Nielsen Reports Major Recent Ratings Milestones for CBS and Paramount+ Series
Mumbai: Paramount Global and Nielsen, a global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics, have signed a new, multi-year deal, effective immediately. The partnership includes measurement for all Paramount platforms: national and local broadcast, all cable networks, and streaming on Paramount+ and Pluto TV. Paramount has licensed new Nielsen services as part of the agreement, including Advanced Audiences, Big Data + Panel, Ad-Supported Streaming Platform Ratings, Nielsen ONE Ads for Connected Television, and National out-of-home expansion to inform advertising, programming and licensing strategies.
The announcement was made today by Karthik Rao, Nielsen CEO and George Cheeks, President and CEO, CBS and Co-CEO, Paramount Global.
“We are thrilled to resume our partnership with Paramount, as their leaders continue to build one of the strongest brands in entertainment,” said Rao. “Our trusted data shows how Paramount’s content and advertising strategy is thriving across every platform, across all ages and demos. As Paramount continues its evolution into a next-generation media company, we’re proud to play a critical role and know this deal will be a win for everyone: Nielsen, Paramount and all of our joint advertising partners.” “Paramount and Nielsen are committed to addressing Television’s multiplatform future to the benefit of all of our stakeholders. Karthik and his team continue to meet the needs of our marketplace across all our platforms, and we are incredibly pleased to reinforce and reinvigorate our deal with our longtime partner,” said Cheeks. “Paramount Global’s ratings wins reported today are just one of many successes we look forward to with Nielsen as we build upon this new future together.”
Paramount hit a number of recent ratings milestones. CBS’ broadcast of the AFC Championship Game on January 26 averaged 57.7 million viewers, setting the all-time record for the AFC and the largest overall conference championship in fifteen years. CBS coverage of the 2024 NFL regular season included three of the top five NFL games in October; the highest rated game (27.5 million viewers) in the November interval; and two of the top five in a hotly contested December. As the broadcast season swung into action this fall, CBS again established itself as a leader in broadcast dramas, building on its track record to develop new franchises. Tracker came back for its second season and took the crown as the top drama program in October (11.3 million average viewers), November (11.6 million) and December (10.8 million). Even more impressive is the stable of successful drama titles including this season’s breakout new hit, the reimagined Matlock, which came in a close second to Tracker in all three months and was joined by FBI, Elsbeth, NCIS, and the farewell season of Blue Bloods in the top 10 every month this fall. The total viewing time by Americans of CBS dramas across the fourth quarter of 2024 topped 50 trillion viewing minutes, which approaches 100,000 years of viewing, more than any other broadcast network.
Paramount+ also experienced major success in 2024 with original series Lioness, Tulsa King, and one of the most talked about shows of the season, Landman,which has given the platform its first billion-minute (in a week) performer. The three titles have all appeared in the Nielsen Streaming Top 10 simultaneously in multiple weeks this fall, another first for the platform. Paramount also earned wins for its multi-platform strategy. In 2024, the most-watched new dramas across broadcast and streaming combined were Tracker, with 26.07 billion minutes viewed (CBS, Paramount+, Hulu) and Elsbeth, with 14.94 billion minutes viewed (CBS, Paramount+).
The deal comes on the heels of a number of Nielsen innovations. On February 3, Nielsen announced its Out-of-Home (OOH) measurement now covers 100% of the US contiguous television population. In January 2025, Nielsen was accredited for Big Data + Panel measurement, following its November 2024 announcement of its accreditation for a first-party live streaming solution.