Ten pips Seven at post for Cup rights

Original article by John Stensholt
The Weekend Australian – Page: 5 : 1-Sep-18

‘The Ten Network is expected to announce on 3 September that it has secured the rights to broadcast the Melbourne Cup horse racing carnival as from 2019. It is understood that Ten will pay over $10 million a year for the rights, as much as five times more than current broadcaster Seven West is believed to be paying. Seven will also cease broadcasting the Australian Open tennis in 2019, but has teamed up with Foxtel to take the cricket from Nine, which will now show the tennis.

CORPORATES
TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Nine pitches $3m Australian Open sponsor deals

Original article by Nick Tabakoff
The Australian – Page: Online : 3-Sep-18

Nine Entertainment is understood to be seeking sponsor deals of up to $3 million for the Australian Open tennis, which it will be covering for the first time in 2019. Nine has already met with some of the Open’s current sponsors, including the ANZ Bank, Kia and Emirates, with more meetings expected in the week beginning 3 September. Nine is seeking to charge more than Seven did for major sponsor packages, but it believes the extra cost is warranted, because of the greater opportunity for "cross-platform exposure".

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, KIA GROUP, EMIRATES AIRLINES, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, JACOB’S CREEK PTY LTD, BARILLA, OMNICOM GROUP

Orocobre rises on record profit

Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 22 : 29-Aug-18

Australian-listed Orocobre has posted a 2017-18 underlying profit of $US25.7m, compared with $US13.8m in 2016-17. However, impairment charges and tax law changes saw the lithium miner’s statutory net profit fall from $US4.6m previously to $US1.9m. Orocobre benefited from a 29 per cent rise in the lithium price, and MD Richard Seville expects the price to remain strong in the first half of 2018-19. Orocobre’s shares rose 5.8 per cent to $4.37 on 28 August.

CORPORATES
OROCOBRE LIMITED – ASX ORE, GALAXY RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX GXY, SOCIEDAD QUIMICA Y MINERA SA, POSCO, TOYOTA TSUSHO CORPORATION

Prime blames loss on ad decline

Original article by Stephen Brook
The Australian – Page: 21 : 29-Aug-18

The Seven Network’s regional affiliate Prime Media Group has posted a 2017-18 net loss of $12.28m, compared with a loss of $48m previously. Prime’s revenue of $219.16m was 8.7 per cent lower than the previous financial year, while EBITDA fell 29.5 per cent to $45.16m and operating expenses rose 10.2 per cent to $55.02m.

CORPORATES
PRIME MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX PRT, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM

Buyer eyes Fairfax Media events arm

Original article by Joyce Moullakis, Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 28-Aug-18

US-based Motiv has declined to comment on reports that it has made an informal approach to acquire Fairfax Media’s events business, which Macquarie Equities values at about $60m. Fairfax’s proposed merger partner, Nine Entertainment Company, divested its own events business in 2015. A Nine spokeswoman says it is too soon to comment on potential asset sales. There has been speculation that Nine could divest other Fairfax assets, including its regional newspapers.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, MOTIV, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITY MEDIA, STUFF LIMITED, MACQUARIE EQUITIES LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN METRO MEDIA, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AFFINITY EQUITY, TEG PTY LTD

BHP puts off potash mining plans

Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 20 : 28-Aug-18

BHP Billiton advised in its 2017-18 full-year report that it now expects global demand for potash to exceed supply by the mid-to-late 2020s, having forecast in 2017 that there would be a demand-supply imbalance by the mid-2020s. As a result, the timeline for development of BHP’s Jansen potash deposit in Canada remains uncertain. BHP is close to completing two kilometre-deep shafts at the Jansen project in preparation for the commencement of mining, but the shafts will then be mothballed until market dynamics make development appropriate.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP

Viewers turn to Seven to watch Libs decide leadership

Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 24 : 27-Aug-18

The Seven Network’s rolling coverage of the Liberal Party’s leadership spill on 24 August boasted an average audience of 165,000 viewers in the five major capital cities, and a combined audience of 252,000 in both metropolitan and regional areas. The ABC’s coverage attracted 167,000 metropolitan viewers and a combined audience of 248,000. Seven also had the highest-rating evening news bulletin. Meanwhile, Sky News Live’s coverage of the leadership crisis had an average audience of 96,183, which is a record for the pay-TV channel.

CORPORATES
SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, SKY NEWS, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Department stores aren’t dying, says DJ’s owner

Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 24-Aug-18

David Jones’s operating profit fell by 49.6 per cent to $64 million in the year to June 2018, as advised by parent company Woolworths Holdings. This compared to an operating profit of $127 million for the previous corresponding period. Department store earnings were down 58 per cent to $5 million. Sales for the second half of the reporting period increased by 2.2 per cent, while sales for the first seven weeks of 2018-19 have risen by 3.7 per cent.

CORPORATES
DAVID JONES LIMITED, WOOLWORTHS HOLDINGS LIMITED, COUNTRY ROAD LIMITED, ZARA, HENNES OCH MAURITZ AB, LOUIS VUITTON, CHANEL INCORPORATED, WALT DISNEY COMPANY

Content and data to underpin Nine growth

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 24-Aug-18

Nine Entertainment Company has posted a 2017-18 underlying net profit of $156.7m, which is 26.8 per cent higher than previously. Underlying EBITDA was up 25.1 per cent at $257.2m and revenue rose 6.5 per cent to $1.3bn. Nine boasted a 38.6 per cent share of free-to-air metropolitan advertising revenue in 2017-18, ahead of Seven West Media with a 38.1 per cent share. Nine CEO Hugh Marks is upbeat about the media group’s outlook, highlighting its capabilities in delivering content across media platforms and targeted advertising via its addressable TV technology.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, 9NOW, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, WILSON ASSET MANAGEMENT

Seven West open to closer News Corp ties

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 22-Aug-18

Seven West Media has posted a 2017-18 net profit of $135.8m, following a $744.3m loss in the previous financial year. Revenue was 3.2 per cent lower at $1.6bn and underlying EBIT fell 9.9 per cent to $235.6m, while Seven forecasts growth in underlying EBIT of 5-10 per cent in 2018-19. CEO Tim Worner says Seven may seek to strengthen its commercial partnerships or forge new deals in the wake of Nine Entertainment’s proposed merger with Fairfax Media. He notes that Seven already has an alliance with News Corp, but he has downplayed suggestions of a merger.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, YAHOO!7 COMMUNICATIONS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, MARTIN CURRIE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED, PRIME MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX PRT