Kyle and Jackie O have decided to remain with ARN for the next 10 years. However, the fine print of the deal remains in discussion with the ratings-winning multi-award-winners expressing a desire to have their program networked live into Melbourne.
ARN’s challenge is how to accommodate the hosts’ ambition of having their show networked live into Melbourne as part of a plan to present a national breakfast show. A Sydney and Melbourne breakfast show – the holy grail which has eluded broadcasters on commercial radio in Australia.
ARN board approval
The appeal of the nation’s hottest FM breakfast show is understood by the board of ASX-listed ARN. The company has run the scenario of what would happen if they let the duo return to SCA. ARN would make a major short-term cash saving. But it would lose the halo effect that Kyle and Jackie O bring via their daily live breakfast show, The Kyle and Jackie O Hour of Power syndicated 60-minute highlight show and The Kyle and Jackie O podcast.
ARN chairman Hamish McLennan is believed to be a fan who realises the importance of the brand for the company. Former agency boss Belinda Rowe, also a board member, grasps the commercial appeal of the duo and she sits on the remuneration committee at ARN which examines the salaries. One board member who will be looking closely is former Grant Broadcasters chief executive Alison Cameron who joined the board after ARN acquired her family-owned regional network of stations. Salaries in regional radio are a fraction of what metro breakfast stars get for the same job, but for a significantly smaller audience.
See also: Inside Kyle & Jackie’s $200m ‘mega deal’: How breakfast radio stars negotiate
KIIS 106.5 team celebrate ACRAs win. Top photo: Jackie and her K&J team with their latest ACRA Award trophy
The networking question: ARN’s Kyle and Jackie O options
To give Kyle and Jackie a live national audience there are a number of options for ARN.
1. The show is already live globally of course via the iHeartRadio app where audiences can, and do, tune into Sydney’s #1 FM breakfast show. ARN could promote that listening experience better or even give the duo their own app which streams the show live and then repeats it across the day with extra Best Of highlights.
2. Launch a dedicated Kyle and Jackie O DAB+ station. This would depend on the bandwidth being available. If there wasn’t existing capacity, ARN could always rebrand one of its existing DAB+ stations. The show could stream live, then be repeated across the day. Members of the K&J team could also get their own programs. Who wouldn’t tune in for The Intern Pete Hour?
3. Dump the existing Melbourne show Jase and Lauren. This is the riskiest option, but perhaps the one that would best satisfy Kyle Sandilands. Commenting in August on rumours about K&J going national, Jason Hawkins said:
“I called Kyle yesterday straight after the show and I asked him straight and he confirmed to me no deal has been made.
“It’s not new news that he wants to take their show national, he’s been saying that for years and who knows what will happen in the future but at the moment no deal has been made.”
Hawkins and some of the KIIS 101.1 team were at the ACRAs in Sydney on Saturday night and there was no hint of his imminent departure from the airwaves.
One interesting connection Hawkins has is he is managed by Jackie O’s manager – Gemma O’Neill and her boutique talent management company Gemmie Agency. Could Hawkins return to the extended Kyle and Jackie O family and reprise his role as The Labrat?
Pushing earnings above $200m
One report has suggested incentive bonuses and shares in ARN could push a new 10-year contract for the hosts well above $200m. There are precedents for giving broadcasters equity in a business. Former SCA radio hosts Hamish and Andy, and also Rove McManus, both negotiated contracts that saw shares issued to the broadcasters. Hamish and Andy are still with SCA of course, having signed a new contract late in 2022.