Industry happenings at FCB, TVNZ, MediaWorks, RadiumOne, ApolloNation, Raydar, Ad2one, Snakk Media and Pead PR.
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Until recently, advertising across MediaWorks’ various properties was sold by independent sales arms. And while this approach worked at a time when the lines between channels were clearly defined, it has become largely impracticable to a company that is already running integrated campaigns on major shows and is also on the verge of launching an ambitious cross-channel show fronted by Paul Henry. Since last May MediaWorks has been restructuring its sales teams, and the company’s head of revenue Liz Fraser and commerical director Paul Hancox believe they have now finalised a structure that is better suited to a landscape typified by blurred media lines.
As Colin Peacock noted in MediaWatch this week, as two X Factor judges were sent packing for bullying and lambasted for having an over-inflated opinion of themselves, a man who has “built his reputation on his ego and on picking on people poorly equipped to defend themselves on air” is getting set to kick off his experimental, multi-media breakfast news show on April 7. And MediaWorks has launched the last phase of its marketing push to get New Zealanders to tune in.
It’s been exciting times at MediaWorks in recent months, with big restructures in the business and man-slaughterers, fraudsters, bullies and drink drivers featuring on TV. Across at TVNZ, there hasn’t been quite as much drama and its new reality format Our First Home has been plodding along rather than taking the nation by storm, but one moment has made it to US clip show The Soup. Plus: searches for the word ‘fart’ spike after a case of flatulence on The Bachelor NZ.
After around ten years of broadcasting, originally as a Kiwi-only music station and more recently with some international artists thrown in the mix, MediaWorks has announced that Kiwi FM will close on March 31.
MediaWorks’ decision to fire X Factor NZ judges husband and wife duo Natalia Kills and Willy Moon, after their scathing comments towards contestant Joe Irvine, has had a positive impact on the show’s rating, lifting viewership by 100,000 sets of eyes. Plus: a look at some of MediaWorks’ other missteps over the last few weeks.
The radio industry has been fizzing in recent months. MediaWorks claimed that it was leading the charge on a new research methodology, NZME then decided to independently finance an industry-wide T1 survey after it was scrapped earlier this year, and then Gill Stewart stepped down from her position as the general manager of The Radio Bureau (TRB). So is there still a place for TRB?
Industry happenings at TRB, MediaWorks, SenateSHJ, Pead PR and Frucor Beverages.
In a new section that explores the media consumption habits of reasonably well-known New Zealand humans, Guy Williams, regular 7 Days panelist, co-host of The Edge Drive Show and serial offender on Jono and Ben at Ten, explains his fondness for podcasts, social media, sport and big natural boobs.
Last year the big free-to-air ratings battle was between The Block NZ and MKR NZ. This year it’s X-Factor NZ and Our First Home. And, early on in the piece, it’s a tight tussle, with the first episode of the second season of MediaWorks’ talent show charting slightly bigger ratings than TVNZ’s new reno-reality show. PLUS: TVNZ’s Our First Home game extends the show to the second screen.
Industry happenings at NZME, Bauer, The Business Herald, MediaWorks, Singapore Airlines, Rydges Hotels and CRV Ambreed.
In December, the radio industry came to an accord that the radio survey scheduled for the first half of the year would not occur. However, it now seems that after several weeks of contemplation, NZME has taken matters into its own hands and earlier today announced it will fully fund an independent survey of radio audiences in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. And this move has caught MediaWorks off-guard.
Industry happenings at MPA, MediaWorks, OMD, CAANZ, The Pond and Unity Films.
From March, Prime News, which airs on Sky-owned Prime, will be produced by the MediaWorks news division at their Auckland Flower Street Studios as part of a new deal between the two networks. And the deal comes with additional revenue potential for MediaWorks, because the network will also be selling advertising and sponsorship associated with the show. PLUS: Top Gear heads to TV3.
Industry happenings at Spark, NZME, Dentsu Aegis, MediaWorks, Icebreaker, Pure SEO and Vega.
MediaWorks Radio and Radio Tarana (which has been broadcasting in New Zealand since 1996) have formed a new partnership in an effort to create fresh commercial opportunities for their respective clients. And the move makes sense for both the network and radio station, given the demographic changes in New Zealand over the last two decades.
In an era where the online realm has allowed marketers and media owners to measure, track and chart everything in real-time, it seems slightly anachronistic to record radio listenership by getting people to fill in a paper diary. And the radio industry seems to agree, because it’s currently reviewing its research methodology and, as a result, it won’t be conducting its regular T1 survey.
In keeping with an ongoing tradition, a few industry players gave us their take on the year for our annual opinion harvest. Here’s what Paul Hancox, commercial director at MediaWorks, thought about 2014.
We asked some stalwarts a simple question. Here’s what Liz Fraser, group head of revenue at MediaWorks, had to say.
Last week, MediaWorks continued its restructuring process by announcing it would operate one newsroom across its TV, radio and online assets, with Mark Jennings taking on the top role. It also announced the integration of digital across the business and, as a result of these changes, the roles of TV chief executive Paul Maher and head of interactive Siobhan McKenna were disestablished. Chief executive Mark Weldon said there would be no more job losses in TV and interactive. But it’s thought two more long-serving senior MediaWorks staff members are also set to depart: senior legal counsel/company secretary Clare Bradley, who has been with the company since 2000, and chief financial officer and director of technology Peter Crossan, who has been with the company since 1999.
MediaWorks has taken a novel approach to finding a ‘social media expert’ for Paul Henry in lead up to his new show by creating a bespoke miscrosite that features a monochromatic mugshot of the controversial TV host above a short blurb—written in his dismissive voice—that explains why he is on the hunt for someone talented in the esoteric art of social media.
Yesterday’s announcement from MediaWorks came with confirmation of two executive job cuts as chief executive of television Paul Maher and chief executive of interactive Siobhan McKenna were listed as casualties of the reshuffle. MediaWorks chief executive Mark Weldon told StopPress that these would be the extent of the job cuts for now.
Late afternoon on 8 December, MediaWorks sent out a release announcing a significant reshuffling of the business, which included three major changes.
In the digital age, the buying of radio frequencies seems almost archaic. The internet means that any major radio brand can now be accessed across the nation. And yet, in the recent Radio Spectrum auction, NZME broke a record by paying $7.4 million to retain the frequency it currently uses for Newstalk ZB in Christchurch. And while slightly more frugal than its competitor, MediaWorks Radio also pulled out the chequebook to pay $2.5 million for a frequency used for Mai FM in Waikato and $2 million for a frequency that will host George FM in Wellington. StopPress chats to MediaWorks group content director Leon Wratt and NZME Radio managing director Dean Buchanan to find out if it’s still worth paying that much for radio frequencies.
Changes at Insight, Fairfax, BrandWorld, MediaWorks and MoreFM.
Back when TV3 turned 20, Sarah Lang wrote a great piece in the Herald about the trials, tribulations and successes of the channel. Or, as the first paragraph says, how it grew “from an insecure infant into an assured adult”. The intervening five years have seen plenty more action at MediaWorks, which went through its second receivership, brought popular shows like The Block NZ, X Factor NZ, 7 Days and Jono & Ben at 10 to New Zealand screens and continued to focus on the reach its varied suite of media assets can offer advertisers (occasionally through the medium of music). But everyone knows the best thing about media anniversaries are the blooper reels. So here are some gems from the evening and morning news shows.
Brands are increasingly looking to put their messages inside the content, rather than inbetween it. Formats like The Block NZ and Masterchef allow for what the broadcasters like to call ‘seamless integration’, even though it can sometimes be slightly gratuitous. And a rare few other shows, chief among them Jono and Ben at 10, are using their skills to weave brands into the content without annoying the audience or even creating content outside of the show. Chris Lloyd, sales manager at MediaWorks’ integration team, discusses its process.
MediaWorks’ new chief executive Mark Weldon took to the stage last night to show off the company’s new and returning content for 2015. Here’s what he said about the power of local, the future of TV and the effectiveness of multi-media.
We live in increasingly visual times. And no-one’s got time to read those pesky words anymore. So every week we’ll publish some of our favourite graphs. In honour of MediaWorks’ new season launch last night, here’s one that shows what’s been happening to overall share of audience in commercial radio since 2005.