Kylar Loussikian writes in the AFR that CoStar is seeking to position Domain as a stronger and preferable alternative to REA Group, giving real estate agents greater options in the market. The company acquired the homes.com.au brand in early June and will either “go to market with flanking brands to Domain or to make a big statement with a major rebrand of Domain”.
Tuesday July 1, 2025
Seven West Media finalises SCA deal, becoming top regional commercial TV broadcaster
Seven West Media has completed its acquisition of Southern Cross Media Group’s regional television assets, making it the largest regional commercial television broadcaster in Australia.
The transaction, valued at $3.75 million, includes broadcast licences and associated assets covering Tasmania, Darwin, Spencer Gulf, Broken Hill, Mt Isa, and Remote Central and Eastern Australia.
Seven West Media Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Howard described the move as “small but strategically important”, reinforcing the network’s reach and content continuity in regional markets.
“Our ongoing commitment is to ensure that our regional communities can access our local and national news bulletins, our compelling sport lineup including AFL, Test and BBL cricket, and our premium entertainment programming,” Howard said.
The acquisition is expected to be immediately earnings accretive in FY26.
SCA exits TV, refocuses on audio
For Southern Cross Media Group, the sale marks a complete exit from television broadcasting and aligns with its ‘All About Audio’ strategy.
“With the successful divestment of our regional TV assets, our entire strategic focus is now All About Audio,” said John Kelly, SCA CEO. “This clarity is already delivering results. As our share of audio revenue grows, we remain disciplined on costs and are committed to giving advertisers unmatched access to the ‘Audience That Matters’ – Australians aged 25 to 54.”
SCA’s John Kelly
SCA reported 5% revenue growth for FY25, with forward bookings for July and August 2025 continuing that trend across its broadcast and digital audio platforms.
Seven West Media’s suite of platforms, which includes the Seven Network, 7plus, 7NEWS.com.au, and print and digital titles such as The West Australian and PerthNow, will now have expanded distribution across the newly acquired regional areas.
The company is scheduled to release its full-year financial results on Tuesday 12 August 2025.
Antoinette Lattouf launches podcast – first interview after Federal Court win
Antoinette Lattouf and Jan Fran have launched a new independent podcast, We Used to be Journos, tackling declining trust in mainstream media, institutional bias, and the growing need for media literacy.
The weekly show, produced by their new venture Ette Media, debuts on Wednesday, July 2 via Acast, with episodes available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.
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The hosts
Lattouf is a multi-award-winning journalist, author of How to Lose Friends and Influence White People, and co-founder of Media Diversity Australia.
Her high-profile case Lattouf v ABC has become a flashpoint for debates around media freedom, workplace discrimination, and editorial independence.
Fran is a Walkley-winning journalist and commentator, known for The Feed, The Project, and Question Everything, as well as viral social media explainers. She is also working on a forthcoming collection of essays.
Antoinette Lattouf and Jan Fran
Lattouf speaks out
Speaking after her landmark Federal Court win against the ABC over an unlawful termination case, Lattouf said the podcast will unpack how the media operates, and where it often goes wrong.
“I had front row seats to the ABC’s slow, editorial independence car crash,” said Lattouf. “It was heartbreaking and excruciating to experience but I’m stepping away from the debris to remind people what journalism looks like when it’s not strapped to a lobbying bullbar.”
The podcast promises “realness, rage, and receipts,” with Lattouf and Fran using decades of industry experience to decode misleading headlines, examine bias, and expose hidden agendas.
We Used To Be Journos
“We used to write the news, then we became the news, and now we critique the news,” Lattouf added.
Fran emphasised the importance of the show’s mission: “With trust in the mainstream media at an all-time low and misinformation running amok, media literacy has never been more important.”
“We hope to give audiences the tools they need to navigate this increasingly fractured and volatile media landscape to get to the truth,” she said.
Top image: Jan Fran & Antoinette Lattouf
Majority of Aussie marketers still at a beginner level with AI, says ACAM report
Australian marketers are keen on AI, but the latest research shows many are still at the starting line when it comes to preparedness and practical adoption.
That’s the key finding from the inaugural AI Readiness Benchmarking Report from the Australian Centre for AI in Marketing (ACAM), which reveals that more than half of marketing teams are classed as “Beginners” in their AI maturity journey. The study, based on a survey of 60 Australian CMOs, introduces the country’s first formal AI Readiness Score to assess capability across leadership, ethics, data, governance, and more.
Mediaweek sat down with ACAM co-founder Douglas Nicol to unpack the findings, explore the risks of rushing into AI without proper frameworks, and understand what’s holding teams back from moving up the readiness curve.
Douglas Nicol
Why the survey was created
When ACAM set out to understand where Australian marketing teams were at with AI adoption, Douglas Nicol said they kept hearing the same three questions: “Are we ready for AI as a team?” “Is our marketing strategy AI-ready?” and “Am I, as a leader, prepared for AI?”
“We felt we needed to create some data here to help guide marketers in Australia as to what best practice looks like and how they rank versus peers and versus competitors.” Nicol said. “ It was really just an independent way of doing that and creating some data so that we can start answering those questions.”
The resulting AI Readiness Benchmarking Report is Australia’s first attempt to quantify AI preparedness for marketing teams, across strategy, skills, ethics, leadership, data, and governance. It’s no one-off project. ACAM plans to publish the benchmark annually to track industry progress over time.
“Our long-term vision is that every marketer in Australia adopts AI with confidence and clarity.” Nicol said. “Our industry is one of the earliest that’s been transformed by AI, and we need to be ready for this. And it needs to be a positive story, not a story of cost-cutting. It needs to be a story about better marketing.”
The ACAM ‘AI Readiness Score’
The centrepiece of ACAM’s new research is the introduction of Australia’s first AI Readiness Score for marketing teams, a structured framework designed to benchmark progress and maturity in AI adoption.
The score evaluates readiness across seven dimensions: team skills, leadership, governance, strategy, data, ethics, and measurement. Based on these, marketing teams are grouped into three tiers:
• Beginner (52%): Early interest in AI but minimal implementation or strategic planning.
• Emerging (40%): Demonstrating momentum but lacking consistency and leadership confidence.
• Advanced (8%): Strong leadership, strategic alignment, and integrated AI capabilities.
Nicol, said the score was designed to serve both leadership and frontline marketers. “I actually think there has to be a bottom-up and a top-down approach.” he said. “(Any marketer) can look at the seven dimensions that we’ve identified to put people into the beginner, emerging, and advanced, and take a more holistic view of planning.”
Nicol stressed that AI readiness must be both a strategic and cultural shift. “You’ve got to have leadership with real vision, leadership that sees this as a strategic business opportunity, not just a way of cutting costs. Sometimes leadership just goes, “Yeah, we can save 20% on headcount, go do it.”. That’s not a great place to be, as opposed to focusing on how AI can enable growth.”
Barriers to progress
While more than half of marketing teams (52%) are currently in the “Beginner” category of AI readiness, several recurring challenges are preventing them from moving forward.
ACAM’s AI Readiness Benchmarking Report – “What are the key barriers to GenAI deployment in your team?”
Nicol identified the three main barriers to AI progress as time, nervousness around ethics frameworks, and skills. Marketing teams, he said, are often too time-poor to engage in long-term planning. At the same time, risk and compliance concerns continue to slow momentum. And across the board, skills lag behind ambition, with 61% of CMOs citing skills gaps within their teams as the biggest obstacle to AI adoption. Nicol says it’s a problem that runs deeper than just learning how to use new tools.
“In the short-term, it’s very much about tool competence.” Nicol said. “In the longer-term, it’s going to be about how can I do better marketing, how can I deliver growth for the organization, how I can lower the cost of sale by focusing on the fundamentals of marketing, and how does AI support me on that strategic journey.”
“We are in this transition from tool time, and everyone spends their time talking about tools. Now, a bit of time on the tools, great, but there is a bigger play and a bigger opportunity here than just tool time.”
Customer insight gets a reboot
While much of the industry focus has been on GenAI’s ability to speed up content production, a growing number of marketers are turning their attention to customer research.
ACAM’s AI Readiness Benchmarking Report – “What parts of marketing do you see as a priority for the deployment of GenAI?”
According to the report, 61% of CMOs view research as a priority area for AI deployment, placing it above strategy (27%) and media buying (27%), and just behind personalization (75%), analytics (80%), copy/design (80%), and process automation (88%). For Douglas Nicol, it’s one of the most transformative opportunities AI presents.
“Traditionally, research is something that takes a bit of time, is very expensive, and AI is enabling a whole new generation of products and companies that can deliver customer insight, allow us to get closer to the customer every single day at a much lower cost.” he said. “A lot of time is spent in marketing departments debating as to whether a customer would, with this product, fulfill this customer need.”
This shift could reshape the way marketers make decisions, Nicol suggested, moving beyond instinct and internal debate toward real-time, data-informed insight. “That allows you to be a lot more customer-focused. I’m excited about that.”
Flying blind
Despite growing enthusiasm for AI, many Australian marketing teams remain unprepared for its risks, particularly around ethics and governance.
ACAM’s AI Readiness Benchmarking Report – “Is there a company wide AI ethics and risk framework in place?”
ACAM’s AI Readiness Benchmarking Report – “Is that framework understood across the team?”
The report found that nearly half (48%) of CMOs said their organisation lacks an ethics or risk framework for AI. Even among those that have one, most admitted it wasn’t well understood across their team. That gap, according to Nicol, presents a clear brand risk.
“Generative AI (is) becoming increasingly customer-facing. Customers are engaging with intelligent agents and getting personalised experiences, and there’s a real danger if you don’t have your ethics, risk, and brand protection in place.” said Nicol. “In terms of brand risk, that is really dangerous stuff — it could really damage the brand if it gets caught with biased data or experiences that don’t work well.”
The report suggests that without embedding clear AI policies and ethical guardrails, marketers risk repeating mistakes of the past, rushing into new technologies without ensuring they align with brand and business strategy.
The full ACAM 2025 AI Readiness Benchmarking report is available here.
Enero sells majority stake in OBMedia to support focus on its agencies
Enero Group has sold its 51% stake in AdTech business OBMedia to the existing 49% minority shareholders.
Ian Ball, Enero Group’s Chief Operating Officer, said: “This divestment supports our strategy to focus on our award-winning agencies where we see the greatest potential for growth, differentiation, and value creation.
“Enero is proud to be home to three specialist, high-performing, profitable agencies: Hotwire Global, BMF and Orchard. Each agency has strong leadership, a distinct value proposition and a consistent track record of delivering world-class results for clients.
“With a more defined portfolio, and an exclusive focus on building each of our agencies, we’re now committed to building the next chapter of growth, driving outstanding results for clients, attracting top talent, and delivering strong returns for shareholders.
“We believe we have the right platform and portfolio in place to do just that. As reflected in the positive FY25 Results, we are pleased that our agencies continue to deliver innovative, world-class work and meaningful outcomes for clients, providing a solid foundation to capitalise on future growth opportunities,” Ball added.
Earlier in the year, Enero Group reported a 52% drop in net profit after tax for the first half of FY25, alongside a 12% decline in revenue and a 31.5% fall in EBITDA. At the time, the company attributed its weak performance to macroeconomic pressures and challenges in the technology and AdTech sectors, which have weighed heavily on its financials.
Despite reducing overall expenses by 6% year-on-year, the company posted a net loss of $800,000, impacted by $2.6 million in restructuring costs and $1.4 million in value markdowns. Enero’s shares fell by 7% within the first hour of trading following the results announcement.
But there have been many highs for the Group with agency BMF winning the Westpac creative account and taking home Spikes Asia’s Creative Effectiveness Grand Prix Award.
Marketing agency Orchard was appointed the digital agency of record for Royal Agricultural Society, while Hotwire has deepened its global integration with ROI·DNA, secured a string of new client partnerships and continued to build on its reputation for tech-fuelled communications and marketing.
Top image: Ian Ball
Zenith wins Flight Centre media account as travel retailer seeks "full-service" positioning
Zenith Australia has been appointed to oversee Flight Centre’s media strategy, planning and buying.
The media agency will work with the travel agency, founded in 1982, to drive business growth through its digital and in-store offering, as well as through events and partnerships.
The account will be managed out of the Zenith Brisbane office and focus on building Flight Centre’s fame for its widest product range and offers by highlighting the brand’s content, personalised service and distinct experiences.
Flight Centre is aiming to cement its position as a full-service travel retailer with a global shop network, bookable product online and via an app following the launch of its new global tagline in February, ‘Your Centre for Travel’.
Megan Henderson, Flight Centre’s Global Head of Marketing, said: “We are excited to welcome Zenith as our Australian media agency.
“Their data-driven, insight-led approach and bold thinking is a great match for our growth plans and evolution as Flight Centre affirms its place as a trusted household name.”
Zenith Brisbane General Manager, Kate Lippett, said: “We are thrilled to be partnering with Flight Centre. From the moment we began conversations with their team, it was clear that our two brands and our people would have great synergy.
“Flight Centre’s appetite to build clever and exciting campaigns that amplify their brand purpose will allow us to tap into a wealth of products and insights that sit within Zenith Australia.”
She added: “It is great to see Flight Centre’s work continue to come from a globalised team of Marketing experts based locally in Brisbane, backed by the nationwide power of Zenith Australia and the broader Publicis Groupe ANZ family.”
Hair miracle workers, burger giants, and brewmasters see strong returns from Foxtel cricket coverage
Ashley & Martin, McDonald’s, and Victoria Bitter are among the brands reaping strong returns from cricket sponsorships on Foxtel Media platforms, with latest campaign data showing significant lifts in brand metrics ahead of the 2025 Summer of Cricket.
The results follow a series of campaigns broadcast across Foxtel, Kayo Sports and BINGE, leveraging the reach and engagement of premium cricket coverage. According to Foxtel Media, the ongoing partnership with Ashley & Martin in particular is paying dividends, with the ‘Keep Your Hair On’ campaign driving a 37% uplift in spontaneous brand awareness, five times the norm for established brands.
The campaign also saw consideration increase by 13% (30% above average), brand preference lift 7%, and trust scores rise 12%. Creative was strategically deployed during high-attention moments in cricket matches, targeting viewers experiencing hair loss with an emotive, contextual message.
Across all sponsors, Fox Cricket coverage delivered average uplifts of 17% in brand awareness, 14% in ad recall, and 7% in consideration.
McDonald’s and VB see brand momentum
McDonald’s maintained its lead as the top quick-service restaurant (QSR) brand among Fox Cricket audiences, with a 13% rise in brand consideration and a 35% increase among its family viewer target group.
Victoria Bitter (VB) also benefited strongly from its cricket presence, with sponsorship awareness climbing 42% and Fox Cricket viewers 43% more likely to have purchased VB in the previous month. Claimed seven-day purchase rates for VB were 71% higher among cricket viewers than non-viewers.
Premium sport as a performance channel
Nev Hasan, Chief Sales Officer, Foxtel Media, said the results validate sport’s effectiveness as a media channel: “Our summer of cricket is a cultural mainstay that unites Australians, and our sponsors are seeing enormous value in being part of this national conversation.”
“The standout results from Ashley & Martin’s campaign are a testament to the impact of long-term partnerships, compelling creative, and strategic placement around premium sporting moments,” Hasan added.
Nev Hasan
Phil Raffan, CEO of Ashley & Martin, said Foxtel Media delivered the brand’s message to an attentive and relevant audience. “These results, from spontaneous awareness through to brand trust, validate the power of premium sport as a performance channel. It has been one of our most effective campaigns to date.”
The data supports growing advertiser interest in the Summer of Cricket 2025, with Foxtel Media continuing to position sport as a high-return channel for integrated brand campaigns.
Tim Webster lets us know what he has planned for Breakfast at 2SM
In a relatively quiet move, 2SM has slid radio and TV veteran Tim Webster into the host chair to present Breakfast Monday to Friday. He replaces Ron Wilson, who departed the station after six months on air.
Mediaweek had a chat with Webster about taking on the new gig following a couple of years of bouncing around the schedule at the ABC.
Mediaweek: What does a 2SM Tim Webster breakfast show sound like?
Tim Webster: Well, it sounds like a Tim Webster show would normally sound like. I’ve been at the ABC for for an half year and just done just about every show there is to do there. Well, I did do breakfast on 2CH for a number of years and that was predominantly music. But this will be, you know, a talk radio talk show.
So it’ll be interviews and comments from me. Hopefully a lot of calls from listeners and and texts from listeners just bouncing along. A bit news-based, of course, at that time of the morning and make sure that we cover the waterfront, as they say.
Mediaweek: Is there a specific approach to news that you’d like to take? There’s lots of ways you can go, which is federal news, state news, local council, culture, and sport. What makes sense for you in the morning?
Tim Webster: Well, we’re Sydney. Having said that, these days people can listen to you on an app and I got calls this morning from up the far north coast and Newcastle.
So people could be listening to you from anywhere. But predominantly it’s 2SM Sydney and I always like to do on the air in Sydney a Sydney-based show. So it’ll be anything relative to Sydney.
But that doesn’t mean that you can’t cover federal politics and state politics. We did that today, actually. Quite a lot of federal politics with Penny Wong going to the States and what Katie Gallagher had to say about how our finances are looking.
So if it’s in the news and we can get a handle on it, we’ll do it. Either it’ll be just from me or if we can get a poly on the phone, we’ll do that too. But it will be predominantly Sydney-based because I love the place and it is 2SM Sydney.
Mediaweek: You’re permanently in the chair now?
Tim Webster: I’m permanent now as of today. It was just that I don’t think anyone wanted to announce anything last week because I was still at the ABC and Ron had finished up and I’ve spoken to Ron. I spoke to Ron yesterday.
We’re all good. We’re all colleagues. We’re all colleagues.
And no, I’m definitely there full-time now.
Mediaweek: Does the audience know you’re there full-time? Is there an announcement being made to them or it’s just getting on with business?
Tim Webster: We had a promo running across the weekend, across I think all the super radio network stations announcing it. But as for an official comment from management, you’d probably have to check with Graham Miles or George Corrales.
But no, I’m there permanently now.
Mediaweek: So how did the opportunity come about?
Tim Webster: Well, I’ve been speaking to their dad, Bill [Caralis] – George [Caralis], and Despina’s [Priala] dad – Bill from Super Radio Network, ages ago sadly when Grant Goldman passed away.
And I was talking to them. He was talking to me about Breakfast Then but nothing ever came of it. And then after 2CH folded up, I got a call from Steve Ahern, who’s an old friend.
And he said, mate, would you like to come and do some kill-in shifts at the ABC? And I said, sure. And that was four and a half, probably five years ago now. And I filled in for James Valentine when he was very ill and strangely had the same cancer that I had many years ago.
And even more sadly, he’s now struggling with another cancer battle. And then, look, Dan, I pretty much did everything. I think the only shift I didn’t do at the ABC was weekday breakfast.
I did nightlife and overnights and nights and drive and mornings, filling in for people, sometimes for a couple of weeks and sometimes for a couple of days. So that was great. And I’m very proud to have the ABC on my CV, but it was all, the hours were all over the place.
So what’s nice is to get breakfast. It’s a regular shift that I’ve got, knowing I’m going to do the same thing every day. And, you know, I’ve always had a soft spot for 2SM.
I worked there a couple of times back in the 70s.
Mediaweek: It’s not your first time at 2SM. So what’s it like being back? Does it feel like a return or does it feel fairly fresh?
Tim Webster: No, I can’t say it feels like a return now. I’m sure it obviously will.
I mean, I came there, I’d only been in radio for less than 18 months when I came to 2SM the first time. Then I came back again a couple of years after that and then I did an album show there back in the 90s when the late and great Ken Sparks was the programme director. So I’ve worked in Clarence Street and I worked at Blues Point Road, but this is the first time I’ve worked there at Ultimo.
Mediaweek: What has thrown me a little bit is that I’m someone who didn’t grown up in Sydney. I’ve been interstate in, you know, South Australia or in Brisbane. So I know you more as a TV person and it’s really fascinating to me right now hearing you talk very much like a lifelong, career-long radio guy.
Tim Webster: Well, I suppose I am a career radio guy, but when television happened in 1981, I didn’t do much radio for a very long time then I started to come back and do bits and pieces. I did little sports reports on 2GB, but the catalyst for me coming back full-time, well full-time, part-time, was when Ray Hadley asked me to come and fill in for him when he went to the Olympic Games in Athens and that was a long time ago. Then after that I worked there.
I worked a regular shift on afternoons at 2UE and then the whole Macquarie Radio happened and I did, you know, all sorts of shifts on there including an old programme called Talking Lifestyle. I did their first incarnation of Macquarie Sports Radio. So it was a bit of bits and pieces until Sheree Romero got me to come and do breakfast at 2CH and that’s well, probably five years ago now, but that folded ultimately when SEN bought 2CH and turned that call sign into a, I think I don’t even know what it is, but it’s something to do with SEN, something to do with sport.
Then the ABC and now all the way back to full circle and 2SM. Yeah, so look, audiences are very familiar with you, with waking up with you either on their radio or TV. Is there something special about breakfast specifically as a shift, as a broadcaster? Yeah, the special thing about breakfast is that it’s so immediate and so quick, Dan, and it’s it’s a shift where you’ve, me and my producers, got to keep an eye on the news cycle, which you do, of course, at night time.
You see what’s going on. I watch a lot of television news at night and in the afternoon and then if that relates to the next day, well, then you do it. You either get an interview subject on or a poly or whatever it might be and, you know, try and get your listeners involved as well.
The more they get involved the better, but you know, it’s breakfast and people are moving pretty fast themselves. So I think you’ve got to have a bit of pace about you as well.
Mediaweek: Let’s wrap this up with a question that I’m sure everyone’s asking right now: Just how worried should Kyle and Jackie O be right now that you’re back?
Tim Webster: [Laughs] I wouldn’t be worried if I was them. I think I might be a different demographic to them, mate. You’ve got to admire their success, but I think I’m a different kind of broadcaster to Kyle and Jackie O and their demographic is a little bit younger than the one we’re getting and always have got at 2 SM.
So they’ll actually be too concerned. Mind you, if I can grab some rating numbers off them, I’ll gratefully accept it.
Jonathan LaPaglia: Being fired from Australian Survivor “hurts like a b****!”
Earlier today Network 10 confirmed that the upcoming season of Australian Survivor will be the last for host Jonathan LaPaglia. While the host has been gracious about his time on the show, today he expressed pain over the decision.
LaPaglia has hosted Australian Survivor since 2016, when the network revived the show. At the time of his hire, 10 chief programmer Beverley McGarvey said: “Jonathan is the perfect host for Australian Survivor. He is intelligent, engaging, energetic and a true fan of the show.”
Today, following the announcement that he is leaving the show, LaPaglia posted to Instagram that he feels hurt by the firing.
LaPaglia wrote: “Australian Survivor has seen some of the most epic blindsides over the last 10 years, but this one might just be the craziest of them all….because it happened to me. I received a call from the Network thanking me for all my hard work and dedication to the show but for next season they are ‘going in a different direction’. Ratings had dipped a bit recently and they wanted to do something drastic to shake things up. So for the first time ever this is not a tribe swap, but a HOST SWAP®️ Yes, you read that right.”
He concluded his post with: “(Ps. Whoever said a blindside is the most humane way to put someone down is an idiot. It hurts like a bitch!)”
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On the decision to change hosts for Australian Survivor, a 10 spokesperson said: “JLP has brought a unique blend of authority, intelligence and empathy to his role as host of Australian Survivor over the last 10 years. Acting as a referee and managing the intense pressure of the game while also acknowledging the human drama unfolding, JLP has been a compelling and memorable figure in the world of Survivor.
“We look forward to JLP hosting the next epic instalment of Survivor: Australia V World coming soon to 10. We extend our sincere gratitude to JLP for his outstanding contribution over 10 years on Survivor. We wish him continued success in his acting and presenting career.”
KFC’s rent giveaway this Christmas in July
KFC is ringing in Christmas in July with the launch of a month deals with the ultimate gift – covering one year of rent of four Aussies.
The rent giveaway comes after research from KFC found that more than 70% of Australians say they’re embarrassed to admit they still live at home, with more than one in four (28%) saying it’s negatively impacting their social life and ability to “get lit”.
KFC’s research also found that over 60% of Aussies living with their parents say they need more than $10K saved to make the move.
To help kick start the move, KFC will cover the rent for four lucky Aussies for a full year as part of its Christmas in July deals, rolling out 31 straight days of mouth-watering, value-packed deals via the KFC App.
For a chance to win, customers must use the app and grab a festive deal, such as 30 Nuggets for $10 on Tuesday, 1 July, followed by 50% off Zinger Burgers and 10 for $10 Hot and Crispy.
Every purchase on the app gives one entry into the rent giveaway, customer that spend over $30 will get five entries.
KFC has also brought back its fan-favourite Christmas in July merch range is back for another round of helpings, with new styles added including a KFC Conversation Card Game.
In the spirit of Christmas giving, sales proceeds from the merch range will go to the KFC Youth Foundation and its charity partners Black Dog Institute and ReachOut Australia who support Youth Mental Wellbeing. Visit KFC’s Christmas in July Merch store to view the whole range and pick up a festive fit.
“Christmas in July is all about celebrating on your own terms so we’re bringing back our epic deals all month long to keep the festive vibes high, plus we’re giving four lucky KFC fans the ultimate gift – a year of free rent on us,” Sally Spriggs, Group Marketing Director at KFC Australia, said.
Elizabeth McIntyre's World Out Of Home Conference: A global snapshot of innovation, insight and momentum
Nearly 800 delegates from around the world gathered in Mexico for the 2025 WOO Global Congress. It was a powerful reminder that out-of-home is not just back, it’s booming.
The conference featured a strong lineup of speakers from across the world, who explored the role of OOH in an increasingly digital media landscape, challenged the industry to raise the bar on creativity and measurement, and shared innovative case studies that demonstrated the unique value of the medium.
From global streaming giants to regional OOH leaders, the consistent message was clear: out-of-home is growing, evolving, and more essential than ever.
Here are the key takeaways from Elizabeth McIntyre, CEO, Outdoor Media Association after a hectic two-day event, that was the talk of the industry.
Day 1
‘It was a huge first day for everyone with nearly 800 attendees from all over the world and the day opened with WOO President Tom Goddard sharing some exciting statistics which really set the tone for the whole conference.
Tom Goddard at the WOO Conference in Mexico.
Global OOH revenue has now hit $46.2 billion, up 10% year-on-year. Outdoor advertising revenues have exceeded $9 billion for the first time.
The APAC region alone represents $22.8 billion of that. It was a powerful reminder that OOH is not only growing, it’s accelerating fast.
The first speaker of the day was Joao Mesquita, LATCANX Director for Amazon Prime Video, and really set a great tone.
His love for OOH shone through as he challenged the industry to rise to the digital occasion.
He posed some challenging but interesting questions for the industry and essentially challenged OOH to rise to the occasion.
He wanted us to think about whether we are:
Prepared to share the stage with digital
Operate seamlessly
Provide a credible measurement systems for granularity
Joao made some interesting points about stressing that creativity is key, clear message branding and the industry needs to be harder on CMOs with creative, after all, when it doesn’t work it reflects poorly on OOH as a medium and not necessarily the campaign.
Joao Mesquita on-stage with Tom Goddard.
Joao also gave delegates of movie releases with high impact and was clear how OOH created talkability and, of course, social content.
With DOOH, he explained that integration enables smarter platform solutions and that digital lowers the cost of production and speeds up execution.
He asked the industry to come up with more tools for measurement (luckily in Australia we have sorted both with MOVE and the OASIS tool for standardisation)
I really liked the point he made about people wanting to like being informed and needing a measurement system they can trust. This is such a hurdle for many countries but I’m really proud that MOVE is world-leading.
One slide that Joao presented really resonated because it showed me what agencies and clients don’t always want to say about OOH:
It’s hard to communicate complex messages through OOH
High effort is needed for strong campaign execution
Agencies often lack OOH expertise
Limited tools and unclear ROI often create barriers
Low cost buying models restrict operational scale
Lack of trusted measurement deters cautious leaders
As a result if agencies and advertisers are afraid of taking the risk, OOH is left out.
The second Speaker was Gabriel Cedrone, who is LATAM CEO.
He provided a really unique perspective on what’s happening in Latin America, with more than 500 members, they have just launched OOHTV to communicate with their members.
His presentation concentrated on how OOH adds real value to people’s lives. He gave some examples of the “green walls – plants” that surround a lot of OOH sites. The recycling BIOBOX (where you can recycle bottles and cans) are often provided by OOH companies which is a really interesting role that OOH can play, particularly in developing countries.
Next up was Australia’s very own Cathy O’Connor, CEO of oOh!media talking about retail OOH and the REO business within OOH.
Cathy spoke about retail media and gave a case study of Pet Barn, that has a long term omnichannel presence bringing endemic and non-endemic brands together. She then gave a personal case study about her own dog Ernie and the street to the shelf purchase pathway.
I was also asked to join the Advisory Board of the Women in WOO, organised by the World Out of Home Organisation and charged with promoting connections, sharing best practice, providing support and inspiring women throughout the OOH industry.
Women in WOO will set up an exclusive Mentoring program to support and grow Senior Female Leaders within OOH.
The day ended with the WOO Awards, and as everyone will have seen, SpecSavers won the Classic Award campaign, just as they did at the inaugural OMA Awards in Australia. Lions also won 3rd place for their XXXX special-builds.’
The winner of the WOO Classic Award.
Day 2
‘Day two started with a great presentation focusing on the power of AI in this space. JCDecaux, Group Chief Data Officer, Sylvain Le Borgne spoke a lot about the role of media and particular OOH.
He quoted the great Marshall McLuhan who said, “the media are not just channels of communication, but forces that shape our reality.”
He then spoke about how in some countries JCD were predicting the number of bicycles and spaces available at stations – powered by AI.
He also explained how JCD are using AI to forecast maintenance on their street furniture – adapting luminosity throughout the day, turning on ventilators, in-situ maintenance and monitoring the state of the asset. All these things are so important.
Woo Conference in Mexico
Next powerful speaker was Tim Bleakley Chairman – Ocean Media, he spoke passionately about making outdoor creative again – something here in Australia, we are also passionate about.
Then it was time for my presentation. I spoke about Australia is measuring OOH through MOVE, how it has evolved over the last ten years and how granular the detail is going to be on all formats, 24/7 365 days per week with seasonality.
Specific examples of how MOVE measures trip purpose and a quiz at the end, bought to our data to life and made it easy to understand.
The feedback was great. Everyone loved how engaging and interactive the content was, as I explained how trips all around Australia would be measured using different OOH formats, with different travel tickets/boarding passes, making the research highly entertaining.
Clearly our members enjoyed MOVE being showcased to the world showing the sophistication of the Australian Outdoor marketing and how sophisticated it is, especially with measurement.’
Veridooh delivers OOH campaign verification solution
Australia’s Veridooh has partnered with UK roadside media owner, 75Media, offering clients the ability to independently verify all OOH campaigns, giving advertisers a new level of transparency and trust in their OOH investment.
The OOH verification company’s proprietary SmartCreative™ solution independently collects the data needed to track, measure, and verify the performance of digital out-of-home (DOOH) campaigns, providing over 400 metrics on campaign delivery.
Veridooh co-founder Mo Moubayed said: “75Media has listened to brands and agencies that increasingly require independent verification from media owners in the UK as standard.
“By enabling independent verification through Veridooh, 75Media is providing its clients with greater certainty and transparency, giving them the confidence to invest in its network.
“In other markets, we have seen that media owners who embrace independent verification grow faster in the medium to long term than those that don’t. At a time when listening to clients is paramount to growth, 75Media is leading the way.”
Paul Inman, CEO and Founder of 75Media, said: “Transparency is the key to growing the OOH sector. We’re pleased to provide agencies and brands with Veridooh’s independent verification solution to help them better understand the value of their investment and help them optimise their media planning.
“We’re continuously looking at innovations to give clients greater value. We’ve been working closely with Veridooh to onboard their solution to give clients quality data and reporting so we’re excited to roll it out to the market.’
Veridooh was founder in 2019 by Mo Moubayed and Jeremy Yang. The company is verification partner for GroupM, Omnicom Media Group, and IPG Mediabrands in Australia and counts Google, Amazon, Mercedes, Pepsi, Unilever, Sony and McDonald’s as clients.
75Media’s UK-wide estate of classic and digital billboards sits at 1,300 meaning the operator has the ability to broadcast to over 53% of the country’s adult population.
News Corp acquires platform behind SuperCoach, eyes major fantasy sports expansion
News Corp Australia has acquired the technology platform powering SuperCoach, marking a strategic shift in how the publisher approaches fantasy sports and positioning the franchise for broader audience growth and new commercial opportunities.
The acquisition from Melbourne-based Vapormedia is expected to unlock expansion into new sporting codes and formats, with the company already signalling interest in launching fantasy games for the NBA, NFL, and Formula 1.
A new era for fantasy sports
“This was a logical next step and marks the beginning of a new era for fantasy sports gaming in Australia, positioning SuperCoach as the nation’s top fantasy sports innovation powerhouse.” said Mark Reinke, managing director and publisher, state and community mastheads at News Corp Australia.
SuperCoach currently runs games across AFL, NRL, BBL and NBL. According to Reinke, the brand has grown to 430,000 registered players, with users averaging 173 minutes on the platform in May 2025, and contributes to more than 700 million annual page views.
Research cited from The Growth Distillery’s Sporting Nation report (2024) found the under-40 sports fan segment participating in fantasy sports had grown from 8% in 2021 to 18% last year. Reinke said this group remains a key target for SuperCoach expansion.
“We have a large 18-25, predominantly male audience but we see a lot of interest from other, particularly female audiences interested in shorter form games.” Reinke said. “We now have the flexibility and resources to investigate fully.”
Commercial partnerships and monetisation potential
He also pointed to the potential for stronger integration with SuperCoach content creators across podcasts, video, and social media, now that platform operations are in-house. “It really is more than a game,” Reinke said. “Bringing the expertise in-house will enable deeper collaboration with the thriving ecosystem of SuperCoach content creators.”
For advertisers and brand partners, the move opens up fresh integration opportunities, with News Corp highlighting the value of SuperCoach’s highly engaged communities. “We have just scratched the surface.” Reinke added.
Top image: Mark Reinke
Report insights: Female CEOs more scrutinised in crises
A new report from Medianet Insights reveals Australian CEOs are facing mounting reputational pressure, with gender, visibility, and crisis response now key determinants of media impact. The analysis covered more than 15,000 media mentions of ASX 300 CEOs between January and June 2025.
Women at forefront in crisis coverage
Only 8% of CEOs in the ASX 300 are women, yet the study found they consistently led media coverage, particularly during organisational crises. Vanessa Hudson of Qantas and Amanda Bardwell of Woolworths were the most visible CEOs at Australia’s least trusted brands, highlighting a long-standing “glass cliff” phenomenon where women are more likely to be appointed to leadership roles in times of instability, then subjected to heightened scrutiny.
Medianet’s research also found that high CEO visibility often coincided with corporate crises rather than strength of leadership. For example, following major investigations, Bardwell accounted for 74% of media mentions, while Bunnings CEO represented just 26%, despite both operating large national retail networks.
Greenwashing and cybersecurity dominate coverage
Two major issues dominated reputation-related coverage: greenwashing and cyber risk. One in five ESG-related articles linked brands to misleading environmental claims.
EnergyAustralia, fined $14 million for greenwashing, experienced significant media fallout. Meanwhile, a data breach at AustralianSuper accounted for 20% of all cyber-related media mentions in the first half of 2025.
Media strategy makes or breaks brand trust
The report also underscores how media strategy can influence brand perception. Woolworths’ decision to have its CEO appear in a high-risk television interview coincided with a 7% drop in share price and sustained negative press. In contrast, Bunnings’ lower-profile approach has helped it retain its standing as one of Australia’s most trusted brands.
Jacquie Hanna, Head of Insights at Medianet Insights, said the findings highlight the need for strategic visibility. “A CEO’s visibility needs to be deliberate and strategic. Boards and comms teams must rethink how they support leaders, especially women handed high-risk roles, and how they prepare for ESG and cyber issues that are now front and centre in the media cycle.”
Amrita Sidhu, Managing Director of Medianet, added: “The findings in this report underscore the critical importance of a proactive and sophisticated media strategy for today’s CEOs. It’s no longer enough to simply react; leaders need to anticipate risks and ensure their communications are deliberate and impactful.”
Amrita Sidhu
The full report is available via Medianet.
Top image: Vanessa Hudson, CEO of Qantas, & Amanda Bardwell, CEO of Woolworths
Special appoints new National Head of Production. Will also oversee in-house production studio.
Special has appointed Tash Johnson to the newly created role of National Head of Production
Johnson will oversee the agency’s integrated production capabilities across Sydney and Melbourne – spanning film, photography, digital and tech, social content, activations and beyond.
She will also lead Special’s in-house production studio Special Made – an agile, multidisciplinary offering delivering everything from high-end content and photography to fast-turnaround retouching and post, expanding Special’s production team to be even smarter, faster and deliver more creative impact than ever before.
“Tash is a brilliant, people-first leader with infectious energy and a genuine passion for craft,” Tori Lopez, Managing Director Special said.
“Her experience and future-focused approach make her the perfect person to shape this next chapter of production at Special. We’re thrilled to have her join the team in this newly created role as we expand our production offering.”
Johnson said of her new role: “Having always admired the work that Special does, when the opportunity came up to lead their production team, I naturally jumped (as high as my 5 foot 2 inches would take me) at the chance.”
“Special is home to some of the most iconic campaigns. Not only is the work they produce brilliantly crafted, but it’s also always smart and always stands out. I am thrilled to now be a part of that process, working alongside a brilliant team of people.”
Tash joins Special from CHEP Network, where she spent four years as National Head of Integrated Production.
Her background also includes more than seven years in senior producer roles at DDB Sydney, and earlier career roles with M&C Saatchi, The Monkeys and Host Sydney.
Top image: Tash Johnson
Allianz on emotional customer reaction to Flight of the Finch campaign
Allianz Australia certainly captured attention with its latest campaign, Flight of the Finch, with highly emotive visuals and the 2000s ballad I’m With You by Avril Lavigne.
The film, directed by Michael Gracey (who also directed The Greatest Showman), paired with the soundtrack, created an emotional response from audiences, with many on social media admitting to tearing up and feeling moved.
Laura Halbert, General Manager, Customer Strategy & Marketing at Allianz Australia, told Mediaweek that building an emotional connection was key to success.
“We were very aware our industry often leans heavily on rational messaging and that is one of the reasons we are so proud to have taken a bold, emotionally resonant approach, we feel we are redefining what care looks like in insurance via this brand promise – and that is everything.
“So far, the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. We’ve received so many lovely messages across all channels from customers taking the time to reach out to us and share their heartfelt reactions, often saying the story felt deeply personal.”
Lauren Halbert
The Allianz eagle, the finch and Avril Lavigne
With creative delivered by Howatson+Company, Halbert explained the story of the eagle and the finch acts as a metaphor for how Allianz supports customers through life’s challenges and a “powerful visual representation” of their promise to be the “care that customers can count on.”
Meanwhile, the song choice was an opportunity to draw on nostalgia. She said: “From the moment we heard the track “I’m With You” we knew it was the one.
“It perfectly evokes all the feelings you can only hope that someone will feel when they watch a TVC, and for many of our customers, we knew it would bring back lots of nostalgia.
“Not to mention, we’re big fans of Avril – she’s an icon!”
Balancing impact with creative
Allianz worked with media agency partner Wavemaker to amplify the brand’s message across channels and to set out three pillars – Knowing, Showing and Acting – to effectively launch the proposition to market and align the brand’s campaign with tailored media placements.
Through knowing, Allianz and Wavemaker launched on national screens, buying across screens, adjusted for attention.
“We balanced reach with impact through both creative formats (launching with 60s creative) as well as media touchpoints (from Cinema to TV and Online Video, to Social video and OOH).”
In showing up, the brand and agency dove deeper into media properties where the care was in context for its strategic audiences, from care for self, care for the household, and care for others.
“We sponsored TV programs such as Parental Guidance, Royal Flying Doctor Service and Once in a Lifetime and partnered with popular podcasts like The Imperfects, This Glorious Mess on Mamamia and Two Doting Dads,” she said.
Allianz also shows brand actions with support for Australian Football (via Football Australia Partnership) and the Blue Eagle initiative with The Block’s Scott Cam that aims to help Aussies with prevention problems and protect their homes.
Taking ‘Care You Can Count On’ across the customer experience
Allianz says they are working on embedding the ‘Care You Can Count On’ ethos into every part of the business, from the culture of care and customer experience.
“That includes redesigning digital journeys to be more intuitive and empathetic, training our teams to lead with care in every interaction, and launching proactive initiatives like the Allianz Blue Eagle program, which helps homeowners proactively care for their properties through accessible resources.
“Whether online, on the phone, or face-to-face, our goal is to make every interaction feel supportive and human.”
Allianz is measuring the success of the rebranding with a combination of brand tracking, customer feedback, and business metrics.
“That includes NPS, brand sentiment, retention rates, and new customer acquisition.
“We’re also closely monitoring how the campaign influences perceptions of trust, care, and reliability – because those are the foundations of long-term loyalty.”
Key learnings and what’s next for the Finch story
For Halbert, in overseeing customer strategy and marketing, she and her team and four learnings from the brand launch including the power of emotional storytelling in building brand differentiation and trusting the process when working with CGI.
She also noted the importance of internal alignment and said: “our people need to live the brand promise for it to be authentic.”
Rounding it out is collaboration with “teams across creative, media, and customer experience teams is what brings a platform like this to life.
“We couldn’t have done it without them,” she added.
Looking ahead, Halbert said this campaign is just the beginning of delivering on the brand’s promise.
However, she kept mum on follow-up instalments to ‘The Flight of the Finch’ story.
She said: “We’ve already seen some exciting work in the last couple of weeks, such as our Seat Belters partnership with Spotify, but trust me when I say, there’s plenty more to come!”
Top image: Laura Halbert
Television
Seven goes dark in regional SA and NSW
TV Blackbox’s Kevin Perry reports that political leaders in the affected communities have voiced concern about the impact of the shutdown on regional access to major sporting events. Member for Barker Tony Pasin MP called on all parties to ensure that free-to-air broadcasts remain available in the Limestone Coast and Riverland, citing the importance of sporting events to regional communities.
Jonathan LaPaglia fired from Australian Survivor
LaPaglia issued comment later in the day via his Instagram account where he said he was blindsided by the news. He wrote: “I received a call from the Network thanking me for all my hard work and dedication to the show but for next season they are ‘going in a different direction’. Ratings had dipped a bit recently and they wanted to do something drastic to shake things up.”
SMH reviews 10 News+
In a summation, McMahon wrote: “On its own terms, this was a solid debut, anchored by two hosts in Hitchcock and Amelia Brace who bring serious TV news chops to the table. They are much more than autocue readers, and that’s a good thing for a credible TV news service to have up its sleeve.”
AI
Mark Zuckerberg announces ‘Superintelligence’ division in Meta.
According to Meghan Bobrowsky at the Wall Street Journal, Zuckerberg has been on a hiring spree in recent months, personally reaching out to hundreds of top AI researchers in an effort to get his company out of an AI crisis. Meta released the latest versions of its Llama model in April to little fanfare, and later delayed the launch of another bigger version of the model.
Bobrowsky reports that Zuckerberg is racing to create cutting-edge artificial-intelligence technology that is smarter than humans and able to power a wave of innovation that he has envisioned for his company.
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