The winners: Seven News averaged 1.251 million people with Today Tonight second 1.150 million, Cold Case was third for Nine with 1.085 million. The repeat of Two and a Half Men averaged 1.084 million, the 7.30pm.  ABC News averaged 1.057 million in 6th. Nine’s What’s Good For You This Summer perked up without a strong program against it and averaged 1.051 million. Nine News averaged 1.031 million in 8th. Seven’s Air Crash Investigations averaged 920,000 at 7.30pm. City Homicide was repeated at 8.30pm on Seven and averaged 873,000. The Cleveland Show started on Ten at 8.30pm and got 821,000 viewers. Not next week. Rex in Rome, 236,000 on SBS.

The losers: Nine’s summer edition of Funniest Home Videos at 7pm, 790,000. Why be reminded that its 6.30pm on a Saturday night five nights a week? How I Met Your Mother summer edition (a fancy way of saying repeat), 753,000 for Seven at 7pm. The Simpsons on Ten at 6pm, 7.30pm and 9pm (something of a record, three separate episodes on one night and not one solo and two back-to-back),  595,000 to 693,000. Hungry Beast on the ABC at 9pm, 397,000. John Safran’s Race Relations, 395,000.

News and current affairs: Seven News again won nationally and in every market. But Today Tonight was weak, losing Sydney and Melbourne to A Current Affair. In Sydney the 7.30 Report with 296,000 had more viewers than ACA with 291,000 and 265,000 for Today Tonight. The 7.30 Report averaged 878,000 nationally, Lateline, 259,000, Lateline Business, 152,000. Ten News averaged 792,000, the late News/Sports Tonight, 339,000. SBS News at 6.30pm, 168,000, 219,000 for the 9.30pm edition. 7am Sunrise, 327,000, just in front of Today with 313,000.

The stats: Nine won with a combined 6pm-to-midnight all-people share of 231.0% from Seven with 26.5%), Ten with 19.7%, the ABC with 16.9% and SBS with 5.8%. Nine won all five metro markets. Nine leads the week, 28.6% to 27.4% for Seven.

In regional areas, another win to WIN/NBN with 31.6%, from Prime/7Qld with 23.7%, Southern Cross (Ten) with 20.1%, the ABC with 16.6% and SBS with 7.9%.

Digitally: ABC 2 and Go tied with 2.50% (leaving ABC 1 on 14.40% and Nine’s Main channel with 28.60%). 7TWO was next with 2.3% (Seven’s main channel with 24.20%). Ten ONE was on 0.90% with Ten’s main channel on 18.80%. SBS TWO was on 0.40%, SBS ONE, 5.40%. It was another big night for the digital channels with a market share of a combined 8.6%. The digital channels are heading for their best week so far.

Glenn Dyer’s comments: An easy win to Nine, which will win the first week of summer ratings as Seven failed to make an impression on audiences. Seven has gone on holiday much earlier than usual as its usual summer specials are on 7TWO, its digital channel.

The interest went out of politics and the 7.30 Report audience fell to less than 900,000 (still good). But the 7pm ABC News beat Nine News nationally for a second night and in Sydney it also beat Nine and Seven. The ABC News had 326,000 in Sydney, Seven News had 297,000, Nine News had 277,000.

Tonight: Why bother? Do your Christmas shopping, plot to run the Liberal Party or the ALP in New South Wales. You’d have more chance of doing either than finding anything to hold your attention tonight, except perhaps for Red Kerry and the 7.30 Report.

Source: OzTAM, TV Networks reports