ABC iview has maintained its pole position as the most used free-to-air internet TV site in 2015.
ABC iview hit a new record in November with more than 40 million program plays (which is more than double the program plays from the same time last year) and had over 2 million visitors to its site and apps each month.
Total ABC prime-time share was stable year-on-year at 14.3 per cent, and ABC TV remained the leading daytime network, according to a company statement.
The ABC KIDS iview app, launched in March, had over half a million downloads.
ABC Television director, Richard Finlayson, said the national broadcaster went into the year acknowledging that audience viewing habits were shifting.
"We had to reflect this in our programming, delivery platforms and the way in which we reported on audiences, and I’m delighted with the results on all fronts,” he said.
“Our success is testament to the value and importance of audiences Australia wide and of all ages place on the ABC as the home of Australian stories, culture and conversations.
"We will remain true to this fundamental audience need and in 2016 will continue to lead the way with a diverse slate of entertaining, challenging and informative programs, offered when and where viewers want to watch.”
In other highlights ABC TV’s 2014 New Year’s Eve coverage reached four million Australians.
A total of 7.3 million Australians tuned to ABC and ABC iview across the six game tournament, making Asian Cup the most watched ABC TV program for 2015.
ABC TV Anzac Day coverage reached 3.6 million people – with a million more viewers tuning in year-on-year.
ABC TV was the leading network for Anzac Day coverage. There were more than 260,000 plays of Anzac Day coverage and featured programming on ABC iview.
Returning favourite series and stalwarts from the news and current affairs stable proved popular and audiences also formed new loyalties with intriguing new ABC dramas and documentaries.
The latest series of The Doctor Blake Mysteries and Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries were among the most popular programs on ABC in 2015.
Doctor Blake was the highest ranked Australian drama on ABC TV, achieving an audience of 1.6 million and 512,000 total iview plays, with Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries at 1.4 million and 600,000 total iview plays.
Original and distinctive new dramas this year included The Secret River, Glitch, Hiding and The Beautiful Lie.
With a broadcast audience of 1.2 million and an average 90,000 iview plays per episode, The Secret River was among the top 10 locally produced ABC programs for the year.
Glitch delivered a combined average audience of 744,000 on ABC TV and proved particularly popular with ABC iview audiences: 1.2 million program plays were recorded across the series, averaging almost 200,000 plays per episode.
It was the most watched non-kids program on ABC iview this year.
Series 2 of Utopia increased its broadcast audience by 26 per cent (to 1.3 million) and recorded an average 96,000 iview plays per episode (767,000 total), making it the most watched Australian comedy in 2015.
Gruen drew an audience of 1.4 million and a total of 700,000 iview plays.
Shaun Micallef’s Mad as Hell had its best series to date with 1.1 million across both metro and regional markets, and 549,000 total plays on iview.
Kitchen Cabinet and Julia Zemiro’s Home Delivery also grew their audiences this year.
New entertainment entrant The Weekly with Charlie Pickering achieved a combined broadcast audience of 942,000 and was one of the most viewed programs on iview with 834,000 plays.
ABC TV’s news and current affairs line-up on Monday evenings drew larger audiences this year.
Four Corners peaked at 1.4 million on September 21 with Dethroning Tony Abbott and the 2015 series average was up 10 per cent on last year.
Q&A (+14 per cent), Australian Story (+6 per cent) and Media Watch (+10 per cent) also delivered higher audiences in 2015.
Political series, The Killing Season, achieved an audience of 1.5 million on ABC and more than 500,000 plays online.
ABC’s rolling coverage of the Liberal Leadership Challenge (September 14), drew a combined 4.9 million viewers across both ABC and ABC News 24, and saw 200,000 live streams on ABC iview and ABC News.
Factual series Redesign My Brain and Life on the Reef both enjoyed audiences over a million while new program Restoration Australia drew a combined audience of 979,000.
Three-part arts series Stop Laughing…This Is Serious attracted an audience of 1.1 million, and 133,000 total iview plays. ABC2’s factual special Australians on Drugs was among the top five ABC2 programs of the year.
For the younger audiences, ABC3’s top program (year-to-date) among 5-12s was local production Smackdown Games with a combined metro and regional audience of 117,000.
Other program highlights were Studio 3, Wallace & Gromit, Nowhere Boys and new comedy Little Lunch. Also premiering this year on ABC3 were Ready for This, Tashi and The New Adventures of Figaro Pho.
ABC3 plays on ABC iview in 2015 were up 9 per cent on last year.
Activity peaked during school holidays with ABC iview’s ABC3 Best Fest, featuring complete series of ABC3’s most popular programs.