Paramount Australia unveiled a line-up of new and returning shows, innovative ad tech and a mountain of entertainment at the 2025 upfront on Monday.
Advertisers and marketers visited 10’s Sydney studio for an intimate gathering to see what was in store for the year ahead.
In a recent interview with Mediaweek, Beverley McGarvey, president of Network 10 & head of streaming and regional lead, Paramount Australia and New Zealand, said the local and global media industry is “having one of its moments of accelerated change”.
“We’re just trying to keep our heads down, do our job, try and get people to watch our shows and buy our shows.”
Mediaweek caught up with media buyers who attended the event to get their thoughts on offerings and what piqued their interest.
Elizabeth Baker
Zenith Australia’s chief investment officer, Elizabeth Baker told Mediaweek that Paramount set the bar high with a “strong and compelling” presentation.
Baker called the introduction of Paramount Connect a “standout moment”. She said that the network has adeptly addressed market demands with a commitment to “making it simple” through its streamlined interface and a simplified trading process with blended CPM.
She noted that the network’s rebranding of 10Play creates a cohesive brand identity and underscores its “commitment to delivering ‘the same great viewing experience distributed the way you want.’”
Baker noted that while the network positioned itself as a “premium video business “ with a lineup of returning favourites and new content, the “presentation largely bypassed the detailed audience statistics typical of upfronts past”.
She highlighted the return of Big Brother in Q4 2025 with “real people in real time” to be “more accessible”, noting it will feature “less producer intervention and more authenticity.”
Paramount+ will also debut new content and bring back popular shows, including NCIS: Sydney, Lioness, 1923, Yellowjackets, and Aussie Shore. While for football enthusiasts can look forward to “A Mountain of Football” on 10 and Paramount+.
Baker said the power of sponsorship was central to the presentation as the presentation showcased a fictitious chocolate brand ‘Chunk’ to demonstrate that context and seamless integration are key.
“For me, the combination of rich local, integrable, interactive and brand-safe environments offered by Paramount, coupled with an inventive spirit when it comes to sponsorship ideation and execution, is a real positive for advertisers.”
Meanwhile, Paramount’s CTV advertising opportunities – Pause to Shop’ and ‘Own the Moment’ – will be “selectively implemented to balance innovation and technology with the right format.”
In addition to data partnerships, Baker said Paramount’s 80 premium audience segments, known as ‘Paramount Personas’, using its first-party data and insights from partners like smrtr, Coles 360, and Samba TV, “should help advertisers target key audiences with greater accuracy and efficiency.”
Florian Vaissiere
For Florian Vaissiere, group transformation and performance director, OMD Sydney, Paramount focused on delivering last year’s promise of unifying platforms.
He told Mediaweek that the main announcement centred on the introduction of Paramount Connect and its fully converged trading capabilities by the end of 2025.
“Delivering on this highly anticipated transformative technology will allow advertisers to reach audiences across the totality of the Paramount environment through a single customer view.”
Vaissiere noted that Paramount’s rollout of the platform should benefit from the network’s global footprint and capabilities.
“We expect Connect to provide advertisers with greater control over audience reach across offline and online ecosystems, as well as delivering efficiencies and enabling improved consumer engagement strategies.”
Vaissiere said the shift to total TV investment is a major theme going into 2025, “we are looking forward to seeing how Paramount structures its Connect platform and its converged pricing.
“This will significantly influence how quickly this new technology is adopted by planners and buyers and how successful it can potentially become for Paramount.”
In terms of content, the return of Big Brother was a highlight. He said: “Whilst focusing on new live features it will be interesting to see how the program fares back on its original network after failed attempts to revive it.”
Vaissiere noted that the creative, data, and tech sections of the presentation were “much more succinct” than in previous years.
“No major announcements were made and the inclusion of new data partners along with the launch of Paramount Personas signals that the network seems to be looking at furthering its offering after years of innovation.
“Having developed a strong data and tech infrastructure already, the challenge for Paramount will be to scale and generate measurable outcomes for advertisers,” he added.
Vaissiere concluded that Paramount’s upfront signalled the network’s plan to “align itself with market expectations, without announcing any major innovation but rather focusing on delivering robust solutions across trading, content, consumer engagement and data.”
Nicole Barnes
Nicola Barnes, group investment director of iProspect, a dentsu company, said the introduction of Paramount Connect as noteworthy for media planners and buyers.
“It’s promising to note that this tool, coming from the US, is already proven and should facilitate a smooth transition, providing a single customer view and enhancing audience insights for our advertisers.”
Barnes also highlighted the expansion of contextual CTV advertising, the rebranding of ‘Pause to Shop,’ and a strengthened partnership with Innovid to include social and vertical video solutions.
“This is an exciting move that will enable many of our clients who don’t have traditional TVCs to leverage their existing social media content in a premium big-screen format.”
Beverley McGarvey and Rod Prosser join Paramount Australia talent and executives at the first 2025 Upfront event
For programming, Barnes welcomed the return of fan favourites, such as MasterChef: Back to Win, Australian Survivor: Brains v Brawn II, and I’m A Celebrity during the summer slot in early 2025.
“The Paramount+ lineup is also set to impress with a variety of new comedy formats, showcasing the network’s strength in this genre,” she added.
Barnes called the revival of the original Big Brother format, with live nominations and evictions, a “potentially a strategic move expected to boost linear TV viewership.”
She noted that Paramount was committed to leveraging its global scale and assets while adopting a digital-first strategy.
“This approach is crucial for navigating the fragmented video market and maximising media spend for improved business outcomes. Their focus on enhancing data partnerships also promises better targeting and measurement solutions, which are vital for our clients and their investments,” Barnes added.
Will Chapman
“It’s indeed a tricky time to be in Television, and as ANZ boss Beverley McGarvey said in her opening statement – 2025 will be the year of being resourceful,” Will Chapman, managing partner of Avenue C, said.
“Being resourceful certainly helps when the juggernaut that is Paramount is a call away, and this year I felt the global support more than previously.”
Much like his fellow media buyer counterparts, the announcement of Paramount Connect also proved to be a big announcement. Chapman called it a “significant global tech investment that provides a single-entry point for Total Television.”
“It’ll launch for Paramounts’ online platforms in Jan’ and then it’ll launch with linear in H2 of 2025. Despite the Total TV delay, the online proposition is compelling and fortunately has been tried and tested globally.
“It removes audience duplication, manages VOD fragmentation, controls frequency and likely more scalable than competitor VOD solutions – all significant wins for advertisers.
“The pricing model however, of fixed CPM, is going to be interesting when the rubber hits the road. As Dr (Karen) Nelson-Field has pointed out, not all screens and content are created equal so paying a fixed cost across the board will need to be teased out,” he added.
Chapman noted alongside Paramount Connect is a partnership with KERV for CTV interactive formats.
“For the right brand the formats offer amazing opportunities (shop the runway at AMA’s was the example used). For a lot of brands, however, it’ll likely be square peg round hole where the cost premium won’t be warranted. Nonetheless – these formats are exciting and getting AU up to speed with available global solutions.”
In terms of content, Chapman said: “it was primarily tried and tested formats, and a few new formats here and there.”
He called out the return of I’m A Celebrity during mid-Jan to compete directly with Nine’s Q1 stronghold as “Brazen or brilliant, only time will tell!”
“Big Brother will also return ‘home’, albeit with stronger casting emphasis on relatability (void the influencers).”
Chapman added that Paramount has cemented itself as the destination for comedy with Sam Pang’s own show, the return of Talking About Your Gen(eration) and further investment into the Inspired Unemployed duo.
“Paramounts focus on holding key younger demographics was evident and I hope for advertiser’ sakes this continues to pay off,” he added.
Justin Arlt
Justin Arlt, national head of marketplace trading at Wavemaker, told Mediaweek “Paramount is a partner that will deliver results in 2025” with its combination of a strong content slate, promising converged trading solution and creative innovation.
He noted that Paramount’s reference to a “Mountain of Entertainment” several years ago has come to fruition with its program offering, including, HYBPA, I’m a Celeb and Australian Survivor, as well as newly commissioned content.
Arlt also highlighted Sam Pang’s new show in 2025, which cements Paramount’s “family-friendly comedy credentials.
“A strong blend locally produced content supported by international dramas provides brands with the confidence that Paramount has something for everyone,” he said.
Regarding the data and technology updates, Arlt said he was most excited about the launch of the Paramount Connect solution.
He highlighted the introduction of Pause to Shop and Own the Moment innovations for brands to seamlessly integrate product discovery across Paramount’s programming, underpinned by data partnerships with Circana and the ABS.
–
Top image: Elizabeth Baker, Florian Vaissiere, Nicola Barnes and Will Chapman