Matt Lauer announced yesterday that he has renewed his contract for his top-rated national morning show, NBC’s ‘Today,’ Deadline is reporting. His new contract will begin when his current contract expires at the end of the year. The news of the host’s new long-term contract comes as ‘Today’s rival show, ABC’s ‘Good Morning America,’ has significantly closed the ratings gap over the past year.

The news comes after questions were raised last year when Lauer’s former co-host, Meredith Vieira, left ‘Today.’ Rumors circulated that Ryan Seacrest would replace Lauer after the ‘American Idol’ host met with ‘Today’s executive producer. The reports were proven false when Seacrest visited the show on Wednesday and spoke with Lauer, and said “I see you doing this for as long as you want to.” Lauer added there’s no tension between them.

Written by: Karen Benardello