Friday January 31, 2020
Expect the unexpected as Australian Survivor: All Stars pushes the envelope
The show’s network executive producer Cathie Scott, spoke with Mediaweek about what to expect for the format’s fifth season.
Cathie Scott
“Because it’s All-Stars we really had to up the ante from previous seasons. Instead of having players who don’t know what to expect, we have people who know exactly what to expect and will hit the ground running from day one. We have to make sure we have enough twists, turns and surprises for them.”
Scott said that Network 10 and production company Endemol Shine chose the show’s cast from a potential pool of over 100 previous players which will include the likes of Henry Nicholson, David Genat, Mat Rogers, Mark ‘Tarzan’ Herlaar, Phoebe Timmins, Nick Iadanza, Felicity Eggington, Brooke Jowett, Harry Hills, and Lydia Lassila. Scott also added that viewers should expect plenty of surprises when they tune in and could neither confirm or deny if there will be any international flavour added to the cast.
“It’s not a typical casting process, because we know these players from previous season. It was always a balance of looking for the best contestant and the players that resonated with our audience.”
Scott was pleased to say that the biggest problem with casting was who to leave out, with many past players keen to play again, allowing the production team to fill out their “All Stars” casting wish list.
Two names that would be slightly more familiar to audiences than others are Harry Hills and David Genat -two of the major players of the most recent edition of the series, with Hills finishing as the second runner up.
David Genat
According to Scott, both contestants had a chance to return home and have a short break before heading back to film their second season of 2019. While it was a quick turn-around Scott said that the other “All Stars” were able to see enough of season 4 to know what to expect from them as players.
“The Endemol Shine production team led by Executive Producer Amelia Fisk have created a superb season, with heightened challenges and game play and production values that set the standard of Australian reality television”
Jonathan La Paglia has returned as host for All Stars and once again has brought his unique understanding of the challenges and the game play “He is the perfect host” said Scott.
“Setting a higher level for the challenges was also key in discussions during pre-production -we certainly tried to push the envelope on the challenges, because some of these All Stars are pretty phenomenal physical players, especially Lydia, David, Mat and Lochie.
“As we all know, you have to outwit outplay and outlast” said Scott. It’s the perfect catchphrase for this format, because it’s not just survival skills, it’s social skills, and gameplay in mental and psychical challenges that will get you to the end”
One former contestant that won’t be appearing on the first edition of All-Stars is Luke Toki who will be hosting the new Survivor companion show Talking Tribal on 10 Play with James Matthison.
“I think Luke is such a popular past player who loves the game and the format. He will be on Talking Tribal each week giving you a great behind the scenes analysis of what’s going on. His insight is invaluable”.
Luke Toki
Australian Survivor is established as one of the top reality TV formats in the country off the back of a successful fourth season that saw:
• National total average audience (including 7-day television and broadcast video-on-demand (BVOD): 1.14 million. UP 6% year-on-year.
• Capital city total average audience: 912,000. UP 10% year on year.
• National television average audience: 1.06 million. UP 4% year-on-year.
• Capital city television average audience: 823,000. UP 7% year-on-year.
• 10 Play (7 day BVOD) average audience: 82,000. UP 37% year-on-year.
Scott says the success of the show in Australia has seen it become a reference point for other territories producing the Survivor format with much of the success due to their production partner Endemol Shine who have put together a team of superb creatives who are passionate about this show and true Survivor fans.
“We get a lot of very positive feedback on Australian Survivor, it is made in 48 territories 16 in production in 2019, and we understand that many territories look at Australian Survivor for inspiration.”
Season 6 of Australian Survivor is currently being cast and expected to air later in 2020.
Seven Announces MKR: The Rivals commercial partners
Returning in 2020 are Coles, A2 Milk, DeLonghi Group, KFC and Yellowtail, while new partners include Arnott’s and Hyundai.
For the first time it’s Champions vs Challengers, as two houses, one of fans mentored by Colin Fassnidge, and one of favourites mentored by Manu Feildel, battle to prove their cooking superiority, with Pete Evans serving as the impartial judge.
My Kitchen Rules in 2019 averaged 1.4 million viewers nationally each night and was one of the country’s top 5 most watched CFTA BVOD shows.
Natalie Harvey, SWM Network Sales Director, said: “We’re thrilled with the partners joining MKR: The Rivals. With MKR: The Rivals, we’re offering new and exciting opportunities for our partners to reach their target audiences across multiple platforms, allowing brands to follow the viewers wherever and whenever they consume MKR.
“In 2020 we’ve applied key learnings from previous seasons to use the scale of broadcast and leverage the complimentary dynamics of digital and enhanced targeting using Seven’s data, social and digital capabilities. Seven is all about offering effective solutions that generates real business results and MKR is the original and still one of the very best to deliver on that promise for advertising partners. Brand safe and highly effective.”
Coles returns as a key partner of My Kitchen Rules for MKR: The Rivals, building off the success they have seen in past seasons with unique integration that has helped them reach their customers and deliver results in store.
Lisa Ronson, Chief Marketing Officer at Coles said: “At Coles we’re committed to sustainably feeding all Australians to help them lead healthier and happier lives. We love that the show inspires our customers all over Australia to enjoy delicious fresh produce grown by incredible Aussie farmers and encourages them to use, cook and entertain with these fresh ingredients in their homes.”
Hyundai joins MKR: The Rivals as a new partner, looking to reach their key audiences through the powerful integration opportunities.
Bill Thomas, Director of Marketing at Hyundai said: “Our MKR partnership continues Hyundai’s strong relationship with the Seven Network into 2020, following a successful Sunrise seven-car giveaway promotion in the fourth quarter of last year.
“MKR is a tent pole program which is taking on a refreshed look and a great new ‘rivals’ theme – we are confident it will help give Seven a fast start to the ratings year.
“The family-friendly nature of MKR aligns well with the Hyundai brand, and plays to the strengths of our key SUVs, the multi-award winning Santa Fe large SUV, and the capable mid- size Tucson.
“The popularity of MKR with young families and couples is a great fit for SUV practicality – it’s a fun and brand-safe environment that always creates conversation and audience at scale.”
MKR: The Rivals premieres on Channel 7 and 7plus this Sunday at 7.00pm and continues Mon-Wed at 7.30pm.
Commercial radio reports record high audience in 2019
Australian commercial radio continues to attract listeners, with a record high 10.891 million people listening each week across the five metropolitan capital cities in 2019, a 1.4% increase compared to the more than 10.7 million in 2018 and up 9.7% in the last five years.
This is according to the latest data collected in Commercial Radio Australia’s annual listening summary, prepared by GfK.
Of those 10.891 million people, 10.4% are aged 10-17, 11.6% are aged 18-24, 26.7% are aged 25-39, 22.5% are aged 40-54, 12.6% are aged 55-64 and 16.2% are aged 65+.
See also: Commercial radio metropolitan ad revenue slides 6% in 2019
Total metropolitan listeners to commercial radio have not only increased year-over-year, but audiences have also increased across all age groups in the last five years, with listeners aged 10-17 up 5.7%, 18-24 up 5.2%, 25-39 growing by 10.5%, 40-54 rising by 4.5%, 55-64 up 9.8% and listeners 65+ increasing by 26.8%.
Commercial radio reached 77.3% of Australians aged 10+ in the five metropolitan capital cities in 2019, virtually unchanged from 77.6% in 2018. Demographically, commercial radio reaches 86.8% of people 10-17 years old, 77.4% of people 18-24 years old, 77.3% of people 25-39 years old, 79.8% of people 40-54 years old, 78.4% of people 55-64 years old and 66.5% of people 65+.
Audiences spent 13 hours and 23 minutes listening to commercial radio each week in 2019. When looking at content consumed, millions of Australians tune in to breakfast and drive radio, with over 7.8 million people listening to commercial breakfast radio (Mon-Fri) each week and 6.9 million people listening to commercial drive radio (Mon-Fri).
Listening in vehicles continues to be the dominant location, with 64.2% of people reporting that they listen to commercial radio there (64% in 2018). Meanwhile, 42% of people listen to commercial radio at home (42.5% in 2018), 13.8% listen while at work (13.9% in 2018) and 8% report that they listen elsewhere (7.8% in 2018).
“Australian commercial radio retains its exceptional reach and enduring popularity, with commercial radio consistently delivering informative, entertaining, relevant, live and local content of a high standard – a fact appreciated by our audiences and underpinned by increasing listener numbers,” said Joan Warner, chief executive officer of Commercial Radio Australia.
“In spite of increased competition and choice, we saw younger listeners in the 10-17-year-old age group spending 9 hours and 23 minutes listening to commercial radio each week in 2019. That’s 26 minutes more than they did five years ago.”
Currently, 49% of all households have access to a DAB+ device in their home, vehicle or workplace, with the number of those listening to DAB+ in their car in metropolitan centres having risen by 107.9% in the last five years.
DAB + digital radio was also made available permanently in Hobart, Darwin, Canberra and Mandurah in 2019 and planning for the roll out of more permanent DAB+ digital radio services into regions will continue in 2020, with Gold Coast planning already underway.
Ray Hadley and Bob Fulton call time on weekend radio work
Hadley, a Commercial Radio Australia Hall of Fame inductee, is a founding member of the team which started in 1987. Hadley is getting married again this year, this time to his personal assistant Sophie Baird.
Fulton, one of rugby league’s Immortals, has been working with Hadley and the team for 32 of the 33 years the Continuous Call Team has broadcast.
Ray Hadley said: “I have worked either six or seven days a week for most of the past 33 years and it is now time that the young men and women who already do most of the heavy lifting are given their chance.
“Bob Fulton is one of my dearest friends and he has helped guide me for the best part of my career. We have a long-standing personal agreement that we will finish our full-time roles with the Continuous Call Team together.”
From 2020, Hadley and Fulton will consult and advise the Continuous Call Team, while Hadley will continue to call State of Origin games and the NRL Grand Final.
Hadley is contracted to Nine Radio for a further five years and will continue to present his top-rating morning program, which is heard on 2GB, 4BC and network stations around Australia.
“Ray Hadley and Bob Fulton have been institutions not only of the Continuous Call Team, but of Australian radio, for more than three decades,” said Tom Malone, Nine’s Managing Director – Radio. “While today marks the end of an era, we respect Ray and Bob’s wishes to finish their full-time weekend commitments together at this time. I am delighted that both will be available to guide the next generation of Continuous Call Team talent into the future.”
Nine Radio said further announcements regarding the 2020 Continuous Call Team line-up will be made shortly. It is expected Mark Levy will get the weekend hosting role in addition to his new weekday Wide World of Sport show.
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Top Photo: Last year’s Continuous Call Team – Hadley centre and Fulton left.
All 10 songs revealed for Eurovision – Australia Decides 2020
SBS and production partner Blink TV have announced the final four songs for Eurovision – Australia Decides.
Artists and fans will soon be arriving on the Gold Coast, with the Live TV Final broadcast live and exclusive on SBS on Saturday 8 February. The national final will showcase some of Australia’s biggest acts, singing original songs, for the chance to represent the country at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
The final four songs to be revealed are Vanessa Amorosi’s power ballad Lessons of Love, Montaigne’s Don’t Break Me about the breakdown of a toxic relationship, both personal and political, Didirri’s ballad Raw Stuff and Jaguar Jonze’s Rabbit Hole about battles with mental health.
The other acts vying for their shot to represent Australia on the world’s biggest stage are: powerhouse entertainer Casey Donovan with Proud, rising First Nations artist Mitch Tambo with Together, glam rock star iOTA with Life, The Voice winner Diana Rouvas with Can We Make Heaven, 19-year-old singer-songwriter Jordan-Ravi with Pushing Stars and Australia’s Got Talent winner Jack Vidgen with I Am King I Am Queen.
Hosted by SBS Eurovisionaries comedian Joel Creasey and music buff Myf Warhurst, Eurovision – Australia Decides will also showcase local and international Eurovision royalty with four special guest acts confirmed to perform: winner of the inaugural Eurovision – Australia Decides Kate Miller-Heidke will return to the stage where it all began, Swedish pop phenomenon and winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 Måns Zelmerlöw, powerhouse vocalist and Eurovision 2016 runner up Dami Im and Australia’s 2019 Junior Eurovision representative Jordan Anthony.
SBS commissioning editor for entertainment and Australian head of delegation Josh Martin said:
“After listening to over 600 songs, we have our final 10! And what a diverse and incredibly eclectic group of songs they are. The artists and songwriters have put so much heart and soul into their music, and the coming week is all about perfecting their staging, which is so crucial for a memorable Eurovision performance. We are so thrilled with the calibre of our final ten, but now the focus will turn to who Australia thinks should be our musical emissary to Eurovision. There can only be one winner and all will be revealed live on SBS!”
Creative director of Eurovision – Australia Decides and director of Blink TV Paul Clarke said:
“These songs and performances are all very different, but they share one thing – a ton of emotive power. First and foremost, Eurovision is about passion, connecting with people’s hearts. The staging and performances this year will be next level, so people can feel the magic. Worth being in the room if you can get a ticket! This year, the audience can vote in the room during the Opening Night Show on Friday. Then a segment of the performances will be available to view on SBS On Demand for people who want to vote early.”
TV Guide: Big Bash finals time with all matches on Seven & Fox cricket
A revamped post-season format will see five teams go toe-to-toe across one qualifier and three knockout matches before a winner is crowned in the final on February 8.
The Melbourne Stars will be desperate to break through for their first BBL title when the Big Bash finals get underway live on Seven and Fox Cricket, but this season’s championship race appears one of the most wide-open in recent years.
The BBL 09 finals commence on Thursday when the fourth-placed Hobart Hurricanes host fifth-placed Sydney Thunder at Blundstone Arena in The Eliminator. The sudden-death clash should ensure this season’s new five-game finals format starts with a bang, with the Hurricanes boasting power hitters Matthew Wade and D’Arcy Short and the Thunder Callum Ferguson and Alex Hales.
On Friday night, this season’s top two teams, the Stars and Sydney Sixers, clash at the MCG in The Qualifier, a match-up that could produce a classic contest.
The Stars finished minor premiers and have two of the competition’s biggest match-winners in Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis, but the Sixers enter the finals in red-hot form with a star-studded line-up that has been bolstered by Steve Smith’s return from international duties.
On Saturday night at the Adelaide Oval, the third-placed Adelaide Strikers will host the winner of the Hurricanes-Thunder match in The Knock-Out, a cut-throat encounter that will determine which team progresses to the final week of the finals alongside the Stars and Sixers.
TV broadcast dates on Seven/7mate and Fox Cricket/Kayo:
Thursday January 30
BBL Finals: The Eliminator
Hobart Hurricanes v Sydney Thunder
Friday January 31
BBL Finals: The Qualifier
Melbourne Stars v Sydney Sixers
Saturday February 1
BBL Finals: The Knock-Out
Adelaide Strikers v Winner of The Eliminator
Thursday February 6
BBL Finals: The Challenger
Loser of The Qualifier v Winner of The Knock-Out
Saturday February 8
BBL Final
Winner of The Qualifier v Winner of The Challenger
TV Guide: Super Bowl LIV live on Seven – 49ers v Chiefs
Aussie punter Mitch Wishnowsky will line up with the 49ers in their first Super Bowl since 2013, and their seventh in franchise history. It’s a dream come true for the 27-year-old rookie from Perth, who quit his day job seven years ago to embark on his long and, at times, difficult NFL journey.
The Chiefs, who boast one of the most explosive offenses in NFL history, head into their third ever Super Bowl – and first since 1970 – as slight favourites, led by star quarterback and reigning NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes.
J.Lo teams up with Shakira to headline this year’s Halftime Show, with Demi Lovato to sing the national anthem before kick-off.
Arguably the biggest sporting event worldwide, 98 million US viewers tuned in to watch the New England Patriots beat the Los Angeles Rams in last year’s Super Bowl, with an estimated 30 to 50 million watching internationally.
Seven will broadcast live from 10am with Fox’s Joe Buck leading the call, along with analyst Troy Aikman and sideline reporters Erin Andrews and Chris Myers.
Fans can catch all the action on the go on 7plus.
Join former Geelong AFL star and Arizona Cardinals punter Ben Graham for a special Super Bowl preview edition of Armchair Experts this Friday afternoon, January 31, on @7Sport at Facebook and Twitter.
TV Broadcast times on Seven:
NFL Super Bowl LIV
Monday February 3
Sydney 10.00am live on Channel 7 and 7plus
Melbourne 10.00am live on Channel 7 and 7plus
Brisbane 9.00am live on Channel 7 and 7plus
Adelaide 9.30am live on Channel 7 and 7plus
Perth 7.00am live on 7mate and 7plus, 9.00am LIVE on Channel 7
Summer TV Ratings: January 30
The numbers were all with Nine again yesterday as two crowd favourites exited the Australian Open on a big Thursday of tennis. Ash Barty was unable to make it to primetime yesterday as she faced off against Sofia Kenin, going down in two sets. The 2pm match had an audience of 797,000.
In the evening the first of the men’s semi-finals saw Novak Djokovic power past Roger Federer despite a strong start from Federer. The metro audience was 1.182m.
Semi-final Thursday delivered Nine great numbers year-on-year with total people up 20% and 25-54 up 31%.
Seven’s first final in the Big Bash League delivered disappointing ratings. It was probably never going to get close to the tennis, but the audience hovered around 300,000 for both innings as Sydney Thunder got close to 200, a score Hobart Hurricanes never looked like getting as wickets fell early.
Earlier in the night Home and Away was on 564,000 after hitting 600,000 earlier in the week.
10 managed its third successive night of 13% primary shares thanks to a big week of eliminations. It’s still January and there is just one episode left this season. Cosentino made it to the penultimate episode, but he failed to pull a rabbit out of the hat as Sunday’s Grand Finale will now see Dale Thomas, Rhonda Burchmore and Miguel Maestre competing to be named King or Queen of The Jungle.
Celebrity started with an audience of 704,000 and grew to 779,000 as Cosentino left the jungle stage.
Earlier in the night The Project was close to 500,000 with Waleed in London and Frank Woodley getting to deliver a long plug for his new comedy show.
Doctor Who was the best for the ABC on 230,000 after News and 7.30.
Two series wrapped on SBS last night – at 7.30pm Australia with Julia Bradbury ended on 135,000 with a trip across Victoria. At 8pm the last episode of Luke Nguyen’s Railway Vietnam ended in Sa Pa with 123,000 watching.
Week 5 TV: Thursday
| THURSDAY METRO | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven | Nine | 10 | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 7.5% | 7 | 15.3% | 9 | 29.2% | 10 | 13.1% | SBS One | 4.1% |
| ABC KIDS/ ABC COMEDY | 2.7% | 7TWO | 3.7% | GO! | 2.6% | 10 Bold | 3.9% | VICELAND | 1.2% |
| ABC ME | 0.8% | 7mate | 2.8% | GEM | 3.2% | 10 Peach | 2.5% | Food Net | 1.2% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.8% | 7flix | 1.8% | 9Life | 1.8% | NITV | 0.1% | ||
| SBS World Movies | 0.8% | ||||||||
| TOTAL | 12.7% | 23.6% | 36.7% | 19.5% | 7.5% | ||||
| THURSDAY REGIONAL | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven Affiliates | Nine Affiliates | 10 Affiliates | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 6.8% | 7 | 18.0% | 9 | 22.8% | WIN | 11.9% | SBS One | 3.6% |
| ABC KIDS/ ABC COMEDY | 2.6% | 7TWO | 4.4% | GO! | 4.1% | WIN Bold | 4.8% | VICELAND | 1.3% |
| ABC ME | 0.8% | 7mate | 3.6% | GEM | 5.3% | WIN Peach | 2.2% | Food Net | 0.8% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.4% | 7flix (Excl. Tas/WA) | 2.2% | 9Life | 1.5% | Sky News on WIN | 1.5% | NITV | 0.1% |
| TOTAL | 11.6% | 28.3% | 33.8% | 20.5% | 5.9% | ||||
| THURSDAY METRO ALL TV | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTA | STV | ||||||||
| 86.6% | 13.4% | ||||||||
THURSDAY FTA
- 2020 Australian Open D11 PMNine 1,014,000
- Seven News Seven 978,000
- Seven News At 6.30 Seven 915,000
- Nine News 6:30 Nine 873,000
- Nine News Nine 870,000
- I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! Elimination 10 732,000
- I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!10 707,000
- ABC News ABC 616,000
- Home And Away Seven 564,000
- The Chase Australia Seven 526,000
- The Project 7pm 10 496,000
- 2020 Australian Open D11 Day Nine 470,000
- 7.30 Summer ABC 437,000
- 10 News First 10 417,000
- Seven’s Cricket: Big Bash League The Eliminator Inn Brk Seven 398,000
- 2020 Australian Open D11 PM Pre Match Nine 366,000
- Seven’s Cricket: Big Bash League The Eliminator S1 Seven 338,000
- Seven’s Cricket: Big Bash League The Eliminator S2 Seven 322,000
- Law & Order: SVU10 319,000
- The Chase Australia 5pm Seven 308,000
Demo Top 5
16 – 39
- 2020 Australian Open D11 PMNine 280,000
- I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! Elimination 10 160,000
- I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!10 138,000
- Nine News 6:30 Nine 106,000
- Nine News Nine 105,000
18 – 49
- 2020 Australian Open D11 PMNine 414,000
- I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! Elimination 10 325,000
- I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!10 294,000
- Nine News 6:30 Nine 198,000
- Nine News Nine 195,000
25 – 54
- 2020 Australian Open D11 PMNine 452,000
- I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! Elimination 10 384,000
- I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!10 353,000
- Nine News 6:30 Nine 258,000
- Nine News Nine 240,000
THURSDAY Multichannel
- NCIS (R) 10 Bold 188,000
- Father Brown PM 7TWO 159,000
- Peppa Pig PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 155,000
- School Of Roars ABCKIDS/COMEDY 149,000
- Hey Duggee ABCKIDS/COMEDY 144,000
- Octonauts PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 142,000
- Bluey ABCKIDS/COMEDY 140,000
- Hawaii Five O (R) 10 Bold 140,000
- Rusty Rivets ABCKIDS/COMEDY 134,000
- Neighbours 10 Peach 134,000
- Dot. PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 130,000
- Peter Rabbit ABCKIDS/COMEDY 129,000
- Andy’s Safari Adventures ABCKIDS/COMEDY 121,000
- Bondi Rescue Ep 2 (R) 10 Bold 119,000
- Play School Art Time PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 119,000
- Waffle The Wonder Dog PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 119,000
- Noddy Toyland Detective PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 117,000
- Judge John Deed PM 7TWO 116,000
- Peppa Pig AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 115,000
- Fireman Sam PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 114,000
THURSDAY STV
- Live: Between The Innings FOX CRICKET 250,000
- Live: BBL: Elim Hurricanes V Thunder FOX CRICKET 210,000
- Live: BBL: Elim Hurricanes V Thunder FOX CRICKET 187,000
- Live: BBL Post Game FOX CRICKET 146,000
- Live: B4 The Bash! FOX CRICKET 87,000
- The Bolt Report Sky News Live 49,000
- Paul Murray Live Sky News Live 46,000
- Chicago Fire FOX One 44,000
- Credlin Sky News Live 43,000
- Family Guy FOX8 42,000
- Gold Rush Discovery Channel 41,000
- The Simpsons FOX8 38,000
- The Big Bang Theory FOX Funny 35,000
- Family Guy FOX8 33,000
- Chicago P.D. FOX One 31,000
- The Simpsons FOX8 30,000
- Criminal Minds FOX Crime 27,000
- Chris Smith Tonight Sky News Live 27,000
- The Big Bang Theory FOX Funny 27,000
- American Dad! FOX8 25,000
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
Southern Cross Media is cheap and ripe for a buyer: IML
“With the Australian sharemarket trading near record highs and with many sectors looking fairly fully priced, we continue to find very good long-term value in many good quality small and mid-cap stocks,” Investors Mutual portfolio managers Simon Conn and Marc Whittaker said.
In addition to commanding a lower price-to-earnings ratio, Southern Cross Media also benefitted from having most of its assets concentrated in radio, which Conn argued is better placed than TV.
Last year, the company reported an 8.5 per cent drop in revenue in the first quarter of financial year 2020, across both its audio and television segments. But Conn argued the outlook for radio remained strong.
Optus pays half a million for spamming Australians in 2018
The ACMA investigation found that between 1 June and 4 December 2018 Optus sent SMS and email marketing messages to consumers after they had unsubscribed.
The ACMA also found Optus sent commercial emails in the form of billing notices that did not include a unsubscribe facility.
ACMA chair Nerida O’Loughlin said large e-marketers need to listen to consumers and respect their choice when they unsubscribe.
“This is the second largest infringement notice that has ever been paid to the ACMA, and the largest paid for spamming,” O’Loughlin said.
“It reflects the seriousness of breaches made by Optus and its failure to honour its customers’ wishes to unsubscribe, in some cases on multiple occasions.
“Australians find spam infuriating and as a regulator it is something we are actively cracking down on.”
News Corp's new CFO Michael Ford coming off QBE shocker
Brown served in a purely decorative capacity inside the knotty refinancing of Foxtel last year led by News Corp’s global CFO Susan Panuccio, Brown’s predecessor at Holt Street.
He had been at QBE for an entire seven months when his resignation was curtly included in a broader announcement to the ASX. “I would like to … thank Michael for his time at QBE,” was all chief executive Pat Regan said. Effusive!
By no accident, Ford barely said a word during his only set of results in February 2018. Through the subsequent investor meetings, he maintained a monastic silence.
Search for oOh!media founder Brendon Cook's replacement begins
Street Talk understands executive search consultants Russell Reynolds Associates have been mandated with the task of replacing Cook.
It is understood Russell Reynolds has a long-term relationship with oOh!media and has helped it secure board talent in the past.
Cook founded oOh! in 1989 and in that time has seen out two runs at the ASX boards, ownership by private equity, a failed merger and almost 40 acquisitions.
He will stay as CEO of the company until a replacement is found and will then work with the board during the transition to a new CEO, oOh! said in an announcement to the ASX on Wednesday.
Once a new CEO has been appointed, Cook will stay with oOh! in a non-executive consulting role to provide ongoing strategic advice to the $873 million company.
News Brands
News Corp launches news aggregation service Knewz.com
The beta version of News Corp’s latest publishing endeavour was launched in the United States and takes in a wide variety of American news sources across the News Corp stable, but also from competitors including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Daily Mail and television networks like CNN and NBC.
Knewz.com also aggregates from leading online-only news websites across the political divide like The Daily Beast, Business Insider and Breitbart News.
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett gets out of the newspaper business
Mr Buffett, a lifelong newspaper lover, has said for years that Berkshire’s newspaper business declined faster than he expected. In mid-2018, Berkshire hired Lee to manage all of its newspapers except the Buffalo News.
The sale announced includes the Buffalo News along with the dozens of newspapers that Lee already manages for Berkshire, Lee said. Berkshire’s newspaper collection includes the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia and Mr Buffett’s hometown paper in Nebraska, the Omaha World-Herald.
Television
Sophie Monk removes Love Island host from Instagram bio
The TV presenter, who has hosted the reality TV show for two seasons, recently updated her profile to exclude any mention of the Channel 9 reality show after abruptly switching her management team.
The Nine Network is yet to renew the controversial dating show after season two suffered consistently low ratings last year.
In a statement to Confidential, a Nine spokesperson said no official announcements have been made.
“We haven’t made any announcements about Love Island. Sophie is a much loved part of the Nine family,” the spokesman said.
A representative for Monk did not respond to Confidential’s request for comment.
Monk’s bio previously read “Channel 9 host @loveislandau” but this has now been deleted.
Olympian and ex-senator Nova Peris sues Jacinta Price over Studio 10 debate
Price appeared on the Channel 10 morning chat show with former Greens MP and Indigenous woman Lidia Thorpe in January last year, after a heated Australia Day debate between Kennerley and panellist Yumi Stynes sparked outrage.
Stynes said Kennerley was “sounding racist” after the veteran presenter said people who marched against “Invasion Day” were more interested in changing the date of Australia Day than doing something about sexual violence in Indigenous communities.
Olympic great Lydia Lassila ‘really messed up’ after first Survivor stint
The five-time Winter Olympian – and gold medallist in freestyle skiing aerials at the 2010 games in Vancouver – had experienced plenty of hardship and resilience from countless hours of training in her celebrated career as a professional athlete. But nothing quite prepared her for the mental and physical challenges from appearing on the 2018 season of the long-running reality TV show, which pitted Champions Vs Contenders.
“It’s very strange,” Lassila says, ahead of her return to the island in the new season, Australian Survivor: All Stars.
“To have food again as an abundance, to wash properly, to sleep in a bed with a doona cover on top. I remember waking up in the middle of the night saying ‘someone check the fire’.
“You actually are really messed up. It’s a short time that you are away in the grand scheme of everything but it’s such an intense period that you really are experiencing life very basically and simply. You’re malnourished and you’re tired and you are kind of withering away and then you add the game-play in there, which is intense. It’s brutal.”
Sad end for Biggest Loser couple Michelle Bridges and Steve ‘Commando’ Willis
It was a sad end for a celebrity couple who, in the 13 years since they first met, have become reality stars, controversy magnets, tabloid fixtures and parents to a young son.
The pair got their TV start together when they were both drafted in to join the second season of Ten’s hit weight-loss reality show The Biggest Loser in 2007. Bridges was a no-nonsense personal trainer with almost two decades of fitness experience, there to serve up tough love while putting contestants through their paces. Ex-army commando Willis was a formidable character: a beefy caricature of masculinity in his uniform of dark sunglasses, camo pants, and a black singlet.
“When I first met him, he was pretty much straight out of the army, virtually. So he was very intense back then. And I remember thinking, ‘Who is this guy?’ Bridges later said.
Both were married to other people when they started working together in 2007. But by the time they both left the show in 2015, Bridges was about to have Willis’ baby.
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Nine tennis commentator abruptly ends interview with 3AW host
On Tuesday McEnroe teamed up with fellow great Martina Navratilova to launch the on-court protest, holding a sign saying “Evonne Goolagong Arena” after a legends doubles match.
Both players have since apologised for their actions which breached tournament protocol.
Speaking on 3AW this morning, McEnroe and Mitchell went toe-to-toe on the issue, and it didn’t take long for things to get out of hand.
Is Christian O’Connell going national in 2020?
Taking to Twitter, O’Connell wrote a cryptic tweet about the move, revealing he, Jack Post and Patrina Jones will be heard all around the country.
“Very excited to say that the show very soon will be available all over Australia,” he tweeted.
“Nothing but deep gratitude for this chance I’ve been given here x.”