Tale of two shows

Already did my weekly ratings report, but the stats for December 5 were notable enough to merit their own entry.

The news was very good for two game shows in the cable wars. Deal or No Deal debuted on CNBC to terrific numbers by the network's standards. The 8:00 PM episode checked in with 796K viewers and a 0.18 18-48 rating. The following ep at 9:00 PM did even better. 865K viewers and a 0.21 18-49 rating.

These numbers compare to CNBC's prime time average of only 242K viewers last week. Yes, DOND more than tripled the network's usual audience in the peak viewing hours. If Howie and friends can keep up anything like the debut ratings, CNBC execs will be falling over themselves to renew the show.

I was a little down on GSN's America Says in the weekly report a few days ago. But December 5 proved to be just fine for John Michael Higgins and company. The perky Family Feud knockoff drew 472K viewers and a 0.06 18-49 rating. Those are the best numbers I've seen for the show in any time slot, and they compare nicely to GSN's 336K viewer average in prime time last week. Okay, America Says didn't triple the network's usual average. That might be a bit too much to ask.

Maybe it took a while for GSN's prime time audience to get used to any show besides Steve Harvey's Family Feud. Or it might have just been a random upturn. But an audience pushing a half-million - even for only one ep - can't hurt the future prospects of America Says.