MASS MEDIA – AUSTRALIA

Morgan emerges as possible AAP buyer

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Leo Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 21 : 23-Mar-20

Roy Morgan’s executive chairman Gary Morgan has expressed interest in buying the whole of Australian Associated Press, but only if the news wire service is a "viable business proposition". Morgan notes that AAP would have to be a "a very different company" without Nine Entertainment and News Corp Australia as customers, given that they account for about 60 per cent of its revenue. Media reports have indicated that a number of parties have expressed interest in buying some of AAP’s businesses, although CEO Bruce Davidson stresses that a deal may not eventuate. AAP is slated to shut down in June unless a buyer emerges.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS PTY LTD, ROY MORGAN LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

AFL, NRL members can get discounted Kayo

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 20-Mar-20

Foxtel and its Kayo Sports streaming service are the only option for AFL and NRL fans who want to watch every match while the coronavirus-induced lockout of stadiums continues. A basic Kayo subscription usually costs $25 a month, but members of AFL and NRL clubs will be offered a discounted rate of $2.50 a month for two months. Kayo boasted 402,000 paid subscribers in early November, but this had fallen to around 370,000 by early February; this was expected to increase when the AFL and NRL seasons began.

CORPORATES
FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, KAYO SPORTS, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

Broadcast deal up in the air for AFL clubs

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by John Ferguson
The Australian – Page: 3 : 18-Mar-20

The Australian Football League is said to be keen to roll over its broadcasting rights, for which the Seven Network and Fox Sports paid $2.5bn under the current five-year deal. The AFL faces a huge financial hit, with the home-and-away season to be reduced to 17 rounds and the initial rounds to be played in empty stadiums. The host broadcasters could also potentially seek a fee reduction under minimum delivery requirements in the current rights deal. On the other hand, the lockdown could result in a TV ratings boom for AFL matches.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Sports TV rights deals in turmoil

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Leo Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 23 : 16-Mar-20

The growing list of sports events that have been cancelled or suspended due to the coronavirus has implications for broadcasting rights holders. Seven West Media faces the loss of about $90m in revenue if the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games are cancelled; however, it is believed that the debt-laden official broadcaster would save about $150m if this occurs, including the return of about $100m that the International Olympic Committee has already received. Broadcasters are not expected to seek refunds from sports bodies if seasons such as the AFL and NRL are suspended rather than cancelled.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, SUPER RUGBY, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Anderson bows out of Ten amid ViacomCBS revamp

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 19 : 12-Mar-20

US media giant ViacomCBS has advised that it will not replace Ten Network CEO Paul Anderson following his sudden resignation. It will instead appoint co-leads for the free-to-air network. A management restructuring will also result in Ten’s chief content officer Beverley McGarvey being promoted to the same role across ViacomCBS’s operations in Australia and New Zealand. Meanwhile, KordaMentha partner Henriette Rothschild has been appointed as ViacomCBS’s interim chief transformation officer.

CORPORATES
TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, VIACOMCBS INCORPORATED

Guardian journalist unpaid for five weeks

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by David Ross
The Australian – Page: 3 : 12-Mar-20

The Australian arm of news publisher The Guardian has provided extensive coverage of the wage underpayments scandal in recent months. However, freelance journalist Russell Jackson has claimed that The Guardian itself has not paid him for five articles that he wrote in January. The Guardian’s Australian editor, Lenore Taylor, has described this as "unacceptable" and said she will ensure that the matter is resolved. Jackson has previously been the news publisher’s deputy sports editor.

CORPORATES
THE GUARDIAN AUSTRALIA

Guardian hypocrisy over AAP shutdown

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Lilly Vitorovich, David Swan
The Australian – Page: 3 : 6-Mar-20

Australian Associated Press chairman Campbell Reid has accused UK-based media company The Guardian of hypocrisy. A report in ‘The Guardian’ claimed that AAP is being closed down to harm small media organisations, but Reid notes that The Guardian had slashed its annual payment to the newswire company. Meanwhile, Australian Competition & Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims says it is examining the impact that AAP’s closure will have on the Australian media landscape; Sims has described AAP’s closure as a "very sad development".

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS PTY LTD, THE GUARDIAN AND MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION

Fears of low-ball offer for TV rights

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jamie Pandaram
The Australian – Page: 32 : 6-Mar-20

Rugby Australia will give prospective bidders an additional week to submit offers for its next broadcasting rights deal, after failing to attract any interest. Optus appears set to gain the broadcasting rights after RA’s current broadcast partner Fox Sports declined to sign a non-disclosure agreement. There is speculation that Optus will capitalise on the lack of rival bidders to offer a low price for the rights; RA rejected Fox Sports’ offer of $40m a year in late 2019. Ten Network is tipped to offer about $5m for limited free-to-air coverage of rugby matches.

CORPORATES
SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, RUGBY AUSTRALIA, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED

AAP demise a wake-up call over digital giants

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jennifer Dudley Nicholson
The Australian – Page: 4 : 5-Mar-20

Australian Associated Press chairman Campbell Reid says the newswire service’s impending closure shows that the impact of digital platforms on traditional media companies has reached a tipping point. He warns that there will be more casualties in the media sector unless digital platforms are forced to pay for news publishers’ content. The Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance has criticised the federal government for failing to act on key recommendations of a landmark inquiry into digital platforms.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS PTY LTD, MEDIA, ENTERTAINMENT AND ARTS ALLIANCE, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION

ABC sued for report on horse cruelty

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Brad Norington
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 3-Mar-20

Racing NSW CEO Peter V’landy is suing the ABC and journalist Caro Meldrum-Hanna for defamation. The legal action relates to a story that aired on ‘7.30’ in October, in which it was alleged that hundreds of former racehorses were sent to abattoirs. V’landy had agreed to appear on the program on behalf of Racing NSW, and stated that no horses in New South Wales were being sent to abattoirs. His lawyers will allege that the ABC acted dishonestly in not telling him that it had undercover footage of animal cruelty that it was going to air on the program, and that V’landy should have been given the chance to explain that Racing NSW had no jurisdiction in Queensland, where most of the horses that were sent to abattoirs came from.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, RACING NSW