PM meets network bosses
It was a roll call of execs pushing for licence cuts on Friday.
- Published by David Knox
- on
- Filed under News
Prime Minister Turnbull met with network bosses on Friday at his office in Sydney, to discuss licence fee cuts.
The Australian reports it was a roll call of execs including Free TV chairman Harold Mitchell, Seven CEO Tim Worner (before jetting to Melbourne for the AFL weekend), Nine CEO Hugh Marks, TEN CEO Paul ÂAnderson plus Southern Cross Austereo regulatory head Creina Chapman, Prime Media general counsel Emma McDonald and Imparja Television chief executive Alistair Feehan.
With opinions divided on media reform, the only thing all are understood to agree over are reduced licence fees.
They were followed by Foxtel chief executive Peter Tonagh and ASTRA chair Tony Shepherd.
Central to the Pay TV lobby’s concerns are changes to the anti-siphoning list -bitterly opposed by the Free to Air lobby.
4 Responses
It’s obvious that streaming technology has taken the wind from the FTA broadcasting sails as it is for the formerly dominate Foxtel. The possible negative for Australian viewers is the prospect that eventually some sort of domestic commercial regulation will be lobbied for due to Australia’s low consumer base, this could mean that some diverse Telco partnerships may be formed to try to push for less overseas based commercial streaming content in Australia, producers of this content will have to sell their product to Australian based companies.
Sure the world is changing but the networks have known for a long time (or should have) that this was going to happen. I don’t recall the govt assisting video hire stores or book shops or electronic parts retailers when the internet ripped the guts out of their industries.
I object to our taxes being used to prop up businesses so that they can try to get me to eat overpriced junk food and have some moron shout at me about sports gambling.
PM should have a meeting with the taxpayer. I’m sure they would agree to raising the license fee.
I believe any reduction in licence fees should come with a guarantee that the money saved by the networks should be used only in funding local production or upgrading their networks, not to be used for buying more international repeats.