Business of media
Bush Summit 2023: Water, the Voice, renewables, city divide, drought the big issues
News Corp Australia assembled an A-team of talent to compile a detailed summary of the 2023 Bush Summit. The first event was hosted by The Daily Telegraph in northern NSW on Friday. Leading the News Corp Australia delegation was executive chairman Michael Miller and Daily Telegraph editor Ben English.
The journalists covering the event included Clare Armstrong, Lachlan Leeming, Angira Bharadwaj and Matthew Benns:
An action plan addressing the issues facing Australians in regional and rural areas is the result of News Corp Australia’s agenda-setting Bush Summit.
Now in its fourth year, and running nationally for the first time, the Bush Summit has created tangible change across the bush, including the establishment of the Rural Advisory Panel which provides advice to the government from the people on the ground and not bureaucrats in the city.
The event has also protected the livelihoods of farming communities by pushing governments to introduce the ‘right to farm’ legislation to keep activists off farms.
The summit series has launched n Tamworth, hearing from politicians including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, NSW Premier Chris Minns, and federal Opposition leader Peter Dutton, as well as rural and regional locals, stakeholders, farmers and business people.
It will now hit the road for events in Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia next week.
Foxtel hit with ‘frenzy’ of regulation: From anti-siphoning to betting ad revamp
Foxtel chief executive Patrick Delany has hit out at the “frenzy” of regulation he says is swamping the pay-TV company, saying potential moves to give free-to-air television prominence on new TV sets are a case of “commercial protection and consumer deception”, reports The Australian’s John Stensholt.
Delany told The Australian that his group, including streaming services Binge and Kayo, was battling four major regulation issues, with the free-to-air (FTA) television networks’ push for prominence on TV sets and devices of particular concern. Foxtel was also concerned about potential changes to drama spending requirements that would effectively see it “double regulated” if both Foxtel and Binge were included in local content spending demands. Other concerns included a “time warped” anti-siphoning list and the pending government revamp of betting advertising on television.
SEN founder Craig Hutchison’s media empire faces big test after market sell-off
On the face of things, former journalist and latter-day entrepreneur Craig Hutchison fronts one of the fastest-growing media empires in the country. Barely a week seems to go by without the detail of the latest Hutchison – acquisition of a radio station, sporting team or a new talent for one of his shows, reports The Australian’s Nick Tabakoff.
But amid all of Hutchison’s wins that generate plenty of publicity in the Melbourne media, there have also been some very real losses in recent months.
The most obvious has been in the share price of his ASX-listed company, Sports Entertainment Group (SEG), where Hutchison is CEO and major shareholder, which has dropped to all-time lows of 18c over the last fortnight.
Hutchison told The Australian that the company’s phase of rapidly expanding the SEN radio brand through acquisition and debt was now complete.
“Our house is built now in audio,” he said. “The footprint of our Australian and New Zealand stations and audio distribution is complete. It’s a really valuable future network across sport and racing that we look forward to extracting value from for years to come.”
The radio network’s revenue staple is seen to be the explosion in sports gambling advertising in recent years. But advertising still needs listeners, and Hutchison will be looking to improve the network’s current ratings. In the latest July radio ratings survey, there was a wide variation in the network’s listenership – from a battling 0.5 per cent in SEN 1170 in Sydney (where SEN took over the former music station 2CH in 2020) to 0.8 per cent for SEN 693 in Brisbane and a more respectable 3.1 per cent for its flagship Melbourne station, SEN 1116, which features as its star Gerard Whateley.
Despite its rising debt, the company continues to be on the hunt for new opportunities. Late last month, it was announced that Hutchison had won the race to take over the Melbourne netball licence dumped by Collingwood in May, reportedly because it was haemorrhaging money.
QMS boss John O’Neill bats away suggestions of outdoor advertising firm sale
QMS Media chief executive John O’Neill has rejected suggestions the outdoor advertising company’s private equity owner, Quadrant, is looking to cash in as the sector goes from strength to strength, reports Nine Publishing’s Calum Jaspan.
Despite chatter in the market about potential interest in the business from new buyers, O’Neill told this masthead there is no sale in play and Quadrant would look to realise more value in the company before it looked to cash in on its 2019 investment.
The private equity firm made a cash bid for the ASX-listed company four years ago valuing QMS at more than $420 million, a deal ultimately backed by its board.
“They won’t leave anything on the table,” O’Neil told this masthead when asked about Quadrant’s view on the business, noting all parties are committed to continuing QMS’ growth. “Then they will look at it.”
While batting it away as “speculation”, O’Neill said a sale would make sense based on the nature of private equity investing. “They get in and get out.”
A bid from Nine Entertainment (the owner of this masthead) was rumoured in 2022, with the company quashing speculation its chief executive Mike Sneesby had held talks with the digitally-led outdoor company over a deal.
Daily Mail in talks with investors over bid for London’s Telegraph newspaper
The Daily Mail has begun talks with investors over a potential bid for The Daily Telegraph newspaper, reports London’s Sunday Times.
The Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) and its consumer division, dmg media, registered its interest on Saturday.
Lord Rothermere, the chairman of DMGT, had been trying to attract potential investors, including funds based in the Middle East, to support a bid for the rival newspaper group, according to a recent Sky News report.
However, a DMGT spokesperson told Reuters that no formalised plans or consortium had been put together to purchase the Telegraph titles, which also include The Sunday Telegraph and The Spectator.
The Courts
Costs fight delayed in Roberts-Smith case as Nine seeks Seven documents
Ben Roberts-Smith’s key supporters at Seven West Media may resist handing over documents revealing their involvement in the former soldier’s failed defamation case, the Federal Court has heard, as the Nine-owned newspapers at the centre of the lawsuit pursue his backers for legal costs, reports Nine Publishing’s Michaela Whitbourn.
As part of its application for a third-party costs order, Nine is seeking to show ACE and Seven controlled the litigation.
Justice Anthony Besanko last month rejected a bid by Seven West Media chairman Kerry Stokes, Seven Network commercial director Bruce McWilliam and others to set aside subpoenas from Nine requiring them to hand over documents, including emails and text messages, showing their communications with either or both Roberts-Smith and his lawyers about the defamation case.
Foxtel ‘flagrantly’ stole technology from us, small Sydney firm claims
Foxtel knowingly and “flagrantly” used technology owned by a small Sydney company to allow its customers to remotely download and record movies and television shows, documents filed in the Federal Court allege, reports The AFR’s Sam Buckingham-Jones.
The Advanced Technology Group claims it lost license fees, profits and subscription revenues after Foxtel used its patented technology to sell its set-top boxes to new customers for years.
ATG had a patent for “remote recording” between December 2013 and June 2018, according to the company’s court filings. Its patented technology allowed people to download digital content from a TV guide on another device – from a phone onto a device at home, for example.
Between those dates, Foxtel offered an app that let its customers record shows from “anywhere in Australia”, ATG claims.
Publishing
News Corp offers way for readers to avoid Saturday print price rises
After reporting a new record for digital news subscriptions just last Friday, News Corp is looking to continue growing its daily metro sub numbers. The Daily Telegraph, Herald Sun and other metro dailies revealed to readers on Saturday that there was good and bad news.
The bad news was the newsstand price of the Saturday edition of the newspaper is increasing by 50c to $4. With all other editions of the newspaper remaining the same, that means the Saturday newspaper will now be the same price as The Sunday Telegraph.
However, as a lure to readers who might be tempted to switch to a digital edition, the publisher announced a half price deal.
New readers who subscribe to a News Corp Australia metro daily before August 30, 2023 will be able to get full digital access to their local metro masthead in addition to receiving home delivery of the Saturday and Sunday print editions of the newspapers for a cost of $4.50 a week for 12 weeks.
The subscription also allows readers full digital access to all metro dailies and regional news sites.
Customers who wish to go digital only are able to sign up for $4 a week for a 12 month plan.
See also: News Corp transformation – Robert Thomson reveals digital revenue now over 50% for full year.
Radio
Lunch with Christian O’Connell: Melbourne’s #1 FM live soon in Sydney too?
In a feature in Nine newspapers on Saturday, Gold 104.3 breakfast host Christian O’Connell shared two bottles of red wine (average cost $105) with a journalist. The lunch date and interview was set up to hear about O’Connell’s experience in Australia ahead of his 1,000th breakfast show which will be broadcast on August 21.
The journalist was The Age’s Karl Quinn and in the feature story’s opening paragraph he noted O’Connell has “ambitions to take a tilt at Sydney”.
Later in the article, Quinn wrote: “If he has his druthers, he’ll also be broadcasting live into Sydney before too long.”
Towards the end of the article, again in Quinn’s words: “If he has ambitions to be No. 1 in Sydney, maybe even nationally, he’s not letting on.”
‘I am always up and down and decide at the last minute’: Neil Mitchell on 3AW future
Melbourne radio’s news breaking king Neil Mitchell is in discussions with 3AW about his role with the station next year, reports News Corp’s Fiona Byrne.
Mitchell, who sits high above the morning radio pack with his show’s soaring ratings, rolled over his contract with AW at the end of June and is already looking at next year and what it may bring.
“As usual we (he and AW) are in considerable discussions at the moment,” Mitchell said when asked if he would be continuing on with his show unchanged in 2024.
The afternoon host at 3AW is still to be announced for 2024 following the departure of Dee Dee Dunleavy mid-year.
Ex-Seven newsreader Jacqui Felgate has impressed in the shift, as have Jimmy Bartel, Heidi Murphy, Tony Moclair and Elise Elliott.
How Australian Radio Network plans to make Mix 102.3 #1 with help from Cruise
Australian Radio Network is making it harder for easy listening station Cruise 1323 to succeed in order to boost sister station Mix 102.3, industry insiders say, reports The Advertiser’s Anna Vlach.
“They have changed the format at Cruise to only play music from the 1960s and 1970s, anything from the 1980s onwards doesn’t exist,” one source says, adding: “They want Cruise to sound older because it has been taking a lot of listeners from Mix.
Another industry insider agreed ARN was “putting all of its efforts” into Mix – which is the home of The Ali Clarke Breakfast Show – to “further bolster” that station’s ratings.
Last month, Cruise’s mornings presenter and music director Dom Rinaldo was made redundant. It was a surprise exit because Rinaldo had performed consistently well in the ratings.
While Rinaldo would have been celebrating 13 years at Cruise in December, ARN did not announce his departure, meaning he was not able to bid his listeners farewell on-air.
ARN released a statement when contacted by The Advertiser, after we noticed Rinaldo appeared to have gone AWOL. Chief content officer Duncan Campbell said in a statement: “We thank him for his passion and contribution to the network over the years and wish him all the best.”
Sports Media
Football Australia chases record TV deal after Matildas’ success
Football Australia will attempt to leverage the on-field success of the Matildas and their history-making television ratings to secure a new multimillion-dollar broadcast deal for the national soccer teams, reports The AFR’s Zoe Samios.
The governing body’s chief executive, James Johnson, is expecting a record-breaking cash injection for the sport after the FIFA Women’s World Cup. He says the money will be used to strengthen the national teams and boost grassroots participation.
Optus Sport and Seven West Media are the broadcast partners for the FIFA Women’s World Cup, but the rights to the Men and Women’s Asian Cup, friendly matches and qualifiers, sit with the Ten Network and its parent company, Paramount. The $100 million deal, signed in 2021, ends next year.
Johnson said the agreement with Ten had generated much-needed audiences for the sport, but signalled all broadcasters and streaming services would be given the opportunity to capitalise on the momentum of the Matildas. An open market process could mean all Matildas and Socceroos matches end up behind a paywalled service such as Optus Sport.
FIFA looks to cash in on Matildas as 2026 men’s rights battle kicks off
Australia’s free-to-air networks are expected to battle it out for the rights to the FIFA Men’s World Cup in 2026 following the success of the women’s tournament, reports Nine Publishing’s Calum Jaspan.
FIFA executives in Australia for the blockbuster Women’s World Cup are set to brief the nation’s free-to-air networks this week, a media executive with knowledge of the process but not permitted to speak publicly said. An official process is expected to take place in the coming months.
SBS first gained the rights in 1990. The most recent two tournaments, in Russia and Qatar, were snagged by the broadcaster in 2011 for $20 million each, but it subsequently sublicensed its rights in 2018 to Optus Sport, which infamously botched the broadcast.
Steve Crawley signs NRL anchor to new four-year Fox Sports deal
Fox Sports star Yvonne Sampson has agreed to a new four-year contract with the network, reports News Corp’s Phil Rothfield.
Sampson joined Fox Sports from Channel Nine in 2017, poached by Steve Crawley as the face of the network’s live-game coverage.
Crawley says Sampson is world class. “She is the best in rugby league and close to the best in the world in all sports broadcasting,” Crawley said. “I watch everything the Americans do on Fox Sports, ESPN and NBC and there’s no one better than Yvonne.
Fox Sports is now in talks with Cooper Cronk and his manager George Mimis about a new deal.
Nine’s City2Surf: The media boss who came oh-so-close to a sub-one hour finish
Covering some of the runners in Nine’s City2Surf Sydney run held on Sunday, CBD columnists Kishor Napier-Raman and David Estcourt reported the column was too overwhelmed with its own World Cup hangover to fathom hitting the pavement on Sunday morning. They continued:
So hearty congratulations to all who made it out for the City2Surf, in particular former Wentworth MP Dave Sharma, who blitzed the 14-kilometre run in just 59 minutes and six seconds to top this column’s leader board.
Voice Yes campaign media manager and former Liberal staffer Benn Ayre was not too far behind in an hour and 22 minutes – but with ground to make up, clearly. And he bested Kevin Rudd’s former comms director Lachlan Harris by three minutes. mazel tov.
And a big shout out to our boss, Nine publishing managing director James Chessell, who ran in a blistering 1:00:33. That’s leadership.