Mat Baxter is joining the marketing investment analytics company Mutinex as its APAC CEO, following the former Initiative and Huge boss’ return to Australia earlier this year.

“I did not want to fall back into a well-trodden track of doing the agency thing. I really made a point of that,” he told Mediaweek of deciding to join the disruptor led by Henry Innis. “I said publicly that I would not do anything that isn’t hyper-disruptive.

“This was the only thing I saw that was hyper-disruptive, that got me excited. When Henry showed me the product, I was like, fuck, I’m doing this 100%.”

Baxter has also invested $500,000 in the business, a “no brainer” decision: “Number one, I want to make money, of course. But number two, because I believe in the business, I wanted to put capital into the business because I think it’s a great investment.”

Baxter begins as APAC CEO immediately. Innis, who now steps up to a global CEO role, didn’t pull any punches when describing the impact he expects Baxter to make, quickly.

“You don’t hire leaders like Mat Baxter unless you know you’re strapping in for a roller coaster ride of growth,” Innis told Mediaweek.

“Mat is going to ship product at such a relentless rate that there will be no other tech company shipping product as quickly as us within six months. There will also be no other product getting customers to get value out of it as quickly in six months. 

“If that’s the partnership that we form, all I’d say is good luck to anybody else.”

Baxter said he sees part of his role as harnessing and focusing Mutinex co-founders’ [Innis and Matt Farrugia] genius on a world-class product.

“This product as a whole is a killer app, and my job is to share it with as many clients as I can and to get the most commercial value and client value out of it that I possibly can. That’s why I’m pumped.”

‘I want to be with people who are disruptive and difficult’

Baxter shared that there was also an “emotional” motivation for his decision to join Mutinex.

“I haven’t felt like I’ve met a kindred sort of spirit for a long time in my career. But for the first time since Naked [Communications, which was founded 20 years ago this month], after I met with Henry Innis and Matt Farrugia, I walked away, and I was excited about this,” he said. 

“It’s an intangible excitement that is different to the corporate role and the normal thing that would motivate me.

“I want to be with people who are disruptive and difficult. They will be like, all founders are difficult. They’ve all got their own ideas and opinions about stuff, but that’s what makes the job exciting. 

“I am genuinely excited about it, and that is a long time coming – it’s been 15 or 20 years. I’m also motivated by getting back into something where I really feel like we can shape the industry.”

‘I will drive the business in the way that I need’

Baxter plans to hit the ground running at Mutinex by establishing “a hyper-engaging and exciting mission” and having one-on-one meetings with every individual during his first two weeks.

“[The mission] has to be understood by everybody, not just Henry, me, and Matt. From the coder who’s just started with us to the senior leadership, that mission will create the motivation.”

The second part of his plan is to work on winning the trust and confidence of the business’ people.

“That’s not done in five days, but it starts on day one,” Baxter said. “I’ve told the guys I want to have a quick get-together with the whole company on my first day. I will give people my commitment to what I want to achieve and what I hope they will give me back in return.”

Baxter said his job is to keep the 60-plus people in the business “as energised, enthused, and motivated as possible and to get the best product out of them that I possibly can.”

“That’s my job, that’s what I’ll do – and I’ll throw a few grenades in there, as you know,” he joked.

“I will drive the business in the way that I need. We have to call things out, hold ourselves accountable and drive the business aggressively.”

‘I’m back with the industry’

Baxter’s appointment is a major coup for co-founders Innis and Farrugia, who plan to grow Mutinex in New York and spend more time stateside.

Innis said the process for finding an APAC CEO began six months ago.

“We were looking for someone with industry experience who deeply understood the problem and the problem faced by customers first and foremost, and then the benefits that a technology and product-led approach would take to solving these problems at scale.

“On top of that, we also had a cultural fit and the ability to actually take what we were doing from a product perspective and amplify it both in the market and in the customer benefits that we’re positioned to market.”

Farrugia, chief customer officer, echoed Innis’ sentiment and said with the business’ expansion, Mutinex needed a “seasoned professional” to helm APAC.

“Henry and I know our strengths; we know our limitations as we grow globally. In doing that, we feel we’ve absolutely got that in Mat,” he said.

Baxter’s return to the Australian industry after eight years with Huge in New York continues the reshaping of the local industry landscape. Last week, Baxter’s former home Initiative lost its three most senior leaders with Melissa Fein, Sam Geer, and Chris Colter defecting to Accenture Song.

“I love the vibrancy and the energy in Australia,” Baxter said. “Australia punches well above its weight. So, Australia is my home. I love coming back. I’m back with family. I’m back with the industry.”

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Top image: Baxter and Innis

Seven West Media has promoted Adelaide news director Chris Salter to fill the gap created by Shaun Menegola‘s exit.

Salter becomes director of news at Seven Melbourne after six years at Seven in Adelaide, as the network also announces a new executive producer for Spotlight: Gemma Williams.

“Chris has done an amazing job in Adelaide, where 7NEWS has been #1 for more than 13 years,” director of news and current affairs and Seven West Media editor-in-chief, Anthony De Ceglie, said.

“I’m really pleased that he has agreed to take this new role and I know he is going to make a huge mark on 7NEWS Melbourne as we endeavour to think differently about the future of our platforms.”

Salter added he “can’t wait to roll up my sleeves and get to work alongside the many brilliant people who make up the Melbourne newsroom.

“We’ll work hard for the people of Victoria to produce broadcast and digital offerings that inform and entertain. We’ll be the true voice of Victoria.”

Salter’s Adelaide successor will be announced soon.

Veteran Menegola resigned recently, saying it was “entirely my decision and one I’ve been thinking about for a long time. It’s not one driven by anything else other than the fact that I’m looking to take a break.”

Menegola will “stick around for quite a while” to give a robust handover, De Ceglie told Mediaweek two weeks ago. “Anyone who knows Shaun knows that his dedication to the news means he won’t be taking his foot off the pedal at all.

“My gut feeling is there’s an excellent team around Shaun and an excellent team around the country. So there’ll be a lot of internal candidates for that. That’s obviously one of the most plum spots in Seven News. So we’ll run a process and make sure the best person possible takes on the job … we’re not wanting talent, put it that way.”

Williams, who was previously Sydney bureau chief for Nine’s A Current Affair, replaces Mark Llewellyn as EP at Spotlight, and will report to De Ceglie. Llewellyn left the program amidst its involvement in Bruce Lehrmann’s defamation case against 10 and Lisa Wilkinson.

Williams has also been a producer for 2GB’s Ben Fordham, and assistant chief of staff at Nine News Sydney.

De Ceglie said Williams was “a next-generation talent and part of a strategy to recruit young leaders to Seven, setting up the news and current affairs team for the future.”

Williams said news and current affairs is her passion.

“It’s a great privilege to join such an experienced team who will continue to bring viewers unmissable major investigations and breaking news events from across Australia and around the globe,” she said.

Recently, De Ceglie told Mediaweek his ambition for his new role is to integrate The Nightly into Seven’s 6pm bulletins, and make the most of having “the best video in Australia”.

“In 2024, it’s about bringing all of that together into one unified voice across all our assets, especially digital. Right now, for example, everyone agrees that video is king. Well, Seven West Media produces the best video in Australia every single day and night.

“It’s about how we create synergies with that video across broadcast and digital, and when I say digital, I mean everything from our mothership 7news website to our TikTok accounts for certain shows or states or regions. There is no one that can beat us on video creation in the country. And that should be an advertiser’s and a marketer’s dream.”

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Top image: De Ceglie

36 Months, the movement launched by Michael ‘Wippa’ Wipfli and Rob Galluzzo this week to raise the social media citizenship age from 13 to 16, isn’t about “banning social media”, the pair tell Mediaweek. 

The pro bono social change movement, supported by News Corp Australia and Nova, aims to change federal legislation, by calling on families, community leaders, and educators to sign the 36 Months change.org petition, which will then be presented to parliament.

“It’s so interesting just seeing all of the headlines in the press over the weekend, and some of them seem quite naive to be honest,” says Galluzzo, the founder of production company FINCH.

“We are not anti Facebook, and we’re not anti Instagram. This is not an attack on social media.

“36 months is very targeted in its ambition.”

That ambition is defined by two phases: “Our first phase is to raise the age threshold of social media citizenship,” Galluzo continues.

“When we say social media, we mean any social network that encourages interactive engagement through addictive features.”

Implementing age verification is already viable, notes Wipfli. Based on the duo’s conversations with government, the technology would involve two-factor verification.

“It’s not hard to do,” he says. 

“Banks are doing it, many platforms are doing it. That ID verification is not a challenging piece of tech. That exists.”

The pair were brought together by their existing partnerships and shared concern as fathers. “Forever since I’ve known Rob, we play with all sorts of ideas and toys and things we could possibly do together,” Wiplfi explains.

When they realised the magnitude of the social media crisis for adolescents in Australia, they felt a call to action.

“I think we both gained some education around it really quickly and understood if not us, then who? Something had to happen.

“It’s exciting to think that we could pinch that 36 months back, and give it back to the families to build and reconnect.”

Wipfli describes the consistent and unnerving sentiment from his conversations in the public arena surrounding social media usage for adolescents as an “absolute concern.”

“It seems to be the natural conversation, whether it’s at school or whether you’re on the sidelines with your kids at a football game, whatever it might be, whenever social media is brought up around adolescence, the adolescent brain and teenagers: it’s concern. It’s absolute concern.

“I remember when I first read about some of the states considering this in the US, and my heart skipped a beat. I thought, imagine if we could have that here. Imagine if between the age of 13 and 16, that 36 months, you are allowed to develop into the person that you want to be and with the right influence from the safety of your home. And from people that loved you not be force fed something by a smart algorithm.

“Rob and I are both dads, we put our heads together and thought now’s the time, let’s pull the trigger on this.

“I knew I was able to create some platforms to step on and I know, with Rob’s background in production, and also advertising, he was able to get the message out there, and he was able to get the right message out there.”

He summarises the motivation: “How can we free up the kids so they can get to know themselves before the rest of the world does?

“It wouldn’t surprise me if the social media companies jumped first and said, ‘absolutely, we’ll play ball.’

“For one, they don’t want to be forced into his decision. Secondly, they’re not going to want that headline worldwide. They want to be able to look good.”

According to Raising Children Network, the rise of social media usage has been linked to mental health issues, cyberbullying, anxiety, depression, self-harm, and suicide in Australian teenagers. 

News Corp research found that 70% of Australian teenagers have had negative experiences using social media, and a third have been exposed to disturbing or traumatic content. A quarter have been cyber-bullied or harassed. 1 in 10 have been victim of revenge porn.

Galluzzo explains how the movement will roll out. Phase one is about changing legislation, and phase two about offering families and educators tools and initiatives to better connect with teens.

“That phase two becomes very important, very positive,” he says, “and it’s about building opportunities for Australian families to stay better connected.”

Wipfli and Galluzzo have been in conversations with the government and recruited key figures from entertainment, education, and politics to back the cause.

Wipfli jokes about how he onboarded personal mate, former NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet: “I thought, who has the most kids in New South Wales? And he’s got seven.”

“When Rob and I sat down with him he said, ‘Guys, stop talking. You don’t need to sell it to me. I get it. I get it completely’. So Dom and I sat down with News Corp, and we invited them to come on our campaign to help spread the word.”

He adds about their other supporting partner: “Nova is obviously the natural fit in the home for me, I’ve been there for 13 years. When I sat down with Nova, they said, ‘absolutely. We need to back this.’”

ABC’s parenting psychologist, Maggie Dent, and media personality Hamish Blake are also lending their names to the cause, featuring on the upcoming 36 Months panel activation at South by South West Sydney in October.

The partnership will be long-lasting, Galluzzo adds: “This is a commitment for the next few years to make this change… There is plenty of work to be done. We’re in it for the long haul.

“We’re building something of value. This is not just a headline for this week.”

He concedes that, somewhat ironically, some resources can be found on 36 Month’s Instagram, designed for parents to opt in and fill that 36 month gap with value.

Wipfli says of the ultimate goal: “It’s a kid that can go to school, and if things are bad at school, it can be left at the gate, he’s got a chance, she’s got a chance, to come through, shut the front door, and know that they’re in a safe place that’s loved, know that they’re in a safe home, and they can leave everything behind and focus on what they want at home and what their interests might be. Not a kid that comes home and the bullying continues.

“I don’t want teenagers to feel that their only worth is based on how they’re judged on a ridiculous world that they might be living online. To go to bed thinking, ‘am I good enough?’ based on reactions from social media, and then waking up to check again to see if there’s any change. That is not a healthy thing for kids.”

Wipfli quotes Professor Scott Galloway: “We’ll look back on this and say, what have we done to our kids?

“In recent times, we know that there’s a period there which has had a serious impact. But I don’t think it’s too late. I think it’s a chance now where we can move forward, making the correct decision for our kids.”

See also: Exclusive: Wippa and Galluzzo launch 36 Months to raise social media age

Smoothfm celebrates 12 years since its launch today, marking the milestone by bringing listeners more of the music they have come to know and love from the station.

“It’s incredible, but what’s more incredible is that most of the team that were here when we started are still here today,” head of Smooth Network programming, Peter Clay, told Mediaweek.

“Anyone who knows radio knows that to do that sort of tenure, there must be something right. It’s a good feeling, and we all feel as positive as we did about the brand back then as we do today.”

The staff retention rates are no accident, and have been woven into the fabric of smoothfm since its inception. 

“Usually a stint in radio is about three and a half, four years, or thereabout. When Paul Jackson was putting smooth together, he said to me, ‘We want people that come here and stay here for 10 years plus’ –  so we would use that line when we were speaking to people in the early days,” Clay said.

“It paid off, and we got to remind people of those words when we passed the 10 year mark. Now we’re at 12.”

When asked how the product today compares to the original vision for smoothfm, Clay said that what you can hear on air is “what we set out to achieve.”

“Marty Sheargold used to use this line all the time, saying ‘It is what it says on the tin’. That’s exactly what smooth is – it’s all about the listeners, it’s all about the music.”

There have been a couple of changes along the way, with one being the station’s strapline.

“We’ve gone from Your Easy Place To Relax to Feel Good. The difference is that it was a bit slower at the start, whereas now it’s more uplifting.”

The biggest thing that has changed, according to Clay, is the awareness of the brand. 

“Nobody had a clue what smooth was or where to find it. We started in Sydney with 275,000 listeners in the first survey, and recently we’ve been the most listened to station with over 1.3 million. It’s a great progression.

“You can see the progression over the years – the cume jumps up 100,000 and sustains it, and then another 100,000 in the next year. It’s been a great journey to watch that happen, and to watch people become aware of this brand and stick with us.”

smoothfm originals still on air: Richard Wilkins, Mel Doyle, David Campbell and Cameron Daddo

The numbers show that audiences are resonating with smoothfm’s content, with Clay putting this down to both attention to detail and consistency in the product.

“Simon Diaz, Byron Webb, and Ty Frost have a segue-off, where when one song fades into another, they try and get it to end on the same note that the next song starts on. It’s that attention to detail, people know what they’re getting and come back day after day. 

“Sometimes you make a rod for your own back when you strive for this perfection – but then when something does stuff up and a computer glitch comes through, it sticks out. We really try and keep an eye on the product and try to make it sound as good as it can.”

Smoothfm continues to grow, now broadcasting in all the major metro markets. It’s onwards and upwards for the station, with Clay adding: “It’s a great brand, it’s a great bunch of people, and I couldn’t be happier to work alongside them. May there be many more years to come.”

See also: Nova’s Brendan Taylor on Jase & Lauren’s debut and smoothfm’s competitiveness

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Top image: Peter Clay

It’s been a big year so far for The Daily Aus. Whilst the uncertainty of news’ future on Meta platforms has been a big concern for the Instagram-first title, this year has also brought with it a major milestone – 200,000 subscribers to the site’s newsletter.

Behind the scenes, making sure the newsletter hits inboxes each morning is The Daily Aus’ editor-in-chief, Billi FitzSimons, who took over the newsletter at the beginning of 2022, overseeing the stories that make it in and writing the intro. 

“To get to 200,000 is absolutely incredible,”  FitzSimons told Mediaweek. “As well as how big it’s gotten, it’s also such an engaged audience – as the size has increased, the engagement has as well.”

With The Daily Aus reaching young Australians primarily through social media platforms, a newsletter may not be the first thing that springs to mind when it comes to reaching its target audience. FitzSimons said that she “used to think that newsletters were this archaic thing, and that’s initially the perception that people still have.”

Despite the perceptions, the results speak for themselves.

“For us, the audience loves it because it’s direct communication with us, it’s us speaking to them every day. They respond to us, they email back, and I’m in conversation with them every day.

“With newsletters, all of the news is in one spot. The Daily Aus always says that we try to find audiences where they’re at, and we know that people are at their emails every day.”

FitzSimons said the team are always working to “think of creative ways that we could attract new audiences,” including adding a riddle into the newsletter.

“We got feedback that the audience wanted more riddles, which is why we launched the daily emoji game. That has been massive, in the first month we got 10,000 subscribers just through that game.”

It’s not just ‘Picture This’, the daily emoji game, to which The Daily Aus audience has been responding. The team is currently looking for a launch partner for the upcoming Good News Newsletter, and has added a daily sports newsletter to the mix.

“One morning I asked them to settle an office debate – how do you put your shoes on in the morning? Is it sock, sock, shoe, shoe? Or is it sock, shoe, sock, shoe? We got literally a thousand responses, it was insane how many people felt so passionate about something so simple,” FitzSimons laughed.

“I’m always putting questions to the audience to hear what they think, and they are always responding.”

The Daily Aus will also be catching up with its audience face-to-face at this year’s Sydney Writers’ Festival, when co-creators Sam Koslowski and Zara Seidler sit down with ABC’s Leigh Sales.

‘A bit of a threat’: Meta’s Australian move

As a social-first news publication, Meta’s decision not to renew its deals to pay Australian publishers for news content has led to threats that it will pull news content entirely from Facebook and Instagram.

The Daily Aus launched on Meta-owned Instagram and has 549,000 followers on the platform.

“There’s definitely been a push for the newsletter outside of Meta, but we’ve also used the Meta moment to really talk to our audience about what is going on, how it’s a bit of a threat to The Daily Aus, and trying to diversify how our audience finds us,” FitzSimons said.

“A big focus for us at the moment is making sure that no matter what happens, we not only survive, but thrive. That’s why a big focus is on the newsletter – building an audience on Instagram was great, but that was more of a rented audience as opposed to an audience that we own. With the newsletter, that’s an audience that no social media platform can take away from us.”

In March, co-founder Seidler told Mediaweek that if government chooses to “designate” Meta, which would force the tech giant into arbitration with publishers, Meta would likely pull news, posing a significant risk of misinformation and disinformation. 

But, she explained, “our fastest-growing revenue channel is actually newsletters at the moment. We’re really going to be pushing as much as we can to strengthen those numbers and those commercial partnerships in the newsletter space, so that we aren’t in a position where we can suddenly have it taken away from us.

“We never want to go down a singular stream. We always want to be platform agnostic.”

When Meta’s decision was announced, The Daily Aus asked its Instagram audience to subscribe to its newsletter. Seidler told Mediaweek that the daily newsletter has 180,000 subscribers, with a 53% open rate.

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Top Image: Billi FitzSimons

The Melbourne radio wars are getting plenty of media coverage. Except for the winning side. When it comes to audience share, there is no competition for 3AW.

The FM stations currently battle it out for second place. That is the trophy that Kyle and Jackie O will compete for first. If they secure that #1 FM ranking, the hosts and their KIIS team are ambitious enough to have a crack at unseating 3AW. Something that will take a bit of beating. They managed to unseat 2GB in Sydney, is #1 overall out of the question for them in Melbourne?

When it comes to cume audience, the FM stations shine. As we pointed out last week, 3AW scores big on share because its audiences listen longer.

Looking over the running of 3AW is station manager Stephen Beers. In Mediaweek’s final stroll through the corridors of Melbourne’s #1 radio station, we spent time with the talk radio veteran.

2024 schedule changes

Although 3AW has different hosts in morning, afternoon and drive slots this year, Beers noted it has really only introduced one new announcer.

“Tom Elliott [morning] been here some time. So has Tony Moclair [afternoon]. Jacqui Felgate [drive] is the major new addition. Tony did seven years hosting 3AW midnight to dawn.

“The drive change is not unlike when we went from Derryn Hinch to Tom Elliott. The audience just has to get to know the new host.”

Beers said he spends a bit of time with Felgate’s team. He noted she was in good hands with 3AW’s morning producer moving to drive. Neil Mitchell is still connected to the station. He continues to record his podcasts for Nine. Beers said, “Neil gives advice where it’s been sought. It’s great to still have him around.”

Beers has been at the station since 1987 – long enough to remember when Ross Stevenson started on air. Coming across from community station 3RRR he sounded very new compared to the previous team. “It was very different to anything that had been before and it can take a long time for the audience to get to know the new host.

“In that case, it took two or three years. We were number five in the market. It was not a great time at the radio station.”

Sharing with the audience

One of the trademarks at the station over the years is 3AW shares everything with the listeners. The good and the bad. Listeners feel like they get to hear (and see if they are streaming video) what happens behind the scenes.

“Once there was a lot in the press about Neil Mitchell when 3MTR was starting up,” remembered Beers. There was plenty of speculation about whether Mitchell would or would not be leaving 3AW for the Russell Tate-backed new Melbourne talk station. “Is he going to MTR or isn’t he going. On his 3AW show, Neil was taking talkback calls with people saying, ‘We’re going to miss you. We love you, Neil, but we’re going to miss you.

“Melbourne is such a different market. In Sydney, you can move from one station to the other. It’s happened plenty of times there. It just hasn’t happened here.”

The phones run hot

Beers: “We’ll get calls when things happen in Melbourne. Sometimes when bad things happen listeners ring us before they ring the police. I don’t know where else you get that level of engagement. You just earn it. You earn that sort of trust. You can’t just snap your fingers and get trust like that. The 3AW phone lines will be full all day.”

3AW station manager Stephen Beers

Nine ownership

Stephen Beers has been at 3AW under a number of different proprietors. But he reckons they are in good hands now.

“It’s going to sound like I’m drinking the Kool-Aid, but I have seen a lot of owners of the business.

“I’ve seen some owners that have been really hard work in terms of protecting our brand. There were times there I was worried that we might not come through some things. If we didn’t have Nine during Covid, I’m not sure we would have come out as strong as we are today. I’m certain of it.

“There were some concerns when [Nine] first came in. People wondered if they were going to leave the station alone. They have been great supporters and they already had a team in place in Melbourne that we knew very well.”

Although there is lots of cooperation with Nine, including newsroom integration and a shared news theme, there is room for other partnerships too.

“We still have working relationships with Seven. We still do a lot of stuff with News Corp and the Herald Sun.”

For example, the breakfast sports guru Jon Anderson still contributes to the Herald Sun. The breakfast show’s music guru Alan Howe is an editor at The Australian.

When Nine first arrived, Beers briefly left the station, before Nine Radio boss Tom Malone brought him back.

3AW has the Olympics covered

“Ross and Russ are going for the first week. That is something 3AW has done with the Olympics dating back to Sydney.” Beers himself has been part of the coverage too, working with the breakfast team during four Olympic tours.

3AW breakfast was on board for the two weeks of the London Olympics in 2012. The memorable shows including one day broadcasting from inside the Abbey Road studios.

Beers continued: “In Paris we will have our own radio commentary team. Ray Hadley is heading that up. We will have a few others which will be separate from the television commentators.”

2GB’s Ben Fordham will also be hosting his breakfast show from Paris during the Games.

Seven is debuting a new shoppable, in-content ad product, 7CIC, as part of its launch of home renovation program, Dream Home.

LG Electronics, View.com.au, Youi Insurance, Alinta Energy and RSL Art Union are among the partners and sponsors for the show.

Christopher Fifer, national head of program partnerships at 7RED, told Mediaweek that LG’s partnership with Dream Home will include 7CIC on 7plus. 

The product takes contextually relevant moments that line up with a client’s brand and are identified by 7CIC in content. A “shop now” button appears and invites viewers to use their remote to open a full-screen ad with brand messaging and a QR code to direct people to the client’s website.

“7CIC is a product we are debuting with Dream Home and LG is the first brand to be partnered with it. The product will also be something we will use throughout the year across all new Seven programs,” Fifer said.

“An important thing for us is ensuring that if something is not enhancing the viewer experience, we don’t use it because it otherwise just becomes cloudy.

“We are also making sure that we use it at the right time. We’ve discussed religiously as a team to make sure that it’s not just used, it’s used contextually and used at the right moment. It won’t be pop-ups that happen in pivotal moments, but will be organically used for customers to shop products they have seen used throughout the renovations on the show.”

LG Electronics Australia marketing director, Gemma Lemieux said its partnership with Dream Home embodies its Life’s Good brand promise. 

“We design our products with people in mind and Dream Home has provided us with the platform to showcase our products in real Australian homes,” she said.

“Through this partnership, we’ve shown how LG technology seamlessly integrates into everyday life, elevating each moment with joy and purpose.”

Premiering at 7pm on Sunday 26 May, other brand sponsors that have signed on with integration and advertising packages include Hipages, Beaumont Tiles, Highgrove Bathrooms, Luxaflex Window Fashions, Dulux, and Beacon Lighting. 

Dream Home Contestants and Dr Chris Brown

The show will see six pairs of everyday Aussies battle it out room by room, transforming their own tired suburban family homes into new dream homes. 

Dr Chris Brown is jumping over from 10’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! to host Dream Home, and EP Sylvia D’Souza also told Mediaweek that while she thinks Brown has done really well, he does not pretend to be a renovator.

“He lessens the stresses that renovation brings and listens spectacularly to the cast vent their stress about the job,” she said. 

“He also is so funny in a way that I didn’t expect him to be. He’s the heart of the show but is also entertaining all at the same time.”

The judging lineup on the show will include Lana Taylor of Three Birds Renovations, buyer’s agent Simon Cohen, and interior designer Rosie Morley. 

Dream Home is produced by Endemol Shine Australia (a Banijay company). 

Nine has promoted Nikki Rooke to director of sales – total television, replacing Richard Hunwick, who announced his resignation last week.

Hunwick will finish at Nine at the end of September.

See also: Nine’s Richard Hunwick resigns as director of sales – total television

Rooke joined Nine two years ago from SCA, and is currently Nine’s director of sales – Sydney, and oversees Nine’s TV, streaming, audio, and publishing assets. In her new role, Rooke will lead Nine’s national total television sales team overseeing Metro TV, Regional TV, and BVOD.

She will report to Nine’s chief sales officer Michael Stephenson, and will work alongside Jo Clasby (director of sales – total publishing), Ashley Earnshaw (director of sales – total audio), Nick Young (commercial director – digital), and Lisa Day (director – Powered).

Stephenson described Rooke as “the ultimate professional.”

“She is one of our industry’s most senior commercial leaders and her track record speaks for itself. She is passionate about our people and she has an in-depth understanding of what marketers need. There simply isn’t a more perfect or more qualified person to lead our Total TV team than Nikki Rooke”.

Speaking of her new role, Rooke said she was “thrilled to be leading Nine’s Total TV team and fill the very big shoes left behind by Richard Hunwick.”

“I can’t wait to work with all our advertisers who understand and embrace the power of television and the sustainable, profitable returns it delivers to their businesses both in the short and long term.

“I am also very excited to be working with such a talented sales team both market facing and those behind the scenes who work tirelessly every day to ensure our clients have the best experience possible.”

Rooke will begin her new role on 1 July. Her replacement as director of sales – Sydney will be announced in the coming days.

By John O’Neill, chief executive officer at QMS

It was one of the biggest sporting moments in recent Australian history, one that captivated and united the nation.

The Matildas’ fantastic performance in last year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that sport has the power to reach and engage with incredible numbers of people in a way that few other things can. It also proved the power of sport as a marketing tool.

Although they are a wide and varied bunch, sports fans are united by their emotional connection. So deep is this connection that the love for a favourite team or athlete can form a huge part of their identity (I for one bleed black and yellow for the mighty Tigers). With the biggest sporting event in the world – the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games – ready to kick off from 26 July, marketers need to remember the unmatched power of sport, and the results it can drive when brands are associated with it.

The Olympics and Paralympics are widely considered the pinnacle of sport – and sports marketing. Research by Kantar Consulting for the Australian Olympic Committee shows that the Olympics, like no other sporting event, connects Australians with the Olympic mindset, a way of living that helps overcome obstacles to find fulfilment.

It’s all about being your best self. That’s what people see in our athletes: people who can inspire others in whatever they do.

Not surprisingly, other research studies also show sport delivers the highest level of engagement versus other forms of content and drives higher recall for brands. Done right and in an authentic way, a sports marketing program gives brands a way to connect in the right context across various media, reaching passionate and focused fans at big moments.

And never forget that sport is the great leveller; it unites us all as we barrack for our team, country, and favourite athlete.

Sport can reach huge audiences and it’s particularly good at reaching and engaging younger audiences. It can be consumed across multiple media platforms, making it even more attractive for media owners and marketers to invest in. And, perhaps most importantly, sport sparks passion and devotion – qualities that most brands want to be associated with – among consumers and can drive attention, then intention, and ultimately sales.

Sport changes attitudes. Recent research by Idea Xchange for Paris 2024 broadcaster, Nine, found that 1 in 5 people surveyed were more likely to trial or purchase a product if a brand in question is a sponsor of their favourite sporting team (even higher among those under 45), while 1 in 6 were more likely to trust a brand that sponsors their favourite sporting team.

Sport also boosts inclusivity and social cohesion and reduces isolation, by uniting people from all backgrounds around a common passion. Team spirit, solidarity in the face of challenges, creativity, fair play – all of these qualities are as useful in everyday life and work as they are in sport.

Paris 2024’s ethos of “the Games for everyone” is based on the Olympics’ societal benefits. The organisers want to harness the Games to show that sport boosts inclusivity in ways that help society. In fact, the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will be the first gender-balanced Games in history, with an equal number of men and women competing. In a similar vein, nearly 350,000 visitors with disabilities will travel to Paris in July and August to watch the Olympic and Paralympic Games, making it a priority for Paris 2024 organisers to ensure these fans have a truly inclusive experience.

As The Media Ant (a marketing and media information website) observed last year, sports marketing is not merely a game; it’s a strategic move that can propel brands to extraordinary heights.

“By harnessing the power of sports, brands are impacted by brand visibility, build unwavering loyalty, and forge meaningful connections with consumers. As we navigate the ever-evolving landscape of sports marketing, one thing is certain: the game is changing, and those who embrace its power will emerge as winners. The game is on, and the possibilities are limitless. Are you ready to play?” it said.

That’s a good question. Are you ready to play when it comes to the Olympics and Paralympics? They are still the biggest events in the world and represent a strong opportunity for brands to find authentic ways to associate with the athletes, sporting communities and the fans who adore them.

With sport so interwoven into the DNA of all Australians, the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games will be a unique opportunity to leverage the influence of outdoor media like never before, helping brands deliver diverse audiences at scale and extending reach in a completely brand-safe environment that is proven to make brands famous.

The countdown to Paris has well and truly started and we are thrilled to be a part of it.

See also: QMS lights up Paris 2024 Digital Screen Network, announces launch partners

Innocean Australia has announced the appointment of Giorgia Butler to the chief strategy officer role, effective immediately. Butler replaces Gual Barwell, who departed the full-service agency in January after two years to pursue freelancing opportunities.

Butler moves from Nunn Media, where she was stationed for the past four years as the agency’s head of strategy and innovation.

Butler will report to Innocean Australia CEO, Jasmin Bedir, and will be responsible for leading strategy across all clients. 

Commenting on the Butler’s appointment, Bedir said: “Giorgia is well-known in the industry for being an energetic leader, with extensive capabilities spanning brand, data and insights, omnichannel creative communications architecture and strategy. 

“Her appointment as our chief strategy officer brings us closer to delivering truly integrated creative and media capabilities to our clients.

“Giorgia will work closely with our new head of media, Kathryn Funari as we add muscle to our media thinking and strategic credentials for clients. Together with executive creative director Wez Hawes, head of digital Matt Morgan, Kathryn and now Giorgia in our leadership team, I feel like we are very well placed to deliver ground-breaking work across all platforms for our clients.”

At Nunn Media, Butler was responsible for shepherding several new clients into the fold including Spin Master, The Lottery Office, Peloton, The Giants, Edelman, Phillips, and Domaine Homes.

Prior to Nunn, she held strategy director roles at Ogilvy, Y&R, Edge, and Houston Group, working with national and global clients including Huggies, KFC, Coca-Cola, Nestle, Best and Less, Colgate-Palmolive, and the Australian Government.

She brings over 25 years experience in strategy in both Australia as well as the United States, where she led strategic activations for rapper Jay Z and Steve Stoute‘s marketing agency, Translation Brand Imaging.

Butler won two gold Effies in 2018 for insight and strategic thinking and a bronze award for original creative thinking, a bronze Cannes Lion, and an IPA Effectiveness award for U by Kotex’s Let’s Move On campaign.

“As someone who is committed to levelling up and leading, Innocean is the perfect place for the next phase of my career,” Butler said.

“Innocean is committed to strengthening its integrated strategic capabilities across the agency and my passion is developing new approaches to problem-solving, while helping clients connect the dots between their various media channels and business objectives.

“I still believe the fundamentals of right person, right place, right message are as important today as they ever were and I look forward to bringing my story-telling credentials to Innocean, to further strengthen the integration between media and creative.”

Last week, Innocean, which is behind the gender parity initiative F*ck the Cupcakes, and Independent B-Corp purpose-led agency Paper Moose, launched a voluntary industry charter called Love Our Work to foster more positive conversations within creative communities.

See also: Innocean and Paper Moose launch ‘Love Our Work’ industry charter

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Top Image (L-R): Giorgia Buter, Matt Morgan, Kathryn Funari, Wez Hawes, Jasmin Bedir 

The NRL Magic Round 2024 has again proven the key to growing TV ratings is live sport. The audience surge started across the weekend after Nine reported YOY growth for its exclusive coverage of Game 1 of Women’s State of Origin.

Thursday’s Women’s State of Origin was a timeslot winner for Nine across Australia and was the #1 program of the night in Sydney and Brisbane. It secured a National Total TV Reach of 1.983 million, a Total TV National Audience of 941,000 and a BVOD audience of 128,000. The Queensland v New South Wales clash saw TV ratings increases on the same night last year, including +46.3% for Total TV and +103.2% for BVOD.

Still two games to go for 2024 on Nine

In addition to being the most-watched Women’s State of Origin match on record, Nine’s FTA audience was higher than FTA ratings for any NRL Telstra Premiership match this season and higher than FTA ratings for any AFL match this year.

The Foxtel Group then recorded its highest audience ever for a regular season round across the Foxtel Group for the games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

An average audience of 545,000 watched all the magic from Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium, which hosted every NRL game of the round, across Foxtel, Kayo Sports, Foxtel Now and Foxtel Go.

Foxtel Group had a higher average audience than Nine for two of its three simulcast games – Rabbitohs v Cowboys (528,000) and Storm v Eels (589,000).

Nine’s average national audiences across the Magic Round weekend were 575,000 (Friday), 425,000 (Saturday) and 453,000 (Sunday).

TV ratings record busters

The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs vs Canberra Raiders game at 6pm on Friday, the Cronulla Sharks vs Sydney Roosters game at 5.30pm on Saturday and the Melbourne Storm v Parramatta Eels at 4pm on Sunday also recorded their highest audiences ever across the Foxtel Group for their respective timeslots.

The 2024 NRL Premiership season is on track to be the biggest ever across the Foxtel Group.

Sharks v Roosters NRL Foxtel record

Fox Sports managing director Steve Crawley said: “Congratulations to the NRL and all the clubs on an amazing result. Fox Sports and Kayo broke four individual records with viewership numbers over the weekend. Beginning with the first match 6.00pm Friday, Raiders v Bulldogs with an average audience of 592,000. This was backed-up by Saturday’s 5.30pm game, Sharks v Roosters, which achieved a spectacular average audience figure of 664,000. Then again on Sunday afternoon where the Storm v Eels game recorded a huge 589,000.”

Crawley added: “First Las Vegas, now Magic Round, it is already a season to remember.”

See also:
Mediaweek sideline eye NRL in Las Vegas: Delany tosses the coin, Lachlan Murdoch walks the boundary

TV ratings source: Total Viewing, 000s. Linear (STV): OzTAM National Panel, Total People, Average Audience. Linear (FTA): OzTAM Metro and Regional Panels, Total People, Average Audience. GO/Now/Kayo/9Now: OzTAM VPM, Total People, VPM Rating, Live only. All Platforms: Preliminary Overnight Data.

Independent creative communications agency, Cassette, has announced the appointment of Sam Enshaw as head of strategy. 

Enshaw moves from Match & Wood, where he was head of strategy for just under three years. He announced his exit from the independent media agency last month.

Speaking to Mediaweek, Enshaw said of his exit: “A sincere thank you to the Match & Wood team for the last three years.”

Match & Wood’s chief executive officer, Lyndelle O’Keefe, told Mediaweek: “We all wish Sam the very best and he will be missed. I have no doubt he will continue to do brilliant, highly creative work in his next role, and we’re grateful for his contribution to our culture and strategic product over the last three years.”

At Cassette, Enshaw will be working closely with its leadership team, helmed by CEO Jessica White, with a remit to elevate Cassette’s strategic product.

White said that she is thrilled to welcome Enshaw. “We’ve been looking for the right people to upweight our leadership team with strategic expertise,” she said.

“I know his industry insight and experience will have a positive and tangible impact on both the work and culture in this next phase of Cassette.”

Enshaw brings over 13 years of experience from media agencies in Australia and Singapore, with previous roles at Initiative, IPG and McCann, leading strategic direction and implementation for global brands including Netflix, Spotify, FitBit, and Johnson & Johnson. 

Commenting on the appointment, Enshaw said: “I’m so excited to join Cassette, an agency whose vision and ambition is truly infectious. I’m looking forward to driving its ongoing momentum by elevating its strategic product and proposition.”

Enshaw has garnered both local and global recognition for his work, receiving the MFA Pro Bono/Cause Marketing award and becoming a finalist at the inaugural Mediaweek Next of the Best awards.

Last month, Cassette was announced as one of The  Australian Financial Review’s Best Places to Work, placing ninth.

See also: The Royals leads industry pack on 2024 AFR BOSS Best Places to Work

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Top Image: Sam Enshaw

A new campaign for Victoria’s Transport Accident Commission (TAC) by creative agency Clemenger BBDO aims to give tired drivers a serious wakeup call and address the statistic that in Victoria, 16% to 20% of all fatal crashes can be attributed to fatigue.

Centred around a hero film designed jolt the audience to attention, the campaign follows a new dad a his drive home, accompanied by the endline: “Driving tired? Wake up to yourself.”

The basic tenet that underpins the campaign is the fact that “with under five hours’ sleep, you’re four times more likely to crash.”

Richard Williams, Clemenger BBDO ECD, explained, “too often, drivers dismiss their own fatigue because they have no way of measuring it. Now, similar to how 0.05 measures drink driving, TAC have quantified what it means to be fatigued. It was a great jumping off point for the creative work.”

Clemenger BBDO strategy partner Mike Ronkoske continued: “Most people know you can’t drive with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.05 or more. Now there’s a BAC for sleep – less than 5 hours sleep could kill you. It’s a rule to live by.”

The campaign runs until 30 June, with a particular focus on males aged 18 to 39 and those who are more likely to drive while tired. It will be supported by a media mix including OOH, bespoke social films targeting new parents, shift workers and university students, and shock-tactic inspired radio spots. 

TAC CEO Tracey Slatter added: “Lack of sleep can dramatically affect our ability to drive safely, and this campaign will educate Victorians around the risks associated with driving tired and promote how much sleep you need before you are safe to drive.”

The work follows the appointment Adrián Flores as Clems’ chief creative officer, announced earlier this month. Flores will return to Australia for the role after over a decade in international creative leadership roles.

He replaces Jim Curtis, who left in September to become EVP, global executive CD at McCann New York.

See also: Clemenger BBDO appoints Adrián Flores as CCO

Credits:

Client: TAC
Senior Manager, Marketing & Media: John Thompson
Team Manager, Marketing & Advertising: Nardia Brancatisano
Campaign Manager, Marketing & Advertising: Katrina Nedeski
Former Campaign Coordinator, Marketing & Advertising: Gemma Radbourn

Creative Agency: Clemenger BBDO
Executive Creative Director: Richard Williams 
Junior Art Directors: Ben Bryan and Nathan Va
Junior Copywriter: Ben Hall
National Traffic Manager: Karen Kushinsky
Strategy Partner: Mike Ronkoske
Managing Partner: Jason Melhuish
Group Business Director: James Kerr
Business Manager: Tom von Stieglitz
Account Executive: Caitlin Jackson
Production Director: Lisa Moro
Senior Broadcast Producers: Alana Teasdale and Jo Howlett
Producer: Amalia Makris
Senior Editors: Jennifer Cahir and Andy Packer
Film Executive Producer, MADE THIS: Ainslee Littlemore
Directors, MADE THIS: Jay Topping and Thomas Pollard
Lead Producer, MADE THIS: Callum Smit
Digital Executive Director: Claire Bisset
Lead Digital Designer: Justin Tumilaar
Digital Producers: Meera Srikanth & Rumi Guo
Digital Developer: Andy Bui
Head of Studio: Matt Gauci
Retoucher: Mike McCall
Finished Artists: Craig Jacques, Sam Tsui and Aseem Rishi

Film Production: Good Oil
Director: Nathan Price
Executive Producer: Simon Thomas
Producer: Claire Richards
DoP: Germain McMicking
Casting Director: Amy Mete, Nick Hamon Casting 
Production Designer: Lucinda Thomson
Offline Editor: Jack Hutchings, The Editors 
Post Production House: Alt VFX
VFX Supervisor/Flame Artist: Dave Edwards
Post Production Producer: Celeste Fairlie
Colourist: Fergus Rotherham
Music: Antony Partos, Sonar
Sound House: Squeak E Clean 
Executive Producer: Ceri Davies
Sound Design: Paul Le Couteur and Cam Milne 

Photography production:
Photographer: Christopher Tovo
Producer: Andrew Zappia (99 Productions)
Digi Op: Jake Lowe & Ilona Savchenko
Camera Assistant: Liam Cullinane 

Media Agency: OMD

Thinkerbell and beverage brand Lion have reimagined the Guinness tagline, ‘Lovely Day For A Guinness’, for wintertime in the southern hemisphere with a national campaign that offers an unexpected twist on its classic pint motif.

Thinkerbell’s chief creative Tinker, Paul Swann, said that “through the work we sought to capture the smooth characteristics of a Guinness on a winter’s day.”

“This manifested in everything from the setting, a post surf pint at the end of the day, to the grade and even the decision to execute the film in a single, continuous shot,” he said.

With the creative rolling out across video, audio, and static, the Guinness Brewery of Meteorology campaign is also set to return for a second year, launching the first day of winter, 1 June.

Users of its web app will receive alerts about the ideal Guinness drinking temperatures, leveraging geo-targeted technology to find the nearest venue serving Guinness. A winter promo offer will also be available throughout the season for eligible participants to receive a free Guinness at participating venues and Dan Murphy stores.

Albertus Lombard, Lion brand director of Premium beer, said: “Winter is the season that Aussies can enjoy Guinness while taking in the best bits of the season. It’s the crisp winter days, or the cosiness of a pub or home at night that the unique characteristics of a Guinness can really be savoured.”

In March, Thinkerbell launched a countdown campaign to St Patrick’s Day for Guinness in partnership with UM and Reprise Digital, portraying the dark stout changing shape as the celebrations approach.

Last month, the agency launched a mid-autumn campaign for Lion’s XXXX Summer Bright Lager to remind consumers you can drink the brew during any season. The work was informed by the insight that, compared to other places in the world, the entire gamut of the Australian climate can still be loosely categorised as different shades of one season: summer.

In February, JCDecaux awarded Lion and UM the inaugural Programmatic Campaign of the Year award with their digital OOH campaign.

See also:
XXXX is ‘summer beer you can drink all year’ in latest from Thinkerbell
Thinkerbell celebrates Star Wars Day with Hahn Solo

Credits:
Client: Lion
Creative agency: Thinkerbell
Media agency: UM
Digital agency: Affinity
Production: Finch

As the new home of ICC World Cup Cricket in Australia, Prime Video is kicking off its new ad campaign for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup featuring Usman Khawaja. 

The creative, by Leo Burnett Australia, dramatises the way Cricket Fever can take hold of a nation, spreading excitement – game by game, fan by fan, until everyone gets caught up in the event. The film follows Khawaja as he realises the fever has taken hold of his own street.

It aims to differentiate from the category and connect with cricket lovers through a shared fanaticism of the sport; cricket references abound for casual and superfans alike.

The campaign will run across TV, BVOD, YouTube, social, OLV, and owned channels.

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will be shown live exclusively on Prime Video, live from 2-30 June. 

Prime Video is the exclusive Australian broadcaster of the Men’s and Women’s Cricket World Cups, the T20 World Cups, the Champions Trophy, and the World Test Championship Final until 2027.

Prime Video exclusively holds the live Australian broadcast rights for ICC cricket events for the next four years.

The ICC competition broadcast on Prime Video is at no extra cost to a Prime membership and is available as part of new customers’ free 30-day trial.

See also: Usman Khawaja named Prime Video’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup ambassador

Credits:

Hushidar Karas – Head of Prime Video ANZ
Olly Wilton – Senior Sports Program Manager
Hwei Loke – Head of Marketing
Anna Saunders – Senior Brand Manager
Charli Hoffmann – Campaign Manager

Leo Burnett Australia

Andy Fergusson – National Chief Creative Officer
Tim Woolford – Group Creative Director
Tommy Cehak – Group Creative Director
James Beswick – Associate Creative Director
Rowan Foxcroft – Associate Creative Director
Catherine King – Chief Strategy Officer
James Walker-Smith – General Manager
Gemma Cox – Group Business Director
Jack Asimus – Senior Business Manager
Libby Spark – Senior Integrated Producer
Rachael Sparks – Project Manager
Tiffany Wilson – Senior Designer

Production:

Director – Ariel Martin
Production Company – Scoundrel
Executive Producer/Founder – Adrian Shapiro
Executive Producer – Kate Gooden
Producer – Alex Tizzard
DOP – Aaron McLisky
Post – Arc Edit
Editor – Luke Haigh
Colourist – Ben Eagleton
Online – Jamie Scott
Sound & Composition – Massive Music

Connecting Plots has appointed Craig Page as its new strategy partner, as Tim Collier exits the independent creative agency after six years for a role at cummins&partners.

Page, who is the founder of strategic consultancy WeirdWorks, has previously held leadership positions at Saatchi & Saatchi, CX Lavender, VMLY&R and R/GA, working across a range of clients including Westpac, Australian Defence Force, NBN, NRMA, Pizza Hut, Colgate, Arnott’s, McDonald’s, Wine Australia, Telstra, Rip Curl and Google.

Page said the appointment was “a win-win opportunity” for Connecting Plots and WeirdWorks:

“For Connecting Plots to offer clients’ holistic brand thinking across their entire ecosystems, for WeirdWorks to offer clients’ the ability to put their strategic consulting into practice, and for me to enjoy working with this awesome team of brilliantly-talented and fun-slash-weird-in-a-good-way people.

“The pace since founding WeirdWorks last year has been insane, so this chance to join forces is a perfectly-timed.”

He will be joining the Connecting Plots leadership team alongside client service director, Emma McJury, creative operations director, Sarah Miller, and creative partners Matt Geersen and John Gault, whose agency Two G’s was acquired by Connecting Plots in April last year.

See also: Connecting Plots names Matt Geersen and John Gault as creative partners

Connecting Plots co-founder and CEO Tom Phillips said: “Craig is highly-regarded and comes with a wealth of knowledge that will certainly help grow our clients’ businesses and evolve the Connecting Plots service offering.

“The work that Craig has been doing with his own consultancy, WeirdWorks, marry perfectly into our growth ambitions and we’re thrilled that he’ll be bringing this offering into Connecting Plots.”

Phillips called the appointment “bittersweet,” saying that Collier has “been with us since day dot, weathered many storms and shared in plenty of the successes we’ve had along the way.”

“He’s left an indelible mark on Connecting Plots and is a major factor in its success to date.” 

Connecting Plots co-founder and CCO Dave Jansen added: “Six years is a long time in this game. We want to thank Tim for his commitment, loyalty and brilliance over that time.

“I’ve learnt a lot from him, he’s become a good mate and he’s shared a lot of stories… We all wish him every success in his next role.” 

Speaking to Mediaweek about his next move, Collier said: “I’ve loved my time at Connecting Plots and I grew so much while I was there. I’ve known Cath at cummins&partners for a long time and so when the role came up it sounded really exciting.

“I’m very happy working for independent agencies and cummins is one of the innovators in the space. It felt like a great opportunity for me to stretch myself and take on a new challenge.”

See also: Tim Collier leaves Connecting Plots for Cummins

–

Top Image: Craig Page

The Royals has launched the first major campaign for wellbeing company Australian Unity, showing why its health insurance is “Worth it!”

The creative agency‘s campaign highlights the practicality of Australian Unity’s health insurance by connecting the moments where cover has benefits that will be used.

Andrew Siwka, managing partner at The Royals, joked: “Whilst disappointed in being overlooked as the Ping Pong talent, the partnership with Australian Unity was off to a flying start.

“This work is just the first in a series of campaigns we are excited to roll out together.”

Zoe Djurovitch, Australian Unity’s head of retail marketing, added: “Working with The Royals has certainly been Worth It! They have become natural partners during this process, helping us push the boundaries of where we’ve been to reach an audience we’ve previously not tapped into.”

Earlier this month, The Royals took the top spot on the AFR BOSS Best Places to Work list among media and marketing agencies.

The annual list, judged by behaviour change consultancy Inventium, ranked the best workplaces in Australia and New Zealand across nine different industries.

Siwka explained to the publication that one of the agency’s “problems” is becoming what clients want them to be rather than what the agency wants them to be.

“And it’s a delicate balance. Creatives were saying, ‘Well, I don’t have time to work on that.’ So where are the proactive ideas coming from?”

The Royals became known for its Unnatural Fridays initiative, a single creative pitch meeting for the entire team. Siwka said the meeting “was about us dedicating a day and defending that day [from disruption]. We managed to defend close to 80% of Fridays in a given year.”

Credits:

Client:
Australian Unity

Creative Agency:
The Royals 

Production Partners:
Production House: Collider
Director: Raghav Rampal
Post Production: FIN
Sound House: Electric Sheep
Casting: Northside Casting, Eardrum Casting 

Media Partner:
Initiative

New Zealand pay-TV broadcaster, Sky, has launched a process for its advertising sales representation in Australia last week. 

The dual NZX and ASX-listed company is now focused on its next stage of growth following the launch of advertising on Neon, its entertainment streaming platform, earlier this year.

Sky chief media and data officer, Lauren Quaintance, said: “We have incredibly powerful platforms for advertisers wanting to reach Kiwis in moments that matter. With the lion’s share of live sport, we can offer premium environments with incredibly high attention that deliver meaningful integration opportunities for our Australian brand partners.

“We already have some strong relationships in Australia, and we’re now looking to strengthen and build on the work that has already been done to continue sharing Sky’s incredible story.”

The request for information has a deadline of 6 June.

The news comes as Sky and BBC Studios announced in April they will be expanding their partnerships in New Zealand.

A multi-year deal will give Sky audiences access to British content on BBC First across Sky, Neon, and free-to-air channel Sky Open.

BBC First will join the Sky channel line up from October 2024, bringing premium UK dramas to Sky customers. Selected content will also be available on Neon and Sky Open.

Among the titles coming to Sky audiences will be the detective thriller The Jetty starring Jenna Coleman. Other launch programming will include Return to Paradise, the Australian spin-off of Death in Paradise, and the second season of the series Beyond Paradise starring Kris Marshall and Sally Bretton.

Sky chief executive Sophie Moloney said at the time: “Sky customers will enjoy an expanded array of world-class British content through our renewed partnership with BBC Studios. We value what our customers value, and with UKTV being Sky’s number one entertainment channel with consistently high and growing viewership, we’re confident in the value this represents for customers.

“The renewed partnership also offers exclusive access to premium British drama on BBC First. Importantly, these rights extend across our portfolio of entertainment products, meaning our customers can enjoy great British content in whatever way they choose.”

Under the deal, Sky’s #1 entertainment channel BBC UKTV will continue to offer audiences a curated selection of British entertainment including soap juggernauts EastEnders and Casualty, fan favourite quizcoms 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, QI and Would I Lie to You, plus celebrity chat shows The Jonathan Ross Show and The Graham Norton Show.

Sky has partnerships with global providers such as Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount Global and NBCUniversal. It also holds the sports rights for the Premier League, rugby league, rugby, netball, cricket, tennis, golf, basketball, F1, and motor racing.

See also: BBC First landing on Sky NZ in October 2024 for lovers of premium drama

The Media Store has won the media account for the Melbourne Royal Show, Victoria’s largest annual community event.

The independent media agency’s remit includes media strategy, planning, and buying across all channels as well as partnership and contra management.

Grace Usher, marketing campaign manager for the Melbourne Royal Show, said: “The Media Store were highly engaged throughout the process, they took the time to truly listen and understand our challenges, turning them into exciting opportunities.”

The Media Store CEO, Stephen Leeds, said: “We love working with iconic brands at The Media Store so to have the opportunity to use paid media to tell the Melbourne Royal Show story is very exciting.

“The Melbourne Royal Show is anchored in what Melbourne does best as an events city. We look forward to defending its premium position as one of the best family events of the year through proven media channels, as well as growing the show’s appeal to a whole new range of audiences through a reimagined media ecosystem.”

The Melbourne Royal Show account adds to The Media Store’s recent new business wins, including ZircoDATA, Travel Texas and Cure Cancer.

Earlier this year, the independent media agency appointed Phillip Brook as its financial controller, bringing 35 years of experience in media, creative, and technology businesses to the role.

He was most recently in Singapore, as commercial director at Wunderman Thompson and, prior to that, was the chief financial officer at OMG Singapore.

At the time, Leeds welcomed Brook to the team and said: “His extraordinary level of experience and admired reputation globally speaks to the talent our brand is attracting and we can’t wait to solidify our new business growth together in 2024 and beyond.”

See also: The Media Store names Phillip Brook as its financial controller

–

Top image: Stephen Leeds and Jacquie Alley

TorchMedia has renewed its exclusive advertising rights with Sydney Light Rail across its fleet of 76 light rail vehicles.

The transit media specialist rights for advertisers on the light rail network span exterior and interior formats across the CBD South East and Inner West lines, including premium full wraps across the network.

Kirsty Dollisson, TorchMedia managing director, said: “The Central Business District and South East Light Rail network has been a transformative infrastructure project for Sydney. Since the L2 Randwick Line opened in late 2019 and the L3 Kingsford Line soon after, Sydney Light Rail has become an important part of the fabric of the city.

“Not only has it helped reduce bus congestion and provided a higher capacity mode to transport people to the event precincts of the Sydney Cricket Ground, Allianz Stadium and Randwick Racecourse, it has become a reliable and convenient part of the daily commute for Sydneysiders, illustrated by the skyrocketing recent patronage.

“We are excited to extend our partnership with Transdev, ALTRAC Light Rail and Transport for New South Wales, to continue bringing stunning campaigns to life in the heart of Sydney’s CBD.”

Aaron Morton, TorchMedia’s head of sales, said Sydney Light Rail network will enable “advertisers to deliver impactful, larger than life campaigns right through the centre of the city.”

“It provides access to premium retail, big events, sporting and entertainment precincts, as well as George Street, Circular Quay and Surry Hills. It has become a critical component of how brands target the CBD and surrounds, as well as valuable audiences in the East and Inner West.

“The Sydney Light Rail has also proven its popularity due to its frequency and reliability; comparing 2023 to 2022, passenger numbers have increased by 47% and we expect to see further passenger growth this year and beyond.”

Last year, TorchMedia expanded its premium Canberra Light Rail portfolio, growing from five to nine stations covering the city’s entire light rail network.

See also: TorchMedia expands its Canberra Light Rail network to nine stations

Australian furniture and design sustainability practitioner, Koskela, has appointed creative communications agency, History Will Be Kind (HWBK) as agency of record, following a competitive pitch.

Services will be delivered under HWBK’s impact and reputation specialist arm, History Matters, which was launched last year, spearheaded by director of reputation and impact, Corinna Fawls.

The practice pairs creative communications consultancy with knowledge ESG, innovation, and transformation. Recent work includes projects with global clean-tech leader MCi Carbon, Sanitarium, McGrath Foundation, and an award winning campaign, #HireMeHilton, with Hilton Australia. 

Commenting on the Koskela win, Fawls said: “Koskela is a true leader in circular innovation and creativity, changing the way we create and consume to lighten the load on our planet.

“We couldn’t be more pleased to partner with Sasha and her team to bring their mission and impact to life, connecting across channels as Koskela continues to raise the bar for sustainable business in Australia.”  

HWBK, part of independent digital communications and consultancy, Deepend Group, will work to drive forward Koskela’s position in market across creative brand strategy, public relations, social media, and content marketing.

Sasha Titchkosky, co-founder and CEO of Koskela, said the business was “delighted to partner with History Will Be Kind during this important time of evolution for our business and brand.

“We were impressed not only by the agency’s record of excellence in strategic communications, but equally importantly, by the knowledge, passion and commitment we both share for building a more sustainable future.”

Last month, HWBK  promoted senior leads Lizzy Chadwick and Rachael Gadagil into group account director roles, along with hiring Brooke Gascoigne. 

Gadagil’s promotion came after six years with the agency, during which she has worked with clients including Google, Hilton, and McGrath Foundation. In the new role, she will work with the management team to evolve the agency’s offering, with a focus on growth.

See also: History Will Be Kind promotes Lizzy Chadwick and Rachael Gadagil

Hatched Sydney has expanded its team with the senior hires of Laura Comber as business director and Berlian Ayudya as strategy director.

Danni Dimitri, managing partner and head of strategy, said that the independent agency “hit the jackpot” with Comber and Ayudya.

“Laura possesses such warmth; she truly is a natural people leader,” Dimitri said.

“And Berlian has a unique perspective on problem-solving, powered by her ability to unlock and apply consumer and cultural insights to solve clients’ business problems.”

Comber brings more than a decade of media experience in Ireland to the role. Her most recent role was business director with PHD Ireland.

She said of her new role: “I am eager to bring my collaborative leadership style to the team, build strong foundational relationships with clients, and continue to deliver award-winning work on this side of the globe.

“As soon as I stepped inside the door of Hatched Sydney, I felt immense pride to be part of such an impressive, talented, and caring team of people.”

Ayudya steps into the role with Hatched Sydney after a five-year stint in the US with advertising and media agency, C+K.

She said: “After a career-altering experience working in the US, I wanted to make sure that the role I came home to was one that would challenge me in the best way possible.

“When the opportunity to join the Hatched came up, it felt so right. The team is building and growing something exciting – to be part of this and to work with a group of extremely talented and kind people makes it truly a privilege.”

Dimitri added: “Laura and Berlian have already made their mark with some of our clients including GPT Retail, Who Gives a Crap and Booktopia. I can’t wait to see what we will achieve together.”

–

Top image: Berlian Ayudya and Laura Comber

Narrated by Jackie O, Stranded On Honeymoon Island is coming soon to Channel Seven and 7plus, and will see 12 singles take on a remote dating journey. 

After a speed dating event, couples will be matched and married, before they are stranded on a deserted island for 21 days in their wedding attire.

The contestants will be removed from all modern dating obstacles, with no devices and no distractions.

Stranded On Honeymoon Island is created by Danish production company Snowman Productions and produced by Endemol Shine Australia (a Banijay Company) for the Seven Network. 

It’s been a busy period for Jackie O, with the Kyle & Jackie O Show now in full swing in Melbourne. Earlier in the month, the pair launched a new marketing campaign asking Melburnians to tune in and make up their own mind about the show. 

The campaign launched in print, featuring sensationalised headlines and quotes from competitor media personalities. It then follows up with a challenge to listeners to go beyond the click-bait and form their own opinion of the show. After the initial run, a TVC was unveiled.

Produced in-house, the campaign – strongly featuring the KIIS pink and purple – is being supported across out-of-home, TV, social, and radio.

Val Morgan Digital has partnered with data platform Audigent on a suite of tools and data management platform (DMP) capabilities for collecting audience insights across its portfolio.

That suite of brands includes Fandom, BuzzFeed, LADbible Group, POPSUGAR, The Latch, GameSpot, and Tasty, which collectively reach 4.25 million 14-39-year-olds monthly.

The partnership works to give brands that advertise across Val Morgan Digital the ability to identify and buy a single specific audience across its suite of brands. As the cookieless world gets closer, the partnership will mean Val Morgan is able to take Audigent’s data and overlay it with in-market and high-affinity segments.

“Advertisers’ first goal is often to achieve scale, which is something that Val Morgan Digital has accomplished without issue,” said Liam O’Meara, national sales director of Val Morgan Digital. “Where Audigent helps us is gathering insights from all our on-site visitors and helping us activate them across our portfolio of sites.

“We’ve been very proactive with solving the challenge of moving into a cookieless world. Now, we have added potency across our inventory to match advertisers with the audiences they want to reach and deliver better outcomes.”

Jake Abraham, chief commercial officer at Audigent, added: “Publishers like Val Morgan have access to an incredible amount of first-party consumer insights that are incredibly powerful for advertisers today and into the future.

“This partnership will enable Val Morgan Digital to unlock the value of a next-gen DMP and yield meaningful value for their web properties and advertisers alike.”

Last week, Val Morgan Digital released the findings of a research study conducted in April via Conjointly, which delved into the spending and saving habits of over 1,000 Gen Z and millennial Australians.

The study uncovered the impact of a growing phenomenon called ‘money dysmorphia’, a distorted view of a person’s financial health which can lead to harmful financial behaviours.

See also: Val Morgan Digital uncovers Gen Z and millennials’ spending habits

Foxcatcher, RyanCap’s data and technology specialist, has partnered with InMobi to refine media planning and activation with an SPO and audience match integration.

The collaboration leverages extensive strategic data alliances and first-party audience data powered by Foxcatcher’s proprietary tools, FoxID and Worldview, and supported by InMobi’s always-on audience segments.

Varun John, Foxcatcher’s general manager of commercial and investment, said: “We are excited to collaborate with the InMobi team to empower brands to leverage their own audience data for campaign planning, targeting, and analysis.

“With mobile devices being an all-day companion, the partnership offers brands a distinct advantage in comprehending customer journeys and consumer behaviour.”

The partnership aims to unlock insights for campaign delivery and engagement, which then enhance future campaigns. Following the successful beta testing phase, the partners have identified a substantial audience match rate.

Advertisers can devise campaigns tailored to segments and consumption behaviours closely aligned with their key audience and customers. 

Brands will also be able to minimise inefficiencies by engaging with specific customer cohorts that closely resonate with their offerings.

Lastly, they can leverage insights gleaned directly from their own customer base to inform and activate marketing strategies.

WorldView is a customer data platform (CDP) with a marketing focus, facilitating connections between brands, customers, and media through the FoxID identity solution. This solution operates without the need for collecting personal or sensitive information, ensuring data privacy, and enabling scalable activation.

Jaclyn Hadida and Varun John

Jaclyn Hadida, InMobi’s country manager for ANZ, added: “We know that InMobi audience data can turbocharge brand campaign performance thanks to the power of our unique, always-on segments, which engage and activate engage with consumers.

“Together with Foxcatcher’s data capabilities, the partnership will deliver exceptional audience insights and marketing outcomes. We are excited to join hands with the Foxcatcher team to achieve this.”

• This weekend, the Australian box office made $8,292,733, down -7% from last week’s $8,955,069.

TOP 5

1. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes – $2,460,285 (1)

Disney’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the brand new entry in the Apes franchise. While set 300 years after the reboot trilogy and featuring an entirely new cast of characters, the film is set in the same universe and references old characters from the trilogy. Similar to The Fall Guy, some filming took place at Disney Studios in Sydney and also in the Illawarra. Coming in first place this week, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes took $2,460,285 in its second week, averaging $4,805 over 512 screens.

Total Australian Box Office Gross to date: $7,386,107

Synopsis: Under the direction of Wes Ball, the global franchise breathes new life into a future era post-Caesar, where apes reign in harmony while humans exist in the shadows.

2. IF – $2,391,160 (debut)

Actor and Director John Krasinski is taking off his horror (A Quiet Place) directing cap and putting on his family/comedic directing cap with Paramount’s IF. The film took $2,391,160 in its debut week, averaging $5,290 over 452 screens.

Total Australian Box Office Gross to date: $3,100,801

Synopsis: After discovering she can see everyone’s imaginary friends, a girl embarks on an adventure to reconnect forgotten IFs with their kids.

3. The Fall Guy – $1,114,736 (2)

Universal’s The Fall Guy, starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, is the latest film from Bullet Train director David Leitch. It was mostly shot in Sydney at Disney Studios, located near Centennial Park and even shut down the Sydney Harbour Bridge to film an adrenaline-pumping chase scene. Dropping to third place this week, The Fall Guy took $1,114,736 in its fourth week, averaging $3,046 over 366 screens.

Total Australian Box Office Gross to date: $1,114,736

Synopsis: After leaving the business one year earlier, stuntman Colt Seavers springs back into action when the star of a big studio movie suddenly disappears.

4. The Strangers: Chapter 1 – $342,847 – (debut)

Kismet’s The Strangers: Chapter 1 is the newest entry in The Strangers horror film franchise. The film isn’t a reboot or a remake, but closely follows the events seen in the first film that released in 2008. The film took $342,847 in its first week, averaging $1,948 over 176 screens.

Synopsis: After their car breaks down in an eerie small town, a young couple is forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive.

5. Challengers – $339,557 (4)

Similar to Dune: Part Two, Challengers was supposed to be released in the back half of 2023 but was delayed to 2024 because of the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes. The film took $339,557 in its fifth week, averaging $1,724 over 197 screens.

Total Australian Box Office Gross to date: $4,467,471

Synopsis: Tashi, once a tennis player herself, has taken her husband, Art, and transformed him from an average player to a globally renowned Grand Slam champion.

Top 6 – 10

6. Kung Fu Panda 4
7. The Way, My Way
8. Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil
9. Shinda Shinda No Papa
10. Tarot

TV Report 20 May 2024:

Nine TV Report

The Summit

Nine’s evening began with The Summit.

The group learned about a chaser racing to catch them, and had to step it up a gear if they wanted to avoid their cash being stolen. An obstacle also stood in the group’s way and two of the biggest competitors went head to head.

A Current Affair

Over on A Current Affair, a Widower opens up after their wife’s accused killer was sentenced and spoke to radio star Wippa who is leading a campaign to raise the social media age.

Seven TV Report

Farmer Wants a Wife

On Seven, Farmer Wants a Wife saw Farmer Dustin and Todd find love.

Before their final decisions were made, the farmers headed to their ladies’ hometowns for one last chance to connect with them and meet their families.

After an epic search for their happily ever after, it was time for the farmers to make the ultimate decision.

Farmer Dustin couldn’t deny his “immediate connection” with Sophie. Acknowledging he “felt like they had known each other forever” Dustin declared his love: “As soon as I saw you, I thought, you’re absolutely gorgeous. I really wanted you to be the first one to come home and be on the farm and see all the special places that mean so much to me.

“One thing you’ve taught me is to open up and be vulnerable. It’s definitely made me into a better person,” Dustin admitted.

After weighing up the risk from previous heartbreak, Todd confessed: “Finding love is a big risk. I’m willing to take the risk with you, Daisy. I can finally give you the reassurance that I am definitely falling in love with you.”

Emotional, Daisy looked towards the future: “This is where the exciting part starts right? Forever.”

Home and Away

Before FWAW was Home and Away as Harper came clean to Tane and Mali had doubts over employing Kirby. 

10 TV Report

The Project

The Project on 10 looked into how Melbourne residents were blindsided by flood rezoning, the push for free public transport and spoke to superstar singer Billie Eilish about her new album.

MasterChef Australia

On 10’s MasterChef Australia, Vincent Yeow Lim was last night’s Mystery Box special guest as contestants had to create a dish using a wok, needing to impress to avoid a impending pressure test.

Have You Been Paying Attention?

Have You Been Paying Attention saw Celia Pacquola, Tony Martin, Bron Lewis, Ed Kavalee and Sam Pang all compete to see who’s been paying attention the most with host Tom Gleisner and special guest quizmaster Tilly Kearns.

ABC

7:30

On 7:30, the program looked into the delicate political balance in New Caledonia which has crumbled with alarming speed and discussed the imminent decision on Julian Assange’s US extradition. 

SBS

Tony Robinson’s Marvellous Machines

Tony Robinson explored machines that help humans become superhuman such as a jet-powered suit that could be worn by flying paramedics. 

Sunday 19 May 2024: VOZ Total TV Ratings Overnight Top 30 – Programs ranked on reach

Total People TV Ratings

Nine’s Travel Guides recorded a total TV national reach of 2,161,000, a total TV national audience of 986,000, and a BVOD audience of 67,000.

Nine’s NRL – Storm v Eels recorded a total TV national reach of 1,097,000, a total TV national audience of 453,000, and a BVOD audience of 39,000.

Seven’s Farmer Wants a Wife recorded a total TV national reach of 1,936,000, a total TV national audience of 1,000,000, and a BVOD audience of 107,000.

Also on Seven, 7NEWS Spotlight recorded a total TV national reach of 1,381,000, a total TV national audience of 459,000, and a BVOD audience of 27,000.

10’s airing of MasterChef Australia recorded a total TV national reach of 1,152,000, a total TV national audience of 619,000, and a BVOD audience of 48,000.

See Also: TV Report 19 May 2024: Travel Guides premieres in Northern India with two new guides

People 25-54

Nine’s Travel Guides:
• Total TV nation reach: 756,000
• National Audience: 367,000
• BVOD Audience: 39,000

Nine’s NRL – Eels v Storm:
• Total TV nation reach: 373,000
• National Audience: 160,000
• BVOD Audience: 23,000

10’s MasterChef:
• Total TV nation reach: 415,000
• National Audience: 220,000 
• BVOD Audience: 28,000

Seven’s Farmer Wants a Wife:
• Total TV nation reach: 546,000
• National Audience: 263,000
• BVOD Audience: 58,000

Seven’s 7NEWS Spotlight:
• Total TV nation reach: 372,000
• National Audience: 109,000
• BVOD Audience: 15,000

People 16-39

Nine’s Travel Guides:
• Total TV nation reach: 301,000
• National Audience: 145,000
• BVOD Audience: 18,000

Nine’s NRL – Eels v Storm:
• Total TV nation reach: 142,000
• National Audience: 60,000
• BVOD Audience: 14,000

10’s MasterChef:
• Total TV nation reach: 165,000
• National Audience: 90,000 
• BVOD Audience: 16,000

Seven’s Farmer Wants a Wife:
• Total TV nation reach: 217,000
• National Audience: 99,000
• BVOD Audience: 30,000

Seven’s 7NEWS Spotlight:
• Total TV nation reach: 133,000
• National Audience: 43,000
• BVOD Audience: 8,000

Grocery Shoppers 18+

Nine’s Travel Guides:
• Total TV nation reach: 1,634,000
• National Audience: 747,000
• BVOD Audience: 54,000

Nine’s NRL – Eels v Storm:
• Total TV nation reach: 835,000
• National Audience: 346,000
• BVOD Audience: 30,000

10’s MasterChef:
• Total TV nation reach: 893,000
• National Audience: 482,000 
• BVOD Audience: 39,000

Seven’s Farmer Wants a Wife:
• Total TV nation reach: 1,509,000
• National Audience: 795,000
• BVOD Audience: 86,000

Seven’s 7NEWS Spotlight:
• Total TV nation reach: 1,091,000
• National Audience: 366,000
• BVOD Audience: 22,000

Data © OzTAM and Regional TAM 2024. Not to be reproduced, published or communicated (electronically or in hard copy) in whole or in part, without prior written consent of OzTAM and Regional TAM.