Sports Biz: NFL TV ratings get off to a flying start

The National Football League season got off to a strong start for broadcasters.

According to Fox Sports and NBC Sports, the games they showcased on their networks gave them their biggest audience in years. Fox, which is owned by News Corp. (NWS), attracted more than 25 million viewers for its Week 1 National Game, making it the most watched week one game ever on Fox.

General Electric Co. (GE)-owned NBC attracted an average audience of 20.9 million viewers for its Sunday night telecast of the Pittsburgh Steelers-Tennessee Titans game. That was the biggest audience for any sporting event since the Super Bowl, which was the most-watched broadcast in U.S.television history. It was also the most-watched prime time show on any broadcast network since May's season finale of "American Idol."