/ /201 EARLY MORNING UPDATE. Fourth Quarter 2011: 9/19 19/1 /11. Strategic Intelligence National Television Report

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1 2011/201 /2012 EARLY MORNING UPDATE Fourth Quarter 2011: 9/19 19/1 /11 12/25/1 /11 Strategic Intelligence National Television Report

2 Broadcast Networks Overall, ratings in broadcast network early morning are fairly even with what they were at this time a year ago. Growth is on both ends of the spectrum as the three-network early morning average A18-34 C3 rating inched up one-tenth of a point (+1.9%) and the A35-64 rating bounced up two-tenths of a point (+1.4%). Early morning, a daypart traditionally void of many changes, has seen numerous alterations recently. This is the first full year that ABC s GOOD MORNING AMERICA will go with more than its traditional two-host and weather anchor format as Robin Roberts, George Stephanopoulos and weather correspondent Sam Champion were joined throughout 2011 by lifestyle anchor Lara Spencer and news anchor Josh Elliott. 2011/12 represents Ann Curry s first full year alongside Matt Lauer on NBC s TODAY SHOW. Curry replaced Meredith Vieira in June of The biggest change came from CBS, which announced that it would end THE EARLY SHOW and replace it with CBS THIS MORNING. The announcement was made in December of 2011, and THE EARLY SHOW ended its 12- year run on January 6, Therefore, audience analysis in this early morning report will take a look at how the last quarter of THE EARLY SHOW performed against its competition. Broadcast Network Early Morning Rating Comparison A18-34 A18-49 A25-54 W25-54 A35-64 Time Period C3 Rtg C3 Rtg C3 Rtg C3 Rtg C3 Rtg Fourth Quarter Fourth Quarter % Change 1.9% 0.0% -0.1% -1.8% 1.4% Source: Nielsen Media Research, NPower; 9/20/10-12/26/10 vs. 9/19/11-12/25/11; C3 Data; excludes specials. Looking at the ratings by network, it is clear that ABC has saved the day for the early morning daypart. Its double digit rating increases among all key demographics were more than enough to offset the losses of CBS and NBC. The ratings also show why CBS announced the drastic changes to its early morning format. CBS early morning ratings were down as much as 15% with young adults and nearly 17% with W In addition, its A18-49 and A25-54 ratings fell almost 8%. NBC s early morning ratings fell as well. The biggest decline was with its A18-49 rating, which fell over 5% from last fourth quarter. A 4% drop in NBC s A25-54 rating was equally spread between men and women, but the network was able to maintain its A35-64 average rating. Broadcast Network Early Morning Rating Comparison by Network A18-34 A18-49 A25-54 W25-54 A35-64 Net % change % change % change % change % change ABC % % % % % CBS % % % % % NBC % % % % % Source: Nielsen Media Research, NPower; 9/20/10-12/26/10 vs. 9/19/11-12/25/11; C3 data, excludes specials

3 While ABC s early morning ratings are up, it is not easy to pinpoint why. At first glance, one might suspect that ratings for ABC s GOOD MORNING AMERICA have skyrocketed because of the five-host format or the change in its studio. Digging deeper, however, the main reason for the elevated ratings may be due to the change in the show s duration. Last season, GOOD MORNING AMERICA ran from 7:00am-8:26AM. This season, it still begins at 7:00 but ends at 8:13, with the remaining minutes going back to local affiliates. In addition to 13 fewer hours of programming in fourth quarter (which shrinks the total supply), it is a removal of the lower rated minutes of the show. Therefore, the removal of the lower rated minutes inflates the average rating. In addition, although average ratings are up, with fewer hours of programming, the actual number of TRPs available for sale (total supply) is flat to down. Broadcast Network Early Morning Rating Comparison by Program A18-34 C3 Rtg % A18-49 C3 Rtg % A25-54 C3 Rtg % W25-54 C3 Rtg % A35-64 C3 Rtg % Program Net Change Change Change Change Change AMERICA THIS MORNING ABC % % % % % GOOD MORNING, AMERICA ABC % % % % % CBS MORNING NEWS- 6:30AM CBS % % % % % EARLY SHOW-1 CBS % % % % % EARLY SHOW-2 CBS % % % % % EARLY TODAY NBC % % % % % TODAY SHOW NBC % % % % % TODAY SHOW II NBC % % % % % Source: Nielsen Media Research, NPower; 9/20/10-12/26/10 vs. 9/19/11-12/25/11; C3 data, excludes specials. Meanwhile, CBS lost an alarming amount of viewers compared to last year, especially young adults. Key older demographic ratings were down as well, including double-digit losses for EARLY SHOW 2 among A18-49, A25-54, W25-54 and A NBC s decline was less severe, and its flagship TODAY SHOW held on to the top spot in early morning. Despite a 5% drop with A18-49, its 1.31 C3 rating was still 21% higher than GOOD MORNING AMERICA, and its 2.34 with A35-64 beat out GMA by 10%. Cable Early Morning The list of the top networks in early morning has not changed drastically since last year. If one is looking for the largest early morning audiences on cable, attention should be paid to the general entertainment of TBS, TNT, USA and A&E, the sports of ESPN, news on Fox News, and kids programming on Nickelodeon, Cartoon and Nick Jr. In fact, Nickelodeon is cable s most watched network during the morning hours among A18-34, A18-49, W18-49 and W This was due to the fact that the kids network had cable s highest rated regularly scheduled show among A18-49 and W18-49 in SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS. It aired 150 times in fourth quarter and delivered a 0.44 A18-49 rating and a 0.58 with W It did not stop there. Among all shows, regularly scheduled and specials, Nickelodeon owned the top 11 shows among A That list includes shows like FAIRLY ODD PARENTS, DORA THE EXPLORER and BUBBLE GUPPIES as well as specials like THE RUGRATS MOVIE and WINX: SHADOW PHOENIX. Outside of Nick, the top shows with A18-49 include titles from USA (LAW & ORDER: SVU and LAW & ORDER: CRIMINAL INTENT), ESPN (SPORTSCENTER), and TBS comedies (HOUSE OF PAYNE, FRESH PRINCE OF BEL AIR, YES, DEAR and MARRIED WITH CHILDREN). Young adults were drawn to Nickelodeon as well. The top 15 shows in early morning among A18-34 were all on Nick. TBS comedies edged out USA dramas as HOUSE OF PAYNE and FRESH PRINCE were joined by EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND, SAVED BY THE BELL and HOME IMPROVEMENT.

4 Nickelodeon was not done, however. Even with A25-54, the top two telecasts were the Nick specials THE RUGRATS MOVIE and DORA: WORLD ADVENTURE. These were tops with both men and women USA off-network dramas were next on the list with these viewers (LAW & ORDER: SVU and NCIS) Investigation Discovery is a network that surprises in early morning. Of all cable networks, ID ranked 8 th with A18-49 and 7 th with A Audiences were drawn to PARADISE LOST, DEADLY WOMEN and FORENSICS: YOU DECIDE. With women, Lifetime cracked the top 10 in the morning, fueled by WILL & GRACE (135 telecasts of the off-net sitcom). Ranked on A18-34 Q4 10 Q4 11 % Q4 10 Q4 11 % Q4 10 Q4 11 % Network AA% 000 AA% 000 Change Network AA% 000 AA% 000 Change Network AA% 000 AA% 000 Change NICKELODEON % NICKELODEON % NICKELODEON % CARTOON % TBS % USA % TBS % ESPN % TNT % ESPN % CARTOON % TBS % USA % USA % CARTOON % TNT % TNT % LIFETIME % MTV % ESPN % ID % ESPN % ID % NICK JR % NICK JR % FOX NEWS % HALLMARK % LIFETIME % A&E % FOX NEWS % Ranked on A25-54 Q4 10 Q4 11 % Q4 10 Q4 11 % Network AA% 000 AA% 000 Change Network AA% 000 AA% 000 Change USA % NICKELODEON % NICKELODEON % USA % FOX NEWS % TNT % ESPN % FOX NEWS % TBS % TBS % TNT % ID % ID % LIFETIME % ESPN % HALLMARK % CARTOON % CARTOON % A&E % LMN % Source: Nielsen Media Research, C3 Ratings M-F 6a-10a. Ranked on A18-49 Ranked on W25-54 Ranked on W18-49 Where Have the Viewers Gone? The percent of households (HUT) and people (PUT) that are using television in early morning has gone up slightly since last year. In recent years, the broadcast network share of viewing has dropped, while cable share increased. This year is different, however. The three-network A18-49 share of viewing virtually remained flat (from 23.8 last fourth quarter to 23.2 this year), while ad-supported cable share plummeted, going from 47 a year ago to This has resulted in a severe drop in cable early morning total audiences. Compared to last year, A18-34 total cable impressions have dropped nearly 3%, but that is small compared to a 9% fall with A18-49, an 11% drop with W18-49, a 9% decrease with A25-54 and an alarming drop of 12% with W25-54 total cable impressions. To complicate matters more, the share of viewing has declined for pay cable and PBS, while viewing to independents has remained flat. This begs the question: if usage levels are up in early morning, but audiences to broadcast networks and cable are down, where have the viewers gone?

5 Early morning has become a popular daypart for people to watch what was recorded on their DVRs. In April of 2011, Nielsen made the switch of how it classifies playback viewing. Before the change, if people recorded a prime time show and later watched it in early morning, the television usage was credited toward prime time. Now, if that show is watched in early morning, while the specific program gets the audience counted in its rating, usage levels reflect the television being used in early morning. Last year, when playback was not measured, the share of A18-49 using their TV for DVR playback was 0, but this year, it has exploded to a 6 share. With 6% of the early morning television audience watching DVR recordings, they are using their televisions, but their viewing is not attributed to the broadcast networks or cable, which is why HUT and PUT levels have remained the same while viewership to both network and cable programs has declined. Early Morning PUT and Share of Viewing Q vs. Q A18-49 PUT A18-49 Share Q4 '10 Q4 '11 3-Network Affiliates Fox / CW / ION Affiliates Spanish Networks Independent Broadcast Ad-Supported Cable Pay Cable PBS All Other Tuning All Other Cable DVR Playback W25-54 PUT W25-54 Share Q4 '10 Q4 '11 3-Network Affiliates Fox / CW / ION Affiliates Spanish Networks Independent Broadcast Ad-Supported Cable Pay Cable PBS All Other Tuning All Other Cable DVR Playback Source: Nielsen Media Research; Galaxy Explorer; 9/20/10-12/26/10 vs. 9/19/11-12/25/11. Next up for early morning is keeping a close eye on CBS THIS MORNING. Given the more hard news format, many will look to see if that type of news program works in the morning. Expectations are that CBS will still struggle to provide advertisers an audience at the level of GOOD MORNING AMERICA or the TODAY SHOW. Also, we will monitor the DVR playback in early morning and see if what occurred in fourth quarter continues throughout the year. If so, look for early morning rating supply to continue to dwindle.