MASS MEDIA – AUSTRALIA

Fresh blood for Ten board

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Original article by Darren Davidson, Daniel Palmer
The Australian – Page: 21 : 26-Jul-16

WIN Corporation CEO Andrew Lancaster has succeeded Brian Long as a director of Australian-listed Ten Network. WIN has a 14.9 per cent stake in Ten, and the two TV broadcasters commenced an affiliation agreement in mid-2016. Meanwhile, John Klepec has stepped down as Gina Rinehart’s nominee on the Ten board. He has been replaced by Australia’s former trade minister, Andrew Robb.

CORPORATES
TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, BIRKETU PTY LTD, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL FARMERS’ FEDERATION LIMITED

Ten tie-up delivers good news for WIN

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 23 & 25 : 25-Jul-16

RegionalTAM data shows that WIN Corporation’s ratings in the 6pm to 7:30pm timeslot have risen since it became a Ten Network affiliate on 1 July 2016. WIN CEO Andrew Lancaster has praised the level of assistance and co-operation provided by Ten during WIN’s switch from its long-running affiliation deal with the Nine Network. The data also show that Southern Cross Media Group’s ratings under its new program supply deal with Nine are lower than WIN’s ratings when it was affiliated with Nine.

CORPORATES
WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, REGIONAL TAM PTY LTD, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, CRICKET AUSTRALIA

WPP eyes TV as YouTube falls short

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 23 : 25-Jul-16

GroupM is expected to allocate more of its advertising spending commitment to Australia’s free-to-air TV networks, after favouring YouTube in 2015. The Nine Network’s share of the media buying group’s TV budget has been reduced, while the Ten Network has secured a guaranteed share of 25 per cent, compared with between 23 and 25 per cent in 2015. Industry executives note that that digital platforms such as YouTube are under scrutiny over issues such as viewability and audience measurement.

CORPORATES
GROUPM COMMUNICATIONS PTY LTD, WPP GROUP PLC, YOUTUBE INCORPORATED, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, THINK TV, IPG MEDIABRANDS

Ten shares get left behind in post-Brexit rally

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Original article by Lucy Battersby
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 21 : 22-Jul-16

The Ten Network’s share price has underperformed its listed peers and the broader sharemarket in recent weeks. The stock has risen by 5.5 per cent since 28 June 2016, while Nine Entertainment Company and Seven West Media have gained 10.5 per cent and 11.6 per cent respectively since the "Brexit" fallout. Ivor Ries of Morgans Financial notes that there is a global trend for advertisers to reduce their expenditure on TV advertising.

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

News Corp in undisclosed $75m tax fight

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Original article by Neil Chenoweth
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 20-Jul-16

News Corp Australia’s submission to a Senate inquiry into tax avoidance in February 2015 stated that the media group believed that it fully complied with Australia’s income tax laws. Just days later the Australian Taxation Office issued a tax assessment regarding some $A75m in undeclared income from fiscal 2010. News Corp subsequently lodged an objection to the tax assessment, one day after former CEO Julian Clarke appeared before the Senate inquiry. The media group has since lodged a Federal Court appeal against the tax assessment.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Voelte to pay ABC legal costs after defamation case fails

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Original article by Misa Han
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 20-Jul-16

A jury has rejected a defamation lawsuit against the ABC over a news story that was broadcast on "The Business" in November 2014. Former Seven Group Holdings CEO Don Voelte had alleged that the story on Seven Group’s takeover of Nexus Energy was defamatory. The story claimed that the former Nexus chairman had "dudded" shareholders and that he had "switched camps". Voelte has been ordered to pay most of the public broadcaster’s legal costs.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, SEVEN GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX SVW, NEXUS ENERGY LIMITED, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES

Seven West signs Aussie start-up for Olympics alerts

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Original article by John Stensholt
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 19-Jul-16

Australia’s Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games broadcaster Seven West Media will provide viewers with messages advising them of Olympic events that they want to watch. Sports fans will receive an alert 15 minutes before an event begins, after Seven secured a deal with CalReply, The technology start-up’s alert service was used by some 600,000 people during the 2015 Rugby World Cup.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, CALREPLY, SQUARE PEG CAPITAL PTY LTD, VALAR VENTURES MANAGEMENT LLC, CVC ASIA PACIFIC (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD

TV chiefs rail against gambling-ad threat

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Original article by Sarah-Jane Tasker
The Australian – Page: 23 : 18-Jul-16

Standard Media Index data shows that the gambling industry spend some $A63m on TV advertising in the first half of 2016, which represents year-on-year growth of nearly 20 per cent. The CEOs of Australia’s commercial free-to-air networks are united in their opposition to a push for new restrictions on gambling ads on TV. Crossbenchers Nick Xenophon and ­Andrew Wilkie are leading the bid to ban gambling ads during the broadcasting of sports events in certain timeslots.

CORPORATES
SMI MEDIA INCORPORATED, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, THE NIELSEN COMPANY (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, SPORTSBET AUSTRALIA, LADBROKES, CROWNBET PTY LTD

I’m not done yet: Leckie’s return

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 23 & 25 : 18-Jul-16

TV industry veteran David Leckie says he intends to seek another role in the media industry when his 13-year tenure at the Seven Network ends in late July 2016. Seven usurped the Nine Network – Leckie’s previous employer for more than two decades – as Australia’s top-rating free-to-air network during his tenure, which included a stint as CEO. Leckie remains upbeat about the outlook for traditional media, arguing that so-called "digital disruption" has in fact led to increased interest in broadcast TV.

CORPORATES
SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, OZTAM PTY LTD, THE NIELSEN COMPANY (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED

Ban on betting ads would be draconian: Seven West boss

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Original article by John Stensholt
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 15-Jul-16

It is estimated that bookmakers spent about $A150m on advertising during television broadcasts of sports events. Seven West Media CEO Tim Worner says a proposed ban is "draconian" and unnecessary, adding that Seven already has stricter internal rules on the issue than required by the advertising code. Sportsbet and CrownBet say they would agree to reduce their advertising during sports telecasts, but they oppose the blanket ban that is being advocated by crossbenchers Nick Xenophon and Andrew Wilkie.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, SPORTSBET AUSTRALIA, CROWNBET PTY LTD, ALLIANCE FOR GAMBLING REFORM, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE