Page 1 JMAD New Zealand Media Ownership Report 2012 Published: November 23, 2012 Author: Merja Myllylahti This New Zealand Media Ownership Report is the second one published by AUT’s Centre for Journalism, Media and Democracy (JMAD). This report finds that in 2012 the ownership of New Zealand media companies concentrated even more tightly in hands of transnational corporations, financial institutions and private equity firms, following the international trend. It also discovers that the financialisation of media companies has intensified their need to maximise revenues. Consequently, media companies have implemented cost cutting programmes, outsourced jobs, closed down operations and sold core assets. The speed of these developments suggest that the future of New Zealand media companies is even more unpredictable than in September 2011 when the first JMAD report was published. At the same time print media organisations and online news formats struggled for commercial viability. In these fraught circumstances the principles of public broadcasting and public interest journalism were difficult to sustain. Key events and trends concerning New Zealand media ownership in 2012:  Transnational media corporations tighten control over New Zealand media companies  Financial institutions and private equity firms increase their New Zealand media holdings  Fairfax and APN: asset sales, job cuts, paywalls and tabloid formats  Traditional business models in New Zealand print media become less viable  Public broadcasting shrinks further after the government effectively closes TVNZ 7 and Stratos  Sky TV’s spreading influence triggers Commerce Commission investigation  Journalism.org.nz: web based public interest journalism emerges Keywords: New Zealand media, ownership, convergence, financialization Note: The first JMAD New Zealand Media Ownership Report was published 2011 by AUT’s Centre for Journalism, Media and Democracy (JMAD). The copies of this and last year’s reports are available here: http://www.aut.ac.nz/study-at-aut/study-areas/communications/profile/media- networks/journalism,-media-and-democracy-research-centre/journalists-and-projects