After a 16-year reign at the top of the morning ratings, it looks like the 'Today' show may have finally met its match. The final numbers won't be released until later this week, but preliminary tallies show ABC's 'Good Morning America' with a tiny viewership edge over the NBC stalwart.

For the week of April 9, 'GMA' averaged 5.147 million viewers, compared to the 5.134 million who tuned in to 'Today.' That's a difference of just 13,000, but even though it's not yet set in stone, both networks are talking about the historic turn of events.

Ever the cautious optimist, 'GMA' senior executive producer Tom Cibrowski said, “This is an exciting day but we will save any celebrating for when the final numbers come in on Thursday."

Meanwhile, Jim Bell, executive producer of 'Today,' released a statement that said in part, “[Our] 852-week winning streak had taken on a life of its own and as odd as it is to see it end, we should acknowledge just how remarkable it has been. So as we tip our caps to the team at 'Good Morning America,' we can also take a bow ourselves and recognize the work done by countless staffers for so long ... While the streak has been wonderful affirmation of our work, it has never defined us, and we will continue to innovate, take chances and lead the way.”

In recent weeks, 'GMA' has smelled blood in the water -- three times in the last month, the morning program held the first-place slot twice during the course of the week, but fell short in total numbers when the entire week's viewership was accounted for.

But no matter the exact counts, one thing that's known for sure is the numbers for 'GMA' are up 7 percent compared to this week last year, while 'Today' has seen its numbers fall by 9 percent.

Sounds like longtime 'Today' host Matt Lauer, who just inked a new multi-year deal with the show that will reportedly net him an annual salary of $25 million, has his work cut out for him.

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