Below is a snapshot of TV by the numbers for the week of December 12-18, highlighting the most-watched shows and networks using glass-level data from Inscape, and network and show TV ad impressions insights via iSpot.tv.
Most-Watched Shows and Networks
Via Inscape, the currency-grade smart TV ACR data provider and data technology division of Vizio with insights from a panel of more than 20 million opted-in TVs. Data is linear, live TV only and includes all episode types (new and reruns). Rankings are by percent share duration (i.e., time spent watching).
With NFL action airing on Saturday — along with the usual Sunday, Monday and Thursday games — the league keeps its No. 1 spot by watch-time, at 7.25% (up from 5.41% the previous week). NFL Red Zone also appears at No. 22 in our ranking, while NFL Gameday Kickoff is No. 25.
Some additional insights about the top programming on TV:
- The Voice’s two-night, three-hour season finale pushed the hit reality series to No. 10 in our ranking, up from No. 31 the previous week.
- NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt and Two and a Half Men are week-over-week newcomers in our ranking, up from No. 28 and No. 27, respectively.
- The 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup concluded its final week with 1.13% of watch-time for English-language airings and 0.30% going toward Spanish-language.
- From November 20 - December 18, World Cup airings (both English- and Spanish-language) combined for 2.55% of all minutes watched on linear TV – third behind only the NFL and college football games.
CBS is the most-watched network for another week, with 8.12% of watch-time from December 12-18 (up from 7.40% the previous week). The boost was fueled in part by an NFL doubleheader on Sunday, which was anchored by the late-afternoon game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cincinnati Bengals.
Additional insights around the most-watched networks from December 12-18:
- NFL Network catapults to No. 8 by watch-time (up from No. 42 the previous week), due in large part to the cable channel airing three Saturday games.
- History Channel is the other week-over-week newcomer in our ranking, climbing from No. 27 to No. 24.
- Holiday movies continue to buoy cable networks, including Hallmark (No. 7), Hallmark Movies & Mysteries (No. 12), Freeform (No. 17) and AMC (No. 22).
- TBS climbs three spots week-over-week to No. 11 with a heavy emphasis on Friends re-airs (32.1% of the network’s watch-time).
Top Shows and Networks by TV Ad Impressions
Via iSpot.tv, the real-time TV measurement company. Rankings are by share of TV ad impressions, for new episodes only.
More days of the week with NFL games meant a larger share of TV ad impressions from December 12-18. The NFL was No. 1 yet again, with 16.49% of TV ad impressions, which is up from 12.25% the previous week. It’s also more than five times the programming with the next-highest share (college football).
More insights about the top programs by share of TV ad impressions:
- The Voice’s season 22 finale paced the show all the way to No. 3 in our ranking this week, up from No. 8 during the previous week’s semifinal round.
- Speaking of reality TV, Survivor jumps into our ranking at No. 19 (vs. No. 59 the previous week).
- The Spanish-language airings of the World Cup’s final matches delivered 0.98% of TV ad impressions on the week, with another 0.92% attributable to the English-language broadcasts.
- Over the course of the entire 2022 World Cup, TV ad impressions jumped 29% vs. the 2018 event — with impressions more than doubling across NBCUniversal-owned Telemundo and Universo.
CBS stays at No. 1 in our TV-ad-impressions-by-network ranking, with 18.23% (a week-over-week increase from 15.87%). On the week, more than 35% of CBS’s TV ad impressions came from the NFL, with another 4.7% from Survivor.
Additional notes on the top networks by share of TV ad impressions from December 12-18:
- NFL Network soars from 0.35% of TV ad impressions to 3.74% week-over-week, courtesy of live game action on Saturday (including the Minnesota Vikings’ historic 33-point comeback over the Indianapolis Colts).
- Fox (No. 5) is one of four networks with World Cup rights in our ranking — along with Telemundo (No. 8), Fox Sports 1 (No. 16) and Universo (No. 23).
- Telemundo actually delivered 57% of all World Cup TV ad impressions over the course of the tournament, with Fox collecting 27.8%.
- From November 20-December 18, Fox Sports 1 served 1.05 billion TV ad impressions during World Cup games, and another 690 million during FIFA World Cup 2022 Today.
