Only because of COVID. Prior to that NBC Today was always on the plaza.
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Nonetheless plaza attendance had been down dramatically from where it was 10-20 years ago. The street studio phenomenon is quickly dying off.
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Did Seven ever really use it to its full potential and wasn’t it a constant battle with Sydney City Council to get permission to hold events in the plaza?
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I don’t think so. Definitely with the windows. If they were trying to replicate NBC Today, then didn’t do a very good job of it.
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I think the fact news shared the space really limited this. Not an excuse but the creativity wasn’t there.
However it was a constant battle with the outside plaza with the council and with neighbors also complaining - I remember boland saying this.
But they also stopped appearing outside due to safety concerns after the Lindt siege.
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Yeah, history has shown that Seven ‘kicking the tires’ on being involved with Stan when Nine gave them the opportunity to do so in 2014 was a monumental strategic blunder.
Been thinking a lot about Seven’s subscription streaming options recently (due to another post which I never got a chance to respond to) and it seems like they have three avenues they could pursue:
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7Plus Subscription Tier: This was something that was going to happen in 2018 but it never ultimately happened for some reason. A potential subscription could offer ad-free viewing (something which forms the basis of ITV and Channel 4’s subscription offering for their catch-up services) as well as full access to 7Plus’ entire catalogue (obviously this would require some content which is currently freely available to be put behind the paywall). While adding a subscription element to 7Plus would be the most ‘straight-forward’ option, it probably would attract the least subscribers (unless Seven invested heavily in acquiring/producing exclusive shows for the package).
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Joining Forces with Binge: The last time Seven partnered up with Foxtel for a SVOD service (Presto), it didn’t end well. However, I would argue Presto was always doomed to fail for a range of reasons from the terrible UI to Foxtel holding back all of their premium content and the endless promotions which allowed users to access it for free month after month. By contrast, Binge has a much better UI, content offering and pricing structure. Seven joining forces with Foxtel for Binge would boost its content library (particularly its Australian content offering) whilst providing scope for the two companies to invest in original content which can debut on Binge and potentially air later on Seven/7Plus.
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Joining Forces with a Yet-to-be-Launched Service: Services like Peacock, Discovery+ and Starz Play come to mind when you think about this. The issue is all of the major media companies have tended to want to go it alone when it comes to launching and operating new SVOD services for obvious reasons. Indeed, the closest some have come to co-operation is licensing another network’s shows/content library (eg; Discovery+ licensing non-fiction content from A&E Networks). As such, it might be hard/impossible for Seven to go down this avenue. If they can manage to do so though, it would allow them to promote a subscription service that would have a substantial library of ‘big name’ content which would attract potential subscribers.
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To be honest, it was always going to be a terrible location for anything bigger then a small crowd. The Lindt siege really ended Seven’s active use of the plaza
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If I were 7, I’d double down on 7+ and implement a subscription tier for additional content and start investing in exclusive content for a SVOD offering.
I’d also reconsider selling Seven Studios and start producing new content for other subscription services. If streaming is the future, content is king. Platforms will come and go, but there is money to be made in that and licensing/distribution is key.
A fair few of their shows, both original series and that have aired on the network end up on Netflix etc, Yummy Mummies, Instant Hotel, Zumbo’s Just Desserts, Wanted etc
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100% agree. Even if SWM can’t join forces with a streaming platform, it can become a content provider by making new shows and selling classic catalogue shows (e.g. All Saints) to the likes of Netflix and Amazon Prime to be viewed outside Australia. Currently, all seasons of Packed to the Rafters are now streaming on Amazon.
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An apology from Roberts-Smith to the Seven West media staff he referred to as “smiling assassins”.
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If I could laugh react to this I would.
He should be removed from his position or be the decent person people claim and resign
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he should probably apologise to Yumi Stynes as well 
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Token nothing gesture.
Seven and Flybuys strike innovative partnership
Loyalty program data division joins 7plus connected TV audiences
Seven West Media today announced the launch of a new partnership with Unpacked by Flybuys, the data division of the loyalty program.
The partnership will connect Flybuys’ aggregated audience segments with 7plus connected TV audiences. It marks the first time targeting will be possible across connected TV, giving marketers the ability to reach 7plus audiences on the biggest screen in their home with tailored advertising messages based on previous purchases.
Seven and its strategic data partner TEG Analytics will connect Seven’s 6 million unique first-party audience identifiers, SWM-iDs, with the data of more than 8 million Flybuys members.
Seven’s SWM-iDs – coupled with its second-party partnerships with TEG, Carsguide, Mastercard and others – sit at the core of the audience insights, activation and measurement solution in 7REDiQ, the audience intelligence platform Seven launched in October 2020.
Seven West Media chief revenue officer, Kurt Burnette, said: “We set up 7REDiQ with one simple aim: to bring brands closer to their desired audiences than ever before. Connecting Flybuys’ data to our SWM-iDs for activation is an Australian first and an exciting development for marketers.
“Our new partnership with Flybuys means 7REDiQ has taken a giant leap forward to connect deterministic second-party data at an identity level, making it even easier for brands to reach their key audiences across our market-leading content and to achieve stronger results.”
Harley Giles, chief product officer of Flybuys, said: “Through this partnership with Seven West Media, we are providing insights into our more than 8 million members’ shopping baskets. Unpacked by Flybuys arms brands and media agencies with data, insights and measurement into their audiences based on real-world behaviour and provides unrivalled ROI on marketers spend.”
Andrew Reid, general manager at TEG Analytics, said: “We are thrilled to be able to bring TEGA’s new data partnership with Flybuys to our long-standing partnership with Seven West Media. This is the first time in Australia that a TV network will be able to offer brands FMCG data against connected TV viewing.”
Seven West Media Network Digital Sales Director, Nicole Bence, said: “The new Flybuys partnership is further evidence of 7plus, 7REDiQ and our data partners working better together to deliver people-based, results-driven marketing through connected TV.
“The recent roll out of mandatory sign-in across all 7plus assets means every digital eyeball is addressable using high-quality, transactional, location and behavioural signals from 6 million IDs, with a 75% match with Flybuys.
“When the Tokyo Olympics kick off on 23 July, Australians will be able to access 43 channels of Olympics content on 7plus. Today’s announcement comes at a perfect time for brands to make the most of the resultant massive increase in digital viewing across Seven’s market-leading BVOD platform and maximise the engagement and scale of the Olympics,” she said.
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More data sharing might sound good to advertisers, but it sounds awful from a privacy perspective.
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SWM corporate and government affairs manager Jack McLintock has resigned.
Seven and KERV revolutionise shopping
Officeworks launches first campaign with 7ACT
Seven West Media has announced an Australian-first partnership with Kerv Interactive to deliver the shoppable ad experience, 7ACT.
The new product allows advertisers to insert QR codes into video assets, enabling brands and content creators to showcase specific products, offer relevant information, and provide contextual shopping opportunities.
Seven has launched 7ACT with a programmatic-first partnership with key agency partners Matterkind and Initiative, developing an all-new campaign for Officeworks.
Officeworks is using 7ACT as part of its “Mind Grown” campaign, providing children new avenues to grow and learn through a range of learning resources. It is a collaborative partnership that sets the standard forfuture ad experiences on screens.
7ACT is an innovative addition to Seven’s Enhanced Advertiser and Viewer Experience (E.A.V.E.) initiative, which was launched last year.
Seven West Media Network digital sales director, Nicole Bence, said: “Our mission with premium ad experiences such as 7ACT is to make advertising more enjoyable, more engaging and more relevant through personalisation.
“E.A.V.E. is central to our approach to innovation, creating ad experiences that are unique, customised and bring brands to life through interactive storytelling. We believe that by delivering valuable ad experiences to our viewers, they will be more loyal to our platforms, more engaged with our content and therefore much more responsive to brand messages from advertisers.”
Kerv is a global, multi‑award‑winning video technology company that lifts existing video assets to become unique, interactive experiences for consumers. The QR code response process is unique to Kerv and allows information and shopability to shift where the mobile destination is directed, based on the Kerv object-level AI.
Matterkind national head of partnerships & strategic investments, Flaminia Sapori, said: “We are extremely excited to be part of this launch with Seven West Media, who have been leading the market through their programmatic-first approach in the BVOD space. This approach allows Matterkind to trade easily on a diverse variety of advertising products and innovative solutions for our agencies and brands.
“Ad product innovations like 7ACT represent a huge step forward for brands, leveraging high-impact and immersive formats to expand their addressable footprint. Most importantly, 7ACT’s use of QR codes enables accurate measurement of success across Connected Television, far beyond standard brand metrics.”
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