TNT had a modest increase in viewership for Thursday’s Lakers/Heat game. In other news, NBC earned solid numbers for last weekend’s Bruins/Blackhawks game, and Univision averaged more viewers for Liga MX coverage than NBC has for the English Premier League.
Modest Bump For Lakers/Heat
- Thursday’s Lakers/Heat NBA regular season game drew 2.7 million viewers on TNT, up 8% from Knicks/Celtics last year (2.5M), up 62% from Celtics/Magic in 2012 (1.6M), but the smallest audience for a Lakers/Heat game since LeBron James joined Miami in 2010. Despite the absence of Kobe Bryant and the Lakers’ poor record, the game earned the tenth-largest audience of the regular season. Nuggets/Blazers later in the night had 1.5 million. (Thu. numbers from TV By the Numbers)
Despite Decline, Bruins/’Hawks Rematch Solid
- NBC earned a 1.0 final rating and 1.6 million viewers for Sunday’s Bruins/Blackhawks NHL regular season game, down 9% in ratings and 14% in viewership from Flyers/Sabres last year (1.1, 1.8M), but up 11% and 16%, respectively, from Capitals/Penguins in 2012 (0.9, 1.3M). Keep in mind last year’s game was on the first weekend of the abbreviated season. (Sports Business Daily)
Univision’s Liga MX Coverage Outpaces EPL on NBC
- The 2013 Liga MX soccer season averaged 991,000 viewers on Univision, topping the average viewership for NBC’s English Premier League broadcasts by 37% (725K through 1/13). Coverage on UniMás averaged 658,000 viewers, topping the EPL on NBCSN by 76% (374K). (Univision)
