UPDATE 2-Oscar ratings improve slightly after dismal 2018 -reports

The U.S. television audience for the first hostless broadcast of the Academy Awards in 30 years rose slightly from last year based on preliminary tallies, according to reports from Hollywood trade publications on Monday.

Awards shows remain one of the few must-see live events and their ratings are closely watched by advertisers as streaming shows, movies and other content compete for watchers' attention. Though dwarfed by the Super Bowl, the Oscars are often one of America's most watched non-sporting events. Final audience numbers for the 2018 telecast on Walt Disney Co's ABC had been the Oscars' lowest ever. ABC owns broadcast rights for the Oscars through 2028.

Early metered market ratings for the 3 hour and 20 minute telecast on Sunday were higher than comparable preliminary Nielsen results last year, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline Hollywood reported. Comedian Kevin Hart withdrew from the hosting job in December after past homophobic tweets resurfaced. It was only the second time the show went without a host in its 91-year history. This year's ceremony dispensed with its traditional opening monologue skewering celebrities and politicians, instead relying heavily on the two music-themed contenders in the best picture race to help set the tone.

The telecast, which ran about 40 minutes shorter than the 2018 program, had a 20.1 rating in metered market households, up roughly 6 percent from 18.9 last year, Variety said. ABC will report updated numbers later on Monday. The Nielsen data for the Oscars does not include viewing of the Oscars on digital and mobile platforms.

In 2018, the live Oscars show averaged 26.5 million total viewers, a record low and down from 32.9 million in 2017. The 2019 Oscars were a win for films telling stories from a range of racial and cultural perspectives, marking a major shift three years after the industry's top awards show was slammed for overlooking work by nonwhite artists.

Road trip movie "Green Book" triumphed over "Roma" to win the best picture Oscar. The audience for this year's Super Bowl, by far the most watched American event of the year, drew 98.2 million viewers on CBS Corp's television network, down about 5 percent from last year's game and its smallest audience since 2009.

But the U.S. audience for this year's Grammy Awards on CBS rose slightly to 19.9 million. CBS said many millions more watched part of the highest honors in the U.S. music industry or interacted on social media. (Writing by Meredith Mazzilli Editing by Nick Zieminski)