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NEW YORK -- This season's sophomore episode of American Idol, like on Tuesday, blew away Wednesday night's competition. But also like Tuesday, the two-hour episode was down in all key measures from last year.

Idol averaged 30.2 million viewers and a 12.6 rating/30 share in the adults 18-49 demographic, according to preliminary estimates released Thursday by Nielsen Media Research.

The declines were steeper this time around, down 18% in viewership (37 million) and 19% in adults 18-49 (15.5/36). But that being said, even with the declines, Idol was still the biggest thing going on TV.

NBC did the best against the formidable Idol juggernaut thanks to Deal or No Deal (11.8 million, 3.1/8) at 8 p.m. That did much better than either ABC's Wife Swap (5.2 million, 2.0/5) or CBS' Power of 10 (4.9 million, 1.1/3), not to mention the CW's Crowned (1.6 million, 0.7/2). And casualties at 9 p.m. included Supernanny (6.1 million, 2.5/6) and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (8.8 million, 2.4/5). CBS' conclusion of Comanche Moon (12.1 million, 2.4/6) did about as well as Tuesday's edition.

NEW YORK -- Fox rode the Fiesta Bowl to an adults 18-49 victory in Wednesday's primetime while NBC won the night in viewership thanks to Deal or No Deal and the two-hour season premiere of Law & Order.

The Oklahoma-West Virginia game averaged at least 11.5 million viewers and a 4.1 rating/11 share in the demo, according to preliminary estimates released Thursday by Nielsen Media Research. It came up against strong competition in viewership from NBC and in the demo with ABC's reality series.

The two-hour "Law & Order" premiere averaged 13.4 million viewers and a 3.8/9 in the demo. "Law & Order" was the night's most-watched show. It was also the best viewership and demo ratings for the show since May 2006.

Fox won all three hours in adults 18-49 thanks to the game, though NBC's Deal (12.2 million, 3.4/9) came in a strong second place ahead of ABC's Wife Swap (8.5 million, 3.3/9) and CBS' Power of 10 (6.7 million, 1.7/4), both season premieres. The CW's Crowned (1.9 million, 0.8/2) was in fifth place.

UPDATED 7:15 p.m. PT Dec. 3, 2007

CBS' strike-affected midseason lineup will include three hours of the first-ever in-season "Big Brother", the return of "The New Adventures of Old Christine," "Jericho" and "Power of 10" and the debut of the comedy "The Captain".

Meanwhile, "Law & Order" will rejoin NBC's schedule in January in its longtime Wednesday 10 p.m. slot along with repurposed episodes of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent."

CBS on Monday became the second network after Fox to announce a comprehensive midseason schedule impacted by the strike.

Taking a break on Mondays are the promising freshman comedy "The Big Bang Theory" and the sophomore comedy "Rules of Engagement", which wrapped production early because of the writer's strike.

Starting Jan. 28, "Christine" will move into its original Monday 9:30 p.m. slot, following "Two and a Half Men", while the single-camera "Captain" will be sandwiched between "How I Met Your Mother" and "Men" at 8:30 p.m.

Also benched are two Tuesday dramas: the low-rated freshman "Cane" and the military-themed drama "The Unit", which had struggled at 9 p.m. against Fox's hit "House". They will be replaced by "Big Brother" and "Jericho", which both will premiere Feb. 12.

The Tuesday installment of "Brother" will be joined by a Wednesday edition at 8 p.m., which debuts Feb. 13, and a Sunday one at 8 p.m., which launches Feb.

CANNES -- Calling the international TV marketplace "healthier, more open and more frenetic" than he'd ever seen it, CBS Corp. president and CEO Leslie Moonves delivered a keynote address Monday at MIPCOM that mirrored the hustle and bustle along the Croisette.

In fact, a record 13,500 participants from 105 countries poured into the Riviera resort during the weekend for the semi-annual program sales bazaar that runs through Friday. The vast majority of attendees are here for five heady days of wheeling and dealing in program rights, with American TV shows a major part of the horse-trading.

Among the U.S. series that have already prompted program buyers to open their pocketbooks are the CBS-distributed Showtime sizzler Californication, which has been snapped up by Britain's Channel 5, Germany's TeleMunchen and France's M6; Disney's High School Musical 2, which has racked up deals in 40 territories and counting; and Sony's game show Power of 10, which has closed format deals with France's TF1, Oz's Nine Network and Greece's Mega.

"Our business has never been stronger," said Disney's new global distribution chieftain Ben Pyne, who is making his MIPCOM debut. He pointed to growth prospects in Russia, the Middle East, China and India as particularly alluring.

Pyne's predecessor, outgoing distribution president Laurie Younger, told The Hollywood Reporter that Disney's revenue from foreign TV sales has "doubled" in just the past four years thanks in large part to such primetime hits as Lost and Desperate Housewives. With a particular nod to stunning prices paid by British and French buyers in the past two years, these series are purportedly raking in $2 million an episode in total foreign license fees. (The average haul from foreign for an hour drama was $500,000 per episode just five years ago.)

To ensure the upward trend continues, Disney has brought along to Cannes ABC programming topper Steve McPherson, who Monday night hosted a screening for the company's latest primetime drama hopeful, Private Practice.

Moonves is being feted in Cannes as the Personality of the Year by MIPCOM organizers Reed Midem for his contributions to the global business.

NEW YORK -- Fox and NBC tied for the demographic win in primetime, while CBS won in viewership during the last week of the 2006-07 TV season, Nielsen Media Research said Tuesday.

Fox got the week started Monday with the early premieres of "Prison Break" (7.5 million viewers, 3.3 rating/9 share) and the new "K-Ville" (8.9 million, 3.3/8). Both shows won their hours, with the main 8 p.m. competition being NBC's "Deal or No Deal" (11.7 million, 3.1/9) and 9 p.m. a repeat of CBS' "Two and a Half Men" (10.8 million, 3.2/8) and a new "The Singing Bee" (7.8 million 2.8/7) on NBC. "Deal" was the night's top show in viewers.

A two-hour "The Biggest Loser" (7.9 million, 3.4/9) on NBC and CBS' finale of "Big Brother" (8.7 million, 3.4/9) were the big winners Tuesday, while two episodes of ABC's "Just for Laughs" (with 8:30 p.m. averaging 7 million viewers and a 2.2/6) and CBS' "Power of 10" (7.8 million, 1.9/6) couldn't keep up. Neither could a two-hour ABC News special, "Elvis: Viva Las Vegas" (6.4 million, 1.8/5).

Wednesday went to Fox thanks to the premiere of "Back to You" (9.5 million, 3.1/10) that beat CBS' "Kid Nation" (9.4 million, 3.1/9) head-to-head as well as "Deal" (9.9 million, 2.5/8) and the CW's "America's Next Top Model" (5.2 million, 2.5/8).

NEW YORK -- CBS won a quiet Wednesday primetime before the new TV season starts in earnest, thanks to repeats and a new Power of 10 that edged it past NBC and Last Comic Standing.

Comic made it closer than it would have been, averaging 6.4 million viewers and a 2.8 rating/6 share in the adults 18-49 demographic to become the night's top show in the demo. A repeat CSI: NY (8.9 million, 2.4/7) was the night's top show in viewership, according to preliminary estimates released Thursday by Nielsen Media Research.

CBS won at 8 p.m. with a new Power of 10 (7.8 million, 2.0/7) that beat all repeats. While Comic won at 9 p.m. in the demo, CBS' repeat Criminal Minds (8.1 million, 2.0/6) took viewership in a walk and then CBS followed it up at 10 p.m. with CSI: NY that beat originals NASCAR in Primetime (2.7 million, 1.1/3) and Dateline NBC (6.1 million, 2.1/6).

Wednesday averages: CBS (8.3 million, 2.2/6); NBC (5.5 million, 2.1/6); ABC (4.3 million, 1.6/5); Fox (4.2 million, 1.5/5); and the CW (2.2 million, 1.0/3).

NEW YORK -- CBS and NBC split Wednesday night's primetime, with CBS winning in viewers while NBC and took the crown in the adults 18-49 demographic.

Last Comic Standing (6.2 million, 2.4 rating/7 share) and Dateline: NBC (7.5 million, 2.4/7) shared the honors as the night's top show in adults 18-49, according to preliminary estimates released Thursday by Nielsen Media Research. A repeat CSI: NY (8.1 million, 2.2/6) was the top show in viewers.

CBS' Power of 10 (7.8 million, 2.0/7) won at 8 p.m. in both measures against NBC's "Summer's Top 10 Most Outrageous Moments" (6.2 million, 1.9/6). CBS's Criminal Minds (8 million, 2.2/6) won viewership at 9 p.m.

Wednesday averages: ABC (4 million, 1.4/4); CBS (8 million, 2.1/6); NBC (6.7 million, 2.3/7); Fox (3.7 million, 1.3/4); and The CW (1.8 million, 0.8/2).

NEW YORK -- It was a good week for CBS, which not only won primetime in viewership and the adults 18-49 demographic but also had six of the top 10 shows in the demo for the week ending Sunday.

Both Big Brother and Power of 10 reached season-highs last week -- though Power of 10 fell this week -- and a repeat Two and a Half Men was the top program of the week in viewership and adults 18-49, according to Nielsen Media Research.

Monday was an overwhelming win for CBS, with Two and a Half Men (10.3 million viewer, 3.3 rating/9 share) leading the way and Rules of Engagement (7.6 million, 2.7/7) and CSI: Miami (9.1 million, 2.8/8) also doing OK. ABC's Fat March (4.5 million, 1.7/5) came in a weak second place at 9 p.m., while the only other original, Dateline NBC (5.2 million, 1.6/4), came in third against CSI: Miami and a repeat of Fox's Supernanny (4 million, 1.7/5).

CBS kept its demo winning streak going Tuesday thanks to season highs for Power (9.9 million, 2.9/9) and Brother ( 8.1 million, 3.2/9).

Power of 10 and Big Brother led CBS to a nightly win Tuesday, according to preliminary results from Nielsen Media Research.

Both Power (9.7 million viewers, 2.8 rating/9 share among adults 18-49) at 8 p.m. and Brother (8.2 million, 3.2/9) at 9 p.m. won their time slots, matching the unscripted series' best deliveries this summer.

CBS also finished first at 10 p.m. with a rerun of NCIS (7.7 million, 2.0/6).

Only three other programs Tuesday night cracked a 2 rating in the 18-49 demo: Fox's House repeat (7.9 million, 2.5/7) at 9 p.m., ABC's Just for Laughs (7.1 million, 2.1/7) at 8 p.m. and an encore airing of NBC's two-hour special "Saturday Night Live: The First Five Years" (5.9 million, 2.1/6)

For the night, CBS (8.5 million, 2.7/8) was followed by Fox (6.6 million, 2.0/6), NBC (5.8 million, 2.0/6) and ABC (5.8 million, 1.8/5).

NEW YORK -- The America's Got Talent finale swept NBC to victory in primetime Wednesday.

The two-hour telecast was by far the top show of the night on broadcast TV, according to preliminary estimates released Wednesday by Nielsen Media Research. Talent averaged 13.9 million viewers and a 4.1 rating/12 share in adults 18-49, Nielsen said. It topped off at 9:30 p.m. with 15.5 million viewers and a 4.7/12 when ventriloquist Terry Fator won the competition.

The competition on the other networks just didn't measure up against Talent. ABC's Just for Laughs (7.2 million, 2.3/7) did the best in the hour ahead of CBS' Power of 10 (6.1 million, 1.9/6) and of course Fox's On the Lot (2.5 million, 1.2/4).

CBS made something of a recovery at 9 p.m. with Big Brother (7.3 million, 3.1/8), which came in a distant second in the hour against the final half of Talent. Not so lucky was I-Caught (5 million, 2.0/5), which swapped time periods with Primetime: Crime (6.4 million, 2.4/7) to the detriment of I-Caught.

Winning 10 p.m.

It's been a summer to remember for basic cable.

Ad-supported cable networks collectively are outperforming the six broadcast networks this summer in the adults 18-49 demographic by more than 2-to-1, the largest margin ever, according to Turner Research data released Wednesday.

Ad-supported cable nets -- a group that includes most basic cable outlets with a few exceptions like Disney Channel -- collectively are averaging a 52.4 share in the demo this summer, compared with broadcast's 24.2 share.

Several cable programs have set record highs this summer -- most recently exemplified by the Disney Channel original movie "High School Musical 2", which averaged 17.2 million total viewers in its premiere Friday to become the most-watched basic cable telecast ever -- while broadcast shows are slipping.

"This has been a record-setting and perhaps precedent-setting summer in many ways for the television business ... and a landmark summer for ad-supported cable in many ways," TBS Inc. chief research officer Jack Wakshlag said.

Cable has seen multiple new series become hits this summer -- including TNT's "Saving Grace", USA Network's "Burn Notice" and Lifetime's "Army Wives" -- while broadcast hasn't had any new series break out on the order of CBS' "Survivor", Fox's "American Idol" or ABC's "Dancing With the Stars". Even with the modest success of new game shows "The Singing Bee" at NBC, "Don't Forget the Lyrics" at Fox and "Power of 10" at CBS, no broadcast network has shown growth this summer, with drama series leading the declines.

"The days where people said 'pack it up' in the summer ... and TV didn't have to focus on the summer because no one was watching TV, those days are gone," Wakshlag said. "There is more TV viewing in the summer today than five years ago on an annual basis. There is no reason to shy away from or not program aggressively in the summer."

For instance, the top three ad-supported cable series of the summer (TNT's "The Closer", 7.9 million; "Saving Grace", 5.6 million; and USA's "Monk", 5.1 million) are outperforming the top three series five years ago ("Monk", 4.5 million; USA's "The Dead Zone", 4.3 million; and MTV's "The Real World: Chicago", 3.5 million) by a significant margin.

NEW YORK -- The first half of the So You Think You Can Dance finale scored for Fox, while the premiere of ABC's limited series NASCAR in Prime crashed right out of the gate.

The two-hour Dance was the night's top show in viewership (8.5 million) and the adults 18-49 demographic (3.2 rating/10 share), according to preliminary estimates released Thursday by Nielsen Media Research. Dance peaked at 9:30 p.m. with 9 million viewers, the only show to even cross the 9 million mark Wednesday.

NASCAR (3.2 million, 1.2/4) never got momentum, coming in a distant third against a repeat CSI: Miami (8.1 million, 2.1/6) and NBC's Dateline (6.6 million, 2.2/7) at 10 p.m.

CBS' new game show Power of 10 (7.7 million, 1.9/7) settled for second place in viewership in the hour but was tied for second in adults 18-49 with a repeat Outrageous Moments (5.9 million, 1.9/6) over at NBC. NBC's Last Comic Standing (5.7 million, 2.5/7) was no match for Dance. Neither was ABC's Primetime (4.9 million, 1.8/5)

Wednesday averages: Fox (8.5 million, 3.2/10); CBS (8 million, 2.0/6); ABC (4 million, 1.5/5); NBC (6.1 million, 2.2/7); and the CW (1.6 million, 0.6/2).

NEW YORK -- CBS' new game show The Power of 10 faltered in its second outing while Fox won in the adults 18-49 demographic in Wednesday's primetime.

Fox won each hour in the demo between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m., first with So You Think You Can Dance (7.6 million, 2.8 rating/10 share in adults 18-49) and then at 9 p.m. with Don't Forget the Lyrics (8.8 million, 3.2/10). The preliminary estimates were released Thursday by Nielsen Media Research.

Meanwhile, Power (7.8 million, 2.0/7) won in viewership at 8 p.m. but was down from Tuesday night's premiere (9.2 million, 2.7/9). It tied in the demo with a repeat of NBC's Outrageous Moments (6 million, 2.0/7). CBS had better luck at 9 p.m. with a repeat Criminal Minds (8.9 million, 2.1/6), though NBC's Last Comic Standing (5.9 million, 2.5/8) came in second in the demo against Lyrics.

CBS won viewership at 10 p.m. with a repeat CSI: NY (8.5 million, 2.4/7) and tied in adults 18-49 with NBC's Dateline (6.6 million, 2.4/7).

NEW YORK -- Reality had a four-way rumble in Tuesday's primetime, with a rare night of all four networks having original reality shows vying in the 8 p.m. hour. NBC came away with a narrow victory in the 8 p.m. hour and a slightly wider one for the entire night.

CBS came close with the premiere of Power of 10, which didn't set any records ablaze though it seemed to give NBC's America's Got Talent a run for its money between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. But America's Got Talent (10.7 million, 3.2 rating/10 share in adults 18-49) still came out on top for the 8 p.m. hour and the entire night, according to preliminary estimates released Wednesday by Nielsen Media Research.

Power of 10, on the other hand, came in a strong second with 9.2 million viewers and a 2.7/9 in the demo, well ahead of ABC's Just for Laughs (6.6 million, 2.0/6) as well as Fox's underperforming On the Lot (2 million, 0.9./3).

Drew Carey is stepping into Bob Barker's shoes as the new host of CBS' The Price Is Right.

The actor-comedian said Monday during a taping of another long-running CBS show, Late Show With David Letterman, that he has officially signed on to take over as host of the game show, ending months of speculation about who would replace Barker.

"It's a done deal; I'm the new host of 'The Price Is Right, ' " Carey told Letterman to applause from the audience as Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra played the game show's theme song.

Carey added that the deal was finalized only 15 minutes before he sat down to talk with the Late Show host. He also said he's not sure when he's going to start working on Price but joked that "my girlfriend was (already) on the phone with a personal shopper from Bergdorf's."

"Well, history says that this will be a nice long career for you as the host of 'The Price Is Right, '" Letterman said before agreeing with Carey's comment that "it's fun doing a show for years and years, isn't it?"

Before making his on-air debut as host of Price, viewers will get a taste of Carey's game show hosting skills in the new CBS primetime series Power of 10, which debuts Aug.

Fox has tapped Whose Line Is It Anyway star Wayne Brady to host its new karaoke-themed game show "Don't Forget the Lyrics!" and has set a two-night launch for the half-hour series July 11 and 12.

Meanwhile, CBS' survey-based show Power of 10, hosted by another Line alum, Drew Carey, will premiere Aug. 7.

Lyrics, from RDF USA and Brad Lachman Prods., features contestants singing alongside a studio band with lyrics projected onscreen. When the music stops and the words disappear, competitors are challenged to carry on. After each round, contestants will get a chance to take their money prize and leave. Those who successfully finish 10 songs will get the show's top prize of $1 million. The first two episodes of Lyrics will air July 11 at 9:30 p.m. and July 12 at 8:30 p.m.

Brady was the host of the Emmy-winning syndicated talk/variety series The Wayne Brady Show. He can be seen starring in his live show, Making It Up, at the Venetian in Las Vegas.

CBS is swinging for the fences on the drama side and staying close to tradition on the comedy side.

On Monday, the network picked up four drama pilots to series: the musical mystery Viva Laughlin, the partner-swapping period drama Swingtown, the vampire crime drama Moonlight and the Latin family drama Cane.

On the comedy side, the network gave the green light to The Big Bang Theory, a multicamera comedy from Two and a Half Men co-creator Chuck Lorre.

Additionally, CBS ordered to series Power of 10, a game show pilot from producer Michael Davies.

CBS also is close to picking up to series two single-camera comedy pilots: I'm in Hell, starring Jason Biggs, and ensemble The Captain.

On the returning front, CBS is close to bringing back the freshman comedy Rules of Engagement and the sophomore sitcom The New Adventures of Old Christine. Christine, which saw its ratings soften when it was moved from 9:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monday, is rumored to get a 13-episode midseason order.

Also in negotiations to return for a third season is military drama The Unit. The renewal of CBS' other two sophomore dramas, Ghost Whisperer and Criminal Minds, is considered a sure thing.