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E-commerce is booming: PwC

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Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 15 : 29-Mar-21

PwC has reported that non-food online sales recorded more than five years’ growth in just 11 months, due to the pandemic. The increase in both food and non-food online sales during the pandemic was reflected in the latest reporting season, with Woolworths reporting that its online sales rose by 92 per cent in the December half, while furnishings and bedding retailer Adairs advised that its online sales had increased by 95.2 per cent. Pure-play online marketplace Kogan stated that its sales rose almost 90 per cent, while Myer’s online sales increased by 71 per cent. Vanessa Brennan from PwC says that the consumer is "now in charge" and that this means that innovation is "now business as usual".

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PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS AUSTRALIA (INTERNATIONAL) PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, ADAIRS LIMITED – ASX ADH, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, KOGAN.COM LIMITED – ASX KGN

Regional papers concern

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Original article by Miranda Ward
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 29-Mar-21

Country Press Australia is holding talks with both Facebook and Google regarding the news media bargaining code. CPA represents the publishers of 160 regional newspapers nationwide; its negotiations have come at a time when there is growing concern that the Facebook News product will have limited relevance to regional newspapers as it is focused primarily on national news. Australian Community Media is also in talks with Facebook, while it secured a deal with Google in late 2020.

CORPORATES
COUNTRY PRESS AUSTRALIA INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, GOOGLE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITY MEDIA PTY LTD

Cyber attack disables Nine HQ

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Original article by James Madden
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 29-Mar-21

Nine Entertainment Company has become the target of a cyber attack that prevented it from broadcasting live programs such as ‘Weekend Today’ on 28 March. Nine was also forced to broadcast a national news bulletin from Melbourne into the Sydney and Canberra markets. All of Nine’s broadcast and newspaper staff have been told to work from home and avoid accessing the media group’s corporate network until further notice. A number of Australian businesses have recently been subjected to ransomware attacks, but Nine says it has not received a ransom demand.

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NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC

Watchdog’s secret check on Nine

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Original article by David Ross
The Australian – Page: 19 : 8-Mar-21

It has revealed that the Australian Securities & Investments Commission wrote to Nine Entertainment in early August about possible insider trading by one of its staff. The period in question that ASIC was interested in was from January to 10 July, with correspondence between Nine and ASIC on the matter continuing until 21 August, just days before Nine issued its financial results on 27 August. It is believed the matter is no longer a subject of inquiry, with both Nine and ASIC declining to comment on the issue.

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AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC

Audiences, ads will return: NOVA chief

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Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 19 : 8-Mar-21

The Australian radio industry’s advertising revenue across the five capital cities fell by 19 per cent over the six months to December. This was significantly down when compared to free-to-air television, which recorded an increase of 0.6 per cent. However, NOVA Entertainment chief executive Peter Charlton is optimistic of a recovery in radio advertising in 2021, with eight out of its biggest 10 advertisers spending the same or more in the first two months of 2021 as in the same period in 2020; the advertisers in question include Harvey Norman, Coles and Woolworths.

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NOVA ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD

Rare earth miners want plan backed with cash

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Original article by Jacob Greber, Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 5-Mar-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced a 10-year ‘road map’ for the creation of more mineral processing operations in Australia. His plans have won backing from rare earths and critical minerals producers and from green groups such as the Climate Council and WWF-Australia, but producers have called on the government to back up its plans with actual money and support. Charlie Richardson from Accenture notes that Australia has over 90 per cent of the raw materials used to make lithium-ion batteries, but no manufacturers producing them. He says this is both a "both a missed opportunity and a sovereign risk".

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, ACCENTURE AUSTRALIA LIMITED, LYNAS RARE EARTHS LIMITED – ASX LYC, HASTINGS TECHNOLOGY METALS LIMITED – ASX HAS, WORLD WIDE FUND FOR NATURE AUSTRALIA, CLIMATE COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, ARAFURA RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX ARU

Nine to pay costs in Aston ruling

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Original article by Cameron England
The Australian – Page: 3 : 9-Feb-21

The Federal Court has awarded indemnity costs to Elaine Stead in her defamation case against newspaper columnist Joe Aston. The indemnity costs will be backdated to 22 April, when Nine Entertainment Company rejected Stead’s offer to settle the case for $190,000. Stead was recently awarded ordinary and aggravated damages totalling $280,000 over several articles that were published in the ‘Australian Financial Review’. Nine could potentially face a total bill of more than $2.5m arising from the defamation case.

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NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC,FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Amazon tops $1bn sales but still in red

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Original article by David Ross
The Australian – Page: 15 : 9-Feb-21

Digital giant Amazon has advised that its Australian arm posted a loss of $3.8m in 2020, following a $2.5m loss previously. However, Amazon Australia boasted total sales of $1.12bn in 2020, compared with just $562.1m in 2019. The company’s online stores recorded sales totalling $511m, while its subscription services’ sales rose from $35.4m to $90m. Amazon entered the local market in late 2017, and it now employs nearly 1,000 people in Australia.

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AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED

Media at ‘pivotal moment’: News

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Original article by James Madden
The Weekend Australian – Page: 21 & 22 : 8-Feb-21

News Corporation has posted net income of $US261m ($343.4m) for the December 2020 quarter, compared with $US103m for the same period in 2019. The global media company’s EBITDA rose 40 per cent year-on-year to $US497m. Revenue fell three per cent to $US2.41bn year-on-year, although it rose from $US2.12bn in the September quarter. News Corp’s subscription video services rose by 77 per cent to $US124m. News Corp CEO Robert Thomson says the push for greater regulation of digital platforms in Australia and worldwide represents a pivotal moment for the global media industry.

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NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Rod Sims’ big tech fixation blinds him to Murdoch’s monopoly

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Original article by Kevin Rudd
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 39 : 8-Feb-21

Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation controls 70 per cent of print readership in Australia, and his power is arguably set to increase under the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s proposed news media bargaining code. ACCC chairman Rod Sims has become so fixated about new digital technology monopolies that he seems to have forgotten about Murdoch’s existing one. The code will see Google and Facebook compelled to pay for Fox News-style clickbait, while it is high time there was a royal commission to look at both existing and new media monopolies.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, FOX NEWS, SKY NEWS