DVRs give 'Conan' lead among young viewers

NEW YORK - After two months on the air, Conan O'Brien's late-night talk show is the favorite of younger viewers - that is, when DVR usage is factored in, according to basic-cable network TBS.

Most ratings figures count TV viewership only within the 24-hour period after a show is aired. By this standard, "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" is the champ in total viewers, as well as in the desirable 18-to-49 demographic.

But "Conan" ranks No. 1 in the key 18-to-49 and 18-to-34 audience segments when "time-shifted" data is included, which adds viewers of the show up to a full week after its airing.

By this measure, "Conan" has topped all cable and broadcast late-night talk shows since its premiere Nov. 8 through the end of the year, TBS announced late Tuesday.

Time-shifted viewing is accounting for a significant portion of the "Conan" audience, including 361,000 of the 1,443,000 viewers in the 18-to-49 demo, and 236,000 of the 930,000 viewers in the 18-to-34 category watching the show.

Among viewers 18-to-49, NBC's "Tonight Show" ranks second to "Conan," with 1,345,000 viewers, said TBS, citing Nielsen Co. figures for Live-Plus-7-Day viewing.

TBS attributed "Conan's" sizable boost from time-shifted viewing to the show's young fan base, which is more likely to record and watch shows on a delayed basis. The median age for "Conan" viewers is 33, while most broadcast late-night talk shows' audiences have median ages in the 50s. O'Brien's former roost, "Tonight," and its head-to-head CBS rival, "Late Show with David Letterman," are both 56.

The hour-long "Conan," airs Mondays through Thursdays at

11 p.m. Pacific.