We have the top five players starting at Colonial, so it starts with the action, and I think it's going to be terrific.

How difficult was it for the Golf Channel to get through the pandemic from a business and production standpoint?

The priority is and has always been the safety of our employees, and so initially when we were reduced to working from home we put on [PGA] tournament replays, which were really attractive for our audience. Slowly but surely our operations team really relied on their production ingenuity and created production control rooms from home. We were able to start producing news content with the anchors and directors at home, beginning with short form digital news and ramping up to doing half-hour shows from home. We felt with the tournaments coming back that we were ready to bring people back to the building, but in very limited numbers. There’s a health and safety plan in place, but it was time to get back to doing what we do when the PGA Tour players are back in action.

How does the rest of the year shape up for The Golf Channel?

It’s going to be a great fall if you are a sports fan -- you’re going to have all the leagues back. Usually the big golf events finish before the end of the summer to make way for football, but in these unprecedented times we’re going to have a fall that is chock full of PGA championships. Golf fans are really loyal and really excited about the prospect of fall golf. They want to see what the [2020 Masters Tournament] looks like in November. We’re going to have the [FedEx Cup] championship finish on Labor Day. As sports fans we’ve been so starved for so many months, so I think there’s room for golf championships taking place later than normal in the calendar year.

Illustrating the power of sports on television, the PGA Tour signed new nine-year rights deals that will pay it $700 million a year, up from about $400 million.

Golf matches will continue to be broadcast on weekends on Comcast’s NBC and ViacomCBS’s CBS, with CBS getting 19 events per season and NBC eight.

NBCU’s GolfChannel will provide all early-round coverage and early weekend coverage of every FedExCup event each season, along with PGA Tour Champions and the Korn Ferry Tour. The PGA Tour and NBC Sports will expand their collaborative content and programming relationship.

The PGA Tour also negotiated its digital rights at the same time as its TV rights for the first time. The result is that the subscription service PGA Tour Live will exclusively be a part of The Walt Disney Co.’s streaming ESPN Plus.

Working with the PGA Tour, the LPGA also got a rights agreement. LPGA events will be anchor programming on Golf Channel, wit expanded exposure on NBC and CBS.

Financial terms were not disclosed, but several reports indicated that the value of the deals were about $700 million.

“The nine-year deals will put us in a position to significantly increase player earnings, deliver more value to our tournaments and sponsors, and ultimately allow us to continue to grow our charitable footprint,” said Jay Monahan, commissioner of the PGA Tour. “Additionally, we are now able to reinvest in our sport in a way never before possible, including production, personnel and technology, and are well positioned to best serve and grow our fanbase in the years to come.”

The PGA Tour will assume responsibility of the onsite production area and technical infrastructure each week, enabling the Tour to more efficiently aggregate, distribute and develop content for its various platforms worldwide. CBS and NBC will still use their own production and announce teams, led by their producers, directors and production personnel.

“We’re excited to extend NBC Sports’ historic partnership with the PGA Tour as its foundational media partner," said Pete Bevacqua, president, NBC Sports Group. "We will continue to utilize our extensive platforms to showcase golf with unparalleled live tournament coverage, comprehensive news and high-quality content. Golf is a part of NBCUniversal’s DNA across our broadcast, cable, streaming and digital properties – nowhere more so than Golf Channel.”

The Tour and its media partners will collaborate on creating more sponsorship and marketing opportunities, inside and outside PGA Tour golf coverage, including access to the vast resources of ViacomCBS, Comcast/NBC Sports Group and Disney and ESPN+.

“Extending our successful long-standing relationship with the PGA Tour was a top priority, and we are thrilled to add nine more years to this terrific partnership,” said Sean McManus, chairman, CBS Sports. “As the PGA Tour’s primary broadcast network, we are excited to showcase over two-thirds of all broadcast network coverage of the PGA Tour , expand our schedule with all three FedExCup Playoffs events in alternate years, and to increase our use of PGA Tour content across all CBS Sports platforms, with even more expansive content exclusivity. For over 60 years the PGA Tour, its tournaments and sponsors have been outstanding partners. We look forward to many more years of growth and success together.”

Beginning in 2022 PGA Tour Live will be expanded with ESPN Plus, offering multiple live content channels nearly every week of the FedExCup season.

“We are looking forward to working with the PGA Tour to bring current and future golf fans the next generation of Tour coverage. ESPN Plus will offer golf fans unprecedented access and storytelling at an incredible value on the industry’s leading sports streaming platform,” said Jimmy Pitaro, president of ESPN and co-chairman, Disney Media Networks.

PGA Tour Live on ESPN Plus will bring fans more access to the 30,000-plus golf shots hit each week on the PGA Tour by delivering more than 4,000 hours of live streaming coverage annually. All of this will be available to ESPN+ subscribers as part of the base subscription.

Discovery Inc. said it has purchased Latin American Golf, which operates 24-hour pay TV network Golf Channel Latin America, from Simple Networks LLC and Fornaluz Productions, for an undisclosed sum.

Golf Channel Latin America reaches more than 10 million homes in 17 regions in Latin America, offering extensive coverage of the game and instructional and entertainment programming. The deal builds on Discovery’s extensive golf coverage, which includes GOLFTV powered by PGA TOUR, Golf Digest and an exclusive global content partnership with Tiger Woods.

Launched in 2006, Golf Channel Latin America offers coverage of more than 36 exclusive live events. The network is currently available through pay-tv operators in 17 countries, and provides extensive reporting, analysis and coverage of the game across its digital platforms.

“As Discovery continues to grow its offering and engagement with golf fans around the world, we are excited to be expanding our offering in Latin America to supercharge our golf ambitions across the region,” Discovery Golf president and general manager Alex Kaplan in a press release.

“Combining the forces of leading golf destinations such as Golf Channel Latin America, GolfTV and Golf Digest, in addition to Discovery’s extensive brand portfolio and reach, will create an engine for golf content that offers significant opportunities to build scale across every platform,” he added.

Discovery continued to beef up its golfing portfolio, agreeing to purchase Golf Digest from publisher Condé Nast.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed but some reports estimated the price tag was about $30 million. 

The addition of Golf Digest will complement Discovery’s growing portfolio around the sport. In January it launched GolfTV with more than 2,000 hours of live action and premium content.

Discovery’s reach into 220 markets and territories worldwide should help boost Golf Digest’s global brand. The publication, which gets nearly half of its revenue from digital advertising, will continue to publish a U.S. monthly print magazine and Discovery will assume the global licenses for editions serving nearly 70 countries.

According to Discovery, Golf Digest has about 4.8 million readers and 2.2 million social media followers.

According to Golf Digest, the sale was part of a nine-month process that began after privately held Condé Nast, which has owned the publication since 2001, announced it would focus more on its core style and culture publications like Vogue and Vanity Fair. The company said it received interest from a number of suitors, “but it was Discovery’s ambitious plans to create a ‘digital home of golf’ that seemed an ideal match from the start.”

Golf Digest’s editorial team will join Discovery Golf under the continued leadership of Jerry Tarde, as Editor-in-Chief, Golf Digest, and Global Head of Strategy and Content, Discovery Golf. Tarde’s responsibilities also will include GolfTV and he will report to Discovery Golf president and general manager Alex Kaplan.

“Golf Digest is a world-class brand that has become the ‘go-to’ authority for millions of golf enthusiasts, professional players and global advertisers,” Discovery CEO David Zaslav said in a press release. “It’s a natural strategic fit with Discovery’s goal to be the leading golf media platform in the world.”

RELATED: Discovery Inc. Acquires Golf Digest 

GolfTV already includes exclusive carriage in select territories outside of the U.S. of the PGA Tour, the European Tour, the Ladies European Tour, and the Masters Tournament. Discovery also had exclusive global content partnerships with Tiger Woods, winner of 81 PGA Tour events and 15 major championships, and Francesco Molinari, winner of three PGA Tour events and the reigning Open champion.

“This is a big deal for Discovery to add Golf Digest to our golf portfolio,” Kaplan said in a press release. “... We can utilize the strengths of both Golf Digest and our burgeoning GolfTV platform, establishing a global editorial powerhouse delivering content across all platforms to engage and inspire millions of passionate golf fans around the world.”

GolfTV is collaborating with Woods on a range of content, including deep-dive instruction to help players improve their game, which began filming last month, and exclusive access to his tournament preparation. 

“This is an important step in enhancing and expanding the U.S. and global reach of Discovery and GolfTV,” Woods said in a press release. “It gives me another platform to tell my story directly to fans and makes my partnership with Discovery even stronger. This acquisition, along with what Discovery and GolfTV have already done with the PGA Tour, is great for the game of golf.”

The addition of the publication gives Discovery a leading golf platform in the U.S., including instructional videos, equipment advice, course rankings, travel destinations, online bookings and more.

Discovery and the PGA Tour are expanding their 12-year strategic partnership with a new content and sales relationship in the U.S., including a full suite of editorial coverage, live and on-demand video streaming, digital, social, print and branded content opportunities. The current Golf Digest sales teams will continue to be responsible for ad sales during a transition period until the Discovery / PGA Tour sales integration is complete.

Greenhill & Co. served as financial advisor to Condé Nast and Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP served as legal advisor to Condé Nast. Proskauer Rose LLP served as legal advisor to Discovery, Inc. 

In one of the biggest developments since announcing their partnership in June, Discovery Inc, and the PGA Tour said they have reached an exclusive, multi-year global content partnership with golf legend Tiger Woods to create programming for the streaming video service.

Beginning in January, Golf TV -- the global live and on-demand video streaming service formed by Discovery and the PGA Tour -- will collaborate with the 80-time PGA Tour winner and 14-time Major champion on a wide range of programming, content creation and storytelling opportunities, aimed at giving fans a unique look into the life, mind and performance of one of the game’s most unique icons.

According to Discovery, the partnership will provide fans access to Woods’ practice routines, preparation and life on the road through a variety of programming showcased exclusively on Golf TV.

“I’ve been watching Discovery and [CEO] David Zaslav build up a global sports platform with Eurosport, the Olympics and the launch of Golf TV with us at the PGA Tour, so I think they’re the perfect partner to help grow the game,” Woods said in a statement. “They’re global, they get sports and know how to build new, younger and big audiences. It’s a perfect fit and I’m so excited to be a real partner with the Discovery Sports team.”

RELATED: Tiger Woods’s return to prominence lifts golf’s on-screen profile

“I love the vision of Golf TV and the ambition for it to become the premier destination for golf entertainment worldwide. To have my own platform to communicate is the culmination of a lot of hard work from my team and the team at Discovery. We’re going to build content for everyone, whether you’ve been playing golf for a long time or just starting out. I’ll be sharing stories and giving insight into my approach that has never been seen before. This is such an exciting time for golf and for me, so to be part of the vision to grow the game all around the world is fantastic. I can’t wait to share my knowledge on Golf TV,” he continued.

Among the content Woods and Golf TV are collaborating to develop are:

· Weekly practice and instructional videos;

· Exclusive access into Tiger’s preparation routines;

· Behind-the-scenes access before and after PGA Tour rounds;

· Unique and exclusive post-round commentary.

The content will be exclusively owned by Golf TV globally, including in the United States, where Discovery has the opportunity to execute an owned or partner distribution strategy.

“I am excited to welcome Tiger to the Discovery family and to Golf TV, a true superstar joining our company of world-class storytellers and brands,” Discovery CEO David Zaslav said in a statement. “At the heart of Discovery is high-quality storytelling, told through the most authentic, credible and trusted voices. Tiger is the ultimate example of a world-class athlete and cultural figure with whom audiences are enamored, and follow closely around the world. Our global partnership with Tiger is a perfect example of our strategy to collaborate exclusively with top talent to extend global media platforms, and take advantage of our international distribution and technology infrastructure and aggregate audiences and build long-term value.”

The partnership with Golf TV comes on the heels of a comeback season that saw Woods return to form, culminating in a win at the 2018 Tour Championship in September.

Related: Phil, Tiger Event a Win for PPV Industry Despite Refunds 

“It’s a privilege for us to welcome Tiger to the Golf TV team,” Discovery Golf president and general manager Alex Kaplan said in a statement. “No one else in the game resonates globally the way Tiger does or has the global fan base, and he has great wisdom to share, on and off the course. We’re thrilled to give him the global platform to do just that, and to provide our audience in more than 200 markets and territories a closer look at Tiger on the greens and behind the scenes.”

Golf TV will show more than 2,000 hours of live action each year as well as a wide range of premium content on-demand on every screen and device. Live coverage of the PGA Tour outside of the U.S. will include The Players Championship, the FedExCup Playoffs and the Presidents Cup.

Discovery and the PGA Tour have taken the wrapper off their new video streaming service, Golf TV, set to debut on Jan. 1 and giving fans outside of the U.S. a one-stop destination to access golf content on multiple devices.

According to Discovery, GolfTV will have more than 2,000 hours of live action and extensive premium content each year. That includes live coverage of the six tours operating under the PGA Tour umbrella and nearly 150 tournaments annually, including The Players Championship, the FedExCup Playoffs and the Presidents Cup.

“Our long-term goal is to create a must-have experience that truly enhances the way global fans watch, play and engage with the game every day,” said Discovery Golf president and general manager Alex Kaplan in a statement. “Unveiling the new Golf TV brand is an exciting next step in our journey. Building on Discovery’s heritage of real-life storytelling and direct-to-consumer platform experience, we’ve already established a world-class Golf TV team. With work well underway, our carefully considered plans will allow us to continually enhance Golf TV as we roll-out and further develop the product.”

Discovery and the PGA Tour announced their partnership in June.  In addition to the Golf TV service, the 12-year alliance will manage the PGA Tour’s international multi-platform rights including linear TV rights.

The PGA Tour said it has made a deal with Facebook, which will stream exclusive coverage of live Saturday and Sunday competition during eight of its golf events.

The 60-plus hours of coverage will be presented free on Facebook Watch in the United States.

The move is the latest example of streaming companies acquiring rights to live sports — often the TV industry’s most popular programming.

The Facebook Watch-exclusive coverage window will begin at approximately 8:30 a.m. ET on both Saturday and Sunday of each event and will conclude when Golf Channel’s lead-in coverage begins.

Related | broadcastingcable.com: Discovery Announces $2B International PGA Tour Deal

The PGA Tour will produce this unique coverage for Facebook’s social video platform, with interactive elements designed to engage fans. For example, the coverage will incorporate fan questions and comments, the PGA Tour said.

“No matter if it's a weekend foursome or water-cooler conversation about a top moment on Tour, golf brings people together,” said Devi Mahadevia, Facebook’s North America live sports programming lead. “So we're delighted to partner with the PGA Tour to help it reach new fans and deliver interactive, live coverage on Facebook that taps into the social nature of the sport.”

Related: Hutton Joins Facebook to Seek Out Sports Deals

The Facebook Watch coverage will begin at the Travelers Championship on June 23 and June 24. The remaining events in 2018 include: Quicken Loans National; A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier; John Deere Classic; RBC Canadian Open; World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational; Wyndham Championship; and The Northern Trust.

The agreement also calls for a range of on-demand programming, including tournament previews, round recaps and extended player highlights, which will be available in the United States on Facebook Watch and globally via the PGA Tour Live show page.

In May, the PGA Tour sold Facebook the rights to stream 30-plus hours of live coverage from The Players Championship.

In a deal similar to its earlier pact to carry the Olympic Games outside of the U.S., Discovery Inc., has reached a 12-year multiplatform agreement with the PGA Tour valued at $2 billion to carry top tournaments beginning in 2019.

 The deal will last through 2030 and includes global multi-platform live rights outside the United States to all PGA Tour media properties totaling about 2000 hours of content per year, including the six Tours operating under the PGA Tour umbrella and nearly 150 tournaments annually, like The Players Championship, the FedExCup Playoffs, and the Presidents Cup.

In addition to live linear rights in 220 markets outside of the U.S., Discovery and the PGA Tour also will create a dedicated, PGA Tour-branded, OTT video streaming service, utilizing Discovery’s existing Eurosport Player.

Discovery will broadcast the PGA Tour on its portfolio of pay-TV and free-to-air channels, digital and short-form platforms, and will work with the organization and its extensive non-live and library rights for all media platforms.

“Today is a fantastic day for golf fans around the world as Discovery proudly partners with the PGA Tour to create something that has never been done before,” Discovery CEO David Zaslav said in a statement. “The long-term partnership between the PGA Tour and Discovery will create the new global Home of Golf, including delivering over 2000 hours of live content year-round and this prestigious sport’s greatest moments, stories and athletes.”

Discovery struck a similar deal with the International Olympic Committee in 2015, and aired its first Olympics in 2018, the Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, with great success.

RELATED: Discovery Scores First Olympics 

Discovery established more than 40 free-to-air broadcast partnerships for the PyeongChang Games, as well as social media partnerships to reach younger audiences, including Snapchat’s first Olympics collaboration in Europe.

The programmer is hoping lightning strikes twice with the PGA Tour.

Related: Discovery Secures European Olympics TV Rights 

“This is an exciting next step for the PGA Tour, which presents a tremendous opportunity to accelerate and expand our media business outside the United States, better service our international broadcast partners, and drive fan growth with a deeply experienced strategic global partner. This partnership aligns very well with the opening of PGA TOUR offices in London, Tokyo and Beijing in recent years and will support our long-term objectives of growing the game of golf. It also will deliver more value to our sponsors as it presents a tremendous opportunity to engage new and diverse audiences around the world.”

Former Eurosport Digital EVP, Commercial Alex Kaplan will head up the new venture as president and general manager. Prior to joining Discovery, Kaplan was SVP, Global media distribution, for the NBA, responsible for global direct-to-consumer strategy and business operations. Prior to the NBA, Kaplan spent 10 years at DirecTV/AT&T, where he led the organization responsible for DirecTV Sports and oversaw Revenue and Entertainment products and services. Joining Kaplan in the new venture will be PGA Tour SVP international media Thierry Pascal as SVP and head of distribution. The rest of the management team will be announced at a later date.

“I am incredibly excited to work with David Zaslav and JB Perrette to take international coverage of PGA Tour golf to the next level,” Kaplan said in a statement. “…By joining forces with the outstanding PGA TOUR team, led by Jay Monahan and Rick Anderson, we have a unique opportunity to build an amazing product that will serve the fans with the golf content they love on every screen.”