THE ABC local television news bulletin, fronted by Virginia Haussegger, has lost almost half its average nightly viewers, according to a summary of the year’s TV ratings.

In advertising agency Grey Canberra’s published wrap-up of the year’s Regional TAM, 2011 survey numbers, the ABC News bulletin drops from an average nightly audience of 30,523 in 2010 to 16,096 in 2011.

WIN News remains the leader in Canberra’s local television news, this year attracting an average nightly audience of 36,911, a lift from last year’s 34,784.

Grey Canberra general manager Warren Apps said he was surprised by the dramatic drop in numbers for the local ABC bulletin.

“They were always a dominant force,” he said.

“They’ve made no obvious change to the line-up and, in lots of ways the ABC have the kind of bulletin that has the most succinct line-up of local, national and international news.”

He said one of the possible reasons of a decline in viewers for the ABC was the increase “strip programming” by commercial stations.

“Take ‘The Block’ as an example, it ran every night at 7.30pm, after the national news, local news and current affairs programing,” he said.

ABC Canberra news editor John Mulhall said there would be no dramatic changes to the ABC News bulletin in the New Year nor any changes to its presenters or reporting staff.

WIN Television was Canberra’s most-watched television network in 2011, taking 27.4 per cent of the all viewing share. Followed by Prime7 network with 23.8 per cent, ABC with 23.3 per cent, SC Ten Network with 19.1 per cent and SBS with 6.4 per cent.