MASS MEDIA – AUSTRALIA

News Corp grabs stake in hipages

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Original article by Darren Davidson, Damon Kitney
The Australian – Page: 23 : 7-Dec-15

News Corp Australia executives Brett Clegg and Alisa Bowen are expected to become directors of hipages following a strategic alliance between the two companies. News Corp has bought a 25 per cent stake in the home improvement portal, which provides householders with free quotes from tradespeople such as plumbers and electricians. Hipages was founded in 2004 and now boasts 200 employees. Seven West Media and Fairfax Media were also interested in investing in hipages.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, HIPAGES GROUP PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, FAIRFAX MAGAZINES, REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, SERVICE SEEKING PTY LTD, THUMBTACK, GOOGLE CAPITAL, SEQUOIA CAPITAL LLP, ELLERSTON CAPITAL PTY LTD, RIGHT CLICK CAPITAL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Murdoch pays tribute as agenda-setting editor retires

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 2 : 3-Dec-15

The editor of Sydney’s "The Daily Telegraph", Paul Whittaker, will succeed Chris Mitchell as editor-in-chief of "The Australian". Mitchell has been in the role since 2002, after a previous three-year stint as editor of the national broadsheet. News Corporation’s co-chairman Rupert Murdoch, as well as News Corp Australia executive chairman Michael Miller and CEO Peter Tonagh, have praised Mitchell’s contribution to the media group’s flagship Australian newspaper.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, QUEENSLAND NEWSPAPERS PTY LTD

SBS staffer convicted over drunken post

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Original article by Leo Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 8 : 2-Dec-15

SBS employee Nicholas Hogan has been given a two-year good behaviour bond after being convicted of making threats to kill police officers. The Newton Local Court in Sydney found the editing assistant guilty on a charge of using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend. Hogan had posted a message on Facebook stating that he intended to kill a police officer in the name of Allah. The post was made one day after the funeral of police accountant Curtis Cheng, who was murdered by a Islamic extremist.

CORPORATES
SPECIAL BROADCASTING SERVICE (SBS), LOCAL COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED

Seven fends off Nine to win ratings again

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Original article by Michael Bodey
The Australian – Page: 23 & 25 : 30-Nov-15

The Seven Network was Australia’s top-rating TV network in 2015, with an overall audience share of 29.3 per cent. This compares with 30.4 per cent in 2014, while the Nine Network’s audience share also fell. However, the Ten Network’s audience share rose by 0.9 per cent to 18.8 per cent. Nine’s Andrew Backwell says the network is not concerned about total viewers, arguing that it was the market leader in the key age demographics in 2015.

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, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, SPECIAL BROADCASTING SERVICE (SBS), NETFLIX INCORPORATED, PRESTO ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, SMI MEDIA INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE

Connected families flowing fast to streaming

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Original article by Chris Griffith, Gina Rushton
The Australian – Page: 3 : 26-Nov-15

It is estimated that some 10 per cent of Australian households now have access to Netflix, while rival subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) provider Stan has indicated that it has nearly 400,000 subscribers. Research by Telsyte shows that the average household now boasts more than nine internet-connected devices, and more people are opting to watch TVs and movies via SVOD than free-to-air TV.

CORPORATES
NETFLIX INCORPORATED, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, TELSYTE PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, YOUTUBE INCORPORATED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, PRESTO ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, RUGBY WORLD CUP LIMITED, THE EMIRATES MELBOURNE CUP

Shareholders to vote on Foxtel

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Original article by Jake Mitchell, Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 21 : 26-Nov-15

Ten Network’s shares closed at $A0.16 on 25 November 2015. However, Morgan Stanley has upgraded its share price target to $A0.29, describing the network as a "early stage turnaround story". Meanwhile, Foxtel has emerged with a 12.5 per cent stake in Ten following a rights issue. Some 50 per cent of Ten’s shareholders will have to approve the issuance of a further 56.8 million shares to the pay-TV group in order to lift its stake to 14.9 per cent.

CORPORATES
TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Fairfax investor Waislitz backs cuts

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Original article by Damon Kitney
The Australian – Page: 23 : 25-Nov-15

Media reports have suggested that News Corp Australia intends to retrench 55 journalists, while there is speculation that further job cuts are planned at Fairfax Media. Businessman Alex Waislitz does not expect the quality of journalism to be affected by the job cuts, and he argues that it is essential for companies in "sunset industries" to reduce costs in order to survive. Waislitz holds around two per cent of Fairfax’s shares via Thorney Investment Group and Thorney Opportunities Limited.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, THORNEY INVESTMENT GROUP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, THORNEY OPPORTUNITIES LIMITED – ASX TOP, DOMAIN.COM.AU, IANGELS

Nine confirms Apollo’s exit from share register

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Original article by Jake Mitchell
The Australian – Page: 21 : 24-Nov-15

Apollo Global Management has sold its remaining 9.82 per cent stake in Nine Entertainment Company. The US hedge fund sold out of the media group at $A1.61 per share, gaining about $A140m from the transaction. Apollo and Oaktree Capital provided Nine with a financial lifeline in 2012, and they have progressively reduced their stakes. Oaktree now holds 7.8 per cent of Nine’s shares.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, APOLLO GLOBAL MANAGEMENT LLC, OAKTREE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD

Bauer targets Southern Cross

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Original article by Jake Mitchell, Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 23 : 23-Nov-15

Bauer Media is believed to be considering a takeover bid for Southern Cross Media Group in order to diversify its Australian business. Bauer approached rival radio group Nova Entertainment in 2014, but Nova has ruled out a sale. Southern Cross Media’s network of metropolitan and regional radio stations accounts for the bulk of its revenue, and Bauer is said to be keen to reduce its reliance on revenue from magazines. Bauer is the leading player in Europe’s radio sector.

CORPORATES
BAUER MEDIA KG, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, SOUTHERN CROSS AUSTEREO PTY LTD, NOVA ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, MACQUARIE MEDIA LIMITED – ASX MRN, ACP MAGAZINES LIMITED, HIT NETWORK, TRIPLE M CORPORATION PTY LTD, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, ILLYRIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN RADIO NETWORK PTY LTD, APN NEWS AND MEDIA LIMITED – ASX APN, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, KIIS1065, SMOOTHFM, ALLAN GRAY AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD

Boys’ club ‘alive and well’ in TV industry

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 23 : 23-Nov-15

Sylvia Jeffreys joined the Nine Network’s "Today" breakfast show as its news presenter in mid-2014. She says the network has a large number of female news reporters and newsreaders, but concedes that sexism remains an issue for the broader TV industry. She adds that men continue to hold the majority of top roles in the media sector.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM