Monday January 22, 2018

ARIA Chart Report
  • Singles: Troye Sivan top 20, Bruno Mars & Keala Settle top 10
  • Albums: Release floodgates open – 9 new albums invade top 50
Singles

Just one new release made the top 50 on debut at a time when pushing into the top 10 will be difficult.

Ed Sheeran keeps top spot with “Perfect” now charting for 46 weeks. Four other songs have been in the top 10 for close to 20 weeks or more.

Pushing into the top 10 this week are two artists:

#15 to #9: Bruno Mars with “Finesse” featuring Cardi B
#19 to #10: Keala Settle with “This Is Me” from The Greatest Showman

The only new entry in the top 50 is “My My My!” from Troye Sivan, which is the first track released from his forthcoming second album. Sivan was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live in the US over the weekend.

Shooting into the top 50 from lower down is Camila Cabello with “Never Be The Same”, which has hit a new peak of #17 after six weeks.

Another notable tune appearing in the top 50 is “End Game” from Taylor Swift. The track, from her album “Reputation”, features Ed Sheeran and rapper Future and has climbed from #52 to #38 after hitting the charts last week.

Albums

After moaning about a lack of activity a week ago, now we are juggling the coverage of nine new albums crashing into the top 50 on debut.

None of the newcomers was able to upset the chart leaders though – The Greatest Showman soundtrack remains on top with the omnipresent Ed Sheeran hovering close by at #2.

Music fans have paid tribute to the music of The Cranberries after the passing of lead singer Dolores O’Riordan (pictured). Two albums managed to climb into the top 50.

As you will see form the list of newcomers, six of them managed to shake up the top 20 this week:

#3: “Camila” – Camila Cabello
#8: “Stars: The Best Of 1992-2002” – The Cranberries
#11: “Underworld” – Tonight Alive
#13: “Vale” – Black Veil Brides
#17: “Muriel’s Wedding The Musical” – Original Cast Recording
#20: “What Happens Next” – Joe Satriani
#39: “Idiot Proverbs” – Tiny Little Houses
#40: “Gold” – The Cranberries
#45: “Wrong Creatures” – Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

Chart anniversary celebrations for Eminem this week as the six-times platinum “Curtain Call: The Hits” has now been on the chart for two years this week.

Ten announces commercial partners for I’m A Celebrity season 4

Six key brands have signed up as partners for the fourth season of Ten’s I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!.

KFC, Isuzu UTE Australia, Captain Morgan and Nutra-Life are backing the show, which will broadcast live, five nights a week from South Africa.

“More companies have also partnered with the new season but cannot be named at this stage,” Ten said in a statement. MCN is Ten’s sale representative.

Tania Jones, national content and brand partnership director at MCN, said: “We’re thrilled to have achieved a record number of partners in 2018, all leading brands committed to working with premium content. One of the other key attractions is the program’s flexibility and seamless integration opportunities. Partners can rest assured their products are showcased in the best light, resulting in true business outcomes.”

Ten’s executive general manager for revenue and client partnerships Rod Prosser said: “The demand around I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! this year has been sensational and we’re thrilled that so many big names have aligned themselves with this truly brand-safe format.

“The family favourite program is one of our biggest properties and has grown its audience and commercial share each year, delivering fantastic results for our clients on a format they know works. Last year’s season launched to a total audience of 1.18 million, with the series average up 11% on 2016 and the Grand Finale up 37%. Online catch-up also soared 91% during 2017, with video views on tenplay up 101% year-on-year.”

The fourth season of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! will premiere on 28 January at 7:30pm on TEN and WIN Network with comedian Julia Morris and Dr Chris Brown returning as hosts.

Sam Smith kicks off ARN’s live events for 2018

More than 1,350 listeners, media, celebrities, and music and radio industry executives attended UK singer Sam Smith’s special live performance at the Melbourne Town Hall on Friday night. Optus, KIIS and iHeartRadio powered the event.

Smith’s performance for ARN comes after the worldwide release of his sophomore album “The Thrill of It All” via EMI Music.

KIIS 101.1’s new breakfast presenters Jason “Jase” Hawkins and Polly “PJ” Harding hosted the exclusive event.

Celebrities in attendance included Magda SzubanskiOlympia ValanceCathy FreemanJo Hall and more. Media executives spotted among the crowd included ARN CEO Rob Atkinson, ARN content director Duncan Campbell, iHeartRadio Content Director Brett “Nozz” Nossiter, ARN chief marketing officer Anthony Xydis and KIIS head of content Sydney and Melbourne Derek Bargwanna.

ARN listeners won their way into the exclusive event via iHeartRadio.com.au and by listening to the KIIS Network. Optus also offered its customers the chance to meet Smith, along with VIP tickets.

ARN’s national content director Duncan Campbell said: “This was an excellent way to kick off what is going to be a fantastic year for ARN in Melbourne. KIIS 101.1’s new breakfast team of Jase & PJ brought a great energy to their hosting role at the event and of course Sam Smith gave a brilliant performance for his Melbourne fans. I am excited that KIIS 101.1 and iHeartRadio in partnership with EMI and Optus could give Sam’s fans the chance to see their favourite artist up close in such a unique venue as Melbourne Town Hall.”

Geraint Davies, COO of iHeartRadio Australia, said: “Sam Smith is an incredibly talented artist and it’s an honour to be part of the team, along with EMI and Optus, that gave his dedicated fans, and some well-known faces like Magda Szubanski and Cathy Freeman, the chance to see him perform in such an intimate environment. The Australian public obviously loves Sam and his music. It’s great to see he’s added additional dates to his upcoming tour.”

Smith will be touring in Australia and New Zealand in November 2018.

Lower photo: Sam Smith with Will McMahon, Jason Hawkins, Polly Harding and Woody Whitelaw

Massive day of change for ABC Radio Melbourne as ratings season starts

ABC Radio Melbourne is kicking off the 2018 radio ratings season with a bang, commencing its 2018 program year with a mix of new voices and old favourites.

From today, audiences will start the day with a new breakfast show 5.30am-7.45am, presented by Jacinta Parsons & Sami Shah. While bracing themselves for the early morning starts, the duo comments, “It’s such a privilege to be working on a show that means so much to so many. We can’t wait to be waking up with Melbourne.”

Myf Warhurst will feature each afternoon 12.30pm-2pm with a great mix of music, culture and everything in between. The national program based out of Melbourne will see Warhurst talk with the people creating the art that helps us make sense of the world, celebrate the classics and discover new music that you need to know about right now.

“Jacinta, Sami and Myf all share a passion for radio,” says ABC Radio Melbourne Manager, Warwick Tiernan.

“As our audience gets to know them on air, their unique takes on the world will no doubt connect with the community and deliver some great listening. Adding new voices to our longtime favourites helps make sure there’s something for all audiences across the station on air, online, on smart devices, however they want to stay in touch with what’s happening in our city.”

Following Myf Warhurst will be the Afternoons program at the new time of 2pm-4pm, hosted by the irrepressible Richelle Hunt: a well-known station voice who will also continue co-hosting The Friday Revue with the inimitable Brian Nankervis.

After AM with Sabra Lane, Melbourne Mornings icon Jon Faine returns along with the popular Conversation Hour, while Walkley-winning journalist Raf Epstein is back behind the wheel of Drive in the new timeslot of 4pm-6.30pm weekdays. PM with Linda Mottram follows in the later timeslot of 6.30pm, before Lindy Burns is back on Evenings 7pm-10pm.

Nightlife with Philip Clark / Sarah Macdonald, Overnights with Trevor Chappell / Rod Quinn, Saturdays with Hilary Harper and Sundays with Libbi Gorr all return in 2018.

In sports The Outer Sanctum team will make their debut on ABC Radio Melbourne, bringing their much-loved podcast to a new one-hour live show 11am-12pm on Saturdays through the AFLW season, commencing January 20. Following their run, local legends The Coodabeen Champions return over the AFL Men’s season from late March.

See a full list of ABC Radio Melbourne programming at mediaweek.com.au.

Photo: Jacinta Parsons & Sami Shah

Nine Perth anchor Michael Thomson’s “tough challenge”

Nine News has changed the presentation style of its 6pm news bulletin in Perth in a bid to be more competitive with rival Seven News. The latter has dominated the timeslot in the market for some time.

Nine recently confirmed the appointment of Michael Thomson as the key presenter for the primetime news hour, replacing Emmy Kubainski and Tim McMillan. The bulletin has had two hosts in recent times, so the change to a single presenter is something that will take time for the viewers to get used to, Thomson told Mediaweek.

“The change is exciting, but it is a challenge – I am excited for it. The other Nine presenters in Melbourne and Sydney say they like it because they can get into a nice groove and rhythm.

“We will have to wait and see about how the audience will react.”

ABC and Ten both have single newsreaders for their primetime news bulletins in Perth. Meanwhile, the commercial market leader for the 6pm timeslot, Seven, has two newsreaders.

There is a pressure to win over more viewers for Nine’s evening bulletin from its competitors, Thomson acknowledged.

“There is no doubt that it is a tough challenge. Channel 7 has been dominant in the 6pm slot for sometime. It is a difficult assignment. From my experience and from speaking to people, I feel that I am qualified to have a go and really make it work.

“We do get some big audiences on some nights, but we need to do it consistently.”

Continued at mediaweek.com.au.

The future of Mumbrella: Will new owner change much?

Last Friday Mediaweek spoke with one of the founders of Mumbrella, Tim Burrowes, about the recent sale of the business to Diversified for a reported $8m. We conclude the interview today with Burrowes talking about his best and worst decisions and his work “persona”.

Were there any other potential owners of Mumbrella in the past?

Despite lots of chat over the years, Burrowes admitted they never got terribly close to a deal with any other party before the arrival of Diversified.

Mumbrella’s biggest success:

Burrowes: “The decision to go for scale, rather than for profit. As the commercial boss, [partner] Martin Lane‘s role was to make sure we would still be in business in a year’s time! I would often argue we should spend more money here and there with an eye to longterm growth. Martin would argue we had to think more about the P&L, and we would usually meet somewhere in the middle. We developed a policy where we were not rushing to make bigger profits, it was always about building a quality product the audience would believe in.”

Biggest mistakes:

Burrowes: “We dropped $200,000+ a few years attempting to do an iPad edition of Mumbrella. It was fairly clear we got the strategy wrong and we learned a lot from that process. It was certainly the one thing we did that lost us the most money. I might be able to think of something more disastrous if I thought a bit harder. But let’s leave it at that!”

When asked about a temporary move into print, he reveals that is not too near the top of the list. “To this day I am not sure if that was a mistake. If it was I am not sure how much it was about execution versus strategy. We could have executed better. Certainly print was not going to be a longterm thing, although there are a number of people getting into print now with some success as part of a multiplatform offering.”

The Tim Burrowes Ego:

We asked this because a former boss of Burrowes, former B&T publisher Jeremy Knibbs, mentions it several time in a post on LinkedIn.

“That’s an entertaining piece! I am terribly flattered he took the time to write the piece. I enjoyed working for him…it was entertaining times.

“One of the jobs of anyone who is the face of a publication is to be a persona. It took me a while, but I have come to the realisation that when people go after me on social media, they are going after the persona I have created.

“One thing I have become comfortable with is, don’t worry about offending people if you honestly believe what you’re saying is true. I don’t do it for the sake of controversy, but do it because I believe it to be true.

“The persona I have professionally would not necessarily be reflected in how I live my personal life.”

Will new owner Diversified change the Mumbrella product?

Burrowes: “I don’t think so. All the message so far from Diversified is they have been very respectful about what we are doing. What they are buying is an editorial product and they want that product to maintain its direction and maintain its standards. That was one of the attractive things about Diversified. They aren’t big publishers and we won’t have someone standing over our shoulder telling us how to do it better.

“Diversified can teach us a lot about running events, and in turn we can ultimately share some of the things we have learned about the publishing side.”

Read part one of our interview with Tim Burrowes here.

Week 4 TV, 2018: Sunday
SUNDAY METRO
ABCSevenNineTenSBS
ABC8.9%733.1%922.6%TEN4.3%SBS One3.5%
ABC 22.2%7TWO3.5%GO!2.9%ONE2.2%VICELAND0.9%
ABC ME0.6%7mate5.4%GEM1.5%ELEVEN1.8%Food Net0.7%
NEWS 240.8%7flix2.0%9Life2.8%NITV0.4%
TOTAL12.4%44.0%29.8%8.4%5.4%
SUNDAY REGIONAL
ABCSeven AffiliatesNine AffiliatesTen AffiliatesSBS
ABC8.6%728.4%924.0%WIN4.7%SBS One3.8%
ABC 22.5%7TWO4.0%GO!3.6%ONE2.4%VICELAND0.8%
ABC ME1.0%7mate4.6%GEM2.9%ELEVEN1.3%Food Net0.9%
NEWS 241.0%7flix1.9%9Life3.2%NITV0.3%
TOTAL13.1%38.9%33.7%8.4%5.8%
SUNDAY METRO ALL TV
FTASTV
88.8%13.2%

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

All people rankings

Friday Top 10

  1. Nine News Nine 1,008,000
  2. Seven’s Tennis: 2018 Australian Open-Night 5 Seven 938,000
  3. Seven News Seven 873,000
  4. Seven News / Today Tonight Seven 863,000
  5. One Day Cricket – Australia v England Game 2 Session 2Nine 734,000
  6. One Day Cricket – Australia v England Game 2 Session 1 Nine 658,000
  7. ABC News ABC 535,000
  8. Ten Eyewitness News First At Five Ten 476,000
  9. Vera ABC 433,000
  10. Seven’s Tennis: 2018 Australian Open-Night 5 – Late Seven 369,000

Saturday Top 10

  1. Seven News Seven 747,000
  2. Nine News Nine 688,000
  3. ABC News ABC 618,000
  4. Seven’s Tennis: 2018 Australian Open-Night 6 Seven 575,000
  5. Cricket: BBL Game 33 – Session 2 Ten 523,000
  6. Cricket: BBL Game 34 – Session 1 Ten 514,000
  7. Father Brown (R) ABC 435,000
  8. Cricket: BBL Game 34 – Session 2 Ten 435,000
  9. Grantchester (R) ABC 387,000
  10. Seven’s Tennis: 2018 Australian Open-Day 6 Seven 370,000
Sunday FTA
  1. Seven’s Tennis: 2018 Australian Open-Night 7 Seven 1,165,000
  2. Seven News Seven 1,107,000
  3. Nine News Nine 1,073,000
  4. One Day Cricket – Australia v England Game 3 Session 2Nine 976,000
  5. One Day Cricket – Australia v England Game 3 Session 1Nine 841,000
  6. Seven’s Tennis: 2018 Australian Open-Night 7 – Late Seven 643,000
  7. ABC News ABC 594,000
  8. Seven’s Tennis: 2018 Australian Open-Day 7 Seven 390,000
  9. Midsomer Murders (R) ABC 384,000
  10. One Day Cricket – Australia v England Game 3 Pre Match Nine 368,000
  11. David Attenborough’s Great Barrier Reef (R) ABC 335,000
  12. Ten Eyewitness News Ten 326,000
  13. Weekend Today Nine 292,000
  14. Customs Nine 279,000
  15. Seven’s Tennis: 2018 Australian Open-Night 7 Feed2 Seven 275,000
  16. Weekend Sunrise Seven 246,000
  17. Weekend Today Nine 228,000
  18. 60 Minutes Nine 206,000
  19. The House With Annabel Crabb (R) ABC 205,000
  20. Bull Ten 203,000
Sunday Multichannel
  1. Seven’s Tennis: 2018 Australian Open-Night Feed 2 7mate 275,000
  2. Border Security – Australia’s Front Line E2-PM 7TWO 197,000
  3. Border Security – Australia’s Front Line-PM 7TWO 179,000
  4. Fixer Upper 9Life 149,000
  5. Border Security: International E2-PM 7TWO 146,000
  6. Border Security: International-PM 7TWO 137,000
  7. Legally Blonde 9GO! 128,000
  8. Dinotrux-PM ABC2 120,000
  9. Motorway Patrol-PM 7TWO 118,000
  10. Good Bones 9Life 118,000
  11. Bananas In Pyjamas-AM ABC2 117,000
  12. Thomas And Friends-PM ABC2 115,000
  13. Noddy Toyland Detective-AM ABC2 114,000
  14. Brit Cops-PM 7TWO 114,000
  15. Play School-AM ABC2 113,000
  16. Andy’s Prehistoric Adventures ABC2 113,000
  17. Peppa Pig-PM ABC2 113,000
  18. Wildwoods ABC2 109,000
  19. Hey Duggee-PM ABC2 109,000
  20. Go Jetters ABC2 109,000
Sunday subscription tv
  1. Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 Foxtel Movies Premiere 90,000
  2. NCIS TVH!TS 54,000
  3. S.W.A.T. FOX8 52,000
  4. NCIS TVH!TS 46,000
  5. Inside Balmoral LifeStyle Channel 45,000
  6. Live: Football: A-League Melb C v Adel FOX SPORTS 501 41,000
  7. Midsomer Murders UKTV 36,000
  8. Paw Patrol Nick Jr. 33,000
  9. Shimmer And Shine Nick Jr. 32,000
  10. Bones TVH!TS 32,000
  11. Law & Order: SVU UNIVERSAL 31,000
  12. Play Along With Sam Nick Jr. 30,000
  13. The Simpsons FOX8 30,000
  14. The Simpsons FOX8 29,000
  15. Blaze And The Monster Machines Nick Jr. 29,000
  16. The Simpsons FOX8 29,000
  17. Selling Houses Australia LifeStyle Channel 28,000
  18. The Simpsons FOX8 28,000
  19. Law & Order: SVU UNIVERSAL 28,000
  20. Live: Football: A-League On Sunday FOX SPORTS 501 28,000

Media News Roundup WEEKEND

Media People

Craig McLachlan says his career — and his life — has been “annihil­ated” by claims of sexual misconduct against him, reports Jordan Baker in The Sunday Telegraph.

In an exclusive interview, the TV and theatre star admitted the show’s backstage culture could be lewd, but insisted he was innocent of the allegations against him.

With his partner, orch­estra conductor Vanessa Scammell, by his side, he conceded he had a “Benny Hill” sense of humour but said he didn’t come close “in the filth department” to other cast and crew.

“Does being cheeky and naughty equate with being a bully? No, it does not,” he said.

There were no restrictions on the interview, but, citing legal advice, the actor would not comment on the specific allegations made against him.

[Read the original]

UK super chef Gordon Ramsay’s popularity is certainly not off the boil, with the culinary TV favourite given a rock star reception in Melbourne, reports News Corp’s Fiona Byrne.

Fans queued for up to 12 hours to meet Ramsay at a Royal Doulton/Hachette Australia event at Westfield Doncaster on Saturday.

“You should see the kind of sh*t I have to eat, you should see some of the crap that gets put in front of me when we do Kitchen Nightmares or Hotel Hell or MasterChef America, not MasterChef Australia.”

Ramsay is in Australia to film MasterChef in Melbourne. However, first he plans to spend Sunday at the Australian Open.

“I’m filming Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, then Thursday flying back to Vegas where we have a new Hell’s Kitchen restaurant opening, our first ever,” he said.

[Read the original]

Catriona Rowntree hosted the Ramsay event in Melbourne, while Kerrie McCallum hosted an event in Sydney. While in Melbourne Ramsay also visted the Australian Open.

Last week was all about real estate holdings for Sydney ARN breakfast radio hosts.

 

After the revelation about Kyle Sandiland‘s new home, WSFM’s Brendan Jones was featured in The Daily Telegraph on Saturday:

It might have looked like a “cashed-up dealer” built the house in Sylvania, but that didn’t stop WSFM 101.7 Pure Gold morning radio host, Brendan “Jonesy” Jones, from buying his suburban manor nine years ago, reports News Corp’s Catherine Nikas-Boulos.

“It really looked like a drug dealer owned it,” he jokes. “I didn’t love it, but my wife did so I went to the auction and bought it. Then I walked down the road to call Helen, and I looked back at it from the end of the street and thought, ‘that’s a great house’.”

Now Jonesy, who was raised in Cronulla, has secured another property further south in the Sutherland Shire. While the new abode will add to his travel time to Macquarie Park for his breakfast radio shift, he shrugs off the distance. Getting up at 3.25am is a punish, but the trip to work at that hour is a breeze.

[Read the original]

Radio

Laughs are big business for radio power duo Dave Hughes and Kate Langbroek, who have moved their dial from KIIS FM to the national drive shift at the Hit Network, reports News Corp’s Fiona Byrne.

 

“We were like, what does it matter if someone thinks we were sacked for a day? We knew what was going on and actually deciding to go was the most painless transition ever,” Langbroek said.

“Obviously they [KIIS] would have wanted us to stay on because it was part of their vision, but for us when that opportunity [at Hit] came up, which initially we said no to, it just became a question of ‘why are we saying no?’”

Hughes said: “When we made the decision to move radio stations we thought they were going to put us off the air straight away.’

“We were hoping they would,” Langbroek said.

[Read the original]

Media News Roundup MONDAY

Investment

Foxtel has appointed Andy Lark chief marketing officer, reports The Australian’s Darren Davidson.

Lark, one of Australia’s most prominent marketers and a former vice-president of global marketing for computer firm Dell, will help spearhead efforts by chief executive Peter Tonagh to change public perceptions of the company by underscoring its cutting-edge technology and video-on-demand options.

At Foxtel, Lark will oversee the brand & content marketing and customer management & acquisitions departments. He will report to Tonagh and also take responsibility for product management and digital.

[Read the original]

Domain Group has announced the resignation of CEO Antony Catalano, who joined the business in 2013.

The company was listed on the ASX as a separate entity from Fairfax Media in November last year. Fairfax continues to hold a 60% stake in Domain.

Domain chairman Nick Falloon will act as executive chairman until a replacement for Catalano is found. A search for the next Domain CEO is currently underway.

Catalano said in a statement this morning:

“When I re-joined Fairfax in November 2013, I made a commitment to my young family that I could be there for them and do the job. It has become clear to me that doing the job of a listed company CEO the way it needs to be done means that I am not meeting that family commitment… As it stands I have been away from home for the bulk of each week and it’s not fair on the family.

“I understand and regret that the timing of this decision is unusually short from Domain’s listing. But having been in the role for four years, I resign knowing that Domain has a great management team in place and I have every confidence in them and the business continuing on its current stunning trajectory. Having worked with Fairfax Media and Domain for more than 26 years, and in my current role with Domain for over four years, I am proud of what has been achieved, most importantly seeing Domain grow into the formidable business that it is today, capable of being a stand-alone listed entity.

“I am grateful for the opportunities it has provided me and I wish the Fairfax Group of companies and my colleagues and friends great success in the future.”

The Courts

Craig McLachlan will launch defamation proceedings against Fairfax Media and the ABC after vowing to fight accusations that he sexually harassed three women during a 2014 production of The Rocky Horror Show, reports The Australian’s Matthew Westwood.

 

Lawyer Mark O’Brien said McLachlan would launch defamation proceedings against Fairfax Media and the ABC. “It’s a serious and indefensible defamation and he wants to prove in court the allegations are completely false,” O’Brien said.

[Read the original]

Television

The C and P quota system is clearly no longer serving its intended purpose for television broadcasters, writes Bridget Fair in The Australian.

[Bridget Fair is head of Corporate and Regulatory Affairs at Seven West Media and the incoming CEO of Free TV Australia.]

The average child audience for C and P programs on commercial television in 2016 was just 6,800. Many of these shows screen to fewer than 1,000 children. What this means is that C and P programming is reaching only 0.2% of the potential target audience of all Australian children.

This is despite many of these shows being award-winning, high-quality programs like Beat BugsBottersnikes and GumblesMako: Island of SecretsMaya the BeeGet Ace and Dogstar. The top-rating C program on commercial television in 2016 was Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaur on multichannel 9GO!, which screened to just 41,000 children.

[Read the original]

When journalist Georgie Gardner woke up with Today as the breakfast show’s new co-host this morning she hoped she would instantly click with viewers, reports News Corp’s Alison Stephenson.

But she knows that stepping into Lisa Wilkinson’s spot alongside Channel 9 mainstay Karl Stefanoviccomes with its risks, particularly when it came to sharing more of her opinion and personality with viewers.

Much controversy has already been made about the tension that supposedly exists between Gardner and Stefanovic, with some suggestions the pair don’t get along.

But the 46-year-old said the ongoing speculation about their relationship had been “hyped up a fair bit”.

[Read the original]

Nine has finalised a deal to nab back broadcast rights for all episodes of The Big Bang Theory, reports TV Tonight.

In 2015 Seven swooped on rerun rights of archival episodes, leaving Nine with new episodes, and ran them on several channels. But in recent months they have disappeared off Seven as Nine finalised a new deal to be the free-to-air exclusive home for the entire brand.

“All the Big Bangs are back on Nine,” Nine Network Program Director Hamish Turner said.

“Every episode. Every new episode.”

[Read the original]

Radio

Kate Langbroek and Dave “Hughesy” Hughes have taken a swipe at other on-air partnerships, claiming their longevity is due to their “talent”, reports News Corp’s Karlie Rutherford.

The comedy pair, who from Monday take over Hamish and Andy’s drive spot on [SCA’s Hit Network stations], are one of the longest-running duos in the country.

“There is a perception that what we do just happens. Like magic. But both of us are very good at what we do,” Langbroek said.

Hughes adds: “It takes talent – it’s as simple as that. We are very talented and I’m not being funny, I’m being serious.”

Hughes tells Confidential they decided to switch stations because “in negotiations with both parties, [SCA] were more attractive”.

[Read the original]

Sports Media

When ESPN executive Haydn Arndt saw 2.08m basketballer Ben Simmons play during a ­national tour in Australia with Louisiana State University, he wasted little time in “doubling down” on NBA coverage, reports The Australian’s Darren Davidson.

Last year’s NBA regular ­season ranks as ESPN’s most-viewed season on record in ­Australia, with 450 million ­minutes of live broadcasts ­consumed via distributor Foxtel, a year-on-year rise of 64% driven by the extra coverage.

Arndt has expanded the ­Sydney-based pool of journalists to 35 [filing for ESPN.com] from the low single-digit range, to generate differentiated local content.

It comes ahead of ESPN joining with Seven West Media later this year to bring the X Games to Australia for the first time.

[Read the original]

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