James Spader in The Black List. For the first time in the history of the current OzTam ratings system, the ABC finished in third place in the national, all-people measure, relegating Ten's suite of channels to fourth place ahead of only SBS. ''I'd be lying if I said it didn't feel good and it feels like an appropriate place to be, for the ABC to be up there in the mix of the other networks,'' ABC director of TV Richard Finlayson says of the historic win. But behind those catchy headlines rest some bigger and more significant stories about the year's ratings. Let's start with the long-standing grudge match between Seven and Nine.

The Voice star Harrison Craig. While Seven justly boasts about its win, the fact remains it arrived there largely on the back of the 55-plus audience (and possibly even the upper reaches of that demographic). In the key 25-to-54, 18-to-49 and 16-to-39 demographics generally favoured by the advertising industry, the Nine Network as a whole and its main channel snared more viewers than Seven and its flagship channel. In other words, Nine won just about everything but all people. Lance Franklin celebrates winning the 2013 AFL Grand Final. Credit:Quinn Rooney Nine's network share across free television channels in 6pm-to-midnight viewing was 31.9 per cent in 25 to 54, 32.6 per cent in 18 to 49 and 33.6 per cent in 16 to 39. By contrast, Seven's share in 25 to 54 and 18 to 49 was 30.4 per cent and 30.1 per cent in 16 to 39.

''The one stat that sums up Nine this year,'' says its director of programming, Andrew Backwell, ''is Nine is the most watched network of people under 65. ''Nine has won all audience until the age of 65. Seven's dominance in 65-plus … is the stat that allows them to say they've won the year in total people. That's OzTam numbers, not Nine spin,'' Backwell adds cautiously. ''The significant thing is you don't commercialise those older viewers to the same level you commercialise young viewers.'' That view is not shared by Backwell's counterpart at Seven, Angus Ross. ''I'd rather be No. 1 [in 25-54], but the fact that we've grown our share this year is still a good result and we are still the No. 1 network, the most watched network in Australia and our sales force does an amazing job of monetising [the older audience]'', he says, adding that ''40 to 64-year-olds are the wealthiest people in the country''.

Ross also cites the resurgence of Sunrise in Melbourne in the second half of 2013 as a notable achievement. ''I think it's the most dominant it's ever been in Melbourne.'' Ross sheets Seven's two share-point loss in Sydney in the 16-to-39 audience to the blokey 7Mate multichannel. ''7Mate needs to perform more strongly in this market. I would suggest that the penetration of Foxtel and 7Mate, [being] a HD channel and not available across the Foxtel platform, is problematic for us. Also, it was a very strong season of rugby league this year.'' Nine also claimed slim to substantial wins in the still-important 6pm news slot in the major east-coast markets of Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, as well as in the five capitals, where its Monday-to-Friday editions averaged 1.214 million viewers to Seven's 1.174 million. On weekends, the margin is minimal: 1.179 million (Nine) to 1.1.75 million (Seven).

In Brisbane, the resurgent Nine News won 21 of the 40 weeks, its first win since 2006. It also won Sydney for the third consecutive year, while its country-mile dominance in Melbourne, where it averaged 429,000 viewers each weeknight in 2013, compared with Seven News' 306,000, continues to be a thorn in the side of the otherwise-victorious channel. However, Seven's unassailable grip on Adelaide and Perth continues, with 34.5 per cent and 36.3 per cent, respectively, of the five-network, free-TV market. As is often the case with TV ratings, the take-home messages are in the macro detail rather than the headlines. With its 13.5 per cent share of 6pm-to-midnight viewing, ABC1 convincingly trounced the beleaguered Ten. In Perth, Aunty even managed to claim second spot. Tempting though it might be to leap to the conclusion Ten's losses are ABC's gain, the public broadcaster's achievement was also largely on the back of the older audience.

When it comes to 25 to 54-year-olds, Ten still commands roughly double the number of viewers of ABC1 in Sydney and Melbourne. Even in Brisbane, where Ten shed 2.9 per cent of those viewers, it is five points ahead of ABC1. Not that Ten would have derived any pleasure looking at the end-of-year data. Despite senior management's claims of audience growth and a year-long barrage of press releases citing unique audience measures, the network lost viewers across all day parts, as well as 6pm-to-midnight viewing. The biggest losses were on its main channel. Overall, Ten, One and Eleven lost 2.5 percentage points of market share from the previous year in the target 25-to-54 audience across the five metro capitals. Not one of its regular programs made the top 40 shows of the year, while even in drama, nominally one of the network's strengths, only two shows, Under The Dome at 26 and Offspring at 40, made it to the top 40 list of drama program averages. By contrast ABC1 had nine shows on the list. But of particular alarm to Ten would be its surrendering of the 16-to-39 demographic that once made it the most lucrative channel in Australia. These days, it commands only 22 per cent, compared with Nine's 33 and Seven's 30 in night-time viewing.

While conscious of and grateful for the 50-plus audience that flocks to ABC1, Finlayson acknowledges the need to broaden the public broadcaster's appeal to a younger demographic. He says that will happen not only through ABC2, whose primetime share increased in 2013, but through the main channel's drama, factual and entertainment slate with programs such as the renewed Time Of Our Lives, Anzac Girls - which Finlayson likens to the landmark Brides of Christ - and Chris Lilley's new show, Jonah. Finlayson says the ABC is ''very conscious that we find it hard to reach certain parts of the community''. ''If you look at Sydney, we have fantastic audience share in and around inner west and North Shore, but once you get out further west, we struggle. There is a sense I think among a significant part of the audience that the ABC is not really for them. I think that's something we need to address … quite seriously.'' Seven's Ross expects 2014's renewed competition will be built upon multi-night reality shows. ''The success of those shows drives the fortune of the shows that follow them. My Kitchen Rules was massive for us - the final was the biggest event on TV this year. We got a new franchise off the deck in House Rules. X-Factor grew again. Those tentpoles shows are what drive the schedules outside of sport.'' Meanwhile, Ten's bid to crack the 25-to-49 market looks like wishful thinking.

Top 20 events in 2013 1. My Kitchen Rules, winner announced (7) 3.27m 2. The Block Sky High, winner announced (9) 3.16m 3. AFL on Seven, grand final (7) 2.71m 4. The Block Sky High, Auctions 2.66m

5. State of Origin Rugby League, match 3 (9) 2.6m 6. AFL on Seven, grand final presentations, 2.47m 7. State of Origin Rugby League, match 1 2.45m 8. The X Factor Grand Final, winner announced (7) 2.4m 9. The Voice Grand Final, winner announced (9) 2.38mm

10. The Melbourne Cup, the race (7) 2.31m 11. The X Factor, grand final 2.29m 12. My Kitchen Rules, grand final (7) 2.25m 13. State of Origin Rugby League, match 2 2.25m 14. Rugby League Grand Final (9) 2.24m

15. The Block: All Stars, winner announced (9) 2.21m 16. The Block Sky High, grand final (9) 2.18m 17. The Voice, Wednesday 2.12m 18. The Voice, grand final 2.09m 19. The X Factor, grand final performance 2.07m

20. The Block: All Stars, auction 2.07m Top 10 drama in 2013 1. Downton Abbey (7) 1.49m 2. A Place to Call Home (7) 1.47m 3. Packed To The Rafters (7) 1.46m

4. The Blacklist (7) 1.42m 5. Revenge (7) 1.28m 6. New Tricks (ABC1) 1.18m 7. House Husbands (9) 1.18m 8. Winners & Losers (7) 1.11m

9. Broadchurch (ABC1) 1.09m 10. Under The Dome (10) 1.08m Top 10 sport in 2013 1. AFL Grand Final (7) 2.71m 2. State of Origin, NSW v Qld, 3rd match (9) 2.6m

3. AFL Grand Final, presentations 2.47m 4. State of Origin, NSW v Qld 1st match 2.45m 5. The 2013 Melbourne Cup Carnival, the race (7) 2.31m 6. State of Origin, Qld v NSW, 2nd match 2.25m 7. Rugby League Grand Final (9) 2.24m

8. 2013 Australian Open, men's final (7) 2.12m 9. AFL Grand Final: On The Ground (7) 1.97m 10. State of Origin, NSW v Qld 1st match 1.82m Top 20 series in 2013 1. The Voice (9) 1.96m

2. My Kitchen Rules (7) 1.92m 3. The X Factor (7) 1.61m 4. Downton Abbey (7) 1.49m 5. Hamish & Andy's Gap Year Asia (9) 1.49m 6. A Place To Call Home (7) 1.47m

7. Packed To The Rafters (7) 1.47m 8. The Blacklist (7) 1.4m 9. The Block Sky High (9) 1.37m 10. Revenge (7) 1.28m 11. The Block: All Stars (9) 1.25m

12. Sunday Night (7) 1.22m 13. 60 Minutes (9) 1.21m 14. Gruen Nation (ABC1) 1.21m 15. Dancing With The Stars (7) 1.2m 16. House Rules (7) 1.19m

17. The Force - Behind The Line (7) 1.19m 18. New Tricks (ABC1) 1.18m 19. House Husbands (9) 1.18m 20. Nine News (9) 1.18m