In the first of two stories, Ben Fahy talks with MediaWorks chief executive Mark Weldon about the thinking behind its unified news brand Newshub, which has required a multi-million dollar investment, is modelled on the BBC and is set to kick off in Q1 next year.
As part of a content partnership with MediaWorks, we’ve asked a few of the company’s programme directors about the performance of their brands, the state of radio and the importance of digital channels. More FM was one of the few brands to increase its audience in the recent T2 radio survey. And network programme director Christian Boston says its dual strategy is paying dividends.
As part of a content partnership with MediaWorks, we’ve asked a few of the company’s programme directors about the performance of their brands, the state of radio and the importance of digital channels. And the newest kid on the block, Magic, has got off to a good start, attracting a good number of loaded oldies in its first few months and performing well in the regions. We talked to Ian Avery about the birth of the new brand.
As part of a content partnership with MediaWorks, we’ve asked a few of the company’s programme directors about the performance of their brands, the state of radio and the importance of digital channels. And while The Edge dropped listeners in the latest survey, just like most of the other stations, it still has the biggest audience in all the land and it’s betting big on the multiplatform approach. We had a yarn with Rodger Clamp about how it all comes together.
As part of a content partnership with MediaWorks, we’ve asked a few of the company’s programme directors about the performance of their brands, the state of radio and the importance of digital channels. And, despite a dearth of good, new rock music and the encroaching mainstream appeal of hip hop and electronic music, The Rock is still luring plenty of listeners, says Brad King.
As part of a content partnership with MediaWorks, we’ve asked a few of the company’s programme directors about the performance of their brands, the state of radio and the importance of digital channels. And the rising tide of hip hop and RnB in popular culture is lifting the Mai FM boat along with it and attracting a big, young audience around the nation, says Philip Bell.
The annual radio ratings are out, and naturally competitors NZME and MediaWorks are flagrantly (and funnily) gloating about their achievements, using their most popular radio and media personalities to spread the news.
It’s been a rough year for MediaWorks, with TVNZ reigning in the ratings department. And despite its hopes that its pick up of Masterchef NZ’s sixth season would pull a decent few pairs of eyes over to the network, the show has rated significantly lower than its preceding seasons. But, as Auckland physiotherapist Tim Read was crowned as Masterchef NZ 2015 last night, the show’s final episode went out on a ratings high. PLUS: Seven weeks on, Story’s ratings are no match for Seven Sharp’s.
MediaWorks has taken legal steps against online men’s brand NZ Blokes, sending the editors of the site a cease-and-desist letter in regard to the promotion of an event called NZ Crate Day on the NZ Blokes Facebook page. The letter from MediaWorks stipulates NZ Blokes recently commenced marketing activities in relation to the NZ Crate Day and that this constitutes an infringement given the similarity between the names and the fact that both events were scheduled to occur on 5 December.
There’s been plenty of ink and a fair bit of fury dedicated to yesterday’s launch of scout.co.nz, MediaWorks’ first digital-only brand and joint venture with gossipmonger Rachel Glucina. Most of that seemed to be of the ‘please God, tell me it isn’t so, we are all doomed’ variety. And while many believe the media’s focus on celebrity and entertainment—and the takedown culture often associated with it—is bad for society, Glen Kyne, director of integrated content at MediaWorks, is right when he says it’s also bloody popular. So how is the site going to make money? And how did it perform on its first day?
The Block NZ will be returning soon to TV3 for its fourth season ‘The Block NZ: Villa Wars’, which means a new campaign, and as part of it, an ad has been released which is akin to an action movie trailer, with the contestants entering their designated neighbourhood, ready for a DIY war.
Industry happenings at Marketing Association, MediaWorks, TVNZ, Snakk Media, Intelligent Ink and Envy Studios.
There was intellectual dissection, there were furrowed brows, there were plates of calamari (hopefully the kind from the sea), there were big jugs of beer, there were raised voices, there were occasional bouts of physical violence and, eventually, there was quorum as a panel of esteemed judges chose New World and Colenso BBDO’s rather fruity Fruit and Vege Pro as the victor in the StopPress/MediaWorks TVC of the Year, with Vodafone’s Piggy Sue and Sky’s Murmuration second and third. PLUS: other category winners for craft, degree of difficulty and clever use of TV.
From the moment Vodafone’s Piggy Sue stepped in to replace James Rolleston for Vodafone, there was a sense that the ad would be popular. It did, after all, feature an adorable piglet that was remarkably puppy-like in its behaviour. And so it has proven, with the ad racking up over 300,000 views online and also getting the most votes in the People’s Choice division in this year’s MediaWorks/StopPress TVC of the Year competition. PLUS: see how many votes each of the finalists received.
RadioLive has had a bit of a facelift, sporting a refreshed logo and new brand colouring, ditching the red, black and white look for blue, white and green. A new TVC has been released in conjunction with the rebrand, featuring a compilation of its line up of journalists.
Today the Radio Broadcasters Association announced GfK would be the new provider for the commercial radio survey from 2016, taking over longtime research contract-holder TNS.
The other mother of the nation has been reading the news (and cracking jokes) at TV3 since 1999 and took the brave step of signing up as newsreader for The Paul Henry Show this year. Here’s a taste of her media diet.
Kiwis will soon have a couple of new shows to take their pick from, one reality TV show and one of the lifestyle genre as TV3 releases new TVCs to promote upcoming MasterChef New Zealand featuring some fancy food-related visual trickery while TV ONE’s Kiwi Living gets set to kick off this Friday.
Industry happenings at DNA, Facebook, Adshel, Orange Productions, MediaWorks, Vanilla Brief, BTL and Maori TV.
To keep their show in the public consciousness before its return to television, Jono and Ben have reached out to their Facebook fans to choose the show’s new motto. Suggestions have been pouring in on their page with a good mixture of the hilarious, the sweet and the outright offensive. They also asked some school children what they think should be featured on the show, their answers are priceless. PLUS: fellow MediaWorks comedian Dai Henwood adds L’Oreal Paris to his list of endorsers.
Electronic and dance music station MediaWorks-owned George FM has released a shiny new TVC in conjunction with its roll out as a national network.
Live streaming app Periscope is relatively new on the scene, but already some big brands are finding creative ways to use the platform to market themselves. After finding some good examples of brands using it abroad we’ve had a hunt around for some New Zealand examples, and the feedback so far is promising. We also take a look at some of the dangers of live streaming and how the content is monitored.
In a recent opinion piece by Duncan Garner he said he strives to find more of a work-life balance and prioritise the important things after the loss of his father and realising Parliament was “a ridiculous place to work”. He might find that a bit difficult now, as it was announced today he will be a co-host on Campbell Live’s replacement Story alongside Heather du Plessis-Allan while continuing to present his RadioLIVE drive show from 3-6 weekdays. But no doubt the show will be welcomed with open arms after Come Dine with Me has failed to deliver in the ratings department as TV3 hits an all-time low.
Industry happenings at NZME, MediaWorks, Colenso BBDO/Proximity, Bauer, Chemistry Interaction, JustOne/.99, 2degrees, FutureYou, Ambient Group, Vena, eStar and Adhub.
Television has had quite the facelift over the past few years. Reality television has taken over the episodic drama, with its cheap production cost and malleable format, which viewers can easily tune into without any kind of backstory. What else is changing is our current affairs shows, the days of the solo renegade hosting style of John Campbell and Paul Holmes seems to be over as a softer format with multiple hosts is nudging its way in. With all these changes we thought we’d do a bit of an overview of the top shows on telly to see how they’re performing amongst this difficult and ever-changing media climate.
An ode to John’s last tango. *Camera turn*.
John Campbell is leaving the building after tonight’s show. And MediaWorks will be doubling up on farewell sausage rolls because it’s also the last day for head of marketing and publicity Amanda Wilson, who has been with the company for 12 years.
Yesterday, at the Radio Rewired conference hosted in Auckland, the industry announced that Colenso BBDO’s ‘K9FM’ campaign for Pedigree had won the Grande Orca for 2015. And the creative team at Colenso received additional good news overnight in that the campaign has also picked up a coveted black pencil at the D&AD Awards (it also won a yellow pencil).
At a time when radio is being disrupted by digital technology, one thing that has remained consistent is the importance of the personalities that produce the content on a daily basis. The executives across both commercial networks have on numerous occasions posited the local voices behind the microphones as key point of difference that traditional radio still has over its digital counterparts. And at last night’s New Zealand Radio Awards, the industry commended those who have over the last year kept the airwaves alive with their voices, quirky promos and, increasingly, video clips. StopPress looks at who won what on the night. PLUS: see a gallery of snapshots from the night.
MediaWorks is revisiting the West household with an Outrageous Fortune prequel called Westside, which follows the infamous Grandpa back in his hey day. In the lead up to the series MediaWorks has released all seasons of Outrageous Fortune online for free online to get fans excited, and in terms of streaming numbers it seems to be successfully rekindling interest.