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Most surprising comment from James Packer…

Forget about the tears, how do we explain this quote?

2013-02-12_1413Forget about the tears, forget about the man-love for Tom Cruise and the soft-sell for Barangaroo Casino in James Packer’s Sunday Night interview.

How do we explain this quote?

“I don’t have a business (in Sydney) any more now that we’re out of the media.”

While he isn’t a board member, James Packer is still a shareholder of TEN including recently participating in TEN’s $230 million capital raising exercise.

It’s not that he didn’t give the interview to Nine, with the network’s long history with the Packer family, it’s that his Seven interview was strategically played against his own network, TEN, on the first night of the TV ratings year.

Sunday Night (1.35m) toppled TEN’s Bondi Rescue (469,000) and Modern Family (922,000).

I can’t imagine Kerry Packer ever giving the others that kind of free kick.

If any more TEN shareholders are planning to talk to the opposition could they kindly indicate their intention to the Board and Programming?

15 Responses

  1. Busniess is just like acting. Just because you father was a great actor. Doesn’t mean that you will be. Just like having a father who was a great business man mean you will be one as well.

  2. @Pertinax, If Packer only has a personal shareholding in TEN, why did he kill off ONE as a sports channel as he requested, And why did he sack Grant Blackely when he did, just to name a few. Doesn’t look like to me that he has no influence. TEN is small crumbs for Packer and again i feel he is using it for other motives to benefit him in the bigger picture. Staff at TEN and the veiwers of AUS a the biggest losers here.We need a viable Third FTA network. Imagine 7&9 dominating the small screens. Take a look at the breakfast programs we have now! You would swear that they are produced by the same people. True?

  3. Packer used to run an office in Sydney that ran his affairs. Perhaps he doesn’t any more with his attention focus on the Crown gambling business. And he doesn’t own Ten and is not taking an active interest in managing it and left the board. He just has a personal shareholding in it.

    There is no funny stuff happening at Ten their ratings have slumped and they are struggling to get 10% share on key nights early in the week. Their share price accurately reflects that.

    Packer, Murdoch and Reinhardt bought into Ten because it was a low cost network with a young audience and the most profitable of the 3 networks. The North Atlantic banking crisis happened, consumers started saving instead of spreading and digital technology changed the ground rules for television meaning their investment is worth a fraction of what it was. They are hanging in and keeping Ten afloat with new capital because they hope that Ten will increase its ratings, ad revenue and thus share price in the future.

    Nine ended up losing $2b in capital due to the reduction in revenue, even though it raised its share and demographics, and KKR is sitting on a loss for its private equity investment in 7.

    Times every tough for TV industry.

  4. Exactly joey69! Add also Rinehart’s political motivations and you have at least three board members who are using the TEN network for purposes other than providing a viable 3rd FTE network. Have a look at what has happened just in news & sport since they took over. Kerry Stokes (close friend of these three by coincidence) must be laughing all the way to the 7 network bank, especially as he counts up all of the sports rights he now has that once belonged to TEN.

  5. Yeah I thought it odd that he did the interview on 7, considering the’re associations with 9 in the past. He did an interview for 60 mins about a year ago, so don’t know why he needed to do another one again now.

  6. Last night on ABC News it was noted that TEN shares had fallen 59% in the last 12 months. More proof that there is some funny stuff happening at the top at TEN. Funny that one ot their largest shareholder is not acknowledging TEN. Packer needs to be forced to sell his stock. The sooner the better for TEN

  7. Aside from all the political palaver of whatever his reasons for giving this interview, I thought James Packer was breathtakingly open in his pain for the loss of his father, finding peace with his father, and his philosophy on finding happiness, and understanding that true and deep happiness wasn’t found in dollars and cents. I enjoyed the interview.

  8. @ Joey 69 thanks for your insight! It raises questions as to how they were allowed to acquire shares with potential conflicts of interest. As you indictate Ch10 had suffered more recently!

  9. There’s no love lost between Bruce Gordon and Nine. WINWA used to operate from NEW10, he made SES8 Mt.Gambier a 7 affiliate when 9 wanted too much in fees.
    On the appearance of Packer on 7, yes, very odd. I recall days when Packer(s)/Nine used to reject commercials if they featured other networks’ talent.

  10. Well spotted and noted David! Again i bring you and all your readers this interesting fact. Nick Fallon who was chairman of TEN prior to being sacked by Packer and Co, stated in the press that he was very suspicious at Packer’s motive in accuring TEN shares, he would know well as he had worked for his late father Kerry and knew all the in and out’s of the Packer Clan. Packer’s movement on TEN was at a time when the network was starting to make inroads into the 7&9 ratings and foxtel. The good work at TEN had been done by the great tv stalwart John Mac Apline and Nick Fallon who was highly regarded as a tv exec in Aus. TEN was starting to increase market share, make more money than 7&9 and was producing different quality tv that people wanted to watch. The ONE idea of turning it into a sports channel had 7, 9 & Foxtel on edge. At first the sports rights it had were average but is was working it,s way to compete for the major sports rights of AFL and NRL. Along comes Packer and whats the first thing they do, dis-assemble ONE so that he can protect his Foxtel interests. Alot of questions need to be asked about TEN shareholding, Bruce Gordon is another person of interest, how can you own shares in TEN yet own WIN television who simculasts 9 shows. TEN is currently being played by these rich moguls. Packer, Gordon and Murdoch should be removed from the board so TEN can try and be a alternative third FTA network that we currently need in AUS. You people who bash the crap out of TEN realise that there is alot more than meets the eye here.

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