Media Roundup: Tingle takes a bow, Nine's Domain dilemma, Hadley's family tragedy, Mecca's big play and Westpac bets on bots

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Nine facing dilemma over Domain

Nine chairwoman Catherine West faces a mounting challenge as she steers the sale of Domain to US titan CoStar.

With Nine's half-year results imminent and billionaire Bruce Gordon boosting his stake, whispers about her future are intensifying.

As James Madden and James Manning report in The Australian, Gordon’s bold move has ignited boardroom chatter - expectations are rising for a second seat that could leave West more exposed than ever.

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Retail

JPMorgan whips up a sweet deal with Krispy Kreme ANZ reboot

JPMorgan's retail and consumer team is serving up a treat in the ANZ market, backing a fresh strategic move by doughnut icon Krispy Kreme.

As Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport report in The Australian Financial Review, under the code name "Macaroon," the North Carolina favourite is exploring a refranchising of its Australia and New Zealand operations, hunting for a new partner to spearhead growth.

The initiative marks a bold pivot, aiming to spark a new phase of expansion and innovation in a competitive market.

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Mecca may make a move

Australia's runaway beauty titan, Mecca, might be on the brink of a strategic shake-up. Founders Jo Horgan and Peter Wetenhall - now celebrated as true wealth creators - are reportedly warming to the idea of striking a deal.

As Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport report in The Australian Financial Review, after years of dodging bankers' overtures, the duo is now eyeing a potential handover of their near-$1 billion turnover empire to the highest bidder.

The buzz is that vendor due diligence advisers, accountants, and commercial experts have been circling since early this year.

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Tech

Musk's ultimatum to government workers

The Trump administration has blasted an email to US federal workers, ordering them to list last week’s achievements by Monday night or face termination. The directive hit on Sunday AEDT, leaving no room for delay.

As Valerie Volcovici reports in The Australian Financial Review, barely moments later, Elon Musk - now at the helm of the Department of Government Efficiency - took to X, declaring that silence would be treated as a resignation.

This no-nonsense move is all about ramping up accountability, forcing federal employees to prove their worth on a weekly basis or risk being shown the door.

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Westpac bets on bots

Westpac has teamed up with Accenture to roll out AI agents - tech once confined to software coding - that might soon help process loan applications.

As James Eyers reports in The Australian Financial Review, these smart bots, part of a new breed called agentic AI, go beyond simple chat functions by mimicking human decision-making and taking action.

Pieter Vorster, Westpac's GM for data platforms, reveals the bank is eyeing a host of applications from customer service to fraud detection, signalling a bank-wide AI revolution.

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Telegram's silence costs nearly $1m

Telegram has been hit with a nearly $1m fine by Australia's online safety watchdog for leaving regulators hanging on key questions about its efforts to curb terrorism and child abuse content.

As Josh Taylor reports in The Guardian,  the infringement notice follows a May directive requiring companies to report back by October on measures tackling extremist and child exploitation material - a deadline Telegram missed by roughly 160 days.

The fine of A$957,780 underscores eSafety’s no-nonsense stance on compliance, sending a clear message to tech firms about timely transparency.

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Health websites enjoy massive boost

Over 18 million Australians accessed health-related websites or apps, according to the latest Ipsos iris data.

The figure represents a 4.3% increase from December 2024, reaching 18.4 million users. The data also shows that the average monthly time spent on health-related content rose by 20.9% to 68 minutes per user, underscoring growing audience engagement.

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