PAY TELEVISION – AUSTRALIA

Nine, Sky plan free business channel

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 24 & 26 : 4-Jun-18

News Corp Australia and Nine Entertainment Company have declined to comment on reports that they are in talks to launch a free-to-air version of Sky News Business. They are believed to be negotiating a deal for Nine to acquire a 50 per cent stake in Sky News Business, which would replace one of Nine’s infomercial channels. The main Sky News channel recently secured an exclusive deal to provide content to WIN Corporation in regional areas.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, SKY BUSINESS NEWS, SKY NEWS, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN NEWS CHANNEL PTY LTD, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, SKY PLC, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Ruling puts Australian courts on the front line of global online TV piracy war

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Original article by Andrew Colley
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 29-May-18

Australian telcos have been ordered to block access to 16 internet addresses that allow consumers to access pirated versions of subscription TV channels. The Federal Court issued an injunction in late April requiring the telcos to block access to the servers, which are primarily based in the Netherlands. The injunction had been sought by Village Roadshow and six Hollywood studios, and followed a prior decision of the Federal Court to block access to a range of websites that feature pirated video content.

CORPORATES
FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, VILLAGE ROADSHOW LIMITED – ASX VRL, AUSTRALIAN SCREEN ASSOCIATION LIMITED, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, FETCHTV PTY LTD, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE, TELEVISION BROADCASTS LIMITED, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, CREATIVE CONTENT AUSTRALIA, BEIN SPORTS

Sky News goes free-to-air for regions

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 24 & 26 : 28-May-18

Pay-TV channel Sky News Australia has secured a content supply deal with regional broadcaster WIN Corporation. Sky News hopes to attract new subscribers to its full suite of channels via the deal, which is believed to includes a revenue-sharing arrangement. WIN will broadcast selected content from Sky News and Fox Sports News on a new 24-hour news channel to be called Sky News on WIN. Sky News has also held preliminary discussions with Seven West Media regarding a program supply deal, and Sky News Business has held talks with Nine Entertainment Company.

CORPORATES
SKY NEWS, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN NEWS CHANNEL PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, MULTI CHANNEL NETWORK PTY LTD, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, PRIME MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX PRT, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, SKY PLC

Stump up or miss out: first cricket games all on pay-TV

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Original article by Jennifer Duke
The Age – Page: 3 : 1-May-18

Fans of Australian men’s international cricket who only have free-to-air TV will not be able to see any matches in the 2018-19 fixture until 6 December. Cricket Australia announced its upcoming fixture on 30 April, with the first seven men’s international games either being one day games or Twenty20 matches, with all seven games only being shown on pay-TV network Foxtel. Seven West Media, which teamed up recently with Foxtel to secure the rights to broadcast Australian cricket matches for six years in a $A1.2 billion deal, will not broadcast a men’s game until the First Test.

CORPORATES
CRICKET AUSTRALIA, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS

Sky changing the way it delivers news, digitally

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 24 : 30-Apr-18

Pay-TV provider Sky News Australia hopes to expand its audience by introducing content on its website that can be accessed only by registered users. There is speculation that Sky News could eventually adopt a pay-wall model for its online content. Meanwhile, Sky News will launch a dedicated Sky News UK channel in late May, which will replace the existing "red button" news service, while the A-PAC public affairs channel will be relaunched as Sky News Extra.

CORPORATES
SKY NEWS, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, SPECIAL BROADCASTING SERVICE (SBS)

Foxtel reacts to Facebook woes by slashing ad spend

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 6 : 13-Apr-18

Pay-TV company Foxtel will reduce the proportion of its marketing budget that is allocated to advertising on Facebook. The move follows the data breach scandal and the two-day testimony of CEO Mark Zuckerberg before the US Congress. Foxtel’s chief marketing officer Andy Lark says that Facebook is a media company rather than a technology company, and it should start acting like one. He adds that despite recent changes to Facebook’s privacy policy, the underlying problems exposed by the Cambridge Analytica scandal have not been addressed.

CORPORATES
FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE FEDERAL PRIVACY COMMISSIONER, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS

$1bn cricket deal to stump Nine

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 13-Apr-18

Cricket Australia is poised to secure a broadcasting rights deal with Foxtel. The pay-TV group would simulcast some international matches in partnership with a free-to-air network, most likely Seven or Ten, while Foxtel would have exclusive coverage of some Big Bash League matches. The six-year rights deal is expected to be worth around $A1bn, compared with $A600m under the current deal. The Nine Network has been the main cricket broadcaster for more than four decades.

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

Rebranding a possibility for transformed Foxtel

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 4-Apr-18

News Corp has increased its stake in Foxtel to 65 per cent following the completion of the pay-TV company’s merger with Fox Sports. News Corp has indicated that integrating the two businesses is the immediate priority, and any decision on dropping the Foxtel branding is unlikely in the near-term. Foxtel may also launch new streaming services with their own branding, as part of its strategy to increase its customer base.

CORPORATES
FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, SKY PLC, WALT DISNEY COMPANY

Foxtel weighs Fox Sports streaming service

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 26-Mar-18

Foxtel is working on an "over-the-top" streaming video service for Fox Sports, which could allow consumers to view a limited selection of sports channels without taking out a pay-TV subscription. Should the new video-on-demand services be launched, it is expected to have unique branding to distinguish it from Foxtel and its existing product range. Foxtel is keen to attract consumers who have previously not been interested in taking up a pay-TV subscription.

CORPORATES
FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FOXTEL NOW, PRESTO ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD

Nine, Ten mull joint cricket bid

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 26 & 28 : 19-Mar-18

Fox Sports will establish a cricket channel on Foxtel if its bid for cricket broadcasting rights is successful. Fox Sports bid includes Test and one-day international matches, as well as all Big Bash League matches except the finals. Meanwhile, the Nine and Ten networks are holding talks regarding a joint bid for broadcasting rights, while Seven West Media is also expected to bid. Cricket Australia has set a deadline of 19 March to submit bids, while Tennis Australia in turn is seeking bids for its broadcasting rights by 12 April.

CORPORATES
FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, CBS CORPORATION, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, BIG BASH LEAGUE, TENNIS AUSTRALIA, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, YOUTUBE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED