Mediaweek Industry Awards: Best Multichannel

Posted on 14 January 2020

• A key to the channel’s success is first run Aussie content like Outback Truckers and Fat Pizza: Back in Business

This is a new award that wasn’t featured in last year’s Mediaweek Industry Awards – the award for Best Multichannel and the winner of the inaugural award is 7mate. It was a good year for the male-focused multichannel. Not just for winning our popular vote but also 2019 saw the channel achieve:

• It’s 4th consecutive year of leadership in People 25-54
• It’s 8th consecutive year of leadership in Men 16-54
• It’s 8th consecutive year of leadership in Men 25-54
• It’s 2nd consecutive year of leadership in Men Under 50
• It’s 2nd consecutive year of leadership in Total People
• A commercial shares of over 8% for all male demos
• 7mate reached over 1 million Men 16-54 nationally every week
• 7mate had nine of the top 10 shows for Men 16-54

A key to the channel’s success is first run Aussie content like Outback Truckers and Fat Pizza: Back in Business. Below is the top 10 for the channel’s regular programming (metro average):

• Fat Pizza: Back In Business 210,141
• Outback Truckers 195,610
• Towies 142,413
• Full Custom Garage 132,834
• Highway Patrol (R) 119,027
• Vegas Rat Rods 110,656
• Supertruckers 109,187
• Counting Cars 103,645
• Talking Footy 100,219
• Pawn Stars 99,473

The channel also had success with movies with the most-watched flick of the year being Guardians of the Galaxy with 220,976 viewers, and sport with the most-watched match being Seven’s AFL: Friday Night Football Finals which had 303,682 viewers.

Billy Betts, head of 7mate & 7flix content and programming said: “Our commitment to Australian programs like Outback Truckers and Fat Pizza: Back In Business is what sets us apart from other multi-channels, and the results show that. With a strategic schedule of sport, movies, and themed programming blocks, 7mate will continue to grow in 2020 and dominate the key audience demographics. Thank you to our viewers and industry colleagues for the award, we will celebrate by turning 7mate HD this Thursday, Jan 16.”

SBS TV presenters [L-R] Lucy Zelic (sport), Alice Matthews (The Feed), Janice Petersen (SBS News) and Jenny Brockie (Insight)

Coming second this year is SBS Viceland which launched on 15 November 2016 taking the place of SBS 2 on TV and online platforms. The channel is a partnership between SBS Australia and youth media company Vice.

One of the key shows to feature on SBS Viceland among the channels news, sports, and entertainment lineup is The Feed, which replaced its daily half-hour format with a new one-hour weekly edition for 2019. The program also added a new host in Alice Matthews replacing the departing Jan Fran.

In third place is 9Go! which marked ten years on the air in 2019. The channel continued to offer up a mix of comedy, reality, entertainment, movies, animation, and drama aimed towards a young demographic.

Related Items:7mate, 9Go, Mediaweek Industry Awards, SBS Viceland