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Report: TEN executive stands down

TEN's executive chairman, Nick Falloon, has reportedly agreed to stand down as James Packer exerts regime change.

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Barely a week after he swooped on shares at Network TEN, James Packer appears to be getting his way.

The Australian reports that executive chairman, Nick Falloon, has agreed to stand down.

Falloon reportedly agreed to resign during a meeting at Packer’s Park Street offices in Sydney yesterday that was also attended by TEN director Jack Cowin.

Falloon was appointed executive chairman of TEN in 2002, but has been working in a part-time capacity in recent months. He was forced to stand down as the chief executive of PBL a year earlier after he fell out with the late Kerry Packer.

James Packer, who is pushing for board representation and changes to TEN’s multi-channel strategy, had previously been reported to be uninterested in both Falloon and CEO Grant Blackley remaining as joint executives.

A TEN spokeswoman declined to comment.

Source: The Australian

31 Responses

  1. Steve, theoretically that’s possible, but…

    1. Ten now own the rights for various sports for the next X years (they’d been quietly buying up various rights before they announced One).

    2, 7 and 9 are obsessed with being #1, so they’re unlikely to want to given it’s nightly share (mind you, 9 has NRL rights, which could help). ABC already has 4 channels, so that just leaves SBS – do they have the money? I think not.

    So, lots of praying that what Ten has been planning on to date (One and 11) stays the way it is. 🙂 I think Ten planned their multi-channels well, but JP seems to think otherwise for some reason.

  2. Ten was my favourite network because of their courage, quality content and integrity that seems to be lacking over at Seven and Nine. This is only the beginning of Packer’s reign of terror. Suffice to say, I’ve got a bad feeling about this.

  4. @ slam,don’t feel to sorry for Blackley,he lost alot of his key sales people due to inept decisions and is on over 1.5 million ayear,not bad for someone with no formal business qualifications who has sunk the networks share price since he took over.

  5. Just a thought

    If JP decides to axe ONE HD because it competes with FOX Sports. Wouldn’t Seven or Nine consider bringing something else similar to ONE HD because they know JP sees it as such a threat.

    Or is that not possible??

  6. I know what you’re saying David, I’m just saying if some of the existing shareholders really object then Packer doesn’t have the numbers (yet). As you allude to, he does hold some sway though, even without 50%.

  9. If they replaced onehd with some rubbish-like general entertainment, the. Free to air tv will truely have lost all its value. Just look at the mess channels nine and seven made with their HD mutli-channel ventures. 7mate is such a horrible, same with gem- the majority of programmes on both channels are old 4:3 and non sd widescreen shows/ movies. To make matters worse, shows that are filmed in HD are broadcast in their sd version.

    Despite the fact that I’m not the biggest sports fanatic, I do have immense respect for one HD- as it is truely a targeted multi-channel, with a fair amount of HD programming, minimal mid-week programme changes, and they actually air sports that normally would either never get an airing in australia, or are stuck on pay tv.

    I barely watch go!, never watch 7two or 7mate and watch one show on gem. The primary channels usually have shows worth watching, abc24 is good for ’round the clock news and onehd is great for niche sports/ overseas sports.

  10. As an employee of Ten i’m more concerned than most about the future of the network. The person who I feel most sorry for in all of this is Grant Blackley. He’s widely admired by staff and has a fantastic vision for its future. He didn’t let a single staff member go during the GFC and cut everything to the bone that couldn’t be seen on-screen. He knows TV and what matters, and has managed to make it turn a healthy profit whilst developing some quality content.

    We’re all worried about the lack of information provided to staff about the future of the network, especially considering Packer and Murdoch’s last joint venture was the financial disaster called One.Tel. It’s not just a business, its an art form and i only hope he can see this and keep his fingers well out of the pie.

  11. Smacca, if it is, then Hungry Jack’s are a “foundation partner” of One, so it’s hard to imagine they’d want any change there. The good news is that in the article David wrote the other day, the support that Packer had so far didn’t add up to 50% yet, so here’s hoping One gets left as is.

  12. Unfortunately I agree with most of the comments re what is happening at TEN. Again, it will be the staff that cop the brunt of all this. Don’t worry about Falloon, he will have negotiated a very good payout – you can be sure of that. It’s the lower people you have to worry about. They need jobs to pay their rents, mortgages etc. They can’t afford to go swanning around in their own yachts while deciding on the futures of people. I wonder what George Negus Really thinks now about his recent decision to join TEN? Then again, he too probably negotiated a good settlement fee if it doesn’t go ahead. You can be sure slash and burn will be the catchphrase of the new regime. Of course, in the long run the viewers will also suffer – but hey, who worries about them? Above all else the bottom line is the name of the game isn’t it?

  14. Things aren’t looking good at all. It’s a pity that TEN won’t come out and say something. I agree that the 2 and a half hour news really needs to be looked at again.

    I like ONEHD they really seem to put sports together well (minus a few hiccups at the Commonwealth Games) and they’ve got the rights to the Hopman Cup 2011 and there’s some big names coming to Perth. Hopefully that’ll draw in some viewers.

    I’m looking forward to 11 starting. There’s so many shows that I’ve been waiting to see.

  16. Amen @Ronnie
    Gee I wish Jamie would just stick to boozing around the Mediterranean on his yacths and stay out of TV network boardrooms. Know your place, man, know your place!

  17. JP will make TEN into a lean mean money machine which will be a shadow of it’s former self. I very much feel for the employees of 10 as they will be the victims of this.

  18. Kinda feel sorry for Nick Falloon where can he go? He’s already been at Nine now he’s leaving Ten (if its true; this and the australian are the only reports of it)

    Eleven would be safe its not just a Ten Network venture dn’t forget that 1/3 of the channel is owned by CBS so Packer only has so much say CBS’ stake in Eleven is much higher than Packer’s share as a shareholder of Ten.

  21. Ten has been just doing fine before this wrecker turned up. It’s called company morale and JP doesn’t understand that he has just destroyed Ten’s, pretty much the way he destroyed Nine’s. Nine is a shattered shell of the broadcaster it once was and this fate awaits Ten. What a pity. Surely Nine or Seven will swoop on David Mott. God knows they both need a programmer with taste and guts.

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