Monday June 17, 2019
Mark Frain: New look MCN exploring different ad models & formats
By James Manning
The man charged with looking after selling advertising on all of Foxtel’s assets, MCN chief executive Mark Frain, has overhauled the Foxtel-owned business as it faces, like many others in media, significant challenges.
Those assets include not only linear channels, but also Foxtel Go, Foxtel Now and the fast-growing streaming service Kayo.
After losing the Network 10 representation, MCN “recreated and redefined it’s business,” Frain told Mediaweek in our Mediaweek Podcast last week.
Staff numbers have shrunk dramatically at what has been labelled MCN 2.0. From close to 500 people when MCN also looked after 10, the business now has under 300.
Frain revealed the company is still a big business and expects to be writing annual sales revenue close to $500m.
Listen to Mediaweek Podcast:
The person in charge of ads on Foxtel…MCN’s Mark Frain
Mediaweek’s James Manning and Mark Frain
Frain started in the MCN creative and integration team 12 years ago when the business was under the control of Anthony Fitzgerald. Frain rose through the ranks and took the top job when Fitzgerald left 12 months ago.
“[Foxtel CEO] Patrick Delaney has charged me with looking for different ad models and different formats,” Frain told Mediaweek.
“Foxtel has over 3m paying subscribers and we need to treat them with respect when it comes to commercial outcomes and advertising impact.
“Across the linear channel base we have looked to reduce ad loads on content such as premium drama. For things like Game Of Thrones we don’t pack it with 13-14 minutes of ad content for very obvious reasons. We are making similar decisions on other premium drama across the platform.
“Similarly with sport we don’t interrupt live play, but we do a lot of innovation and integration in and around the content.
“We are working harder to create a better advertising experience for the Foxtel customer.”
Frain said although program sponsorships do happen, MCN is going beyond that with advertisers being linked to a franchise. He gave an example of the Fox Cricket channel where advertisers are integrated into the fabric of the channel.
“You will be seeing a lot more effort from Foxtel and MCN looking to weave brands into major franchises across the platform.”
Six-second ad initiative
“There have been short breaks and short ads before, but no one has really turned it into a scalable product. With our six-second ads we are looking to provide a better experience back to the viewer,” said Frain.
“And to offer advertisers the chance to get six-second ads across the entire Foxtel platform.”
Frain said advertisers have been keen to be involved with initial testing going well with expansion soon. He noted there will be no six second ads interrupting live sport.
While MCN is still trialling the best way to run the short ads, Frain said they could run two or three back-to-back.
See also
MCN to launch linear TV first: six-second ads trialling on Fox Sports
Kayo advertising opportunities
When it comes to the fast-growing sports streaming service, Frain noted:
“There are a handful of sponsorship tiles available to advertisers. We will soon be able to dynamically insert ads into the content.”
Frain said advertising opportunities were part of the plan when Kayo was built and there will be a number of announcements about enhancements soon.
With the multiscreen capability, subscribers can see as many four ads at once across four separate channels feeding into the one screen. “Sounds like utopia,” Frain joked.
The value of Foxtel to an advertiser is not just the home of its biggest audiences, Fox Sports, but the spread of audience across all the different channels and genres. Frain mentioned in particular FOX8, the Lifestyle channels and TVH!ts. “Fox Sports is a big part of it, but there are a lot of channels across the platform making up our overall revenue pie.”
While Foxtel penetration could be higher, Frain spoke about the value of those subscribers and called them “the valuable audience to advertisers”. He also noted penetration in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane was important for advertisers as they are the most expensive media markets in Australia.
“I would argue strongly Foxtel should be first on the media plan given the value of our audience.”
As to FTA advertisers telling their clients to avoid Foxtel because of its audience size, Fran replied: “The industry is packed full of competition that makes us all better at what we do. Any media company could walk in to an advertiser or an agency and say, ‘You don’t need the competitor, we can fix everything.’ However because the way audiences are changing you need more media players to deliver critical reach, you just need to get the right mix.”
Foxtel customers are watching more of the platform’s content on demand with Frain noting Chernobyl has taken over from Game Of Thrones as the hottest property in that space. “We will make sure we provide a better advertising experience, not loading the viewing with ads.
“A lot of growth in streaming and on demand has been additional to linear viewing. Foxtel customers are watching more of our content on different devices. We are playing catch-up with the ad model so we can monetise that audience.”
Foxtel on Oxford
MCN has recently opened it own venue in inner-city Sydney.
“Our homefronts used to be like the endless summer,” said Frain when talking about how MCN used to host agencies and advertisers across as many as 30 different upfront events in a different location each year.
“Having the Foxtel an Oxford venue gives us the chance to talk more regularly to our clients and partners rather than on one night only.
“The opportunity to chat to them in a different way in a different space does two things and give us the opportunity to entertain our clients through the power of the content across the year.
“It also allows us to showcase technology for not only MCN staff to engage with clients, but allows us to tell the Foxtel story in a different space that is not a boardroom.”
“It has been designed to represent the Foxtel business which is a premium experience.”
See also:
MCN re-invents upfront sales model with ‘always on’ event program
OzTAM data into the future
Frain also hoped that with the election out of the way there would now be a stronger advertising market.
To help advertisers get a better understanding of the total TV audiences now consuming video content, there will be less reliance on overnight ratings in the future.
When asked if overnight audience numbers might start to disappear with total audience data taking over. Frain said: “I think we will see both. The drug of overnight ratings will be hard to get off. There are many advertisers who are looking for information on real time performance and it remains a vital part of the currency.
“With regard to the success of the content that we produce and publish the total audience story defines how great that content is, irrespective of the platform it is being distributed on.”
Staff Australia-wide celebrated at annual Nova Entertainment Awards
Over 240 guests from Nova Entertainment’s stations around the country attended the special evening.
Nova 100’s Chrissie, Sam & Browny welcomed guests to Melbourne and introduced one of Australia’s most talented artists, Jessica Mauboy to perform and kick off the evening. MC Nova 91.9’s Jarrod Walsh, returning as MC for the second consecutive year, got the proceedings started before introducing CEO Cathy O’Connor to officially start the evening.
Nova drive co-hosts Tim Blackwell and Kate Ritchie
Awards recognised the Most Outstanding Leader, Future Leader, Best Content, Elio Tedesco Most Outstanding Operational Support, Cultural Ambassador, Best Team Executive/Team Collaboration, Best Innovation or Idea, Best Client Campaign Under $100K and over $100K, High Sales Achiever, the CEO Award with recipients hand selected by Cathy O’Connor, and concluded with the Market of the Year.
smoothfm Sydney’s Glenn Daniel and Bogart Torelli
Nova and smoothfm’s announcers from around the country presented awards on the night including Nova’s national drive show Kate, Tim & Marty, Nova 96.9’s Fitzy and Sarah McGilvray (Sydney), Nova 100’s Chrissie, Sam & Browny, Nova 106.9’s Ash, Kip, Luttsy & Susie O’Neil (Brisbane), Nova 937’s Nathan, Nat & Shaun (Perth), Nova 91.9’s Dylan & Hayley, smoothfm 91.5’s breakfast show Mike Perso and Jennifer Hansen and smoothfm 95.3’s Bogart Torelli and Glenn Daniel with Nova 100’s work day announcers Matt Tilley and Troy Ellis closing the night and getting the after party started.
Nova drive’s Marty Sheargold
Also attending on the night were smoothfm announcers Ty Frost and Simon Diaz, Nova 100 afternoon announcer Mel Tracina, Star 104.5’s breakfast host Rabbit, Nova 100’s Dean Thomas and news journalist Ash Gardner and Nova 919 anchor Jarrod Walsh.
Nova Perth’s Nathan, Nat and Shaun
Group executives included CEO Cathy O’Connor, Chief Marketing Officer Tony Thomas, Chief Commercial Office Peter Charlton, Group GM Peter Colosimo, Chief Digital Officer Fayad Tohme, Head of M&A, Strategy & Partnerships Nathan Reay, CFO Georgia Byrne, Head of People Experience Alana Howe and Head of Technology Matt Steadman.
Nova Brisbane’s Kip, Susie, Ash and Luttsy
Also attending were program directors from around the country including Daniel Underhill (Nova 937), Jay Walkerden (Nova 106.9 and Head of Podcasting), Ben Latimer (Nova 969 and Nova 919), Rohan Brown (Nova 100), Craig Munn (station manager FIVEaa), Shayne Sinclair (Star 104.5), Peter Clay (Head of Programming NOVA 96.9 & smoothfm network) and Brendan Taylor (Group Program Operations Director).
—
Top Photo: Nova Entertainment group executives: Head of M&A, Strategy & Partnerships Nathan Reay, Chief Commercial Office Peter Charlton, Alana Howe Head of People Experience, Group GM Peter Colosimo, CEO Cathy O’Connor, Chief Marketing Officer Tony Thomas, CFO Georgia Byrne, Chief Digital Office Fayad Tohme and Matt Steadman Head of Technology.
Foxtel’s Brian Walsh warns on Euphoria: “This series is not for all”
Starring superstar actor and singer Zendaya, Euphoria follows a group of high-school students as they navigate a mine field of drugs, sex, identity, trauma, social media, love and friendship.
The series will be available to customers streaming it On Demand, and to watch on Fox Showcase, from Monday, June 17 at 9.30pm – just hours after its US premiere.
US censorship advocacy group the Parents Television Council has called for the show to be pulled, expressing concern that the series “appears to be overtly, intentionally, marketing extremely graphic adult content – sex, violence, profanity and drug use – to teens and preteens.”
Media reviews for the series have been just as controversial. Variety called the HBO drama “a wild, unsettling ride”, while The Hollywood Reporter questions “How much teen sex and drugs is too much?”
Brian Walsh, Foxtel’s executive director of television, said: “This series is not for everybody and it’s not for your 14-year-old. Parental guidance is advised for our customers using streaming and there’s a good reason why the channel timeslot is 9.30pm. The show isn’t always easy to watch, and there is no question it pushes the boundaries, but it is provocative, authentic and unforgettable.”
Based on the ground-breaking Israeli series of the same name, Euphoria takes an up-close-and-personal look at what it’s like to be a young person today, in a story that’s equal parts shocking and empathetic.
Creator/writer Sam Levinson directed five of Euphoria’s episodes. In addition to Levinson, EPs include Drake and Future the Prince. Ron Leshem and Daphna Levin, who created the Israeli series, also serve as executive producers.
Photos: HBO/Foxtel
TV Week starts Logie weekend with Stars in the Park on Gold Coast
There will be live musical performances from stars such as ARIA Award-winning singer Conrad Sewell.
There will also be a Live Voting Zone, where fans will be able to vote for their favourite stars and shows across all the Most Popular award nominees before voting closes on Sunday, June 30, and have their photo taken on a red carpet and with a real-life Gold Logie.
2019 TV Week Logie Awards stars Costa Georgiadis, Jules and Cam, Shelley Craft, Eve Morey, Ryan Moloney, Bonnie Anderson, Bernard Curry, Robbie Magasiva and Fox League stars will be in attendance to meet fans and sign autographs.
Fans will also have the chance to sit in The Voice Australia big red chair, have their photo taken in a Wentworth prison cell, share the love with ABC TV, enjoy a City of Gold Coast Creative Gold performance, and meet 90.9 Sea FM’s breakfast hosts Ben & Dan, who will be broadcasting live from the event.
TV Week editor Thomas Woodgate said, “This is the perfect warm-up event for this year’s TV Week Logie Awards. Fans will get a chance to get up close to some of their favourite TV stars, take a selfie with a Logie and have a great deal of fun at the same time. Plus, fans have the chance to win exclusive VIP passes to the red carpet as well! I’m genuinely excited, as it’s the first time we’ve hosted a pre-event such as this. It promises to be a lot of fun and I look forward to seeing everyone there!”
iHeartRadio is one of the first radio partners in the world accessible through Siri
Introduced by iHeartRadio Software Engineer, David Brooks, an intuitive new feature has been added to Siri Shortcuts, which enables iPhone users to quickly access their favourite stations, music and podcasts on iHeartRadio. These Siri Shortcuts automate the phone to match the user’s everyday tasks and listening, offering two ways to use them: Siri Voice or Siri Suggestion Shortcuts.
With Siri Voice Shortcuts, custom commands will trigger the iPhone to play specific podcasts or music selections from iHeartRadio. Such as ‘play my favourite station’ or ‘time to dance’ to direct to a pre-determined station such as KISS 106.9 FM.
The Siri Suggestion Shortcuts are intuitive and will pick up on the podcasts or stations that listeners enjoy the most on the iHeartRadio app. Using signals like location, listening history and time of day – Siri learns when listeners use the app and what they prefer, then recommends accordingly.
Geraint Davies, COO of iHeartRadio Australiasaid: “With over 65% of Australians currently using Apple mobile phones to listen to iHeartRadio, this great new simple Siri Shortcut makes accessing your favourite station even easier.”
To learn how to create Siri Shortcuts from within the iHeartRadio app, go to www.iheartradio.com.au
Week 24 TV: The Voice still loud and proud, AFL key for Seven
Seven dominated in the primetime and breakfast news slots.
House Rules had just two episodes last week with one of them over 750,000.
It might rather forget the launch of The Super Switch with 308,000 and a slightly more competitive 381,000 for the second episode.
Nine’s share was down week-on-week after Origin boosted it to a winning position in week 23.
Nine’s The Voice pulled the biggest TV audiences this week with two of the three episodes, both knockouts, over 1m. The final of the blind audition episodes slipped below 900,000 on Sunday June 6 though in an episode with plenty of filler as the coaches completed their teams and the episode was also up against Australia v India in the World Cup cricket on Gem.
The Australia v Pakistan match on Wednesday became the highest rating multi program of the year with 549,000 national (382,000/167,000).
10’s share was up 0.6 week-on-week with the multichannel shares unchanged – 10Bold on 3.4% and 10Peach on 2.2%.
MasterChef hit a series high on Wednesday with 731,000.
Have You Been Paying Attention? was second best on 678,000.
The channel is working hard to promote its total viewers and on that front Five Bedrooms did very well, up from 332,000 in week 23 to 678,000 seven days later with catch-up, encore screenings and BVOD.
Also adding many more views in total viewers were Mr Black, Kinne Tonight and Have You Been Paying Attention?
Also unchanged week-on-week was ABC’s primary share of 11.2% and its combined channel share of 15.8%.
News bulletins delivered the biggest audiences followed by Australian Story and Four Corners next best with each just over 580,000.
Alan Jones featured on Anh’s Brush With Fame with the numbers down slightly to 544,000.
The combined channel share of SBS was steady on 7.7%, but the primary share was down 0.1 to 5.2%. The channel’s biggest crowd gathered for coverage of the Australia v Italy Women’s World Cup football match on the Sunday night with 439,000.
Who Do You Think You Are? did 403,000 for the episode featuring Kerri-Anne Kennerley.
ARIA Chart: What will topple Old Town Road? Eight weeks on top!
Singles
Little Nas X this extended his reign at #1 to eight weeks of his 12 weeks on the chart with Old Town Road.
There doesn’t seem an imminent threat to top spot, although just writing that probably means there will be an upset next week with a new #1.
The only move at all in a very static top 10 was the former #1 Sucker from the Jonas Brothers moving back up from #12 to #8 as their album debuted top 10 this week.
Three songs debuted in the top 50 this week:
#17 Chris Brown with No Guidance featuring Drake. Brown’s first time on the singles chart in his own right since 2015 with a track from his forthcoming studio album Indigo.
#20 Avicii with Heaven. Track from the new posthumous album, which also charts this week.
#50 Tyga with Haute featuring J Balvin and Chris Brown. A track from the rapper’s album, which also charts this week.
A handful of tunes slipped into the top 50 from lower down the chart:
#32 The Chainsmokers & Bebe Rexha with Call You Mine comes from The Chainsmokers’ third album World War Joy.
#38 Guy Sebastian with Choir. The track is a tribute to his great mate and his musical right hand man, Luke Liang. Luke was a key member of Guy’s band.
#43 Tones And I with Dance Monkey. The triple j favourite from the Mornington Peninsula now calls Byron Bay home.
Albums
Billie Eilish has returned to top spot this week for a third time in her 11 weeks on the chart so far with her debut album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?
Plenty of activity on the album chart this week with eight top 50 chart debuts.
Three of those albums made it into the top 10:
#3 Jonas Brothers with Happiness Begins. The first album in a decade is a new chart peak for the brothers.
#6 Avicii with Tim. First posthumous appearance on the chart for the Swedish DJ and producer.
#9 Meg Mac with Hope. An EP from the Sydney singer-songwriter. Her debut album Low Blows made it to #2 in 2017.
The other artists to drop into the top 50 this week ranged from Psychedelic Porn Crumpets to Bob Dylan.
#12 Tyga with Legendary. The seventh studio album from the US rapper is the first to chart in Australia.
#20 Polish Club with Iguana. Second album from the Sydney rock duo.
#31 Psychedelic Porn Crumpets with And Now For The Whatchamacallit. Third album from the four-piece psychedelic rock band from Perth who were in Melbourne and Sydney this weekend and they soon depart for Europe and the US for much of the rest of 2019.
#32 Motionless In White with Disguise. Fifth album from the US metal band.
#50 Bob Dylan with Rolling Thunder Revue: The 1975 Live Recordings. As the Martin Scorsese doco is released on Netflix this week, Dylan plays dates in the UK and Europe over the next few weeks including a massive Hyde Park London show where he shares the bill with Neil Young.
Top 10 Games Chart: Sonic remains in pole position during E3
A slow week then, but also a time when the entire games industry isn’t thinking about the now, but the future, and have made the trek to L.A. for E3, the biggest game trade show of the year. To be clear, E3 itself isn’t as important as it once was. Gaming has evolved – business models have changed, games have become a service, publishers can now speak directly to their audience whenever they like. The showdown between first party publishers – PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo – already somewhat diminished, wasn’t even a factor this year, with Sony opting to skip the show.
Even so, there were some big announcements and deep dives. Xbox’s next console, codenamed Project Scarlett, will be launching in late 2020, alongside Halo Infinite. Watch Dogs: Legion takes players to a dystopian London, where they can recruit any citizen in the entire city to their cause, then play as them. Nintendo revealed that it’s working on a sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (IGN’s game of the year in 2017) with a dark and moody teaser trailer. Elsewhere, Deathloop looks cool, as does Ghostwire: Tokyo, The Outer Worlds, Gods and Monsters, Elden Ring, Marvel’s Avengers, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Link’s Awakening, Doom Eternal and Final Fantasy VII Remake.
IGN’s game of the show, however, was the same as last year – Cyberpunk 2077. The hugely ambitious action RPG from the studio behind The Witcher III is looking incredible. Plus it has a not-so-secret weapon: Keanu Reeves.
TV Ratings Analysis: June 16
Sunday Week 25 2019
By James Manning
• Nine News 1,091,000
• Seven News 1,081,000
• ABC News 677,000
• 60 Minutes 669,000
• Sunday Night 540,000
• Insiders 285,000
• 10 News First 266,000
• The Project 256,000/411,000
• Landline 237,000
• Offsiders 184,000
• SBS World News 133,000
Breakfast TV
• Sunrise 273,000
• Today 181,000
Seven
House Rules host Johanna Griggs welcomed teams to Campbelltown, Western Sydney to work on a rebuild of Graeme and Mary’s house. The blended family of six told of their heartbreak when their family home burnt to the ground in November last year leaving them separated. With a young family to look after and money tight, they didn’t have insurance and lost everything in the fire. With a broken family whose only wish is to be together, this seven-day build provided the greatest motivation for teams. Graeme said through tears: “When you’ve got nothing, you live every day not knowing and when you get that glimmer of hope, its life-changing.” Mary added: “It will bring an entire family together.” Andy, a firefighter declared: “This is the best thing I’ve ever been able to do for anyone.” The Sunday episode was on 723,000 after 679,000 a week ago.
Sunday Night then did 540,000.
Nine
Nine News was a winner at 6pm with 1.091m across the hour.
The Voice then did 1.093m followed by 60 Minutes on 669,000.
Suburban Gangsters featured Australia’s most notorious gamblers George Freeman and Mick Sayers and attracted an audience of 264,000.
10
Hamish Macdonald was reporting live from the streets of Hong Kong early in the program and then Tommy Little was the star attraction on The Project, reporting from London on his Hit Network Spice Girls trip. The show did 411,000 after 7pm.
Heston Blumenthal time on MasterChef as he arrived for the start of Sweet Week. The episode did 605,000 after 489,000 last week.
ABC
Crime dramas from different parts of the world entertained audiences again after the news.
Shetland was on 512,000 followed by Harrow with 501,000.
SBS
Part one of The Rise Of The Clans with Neil Oliver did 163,000.
A repeat of Vitamania then did 138,000.
Week 24-25 TV: Friday-Sunday
| FRIDAY METRO | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven | Nine | 10 | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 14.0% | 7 | 24.8% | 9 | 17.2% | 10 | 10.1% | SBS One | 2.9% |
| ABC KIDS/ ABC COMEDY | 3.0% | 7TWO | 3.7% | GO! | 3.1% | 10 Bold | 2.4% | VICELAND | 1.2% |
| ABC ME | 0.5% | 7mate | 4.4% | GEM | 2.4% | 10 Peach | 2.4% | Food Net | 0.9% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.4% | 7flix | 3.1% | 9Life | 2.0% | NITV | 0.2% | ||
| 7Food | 0.4% | ||||||||
| TOTAL | 18.9% | 36.5% | 24.6% | 14.9% | 5.1% | ||||
| SATURDAY METRO | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven | Nine | 10 | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 13.0% | 7 | 18.5% | 9 | 13.7% | 10 | 7.6% | SBS One | 4.5% |
| ABC KIDS/ ABC COMEDY | 3.4% | 7TWO | 3.0% | GO! | 5.0% | 10 Bold | 2.6% | VICELAND | 0.8% |
| ABC ME | 0.7% | 7mate | 3.4% | GEM | 12.1% | 10 Peach | 2.4% | Food Net | 1.2% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.1% | 7flix | 4.1% | 9Life | 2.1% | NITV | 0.2% | ||
| 7Food | 0.7% | ||||||||
| TOTAL | 18.2% | 29.6% | 32.9% | 12.6% | 6.7% | ||||
| SUNDAY METRO | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven | Nine | 10 | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 11.1% | 7 | 18.5% | 9 | 23.7% | 10 | 11.0% | SBS One | 3.7% |
| ABC KIDS/ ABC COMEDY | 2.6% | 7TWO | 2.8% | GO! | 3.6% | 10 Bold | 2.7% | VICELAND | 1.3% |
| ABC ME | 0.3% | 7mate | 4.5% | GEM | 5.4% | 10 Peach | 2.0% | Food Net | 1.0% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.2% | 7flix | 2.0% | 9Life | 1.7% | NITV | 0.2% | ||
| 7Food | 0.6% | ||||||||
| TOTAL | 15.3% | 28.4% | 34.3% | 15.7% | 6.3% | ||||
| SUNDAY REGIONAL | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven Affiliates | Nine Affiliates | 10 Affiliates | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 11.3% | 7 | 21.6% | 9 | 19.7% | WIN | 9.2% | SBS One | 3.5% |
| ABC KIDS/ ABC COMEDY | 2.8% | 7TWO | 3.6% | GO! | 4.9% | WIN Bold | 2.7% | VICELAND | 1.2% |
| ABC ME | 1.2% | 7mate | 4.0% | GEM | 3.8% | WIN Peach | 2.0% | Food Net | 1.1% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.2% | 7flix (Excl. Tas/WA) | 2.2% | 9Life | 2.5% | Sky News on WIN | 0.7% | NITV | 0.3% |
| 7food (QLD only) | 0.7% | ||||||||
| TOTAL | 16.5% | 32.0% | 30.8% | 14.5% | 6.1% | ||||
All People Ratings
Friday Top 10
- Seven News Seven 960,000
- Seven News / Today Tonight Seven 901,000
- Nine News Nine 766,000
- Nine News 6:30 Nine 754,000
- A Current Affair Nine 575,000
- The Chase Australia Seven 570,000
- ABC News ABC 560,000
- Seven’s AFL: Friday Night Football Seven 557,000
- Better Homes And Gardens Seven 557,000
- Endeavour ABC 527,000
Saturday Top 10
- Seven News Seven 831,000
- Nine News Saturday Nine 751,000
- ABC News-Sa ABC 678,000
- Shakespeare And Hathaway ABC 467,000
- Father Brown ABC 447,000
- Toy Story Nine 357,000
- Seven’s AFL: Saturday Night Football Seven 346,000
- ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Aus V Sl -S1 9Gem 332,000
- Getaway Nine 320,000
- Weekend Sunrise Seven 285,000
Sunday FTA
- The Voice Nine 1,093,000
- Nine News Sunday Nine 1,091,000
- Seven News Seven 1,081,000
- House Rules Seven 723,000
- ABC News Sunday ABC 677,000
- 60 Minutes Nine 669,000
- Masterchef Australia 10 605,000
- Sunday Night Seven 540,000
- Shetland ABC 512,000
- Harrow ABC 501,000
- The Sunday Project 7pm 10 411,000
- Sunday Afternoon NRL Live Nine 323,000
- Insiders AM ABC 285,000
- Seven News At 5 Seven 281,000
- Weekend Sunrise Seven 273,000
- 10 News First 10 266,000
- Suburban Gangsters Nine 264,000
- The Sunday Project 6.30pm 10 256,000
- Landline PM ABC 237,000
- FBI 10 224,000
Sunday Multichannel
- ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Ind V Pak – 9Gem 201,000
- Bluey AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 186,000
- M- Captain America: The Winter Soldier 7mate 162,000
- Peppa Pig AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 149,000
- Peter Rabbit ABCKIDS/COMEDY 143,000
- Hey Duggee AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 142,000
- Border Security – Australia’s Front Line 7TWO 141,000
- Play School AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 139,000
- Nella The Princess Knight AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 138,000
- Bing AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 136,000
- Bondi Rescue Ep 2 (R) 10 Bold 133,000
- PJ Masks AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 133,000
- The Legend Of Tarzan 9GO! 129,000
- Bananas In Pyjamas AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 128,000
- Rusty Rivets ABCKIDS/COMEDY 127,000
- Octonauts ABCKIDS/COMEDY 124,000
- Go Jetters AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 122,000
- The Phantom 9GO! 119,000
- Molly And Mack PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 117,000
- Floogals ABCKIDS/COMEDY 116,000
Sunday STV
- Live: NRL Roosters V Bulldogs FOX LEAGUE 231,000
- Live: AFL North Melbourne V GWS FOX FOOTY 218,000
- Live: NRL Sea Eagles V Dragons FOX LEAGUE 178,000
- Live: Supercars Darwin Race 16 FOX SPORTS 506 176,000
- Live: Bounce FOX FOOTY 124,000
- Live: Sunday Night With Matty Johns FOX LEAGUE 109,000
- Live: World Cup: India V Pakistan FOX CRICKET 100,000
- Live: Supercars Trackside FOX SPORTS 506 96,000
- Live: Supercars Darwin Top 10 Shootout FOX SPORTS 506 96,000
- Live: Supercars The Grid FOX SPORTS 506 95,000
- Live: Supercars Live FOX SPORTS 506 85,000
- Live: Supercars Darwin Supports FOX SPORTS 506 75,000
- Live: Supercars Live FOX SPORTS 506 74,000
- Live: Controversy Corner FOX LEAGUE 68,000
- Live: Supercars Live FOX SPORTS 506 65,000
- Live: Supercars Darwin Qualifying 16 FOX SPORTS 506 61,000
- Live: Sunday Footy On Fox FOX FOOTY 61,000
- The Beep Test FOX FOOTY 54,000
- Live: Supercars Darwin Supports FOX SPORTS 506 54,000
- Paul Murray Live Sky News Live 53,000
Shares all people, 6pm-midnight, Overnight (Live and AsLive), Audience numbers FTA metro, Sub TV national
Source: OzTAM and Regional TAM 2018. The Data may not be reproduced, published or communicated (electronically or in hard copy) without the prior written consent of OzTAM
Media News Roundup
Business of Media
Bank spending on ads up, but don’t expect big money until spring
Westpac and Commonwealth Bank of Australia have been the bigger bank spenders testing the waters so far this month. CBA had advertising campaigns in print every day last week, including a front-page wraparound and full-page ads in The Australian Financial Review and AFR Weekend, and strap ads each day in The Australian‘s business section.
Westpac increased its ad spend last week with a campaign it launched in March about its separation hub, and a new “baker of Beirut” ad it launched this month across free-to-air television and Foxtel.
“I don’t think we should be getting ahead of ourselves and saying the banks are coming back in a big way,” Dentsu Aegis Network Australia chief executive Henry Tajer said.
“It’s an hors d’oeuvre, I don’t think we’ve sat down for the meal yet. The market wants to see the main course served out, but I have a feeling this may be a nibbles-type party. For the banks to just turn up, having a big-brand message – how relevant is that considering what’s been going on?”
Fletcher flags new tax of Netflix and regulation of tech giants
In a wide-ranging interview with The Australian and Sky News Business Weekend, Fletcher said the Morrison government would be open to accepting the recommendations of the ACCC’s final digital platforms report, due at the end of this month, signalling a new wave of regulation to curb market power and the pernicious consequences of the dominance of Google and Facebook.
Stan faces uncertain times as its sweetheart content deals expire
But Stan’s subscription growth and climb out of heavy losses is set to face its sternest test with the expiry of a number of content deals, rising program costs and the arrival of new competition from studios looking to emulate the success of US giant Netflix.
Efforts have been under way to find an equity or content partner for the business in a bid to see it through what is shaping as a period of dramatic change in the market that could include some consolidation of the local players.
Costs to acquire programs for aggregators such as Stan are expected to rise from here as production houses such as Disney, HBO and CBS pull content back from licencing partners to establish their own “channel” offerings.
Content deals: Facebook ‘splashing the cash’ ahead of ACCC Report
News, sports and entertainment content are high on Facebook’s wish list, according to media sources, who say the deals on the table are financially attractive to local broadcasters.
Media sources are critical of the US behemoth’s sudden move into content deals a fortnight out from a world-first report from the competition regulator into the impact of the digital platforms on traditional media and advertising revenue. Some believe Facebook is “splashing the cash” in the short term to quickly improve its relationships with local media companies and alleviate the risk of tough new regulations.
News Brands
The West introducing paywall, denies brand has gone down market
Critics say he has taken Perth’s only daily newspaper down-market, trying to turn it into a version of Sydney’s The Daily Telegraph, the News Corp-owned tabloid where De Ceglie was deputy editor for about two-and-half years.
Unsurprisingly, De Ceglie rejects the criticism and insists the response of readers to the changes has been largely positive.
“I don’t think that just because our paper is looking more engaging, that it’s looking more colourful and interesting, necessarily means that it’s going down-market,” said the Perth-born, Walkley-award-winning journalist. “I think that if anything, we’re doing more sophisticated journalism.”
As early as tomorrow, he will introduce a paywall for The West Australian’s website – a move many insiders believe should have been made many years ago.
The company’s Perth Now website will remain free to access.
Seven West Media chief executive Tim Worner says De Ceglie is the right person to lead the changes.
“We made some very deliberate and very big management moves in WA because we were after change,” he says.
“And that’s what we’re getting. Having an editorial lead across all our titles just makes sense, and Anthony is absolutely the right person for that.
“Our journalists at The West, The Sunday Times, PerthNow and really right across WA rarely get the credit they deserve.”
Five new web-only mastheads for News Corp, Newcastle next
NewsLocal, which publishes 18 local newspapers around NSW, including The Manly Daily and The Parramatta Advertiser, is set to launch a digital-only local masthead in Newcastle, expected to be called The Newcastle Telegraph, next month.
Just weeks after the federal election, News Corp launched its digital-only masthead, The Canberra Star, to cover all local issues, except politics. The group shuttered its Central Sydney newspaper last month, and immediately relaunched it as a digital-only masthead, and launched The Illawarra Star in April.
NewsLocal publisher John McGourty said there would be five digital mastheads by the end of July, taking the total to 23, with more on the drawing board over the next 12 months.
“I’d be reluctant to say where, but we have ambitions to roll out a further four or five in FY20,” McGourty told The Australian.
ABC wants more diversity on panel shows, reviewing ABC Life
Anderson aid the ABC was facing some difficult choices about content and staff over the next three years to meet funding commitments after the Coalition was re-elected in May.
Anderson said he had decided to review ABC Life, a website launched in August 2018 under his predecessor Michelle Guthrie who was sacked from the broadcaster in September.
“ABC Life is relatively new, I think we have set to review ABC Life in the coming months to see if it has done the job that we wanted ABC Life to do [and] look at its relative success,” Anderson said. “That means quantitatively and qualitatively and assess what we do and whether we continue that or not.”
He added the review would not necessarily result in a “binary” decision to close it or keep it running.
Television
Seven commits to independent review of Sunrise production process
The segment dealt with the adoption of indigenous children and child abuse in indigenous communities. The ACMA found that the segment was inaccurate and provoked serious contempt on the basis of race in breach of the industry’s code.
Seven sought judicial review of the ACMA’s findings that the segment provoked serious contempt on the basis of race, but discontinued court proceedings in April 2019.
Under the court-enforceable undertaking, Seven must conduct an independent review of how and the extent to which relevant production processes on Sunrise ensure code compliance in relation to sensitive and complex matters. A report of the review must be provided to Seven’s Board and Audit and Risk Committee within six months.
The ACMA will verify the independence of, and terms of reference for, the review.
Seven has also undertaken that Sunrise editorial staff will be trained to identify and deal with sensitive matters within six months and notify the ACMA within five business days that the training is complete.
All-star music line up for the 61st TV Week Logie Awards
Delta Goodrem, multiple ARIA award winner & multiplatinum Australian singer/songwriter and actress, has amassed a multitude of hits and achievements during her career. The talented performer has achieved in excess of 23 x platinum sales, 4 #1 albums, 9 #1 singles, 17 top 10 hits, 16 ARIA Awards, a Silver Logie Award & 3 World Music Awards. Having achieved multi-platinum-selling status, over 8 million records sold worldwide and started her own label imprint with Sony Australia, The House of Oz Records, the gifted singer, songwriter, performer and pianist has, for the past 15 years, provided a soundtrack to the lives of a generation of music fans in Australia, the UK and around the world. In 2017, Goodrem launched her debut fragrance Delta by Delta Goodrem, smashing records as it debuted as the highest selling fragrance in Australian history. In 2018 she released her second fragrance of her collection “Dream”. In 2012, Delta became a coach on the first ever season of The Voice Australia and returns for her eighth season in 2019. Delta will be making her fourth return to the stage for the Logie’s audience.
“The TV Week Logies has held a special place in my heart since the start of my career, and I’m so honoured to be performing for the fourth time on the Logies stage,” said Goodrem. “I am very thankful to be part of this year’s show, it really is TV’s night of nights for all involved and I can’t wait to celebrate what has been an incredible year with not only my Voice family, but all of the TV industry.”
Singer, songwriter and producer Guy Sebastian is arguably Australia’s most successful male solo artist and now a certified hit in his new role as Coach on Nine’s The Voice Australia. Guy is the only Australian male artist to have ever achieved six number one singles and two number one albums in ARIA chart history. Guy has achieved over 30 x Platinum singles sales in Australia and well over 7,000,000 combined units sold worldwide. He will perform a medley of his hits for the TV Week Logie Awards audience.
“I’m loving being back on TV and am so proud to be a part of The Voice family mentoring some incredibly talented artists,” Sebastian said. “I can’t wait to perform at this year’s Logies and celebrate the amazing shows on Aussie television.”
Chart-topping singer, actress and Eurovision star Jessica Mauboy will be performing a brand-new song from her highly anticipated fourth studio album. Jessica Mauboy makes music that has been a saviour for many, with five top 10 albums, 15 top 20 singles, 4 ARIA accredited Platinum selling albums and winning two ARIA Music Awards from 24 nominations to her name since she captured the heart of the nation as a 16-year-old on Australian Idol back in 2006. Since then, her songs and videos have been streamed globally over 257 million times and over 102 million times in Australia alone. She has toured with Beyoncé, collaborated with Ricky Martin, Flo Rida, Snoop Dogg and Pitbull; performed for Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres and made history being the first non-European solo artist to represent Australia at Eurovision in 2014. Jessica is also no stranger to the small screen as the star of TV series, The Secret Daughter.
“Since my last performance in 2017, I’ve been so keen to return to the Logies stage,” Jessica said. “It’s one of the best nights of the year for a performer. And to be able to do it with an all new song I’ve co-written is a privilege.”
Bringing international flavour to this year’s TV Week Logie Awards, US boyband Why Don’t We will perform their hit single “I Don’t Belong In This Club”. The group played sold-out shows in Sydney and Melbourne in 2018 and this is their first time back in Australia since then. “I Don’t Belong In This Club”, a surprise collaboration with Macklemore, has over 70 million streams globally. Why Don’t We has amassed a huge 1 billion streams worldwide to date.
Sports Media
World Cup football: The beautiful game may soon get ugly for women
Yet this year’s women’s World Cup is also shaping up to be a turning point. England’s first game last week against Scotland was the UK’s most watched women’s football match of all time, according to the BBC, drawing a peak of 6.1 million viewers that smashed the previous record of 4 million set in 2017.
It was covered by journalists from the Daily Telegraph, which has just launched a dedicated female sports section as part of what it trumpeted was an “unprecedented investment” in women’s sport coverage by a UK publisher. Meanwhile, a wave of corporate money has been pouring into women’s football. In March, Barclays bank unveiled a £10 million ($18 million) deal with England’s Football Association that the FA said was the biggest ever investment in UK women’s sport by a brand. Two weeks later, Boots, the chemist chain, said it would sponsor women’s teams in the home nations and Ireland for the next three years. Last month, MasterCard became the first major official partner for the Arsenal Women Football Club.
10 v Seven: Turf wars to hit TV racing coverage in spring
The VRC’s $100 million deal with Channel 10, encompassing all four days of the Flemington carnival and announced late last year, means Channel 7 will be left to dedicate its entire coverage to the new $7.5 million Golden Eagle on the same day.
V’Landys has copped his share of flak in recent weeks – mainly from Melbourne – for what critics call an uncooperative attitude, with his new races like The Golden Eagle announced in direct competition with Victoria’s traditional race days.
“But Channel 7 will be doing the Golden Eagle and it will be in direct competition to Derby Day and this is the irony of the whole situation,” he said. “They (the VRC) want to talk about the national situation, and what do they go and do? They go and sign with Channel 10, away from the national channel that we are using. It’s only national when it suits them, and it is never national when they want to do things unilaterally.”