Business of Media
New tool cuts wait for US TV shows from up to 20 days to 24 hours
A new classification tool will help online streaming services speed up the time it takes to assess new movies and TV shows from up to 20 days to 24 hours, reports Nine Publishing’s Edmund Tadros.
US-based media company Spherex, which already provides age ratings for more than 100 countries, has developed a version of its classification tool designed to emulate the Australian standards for ratings.
The more than one dozen streaming services operating in Australia will now be able to use the Spherex tool to more quickly and cheaply classify overseas-made content and Australia-made content.
It currently takes up to 20 days for a standard classification rating, or five working days for a priority application. The new tool will make a classification within 24 hours.
Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland said the new tool would help speed up the time it took for new content to be shown to Australian viewers.
Twitter rolls out blue ticks for paying customers
Twitter Inc. has begun rolling out software updates to charge users $7.99 a month to mark their accounts with a blue check, part of Elon Musk’s early efforts to boost revenue a little more than a week after taking ownership of the social media network, reports News Corp’s Tim Higgins.
Details of the latest software versions began appearing Saturday on Apple Inc.’s App Store, promising new features added to the social-media company’s previous subscription service dubbed Twitter Blue.
“Starting today, we’re adding great new features to Twitter Blue, and have more on the way soon,” the company said. The update’s details implied Twitter Blue subscribers would now get the blue check mark, which previously had been handed out to certain users through a verification process to signify authenticity.
“Power to the people,” the software update said. “Your account will get a blue check mark, just like the celebrities, companies, and politicians you already follow.” Musk, who completed his $44 billion takeover of Twitter last week, is looking to boost revenue and stanch losses at the company he says is losing $4 million a day. Twitter is taking a hit from advertisers such as General Motors Co. and General Mills Inc., which are pausing their spending in the wake of Musk’s takeover and concerns about content moderation.
Australia lagging behind on press freedom: experts
Australia is lagging behind other Western nations in protecting press freedom and the Albanese government should consider going further than the recommendations of a parliamentary inquiry in overhauling federal search warrant laws, legal experts say, reports Nine Publishing’s Michaela Whitbourn.
A parliamentary committee recommended a series of reforms in 2020 to safeguard press freedom when federal law enforcement agencies and the domestic spy agency, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, are seeking court orders in secret to raid newsrooms or journalists’ homes.
The Morrison government did not act on those proposals. Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus said last month that “improved protections for press freedom are needed” and the government intended to enact reforms as a priority, including by responding to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security report.
News Brands
ABC boss David Anderson to restructure organisation, shift to BBC model
ABC managing director David Anderson is planning to overhaul the way programs are commissioned in a review that could result in the most significant change to the public broadcaster’s structure since 2017, reports Nine Publishing’s Zoe Samios.
ABC sources, who requested anonymity to speak freely, said Anderson told a meeting of about 50 managers last Thursday that he planned to alter the broadcaster’s structure in an effort to improve processes around how content is commissioned and delivered to audiences, and to focus on growing the ABC’s digital platforms.
Such a move will likely result in regional and local radio teams moving to the news and investigations unit, while a separate division will remain for commissioning programs from other genres, such as comedy and children’s content. This structure is similar to one the BBC implemented in 2020, which is led by a chief content officer and has director positions for various genres and was described as “radical”. The ABC declined to comment.
“No retreat, no surrender”: ABC denies less state-based coverage
ABC News boss Justin Stevens has denied the Sunday night bulletin recently trimming from 40 to 30 minutes is a “final surrender” in covering state based politics and issues, reports TV Tonight.
The claim came from Alan Sunderland, ABC’s Editorial Director from 2013 to 2019, and a board director of ABC Alumni. Those with long memories will recall the expanded bulletin was born when state-based 7:30 editions were dumped from Fridays in 2014.
“The 40-minute news bulletin, together with expanded online coverage, was meant to deliver the kind of in-depth coverage that state-based current affairs used to. With its demise, what are we left with?” Sunderland asked.
“In my view, we are left with a clear and obvious gap in the ABC’s news coverage. State and territory newsrooms, talented and hard-working as they are, are simply not being given the opportunity to deliver the amount and the depth of coverage that Australians need if they want to see all levels of government closely scrutinised and held to account. While the occasional online article or podcast can be helpful, nothing has the impact or immediacy of scheduled television current affairs. Live extended television interviews with political leaders, for example, generate extensive follow up and often drive the agenda for other news media to follow.”
Radio
How much do Australia’s top radio personalities earn?
When it comes to assessing the value of the stars of Australian radio, there is only one rule: If you consistently dominate your timeslot and attract the largest portion of the available listening audience, you will be well remunerated, reports News Corp’s Annette Sharp.
Just how well remunerated depends on how many advertisers are knocking at your door for a premium-priced spot on your show.
In the case of radio’s reigning king and queen Kyle Sandilands and Jackie “O”, their winning margin over rivals is estimated to be worth as much as $80 million a year in the KIISFM coffers, so paying them $5 million each is just good business sense.
A look at the nation’s highest paid radio stars reveals that to make it big on radio, one must first crack the gruelling breakfast slot … and then pack your bags for Sydney.
Read on to see how much your favourite makes.
Television
Real Love Boat host Darren McMullen to star in new TV drama
The Real Love Boat host Darren McMullen is setting sail on a new adventure, this one packed with drama – unlike the soggy reality show he was tasked to helm, reports News Corp’s Fiona Byrne.
McMullen is starring alongside Olympia Valance, Jane Allsop and Pia Miranda in Heat, a Network 10, Channel 5/Fremantle collaboration.
The four-part drama will film in Melbourne and rural Victoria for four months starting mid November.
The story is set against bushfires in Australia and follows two families who venture to a secluded home for a summer vacation.
As you would expect, secrets and lies are revealed as nature takes a dangerous turn.
Sports Media
Nine on verge of new Australian Open deal, as Cricket accepts bids
Nine Entertainment is on the verge of sealing a further five-year deal with Tennis Australia for the Australian Open in a deal that could be worth about $100 million a year, highlighting the value of major sporting events that can draw large audiences to the TV networks, reports Nine Publishing’s Edmund Tadros.
Any deal of this magnitude would be about $40 million a year more than the existing contract, which will run until 2024, and is expected to be made up of a combination of cash and contra, or non-cash benefits, such as TV advertising.
The final stages of the Nine-Tennis Australia negotiations come as Cricket Australia fielded initial offers for its next round of rights on Friday, with Seven West Media, Nine and Paramount-owned Ten all among the commercial broadcast bidders. The last cricket deal, inked in 2018 with Seven and pay TV operator Foxtel, was worth about $200 million a year over six years.