Sydney 

• 2GB and Alan Jones near two-year low, but still overall #1
• FM race sees smoothfm again #1 station, Kyle & Jackie #1 breakfast
• After year of growth Triple M share slips for music and Moonman
• 2Day breakfast lifts, but is it enough?

UP: 2CH 1170 + 0.7
DOWN: 2GB/104.9 Triple M -1.2

Read more: Sydney Radio Ratings: GfK Survey 8, 2019

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Melbourne

• Ross and John partnership lives as 3AW and breakfast team win again
• Gold again #1 FM, but Chrissie, Sam & Browny new FM brekky #1
• Fox on the run: Hit Network flagship records lowest share in years

UP: SEN +0.5
DOWN: Gold 104.3 -1.5

Read more: Melbourne Radio Ratings: GfK Survey 8, 2019

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Brisbane

• Get this! Cancelled Bianca, Mike & Bob 97.3 breakfast goes out #1
• 97.3 only Brisbane station to grow this survey, Nova slides -1.5

• UP: 97.3 +1.5
• DOWN: Nova 106.9 -1.5

Read more: Brisbane Radio Ratings: GfK Survey 8, 2019

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Adelaide

• Mix 103.2 recovers to end the year #1 with second best 2019 share
• Fiveaa can also do lap of honour as Penbo and Will #1 with year high
• New SCA content boss will visit soon with both stations under 9.0%

UP: Mix 102.3 +1.7
DOWN: 5MMM -1.1

Read more: Adelaide Radio Ratings: GfK Survey 8, 2019

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Perth

• Back in town! Mix 94.5 ends the year how it started – #1 station
• Nova breakfast holds on to top spot, Botica’s Bunch up again at 96FM

UP: Mix 94.5 +2.3
DOWN: Nova/6PR -0.7

Read more: Perth Radio Ratings: GfK Survey 8, 2019

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Looking back on the radio year, Nova Entertainment chief programming and marketing officer Paul Jackson told Mediaweek the group’s brands had some spectacular moments and continued to be models of consistency.

“There haven’t been any big shocks or surprises that we have been disappointed with, but have had some great highlights. We will return in the new year in good form.”

Nova Entertainment finishes the year with the #1 FM breakfast shows in Melbourne and Perth and the #1 FM station in Sydney. It also claims the #1 network spot in Australia with a 3,566,700 cume audience, #1 under 40, #1 drive and #1 nights.

A highlight this survey was the performance in Melbourne, the only market where Nova couldn’t claim a #1 in survey 7. That has changed with Chrissie, Sam and Browny now #1 FM. “We have been plugging away in that market and the research has indicated we were performing better and we think these ratings are a good indication of what the market should look like,” Jackson told Mediaweek.

Jackson noted there had been four different #1 FM breakfast shows in Melbourne this year – Fox, smoothfm, Gold and now Nova. “I have always thought the strongest of those shows was Chrissie, Sam and Browny. It is important for us because it tells us what we can achieve next year. To have a cume over 1m and to be ahead of Fox in cume as well is a terrific result.”

Nova has changed its Melbourne morning show next year with Jamie Row returning to the station after an experiment moving in former breakfast host Matt Tilley.

Although Nova Brisbane slipped in survey 8 this year, Jackson reminded us the station had won the first seven surveys of the year. “It is very tight in the Brisbane market and when we win we are very respectful of the competition there.”

The Nova programming boss said he thought the result for 97.3 (it shot back to #1) was aided by the breakfast show getting cancelled. “It’s like when there is a car crash, people are slowing down for a look.”

Perth Nova had a good year to be still #1 in cume and breakfast and has won the final six of the eight 2019 surveys. “Everybody is very active in the market and Mix is fighting back at the improvement of 96FM. There are no weak stations anymore with lots of good choice.”

Out of all the Nova Entertainment performances, smoothfm Sydney shines the brightest now having won 10 surveys in a row. “We won all eight surveys this year and this is the first time a station has won eight surveys in the one year since 2007 when Kyle and Jackie O were at 2Day FM.

“At a music-driven station Bogart and Glenn have done very well this year particularly as they are not really playing in that personality breakfast battle. For the station to win off the back of a smaller breakfast share [6.5% in Sydney this survey] is a great performance and shows the love Sydney has for smooth.”

Nova Entertainment has some big plans for marketing smoothfm in 2020, said Jackson. “We feel the brand is in for a big year and we are looking to get better numbers in Melbourne which has traditionally been stronger than Sydney over the years. We have had a great day in Melbourne with Nova, but we want to do that with smooth as well.”

The arrival of Irene Hulme to look after Nova music won’t mean any big changes to the format. “We are always about fresh hits first and we will continue to do that. We will be looking individually at each of our markets to do the best for each of them that we can. We are often at the mercy of how many really compelling tunes are out there.”

See also:
Nova Entertainment reveals new hire in Nova music structure

With his marketing hat on, Jackson said in 2020 Nova Entertainment will need to keep working smarter. “You can’t throw a lot of money at the wall with a big campaign and hope some of it sticks. We have to connect more one-to-one with people and be smarter with our executions. We won’t be doing campaigns just for awareness. We have to give people a reason to listen to our stations and ask how compelling our offering is. How clear is that offering to the audience in a time where it is really hard to cut through to get people’s attention.”

—

Top Photo: Paul Jackson with Nova Entertainment CEO Cathy O’Connor

Henderson told Mediaweek how they reach male audiences through what is more popularly a female’s product, their partnerships with magazines within the Pacific network, and the importance of sourcing locally produced content.

Henderson said what sets the magazine apart when you look at the men’s lifestyle and fitness space is they are a lot more holistic. It’s looking at men’s health and lifestyle not as isolated areas; it’s not just working out, or just nutrition, or just style, or just mental health. It’s all of those aspects combined together. “It’s just recognising where everything fits in that health and lifestyle ecosystem,” said Henderson. “We always say our approach to health and lifestyle is aspirational yet attainable. We don’t want to be putting out a message that’s unrealistic.”

A personal highlight for Henderson this year has been making that conscious decision to reflect modern masculinity and modern health. “There’s been a period where Men’s Health dipped into that ripped guy with shiny abs and big biceps against a white wall, and that was the formula, whereas this year we’ve had Kelly Slater on the front cover and the photoshoot in Hawaii. We also did a cover with someone like Liam Payne who you wouldn’t think is a traditional Men’s Health cover guy but it was focusing on his mental health story; it’s important to explore those deeper issues.”

Henderson told Mediaweek that the editor of Women’s Health Jacqui Mooney has revitalised the Women’s Health brand into this mega-brand, which has set the benchmark for Men’s Health. “We started the year with our Chris Hemsworth and Elsa Pataky Men’s Health and Women’s Health covers. “They put a huge spike in sales; Chris was our best seller in four years. It was a phenomenal way to kick off the year. 

“Jacqui and I bounce ideas off of each other all day and we’ve definitely got exciting plans which I can’t exactly reveal yet for 2020; but more joint covers and joint events are what we’ve got in the pipeline. We know that our audience wants to hear what a woman wants and they want to hear how to impress a woman. We have the Women’s Health brand right at our fingertips and it’s great to have those resources on tap.”

Men’s Health also did a campaign with marie claire leading up to Father’s Day this year that focused on paternity leave equality. “That was another great partnership within our network and doing these photoshoots together, creating content together and really amplify something that has meaning and cause.”

Henderson said there will always be a space for men’s media because men consume media very differently to women. “Even when we do stuff with Women’s Health or marie claire, we are acutely aware of how we position our messaging. There are magazines out there in our market that would traditionally be seen as competitors, but the exciting thing about magazines now is that they’re brands, they’re not just magazines.

“The rules are changing. There’s no reason why we can’t collaborate. What’s good for one brand is good for the industry; we want our competitors to thrive and survive because that drives demand to men’s magazine brands.”

Introducing the first podcast for Men’s Health was one of their biggest highlights for the brand this year –co-hosted by Henderson and national treasure Matty J which was launched with their ‘Strength’ issue. “We launched our first podcast this year called STRENGTH SESSIONS. It’s interviews with men who have exhibited extreme physical, mental or emotional strength. The podcast is such a positive experience; the response from the audience has been great. I think having someone like Chris Hemsworth featured as a guest speaker definitely helps,” laughed Henderson. “It’s refreshing finding new mediums and being able to tangibly see there’s a space for Men’s Health beyond the pages.” 

One of the print highlights for this year is all of Men’s Health’s covers have been locally produced and all of their interviews have been produced by the Australian team. That’s something that’s been unprecedented in Men’s Health Australian history. “We usually pick up quite a few covers and stories from the US and the UK, but we’ve now had a run of 13 locally produced covers.

“When I said men consume media differently to women, well Australians consume media differently as well. It’s a different climate to the US and we care about different issues so it’s something we’re very conscious about. Australia’s very advanced with the mental health conversation and we can create content on where we are up to; we don’t have to use that American or UK voice which can sometimes be a little patronising or behind on where we are. In saying that, there are areas where overseas territories are ahead of us and we can take inspiration from that and adapt it to an Australian audience as well.”

In regards to their plans for the new decade, Henderson told Mediaweek they are wanting to continue on building on what it’s achieved this year – which has been a big turning point for the US Men’s Health a brand – and bring all those aspects of health and lifestyle together. “We will continue the mental health conversation and how nutrition, health and fitness plays into the mental health aspect. I look at Women’s Health as a source of inspiration, and the scale of the events they’re putting on. We definitely have plans and we’re implementing them at the moment across our brands as well as Men’s Health soley. 

“2020 is also an Olympic year and although we’re not a sports magazine, sportsmen are obviously quite a large part of what we do. It’s an exciting time for health and sport going into the new decade. There’s a lot more we still have to learn about health as a society so hopefully we’re the ones who deliver.”

Tracy Vo will join the team as a newsreader, Tim Davies as weather presenter, Alex Cullen as sports presenter and Brooke Boney as entertainment presenter.

Tracy Vo and Tim Davies

In other changes to morning teams across the week, Richard Wilkins will host Weekend Today alongside Rebecca Maddern. Jayne Azzopardi will present news with Lara Vella covering while she is on maternity leave. Lauren Phillips will present Weekend Today weather.

Sylvia Jeffreys will return to morning television as host of Today Extra, alongside David Campbell. Jeffreys replaces Sonia Kruger, who resigned last month after eight years on the show. Belinda Russell will cover Jeffreys while she is on maternity leave.

Brooke Boney will stay on as entertainment reporter

The new-look Today line-up will be overseen by Nine’s director of morning television Steven Burling.

“Ally and Karl are quite simply two of the best news broadcasters in the country. Both have reported from conflict zones, they are more than comfortable going toe-to-toe against our most formidable politicians and quite honestly they’re who you’d turn to in times of breaking news, be it here in Australia or anywhere in the world,” he said.

“Importantly though, Ally and Karl also know how to have a good laugh, they both have an infectious, self-deprecating sense of humour that I believe will resonate with viewers and the rest of the on-air team.

“We’ve brought together a team that Australia will love waking up with in 2020. As one of Perth’s most recognisable news presenters, Tracy will anchor the news bulletins; Tim has resonated with viewers presenting weather on weekends, balancing light hearted segments with the sometimes dire forecasts covering bushfires and weather disasters. Alex Cullen is a trusted voice on Australian television and we welcome him to Today, where his recent fill-in stints have won over viewers. And Brooke will continue the great work of delivering entertainment news and interviewing some of the world’s biggest stars.”

Former Today 2019 team member Tom Steinfort will rejoin 60 Minutes and Stevie Jacobs will be leaving the Today team but may work on future projects with the network.

The new-look Today team will be on air from Monday, January 6.

American Express delicious. Month Out will be a retail-centric program encouraging consumers to support Sydney venues and businesses throughout March 2020 by engaging them with special offers, experiences and free large-scale activations spotlighting local precincts.
 
As well as offers running all month, on Thursday nights in March delicious. and American Express will activate within a local precinct to create a hub of activity to draw people to the area. Visitors can expect live entertainment, special offers and celebrity appearances as each precinct comes to life.

 
delicious. editor-in-chief Kerrie McCallum said: “This is a really exciting initiative for delicious. – it will be our biggest experiential campaign yet. We’re thrilled to have American Express partner with us for our inaugural Month Out; together we will create a month of deliciousness for consumers with great dining experiences and unique offers that encourage them to get out, eat out and support a diverse range of venues all across Sydney. American Express is the perfect partner to help us bring the Month Out to life and connect our participating venues and the highly engaged delicious. audience. We are also delighted to have City of Sydney on board to align with us and support retailers and businesses in Sydney precincts.”
 
American Express Vice President Brand, Charge Cards and Member Experience Naysla Edwards said: “American Express delicious. Month Out is a new dining experience we’re offering our members and restaurant partners to be part of in 2020. Dining out is a much-loved pastime for many of our American Express card members, so during March, we’re running Amex Offers at numerous Sydney restaurants and inviting everyone along to enjoy pre-dinner drinks at our pop-up American Express Lounges in Sydney’s CBD, Surry Hills and Potts Point dining precincts.”
 
delicious. also confirmed supporting partners for the event are the City of Sydney, The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph and The Fork.
 
With the support of City of Sydney, three precinct activations will take place in the CBD, Surry Hills and Potts Point in collaboration with local businesses across food, fashion, design and art. These activations will create a free, festive experience drawing people to explore a precinct each week.

Online restaurant discovery and booking platform, TheFork, will be the official restaurant booking and offer partner. They will facilitate dining offers at a broad range of venues across Sydney and promote these via their app and website for the Month Out.
 
For entry to the American Express Lounges, card members simply present their cards at the door. For diners without an American Express card, they are welcome to attend and can register up to two weeks in advance at www.amexinvites.com.au.

While Netflix didn’t break down the numbers country-by-country it did divide the world into four territories and revealed the subscriber numbers for each at the end of September 2019.

Those regions are:

United States and Canada
Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA)
Latin America (LATAM)
Asia-Pacific (APAC)

The number of Netflix subscribers has never been revealed for Australia. One reference point used by many is the regular research undertaken by Roy Morgan as part of its Roy Morgan Single Source survey. The latest data, released earlier this month, stated “Netflix remains the market leader, with 11.9 million Australians (57% of the population) now having a Netflix subscription in their household, up 15% on a year ago.”

The Morgan numbers are for the total of people in Netflix households, not the number of separate subscribers.

Last year Statista published data that estimated there were close to 3m Netflix subscribers in Australia and forecast it could grow to 3.3m by 2022.

Earlier this year a Telsyte survey estimated Netflix has around 4.9 million subscriptions in Australia.

The data released by Netflix for the APAC region confirms there are 14.48m Netflix subscribers in all those countries. If the Statista estimate is correct that means Australia is performing strongly in the region with nearly a quarter of all the APAC subscribers. The Telsyte estimate would mean Australia represents one third of APAC subs. Those other APAC countries include India, Taiwan, Philippines, South Korea, Singapore and Japan.

The Netflix subscriber numbers for the world as of September 2019 are:

US and Canada 67.11m
EMEA 47.35m
LATAM 29.38m
APAC 14.48m

Dave Hughes and Kate Langbroek haven’t been together on radio too much this year as the Hit Network drive hosts have been living in separate countries. But Kate has returned to Australia to work alongside her longtime radio colleague on a TV project.

Also joining Hughesy are his other Christmas elves; Nikki Osbourne, Charlie Pickering and Ross Noble, who have gifted viewers Hughesy, We Have A Problem Christmas Special.

Solving a plethora of silly season problems, Hughesy and his band of merry-givers have been busting their baubles to find a solution to every Christmas crisis. Whether it be a neighbour dealing with the fallout of his OTT Christmas decorated street, a 4’3 man who can’t even get a job as a Christmas elf or a mystery celebrity who’s been single for 20 years, Hughesy and the panel are here to help.

Hughesy’s special guests also have some problems of their own they need help solving.

Having converted to Judaism, Charlie Pickering has a problem, and no, it isn’t that his favourite Christmas movie is Die Hard. Charlie and his wife are mad about getting merry, but don’t know how to break the news to their Jewish family. Can Hughesy help them spring the cat out of the Santa Sack?

After extending her year abroad, Kate Langbroek needs some advice on what to do with her house while she’s in Italy and Hughesy turns to his helpers for a way to have a vegan feast, without ruining Christmas for the rest of the family.

Chin will be responsible for leading OMD’s digital, data and technology offering in the Sydney market. Within his role, he will lead the creation of marketing transformation strategies and ensure OMD’s product offering is constantly evolving.

Chin has over 11 years’ industry experience and is an accomplished digital leader. Having worked agency and client side across several categories including retail, finance and technology, he joins OMD Sydney from his most recent role at Media Lab where he was Head of Technology and Digital Media Delivery.

Sian Whitnall, Chief Digital Officer, OMD Australia, said “We are thrilled to have Nick joining the OMD Sydney team. He is a respected digital leader with proven credentials in enabling brands to maximise their data and technology investments. His experience will further strengthen the capability within our Sydney team, acting as a critical part of the further evolution of our agency product and he will continue to drive performance for our clients and OMD with integrity.”

“OMD has incredible momentum at the moment. They are setting the pace in the market, having the hard conversations and driving the change that the industry needs. The chance to join this talented team is a unique opportunity and I’m very excited to come on board to do some great work with their impressive range of partners,” said Chin of his appointment.

Chin will report into Sian Whitnall, Chief Digital Officer, OMD Australia. He will commence Monday 6th January 2020.

UK-based TV distributor Parade Media has sold 330 hours of content worldwide to close out the year. The sales see Parade’s programming going to a host of territories, including APAC, EMEA, and LATAM.

The deals see TV series from Australian production houses heading to all corners of the globe.

In EMEA, AMC Hungary have acquired a 55-hour package including culinary delights from Australian Indie Hsquared including Macao Gourmet (6 x 30’), Loving Gluten Free (10 x 30’), Outback Gourmet (8 x 30’), Ainsley’s Market Menu (6 x 60’), Good Chef, Bad Chef (65 x 30’) as well as Inside the Box with Jack Stein (10 x 30) by another Aussie Indie powerhouse Projucer and Cook Like an Italian (10 x 30’) by Essential Media. In home content, Season 2 of Luxury Homes revealed (20 x 30’) by Abode Entertainment was selected.

Headed to Matkanalen Norway are six new culinary travel titles Luke Nguyen’s Railway Vietnam (10 x 30 minutes; Creative Media), Field Trip with Curtis Stone (6 x 30 minutes; Sunny Side Up Productions); Asia Unplated with Diana Chan (10 x 30 minutes; Hsquared), and This is Mexico (6 x 30 minutes; Dual Entertainment), as well as Macao Gourmet and Cook Like An Italian.

Fox Bulgaria have also acquired character-led culinary titles Inside the Box with Jack Stein, Field Trip with Curtis Stone, Macao Gourmet and Cook Like an Italian.

Rounding up EMEA, Serbia’s Fishing Channel have reeled in Season 5, 6 & 7 of the AFN Fishing Show (40 x 60’), while BON GUSTO Germany are cooking up a storm with Australian MasterChef alumni Everyday Gourmet with Justine Schofield (20 x 30’), The Chocolate Queen (13 x 30’), and Andy & Ben Eat Australia (15 x 30’) & Andy & Ben Eat The World (5 x 30’).

Parade have also sent a slew of Factual & Lifestyle titles across Australia and New Zealand. Find Me a Beach House (10 x 30’) has found a new home in HGTV New Zealand and GEE for Qantas which follows Deborah Hutton and the buying decisions of beach house hunters in various locations around Australia. Luke Nguyen’s Railway Vietnam, Field Trip with Curtis Stone, and Outback Vet are all headed to Choice TV in New Zealand. Elsewhere, Outback Vet was also picked up by Blue Ant Media for their Cottage Life channel in Canada.

In Australia, Network Seven bagged Demolition NZ Season 1 & 2 (20 x 30’) as well as the 1 Hour Special by Broadcast Media for its 7mate channel while Nine Network has licensed the brand-new primetime dating show Undercover Twins (7 x 60’) from Voltage which finds one pair of identical twin sisters pretending to be the same girl, switching places throughout. Format rights to the show have been picked up by Endemol Shine Group.

Moving to Asia, MediaCorp has picked up a package deal with over 60 hours of culinary titles including Ainsley’s Market Menu, Loving Gluten Free, Good Chef Bad Chef, Tasty Conversations with Audra Morrice (16 x Interstitials), United Plates of America Season 1 and Season 2 (26 x 30’), and Peter Kuruvita’s Coastal Kitchen Season 1 and Season 2 (12 x 30’). Earlier this month, FNG Asia snatched up Food Lab (65 x 30’) and Peter Kuruvita’s Mexican Fiesta (10 x 30’).

Lastly, Across the US & LatAm Season 3 of The Home Team (13 x 30’) has been ordered by Injaus and The Sun Channel has bagged United Plates of America. Tastemade in the US has also picked up Luke Nguyen’s Railway Vietnam for their Linear, SVOD & AVOD platforms.

Deals in US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand were brokered by CEO Matthew Ashcroft, while Europe and Asia were brokered by VP Distribution EMEA Heike Renner and VP Distributions & Operations Asia, Jacqueline Tan respectively. All LatAm deals were negotiated by Daniel Rodriguez, SVP of Distribution LatAm.

The appointment is to support BBC Studios in identifying locations, investors, licensing and operational partners for BBC branded attractions such as Top Gear, CBeebies and BBC Earth consists of exclusive and non-exclusive appointments across multiple geographies.

Scallywag Entertainments, which is headed by former Merlin Entertainments Director and long-time Hong Kong resident Oliver Cully, was founded in early 2019 to support companies in the location-based entertainment sector such as theme parks, family entertainment centres and visitor attractions as well as brand owners, looking to develop their brands in the sector.

Oliver said: “Scallywag Entertainments looks forward to finding locations and partners for the BBC to bring its brands to life in the form of visitor attractions, so that millions of its fans can experience and interact with them first-hand.”

Mat Way, global director of live entertainment at BBC Studios said: “We are excited to work with Scallywag Entertainments and look forward to developing our attractions business in the S-E Asia and ANZ markets.”

Covering Australia, New Zealand and 23 countries across the Asia region, BBC Studios APAC is overseen by EVP Jon Penn. Operating from eight offices, with its main bases in Sydney, Beijing and Singapore, BBC Studios APAC comprises of Content Sales and Co-productions, Branded Services, Production, Format Sales, Consumer Products and Live Events.

There have been two noticeable entries to the charts this week, the first one is Netflix’s The Expanse, which is based on the series of novels of the same name by James S. A. Corey. The series follows a group of antiheroes in a future where humanity has colonized the Solar System as they unwittingly unravel a conspiracy that threatens the system’s fragile state of peace. The fourth season was released on December 12 with a fifth season already confirmed.

The second new show is Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel which released its third season on December 6. Following the success and popularity of the first two seasons of the show which included Golden Globe and Emmy wins the second season was highly anticipated.  The series stars Rachel Brosnahan in the lead as a housewife in the 1960s decides to become a stand-up comic.

While the top of the charts looks pretty set for the rest of the year there could be some movement in the new year with former #1 Brooklyn Nine-Nine releasing its third season on Netflix on January 6. The show is currently #7 on the Overall TV Shows chart in Australia.

After a weekend of winning the ratings off the back of the First Test Australia v New Zealand, Seven has started a new winning streak thanks to the start of BBL|09.

The first match between Brisbane heat and Sydney Thunder delivered a session one audience of 490,000 and a session two audience of 572,000.

The bigger audience for the first match last year on Seven was 594,000 for the first session and 614,000 for the second.

The subscription TV audience watching the launch of the Big Bash League new season on Fox Cricket was 213,000 for the first session and 258,000 for the second.

See also:
BBL|09 TV Guide: Big Bash League launching on Fox Cricket & Seven