A18-49+ Update: Repeats, Sports and Specials in 2013-14

Here's a look at trends among the non-original series categories (repeats, sports and specials) on the big four networks in 2013-14:
Big Four Ratings

Year	Overall	Originals	Reruns	Movies	Sports	Specials
2003-04*	91	100	76	67	169	95
2004-05*	90	100	68	67	166	90
2005-06*	90	100	66	55	146	81
2006-07	90	100	59	51	132	92
2007-08	90	100	56	54	149	84
2008-09	93	100	53	52	162	91
2009-10	96	100	50	46	200	107
2010-11	93	100	52	48	218	94
2011-12	97	100	50	45	222	101
2012-13	98	100	49	47	229	100
2013-14	103	100	47	49	251	113

2013-14 was a milestone year for television; for the first time, the average for original series get surpassed by the average for "everything else." In the repeats/sports/specials post last year, I said this was a strong possibility because of all the extra high-rated non-series real estate dedicated to the Winter Olympics. But the overall number surged well past 100 because the sports side of the equation got a major assist from the special side; most awards shows hit their highest or second-highest A18-49+ levels in the era, and many were highest by wide margins. Meanwhile, repeat programming continued its gradual decline; the average repeat is now decidedly below half of the average original.

Big Four Real Estate
 

Year	Originals	Reruns	Specials	Movies	Sports
2003-04*	62%	18%	4%	11%	5%
2004-05*	65%	18%	6%	6%	5%
2005-06*	65%	17%	4%	7%	7%
2006-07	63%	23%	3%	5%	6%
2007-08	61%	23%	3%	5%	7%
2008-09	65%	19%	6%	4%	7%
2009-10	62%	22%	4%	4%	8%
2010-11	64%	21%	4%	4%	6%
2011-12	66%	20%	4%	2%	7%
2012-13	64%	21%	5%	2%	8%
2013-14	62%	20%	6%	2%	9%

The takeaway with the real estate numbers, as always, is that the big four networks aren't changing much. Despite all the PR at network presentations about timeslot-sharing and cutting down on repeats, the repeat count is pretty much in line with recent years. So is the original count; if anything, it's closer to the low end.

It is worth noting that the Winter Olympics made this an irregular year. NBC can't really support their usual original volume since they're also paying a hefty price tag for the Games. And the event also affects the scheduling of other networks, who mostly aired repeats of scripted programming and also held many premieres till later in the winter than usual. Next year will be more apples-to-apples with a less inflated sports count.

Here's the now updated A18-49+ Reruns, Sports, Movies and Specials post. Lots of 2013-14 updates for specific sports & special events also included there.