Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

The Gauge: Traditional TV Gets a Boost from Football and News in January 2025

18/02/2025

NYE, Golden Globes and scripted dramas also elevate broadcast viewing.

Netflix achieves a new platform record, powered by 9B viewing minutes of Squid Game'

January 11 clocks 47 billion daily streaming minutes, supercharged by Prime Video's exclusive NFL Wild Card game

NEW YORK - February 18, 2025 - Nielsen's January 2025 report of The Gauge revealed that TV viewing in January was up 5% compared with an already robust December, driven largely by current events and seasonal factors. Football again played a significant role in January's monthly viewing uptick, with games across the NFL and NCAA drawing big audiences and contributing to share increases for both broadcast ( 0.1pt., 22.5%) and cable ( 0.6pt., 24.4%).

The NFL AFC Championship game on CBS drew this month's largest audience with 57.4 million viewers on Sunday, January 26, followed by the NFC Championship game, which brought in 44.2 million viewers on FOX on the same day. Coverage of the College Football Playoffs on ESPN, in addition to other various bowl games, helped drive a 42% bump in cable sports viewing in January. What's more, the seven CFP games included in the January report (four Quarterfinals, two Semifinals and the National Championship) accounted for the top seven cable telecasts this month, led by the 22.1 million viewers that watched the National Championship Game on January 20.

January also highlighted how consumers' viewing habits have evolved to become more flexible when seeking out preferred content across various distribution platforms. Prime Video exclusively streamed the NFL Wild Card playoff game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens on January 11, which in turn helped drive the second-highest day of streaming on record. Behind the current all-time high of 51.2 billion streaming minutes set on Christmas Day 2024, January 11, 2025 produced over 47 billion streaming minutes in total.

Outside of sports events, traditional television drew audiences by other means as well. Overall broadcast viewing was up 5.1% in January, benefiting from increases to drama series ( 15%) and news ( 18%). The top non-sports broadcast telecasts in January were an eclectic mix led by ABC's New Year's Rockin' Eve with 17.9 million viewers, followed by the post-AFC Championship premier of Watson on CBS with 10.8 million, and the Golden Globe Awards on CBS with 9.7 million. Meanwhile, cable viewing exhibited a 7% monthly increase, and, in addition to the 42% lift in sports viewership, cable also benefited from a 26% increase in news viewing. FOX News Channel dominated non-sports telecasts this month, led by its Inauguration Day coverage.

From a streaming perspective, streaming viewership in January was up 3% versus December and the category accounted for the largest share of television with 42.6%. On a year-over-year basis, streaming usage grew 21% compared with January 2024, and the category has gained 6.6% share of TV viewing.

Notable among streaming platforms:

Netflix followed a robust December with an even stronger January, as viewership rose 7% to lead the streamer to a new platform record of 8.6% of TV. Netflix's big month was due in large part to Squid Game, which generated 9 billion viewing minutes as January's top streaming title.

The Roku Channel also extended its growth streak and notched a fourth consecutive month of platform-best achievement, increasing viewership by 9% in January to reach 2.1% of TV.

As indicated in the December 2024 Gauge report, this marks the first month that Disney's streaming entities (Disney , Hulu and ESPN ) are consolidated into a single share. Disney Streaming began the year with a 4.7% share of TV. Bluey, which received Nielsen's first ARTEY Award for top streaming title in 2024, was January's second most-streamed program with 4.7 billion viewing minutes accumulated on Disney .

The Paramount original series Landman rounded out the top three streaming titles in January with 4.4 billion viewing minutes, and helped the streamer tie its platform best share with 1.4% of TV.

Note: Disney , Hulu and ESPN viewing have been aggregated into a single total represented as Disney Streaming beginning with the January 2025 Gauge report. This change is due to Disney making Hulu and ESPN content available within the Disney app for certain subscribers, which could affect crediting between Disney's streaming properties as it relates to The Gauge.

-- The January 2025 interval dates included 12/30/2024 through 01/26/2025. Nielsen reporting follows the broadcast calendar with measurement weeks that run Monday through Sunday.

About The Gauge The Gauge is Nielsen's monthly snapshot of total broadcast, cable and streaming consumption that occurs through a television screen, providing the industry with a holistic look at what audiences are watching. The Gauge was expanded in April 2024 to include The Media Distributor Gauge, which reflects total viewing by media distributor across these categories. Read more about The Gauge methodology and FAQs.

About NielsenNielsen is a global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics. Through our understanding of people and their behaviors across all channels and platforms, we empower our clients with independent and actionable intelligence so they can connect and engage with their global audiences-now and into the future. Learn more at www.nielsen.com and connect with us on social media (X, LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram).

Press ContactLauren Pabst

lauren.pabst@nielsen.com
LINK: https://www.nielsen.com/news-center/2025/the-gauge-traditional-tv-gets...
See more stories from arbitron

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

09/10/2026

Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026

September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026 New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...

07/10/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Media Operations from Ingest to Distribution

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...

24/09/2026

Broadcast Management Group Assists Virginia Public Media With Move to New HQ in Richmond

Broadcast Management Group (BMG) is supporting Virginia Public Media (VPM), the ...

24/09/2026

Two Red Digital Cinema Cameras Receive GhostFrame Pro Certification

RED Digital Cinema's RED V-RAPTOR [X] and RED V-RAPTOR XL [X] cameras with the Phantom Track feature are the first cameras to receive GhostFrame Pro Certifi...

24/09/2026

FOX Sports Adds 4K Live Stream on Tubi to List of Available Options for Cowboys-Eagles on Thanksgiving Day

Bringing together the full family of networks, FOX Sports is also adding Tubi, F...

24/09/2026

Virginia Techs Lane Stadium Invests in Gameday Experience with New Daktronics LED Display, Audio Solutions

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) has unveiled...

24/09/2026

SVG AI Innovation Lab Blog Tracks How AI Is Reshaping Live Sports Production

The blog collects SVG's reporting on AI across U.S. and European sports broadcasting Since SVG launched the AI Innovation Lab in April to advance the devel...

24/09/2026

SVG TranSPORT Keynote Conversation: How FOX Built a Transcontinental Transmission Backbone for the FIFA World Cup

SVG's annual TranSPORT conference, which will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 20 in...

24/09/2026

FloSports is Using AI To Build a New Generation of Live Production Tools to Bolster the Streamer's Internal Operations

The self-built Master Control Room has cut streaming operations incident-respo...

24/09/2026

Ortana Links AudioShake, ScorePlay for Live and Archive Audio Cleanup

Ortana Media Group, the software systems integrator behind the Cubix workflow platform, has connected AudioShake's audio separation models to ScorePlay thro...

24/09/2026

AudioShake Debuts Multi-Speaker 2.0 for Separating Overlapping Voices

AudioShake has released Multi-Speaker 2.0, the company's newest Multi-Speaker model, which removes 75% more noise and offers 32% better separation of overla...

24/09/2026

Op-Ed: Planning Media Day When the Calendar Isn't Certain - How MLB Clubs Can Prepare for 2027 Now

By Jon Morgan, Founder and Executive Producer, Ryval Studios For Major League B...

24/09/2026

Spectrum SportsNet Reveals Los Angeles Lakers Broadcast, Programming Schedule for the 2026-27 Season

Spectrum SportsNet has revealed its comprehensive programming and live game broa...

24/09/2026

Charlotte Hornets Ink Broadcast Deals With Gray Media, Sinclair to Bring Games to More Fans Across the Carolinas

The Charlotte Hornets has unveiled new broadcast partnerships with Gray Media an...

24/09/2026

Detroit Pistons Name DAZN as Exclusive DTC Streaming Platform

DAZN will be the exclusive direct-to-consumer streaming partner for the Detroit Pistons beginning with the 2026-27 season. Subscriptions are available at DAZN.c...

24/09/2026

Minnesota Wild Games Become Available to Spectrum Customers

The National Hockey League (NHL) has made an agreement with Spectrum that will allow Spectrum TV customers in the Minnesota Wild local broadcast territory to wa...

24/09/2026

Carolina Hurricanes, Spectrum Sign Multi-Year Agreement for Hurricanes Hockey Network Distribution

The Carolina Hurricanes has reached a multi-year distribution agreement to provi...

24/09/2026

Regional Games of the St. Louis Blues To Be Exclusively Broadcasted on Blue Note+

The St. Louis Blues has introduced Blue Note as the name of the new, exclusive ...

24/09/2026

Columbus Blue Jackets Games Head to Spectrum TV

Blue Jackets Hockey Network, the television home for Blue Jackets hockey, is coming to Spectrum TV under a new carriage agreement between the National Hockey Le...

24/09/2026

Waves introduce Tracks Live 2.0

The next generation of multitrack recording for live sound The latest version of Waves' dedicated live multitrack recording software delivers an array ...

24/09/2026

Polyend introduce the Loop

An idea machine for musicians Described as an idea machine for musicians , the latest addition to Polyend's growing collection of guitar pedals combin...

24/09/2026

Synchro Arts unveil VocAlign 7

Alignment tool gains multitrack layout Synchro Arts have just launched the latest version of their renowned time-alignment plug-in, and it's said to be ...

24/09/2026

Expressive E update the Osmose

Synth gains DAW Control & Ctrl-e integration Expressive E have just released a major firmware update that brings some interesting new features to the Osmose...

24/09/2026

Rohde & Schwarz expands its system amplifier portfolio with the R&SSAM200 for applications up to 53 GHz

Rohde & Schwarz expands its system amplifier portfolio with the R&S SAM200 for a...

24/09/2026

Hitachi Launches Startup Challenge, Calling on Innovators Worldwide to Shape the Future of Mobility and Manufacturing Solutions

September 24, 2026 The Hitachi Startup Challenge FY26 invites innovative startu...

24/09/2026

NHK Technologies, Inc. Chooses Calrec for Sports Production

Download Now! To receive a short case study showcasing NHK Technologies, Inc. (NT) s audio setup, please enter the following details: -- First Name* Fir...

24/09/2026

Manifold Technologies Appoints Ryhaan Williams as CCO for North America

Manifold Technologies Appoints Ryhaan Williams as CCO for North America Brie Clayton September 24, 2026 0 Comments Brings three decades of broadcast e...

24/09/2026

UNIFACHA Expands Educational Program with DaVinci Resolve Studio

UNIFACHA Expands Educational Program with DaVinci Resolve Studio Brie Clayton September 24, 2026 0 Comments Brazilian university empowers next generat...

24/09/2026

NABA To Convene Cyber University 2.0 To Address Cybersecurity Strategies

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

24/09/2026

Big Blue Marble Makes the Origin of Austrian Parliament V...

Viewers watching videos from the Austrian Parliament online will soon find it easier to verify the authenticity of the content. Big Blue Marble, an internationa...

24/09/2026

nsign and Sony collaborate to simplify digital signage de...

nsign, the digital signage SaaS platform built around its Simplify Complexity principle, is now officially certified for BRAVIA Professional Displays from Son...

24/09/2026

Viaplay Selects Encompass Altitude Scheduling to Transfor...

Encompass Digital Media today announced the successful migration of multiple Viaplay free-to-air channels, including TV3, TV6, TV8 and TV10, to its Altitude Sch...

24/09/2026

Standalone Streaming Services Continue to Decline in the U.S.

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

24/09/2026

Hollyland Unveils LARK M3 Wireless Audio System

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

24/09/2026

Adobe Completes Purchase Of Topaz Labs

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

24/09/2026

FCC to Vote on Satellite Spectrum, Unlicensed Ultra-Wideband Devices

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

24/09/2026

LYNX Technik Launches New Series 5000 Card

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

24/09/2026

KRK V SERIES MONITORS HELP INDUSTRY VETERAN SANTIAGO URI...

Music Supervisor, Composer, and Mixing Engineer Santiago Uribe has built a career around producing music for film and television, contributing to more than 40 p...

24/09/2026

NABA Cyber University to Convene Broadcast Industry Leade...

The North American Broadcasters Association (NABA) will hold a full-day cybersecurity summit focused on defending against growing cyber threats facing the broad...

24/09/2026

UKTV COMMISSIONS EIGHTH SERIES OF CANAL BOAT DIARIES

London, 24th September 2026: UKTV has commissioned an eighth series of Canal Boat Diaries (8x60') for U (u.co.uk) and U&YESTERDAY, with waterways explorer R...

24/09/2026

Tribeca Festival And AT&T Open Submissions For 10th Anniversary AT&T Untold Stories Program, Featuring $1.2 Million Production Prize

September 24th, 2026 TRIBECA FESTIVAL AND AT&T OPEN SUBMISSIONS FOR 10TH ANNIVE...

24/09/2026

Why touch matters in the digital age

From the buzz of your phone when a message arrives to surgeons being able to feel' the patients they are examining from hundreds of kilometres away, these ...

24/09/2026

Maximising the golden quarter for retail

As Q4 approaches, retailers enter the most critical sales window of the year the golden quarter. Stretching from October through December, this period encomp...

24/09/2026

Lightcurve Teams Up with Harmonic to Deliver Multi-Gigabit Broadband Services to MDUs over Coax

Key Takeaways Harmonic's cOS virtualized platform enables Lightcurve to de...

24/09/2026

HARRY CORRY RENEWS LIVELINE SPONSORSHIP ON RT RADIO 1

The home interiors retailer signs up for third year as sponsor RT Commercial today announced that Harry Corry has signed up to a third year as sponsor of Live...

24/09/2026

How Open Science Can Help Researchers Prepare for the Next Pandemic

When COVID-19 emerged, scientists had a crucial advantage: Decades of prior research on coronaviruses meant they understood the virus' key proteins well eno...

24/09/2026

RT Radio 1 Folk Awards Tickets on Sale | Dolores Keane inducted into Hall of Fame

RT Radio 1 Folk Awards Tickets on Sale Dolores Keane to be inducted into the...