Monday September 16, 2019
Eureka Productions fast-tracks growth with former Seven executive
Proost starts in his new role on Monday September 16.
Proost was most recently head of unscripted at Seven Studios. He was critical to the success of Seven’s My Kitchen Rules where he was the original executive producer and he then worked on the format, which has been sold to broadcasters around the world.
His other credits include House Rules, Zumbo’s Just Desserts and Bride and Prejudice.
Prior to joining Seven, Proost worked on other hit reality franchises including The Amazing Race, Big Brother, Beauty and the Geek and Gladiators.
Eureka has been labelled one of the world’s fastest growing production companies. In Australia, Eureka’s growing slate includes The Amazing Race (10), The Real Dirty Dancing (Seven), Crikey, It’s the Irwins (Animal Planet), The Chefs’ Line (SBS) and Thrones 360 (Foxtel).
In America, Eureka’s slate includes the highest rated new series of the summer, Holey Moley on ABC. Eureka is also the home of the award-winning series Dating Around (Netflix), Pick, Flip and Drive (Facebook), and Deadly Cults (Oxygen).
Company founders Paul Franklin and Chris Culvenor indicated to Mediaweek that several new series are in production and set to be announced shortly in the US and Australia.
Chris Culvenor and Paul Franklin
Paul Franklin, Eureka Productions CO-CEO, said of the arrival of Proost: “We are thrilled and excited to have one of the very finest unscripted producers in Australia and the world join Eureka. There is no one more respected in the production community than Rikkie and his appointment will see Eureka grow from strength to strength.”
Rikkie Proost added: “I’m most excited to be part of Eureka and cannot wait to throw some clay with arguably the most creative, exciting and innovative content team in the world right now.”
Proost departed Seven earlier this year. Seven Studios later appointed former Nine executive Andrew Backwell as head of production.
Radio love story: Triple M’s The Big Breakfast farewells Robin Bailey
“Robin’s husband Sean has been battling cancer for some time now, and Robin has made the decision to step away from the microphone to care for him and her family at this time.”
Morris said Robin’s second time around at SCA had been another successful chapter in a stellar radio career.
“Robin has enjoyed overall number one ratings results with The Big Breakfast, giving her the distinction of achieving number one breakfast show results for three different Brisbane radio stations in three different formats. She has also been part of the breakfast team that delivered the largest audience result in Triple M’s history early this year.
“Beyond her obvious talent, Robin has played an outstanding role for her team in the face of the sort of adversity that nobody should have to experience. There have been too many mornings to count where her bright personality and professionalism has masked the fact she may not have slept the night prior, or had just come to work after spending the night in hospital.”
“Everyone at SCA will miss Robin, and while she won’t be behind the microphone with us, Robin will never be far from our thoughts.
“We have been working closely with Robin on succession planning and will announce more on this in the near future.”
Bailey’s last day with Triple M is this Friday 20 September. The Big Breakfast will continue with Bailey’s co-hosts Marto and Nick Cody.
Robin and Sean shared their story with the Sunday Mail on the weekend here.
Triple M and the Sunday Mail published a letter from Sean Pickwell:
Why A Terminal Cancer Diagnosis Was The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me
Life can be so much better when you don’t have much of it left.
It sounds odd, and it still even feels a bit odd reading it back now, but I have to say it’s true. My life has been turned around since getting the news in July 2018 that I had six months to live.
Poor old Mike our GP didn’t know where to look as we bantered silly gags back and forth, in between tears and hugs. Both of our heads were spinning, and we had no idea what was going on, or the future implications of what he had just said.
One thing Mike said, that triggered some pondering at my end was: “Think about how you want to spend the next six months. Do you want to spend it in hospitals around the world chasing treatments that very likely aren’t there?
“Or would you spend it with those you love, doing the things you’ve wanted to experience?”
Why does it take someone with a terminal diagnosis to make you realise all the things you should have done years ago?
Let’s not sugar coat this though. This shit has a crappy ending. This toxic and venomous cancer is destroying my body but what has come from this journey is almost impossible to really describe. I hope my words can inspire you to take some action now, before it’s too late.
News Corp launches Australia-wide comparison site Schools Hub
Supported by an editorial and marketing campaign across every metro, major regional and local News Corp publication, Schools Hub will offer parents unprecedented insights about schools from around the corner, around the state and around the nation.
Schools Hub will form part of a new education vertical to include curriculum advice, expert tips for parents, University and TAFE news as well as the latest school and education news.
Schools Hub will be released in chapters over three months ahead of it becoming an annual fixture on the nation’s education calendar.
The first chapter, released this week, will explore student-teacher ratios in classrooms, enrolments and school capacity.
Chapter two, to be revealed in October, will deep dive into attendance while chapter three, published in November-December, will put school funding, income and fees under the spotlight.
Executive editor Kathy Lipari (picrtured) said Schools Hub would unlock a range of insights, from highly specialised hyper-local comparisons between local schools through to state-wide and national perspectives.
“Through our Schools Hub campaign we will be publishing journalism that combines our news instincts with the science of data,” Lipari said.
In a first for News Corp Australia, all metropolitan, major regional and local mastheads will provide access to the data exclusively for subscribers, with every school from the bush to the suburbs and from public to private schools able to be analysed.
“Schools Hub’s sheer scale reflects the fact you won’t find a community anywhere in Australia where our kids’ education isn’t a priority and this makes it particularly relevant for all of our audiences simultaneously,” Lipari added.
“This really represents the data that every parent, grandparent, teacher and student wants to get their hands on, making this a one-stop data shop for our schools.”
She said the Schools Hub campaign reflected News Corp Australia’s increasing focus on innovative and ambitious data solutions to benefit both its audiences and commercial clients by matching journalism’s core fundamentals with pioneering projects.
“Embedding data and analytics into our everyday decision-making including in our journalism makes us even more accountable to our audiences and customers. The value we deliver is measurable.
“The fact is we reach some 16 million people across Australia every month, with our digital assets alone reaching some 10 million Australians.
“While any one of our publications enjoys varying strength in their individual markets, combining all of them takes the depth and extent of our audience reach to an entirely new level.
“Not only will we publish the top-50 lists as part of School Hub but every single school’s data will be available like never before.”
In addition, a new national web page, education.news.com.au will direct audiences to News Corp Australia mastheads to access a wealth of education news.
The campaign is supported by a multi-platform, integrated marketing strategy across News Corp Australia’s digital brands, including Kidspot and Kids News, as well as print, radio, out-of-home advertising and social media.
Bauer launches The Healthy Mummy magazine with Rhian Allen
Allen is the founder of the health program exclusively for mums, The Healthy Mummy, and the new magazine is promising inspiration, advice and tips for mums dedicated to transforming their health, lives and bodies.
The Healthy Mummy magazine offers information and advice that mums are looking for including healthy recipes, eating plans, tips on eating out and staying on track. The magazine also offers advice on weight loss, exercise plans, inspirational stories from community members and more.
The Healthy Mummy has helped hundreds of thousands of mums lose over 3 million kilograms collectively.
The Healthy Mummy website launched in 2010 with the aim of empowering mums to live healthier lives. With over 1.5 million members in The Healthy Mummy community, it has gone on to become the biggest mums only healthy eating and weight loss program, offering recipes, eating and exercise plans, and gorgeous products for mums.
The Healthy Mummy launched into the UK in 2018 and into the USA in 2019.
The 160-page magazine retails at $9.99.
Former exec claims MTV will be a new Network 10 multichannel
Rob McKnight, a “washed-up producer with nothing to lose”, and his team at the TV blog he publishes, TV Blackbox, reported today that Network 10 will add MTV Australia as a new multichannel to their free-to-air offering, once their parent company CBS re-merges with Viacom.
McKnight has been upsetting several networks lately and clearly still has good contacts at his previous employer. McKnight is also a former Nine employee, so watch TV Blackbox for news about its forthcoming Upfront.
TV Blackbox explained MTV is a flagship channel for Viacom Media Networks, a division of Viacom which recently announced it was re-merging with CBS, Network 10’s parent company.
TV Blackbox partner Steve Molk wrote the new company, ViacomCBS, will give the Australian broadcaster access to thousands of programs, and allow it to work within the “virtuous ecosystem” CBS chief creative officer David Nevins spoke about recently.
MTV is currently available to subscribers of Foxtel and Fetch TV.
If the speculation is correct, it is not known what format the free-to-air channel would take and how many shows or music clips would be shown.
Network 10 nor Viacom would comment this morning on the speculation.
If MTV was part of the 10 channel line-up could it mean another gig for Osher Günsberg? The former Channel [V] announcer has a long history with music TV including years at the music channel and then hosting Australian Idol for 10.
However Günsberg told Mediaweek this morning hosting four primetime series for 10 and two podcasts a week meant the new father was close to capacity when it comes to media work.
Week 37 TV Ratings: Scott Cam and Steve Smith Nine’s secrets of success
In the week-to-date all people shares Nine has eased away to its biggest lead this year with 29.8% to Seven’s 29.5%.
Driving Nine’s hottest properties were two iconic Aussies – The Block’s Scott Cam and the Australian cricket team’s Steve Smith.
Cam fronted The Block on a week where controversy kept it on the media radar with last Sunday’s episode the most-watched show of the week and the week’s other three episodes all top 10.
Steve Smith was almost the only thing stopping a UK Ashes victory and two separate sessions of the fourth and fifth Test (one of 9Gem and one on Nine) each found a home in the top 20 this week.
Nine’s next best were 60 Minutes and A Current Affair which both found a place in the top 20 25-54.
Seven was a clear second in another week it didn’t have any winners at 7.30pm. The channel’s primetime strength remains its news bulletins while Australia’s Got Talent made the top 20 all people.
Home and Away made the top 20 25-54.
Seven was the clear leader in breakfast and mornings and late afternoon.
10 remains a fierce competitor under 50 on the nights it has either Australian Survivor or The Bachelor at 7.30pm and then again later in the night when Have You Been Paying Attention? and Gogglebox screen. Those episodes in Week 37 were all top 10 in key demos 54 and under.
Outside of those timeslots it is less competitive and it was beat up badly on Sunday, Friday and Saturday with shares under 10%.
10 is all about under 50 though and the total TV audience watching over time. With that in mind 10 provided these stats this week:
With 7 day catch-up numbers in, Australian Survivor continued to break records with its Tuesday September 3 ep achieving the series biggest ever 7 day BVOD audience (93,000) on 10 Play – the seventh time the record has been broken this season.
My Life Is Murder also achieved its biggest ever 7 day BVOD audience (24,000). Australian Survivor last Monday and Sunday achieved total audiences of 1.05m and 1.04m respectively, lifting their overnight audiences over 30%.
The Week 36 Wednesday and Thursday episodes of The Bachelor Australia also saw total audiences of over one million growing 50% and 59% respectively. Have You Been Paying Attention? September 2 episode climbed 54% to a total audience of 1.15 million while My Life Is Murder more than doubled its overnight audience to 713,000.
ABC’s biggest audience tuned in for Endemol Shine Australia’s Old People’s Home for 4 Year Olds with 658,000 watching. Also over 600,000 (in descending order) for the channel were ABC News, Mad As Hell, Utopia and Hard Quiz.
On SBS an audience of 264,000 voted the Wednesday doco 9/11 Escape From the Towers #1. Next best was the associated doco 9/11: 102 Minutes That Changed America with 261,000.
ARIA Chart: Mallrat joins top 10 as Post Malone keeps Taylor from the top
Singles
Chart history for Tones And I as Dance Monkey ranks #1 on the ARIA Singles Chart for a seventh straight week. She now equals the record for most weeks at #1 on the ARIA Singles Chart by an Australian female solo artist, joining Kylie Minogue’s Locomotion (#1 August 1987). The record for the longest time at #1 by any Aussie artist belongs to Justice Crew who staked out nine weeks at #1 in the first half of 2014 with Que Sera. Tones and I is performing at the AFL Grand Final on the last Saturday of this month.
Otherwise the charts belongs to Post Malone this week with a #1 album and 13 separate entries on the Singles Chart. His highest position is Circles, which sits at #2 in its second week after debuting at #5. Nine of the 10 new entries this week belong to Post Malone. His album’s title track Hollywood’s Bleeding is the highest debut at #17 and it was joined on the chart by Saint-Tropez (#19), Die For Me (#23), Enemies (#28), Take What You Want (#30), On The Road (#35), A Thousand Bad Times (#39), Allergic (#45) and Staring At The Sun (#48).
The only other artist to crack the top 50 on debut this week was Camila Cabello with Liar at #42. The track comes from her forthcoming second album. She also remains top five with Señorita, duet with Shawn Mendes, with the former #1 single spending a 12th week on the chart.
Album
Post Malone’s Hollywood’s Bleeding is the American hip hop artist’s third album and his second #1 ARIA album. The new album includes tracks with Ozzy Osbourne, Future, Halsey, SZA and Travis Scott.
Just three albums were new to the top 50 this week. The other two were:
#6 Melanie Martinez with K-12, which is released at the same time as the film of the same name from the talented singer/songwriter/screenwriter and director. Her second album becomes her first to go top 10 in Australia.
#10 Mallrat with Driving Music is the third EP from Brisbane musician/singer/rapper Grace Shaw. An Australian tour wrapped at the end of August and this week Mallrat will be playing dates in north-east USA and Canada.
TV Ratings Analysis: September 15
Monday Week 38 2019
By James Manning
• Nine News 1,103,000
• Seven News 958,000
• ABC News 597,000
• Insiders 357,000
• The Project 249,000/349,000
• 10 News First 250,000
• Offsiders 178,000
• SBS World News 147,000
Breakfast TV
• Sunrise 252,000
• Today 173,000
Seven
At last the Australia’s Got Talent grand final is on the horizon. The last semi-final screened last night with 659,000 watching after 700,000 watched the semi final a week ago.
THE 2019 AGT GRAND FINALISTS ARE:
Olina Loau, NSW, 15-Year-Old Singer (Jessica Mauboy Golden Buzzer)
Sienna Osborne, NSW, 13-Year-Old Dancer (Judges’ Choice)
Captain Ruin, VIC, Knife Thrower (Joel Creasey Golden Buzzer)
Lil Kookies, NSW, Junior Dance Crew (Judges’ Choice)
Jennifer Anderson, VIC, Rock/Opera Singing Mum (Hans Golden Buzzer)
Lioz Shem Tov, Israel, Comedic Magician (Judges’ Choice)
aKrobatiKa, NSW, Acro-Dance Troupe (Todd McKenney Golden Buzzer)
Umit Bali, NSW, Comedian (Judges’ Choice)
Mitch Tambo, VIC, Indigenous Artist (Natalie Bassingthwaighte Golden Buzzer)
Kristy Sellars, VIC, Pole Artist (Judges’ Choice)
Sunday Night then featured a report from Steve Pennells taking a mother home to visit Chernobyl. The audience was on 400,000 after 390,000 for the previous episode.
Nine
The last night of Test cricket for the foreseeable future on Nine helped the broadcaster to a network share of 42.5%. The primary channel was on 25.5%, well ahead of Seven on 17.8% while the primary shares for 10 and the ABC were both just under 8%.
The cricket isn’t helping shares elsewhere, but Nine is keeping its big audiences tuned into The Block with another 1.1m+ Sunday audience after 1.14m a week ago. Last night was the reveal of the master ensuites, sort of. Scott Cam blew time after some work finishing of the various rooms and then tried some standup comedy before reading out the scores. He also noted the show is at the halfway mark. Style guru Neale Whitaker said Mark and Mitch were displaying Chutzpah as they show off their various rooms. They were perhaps lucky to win though with what was dubbed a “party penthouse” against some great bathrooms, work which included one bathroom with a tap in the ceiling!
60 Minutes followed with Allison Langdon spending time with the Backstreet Boys on tour, which included watching from the front rows at one of their concerts. The episode did 509,000 after 665,000 a week ago.
On 9Gem the final day of The Ashes saw Australia crumble as it fell well short of the target of 400,000 in its second innings. The audience was 593,000 for the first session, but as the wickets fell, the number dropped to 247,000 for the second session.
Sunday afternoon sport on Nine saw audiences of 500,000 for the last of the first weekend of NRL finals. The grand final of the Super Netball did 187,000.
10
The Project was the broadcaster’s biggest show with 349,000 after 7pm.
Another Sunday of Ambulance Australia failed to crack 300,000. But it was up week-on-week – from 252,000 to 272,000.
A new episode of Instinct did 187,000 followed by a repeat on 131,000.
ABC
Richard Attenborough was called on again for the 7.40pm slot with Empire of the Ants on 333,000.
Les Norton did 313,000 (320,000 last week) and Glitch was on 85,000.
SBS
Michael Portillo returned to the 7.30pm timeslot with his wonderful Great Indian Railway Journeys, which did 194,000.
The doco Backtrack Boys from Catherine Scott then did 104,000.
Week 37-38 TV: Friday
| FRIDAY METRO | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven | Nine | 10 | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 7.7% | 7 | 23.8% | 9 | 22.6% | 10 | 7.7% | SBS One | 4.0% |
| ABC KIDS/ ABC COMEDY | 2.0% | 7TWO | 2.4% | GO! | 3.3% | 10 Bold | 2.3% | VICELAND | 0.9% |
| ABC ME | 0.5% | 7mate | 7.3% | GEM | 6.6% | 10 Peach | 1.6% | Food Net | 1.0% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.1% | 7flix | 2.6% | 9Life | 1.6% | NITV | 0.1% | ||
| 7Food | 0.4% | SBS World Movies | 0.5% | ||||||
| TOTAL | 11.2% | 36.6% | 34.1% | 11.7% | 6.5% | ||||
| SATURDAY METRO | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven | Nine | 10 | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 8.6% | 7 | 24.9% | 9 | 20.0% | 10 | 6.5% | SBS One | 4.6% |
| ABC KIDS/ ABC COMEDY | 2.6% | 7TWO | 2.5% | GO! | 3.8% | 10 Bold | 2.4% | VICELAND | 0.7% |
| ABC ME | 0.6% | 7mate | 5.3% | GEM | 4.9% | 10 Peach | 2.2% | Food Net | 0.9% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.4% | 7flix | 3.8% | 9Life | 2.4% | NITV | 0.3% | ||
| 7Food | 0.6% | SBS World Movies | 1.1% | ||||||
| TOTAL | 13.1% | 37.1% | 31.2% | 11.1% | 7.5% | ||||
| SUNDAY METRO | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven | Nine | 10 | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 7.9% | 7 | 17.8% | 9 | 23.5% | 10 | 7.4% | SBS One | 4.1% |
| ABC KIDS/ ABC COMEDY | 2.9% | 7TWO | 3.0% | GO! | 3.9% | 10 Bold | 2.8% | VICELAND | 0.5% |
| ABC ME | 0.4% | 7mate | 2.9% | GEM | 12.7% | 10 Peach | 1.9% | Food Net | 1.0% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.3% | 7flix | 2.2% | 9Life | 2.4% | NITV | 0.3% | ||
| 7Food | 0.6% | SBS World Movies | 0.6% | ||||||
| TOTAL | 12.5% | 26.5% | 42.5% | 12.2% | 6.5% | ||||
| SUNDAY REGIONAL | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven Affiliates | Nine Affiliates | 10 Affiliates | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 9.9% | 7 | 18.6% | 9 | 21.3% | WIN | 6.5% | SBS One | 4.3% |
| ABC KIDS/ ABC COMEDY | 3.1% | 7TWO | 3.7% | GO! | 5.2% | WIN Bold | 2.6% | VICELAND | 0.7% |
| ABC ME | 0.8% | 7mate | 3.2% | GEM | 9.5% | WIN Peach | 1.8% | Food Net | 1.0% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.3% | 7flix (Excl. Tas/WA) | 2.4% | 9Life | 2.5% | Sky News on WIN | 1.0% | NITV | 0.3% |
| 7food (QLD only) | 0.5% | ||||||||
| TOTAL | 15.1% | 28.3% | 38.4% | 11.9% | 6.3% | ||||
| SUNDAY METRO ALL TV | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTA | STV | ||||||||
| 87.2% | 12.8% | ||||||||
All people ratings
Friday top 10
- Seven’s AFL: Friday Night Football Finals Seven 850,000
- Seven News Seven 790,000
- Nine News 6:30 Nine 765,000
- Nine News Nine 764,000
- Seven News / Today Tonight Seven 758,000
- ABC News ABC 527,000
- The Chase Australia Seven 508,000
- Seven’s AFL: Friday Night Football Finals – Pre Match Seven 456,000
- Better Homes And Gardens Seven 455,000
- Rugby League Final Series Qf1 Nine 439,000
Saturday top 10
- Seven News – Seven 907,000
- Seven’s AFL: Saturday Night Football Finals Seven 723,000
- ABC News-Sa ABC 587,000
- Seven’s AFL: Saturday Night Football Finals – P Seven 567,000
- Rugby League Final Series Qf2 Nine 457,000
- Seven’s AFL: Saturday Night Football Finals – P-Game Seven 450,000
- Rugby League Final Series Ef1 –P-Game Nine 449,000
- Rugby League Final Series Ef1 Nine 337,000
- Nine News Saturday Nine 318,000
- Weekend Sunrise – Seven 261,000
Sunday FTA
- The Block – Nine 1,139,000
- Nine News Sunday Nine 1,103,000
- Seven News – Seven 958,000
- Australia’s Got Talent – Seven 659,000
- ABC News Sunday ABC 597,000
- The Mid-Year Ashes: Fifth Test -Eng V Aus -Session 1 -D4 9Gem 593,000
- 60 Minutes Nine 509,000
- Rugby League Final Series Ef2 Nine 458,000
- Sunday Night Seven 400,000
- The Sunday Project 7PM 10 349,000
- The Mid-Year Ashes: Fifth Test -Eng V Aus -Lunch -D4 9Gem 346,000
- Attenborough And The Empire Of The Ants (R) ABC 333,000
- Les Norton ABC 313,000
- Ambulance Australia: Ultimate Emergencies 10 272,000
- Weekend Sunrise – Seven 252,000
- 10 News First 10 250,000
- The Sunday Project 6.30PM 10 249,000
- Insiders AM ABC 248,000
- The Mid-Year Ashes: Fifth Test -Eng V Aus -Session 2 -D4 9Gem 247,000
- Landline PM ABC 246,000
Sunday Multichannel
- The Mid-Year Ashes: Fifth Test -Eng V Aus 9Gem 593,000
- The Mid-Year Ashes: Fifth Test -Eng V Aus 9Gem 346,000
- The Mid-Year Ashes: Fifth Test -Eng V Aus 9Gem 247,000
- Bluey AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 162,000
- Border Security – Australia’s Front Line 7TWO 139,000
- The Mid-Year Ashes: Fifth Test -Eng V Aus 9Gem 137,000
- Bondi Rescue Ep 3 (R) 10 Bold 131,000
- Border Security – Australia’s Front Line 7TWO 129,000
- Back To The Future 9GO! 129,000
- Floogals ABCKIDS/COMEDY 129,000
- Heathrow: Britain’s Busiest Airport PM 7TWO 128,000
- Peppa Pig AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 125,000
- Kiri And Lou PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 124,000
- Go Jetters ABCKIDS/COMEDY 122,000
- Peppa Pig PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 122,000
- Bananas In Pyjamas AM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 113,000
- Dinosaur Train ABCKIDS/COMEDY 111,000
- Insiders AM ABC NEWS 109,000
- Star Trek: Beyond 9GO! 105,000
- PJ Masks PM ABCKIDS/COMEDY 105,000
Sunday STV
- Live: NRL Ef#1 Eels V Broncos FOX LEAGUE 318,000
- Live: Supercars Auckland FOX SPORTS 506 173,000
- Live: Supercars The Grid FOX SPORTS 506 110,000
- Live: Big League Wrap FOX LEAGUE 108,000
- Live: Supercars Auckland FOX SPORTS 506 105,000
- Live: Finals Footy On Fox FOX LEAGUE 102,000
- Live: Supercars Auckland Supports FOX SPORTS 506 92,000
- Live: Supercars Live FOX SPORTS 506 90,000
- Live: Supercars Trackside FOX SPORTS 506 84,000
- Live: Supercars Live FOX SPORTS 506 74,000
- Live: FIBA Basketball WC: 3rd TBA V TBA FOX SPORTS MORE 70,000
- Live: Supercars Live FOX SPORTS 506 62,000
- Live: NRL Women’s: Dragons V Broncos FOX LEAGUE 60,000
- Live: Supercars Auckland FOX SPORTS 506 59,000
- Live: Supercars Auckland Supports FOX SPORTS 506 57,000
- Live: Motogp San Marino FOX SPORTS 506 55,000
- Outsiders Sky News Live 54,000
- Finals Footy With Matty Johns FOX LEAGUE 52,000
- Blaze And The Monster Machines Nick Jr. 50,000
- Ryan’s Mystery Playdate Nick Jr. 50,000
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
Facebook claims ACCC ‘factual errors’, denies code of conduct needed
In a forceful rebuke to ACCC chairman Rod Sims’s 613-page report, handed down in July, Facebook also rejected the watchdog’s recommendation of a new code of conduct formulated with media companies to pay for fair use of journalistic content and to share data on news rankings.
Facebook claimed the code – which media organisations have welcomed as a possible way to compensate for years of use of their content by the platforms – would “unfairly shelter media” companies that didn’t need the protection of a regulator.
Facebook claimed the ACCC – using old-fashioned journalistic parlance – “buries the lead” in not making clear that Facebook has not been found to have engaged in anti-competitive behaviour, despite an 18-month investigation.
“The final report buries the lead: after an exhaustive review of our business, there is no finding of anti-competitive conduct by Facebook. The final report instead concludes that significant remedies are warranted, even in the absence of any finding of anti-competitive conduct.”
The AFR’s Max Mason reports:
Instead of the ACCC’s proposed code of conduct, Facebook said a digital news distributor code would be more appropriate. It said the code should be between users and digital services, rather than any code between platforms and media businesses.
Facebook said it supported 15 recommendations of the 29 made in the [ACCC’s] final report – 23 core recommendations and six sub-recommendations – but opposed five and noted four.
Digital review overlooks Facebook's benefits, understates media power
The Digital Platforms Inquiry has considered an important range of issues in Australia that are critical to get right as they impact the availability of choice and opportunities for millions of Australians and small business owners that use our services every day.
Technology provides overwhelming benefits for Australian consumers, advertisers and small businesses and has democratised the sharing of ideas and information.
In our submission to the Australian government on the Digital Platforms Inquiry, we have proposed constructive solutions to help work towards a smart regulatory framework for the future of the internet.
Our aim is to achieve clear rules that deliver economy-wide privacy protection, data portability and a user focused digital news distribution model, while preserving the many benefits that technology delivers to Australians.
We support 20 of the final report’s 29 findings and recommendations in some form, however, the devil is in the detail and it is clear that there is more work to do to identify the best policy frameworks for the internet.
Newsagent home delivery ends: Nine joins News in subs overhaul
Nine wrote to newsagents last week saying it was cancelling existing agreements covering home delivery and retail distribution from March next year and would seek discussions with outlets about continuing to sell newspapers in store.
“While Nine has terminated the Existing Agreements, it remains committed to the newsagent retail channel for its publications,” according to a letter signed by the director of circulation, contracts and clients, Wayne Couzins.
Nine said its move had been sparked by News Corp deciding to consolidate distribution of its newspapers across the Sydney metro area with one distributor.
The move was announced in June and followed 18 months of consultation with newsagents, a spokesman for News said.
The new arrangements are expected to see newsagent home delivery services replaced by a single delivery company that would be more efficient. But it would also increase pressure on newsagents to hand over the names and addresses of customers who have their papers home delivered through arrangements with the newsagent, rather than the publisher.
Seven Studios holding the door open for future deal with Tim Worner
Therese Hegarty, who was appointed CEO of Seven Studios in May, says original content is “very valuable”, particularly given the explosion of subscriber streaming platforms such as Netflix, Foxtel Now, Stan, Kayo Sports and the soon-to-be-launched Disney+.
“To accelerate the growth of the business, strategic investment, mergers and acquisitions is always a great tool for acceleration,” Hegarty told The Australian. “So nothing’s off the table for us, we’re looking at everything. I think we could unlock more value out of the Seven Studios intellectual property through a strategic partnership.”
Hegarty was coy on a possible production deal with Worner, who is enjoying a break following 25 years with Seven West. “Tim’s an incredible executive, and as far as I know, he’s currently subject to a holdback, but you know we’re interested in partnering with anyone who’s got great content,” she said.
Foxtel ramps up Project Ares ahead of launch of 'Kayo's sister'
The News Corp-controlled pay-TV provider has been working on Project Ares for almost a year, following its release of the sports streaming service Kayo last November.
Sources with an understanding of the project told The Australian Financial Review that Foxtel had set up a team on the same floor as Kayo at Fox Sports headquarters in Artarmon – separate from Foxtel headquarters in North Ryde – as it works to prepare a launch of a new drama and entertainment streaming service.
Foxtel is looking at streaming to help it deliver growth as it faces headwinds in its traditional broadcast business.
It has hired staff and is believed to be seeking a chief executive to run the service, similar to Foxtel’s hiring former Amaysim boss Julian Ogrin as Kayo chief executive.
News Brands
ABC books Bankstown boot camp to reconnect with burbs
As part of the push, ABC chairwoman Ita Buttrose and managing director David Anderson will be among dozens of staff heading to the south-west Sydney suburb of Bankstown in late September for a two-day planning workshop focused on making content that is more relevant to average Australians.
Participants will discuss local issues, eat at local restaurants and speak with community groups.
ABC head of news Gaven Morris said the move was a “value-for-money proposition [as] Australians are taxpayers and paying for the ABC”.
Morris conceded there had been “some parts of the community that we don’t serve as well as we could be”. Fixing this would involve a closer look at the way stories are commissioned as well as the topics covered, with transport and hospitals likely to be given closer attention.
Television
Entertainment giant registering HBO Max in Australia
The WarnerMedia-owned business revealed the new streaming service in July with a catalogue lineup of 10,000 hours of Max Originals and existing titles to be launched in the US in the first half of 2020.
There have been no details released about an Australian expansion, however Home Box Office Inc lodged a trademark application last week for HBO Max locally in a move that will spark speculation about the company’s plans for international audiences.
In the US, HBO Max will have exclusive streaming rights for all 236 episodes of Friends, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air and Pretty Little Liars.
Hannah Gadsby wins, kicks off Australia's Emmy campaign
Gadsby took home the Emmy for outstanding writing for a variety special.
The award was presented at the first of three Emmy ceremonies; because of the large number of categories two “creative arts” ceremonies are held a week before the “prime-time” Emmy telecast.
Nanette, which the 41-year-old comedian wrote and starred in, was nominated in two categories: for outstanding writing and outstanding variety special (pre-recorded).
Gadsby’s win leaves Australia with seven potential Emmy wins still on its radar.
Melbourne cinematographer Germain McMicking is nominated in the outstanding cinematography for a limited series or movie category for his work on HBO’s True Detective.
And Zoe White has been nominated in the outstanding cinematography for a single-camera series (one hour) category for her work on Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale.
One of Australia’s most decorated Emmy winners, production designer Deborah Riley has been nominated in the outstanding production design for a narrative period or fantasy program (one hour or more) category for her work on the final season of Game of Thrones.
Sydney-born musician Jasper Leak is nominated for outstanding music supervision for the Netflix special Quincy, while producer Anna Dokoza‘s short-form Netflix series Special is nominated in the outstanding short-form comedy or drama series category.
And two Australian creative designers – Patrick Clair and Raoul Marks – are nominated in the outstanding main title design for their work on the opening title sequence of HBO’s True Detective.
Australian TV legend Paul Cronin has died, aged 81
Best known for his iconic roles as Dave Sullivan in the much-loved series The Sullivans and Gary Hogan in Matlock Police, Cronin won five silver Logies and was crowned the King of Moomba in 1980.
He was a passionate AFL supporter; he was awarded the licence to establish the Brisbane Bears AFL team in 1986 and was president of the club from 1987 to 1989.
Daughters Katherine, Jane, Susanne and Jules were by his side when he passed away Friday night.
“He was the most wonderful father, he was protective, he would have done everything for his girls. We loved him so much, he adored mum so much,” Susanne said.
At the height of his career Cronin was one of the most recognisable faces on Australian TV. His other credits included Homicide, Division 4, Solo One, Mathew and Son and The Flying Doctors.
He was also well known for a series of drink driving ads in the early 1980s with the tag line, ‘What sort of a friend are you, would you let a friend drive home if he’s had too much to drink?’.
Paul Cronin, Australian actor who helped set up Brisbane Bears, dies
He was also a passionate AFL supporter and helped set up the Brisbane Bears, serving as president of the club from 1987 to 1989.
In a statement, the Brisbane Lions, the club that eventually replaced the Bears, said its players would wear two black armbands when they played GWS Giants tonight, as a mark of respect for Cronin as well as former St Kilda great and Richmond coach Danny Frawley, who died in a car crash on Monday.
Cronin was perhaps best known for playing motorcycle policeman Gary Hogan in Matlock Police and Dave Sullivan in The Sullivans.
Cronin made his mark as ‘archetypal white Aussie dad’.
Actor Sigrid Thornton, who worked with Cronin on The Sullivans, said his passing was a “really sad loss”.
“Paul was loved by everybody with whom he worked — he was a very warm, generous gentleman,” Thornton said.
Lawsuit unlikely over Edwina Bartholomew tweet about Seb Costello
Heavily pregnant Bartholomew replied to a video of Costello reporting outside the Victorian state parliament on Thursday with a comment that she later deleted.
It was then reported that Channel 9 were in talks to decide how to proceed legally, with a possible defamation suit in the works.
But sources at Channel 7 say there was no way their rival would want to take this to the courts.
“There is no way in God’s earth Nine will have this play out in a courtroom,” the source said. “They are bluffing by saying they will take legal action.”
The tweet stayed up for 50 minutes before it was deleted.
Anne Edmonds on ‘unstable’ characters + why Aussie comedy doesn’t rate
The Melbourne comedian joined the likes of Hugh Sheridan, Jude Bolton, Jamie Durie and Jessica Rowe to head to West Virginia where the iconic 1987 movie was filmed.
As well as revisiting the venue of the fictional “Kellerman’s Resort” where Baby was indeed saved from being put in the corner by Johnny, the celebrities were given dance lessons and performed in front of Dirty Dancing superfans.
The unexpected offer to join the show came as Edmonds was knee-deep in her latest stand-up show What’s Wrong With You? at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
While she’s appeared on Have You Been Paying Attention? and The Project, this could be middle Australia’s first extended taste of the comedian known as “Eddo”.
“I did it for fun (not exposure),” Edmonds clarifies.
“I know what the mainstream can be like. I’ve had them turn on me before, so I know what that’s like, too. As a comic, I’m always myself no matter what. They’ll either take to that or they won’t. They rest is up to Twitter I guess. Tweet me if you want.”
That “turn” came in May 2018 when Edmonds went on The Project as her character Helen Bidou, the sarong-loving, spray-tanned fashion expert from ABC breakfast TV show parody Get Krackin’.
Twitter users call Bidou “woeful” and that The Project needed to “get her off air”. Edmonds found it hilarious.
Seven promises 1 minute ad breaks for Secret Bridesmaids’ Business
Seven will screen 4 x 1 minute breaks across all six episodes, in a bold move to give viewers an experience much closer to the streaming model. It’s a vote of confidence in the series and good news for viewers.
The series, based loosely on a play of the same name by Elizabeth Coleman, draws upon the Mornington Peninsula for much of its backdrop. It features Abbie Cornish, Katie McGrath, Georgina Haig, Alexander England, Oliver Ackland, Dan Spielman, Annie Jones and Nicholas Bell.