NBC got the 2003-04 prime-time season off to a sizzling start last night, as a two-hour “Fear Factor” teamed with the debut of “Las Vegas” to deliver NBC’s first outright victory among adults 18-49 on a premiere Monday in the 15 years since 1988. NBC won the night with its highest adult 18-49 average for a premiere Monday since 1997.
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For the night, NBC was up 21 percent over its 18-49 rating for premiere Monday last year while CBS was down 26 percent, ABC was down 10 percent and Fox was down 53 percent.
According to updated in-home viewing figures from Nielsen Media Research, from 8-10 PM ET, the fourth-season premiere of “Fear Factor” (6.1/16 in 18-49, 13.8 million viewers overall) scored its highest premiere rating ever in 18-49 and won its two-hour slot against powerful premiere-week competition in all key adult demographics, women 18-34 and 18-49 and men 18-34. The two-hour “Fear Factor,” featuring a million-dollar prize, improved on last year’s result for a 90-minute “Fear” season debut by a powerful 20 percent.