Idol Tops Nielsen 2006 Rankings

NEW YORK, December 21: According to Nielsen Media Research,
the highest-rated broadcast network show in 2006 was American Idol, with the Tuesday performance show netting a 17.7
rating, with a 17.2 rating for the Wednesday results show.

Idol was followed by Dancing
with the Stars (12.7), CSI (12.0) and then the Dancing with the Stars results show (11.4). Rounding out the top ten were Sunday
Night Football on NBC, CSI: Miami, Desperate Housewives, House,
the Monday edition of Deal or No Deal and Without a Trace.

In terms of individual telecasts, the Super Bowl on ABC on
February 2 comes up on top with a 41.6 rating, well above the second-place
ranking, the Super Bowl Post Game show with a 29 rating. The Academy Awards on
March 5 secured a 23.1 rating, and the Rose Bowl delivered a 21.7 rating. The
post-Super Bowl episode of Grey’s Anatomy
shored up a 21 rating.

Nielsen also introduced research on “timeshifted” programs
this year, to take into account the increasing use of DVRs. NBC’s Studio 60
on the Sunset Strip most benefited from
time-shifted viewing. It recorded a 10.9 percent increase in viewership when
comparing ratings for the live broadcast and those of the live broadcast added
to DVR viewing within seven days of the initial air date. Heroes recorded a 9.1 percent increase, followed by Gilmore
Girls (7.9 percent), America’s
Next Top Model (7.7 percent), 30
Rock (7.5 percent) and Friday
Night Lights (7.5 percent). Rounding out
the top ten were The Nine, Supernatural, Kidnapped, One Tree Hill and Smallville.

In terms of the theatrical box office, Pirates of the
Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest pulled in
$423.3 million, well above Cars
with $244 million in the second place spot. In the top five were X-Men:
The Last Stand, The Da Vinci Code and Superman Returns. The most successful documentary at the theaters
this year was An Inconvenient Truth,
pulling in $23.8 million.

The most successful DVD of 2006 was Warner Home Video’s Harry
Potter and the Goblet of Fire, followed by
Disney’s Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, Cars
and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest.

Yahoo! remains the most successful Internet brand, with
354.5 billion page views this year. MySpace amassed 250.7 billion page views,
while Google had 147.7 billion. And Procter & Gamble is still the biggest
advertiser, shelling out $2.9 billion on traditional media this year.

Coca-Cola was most prevalent in terms of brand appearances
on TV, with 3,346 instances of product placement, followed by Chef Revival
Apparel (1,592 occurrences), Nike Apparel (1,245) and 24 Hour Fitness Clubs
(858). The show in which most product placement occurred was American Idol with 4,086 occurrences. Amazing Race had 2,790 and Extreme Makeover: Home
Edition had 2,701. Other shows in the top
ten for product placement were The Biggest Loser, America’s Next Top Model, Hell’s Kitchen, The Apprentice, King
of Queens, Rock Star Supernova and Big Brother 7.