WIN chief seeks Nine off-button

BILLIONAIRE television owner Bruce Gordon has outlined plans for WIN Corp to become Australia's first independent regional network, amid takeover and affiliation rights battles with the James Packer and private equity-owned PBL Media.

BILLIONAIRE television owner Bruce Gordon has outlined plans for WIN Corp to become Australia's first independent regional network, amid takeover and affiliation rights battles with the James Packer and private equity-owned PBL Media.

Successful moves on Nine affiliates in Perth and Newcastle would ultimately position WIN to compile its own programming schedules.

In an interview with The Australian yesterday, Mr Gordon presented a scenario where WIN could remove itself from its affiliation agreement with PBL Media's Nine Network.

"What these people forget is, we know how to buy programs," he said. The 78-year-old spent 35 years at Paramount Pictures, with most of that time as head of international television sales. The list of international media contacts Mr Gordon made during this time is legendary.

His comments have come as Sunraysia Television yesterday finally recommended WIN's $163.2 million bid for Channel 9 in Perth, having previously recommended a lower PBL Media bid for the station.

"The directors of Sunraysia have changed their recommendation ... and now recommend that shareholders vote in favour of the WIN transaction," Sunraysia directors said. The Sunraysia board, including chairman Eva Presser, said the WIN offer was now a "superior proposal" to the PBL Media bid.

Assuming the regional media tycoon's bid for Channel 9 Perth now succeeds, it may represent another plank in a plan by Mr Gordon to source WIN's programming elsewhere, cutting out PBL Media's Nine Network.

WIN has also been conducting due diligence on another Nine affiliate - NBN Television in central and northern NSW. If WIN were to gain control of NBN, it would deliver Mr Gordon an iron grip over the bulk of Nine's regional affiliates.

The possible move to make WIN independent of the east coast-based networks is one of the most dramatic developments since the proclamation of new media laws three weeks ago. These laws are an integral part of a push by Mr Gordon to capitalise on what he sees as a "once in 20-year opportunity" to expand his media empire.

The Bermuda-based television entrepreneur wants to either partly float his television assets, and/or expand his WIN empire with the help of private sector funding.

Mr Gordon said part of the possible motivation for WIN sourcing its own programming was stalled talks with PBL Media over a new affiliation agreement, with the current agreement due to expire in June.

Mr Gordon yesterday claimed WIN was being asked to pay half of its gross revenues in affiliation rights - significantly more than competitors such as Southern Cross Ten and Seven Network affiliate Prime.

"We believe our two opposition networks are paying about 29 per cent of their revenue, and we're being asked 50 per cent," he said.

Mr Gordon added that on its current affiliation agreement, it had been paying Nine "34.25 per cent of our gross revenue". But the existing affiliation agreement was struck when Nine was the country's top-rating network. As one WIN source puts it: "We paid that figure because they were winning the ratings."

WIN is not the only Nine affiliate making noises about Nine's lower ratings. SP Telemedia, the owner of NBN - which has maintained its position as the highest-rating individual station in the country - last month singled out the recent struggle by Nine with its ratings performance as a factor in reduced advertising revenue.

A senior executive with the company said: "Our ratings performance is due to our local programming, local news and what we do in the local community. It's not the Nine affiliation; if anything, it's dragging us back."

Mr Gordon has proceeded with starting to drop Nine Network programming, in what has been widely seen as a salvo in the fight over affiliation rights.

Earlier this month, WIN dropped daytime chat show The Catch Up from its schedule, and the network has also dropped other Nine programming such as overnight show Quizmania.