TV Ratings 10/1/12: Revolution Stabilizing as It Gets Full Season Order

Just as the final overnight ratings were coming in, the word got out on the Twitterverse that NBC has given full season orders to Revolution, Go On, and The New Normal. Revolution’s third week ratings showed signs of stabilization with only an 8% drop in Adults 18-49 from week two:

As you can see, Castle dropped 11% for Adults 18-49, but barely dropped at all for total viewers because viewers over 50 went up this week from last week. Castle’s median age was 60 years old. Hawaii Five-0, not shown above, had a 7% lift from last week to a 1.98.

Other positive news for Revolution is that NBC released its “Live + 3 day” ratings from last week and they showed a 50% lift from Live + same day. TV By the Numbers is poo-pooing the importance of Live + 3 day ratings, but times are changing. As some ratings watchers know, the shows are sold to the advertisers on their Live + 3 day commercial ratings (aka C3). All the shows that get higher C3 ratings than their Live + Same Day ratings have very high DVR lifts. So, when you see a show getting a high percentage lift for time-shifting, it’s likely good news for that show unless the show’s ratings are still very low. In my opinion, DVR lifts may very come into play for some "bubble show" decisions.