Mumbrellacast: Publishers sign up to Google Showcase, Seven’s financials improve and Facebook pulls news
This week Pearman Media’s Steve Allen joined the Mumbrellacast team to breakdown Google Showcase and what it means for publishers as negotiations in the News Media Bargaining Code roll on.
As well as being the first major media brand to sign up to Google Showcase, Seven West Media revealed its significant debt pile had been slashed by 42% to $329 million and reported a net profit of $116.4 million in the first half of the financial year, meaning the company’s $170 million cost savings program is on track. In a better position than expected, the results raise questions about the importance of the performance of its upcoming content slate and whether the company should consider paying back the Job Keeper benefits which reportedly saved 120-150 jobs.
Plus, this morning Facebook announced it was pulling all news sharing from its platform, effective immediately. It wasn’t just publishers that work up to find their pages blocked and content missing, but satirical sites, sports teams and the Bureau of Meteorology also got caught in the crosshairs. Now it’s up to the Australian Government to move on the situation.
