A new media giant has landed!

We start the year off with a bang with the announcement of newly merged Seven West Media and Southern Cross Media Group, officially debuted on the ASX. This sets one of the bigger tones for mergers since the Nine merger with Fairfax in 2018, followed by Macquarie Radio.

Now, despite all the noise around cost-cutting (which, of course, matters), what we’re really seeing is TV, radio, streaming, digital and publishing coming together under one roof.

But the bigger driver here isn’t just efficiency. It’s the sheer value of the P25–54 audience, a lucrative, money-making, and still critically important demographic.

And yes, I know what you’re thinking: it’s all about first-party data. That access is absolutely important. But for advertisers already investing heavily in TV and radio, this represents a far bigger commercial opportunity than most people are giving it credit for.

Firstly, what has been created here? What does the new business look like?

The merger now brings together:

• Seven’s free-to-air TV network (Metro and Regional) and BVOD platform 7plus
• Southern Cross Media’s national radio footprint (Hit Network and Triple M)
• A growing digital audio and podcast ecosystem via LiSTNR
• Strong publishing assets in key markets (from SWM).

I believe the link between assets, audiences and content aligns more effectively than Nine’s proposition and I’m excited to see how this will come together for advertisers. From personal experience, the hardest part of the Nine merger back in 2018, wasn’t consolidating assets, it was people, infrastructure and how to efficiently commercialise these assets to make it EASY for advertisers. So, making that work will need to be the focus for the new merger.

The lucrative P25-54 audience is the big opportunity here

For decades, P25–54 has been the trading currency of TV and radio advertising, and despite plenty of commentary suggesting otherwise, the fundamentals haven’t changed.

So why is the P25-54 so important in this merger?

• P25–54 sits in peak earning and peak spending years
• They drive most household purchasing decisions, groceries, automotive, finance, insurance, telco and retail
• Over 70% of agency briefs in Australia still target this demographic
• In TV, P25–54 remains the benchmark for pricing and premium CPMs
• In radio and audio, 25-54s account for the largest share of commercial listening, particularly in breakfast and drive
• This audience still consumes mass-reach media daily, TV at night, radio and audio through the day, streaming in between.

What this merger does exceptionally well is rebuild a clean, scaled proposition around that audience, at a time when attention is fragmented and efficiency matters more than ever.

So, what do I think will work well for them in the long run?

Individually, we know that TV and radio have faced endless challenges with the vortex of money going into digital channels, but together, they can be very competitive and provide a unique offering. Advertisers like the notion of being on TV, broadcasting ads on radio then streaming the ads to your phone, especially when it’s provisioned under one business – its’ sexy, it’s easy and you can reach a shit tonne of customers! Not to mention how they are going to leverage all that first party data - that’s going to be huge.

What I really like is:

• You’ll be able to deliver high-reach TV moments to build fame and impact
• You can reinforce messaging through radio and digital audio, where 25–54 engagement remains strong and habitual
• Extending frequency and coverage via BVOD and streaming environments, layered with first party data to create audiences across your digital ecosystem – HUGE!
• Packaging all of this into simpler, more efficient buys for advertisers looking to reduce complexity. They aren’t there yet but if they get this right, wowwee we are off and running.

And all this matters because while global tech platforms win on precision (to be fair, the traditional players can do this also), they still struggle to deliver shared moments, cultural relevance and trusted environments at national scale. Far out, I just sounded like I was at a TV upfront.

What are the bigger implications to our industry?

Hmmm… I’m not sure yet, but I’m really interested to see where this takes us now that we have two major mergers happening in eight years. Nine is cashed up after the Domain.com.au sale, so I have no doubt that money will be used to buy an OOH or even another streaming service. If it does that, what an interesting business that becomes.

We are seeing greater consolidation on the other side too with OMG/IPG merger, cost cutting, tech upgrades and heaps of AI being embraced by businesses. This all signals to the market, the hard times now facing the holding groups.

Then for advertisers, well, it’s either going to be a positive net result in the long run or it creates greater complexity, confusion and segmentation - do I really think that, no, but you probably need a trusty agency to help guide you through the cluster of changes… enter Habitat M…I joke (not).

So, what’s the takeaway for marketers, business owners and advertisers in general?

This is a big planning signal for any brand who wants to advertise. I know there are a lot of headlines on this merger, but I ask you not to view this negatively (e.g. cut costing or the demise of traditional media). Look at it from the perspective that this is the new world order, consolidation is a good thing, if it’s done right, and it makes buying advertising easier. We are going to see more of this kind of consolidation, not less. Media companies are coming together to offer scale, simplicity and stronger delivery against high-value audiences.

To get the most out of that, marketers need to lean in not sit on the side lines. These platforms only deliver their full value when they’re properly invested in and activated by design. If your objective is to reach People 25–54 across multiple channels, efficiently and with impact, this is exactly the kind of merged offering you should be considering.

Now to leave you with my last words, I think the opportunity isn’t just that these businesses came together, it’s what smart marketers do with them next.

Mic drop…