Report: Nine in talks with Southern Cross Media
The Nine Network and Southern Cross Media are said to be in talks about a potential affiliate deal.
- Published by David Knox
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The Nine Network and Southern Cross Media are said to be in talks about a potential affiliate deal that would see would see Nine dump Bruce Gordon’s WIN Corp, and Southern Cross drop TEN.
Fairfax reports Southern Cross’ rights with TEN expire in June, while Nine has been on a rolling contract with WIN since their deal expired last year.
However Nine would still need a deal with WIN unless it was prepared to abandon the Perth and Adelaide markets -an unlikely scenario.
Southern Cross’ rights with TEN expire in June, while Nine has been on a rolling contract with WIN since their deal expired last year.
”I don’t comment on speculation,” Southern Cross chairman Max Moore-Wilton told Fairfax. ”If we’ve got something to say we’ll put out a release.”
Nine also declined to comment.
11 Responses
In answer to various queries, all pure speculation of course…
I would either expect NBN could be sold to WIN by Nine as part of a trade off for acquiring direct control of STW/NWS? Or that Sthn Cross Nthn NSW (NRN) stays as a TEN affiliate or is sold to WIN to stay a TEN affiliate? Who knows?
In the UK, they are running between 6 and 8 SD multichannels through the one transmitter, not ideal, but barely passable. Legally, 576P is still a HD standard in this country, so therefore nothing to stop Sthn Cross to run 6 channels, 5 X SD (576i) and 1 X mandated HD (576p) with the full suite of One, TEN, Eleven, Nine, Go! & GEM, but no shopping channels.
Yes, Sthn Cross is already a Nine affiliate into Spencer Gulf (GTS) with a combined Nine, TEN & Seven affiliation into Broken Hill (BKN). There should be no change there. Other areas like Griffith (MTN) and Mt Gambier/Loxton (SES/RTS) where WIN is the only network carries all three commercial networks signals should have no change also.
TDT would most likely change to being a Nine affiliate. As Sthn Cross (TNT) would most likely swap to being a dual Seven/Nine affiliate. With WIN (TVT) being turned into a sole TEN affiliate being they are currently only a sole Nine affiliate. As Sthn Cross is the incumbant dual Seven/TEN affiliate, and has been for many years.
There are alot of powerplays and jigsaw puzzles that need to be worked out before, if any, of this occurs. But one could imagine Sthn Cross is hedging it bets by trying to become a Nine affiliate, which will come at some extra cost no doubt to the delight of Nine. For all we know, this could all be part of Sthn Cross’s efforts to drive down the cost of the next affiliation agreement with TEN and nothing else?
@jmanwf: NWS/STW will likely be sold by Win once the 75% reach rule is scrapped, for a tidy sum: although I believe they are on a separate affiliation deal to the regional stations Win owns.
(remember, up until 2007’s purchase by Win: both NWS and STW had individual affiliation agreements with Nine.)
Southern Cross flipping their stations from 10 to 9 outside Tas, NT, remote areas and Northern NSW will be a costly endeavour if it were to happen: especially if Nine mandates that they have to re-establish local news bulletins in major centres…
So what would the mean for Adelaide And Perth viewers if the unlikely scenario happens
I suspect, as the WA Today article suggests, that these talks are meant to scare WIN Corp & Ten Holdings to give better terms for Nine Entertainment and Southern Cross Austereo. But it looks like the new bean-counter owners of Nine are playing hard ball with WIN by putting them on a rolling contract.
I’m sure SCA isn’t so short sighted that they think TEN’s current slump is permanent?
That said, imagine if everyone went their separate ways? What a messy looking broadcast map that would leave around the country. From WIN’s point-of-view, they were screwed over with the last affiliation deal about five years ago. Prime Media currently also pay a little less for their programming from the number one rated, Seven Network.
MHA, Nine Perth & Adelaide’s soft ratings are a historical quirk & were always like that well before WIN took over.
Pertinax, bandwidth? You talkin’ crazy…
MJL, in northern NSW Southern Cross would stay with TEN & NBN with Nine. These deals don’t have to be network-wide (eg, Southern Cross GTS/BKN, Southern Cross Tas/NT & WIN SA).
David Knox, Southern Cross is Austereo now & not Media with a different logo. Otherwise, you could’ve used the Southern Cross Ten logo for this story.
Parent group for Southern Cross Austereo is Southern Cross Media Group Limited whose logo I have used.
How would this work in areas that get SC Ten and NBN?
What’s to stop them would be bandwidth. They are already compressing channels to the point where there are digital artifacts appearing.
If the silly 75% rule is scrapped then you will most likely end up with 3 nationally branded networks covering all the major urban areas (or 2 if Ten doesn’t survive).
Southern Cross already have an affiliation with the Nine Network, broadcasting 9 into the Spencer Gulf region….
I can’t see this happening in northern new south wales were southern cross would be up against the nine owned NBN.
Would also be interesting in Tasmania as the TEN channel in Tassie is TDT which is a partnership between WIN and Southern Cross.
With the end of analogue and to what is my understanding is the end of only being allowed 2 extra open broadcast digital multichannels restrictions at the end of this year, what is to stop the likes of Sthn Cross having both a NIne and Ten affiliation? Sthn Cross could say have the current Ten signal on LCN5, and Eleven on 55, and dump One on LCN50 and TVSN on LCN54 and replace with Nine on LCN59, GEM on LCN 57 and Go! on LCN58??
My understanding is that the STW and NWS suppy contracts are separate to the regional contracts with the rest of the WIN network?
Who is to say this might all be a play by NIne to swap NBN for STW/NWS so as to at last get control of a national network like Ten and Seven have had for years? Something bad needs to be done with how STW/NWS are so badly run as those stations continuously drag down the national ratings performance of Nine. Nine might think having direct control may improve the situation?
Interesting times.