MASS MEDIA – AUSTRALIA

$80m deal: Singleton sells out of radio after 60-year career

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Original article by Zoe Samios
The Australian – Page: 1 : 23-Sep-19

Nine Entertainment Company’s hopes of gaining full ownership of Macquarie Media have been boosted after John Singleton advised that he will accept the offer of $1.46 per share unless a higher bid emerges. The advertising industry veteran has a 32.2 per cent stake in the owner of radio stations such as 2GB and 3AW, and he will gain about $80m from the transaction. Singleton says he may invest in the media sector in the future, but he adds that breeding horses and canaries are now his top priority.

CORPORATES
MACQUARIE MEDIA LIMITED – ASX MRN, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED, 2GB, 3AW SOUTHERN CROSS RADIO PTY LTD

PM rejects fears on press freedom

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Original article by Greg Brown
The Australian – Page: 2 : 6-Sep-19

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has stressed that the Coalition is "absolutely" committed to press freedom. He has also expressed his view that there are sufficient protections for whistleblowers, while he has defended the Australian Federal Police over the recent raid on the Canberra home of Australian Signals Directorate officer Cameron Gill. News Corp Australia executive Campbell Reid has claimed that the AFP raid was aimed at intimidating potential whistleblowers into not approaching the media.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, AUSTRALIAN SIGNALS DIRECTORATE, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, LAW COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA

Always independent? Lapping it up with the Libs has Fairfax throwbacks foaming

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Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 4-Sep-19

Nine Entertainment Company’s newspaper journalists have criticised the media group for hosting a fundraising event for the Liberal Party. They contend that the event has undermined the newspapers’ charters of editorial independence, arguing that ‘The Sydney Morning Herald’, ‘The Age’ and ‘The Australian Financial Review’ had been politically impartial under the ownership of Fairfax Media. Senior federal government ministers and business leaders were amongst those who attended the event, which raised $700,000 for the Liberal Party.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, MEDIA, ENTERTAINMENT AND ARTS ALLIANCE

Lawyers unite to stop erosion of freedoms

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Original article by Chris Merritt
The Australian – Page: 6 : 4-Sep-19

The Australian Federal Police raids on the ABC’s Sydney offices and the home of a News Corp journalist continue to attract scrutiny. Law Council president Arthur Moses will use a National Press Club speech on 4 September to express concern that Australians’ rights and freedoms are being eroded in the interests of ensuring national security. Victorian Bar president Matt Collins will in turn urge changes to the nation’s defamation laws. The ABC and News Corp are expected to challenge the legality of the AFP raids under the implied freedom of political communication in the Constitution.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, LAW COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, VICTORIAN BAR INCORPORATED, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA), ALLIANCE FOR JOURNALISTS’ FREEDOM

Cups run over for sought-after sports stream

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Original article by Leo Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 23 : 2-Sep-19

Kayo Sports CEO Julian Ogrin has downplayed concerns that the sports streaming service could cannibalise the subscriber base of parent company Foxtel. He says Kayo Sports is primarily targeting Australians who do not subscribe to Foxtel at present. Kayo boasted 382,000 subscribers at the end of June, including 331,000 paying customers, and Ogrin notes that subscribers viewed some 25 million hours of sports content on Kayo in the June quarter. Football fans viewed an average of 3.5 hours of content on Kayo during the period.

CORPORATES
KAYO SPORTS, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, WALT DISNEY COMPANY, DISNEY+, ESPN INCORPORATED

Streaming subscriptions on the rise as TV ad revenue comes under pressure

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Original article by Stephanie Chalmers
abc.net au – Page: Online : 2-Sep-19

Overall television advertising revenue was down by over four per cent in 2018-19, but revenue from advertising on broadcaster video-on-demand services jumped 32 per cent. Research by Telsyte indicates that over 50 per cent of Australian households have a video-on-demand paid subscription, with 43 per cent of households having more than one subscription. New Seven West Media CEO James Warburton says the company is exploring possible streaming partnerships in the subscription video-on-demand sector.

CORPORATES
TELSYTE PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC

Jones socks it to rivals despite the drama

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Original article by Zoe Samios, Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 3 : 28-Aug-19

GfK’s latest radio ratings survey data shows that 2GB retained its title as Sydney’s leading radio station, with its overall audience share falling 0.6 per cent to 13.4 per cent. The audience share of Alan Jones in 2GB’s breakfast slot fell to 17.1 per cent in the wake of his controversial comments about New Zealand Prime Minister­ Jacinda Ardern. Kyle Sandilands and Jackie Henderson continued to dominate Sydney’s breakfast slot on FM radio. Meanwhile, 3AW remains the highest-rating station in Melbourne in both the breakfast and morning slots.

CORPORATES
GFK PTY LTD, 2GB, KIIS1065, MACQUARIE MEDIA LIMITED – ASX MRN, 3AW SOUTHERN CROSS RADIO PTY LTD

State of the Nation – Media: Harnessing the future by building Trust and dissipating Distrust

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Original article by Michele Levine, Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 27-Aug-19

The media landscape in Australia is in an unprecedented state of disruption and change as digital media continues to upend established norms and business practices. However, there is a ‘hard’ currency that remains constant that drives consumers to return to, or reject, brands and channels: Trust and Distrust. For media channels and brands to survive and thrive they must build Trust and crucially, minimise Distrust. While a high level of Trust will keep audiences engaged and coming back, a high, or increasing, level of Distrust will drive audiences (consumers) away – perhaps never to return. More Australians Trust ‘newspapers’ than any other channel – but down from 2018, ahead of Television, News & Newspaper Websites, Social Media, Radio and Magazines. Social Media is the most Distrusted media channel – but down from a year ago, followed by Print, Newspapers, Television, Magazines, News & Newspaper Websites and Radio. The ABC is by far the most Trusted media corporation, followed by Nine Entertainment, SBS, Newscorp, Facebook, Seven West Media, Google/Alphabet Group and Schwartz Media. The most Distrusted media corporation is Facebook, although its Distrust has improved significantly since 2018, ahead of Newscorp, Nine Entertainment, Seven West Media, the ABC and Fox.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Why networks still bet billions on football

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Original article by Zoe Samios
The Australian – Page: 23 : 26-Aug-19

Australia’s commercial TV networks have claimed that the sports broadcasting model is ‘broken’, but their latest financial results suggest otherwise. Seven has indicated that audiences for its coverage of AFL matches are 10 per cent higher than in 2018, and Nine says its NRL revenue has increased by one per cent over the last year. However, data from OzTAM shows that the audience for Nine’s NRL coverage has fallen 3.7 per cent year-on-year so far in 2019. The combined NRL audience share of Nine and Foxtel has also fallen in 2019.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, VIZEUM, OZTAM PTY LTD, ATOMIC 212

ABC seeks to put more content on Foxtel

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Original article by Leo Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 23 : 26-Aug-19

About 14.5 per cent of Australian households in metropolitan areas and nine per cent in regional areas view the ABC via Foxtel at present. The ABC’s board recently agreed to review its retransmission deal with the pay-TV group, which costs $4m a year. Union representatives are amongst those who have expressed concern about the arrangement, although it is expected to be renewed. However, there is speculation that the ABC will shift some of its content from Foxtel to its own platforms.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, SPECIAL BROADCASTING SERVICE (SBS), AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET