It turns out one of the most consequential rebrands in Australian media did not emerge from a fluorescent-lit boardroom, but from a meeting room tucked inside the Wynn Encore in Las Vegas.
There, amid the buzz of the NRL’s opening round and a gathering of the Laundy family, the name that will soon sit above some of the country’s most powerful talk radio assets was decided.
From Eardrum to Encore
The process itself, however, was anything but casual.
As Nine Radio’s Managing Director Tom Malone told Mediaweek, the groundwork had been extensive, involving both internal leadership and creative agency Eardrum.
“Along with the team at Nine, we engaged a lot with Eardrum, and they came back with a whole bunch of ways we could attack the rebrand,” he said.
For Malone, the brief was not simply about a new name; it was about defining what the business would become next.
“The three territories that were explored were, do you pursue a name that speaks to the benefit, like something that talks about the unique attributes of the business? Do you explore the territory of heritage, as if to leverage legacy? Or do you look for something that’s unexpected, like a unique name that’s going to gain meaning over time? And we wanted it to be unique, relevant, and flexible,” he said.
That third path, unexpected and ownable, ultimately won out.
Nine Radio’s Managing Director, Tom Malone
The Vegas moment
By the time Malone and Nine’s Commercial Director – Audio Brian Gallagher flew to Las Vegas, the options had been narrowed.
What happened next was serendipitous to say the least, as the Laundy family was already in town. So, a meeting was organised.
“We had this great meeting in one of the meeting rooms at Wynn Encore Casino in Vegas,” Melone explained.
Everyone was there: Patriarch Arthur and his children, Craig, Stu, and Danielle.
What followed was swift.
“We got them all around the table and said, ‘ This is where we’ve got to, here’s the final few, and it was unanimous. Everyone loved Tapt Media because it spoke to being tapped into your community, being tapped into knowledge.”
A name, chosen in a single sitting, is now set to anchor a national media strategy.
More than just a name
The meaning behind Tapt Media is deliberately layered, and not just a nod to pubs and pouring beer.
“The beer element was just a fortuitous thing,” Malone said, adding that its origins were more centred around things like “tapping into an app on your phone”.
“You’re tapping in, if you like. It’s got a youthful energy, it’s distinctive, it’s going to stand out, and it’s really modern.”
That direction aligns with the Laundy family’s broader strategy, which centres on expanding beyond traditional talk radio into live streaming, podcasting and data-led advertising.
The Laundy family.
What changes and what doesn’t
For audiences, the shift will be gradual, almost invisible at first.
“We don’t change ownership and name until May 1, and that’s subject to completion, but we fully expect the sale to complete,” Malone said.
Crucially, the heritage brands remain untouched.
“I don’t think you’ll hear a big change on air for the next 6 to 12 months, and we’ll always be 6PR, 3AW, 2GB and 4BC. None of the station names will change. There’s a huge equity and heritage in those names.”
Instead, the new identity will sit above them, introduced over time as a national digital layer.
“But we will be building a national digital platform that will be known as Tapt Media, and so once that is established, and we’re ready to promote that, that’s when you’ll start to hear that on our radio stations.”
Where listeners will notice change sooner is in the details, particularly audio branding.
“There will be new intros and outros; they will be modern and contemporary,” he said.
In other words, the DNA stays intact. The wrapper changes.
Main image: Arthur Laundy