Business of Media
Fight for NBCUniversal content fires up as offers start rolling in
US film studio giant NBCUniversal has received at least two offers for its television and film content from local broadcasters, igniting what could become one of the fiercest and most lucrative content battles in the local market this year, reports SMH’s Zoe Samios.
Multiple media sources, who spoke anonymously because commercial deals are confidential, said Foxtel and Seven West Media had already made offers to buy parts of NBCUniversal’s content slate ahead of content screenings in Los Angeles this week. The sources also said Nine Entertainment Co was expected to make an offer before leaving for the US, however it is not clear whether it has done so.
But they said the amount of money offered is unlikely to meet the expectations of NBCUniversal, which was hoping to receive up to three times more than its current $100 million a year deal. Any deal is also expected to include a clause which gives NBC Universal the capacity to terminate an agreement and launch Peacock, which runs shows such as Dr Death and One of Us is Lying, with six months notice.
Foxtel, Nine and Seven declined to comment. NBCU was approached for comment.
Kennedy Awards to review AJA, TNT Radio sponsors, after outcry
The Kennedy Awards is reviewing its sponsors after it secured $100,000 in funding from a “fake union” – the Australian Journalists Association – and controversial media group TNT Radio, reports News Corp’s David Ross.
The Australian Journalists Association, which trades under the old name for the media division of the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance, has put down $50,000 to secure naming rights to the NSW media awards night.
Groups linked to the AJA raised funds and sponsored several court challenges to vaccine mandates.
The AJA sponsorship sits alongside Gold Coast-based online media group TNT Radio, which promotes its “alternative” world view, has aired content criticising approaches to Covid-19 in Australia, and has also raised eyebrows with its reporting of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
TNT Radio has put up $50,000 to sponsor the Kennedy Awards.
Kennedy Foundation general manager Anna Magnus said the awards body was reviewing the sponsorships following concerns from the media industry and key stakeholders linked to the event.
Optus goes big and ‘old school’ in Living Network marketing blitz
Optus is on a mission to smash the stigmas of traditional telcos and get Australians to reimagine what a network could be for them, reports News Corp’s Pippa Chambers.
Launching its Living Network ad campaign today, the brand is doubling down on awareness of its in-app offerings for customers and plans to “significantly shift awareness and consideration” in the next 12 months.
Optus chief marketing officer (CMO) Mel Hopkins said it was the biggest campaign Optus would run this year, launching across various owned, earned, shared and paid channels, as it strived to explain exactly what its Living Network could do and the tools it had.
The national ad rollout will form its core network communications moving forward, with Ms Hopkins saying now is the right time for a marketing blitz as there is momentum for change following the election. She said that with so many tools live in market it gave the campaign substance.
News Brads
Facebook ‘prepared for months’ for news ban
Facebook was preparing internally for Australia’s landmark news bargaining code for at least five months, despite later blaming a “technical error” when it blocked charities, government services and critical health organisations amid bushfires and the pandemic, reports News Corp’s David Swan.
Changes made by Facebook to its user terms of service announced publicly on September 2, 2020 show that the tech giant was working behind the scenes to limit any legal fallout from Australia’s impending news media bargaining code, which became law in February 2021, forcing tech companies including Facebook to pay millions of dollars to news publishers.
The addition, which was effective from October 1, 2020 and remains in Facebook’s terms of service, reads: “We also can remove or restrict access to your content, services or information if we determine that doing so is reasonably necessary to avoid or mitigate adverse legal or regulatory impacts to Facebook.”
Publishing
NZ publishers recruit former Nine execs to lead tech talks
The New Zealand publishing sector has hired former Nine executives, Chris Janz and David Eisman, to negotiate commercial deals for use of their content by Google and Meta, joining a group of international news outlets attempting to level the playing field with the tech behemoths, reports SMH‘s Zoe Samios.
New Zealand’s News Publishers’ Association, which represents the interests of 28 local news outlets, will fight to receive about an annual fee of at least NZ$40 million ($36.3 million) from the two tech giants, which have largely failed to engage in a serious way on any commercial deal.
The group received provisional authorisation from its Commerce Commission (its local version of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) earlier this year, to allow it to collectively bargain for a deal.
Entertainment
Guy Sebastian’s rep takes a hammering at Titus Day trial
Guy Sebastian’s squeaky clean reputation and accountancy acumen took a hammering in the District Court last week when the singer was cross examined under oath in the Crown’s case against his former manager Titus Day, writes News Corp’s Annette Sharp.
On Tuesday Sebastian admitted he’d told people he’d “headbutted” – though not intentionally he claimed – a youth he’d chased from outside his Clovelly home in 2012 after the singer’s wife phoned her absent husband and told him the youth had attempted to break into his son’s bedroom via a window.
Defence barrister Dominic Toomey SC repeatedly probed Sebastian: “Mr Sebastian, I’ve asked you if you’ve ever told anyone that you headbutted him?”
Sebastian: “I’ve told people that yeah I knocked him out,’’ the singer said, emitting a laugh, and confirming he had chased the youth when “he started to leg it”, Sebastian’s helmeted head
later making contact with the youth’s face.
Later in the week the court heard the Australian Idol star had referred to concert goers as “fat older feral women”.
Dannii Minogue quits Masked Singer
Dannii Minogue is not returning to The Masked Singer due to her fashion career, reports TV Tonight.
“My fashion commitments in the UK conflict with scheduling of The Masked Singer filming this year, so unfortunately I won’t be returning,” Minogue said.
“I am sure with borders opening there will be loads of great surprises for everyone.
“I’ve loved every minute working on TMS and will miss my Inspector Minogue role.”
The news follows Urzila Carlson confirming she would not be returning due to comedy commitments.
Sport Media
Protecting sport for free-to-air will be easier under Labor
The new Labor government has been urged to make good on its commitment to review the anti-siphoning act and keep sporting events such as the AFL Grand Final on free-to-air TV, reports AFR‘s Miranda Ward.
Former Fairfax Media chief executive Greg Hywood welcomed the certainty Labor brings to the industry, including around the minister for communications, with Michelle Rowland to take on the portfolio.
“The Labor Party did have significantly more clarity on the issues that concern us, particularly around anti-siphoning,” Mr Hywood, the chairman of free-to-air television lobby group Free TV, said.
“They committed to a review, but they were pretty clear they will go into that review with a clear view that the existing range of iconic sporting events wouldn’t fundamentally change, they were clear about that whereas the Coalition wouldn’t go that far.”
The free-to-air television industry had been concerned that AFL executives went to the US to speak with direct-to-consumer streaming giants including Amazon Prime Video, with Paramount+ also interested in the code’s broadcast rights, he said.