CBS Average Viewership Up in New York, L.A., Dallas During TWC Blackout

Who needs Time Warner's 3.2 million subscribers?

CBS ought to be sending cookies to Comcast, DirecTV and other providers in New York, Los Angeles and Dallas.

In the first 11 days since Time Warner Cable dropped the Eye for nearly 3 million customers in the three major markets, the local stations’ sign-on to sign-off average among adults 25-54 — the primary demo sold in the local TV business, especially for news programming — is flat with the stations’ average during the same period of time last summer, the network said Tuesday. 

More important, primetime viewership in those local markets is actually up 11 percent in the same demo, up 21 percent in viewers year to year. Those statistics are fueled by the success of first-run series such as "Under the Dome," "Big Brother" and "Unforgettable" on other cable and satellite providers.

Also read: Ratings: CBS Wins First Full Week of Time Warner Cable Blackout

“Our stations have held up very well against this backdrop," said Peter Dunn, president, CBS television stations. "We’re riding momentum from a summer of ratings growth and August is traditionally a slow month, so the overall ratings impact is minor and the financial impact is negligible."

The adult 25-54 ratings for the stations’ local 6 a.m., 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. newscasts are flat with the same time period last summer. Late news has declined by one-tenth of a rating point in the demo.

Meanwhile, average viewership from sign-on to sign-off is up 6 percent on a year-to-year basis.

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