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ABC says staff free to post opinions

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Original article by James Madden, Sophie Elsworth
The Australian – Page: 4 : 27-May-21

The ABC’s MD David Anderson has told a Senate estimates hearing that the public broadcaster’s staff can post their opinions on their personal social media accounts without fear of being disciplined. However, staff must adhere to the ABC’s code of conduct when posting on its official platforms. Anderson has also advised that the ABC is set to secure commercial deals with Google and Facebook under the news media bargaining code. The new revenue stream will be used to boost the ABC’s news coverage in regional and rural areas.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, GOOGLE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED

Ten nabs soccer in $200m contract

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Original article by John Stensholt
The Australian – Page: 24 : 27-May-21

The Ten Network has secured the broadcasting and streaming rights to A-League and W-League matches for the next five years in a $200m cash and contra deal. One A-League match will be shown live on Ten’s primary channel each week, while one W-League match to be broadcast live on a secondary channel. Every match in both leagues will also be available via Ten’s new Paramount+ subscription video-on-demand service, which will be launched in August. Fox Sports currently holds the broadcasting rights.

CORPORATES
TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, THE A LEAGUE PTY LTD, THE W LEAGUE PTY LTD, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

WIN News axes local bulletins, sacks staff

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Original article by Sophie Elsworth
The Australian – Page: 3 : 25-May-21

Regional broadcaster WIN Corporation will replace local news bulletins with state-wide bulletins in Victoria and Queensland when its new affiliation agreement with Nine Entertainment begins on 1 July. WIN CEO Andrew Lancaster says the move will result in job losses, although the company aims to redeploy as many affected employees as possible. Nine will close its own regional newsrooms when its five-year affiliation deal with Southern Cross Austereo ends.

CORPORATES
WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, SOUTHERN CROSS AUSTEREO PTY LTD, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL

Broadcast spectrum buyback threatens popular TV channels

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Original article by Zoe Samios
The Age – Page: Online : 17-May-21

The federal government announced a policy in November that would see spectrum licence fees removed in exchange for the radiofrequency spectrum of television broadcasters being reduced by compressing it. The spectrum made available as a result of this compression would be sold at a higher price to companies such as telcos. Broadcasters are worried that the technology that the government plans to use to compress the spectrum will soon be outdated, and that it will reduce the quality of broadcasting and lead to fewer multi-channels.

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Business brains bolster ABC board

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Original article by James Madden
The Australian – Page: 19 : 17-May-21

Media industry veteran Peter Tonagh is one of three new appointments to the ABC’s board. The former CEO of Foxtel was recommended by the public broadcaster’s independent nominations panel, as was the former MD of the Seven Network’s Perth station, Mario D’Orazio. Communications Minister Paul Fletcher personally chose Fiona Balfour to fill the third vacancy on the ABC’s board; she has extensive experience across a range of business sectors. All three will have five-year terms at the ABC.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS

‘Completely excluded’: budget delivers $58.6m to media but ABC misses out

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Original article by Amanda Meade
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 13-May-21

Former ABC bureaucrat Michael Ward has criticised the lack of funding for the public broadcaster in the federal government’s May 2021 Budget. He contends that the ABC is among the few media companies that are excluded from the $58.6m funding package. Amongst other things, SBS will receive a $30m funding boost, some $8m has been allocated to community broadcasting and the privately-owned AAP newswire service will receive $15m. The Australian Communications & Media Authority will receive an additional $4.2m to implement the news media bargaining code.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, SPECIAL BROADCASTING SERVICE (SBS), AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA AUTHORITY

ABC regrets unfairness in finance probes

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Original article by Sophie Elsworth
The Australian – Page: 19 : 26-Apr-21

Liberal senator Andrew Bragg has criticised the ABC over a lack of balance in its business and economic reporting. It has been revealed that Bragg wrote to the public broadcaster in March to complain about its coverage of the federal government’s proposed changes to responsible lending laws. He contends that the article failed to present the government’s reasons for the legislative changes. The ABC has conceded that the article should have been more balanced. It has also recently corrected a series of reports about the alleged rorting of the JobKeeper scheme.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Journalists’ union says it will quit ineffectual Australian Press Council

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Original article by Amanda Meade
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 22-Apr-21

The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance’s members have voted to withdraw from the Australian Press Council, the self-regulatory body for print media. The journalists’ union will give the requisite four years’ notice to quit the APC, and the MEAA’s Marcus Strom hopes its move will prompt debate about media regulation. The MEAA has called for a simpler system of self-regulation that is consistent across all platforms and organisations. The APC’s adjudications have been widely criticised by journalists and the print media.

CORPORATES
MEDIA, ENTERTAINMENT AND ARTS ALLIANCE, AUSTRALIAN PRESS COUNCIL

Nine ads hit in cyber fallout

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Original article by James Madden
The Australian – Page: 19 : 12-Apr-21

A Nine Entertainment Company spokesman has declined to comment on media industry claims that the recent cyber attack has cost it several hundred thousand dollars in lost radio advertising revenue. The spokesman says there has been "minimal impact" on ad bookings; however, Nine is believed to still be having problems with the ad booking and placement system for its radio stations, and some of Nine’s clients are said to have placed ads with rival radio broadcasters since the cyber attack occured in late March.

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NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC

ACM gets go-ahead to raise stake in Prime

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Original article by Sophie Elsworth
The Australian – Page: 15 : 9-Apr-21

Australian Community Media has been cleared to increase its stake in Seven Network affiliate Prime Media Group to 19.99 per cent. The deal to buy a five per cent stake in Prime from WIN Corporation owner Bruce Gordon had to be cleared by the Australian Communications & Media Authority, as ACM would exceed the 15 per cent threshold that is deemed to be a controlling interest under the Broadcasting Services Act 1992. ACM’s Anthony Catalano says the legislation needs to be updated, as the ‘voices test’ for regional areas does not include digital media. He adds that ACM will have to sell two newspapers in Victoria and New South Wales unless the legislation is changed.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITY MEDIA PTY LTD, PRIME MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX PRT, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA AUTHORITY