The Winners: Tuesday night and Packed to the Rafters got Seven home, but Nine was weaker than it seems and Ten slipped by on the main channels, thanks to the weak figures Nine had from 7pm, and the fall in viewers for Top Gear Australia. But the program did well among its target male viewership. Nine’s repeats of Two and a Half Men at 7pm (958,000 last night), are losing their appeal as male viewers look for something else.

  1. Packed to the Rafters (Seven) (8.30pm) — 1.686 million
  2. Seven News (6pm) — 1.413 million
  3. Today Tonight (Seven) (6.30pm) — 1.321 million
  4. Talkin’ ‘Bout Your Generation (Ten) (7.30pm) — 1.242 million
  5. NCIS (Ten) (8.30pm) — 1.215 million
  6. Nine News (6pm) — 1.123 million
  7. Top Gear Australia (Nine) (7.30pm) — 1.078 million
  8. A Current Affair (Nine) (6.30pm) — 1.069 million
  9. Home and Away (Seven) (7pm) — 1.009 million

The Losers: Seven’s Iron Chef Australia at 7.30pm, 915,000. Not quite there and down from the debut a week before. Top Gear Australia, 1.069 million. Down from last week. It needs Shane Warne every week and some strong link to the UK mob. It is nothing but a pastiche of the BBC original and viewers know that, just as they had it sussed on SBS.

News & CA: Ten’s decision to send The 7pm Project on holiday during the Commonwealth Games has cost it around 200,000 viewers. It has yet to regain or top the 900,000 viewer level that it had been regularly achieving Monday to Wednesday before the games.

Seven News and TT had big wins in every market over Nine News and ACA, especially in Sydney where Seven News in particular has been weak. Seven News averaged 327,000 in Sydney, Nine slipped to an unusually weak 283,000 (for a Tuesday night in particular). ACA fell to 277,000 in Sydney, while TT was on 337,000. Will probably change again tonight, as usual.

  1. Seven News (6pm) — 1.413 million
  2. Today Tonight (Seven) (6.30pm) — 1.321 million
  3. Nine News (6pm) — 1.123 million
  4. A Current Affair (Nine) (6.30pm) — 1.069 million
  5. ABC News (7pm)– 994,000
  6. The 7.30 Report (ABC) (7.30pm) — 803,000
  7. Ten News (5pm) — 787,000
  8. The 7PM Project (Ten) (7pm) — 691,000
  9. Foreign Correspondent (ABC) (8pm) — 672,000
  10. Late News/Sports Tonight (Ten) (10.30pm) –421,000
  11. Lateline (ABC, 10.20 – 10.55 pm) — 188,000
  12. SBS News (6.30pm) — 178,000
  13. Insight (7.30pm) — 175,000
  14. SBS News (9.30pm) — 130,000
  15. Lateline Business (ABC) (10.55pm) — 100,00

In the morning:

  1. Sunrise (Seven) (7am) — 399,000
  2. Today (Nine) (7am) — 324,000

The Stats:

  • FTA: Seven won with a share of 32.4%, from Nine on 26.0%, Ten with 22.1%, the ABC, 15.2% and SBS on 4.4%. Seven leads the week with 29.6%, from Nine on 27.2% and Ten with 21.7%.
  • Main Channel: Seven with a share of 26.0%, from Ten on 21.6%, Nine with 20.3%, ABC 1, 12.8% and SBS ONE on 3.6%. Seven leads the week with a share of 24.5%, from Nine on 21.9% and Ten with 20.2%.
  • Digital: A reasonable night with a total FTA share for the nine channels of 15.8%. GO won with 4.4%, from 7TWO on 3.6% and 7Mate on 2.7%. ABC 2 and Gem had 1.4% each, SBS TWO was on 0.8% and ONE, ABC 3 and News 24 all finished with a share of 0.5% each. GO leads the week with 3.9% from 7Mate on 2.7% and 7TWO with 2.4%.
  • Pay TV: Seven won with a share of 27.0% for its three channels, from Nine on 21.7% (3), Ten with 18.4% (2), Pay TV and its 100-plus channels, 14.0%, the ABC (4), 12.7% and SBS (2), on 3.6%. That left the 14 FTA channels sharing 86%, made up of 13.0% for the digital channels and 73.0% for the five main channels. Foxtel’s share ranged from the usual low (9.9% in Adelaide) to a solid 16.0% in Sydney.
  • Regional: Prime/7Qld won with a share of 31.7%, from WIN/NBN on 28.0%, SC Ten on 21.7%, the ABC, 14.0% and SBS on 4.6%. Prime/7Qld won the main channels with a share of 25.8% with WIN/NBN on 21.7% and SAC Ten on 21.3%. GO won the digitals with 4.9%, from 7TWO on 3.8% and 7Mate on 2.1%. The nine FTA digital channels had a share of 15.9%. Prime/7Qld lead the week with 30.5%, from WIN/NBN on 28.7%.

Major Markets: Ten was stronger than Nine in a couple of key centres. Brisbane viewers love Top Gear Australia, but not Packed to the Rafters. Seven’s strength in Sydney continues and it’s the market to win because of its size.

  • Sydney: It was Seven from Nine and Ten overall and in the main channels. 7TWO won the digitals from GO and 7Mate. The digitals had an FTA share of 12.4%. Seven leads the week from Nine and Ten.
  • Melbourne: Seven won here, both overall and the main channels (Nine is usually stronger). GO won the digitals from 7Mate and 7TWO. Nine leads the week from Seven and Ten. The digital channels had an FTA share of 17.3%.
  • Brisbane: Nine won overall and in the main channels, with Seven second and then Ten. GO won the digitals from 7Mate and 7TWO. The nine digital channels had an FTA share of 16.5%. Seven leads the week from Nine and Ten.
  • Adelaide: It was Seven from Nine and Ten overall, and Seven from Ten and Nine in the main channels. GO won the digitals from 7TWO and 7Mate. The digitals had a total FTA share of 18.9%. Seven leads the week from Nine and Ten.
  • Perth: Seven won overall and in the main channels, with Ten second and Nine third. GO won the digitals from 7TWO and 7Mate. The digitals had an FTA share of 14.6%. Seven leads the week from Nine and Ten.

(All shares on the basis of combined overnight 6pm to midnight All People)

Glenn Dyer’s comments: I had the pleasure of watching one of the best TV news and current affairs reports for ages. It was Stephen McDonell’s report for Foreign Correspondent on pollution in China. It should be a shoo-in for a Walkley next year.

We’ve had plenty of written and radio reports on pollution and thuggish behaviour in China, but this put pictures to it, and to the people fighting for better conditions against big companies and the Government. So all of you owners of iPads, iPhones and iPods take a guilty look at the Apple logos on them, they could have caused terrible pain and agony to Chinese workers.

It also tells us why the ABC remains best placed to run the Australia Network. Sky News has trumpeted the fact that it has signs agreements with the Chinese Government TV group, and how it has links to Sky News in London and US Networks. None could have reported to such a high level like McDonnell did last night, and for Australian and Asian audiences.

TONIGHT: The fading The Librarians on the ABC at 8.30pm. Avoid Strictly Speaking. The Block on Nine at 7.30pm. Glee on Ten at 7.30pm. Seven has City Homicide.

Source: OzTAM, TV Networks reports