Preliminary television viewership figures showed that some 38.8 million Americans tuned into Sunday night's telecast of the annual Academy Awards ceremony,down 8 percent from last year, a report said Tuesday.

However, Gilbert Cates, producer of the Oscars Show at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, said he was not surprised by an 8 percent to 10 percent decline in the ratings due to major Oscar nominees' low popularity with viewers.

"It's about what I figured," Cates was quoted as saying by the Los Angeles Times report.

"All five of the best picture nominees together, I don't think goes to 250 million dollars" in box office revenues, he added.

There is traditionally a correlation between the box office popularity of the films nominated for best picture and viewership for the Academy Awards.

The critically acclaimed Los Angeles race-relations drama "Crash" upset awards-season favorite "Brokeback Mountain" on Sundaynight to win the Oscar for best picture of 2005.

The most-watched Academy Awards ceremony since viewership figures began being compiled in 1974 was in 1998, when 55.25 million Americans tuned in to see box office record-setter "Titanic" win best picture honors.

Editor: Donald