TVNZ searching for solution to boost its digital news, no comment on a Stuff purchase

Thursday, 14 February 2019

TVNZ's improved financial performance has provided it with a platform to make 'bigger bets' in its future, chief executive Kevin Kenrick has told MPs.

He said it needed to improve its position in online news, but said it would be inappropriate to comment on whether that might involve buying Stuff.

Chairwoman Therese Walsh said TVNZ wanted to 'partake in any discussions' about how to make the media more efficient 'whether that be public media or private media', after initially being questioned by a select committee about the prosect of a merger with RNZ.

The comments appear unlikely to dampen speculation that the state-owned broadcaster might be a left-of-field candidate to pick up some or all of Stuff Ltd, which is being put up for sale by its Australian owner, Nine.

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TVNZ last week declined to say whether it might seek an 'information memorandum' which is being prepared by Nine for prospective buyers of Stuff.

Last year was the first time in five years that TVNZ had managed to increase its annual revenues, year on year, Walsh said, describing it as a 'great year for TVNZ in the context of a very competitive, fragmented media industry'.

Walsh said TVNZ's improved performance had 'allowed it a little bit of headroom to invest in the future'.

Kenrick said that as well as having more 'fiscal headroom' TVNZ now also had 'more confidence about our ability to have a more stable business and therefore to place some bigger bets'.

'We obviously continue to focus first and foremost on TV performance because that is the big engine that drives our business … but we have also been investing in future potential areas for the business.

'We have been doing a lot of work around what the future of news might look like … and also what other digital platforms we might participate in.'

Kenrick signalled TVNZ held a strong interest in the overall health of the media sector.

'The theme we are focused on right now is looking at what is going to create the most robust outcomes for the industry particularly around local content.

TVNZ chairwoman Therese Walsh told MPs it was interested in discussions about how to make the private media, as well as the public media, more efficient.

'Yes, we need to get our own house in order but we operate as part of the broader media sector and the health and wellbeing of that sector has a bearing on us as well.'

Speaking after the select committee meeting, Kenrick said online local news reporting 'had to be key' to its future plans.

'We have translated a leadership position around entertainment TV content into the digital world.

'We have got the market-leading TV news. But we haven't translated that into a leadership position in digital news and so we need to find some solutions around that – news is so critical to us that we have to accept that what we have done so far has not been enough.'

TVNZ would look at anything that could assist with that and 'weigh it up accordingly', he said.

But he said he did not think it would be appropriate to comment on whether an acquisition of Stuff was an option.