ACCC won't block Murdoch's Ten bid | Dr Mumbo teaches geography | Heinz seeks new agency | Nine's flat revenues | Publishers desert AMAA | Bridging automotive's gender divide | Southern Cross Austereo soars | Pedestrian.tv expands

[View Newsletter Online]( [Mumbrella Newsletter]( Hear from Tickled Media, Guardian Australia, Fairfax Media and more at Publish Building a multinational publisher without display ads, rebuilding trust in media, creating world-class podcasts and growing new revenue streams will be all discussed at [Mumbrella Publish](. The founder of Tickled Media, CEO of Guardian Australia, Head of Global Content Strategy at Bupa and Commercial Content Director at Fairfax Media are among the first speakers announced, with more to come this week. [Earlybird tickets are on sale]( until September 7. News [Nine profits down following writedown of TV licences]( Nine Entertainment Network’ s writedown of its TV licences, as flagged in its earlier half yearly financial results, has put the company into loss for 2017. The network reported total revenues of 1.238b for the year, a 3.5% year on decline on the previous. and a $203.4m net loss after tax after the $260m write off. [READ MORE »]( News [Pedestrian.TV launches new teen website 'Pez' and three new channels]( Australian youth focused publisher, Pedestrian.TV is launching a new teen focused sub-brand – Pez – and is set to launch three new sub-sites before summer. Pez – an affectionate name used by younger Pedestrian readers for the main website – will launch as a separate website between October and November, delivering news, videos and features targeted to high school readers, on topics ranging from body image, mental health, sex, dating, friendships and bullying to study tips, schoolies, and formals. [READ MORE »]( News [Murdoch and Gordon's joint bid for Ten given go-ahead by ACCC]( The Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC) won’t stand in the way of Lachlan Murdoch and Bruce Gordon’s joint takeover bid of the embattled Network Ten. Speculation about a joint venture between two of Ten’s largest shareholders kicked off in June when the duo revealed they would work together exclusively in a bid to save Ten following news of its administration. At the time however, Murdoch and Gordon insisted they were not launching a takeover bid. [READ MORE »]( News [HT&E posts mixed results as soft radio market drags on revenue]( HT&E has seen a 75% boost in revenue in the first results since the company sold off its newspaper interests and rebranded, but chairman Peter Cosgrove admitted performance has been mixed with a weak radio market dragging the business back. Revenue for the outdoor, radio and digital company, which sold its Australian Regional Media business to News Corp last year and divested its New Zealand print business, was $225.7m while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were up 28% to $40.6m. [READ MORE »]( News ['There was nobody else left': Publishers desert AMAA magazine audit]( Frankie, RM Williams Outback, Runner’s World and Schwartz Media’s The Monthly are the latest publications to withdraw from the Audited Media Association of Australia’s circulation results. The news comes eight months after the three major magazine publishers – Pacific Magazines, Bauer Media, and NewsLifeMedia – withdrew from the AMAA, in a move which was said to effectively kill the magazine audit. [READ MORE »]( News [SCA profits up 40.7% with regional affiliate agreements driving revenue gains]( Southern Cross Austereo had a positive end to fiscal year 2017, reporting a net profit after tax (NPAT) increase of 40.7%, and revenue growth of $690.8m (up 7.5%). The company’s NPAT was $108.6m, and EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) climbed 5.85% to $177.4m. [READ MORE »]( Dr Mumbo [Dr Mumbo: When ACA does geography]( When it comes to nuanced coverage of international affairs, Dr Mumbo naturally looks first to Nine’s flagship consumer affairs show A Current Affair. So imagine his shock when he saw that the show seems to have misplaced the Philippines by 2,500 kilometres. [READ MORE »]( News [Marques that worked for the last 100 years won’t work for the next, warns Ford boss]( The president of Ford Australia has declared his business will transform from a simple car marque into a “mobility company”, embracing a range of advances including driverless vehicles, drones, shuttle services and revolutionary tech for disabled drivers. Speaking at Mumbrella’s Automotive Marketing Summit yesterday, Graeme Whickman said that no single technology would define the future of transport, and promised Ford would be investing billions into R&D. [READ MORE »]( LinkedIn's Australian Agency Influencer of the Year [My content marketing campaign failed. Now what?]( In this posting from the LinkedIn Agency Influencer program, Louder Online co-founder Gian Clancey argues there’s an awful lot to learn from an apparently unsuccessful content marketing campaignHistory is littered with people who failed at their passion. Walt Disney got fired from his dream job, Steve Jobs watched his business collapse, and Abraham Lincoln lost out on the US presidency. The thing that made these names famous, though, wasn’t their failures – it was the fact that they kept trying even after things went wrong. [READ MORE »]( News [Nine dominates Wednesday night TV despite strong performance from The Bachelor and ABC]( Despite strong competition from Seven’s news offerings, ABC’s entertainment line-up and The Bachelor in the key advertising demographics, Nine won Wednesday night thanks to The Block, Doctor Doctor and its news and current affairs programs. The most-watched program was once again The Block, which had an average metro audience of 1.028m according to OzTAM’s overnight preliminary metro ratings. The Bachelor was the second-most-watched entertainment show of the night, in seventh place overall with 749,000 viewers. [READ MORE »]( News [Global theatre pioneer and Aussie music industry icon headline second Mumbrella Entertainment Marketing Summit]( Respected global theatre producer David Ian and legendary music industry pioneer Michael Chugg are two of the headline speakers confirmed for the Mumbrella Entertainment Summit. Other sessions unveiled today include a look at the marketing opportunities in and around the $3 billion Australian videogame industry, a session investigating how brands are using Facebook Live and a panel delving into the latest in the world of podcasts. [READ MORE »]( News [Gourmet Traveller enters podcast space, refreshes magazine]( Bauer Media’s Gourmet Traveller is hoping to offer readers a “promise of something new”, as its refreshes its brand and launches its first podcast series. The refreshed magazine comes three months after the appointment of Sarah Oakes as editor and aims to engage a wider audience, no longer defined by demographics. [READ MORE »]( News [WPP warns ad industry 'in danger of losing the plot' over discounting as revenue growth slows]( WPP has warned the industry is “in danger of losing the plot” as it accused rivals of offering discounts, cheap creative, underwritten media and other tricks to win business. Reporting a slowing of revenue growth for the second quarter, the world’s largest marketing and communications holding company revised down its predictions for the full year on the back of a challenged global economy. [READ MORE »]( News [Oriel ad blocking management technology launches for Australian publishers]( UK ad blocking management technology Oriel has joined with local media tech agency, Teleskope, to bring its technology to Australian publishers. The platform enables publishers to re-engage their ad-blocking audiences in exchange for access to content. In private pre-launch trials, Oriel claims up to 40% of ad-blocking users opted to view ads. [READ MORE »]( News ['We don't see a problem': Ultra Tune marketer argues its ads 'empower' women]( The controversial ‘Unexpected Situations’ Ultra Tune ads – which have faced accusations of sexism, vilification and outrage-baiting – are actually empowering to women, the company has argued, with national marketing manager Rod Cedaro telling the Mumbrella Automotive Summit, “We don’t see a problem with the ads”. Cedaro also hinted that John Cena, WWE star turned Hollywood actor, could front a new series of commercials for the brand. [READ MORE »]( News [Ben Sampson joins The Monkeys as creative director]( The Monkeys have appointed Ben Sampson to the role of creative director. Sampson joins The Monkeys from San Francisco where he was the creative director for Fitbit while working at ARGONAUT Inc for over one year. [READ MORE »]( News [Heinz seeks new creative agency]( Heinz Australia is on the hunt for a new creative agency for its food products which include beans and pasta, soup, sauces and dressings, vegetables, baby food, chicken, desserts and ready meals, Mumbrella understands. In 2015, incumbent agency Channel T was appointed to the account as the brand moved on from its agency of record at the time Y&R. [READ MORE »]( News ['It's easy to reduce everything down to cup holders': What the auto industry needs to know about women]( Automotive brands can reduce everything down to cup holders and swatches on colour, but they really do not understand the female consumer, said Fiorella Di Santo, Bauer Media’s director of sales. “The car industry is overwhelmingly dominated by males, but its main customers are female,” Di Santo said. [READ MORE »]( News [Matthew Hayden and Alinta Energy customers say 'Flick Them' to high energy rates]( Alinta Energy Queensland has recruited former Australian cricketer Matthew Hayden to star in its new ad, encouraging customers to say ‘flick them’ to increasing energy prices. Created by Banjo, the 30 second commercial opens with Hayden saying ‘flick them’, followed by a woman putting her energy bill up the vacuum and a grandma shredding her bills in the pasta maker all while saying the tagline. [READ MORE »]( News [CarAdvice and Facebook team up in new auto marketplace]( Publisher CarAdvice and Facebook have joined forces to launch a new platform, CarAdvice Next, for automotive marketers. Billed as “a content led, data-driven approach, to help OEMs build brand consideration and generate leads on the world’s largest social network,” the venture promises to connect Australia’s 15 million Facebook users with CarAdvice’s automotive reviews and prospective car buyers. [READ MORE »]( News [The Athlete's Foot rebrands with 'MyFit' campaign]( The Athelete’s Foot has launched its first advertising campaign in over five years with a new logo and advert promoting its shoe fitting technology. Created by 1440, the 30 second ad shows different people exercising in different places and promoting its in-store ‘MyFit’ facilities. [READ MORE »]( News [An 'old man's brand': How Bentley Motors is attempting to change perceptions]( Bentley Motors’ ANZ country manager, David Simpson, believes there’s a perception that the company is an “old man’s brand” and that branded events were part of the solution to the problem, especially when it comes to marketing to women. The comments were made during Mumbrella’s inaugural Automotive Marketing Summit during a panel session on brand experience. Simpson shared the stage with Terri Golder, head of marketing communications at Renault Australia. [READ MORE »]( News [Cummins & Partners explains why all different people need health cover in first work for HBF]( Cummins & Partners has launched its first work for HBF since winning the account in June, showing why all different people of different ages need health cover. The one minute ad depicts the different services HBF Health subsidises for all different needs including acupuncture, physiotherapy, x-rays, optometrists, ultrasounds and the dentist. [READ MORE »]( News [‘Get rid of the loop of pain’: Automotive marketers warned they’re forgetting about the customer]( The car purchasing process and automotive marketing have gotten worse over the past five years, global initiatives have gone backwards and a ‘bizarre’ culture has emerged in selling vehicles, the audience at Mumbrella’s Automotive Marketing Summit has been told. “The forgotten part of car marketing is the customer – and I know that sounds contentious – but it’s 2017 now and the car buying process is actually no different to how it was 30, 40 years ago. It hasn’t changed at all… Actually the process is the same. And we’re all extremely different,” Simon Van Wyk, managing director of MediaDigitalX warned. [READ MORE »]( News [R U Ok? campaign reminds peers to talk in any setting]( Ahead of R U Ok? Day on September 14, the suicide prevention organisation has released two new spots encouraging people to ask the question, are you okay? Wherever you may be. The two ads show two friends sitting at the bar as one asks “hey Jim, are you okay?”, while the other ad shows a supermarket employee asking a co-worker “do you mind if I walk with you?”. [READ MORE »]( News [Matt Kemp joins Clemenger BBDO Melbourne as senior planner]( Clemenger BBDO Melbourne has appointed Matt Kemp to the role of senior planner who joins the agency from Grey London. Kemp joined WPP owned Grey London in 2013 as a planner, before being promoted to senior planner in February last year. [READ MORE »]( Sponsored Post Are you smashing it in the world of marketing science? The [Mumbrella MSIX Awards]( recognises work that best embrace the principles of marketing and behavioural sciences in the creation of successful marketing campaigns. Have you used neuroscience to create a great campaign? Have you demonstrated clever data insights? Are your creative efforts powered by behavioural science? First entries close tomorrow, so [submit your entry now](. 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