The Winners: Seven News was tops with 1.238 million and Today Tonight was second with 1.167 million. Two and a Half Men averaged 1.062 million for Nine at 1.062 million viewers. Beauty and The Geek Australia finished with 1.038 million and A Current Affair was on 1.026 million in 6th spot. Getaway averaged 1.025 million at 7.30pm for Nine and Glee did well for Ten at 7.30pm with 1.022 million. Home and Away crept into the list with 1.013 million at 7pm for Seven. Rush on Ten at 8.30pm, 989,000, Rush on Ten at 9.30pm, 977,000.

The Losers: The Arias on Nine from 8.30pm to 10.30pm: 708,000 (see below for more detail). The Amazing Race on Seven at 9.30pm, 726,000 and then 705,000 at 10.30pm. It did well comparatively speaking. But Seven is running it out to try and finish it off more quickly than it would have by running one hourly episode a week. Seven’s Ghost Whisperer, 563,000 in four metro areas. it was pre-empted in Melbourne by a local production on Victorian holiday spots which averaged 254,000. So 817,000 thousand people watched Seven from 7.30pm to 8.30pm. That was third behind Nine and Ten.

News & CA: Seven News again won nationally and in every market, but lost Melbourne to Nine. ACA won Melbourne as well, but lost the rest of the metro markets. The 7pm ABC News averaged 936,000, The 7.30 Report, 781,000. Lateline, 344,000, Lateline Business, 126,000. Nightline appeared in the list for Nine after a long absence (AKA Nine’s Late News). It averaged 252,000. Ten News averaged 743,000, the late News/Sports Tonight with 457,000. SBS News at 6.30pm, 126,000, 146,000 for the 9.30pm edition. 7am Sunrise, 399,000, 7am Today, 316,000. The Walkleys on SBS at 10pm, just 71,000. The wider public just doesn’t care for the media.

The Stats: Seven won 6pm to midnight All People with 29.7% (27.6% last week), from Nine with 26.7% (31.4%), Ten with 24.1% (20.6%), the ABC with 15.0% (16.0%) and SBS, 4.5% (unchanged). Seven won all five metro markets and leads the week 30.5% to 27.2%).

Digitally: Nine’s GO won with 3.00% (Nine’s main channel was on 23.70%), from 7TWO with 2.70% (Seven’s main channel with 26.80%), Ten’s ONE with 1.50% (Ten’s main channel, 22.60%), ABC 2 with 1.30% (13.70%), SBS TWO with 0.50% (SBS ONE 4.00%).

In regional markets Southern Cross (Ten) won with 26.2% from WIN/NBN with 26.1%, Prime/7Qld with 25.2%, the ABC with 15.7% and SBS on 6.8%.

Glenn Dyer’s comments: A win to Seven over night in roughly the same proportions as the night before. Nine News and ACA lifted their game and themselves back into the million viewer group, but will end the year behind Seven news and Today Tonight.

Digital TV viewers voted with their remotes or EPGs last night: a total of 9.20% share for the five FTA digital channels, up from 8.20% the week before.

The Test cricket, day one, 417,000 during the telecast.

Tip for 2010: Is Ten is looking at an all news network for its 3rd digital channel next year? It only has to be standard definition (which Nine and Seven have started this year). Ten’s ONE is HD for the sport (Nine and Seven have to start HD next year). News is suited to SD and is the only major programming genre not on the existing channels: ABC 2, Go and 7TWO are general programming aimed at specific demos (Go is after 16 to 39s). ONE is Sport, ABC 3, which is launched a week today, is kids TV. No news. Ten would need a partner, especially for the foreign stuff? CBS in the US, the BBC, or ABC News in the US? CNN? It would be free to air competition with Sky News, jointly owned by Seven, Nine and Sky of London.

The ARIAS on Nine last night: 708,000 for two hours from 8.30pm. Disaster. No wonder Ten and Seven didn’t want them. They were a ratings bomb for Nine. The audience was off 35% from the 1.092 million people on Ten last year. Big falls in the target demos of 38% to 44.2% for the 16 to 39, 18 to 49 and 25 to 54 age groups. They are the music buyers and didn’t buy the music on Nine last night. Nine is a foreign world for many people from these younger demos. The 18 to 24s, the heart of the popular music buying age group, saw a 55% fall in audience on Nine from Ten last year. Tragic. Off to Pay TV next year? Nine would have won the night with better programs here. It’s an indictment of how Nine has been abandoned by the future audiences for TV because it has done nothing to try and keep them with attractive programming since the start of this decade.

And in Perth, the staffs of the local editions of ACA are still stunned at the WIN move to can them from tonight, without any warning. How to destroy staff morale in one fell swoop, the PBL Media side of Nine couldn’t have topped that act of TV bastardry. WIN management is now clueless.

TONIGHT: In Sydney, Ian Ross reads his last bulletin for Seven and will retire just after 6.29 pm local time. And a good career, capped by going out on top. Chris Bath steps in from Monday. Mark Ferguson to read weekends for Seven against his old employer, Nine. Apart from that, anything on tonight? Better Homes and Gardens. Top Gear on SBS at 7.30 pm, The 7pm Project on Ten. There are lots of movies etc, all repeats. Don’t forget the cricket, at least it is live and real.

SATURDAY: The Test, and then forget the rest of the night. Seriously. Funniest Home Vids on Nine is the GF for the year. Lots of belly laughs at the expense of animals, other people, kids and idiots. The rest is just plan unwatchable (except for SBS).

SUNDAY: First day of summer ratings. You have been warned. Only the cricket (if it is still going) might be of interest. Check your guides very closely.

Source: OzTAM, TV Networks reports