NBC’s ratings woes continued this week with news that its cable outlet USA Network beat the NBC broadcast network in ratings Monday evening.
Cable outlets have beat out broadcast outlets before. But it’s never happened this early in the season reports the New York Post.
The paper highlighted that USA has in the past outperformed NBC only during the summer months and mainly in certain time slots rather than for the whole night.
The performance is evidence of the continued strength of USA under Bonnie Hammer, chairman, cable entertainment and cable studios at NBCUniversal, and her team and the latest sign that the turnaround of NBC under Bob Greenblatt will take time.
NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke and Brian Roberts, head of the entertainment company’s majority owner Comcast, have repeatedly said that it may take years for NBC to right its ship.
“It is really unusual this early in the broadcast season,” said Brad Adgate, research head at advertising firm Horizon Media about the USA and NBC ratings for Monday. “It hearkens back to what [former NBCUniversal CEO] Jeff Zucker said that USA is more valuable than NBC.”
It dawns on me that I have more USA shows programmed into my DVR than I do NBC shows.
I was watching Prime Suspect, but I got bored with it. Now I’m waiting on Grimm and hope it does well enough to give me an entire season. And that’s the one and only NBC show on my list. The USA shows are Burn Notice, In Plain Sight, Psych, and when it was still in first run, Law & Order: Criminal Intent.
Speaking of old favorites that I’ve dropped, I’ve punted on some longtime CBS favorites. Both NCIS franchises are off my radar, since about halfway through last season. I’m not even tuning into the reruns on USA or Sleuth/cloo.
Why am I bored with television? Please tell me that some inspired programming is coming along to help me!!! 🙂