'From worst case scenario to hope' - the impact of Red Nose Day donations
Today on The Front Page, host of The Fold podcast for The Spinoff, Duncan Grieve, is with us to discuss how this shakes things up.
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The Fold: How a new history of NZ pop music reveals media's revolutions
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2 days ago
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Media Insider: Reality bites - taxpayers help save popular shows The Traitors NZ, Celebrity Treasure Island; TVNZ board member Paul Henry set to host Three show
NZ on Air has today announced $1.47 million in funding for The Traitors NZ to screen on Three and $1.35m for Celebrity Treasure Island to screen on TVNZ. The 2021 cast of Celebrity Treasure Island. Photo / TVNZ It is the first time either show has received public funding from NZ on Air - The Traitors is into its third year and Celebrity Treasure Island will be shooting its seventh season. It is a significant shift in thinking from the funding agency, in that in recent years it has not gone anywhere near commercially successful reality TV shows, which draw hundreds of thousands of viewers. But with advertising revenue falling away in a sluggish economy - and huge digital disruption under way in the TV and production sector - the networks have told NZ on Air that the shows would have been ditched without public help. 'They absolutely did... they did say that - we have been in touch with them both,' NZ on Air chief executive Cameron Harland told Media Insider today. He said as local platforms continued to feel the effects of an advertising decline, NZ on Air was likely to receive more requests to fund previously commercially viable series. NZ on Air revealed it had received 41 applications for this funding round, seeking a total $24.3m. It has agreed to funding for 21 projects, committing $12.6m. 'We're required to ensure a range of local content is available to our audiences,' Harland said. 'In consultation with platforms in the production sector, we are willing to consider making a limited amount of funding available for these types of [reality TV] projects in future rounds. 'We did see this coming, and we put into our guidelines for Round Tahi, in acknowledgement of the difficult financial position local mainstream platforms are finding themselves in - we did agree to consider applications for reality series.' Ultimately, he said, both shows fulfilled NZ on Air's remit that it support projects which drew audiences. Harland said in both cases, NZ on Air's funding was a minority of the shows' budgets. 'They are still bringing money to the table and, of course, from our perspective, that does mean that we're able to spread our money a little bit more widely. There are some obvious ancillary benefits in terms of supporting the production sector and encouraging employment.' Paul Henry's talents across TVNZ and Three Paul Henry has hosted the first two season of The Traitors NZ. Production company South Pacific Pictures today welcomed the funding decision for The Traitors NZ as 'very good news'. South Pacific Pictures managing director Andrew Szusterman said NZ on Air's funding equated to less than 50% of the overall budget for the show. However, it helped ensure the green light for a third season of the show, which is based on an international format. New Zealand's previous two seasons have been successfully exported to the UK, US, Australia and Canada with both its host, Paul Henry, and the contestants seen as major factors in its success. Henry has just been appointed as a director of TVNZ - so will he be available to host The Traitors once again on rival network Three? 'Paul's keen to do it,' said Szusterman, while also adding there was no announcement today on would be host. However, it's clear SPP wants Henry. Szusterman said Henry was contracted to SPP and he saw no issues with him also being a TVNZ director. It was hardly a precedent, he said, with TVNZ broadcasters featuring in roles on rival commercial radio networks and vice versa. There had been no discussions with TVNZ at this stage. 'I would say that it shows a real maturity in the New Zealand market where we're not so hooked up on that kind of stuff,' said SPP chief executive Kelly Martin. 'We can't afford to say to people, you can only work on this network or that network. We're not big enough. 'He's on the [TVNZ] board, so if there are any issues, he can pick it up at a board meeting.' Both TVNZ and Henry have been approached for comment. The Traitors timeframe Suzsterman said a casting call for The Traitors NZ would be made this week, with filming to start in the South Island later this year. 'I think there are no secrets that - and it was signposted by Juliet [Three boss Juliet Peterson] last year, as well - that these shows are really expensive to make, and, with Three in its situation, it wasn't really looking at making those shows. 'So yes, we really did need New Zealand on Air to play its part.' Martin said: 'New Zealand on Air are really aware that if they weren't getting amongst this kind of stuff, it won't happen, and that's got a really negative effect on the industry overall. 'In this round, New Zealand on Air have done a very sensible and good job and they are looking at ways to get people working. 'I think this is an approach that is entirely suitable for the situation that we're currently in. Unless they support some of this stuff, then none of it is on air - we would be contracting significantly in the market generally.' Szusterman said many years ago, NZ on Air did support reality shows such as NZ's Got Talent and X Factor. 'These are popular shows that are watched by hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders - it's good value for money, it's entertaining New Zealanders. There is nothing wrong with it.' Meanwhile, a TVNZ spokeswoman told Media Insider that Celebrity Treasure Island would be filmed in New Zealand in summer. Editor-at-Large Shayne Currie is one of New Zealand's most experienced senior journalists and media leaders. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor and has a small shareholding in NZME. Watch Media Insider - The Podcast on YouTube, or listen to it on iHeartRadio, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
NZ Herald
6 days ago
- NZ Herald
Media Insider podcast: Sky TV chief executive Sophie Moloney on rugby and netball rights, customer satisfaction, and buying Three for $1
'The Rebel Alliance is where we might be, with Three,' jokes Moloney, referencing Sky's startling announcement earlier last week that the pay-TV operator had bought free-to-air Three (TV3) and Three Now from Warner Bros Discovery for $1. The cash-free, debt-free deal is officially sealed tomorrow - Sky takes over Three, although, as Moloney suggests on the Media Insider podcast today, there will be a significant bedding-in period, and viewers should notice little change early on. But make no mistake, the new deal pits Sky TV in even more direct competition with TVNZ for audience eyeballs and still-lucrative free-to-air TV advertising revenue. At the same time, TVNZ is implementing a new digital strategy, which will see it have the capability to introduce subscription TV and take on Sky for more sports rights and possibly other programming. In today's wide-ranging discussion on the Media Insider podcast, Moloney talks about how the Three deal came to fruition and the dangers of thinking that programmes that work well on pay TV will also succeed on free-to-air TV. She discusses rebuilding customer satisfaction and loyalty following the satellite issues earlier this year. Sky customers certainly hold the company to account - there's even a Facebook page, with 10,000 followers, dedicated to complaints and issues. Meanwhile, investors have been very happy with the company's performance and the Three acquisition - the company's share price has sat at five-year highs over the past week. Where the company was punished three years ago for trying to buy radio and outdoor advertising firm MediaWorks, investors see far more natural synergies with a free-to-air and broadcast-video-on-demand (bvod) business in Three. We start the podcast by delving into sports rights - another headline-dominating issue for Sky. Moloney discusses the announcement this week that Sky has lost domestic netball rights next year - and the factors behind that - as well as the latest discussions for lucrative rugby rights. Moloney still expects TVNZ to have rights for some New Zealand rugby matches over the next five years, despite Sky's acquisition of Three. She expects TVNZ will screen some NPC domestic games - matches that Sky has declared it does not want in the new five-year deal. Instead, Sky will focus on All Blacks and Super Rugby games - with the free-to-air rights for those games now likely to appear on Three. Editor-at-Large Shayne Currie is one of New Zealand's most experienced senior journalists and media leaders. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor and has a small shareholding in NZME. Watch Media Insider - The Podcast on YouTube, or listen to it on iHeartRadio, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
