We round up only the most interesting happenings; cultural trends, ad wins and fails and media stuff like radio ratings. It’s a collection curated by our most curious minds and shared in one email, so you don’t have to go through your other 20.
Sign Up View the previous issue: 3 May 2024The ever-insightful Tim Burrows made quite a startling observation in his Unmade newsletter this week that the shape of the Australian media landscape is being decided well away from our shores. There are several examples in his article starting with TikTok and the likelihood that if the app is banned in the US, it is also likely that the Australian government will do the same. There is also a legal case against Google in the US, where a judge will decide whether Google has abused its powers over search and advertising, and the result could also have implications in Australia. We’re also about to see Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video introduce their advertising tiers locally that will take a slice of the video market. Meanwhile, the retail media juggernaut which is Amazon could be about to become the biggest advertising player in the Australian market, behind Google and Meta. Then there’s AI, Paramount’s ownership, and the feeling that we’re last on the list to find out about a lot of it.
Most Australians agree that brands should do some form of good in the world, but only 39% believe they should take a position on social and political issues. We have seen debate about this quite a bit this year – think back to Australia Day and Woolies as an example – and it’s a good one because half of Australians say they would boycott a brand over its position in current wars and conflicts. The data has come from the Good Study, a co-funded research project from Leo Burnett, that aims to provide business leaders with new data on the topic of “brand good”. There are risks when it comes to aligning a brand with a cause if it’s not done in the right way, or if it doesn’t fit with a company purpose. The Chief Strategy Officer at Leo Burnett said that when a brand gets this stuff wrong, it can hurt their marketing efforts but also the cause they’re trying to support. The data also showed some jumps in causes Australians want to support; sustainable fishing, reproductive rights of women, and reducing sexism.
The interesting bits from across the media landscape in the L7D...
Meta has refrained from making new content deals with Australian media publishers on Facebook, raising concerns about a potential news ban on the platform. Data analysis shows that engagement with news organisations posts on Facebook is currently at its lowest and has been overtaken by memes. The Guardian believes the drop in news on the platform is intentional with Meta reducing news visibility over recent years. Research from the University of Technology Sydney and RMIT in 2021 confirmed a consistent drop in engagement and traffic from Facebook to news sites which reflects Meta’s algorithm changes that limit news exposure.
The Museum for the United Nations has announced the launch of Sounds Right, a global music initiative that will enable nature to earn money from its own sounds. Think sounds like ocean waves, bird song, whale song, rainstorms – all of these will be recognised as an official artist – NATURE – on all streaming platforms. Nature will have it’s own profile and by listening people will be funding conservation and restoration projects worldwide. The launch of Sounds Right includes supporting artists who have released new tracks or remixed tracks to feature NATURE. Here’s the link to the available tracks and the “Feat. NATURE” playlist on Spotify.
A spotlight on advertisers doing interesting creative things...