Free to air squeeze on games

Original article by Caroline Wilson
The Age – Page: 40 : 9-Jun-16

The Seven Network’s coverage of the Australian Football League will be reduced from 2017 under the new six-year broadcasting deal. Seven will only broadcast three matches in 11 rounds of the home-and-away season, compared with four at present. The Ten Network had hoped to buy the free-to-air rights to these matches from Foxtel, but negotiations have stalled. The pay-TV group is believed to have been reluctant to surrender exclusive coverage of these matches.

CORPORATES
SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FOX FOOTY CHANNEL, BIG BASH LEAGUE

Ten aims to build on Big Bash success

Original article by Max Mason
The Age – Page: 20 : 8-Jun-16

Ten Network CEO Paul Anderson is optimistic that ratings for the Big Bash League domestic Twenty20 competition will increase in the 2016-17 season, after growth of 25 per cent in capital city audiences in 2015-16. The national audience rose by 16 per cent. Ten will expand its coverage of the Big Bash League to include live broadcasts of 47 matches. The network’s current broadcasting rights deal is worth $A20m annually over five years, but this cost may rise significantly when the current deal expires in 2018.

CORPORATES
TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, BIG BASH LEAGUE, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, CRICKET AUSTRALIA

Optus foray into sports ‘good for competition’

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 30-May-16

Australian Competition & Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims says Optus’s acquisition of local broadcasting rights for the English Premier League demonstrates the competitive environment for sports rights. Telstra has traditionally been the dominant telco in terms of sports rights, but Optus has signalled its interest in expanding its exclusive sports coverage.

CORPORATES
SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, THE A LEAGUE PTY LTD, CRICKET AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NETBALL AUSTRALIA, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Airwaves putting a smile on the dial, says ARN chief

Original article by Michael Bodey
The Australian – Page: 28 : 30-May-16

Pollinate has produced research on behalf of Australian Radio Network which examines how consumers engage with various media formats. The research found that radio is one of five media channels that are particularly effective in lifting the mood of audiences. ARN CEO Tony Kendall says the research shows that consumers are no longer engaged with radio in the late evening prior to going to bed, when they tend to use mobile phones and tablet devices rather than listening to radio or watching TV.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN RADIO NETWORK PTY LTD, POLLINATE, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, SPOTIFY LIMITED, PANDORA MEDIA INCORPORATED, KIIS FM, GOLD FM

SPA calls for Netflix local content quota

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 30-May-16

Screen Producers Australia CEO Matthew Deaner argues that subscription video-on-demand services should be subject to the same local content requirements as traditional TV broadcasters. The European Union has proposed a requirement for at least 20 per cent of content broadcast by streaming services in Europe to have been produced locally. Nine Entertainment Company CEO Hugh Marks says it is more important for international SVOD services to pay their full tax liabilities in Australia.

CORPORATES
SCREEN PRODUCERS AUSTRALIA, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS

Guardian and Mail Online show digital free-for-all risks

Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 28 : 30-May-16

New data from Nielsen shows that "The Australian" boasted 13.3 per cent growth in its unique digital audience in April 2016, while unique visitors to the website of "The ­Australian Financial Review" rose by 19.1 per cent. The premium online content of both newspapers is subject to a paywall. In contrast, the non-paywalled Guardian Australia website recorded audience growth of just 4.2 per cent, while there was a 4.5 per cent decline in unique visitors to the Daily Mail Australia site.

CORPORATES
THE NIELSEN COMPANY (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, GUARDIAN AUSTRALIA, DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE, BUZZFEED PTY LTD, VICE MEDIA INCORPORATED, MASHABLE INCORPORATED

News Corp to sell WA newspaper

Original article by Jake Mitchell
The Australian – Page: 22 : 27-May-16

Seven West Media will need approval from the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission to acquire Perth masthead "The Sunday Times" for an estimated $A12m to $A15m. The deal with News Corp Australia is believed to include news website PerthNow. The deal may raise competition concerns, as Seven West Media owns Perth’s sole weekday newspaper, "The West Australian". The competition regulator will seek public submissions on the proposed deal.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUDIT BUREAU OF CIRCULATIONS, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ

TV today: free and paid, linear and on demand

Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 24-May-16

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey has found that 95.4 per cent of Australians aged 14+ watched TV in some form in the first four months of 2016. The survey also shows that 90.2 per cent of Australians watched any ‘linear’ free-to-air (FTA) TV during an average week. Meanwhile, 34.8 per cent watched TV ‘On Demand’ in an average four weeks, including the FTA networks’ catch-up services and Subscription Video on Demand (SVOD) services, while 26.7 per cent watched ‘linear’ Foxtel in an average four weeks.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Nine lures 1.2 million to 9Now

Original article by Jake Mitchell
The Australian – Page: 25 : 23-May-16

The 9Now website of Nine Entertainment Company has gained almost 1.2 million subscribers since it was launched in February 2016. The site offers live streaming of Nine’s primary and digital channels, as well as a catch-up service. Access to 9Now is free, but users must register, which Nine’s chief marketing and digital officer Alex Parsons says has not been a deterrent. Data from Nielsen shows that 9Now boasted a unique audience of 1.6 million in March 2016.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, THE NIELSEN COMPANY (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, CRICKET AUSTRALIA, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES

WIN nails affiliate deal with Ten

Original article by Jake Mitchell
The Australian – Page: 23 : 23-May-16

WIN Corporation is set to finalise a five-year affiliation deal with the Ten Network, after the regional broadcaster was dumped by Nine Entertainment Company in April 2016. Ten is expected to receive a much lower proportion of WIN’s TV revenue under the content supply deal than the one struck by Southern Cross Media with Nine. Southern Cross and WIN will switch affiliation partners on 1 July 2016, which Dentsu Aegis Network Australia CEO Simon Ryan warns is likely to have a short-term impact on their revenue.

CORPORATES
WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, DENTSU AEGIS MEDIA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, OPTIMUM MEDIA DIRECTION PTY LTD, PRIME MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX PRT, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, MINDSHARE, WPP AUNZ