Network Enjoys Audience Growth for Red Sox Pre and Post-Game Programming in 2009
BOSTON, MA – NESN, New England's most watched sports network, was the highest-rated regional sports network in baseball for the sixth consecutive season, earning a 9.4 average household rating (226,000 homes) for Red Sox broadcasts in the Boston DMA. Despite a small year-over-year dip in NESN's average game rating (-7 percent), NESN still finished the season 18 percent better than the second-highest rated regional network (Fox Sports Net Midwest in St. Louis).
"Once again, Red Sox fans have shown themselves to be the best fans in the country," said Sean McGrail, NESN President and CEO. "Despite increased competition in the marketplace that included Bruins and Celtics playoff runs during the first two months of the Red Sox' season, we were still able to deliver incredible value to our advertisers and prove once again that no other fan base in the country can match our fans for their loyalty and passion."
Pregame and Postgame Audiences Grow in 2009
NESN's pregame show Olympia Sports presents The Boston Globe Red Sox Game Day Live enjoyed a 21 percent increase over last season with a 1.7 HH average (40,000 homes). NESN's one-hour of postgame coverage after every game, which consists of two half-hour programs W.B. Mason Extra Innings and Granite City Red Sox Final, also drew a larger audience with a 3.2 combined HH rating, which equals an average of over 78,000 homes (up 2 percent).
"We are very proud of the gains we've made with our Red Sox studio programming," said Joel Feld, NESN executive vice president of programming and executive producer. "We put significant effort into improving our pre and postgame shows during the offseason. Red Sox Game Day Live helped feed a larger audience into our games, and more fans stayed with us after the final out to watch Tom Caron and our talented team of analysts break down the action."
About NESN
NESN is owned by the Boston Red Sox and Boston Bruins and is delivered to over four million homes throughout the six-state New England region and nationally via DirecTV and Dish Network. The definitive home for New England sports programming, NESN is the television home of the Red Sox and Bruins and is the highest rated regional sports network in the country. The network and its website, NESN.com, produce award winning content including, NESN SportsDesk a daily sports news program, over 100 NESN University college sporting events annually and distinctive Original NESN Entertainment (ONE) productions.
