Fox (NYSE:NWS-A) has won the ratings war for viewers in the key 18-49 demo, but this year they added the title of drawing the most overall viewers as well, winning in that category for the first time ever. The 18-49 demo is what advertisers look to the most. This is the fourth year in a row that Fox has won in the in the key demo.
Not only did Fox win, they are the only major network to grow its audience year-over-year, with the rest dropping precipitously.
Fox increased its 18-49 audience by 2.4 percent, while CBS Corp. (NYSE:CBS-A) dropped a huge 19 percent in the category. ABC (NYSE:DIS) also plunged in the key demo, falling by 14 percent. NBC (NYSE:GE) also fell, although not as much, declining 9.7 percent, while the CW fell by 15 percent. The CW is questionable as to surviving for very long with the huge drop, as it positions itself as a niche player in the 18-34 category, although the network acknowledges the average viewer is age 35.
For the overall audience numbers, Fox finished with an average of 11.2 million in the time frame from September to May. That's up by 7.7 percent from last year.
NBC finished last of the major networks for the fifth-straight year.
American Idol ended up the top-viewed show for the fifth season in a row. The finale drew a larger audience than last year, with 31.7 million viewers tuning in. Last year 30.8 million watched the finale.
Fox said it will probably shorten their Wednesday night results show to half and hour, and is lookig at other changes as well, with rating for the season down from last year.
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