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WIN: ‘We pay twice for News.’

Floods underline the importance of local news in regional markets, but a loss-maker for broadcasters.

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Current NSW and Queensland floods bring home the importance of local news in regional broadcasting, a sector which in recent years has seen a wave of cuts and job losses.

Last week WIN TV told a House of Representatives Standing Committee on Communications and the Arts it did not make money from providing local news yet it still provided more news than what was legislated.

“We’re still doing our best to provide as much news as what’s commercially viable to us in those markets. In fact it’s beyond,” said Steven Djokic, General Manager Broadcast Operations at WIN.

But he also noted WIN effectively paid twice in order to provide a local news bulletin.

“In our case, we pay for that 30 minute spot twice. We pay through our affiliation agreement, where we pay for that half hour with our affiliate partner. Plus, we actually cancel that out by producing our own 30 minute news bulletin in that spot, as well. So we pay double,” he said.

He also reiterated the need for Free to Air broadcasters to be highly visible on connected TVs.

“Prominence to us is even more vital. If someone’s going to turn on their television in regional Australia, for anyone to get any local content …to understand what’s happening next door, the only way we’re going to continue to get that if we get prominence on the screen. Because it’s going to be very difficult to compete against those shiny, bright, sparkly conglomerates that can just move over the top of us. It’s the only way people are going to get their local content, local stories, even their local programming.”

He added, “We’re lucky in the sense that our revenue source is not our news. Our news is something that we think is right for the community and what we deliver to the community.”

12 Responses

  1. Journalism feeds on itself – local newspapers and radio do the groundwork, TV picks up on it and adds moving pictures. WIN must be finding it more difficult to produce local stories now that so many local newspapers have shut up shop and aren’t writing about what’s going on in local government, for example. That on-the-ground story finding is expensive and time consuming, and I think WIN will need to do more of it these days to remain relevant in their local communities. (Not saying WIN never broke any stories before now, btw. But those stories from other local sources are important to them for sure.)

  2. WIN are always whinging about costs. If they dont want to be be regional broadcasters then buy Nine. Seriously apart from news what else do they offer the viewe other than local news? They dont broadcast local sport now.

  3. Not quite sure I follow the logic of them paying twice. The affiliation agreement is for Nine content on their streams not to have access to Nine to insert their content onto half an hour a day.

    Ultimately WIN suffer in news because they have virtually zero digital presence and rely solely on the broadcast news. Expand that to a website and app as virtually every other news provider in the world has done and you’ve got a ready made market to tap in to.

  4. WIN TV is essentially a relay of Nine. The only thing they have to contribute is a local news service to their licenced areas. Since when is doing more than ‘legislated’ the standard?

    If we’re talking legislation (if that’s what it takes for Mr Djokic), how about a minimum number of journalists, from senior gradings down, plus full ENG resources to cover, effectively, the entire viewing area?

    As an affiliate, it should be an essential part of all network agreements that local news must be fully resourced.

    News provision loses money, always has. But what Mr Djokic and his like seem to not understand is that it is incumbent to provide the best news service – it also has plenty of benefits in increasing loyalty and visibility locally for that broadcaster thus increasing brand loyalty for its advertisers.

    Bottom line Mr Djokic, support your local region and the local region will support you. It’s not rocket science nor should it need to legislated.

    1. I’m guessing “journo” is indeed a “journo” because the argument is very myopic … no, it is not at all “incumbent to provide the best news service” .. just to provide the best service and there are many things that increase “loyalty and visibility locally” … when Jim Oswin ran an enquiry into “localism” in the lead-up to the aggregation legislation, I made a point to include advertising for local clients and the proper servicing of those clients as a key part of what “localism” is all about … for example, the average regional punter has only a passing interest in many of the “local” news stories that are run, but they very much want to know when the local store has a special on something that they want whether it be new school shoes for their kids or paint to do up the house … there are many more things that constitute “local” on television besides news and concentrating all of their efforts on one thing while ignoring the others is one of the reasons why…

  5. I believe that WIN owning a license to broadcast they also have a obligation to give back not only to the communities they serve but also to the industry. I believe with today’s technology WIN could broadcast bulletins in the local regions easily and cheaply but they don’t for reasons that escape me. If outlets like 6 News can do it then there is no excuse that WIN can’t. Have a green screen studio back at the regional office and have the most senior journalist presenting. That will resolve the issue regarding early deadlines forcing WIN to miss important stories. News has remained virtually unchanged at WIN since aggregation. Let’s be a bit more innovative.

  6. … the first regional station I worked for had a weeknight 10-minute local “rip ‘n’ read” news (I used to be the newsreader among a multitude of other things!) … the second had no local news at all, but we spent a heap of money doing other local programming from a weekday kids show to magazine programs to a ninety-minute live weekly tonight-style entertainment show … the problem with the unimaginative in control of the television industry today is that “local” only means “local news” … news is expensive and so much more could have be done to make a local station actually “local” …

  7. Why doesn’t win create an official YouTube channel and upload each of its bulletins there to make them more accessible, prime 7 and seven Tasmania do this. Or even onto 9now.

      1. The only other way to watch win bulletins if your not in that region, is on vast regional channels. I guess 7 care more about their viewers that’s why they have YouTube pages for prime and gwn and 7 Tasmania.

      2. David – same is happening in UK/US. Networks and stations are increasingly worried they are being “lost” as viewers more and more start watching TV from the smart TV home base where apps like Netflix, Amazon and Disney+ feature prominently with big tiles or even Branded buttons on remotes. Increasingly smart TV makers can sell that prime location real estate to the global steamers. In The UK bbc/ITV/4/5 have joined together to try and convince Samsung and other tv makers to add their logos, show tiles and apps to prominent positions on the home page. So far Samsung and tv makers are refusing. I’m
        Guessing WIN sees it the same. Viewers are making decisions more and more on what to watch from Home Screen. HPG is not enough.

  8. I spent 12 months working in regional news at the begining of my career, surviving a round of job cuts during that time. After I’d moved on there was expansion at my old network, then another round of cuts. My former boss who still works in the area has had to chase employment across 3 regional networks in the last 5 years. It’s highly unstable, yet it’s an important training ground for journos and technical crew – one of few that are left.

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