THE 49TH ACM AWARDS dominated Sunday in viewers and key demographics, leading CBS to its fifth straight Sunday win in viewers and third consecutive in adults 18-49 and adults 25-54, according to Nielsen preliminary live plus same day ratings for April 6.

From 8:00-11:00 PM, THE ACM AWARDS was first in viewers (14.14m), adults 25-54 (4.3/10) and adults 18-49 (3.3/09).  This is the second-largest audience for the awards broadcast since 2009 and matches its second-best adult 18-49 rating since 2011. THE ACM AWARDS was the night's top broadcast in viewers, adults 25-54 and adults 18-49. Note: Last year's event posted the event’s best viewers total since 1998, its best adults 25-54 performance since 1999 and its best adults 18-49 rating since 2001. 

60 MINUTES was first in viewers (9.98m), adults 25-54 (2.0/06) and tied for first in adults 18-49 (1.3/04, with ABC).

For the night, CBS was first in viewers (13.10m), adults 25-54 (3.7/09) and adults 18-49 (2.8/08).  CBS won Sunday in viewers for the fifth straight week and in key demos for the third consecutive Sunday. 

THE ACM AWARDS also broke records online. Nearly 1.5 million votes were cast for the Entertainer of the Year and New Artist of the Year categories combined, an increase of +30% over last year's vote, and visits to the ACM Awards section of CBS.com were up +29% over last year. The 49th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards was also the most social show on television yesterday, according to SocialGuide. 

Updated Sunday ratings will be available tomorrow.

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Ed Harrison                             818-655-1584   ed.harrison@cbs.com

David Pepose                          212-975-1929   david.pepose@cbs.com

Morgan Seal  (CBSInteractive)  646-424-4321   morgan.seal@cbsi.com