Friday
May212010
May 21 Podcast #426: 2009 - 2010 TV Season Ratings Recap
Category: Podcast
Podcast 
Each year in the middle of May the TV season wraps up here in the US. High Definition TV is a big part of our HD experience and from time to time we like to take the pulse of what Americans are watching. On today's show we want to recap the top 20 shows based on Nielson's rating system.
Listen to the show
Today's Show:
News:
- New Inks Could Mean Cheaper OLED Screens
- Samsung to Produce 42 inch OLED
- DirecTV Whole-Home DVR Goes Live Nationwide
- Sony announces video delivery service through PlayStation Network
- Best Buy Provides Customers Same-Day Instant Access to New Release Movies and TV Shows with Launch of CinemaNow™
- Windows Media Center Netflix plugin updated for Watch Instantly in HD
Other:
2009 - 2010 TV Season Ratings Recap
Number of shows in the top 20 by network:
- Fox - 2
- CBS - 12
- ABC - 4
- NBC - 2
Show Types:
- Sitcoms - 2
- Sports - 3
- Drama - 7
- Reality - 7
- News - 1
Average viewership for the #1 show: 25.2M
Average viewership for the #20 show: 13.3M
Nielsen Television - TV Ratings for Primetime: Season-to-Date
2009-2010 Season Through May 9, 2010
| Rank | Program Name | Net | Viewers |
| 1 | AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY | FOX | 25,205,000 |
| 2 | AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY | FOX | 23,668,000 |
| 3 | DANCING WITH THE STARS | ABC | 19,743,000 |
| 4 | SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL | NBC | 19,364,000 |
| 5 | NCIS | CBS | 18,755,000 |
| 6 | UNDERCOVER BOSS | CBS | 17,732,000 |
| 7 | THE MENTALIST | CBS | 16,763,000 |
| 8 | CSI | CBS | 15,822,000 |
| 9 | NCIS: LOS ANGELES | CBS | 15,632,000 |
| 10 | CBS NFL NATL POST GAME | CBS | 15,526,000 |
| 11 | DANCING W/STARS RESULTS | ABC | 15,149,000 |
| 12 | TWO AND A HALF MEN | CBS | 14,656,000 |
| 13 | SUNDAY NIGHT NFL PRE-KICK | NBC | 14,482,000 |
| 14 | THE BIG BANG THEORY | CBS | 14,115,000 |
| 15 | DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES | ABC | 13,967,000 |
| 16 | CRIMINAL MINDS | CBS | 13,543,000 |
| 17 | SURVIVOR: HEROES VS. VILLAINS | CBS | 13,507,000 |
| 18 | SURVIVOR: SAMOA | CBS | 13,450,000 |
| 19 | 60 MINUTES | CBS | 13,444,000 |
| 20 | GREY'S ANATOMY | ABC | 13,330,000 |
Reader Comments (22)
Just noticed the link to Do All my Amazon shopping through Our Site, and it does take me to a page with your flag in the URL. However, when I click on my Wish List, I no longer see your flag. If I then purchase something from my Wish List, will you still get credit for it?
YT (SoCal)
Hi YT,
I think after a day or so the credit is lost. If you change your bookmark to our link then we would get credit each time you went to amazon.
Thanks so much for your support!
Ara
Hey just wanted to see if anyone else was unable to get bitstream output from the ps3 . i have the latest firmware on my older fat model ps3 and it will only bitstream the lossy formats. no matter what i do my receiver light never comes on . i have not been able to find anywhere that the older ps3 will do this. i have a 7.1 setup and it sounds great via pcm so i am more curious than concerned .
thanks john
I think it is a very sad day when nearly 8% of the United States population is watching one single program every single week at the exact same time. That program being American Idol.
C'mon people, get off your butts and do something productive.
Great show guys I agree a lot on the shows that did not make the top 20 list
1.Chuck
2.Fringe
3.House
Last year I was sad to see Journeyman and Life get canceled wish another network would have picked them up.
I do have a question I don't see many big HDTVs anymore. Like 60",70",80" TVs Like the DLPs rear projectors. I know there are big Plasmas but I would really like a 70"-80" Plasma or LCD and it seems like they are mostly making them in 42" and 50",52". Do you have any idea about the different size TV's coming out and will we see any 60"+ HDTVs?
Anyways great show please keep it going!
*Continue*
I was talking about the 3D HDTV's I forgot to talk about it in 3D for my question. And I know Mitsubishi has big DLP's with a 3D ready but I was wondering on the Plasma/LCD side of the 3D HDTV side.
I forgot only one show I will be watching this summer you might want to check out is Royal Pains on USA it will be on Thursdays starting June 3. Watch a few of the first season it has a lot of twist in it and a few funny jokes . It's really a unique show. If you are tiered of the same old same old it's a great show.
Responding to Johns comment -- I have the same setup as John (7.1) setup with PS3 fat (latest update) and a Yamaha HD receiver. I cant get the PS3 to bitsream lossy formats either because i don't think it can. No worries, it sounds great VIA PCM and in theory it should sound the same anyway.
Thanks Jason
@ Jason:
Have you gone into the "Audio" settings to activate the "Bitstream via HDMI"? feature?
If not that may be the reason you are not enjoying 7.1...
Great show guys I can't express how happy I Am to see that lost is finally coming to an end..I personally never got into it...And just like Ara I'm starting to get into "Modern Family" my wife loves it and it is quite funny...Another show that in my opinion should go is American Idol...is just becoming more of a nuisance but again that's just my opinion...
Keep up the great show and take care!
Georgie Boy!
Yes i have have tried bit stream and no luck i am pretty sure that this feature is only in the slim model .
Active shows I watch on a weekly basis that I would recommend (best to "worst"):
Entourage
Chuck
Modern Family
The Office
Parks & Recreation
Glee
Community
If you aren't watching the first three shows, you DEFINITELY need to!
John:
I have an Onkyo receiver that supports TrueHD and the new codecs. I also have an original PS3. They are connected via HDMI. My "codec lights" activate when I am watching a movie or TV show that supports the codec. Make sure under "Video settings" you have the HDMI one set to "Bitstream." There should only be two options, PCM or Bitstream, and you want Bitstream. If that isn't fixing your issue, then you probably don't have content (movie or TV show) that is using an advanced codec, or you probably have a receiver that doesn't support the advanced codecs. Hope this helps...
Jason.
I think the reason that House didn't make it to the top 20 was that Fox keeps dropping it for a week or two . Down here in New Zealand we started about 2 months after Fox but are now only 2 weeks behind. It was the same last season as well..
@John - The "fat" PS3s are unable to output TrueHD and DTS-HD via bitstream. This is a hardware/chip issue and cannot be changed with a firmware update. I'm not sure what Aaron K is talking about because if you set the audio output to bitstream on a "fat" PS3, all you will get is regular DD or DTS.
Regardless, the best option is to have the PS3 handle the decoding and output PCM anyway. Not only because of the secondary audio tracks and button sounds, but also because of the way that many receivers handle 7.1 audio.
In the case of my Onkyo TX-SR705, for example:
- if I feed the 705 a TrueHD bitstream, it will only apply bass management, Audyssey, delays, etc if the sampling rate is 48 kHz or lower. The 705 will accept a 96 kHz TrueHD signal, but it will only play it back completely straight with no bass management, Audyssey, etc applied. And 192 kHz TrueHD is not supported at all.
- if I feed the 705 a DTS-HD bitstream, it's almost the same as with a TrueHD bitstream. 48 kHz and lower sampling rates get the full processing. But 96 kHz can only be played back completely straight with no bass management, Audyssey, etc. 192 kHz DTS-HD is supported, but it gets down-converted to 96 kHz and then played back completely straight.
- if I feed the 705 a PCM signal, I can have full processing with a 96 kHz signal. 192 kHz PCM gets played back straight, but at least it isn't down-converted.
For concert Blu-rays that include a 96 kHz/24-bit soundtrack, this can make an audible difference. If I allow the PS3 (or any other Blu-ray player) to handle the decoding, I can enjoy the full 96 kHz sampling rate and still apply my bass management, Audyssey, delay, etc settings. But if I were to output the soundtrack in bitstream format, I would either have to limit the player to 48 kHz output or else sacrifice my bass management, Audyssey, etc.
Bottom line: PCM is always the way to go. And for the love of Pete, stop worrying about seeing the little "TrueHD" or "DTS-HD" lights light up on the front of your recievers!
@Jason
Panasonic will be bringing out their 65" TC-P65VT25 3D plasma this summer. MSRP is around $4200 I believe and that includes one pair of 3D shutter glasses.
Vizio announced a 72" XVT Pro model back at CES in January. The XVTPRO720SV is supposedly coming out this summer (August) for MSRP $3500 with 480Hz, 480 independant zones of full-array local-dimming LED backlights and Bluetooth 3D shutter glasses that you will have to buy separately.
I'm not exactly holding my breath for that Vizio to come out in August though because it's using an LG panel, which LG will be using in its own 72" LX9500, which supposedly isn't even going to make it out this year.
So your best bet appears to be the Panny 65 incher, which is probably a good thing since plasmas deliver a far better-looking 3D experience along with better, deeper black levels, higher contrast and vastly superior screen unimformity and off-angle viewing.
If you wanna go bigger than 65" though, you either have to hope that Vizio some how actually brings that 72" LED-LCD to market or else wait for 3D front projectors to arrive. LG is working in a 3D 1080 front projector, but I haven't come across news of any other 3D front projectors that are meant to come out soon.
@The HT Guys
Two shows that you are both missing out on:
Parks & Rec - the funniest of NBC's Thurs comedies. Really hit its stride in this (just finished) 2nd season. A real shame that it won't be back until mid-season next year. Almost a full year's wait!
Breaking Bad - for the love of goodness, why are neither of you watching the best show on television?! Let me write it again:
Breaking Bad
I bugged Tom over at AVRant for a couple of years straight to start watching this show. Given his personality, naturally, he resisted...almost to no end :p But during a marathon that ran the first two seasons in order prior to the start of the current 3rd season, I managed to convince Tom to at least just give the pilot a try.
He liked it.
There are only two types of people in the world: people who haven't yet watched Breaking Bad and people who immediately say, "oh my god, that show is so good!"
I don't know what the problem is; I know that I've mentioned it here in the comments before. I don't know if Ara and Braden just never think to tune in to AMC, or if they just hate really good television. But drop all of the CSI, NCIS, Law & Order, SVU nonsense if that's what it takes to make room on your DVRs for Breaking Bad!
It is beyond excellent. The episode "One Minute" in the middle of this 3rd season literally left me wide-eyed, holding my breath and eventually just muttering "holy sh!%" as I tried to process the utterly incredible television I had just witnessed.
There is nothing else even close to as good on TV right now. I cannot over-hype this show. Absolutely every last person on Earth ought to be watching, if for no other reason than to get everyone to realize just what the medium of television is capable of portraying.
If you have an HDTV; if you have a DVR; if you have access to the AMC HD channel and you are not watching Breaking Bad? Then you are wasting all of the money you spent and you should go back to drawing stick figures in the dirt because Breaking Bad is THE reason to have a television right now.
I was absolutely shocked to see that Lost was not in the top 20. Shocks me. The wife and I didn't start watching it until last year (and watched all 5 seasons in one month sometimes watching 12 episodes on a saturday) and really enjoyed the finale on Sunday.
I don't think results shows should be counted twice in the ratings.
just wanted to clarify, i have an onkyo txsr507 which will decode all of the hd formats i have an older ps3 60gig model and it will accept bit-stream for dtshd , or Dolby truehd . i was only curious because Braden said in the podcast that with the new firmware you where able to do this . so decided to check it out but i was unable to get it to work . when i set it to bit-stream it kicks back to Dolby digital or dts . not what i want from a blu-ray movie. anyway i was hoping Braden might try this if he has a older ps3 and let us know his results .
john berryhill
@John - yeah, it's a bit confusing, but the way it goes is this:
Any of the "fat" PS3s cannot output TrueHD or DTS-HD in bitstream form. It is a chip/hardware limitation and no amount of firmware updates will ever change this. The "fat" PS3s can decode TrueHD and DTS-HD intrernally just fine and output PCM as a result, or they can output a bitstream of the regular old DD or DTS soundtrack, but there is no way to get a TrueHD or DTS-HD bitstream out of a "fat" PS3.
The "slim" PS3s got an early firmware update that allows them to output TrueHD and DTS-HD in bitstream form. At the time though, they were just like all the other "bitstream out" Blu-ray players and they could only output one audio track at a time. So you could get the TrueHD or DTS-HD movie audio, but you would lose the button noises or any secondary audio tracks (like director's commentaries or picture-in-picture audio, etc.)
Recently, the "slim" PS3s got another firmware update that allows them to output multiple audio streams in TrueHD or DTS-HD bitstream form. All that is happening is that the slim PS3 is decoding all of the audio into PCM and then re-encoding it back into TrueHD or DTS-HD internally.
I really have yet to meet someone that has been able to do their PS3 correctly with PCM and bitstreaming. Is it really that difficult in the menu? Is this something that could be fixed with a UI change?
Another note on TV shows. This is the only place I've ever heard anyone watching Chuck. I really don't get how that show is still even on the air. I tried to watch an episode of it once and it was unbareable.
We're really into Parks and Recreation, 30 Rock, and Fringe. I've been trying to convince the wife about watching Breaking Bad but we just can't work it in.
Also, SNL was brilliant this season.
Its not in high def but everyone should watch the UK version of Coupling. Its like friends only funny.
Steve
@Leif
The problem with the PS3's HDMI setup is that there are settings that involve the HDMI output under the Video, DVD/Blu-ray and Audio settings menus! It is indeed confusing for many people. Not only that, but in order to get the correct audio output, you have to go into the DVD/Blu-ray menu and select the correct output type for HDMI audio (either bitstream or PCM), then you have to go into the Audio settings menu, select HDMI as the audio output type and then you really have to set it up manually. This is where I think a lot of people get screwed up as they likely just do the Automatic audio setup and figure that the PS3 is "smart" enough to know what the user's A/V receiver and/or TV is capable of accepting. This is often not the case, and it becomes necessary to set up the audio output manually and put a check mark beside each specific audio output type and at each specific sampling frequency! I love that I can get specific enough to tell my "fat" PS3 to always output only PCM at up to 96 kHz sampling rate, but for most people, this is just way too many options and way too confusing.
As to your TV show comments: I enjoy Chuck, but it wouldn't upset me if it went away. If you check out the IGN TV Podcast, "Channel Surfing" you'll hear another podcast where the hosts like Chuck ;) I've been watching it since the beginning though and I can definitely see how someone just tuning in could find the tone very corny and over-done. That's the case with a lot of semi-serialized shows though, where it's hard to stomach the tone and rythm of the show if you haven't been with it for a while and become used to the acting style and tone of the series.
And for the love of goodness, MAKE room for Breaking Bad! Now that summer is here and the TV schedule is sparse, it's a great time to catch up on the first two seasons on Blu-ray!