Super Bowl Now Most Watched In Game's History

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/feb/04/super-bowl-now-most-watched-history/news-breaking/

TAMPA - NBC has won the most recent weekly Nielsen Media ratings race with the most-watched Super Bowl ever, which also ranks as the most-watched telecast in U.S. history, according to the network.

NBC's release of the Nielsen report shows 151.6 million persons watched all or some (at least six minutes) of the telecast of Super Bowl XLIII from Tampa. An average of 98.7 million watched for the game's full duration. That average tops last year's Super Bowl XLII, previously the most-watched Super Bowl (97.5 million).

Preliminary ratings results as of Monday had the national viewing average at 95 million, but the final tally boosted the total viewing audience.

Most media outlets were reporting on Monday and Tuesday that Super Bowl XLIII fell short of last year, but full ratings results tell a different story.

NBC won the week in all key measures, averaging a 7.8 rating, 20 share in ages 18 to 49 and 21.6 million viewers overall for the week of Jan. 26 to Feb. 1, according to in-home viewing figures from Nielsen Media Research.

Super Bowl XLIII becomes the second most-watched television broadcast in TV history as far as "average viewership" during the program. The 1983 series finale of "M*A*S*H," which averaged 106 million viewers, remains the "most-watched television broadcast in history" based on average viewership.

NBC averaged 89.9 million viewers in prime time Sunday from 7 to 11 p.m., the highest viewership for any network on any prime time night in people meter history. In ages 18 to 49, NBC averaged a 34.0 rating Sunday night from 7 to 11 p.m., marking NBC's best performance for any prime time night in more than 11 years, since Sunday, Jan. 25, 1998, 35.5, when the network last broadcast a Super Bowl (Super Bowl XXXII).

Reporter Walt Belcher can be reached at (813) 259-7654.