MASS MEDIA – AUSTRALIA

Bauer sacks 60 Pacific Magazines staff

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: Online : 5-May-20

Bauer Media is believed to have retrenched employees at Pacific Magazines and put the print editions of some titles on hold just days after taking control of the former Seven West Media business. Some 60 jobs at Pacific Magazines are said to have been cut, following Bauer’s recent move to stand down or lay off about 140 of its own employees. ‘InStyle’, ‘Men’s Health’ and ‘Women’s Health’ are among the Pacific Magazines titles that have been affected.

CORPORATES
BAUER MEDIA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BAUER MEDIA KG, PACIFIC MAGAZINES PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM

Mag queen tips Bauer will axe Pacific titles

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 19 : 4-May-20

Bauer Media completed a $40m deal to acquire Seven West Media’s Pacific Magazines division on 1 May. Magazine industry veteran Deborah Thomas expects Bauer to suspend the print editions of some Pacific titles due to the coronavirus-induced downturn in the advertising market. Four of the print editions of Bauer’s own titles were recently put on hold, and some industry executives doubt that several of them will resume publication. Bauer has also stood down or laid off up to 140 employees in Australia, while its New Zealand operations were shut down in April.

CORPORATES
BAUER MEDIA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, PACIFIC MAGAZINES PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, BAUER MEDIA KG, BAUER MEDIA (NZ) LIMITED

Sports face $200m broadcast hit

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by John Stensholt
The Australian – Page: 19 : 4-May-20

Executives of Australia’s free-to-air and pay-TV networks believe that the value of sports broadcasting rights has fallen in 2020 because events are being held without crowds due to the pandemic. The Australian Football League and the National Rugby League in particular are expected to face a large decline in broadcasting fees when their 2020 seasons resume. Meanwhile, there is doubt as to whether Fox Sports will renew its broadcasting rights deal with Football Federation Australia beyond the current season.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, FOOTBALL FEDERATION AUSTRALIA LIMITED

News Corp on the prowl for job cuts and efficiencies to survive corona crisis

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Rod Myer
The New Daily – Page: Online : 28-Apr-20

News Corp has engaged Deloitte to undertake a review of the media company’s Australian operations as it seeks to respond to the impact of COVID-19. It is understood that the review will focus on reviewing and cutting print costs, and centralising editorial and commercial functions. Measures already announced by News in response to COVID-19 include stopping the printing of around 60 community newspapers, while it has indicated that the virus will have a "material adverse impact" on its revenues.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, DELOITTE TOUCHE TOHMATSU LIMITED

Google MD caught off-guard by moving media goalposts

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 & 22 : 28-Apr-20

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission will implement a mandatory revenue-sharing code of conduct for digital companies by July, after the federal government scrapped plans for a voluntary code. Google’s Australian MD Melanie Silva has rejected claims that it was "dragging its feet" in negotiations for a voluntary code, and that it will co-operate fully with the ACCC in developing the mandatory code. It has been suggested that news publishers could receive hundreds of millions of dollars in extra revenue under the code.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, GOOGLE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED

AAP closure and AFP raids see Australia slide in World Press Freedom Index

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Hannah Blackiston
Mumbrella – Page: Online : 24-Apr-20

Australia has ranked 26th in the 2020 World Press Freedom Index, down from 19th place in 2019. The index is compiled by Reporters Without Borders, which has indicated that the decline was largely due to the proposed closure of newswire service AAP and police raids on the ABC’s head office and the home of a News Corporation journalist in mid-2019. Numerous national security laws brought in since the September 11 terror attacks in the US and defamation laws passed in 2018 were also seen as of concern by Reporters Without Borders.

CORPORATES
REPORTERS WITHOUT BORDERS, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS PTY LTD, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC

US keeps eye on Australia’s big tech rules

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jacob Greber
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 23-Apr-20

The US media industry has welcomed the Australian government’s move to require technology companies to pay news publishers for their content. Digital Content Next CEO Jason Kint says the mandatory code of conduct shows that the government recognises the significance of the problem and its impact on traditional media companies. News Media Alliance CEO David Chavern adds that there is growing concern across the political spectrum regarding the impact of digital platforms. The US Congress is also monitoring efforts in Australia and elsewhere to reign in the digital giants.

CORPORATES
DIGITAL CONTENT NEXT, NEWS MEDIA ALLIANCE, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION

It’s official: Online sources overtake TV as main source of news – for 59% of Gen Z social media is their main choice of news

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 22-Apr-20

New research from Roy Morgan shows that the internet has overtaken TV as the main place Australians turn for their news. Some 12.7 million Australians (60.6%, up 2.8ppts since mid-2018) now use the internet for news. This includes social media (37.6%); news or newspaper websites or apps (29.2%) and news feed sites (16.3%). TV is now used by 12.4 million Australians (59.5%) as their main source of news, down more than 6ppts from 65.6% in June 2018. This comprises free-to-air TV (56.4%, down 5.9ppts) and Pay TV (8.3%). Meanwhile, around 80% of Baby Boomers and Pre-Boomers say free-to-air TV is a main source of news for them, and nearly two-thirds of Generation X (64%) nominate free-to-air TV as a main news source. However, the popularity of free-to-air TV drops away significantly for younger generations. Only 40% of Millennials and 36% of Generation Z say free-to-air TV is a main source of news. In contrast to the older generations, both Millennials (77%) and Generation Z (74%) are more likely to say the internet is a main source of news, ahead of other forms of media.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

ABC in the frame for tech giant payments

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 22-Apr-20

Australian Competition & Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims says that all media companies should be included in the revenue-sharing deal with Google and Facebook. This could potentially include the taxpayer-funded ABC, and Sims notes that the media sector will be in a weaker bargaining position if the public broadcaster is not involved. Meanwhile, the Victorian government will support regional journalism by spending $4.7m on advertising with non-metropolitan news outlets over the next six months.

CORPORATES
GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

TV networks brace for potential 30 per cent fall in ad revenues despite rising viewership

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Rod Myer
The New Daily – Page: Online : 21-Apr-20

The coronavirus lockdown has prompted a spike in ratings for TV news bulletins as Australians seek information on the pandemic. Think TV CEO Kim Portrate says there has been strong growth in audiences for traditional linear TV, broadcast video-on-demand and subscription video-on-demand services. However, TV networks’ revenue is being hit by a sharp fall in bookings from advertisers; Jane Ratcliffe from Standard Media Index estimates that ad revenue could fall by 25-30 per cent in April.

CORPORATES
THINK TV, SMI MEDIA INCORPORATED