Australia's Seven said to be close to buying MediaWorks' TV business

Thursday, 12 December 2019

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern responds to MediaWorks' announcement in October that it would look for a buyer for its TV business.

Australia's Seven West Media is in discussions to buy MediaWorks' television business, which includes television channel Three and MediaWorks' Newshub journalism business, an industry source says.

MediaWorks, which formally put its loss-making television business on the block in October, declined to comment. Seven has also been contacted for comment.

MediaWorks' majority owner, United States private equity company Oaktree, is understood to have decided to call time on the television business after state-owned TVNZ got the green light from the Government to stop paying dividends and dip into its reserves for a $60 million three-year spend-up to grab audience share.

Seven is listed on the Australian stock exchange and has a market value of A$550 million (NZ$576).

Its assets include television channel 7, joint venture Yahoo 7, and The West Australian newspaper.

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It has been previously been cited as one of the few likely buyers for MediaWorks' TV business, given the need for synergies to bring the business into profit.

There is speculation Seven would populate MediaWorks' television channels with more of its syndicated Australian and US content.

Another source said the process of finding a buyer for MediaWorks' television business was going well.

MediaWorks set out its television programming plans for 2020 in a low-key manner last week, but with an emphasis on continuity.

News and current affairs would continue to take 'centre stage throughout the year', the company said, with both The AM Show and The Project remaining as weekday staples.

Dancing with the Stars and The Block NZ would return 'with promises of even bolder ballroom and bigger builds'.

A television industry source said the programming plans looked light overall, with no commitment to a new season of Married at First Sight to square off against TVNZ's planned show The Bachelorette New Zealand.

MediaWorks spokeswoman Rose Swale said no decision had made about Married at First Sight and there would be more programming announcements in 2020.

Director of content Ben Quinn said there was more to come 'as we plough into a new year, and new decade for Three'.

Newshub currently provides news bulletins for MediaWorks' television and radio channels, but MediaWorks could potentially contract-in radio news coverage from either Seven or another journalism business, if a sale went ahead.

The speculation comes as NZ First leader Winston Peters threw his party's weight behind an appeal by media company NZME to be allowed to buy Stuff.