The Winners: Today Tonight was tops with 1.524 million viewers. Ten’s NCIS was second with 1.416 million. Seven News was next with 1.347 million and My Kitchen Rules averaged 1.328 million at 7.30pm (against the cricket’s dying embers). Nine News was 5th with 1.146 million (and no boost from the cricket) and Home and Away averaged 1.108 million at 7pm on Seven, up against the cricket on Nine. Grey’s Anatomy on Seven at 8.30pm averaged 997,000 (and the cricket had finished!). the excellent second part of Kevin McCloud’s Grand Tour of Europe averaged 882,000. Bondi Rescue returned to Ten with a solid 987,000. The Biggest Loser, 851,000 against the cricket. It’s still a faded version of what it was.

The Losers: Viewers of the One Day cricket on Nine yesterday. They deserved better. Most of the 635,000 for the cricket last night included a big slab of Lethal Weapon 4 which was to follow the game when it ended at 10pm. The game ended around 8.30pm.

News & CA: Seven News again won nationally and in every market including Sydney and Melbourne. The cricket, although it finished early, was no help to Nine News which had Hot Seat as the lead-in. Today Tonight won by default, picking up a couple of hundred thousand Nine viewers because ACA was off air. The 7pm ABC News averaged 873,000. The 7.30 Report, 665,000, Lateline, 220,000, Lateline Business, 123,000. Foreign Correspondent returned last night, a fact I neglected in yesterday’s report. It averaged a solid 600,000 at 8pm. Ten News averaged, 853,000, the late News/Sports Tonight averaged 365,000. SBS News at 6.30pm, 150,000. 132,000 for the late edition. 7am Sunrise, 334,000, 7am Today, 331,000. Close again. Is Sunrise‘s revamp flailing?

The Stats:

Free-to-air: Seven won with a combined overnight share in All People 6pm to midnight with 31.9%, from Nine with 25.1%, Ten with 23.0%, the ABC with 16.3% and SBS, 3.7%. Seven won everywhere, helped by the dud cricket and its early finish. Nine was third in places like Brisbane and Perth where the time difference helped Ten and Seven. Seven leads with a combined overnight share in All People of 30.5% to 326.9% for Nine.

Digitally: A win to Nine’s Go with 3.4%, (Nine’s main channel was on 21.7% and third). 7TWO averaged 2.3% (Seven’s main channel, 29.5%). ABC 2, 1.3% (ABC 3, 0.4% and ABC 1, 14.6%). Ten’s ONE, 0.4%, Ten’s main channel, 22.6%, and second overall. ABS TWO was on 0.4%, SBS ONE, 3.3% (Beaten by Nine’s GO). GO leads the week on 3.6%, &TWO is on 3.0% share. Seven’s main channel leads the week with 27.5% to 23.3% for Nine and 22.2% for Ten.

Pay TV: Seven, 25.5%, Nine, 20.1%, Ten, 18.4%, Pay TV, 17.4% the ABC, 13.0% and SBS, 2.9. FTA TV’s 11 channels had an 82.6% share, pay, 17.4% with over 100 channels.

Glenn Dyer’s comments: Nine probably thought that they were being clever with their start of 2010 ratings strategy. Saturate February with sport, seeing the network had the winter games. So lots of one day cricket and Twenty20 games, plus an NRL game this weekend. The thinking was; viewers love sport, they love the Games.

We’ll crunch February and then start the ratings season proper in early February with Underbelly 3 Nine would have thought and a host of other programs that will be promoted endlessly through the games coverage.

So far, there’s been a different result. The cricket is just woeful. Pakistan was sad, the West Indies so far don’t want to be here. There’s three more ODI’s to go, plus two Twenty20 games.

Last night’s third behind Seven and Ten (on the main channel comparison), is not what the network would have been counting on. Cricket Australia and Nine are as much to blame as is the form of Pakistan and the Windies. To put so many ODI’s and Twenty20s into February with anyone but England (and perhaps South Africa), risked alienating fans. And it has.

There are ODIs on Friday and Sunday. Death by a thousand cuts. Nine has the first Winter games broadcasts Saturday and Sunday. Will anyone care after the cricket? To make matters worse there seems to be more snow falling in Nine’s Games promos than at the games site outside Vancouver.

One of the great fears for a promoter is: what if you stage something and no one turns up. For the Winter Games and its telecasters around the world, what if you have a winter games and no snow falls. They’d be better off relocating to Washington where the US capital has been shut for two days, with a third likely tonight, our time.

TONIGHT: Consider any of the following. Pho’s Kitchen debuts on the ABC at 6.30pm. I bet its more interesting than My Kitchen Rules on Seven. Spicks and Specks at 8.30pm on the ABC. Hungry Beast is back on the ABC at 9pm with a different look and fewer presenters. RSPCA Animal Rescue and Criminal Minds on Seven. Rex in Rome at 7.30pm and repeated at 8.30pm from Vienna on SBS. Nine has Customs and perhaps Cold Case. Ten has The Biggest Loser and So You Think You Can Dance Australia. Perhaps The 7PM Project.

Source: OzTAM, TV Networks reports