NBCSN’s live coverage of the 2014 Winter Olympics continues to set viewership records for the network while NBC’s delayed primetime portion continues to fall and for the first time, below Turin’s levels in 2006.
First, the USA-Russia men’s hockey game on NBCSN averaged 4.1 million viewers on Saturday morning and the shootout that went eight rounds registered 6.4 million. That viewership raised the average figure for daytime to 2.9 million making it the best-ever numbers for the network.
And locally, the top markets for the game are as follows:
| Market | HH rating/share | |||
| 1. Pittsburgh | 9.8 | |||
| 2. Boston | 9.2 | |||
| 3. Buffalo | 8.5 | |||
| 4. Providence | 7.1 | |||
| 5. Minneapolis | 6.9 | |||
| 6. Chicago | 5.7 | |||
| 7. St. Louis | 5.5 | |||
| 8. Philly | 5.2 | |||
| 9. Washington, DC | 4.9 | |||
| 10. Baltimore | 4.8 | |||
Very good numbers from hockey hotbeds like Pittsburgh, Boston, Buffalo, Providence and Minneapolis.
Now for NBC’s numbers, the network received the lowest ratings of the Games on Saturday. While it did win the night, NBC averaged a 9.6 rating with a 17 share. That’s well below Vancouver’s ratings from four years ago (14.7/26) and also trails Turin’s numbers in 2006 (11.3/19).
Viewership on Saturday averaged 17.1 million again well below Vancouver (26.7 million) and Turin (19.7 million).
For Sochi, NBC is averaging a 13.2/21 from the Opening Ceremony through Saturday and 23.5 million viewers, still above Turin’s numbers to which the network is making its true comparison rather than Vancouver.
Here’s the press release.
USA-RUSSIA OLYMPIC MEN’S HOCKEY THRILLER MOST-WATCHED HOCKEY GAME EVER ON NBCSN & LEADS NETWORK TO RECORD DAYTIME VIEWERSHIP
Winter Olympics to Date: NBC Primetime Up 14% in Viewership and 8% in Household Rating from Last European Winter Games in Turin in 2006
NBC’s Saturday Night Primetime Triples Other Broadcast Networks Combined in ViewershipSTAMFORD, Conn. – February 16, 2014 – NBCSN averaged 4.1 million viewers for Saturday’s thrilling USA-Russia Olympic men’s hockey game (7:30-10:30 a.m. ET/4:30-7:30 a.m. PT) – setting a record for the most-watched hockey game in the network’s history (previous: 4.0 million for Blackhawks-Bruins in 2013 Stanley Cup Finals Game 3), according to live plus same day fast national data released today by The Nielsen Company. Viewership for the game peaked at 6.4 million from 10-10:30 a.m. ET during the tension-laden, eight-round shootout and is the most-watched half hour in NBCSN history.
The telecast of Team USA’s memorable men’s hockey victory led NBCSN to its best-ever daytime viewership (2.9 million viewers) and marked the third consecutive weekend day that NBCSN set a viewership record after last weekend’s milestone opening Saturday and Sunday telecasts of the Sochi Games.
- For the Sochi Games to date, NBC is averaging 23.5 million viewers and a 13.2 household rating/21 share from the Opening Ceremony through last night – up 14% and 8% respectively from the last European Winter Olympics (20.6 million viewers and 12.2/20 for 2006 Turin Games).
- Last night’s primetime Olympics on NBC (8:30-11 p.m. ET) averaged 17.1 million viewers – more than tripling the combined primetime viewership of ABC, CBS and FOX (5.3 million). In addition, last night’s 9.6 household rating/17 share more than doubled that for the other three networks (3.5 household rating). The comparable Saturday night for the 2006 Turin Games averaged 19.7 million viewers and an 11.3 rating/19 share while the 2010 Vancouver Olympics averaged 26.7 million viewers and a 14.7 rating/26 share.
TOP 10 METERED MARKETS FOR SATURDAY’S NBC PRIMETIME COVERAGE:
Market HH rating/share 1. Minneapolis 15.7/29 2. Denver 14.9/29 3. Milwaukee 14.3/26 4. Salt Lake City 13.7/30 5. Ft. Myers 13.4/22 6. Kansas City 13.3/24 7. Indianapolis 13.1/22 8. Buffalo 12.9/22 T9. Boston 12.6/21 T9. Seattle 12.6/24
And that does it.
