Extreme Ratings Rise for X Games

ESPN said its four primetime Winter X Games telecasts earned a 0.8 average Nielsen Media Research rating in 2005, up 33% from a 0.6 for the same number of primetime airings last year.

The network added that this year’s telecasts were viewed in an average of 677,000 households, up 23% from 552,000 in 2004.

Overall coverage of original 2005 Winter X Games programming earned a 0.7 average rating, up 17% from a 0.6 in 2004, and an average of 625,000 households, up 15% compared with last year’s 545,000.

As far as demographics, men 12-17 were up 29% (0.9 vs. 0.7); men 18-34 up 33% (0.8 vs. 0.6); men 18-49 up 40% (0.7 vs. 0.5); viewers 12-17 up 20% (0.6 vs. 0.5); viewers 18-34 up 25% (0.5 vs. 0.4); and viewers 18-49 up 25% (0.5 vs. 0.4).