Nine and News Corp end newsagent home delivery for Sydney metro market
Australia’s two biggest newspaper publishers, Nine and News Corp, will cease newsagent-led home delivery for their print titles in the Sydney metro area. This excludes CBD delivery.
According to a Nine spokesperson, the move is necessary to ensure the model is sustainable.
News Corp Australia made the decision to end the newsagent home delivery process for Sydney metro in June, leaving Nine to follow shortly after
The move means newspapers will still be delivered to subscribers’ homes, however the service will not be provided by local newsagents. Instead, News Corp will appoint a single distributor for its deliveries as of early 2020, while Nine will use two.
Nine announced its plans to change the distribution for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian Financial Review in a letter to newsagents last week, while News Corp announced its plans in June. News Corp is the publisher for The Australian and The Daily Telegraph in New South Wales.
“Nine has assessed options for a consolidated distribution model for the Sydney metropolitan area in a move designed to ensure continuity of supply to its customers. Nine believes consolidation across retail and home delivery territories was required to sustain the delivery of The Sydney Morning Herald, The Sun-Herald and The Australian Financial Review to our customers and retailers across Sydney,” said a Nine spokesperson.
“The decision to appoint two distributors – National Distribution Services Pty Ltd and News Emporium Pty Ltd, who between them will service Sydney (ex CBD) – follows an announcement from News Corp in July that would terminate its existing newsagent distribution contracts across Sydney (ex CBD), and appoint a single distributor, with effect from early 2020.”
A News Corp spokesperson said the change was necessary to continue providing customers with the best possible experience.
“We’re moving to a new distribution model to better engage with and improve our customers’ experience. This followed an extensive 18-month industry consultation with newsagencies across NSW,” said the spokesperson.
Both publishers said they had independently reviewed the options and reached the conclusion that the current model was unsustainable for their businesses.
According to Nine’s letter to its newsagency partners, the publisher was faced with gaps in its distribution network due to agencies exiting agreements with short notice, or a lack of distribution options for certain areas.
The changes will not affect CBD territories for either publisher. Both will begin to transition over the coming months.
Mumbrella’s Publish conference on Thursday will feature speakers from both Nine and News Corp in a Leaders Hotseat session where no questions are off limits. Secure your last-minute tickets now.
Stand by for major delivery issues, alienating newspaper’s last standing supporters.
How many more nails does print’s coffin need?
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yep as of this weekend after working 32 yrs for same shop sun will be my last delivery.
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Fairfax (Nine Entertainment) in their letter to agents lays the blame for change on News Ltd. “We are forced to do it” Fairfax is offering a pittance to agents by way of compensation paid in contra instalments against your account. Jump through the hoops or don’t receive the credits.
Nine is offering more however they are also only willing to apply credits to accounts if you meet all of their expectations.
No thought here for investment in vehicles, wrapping machines etc for agents by either supplier.
Then a further smack in the face by only offering a 12.5 commission on sales to agents.
Yet we are still required to process our returns ( I do my subagents) under the archaic news system of tops returned at our cost.
How about the hastily arranged roadshows for agents to attend( hello the powers to be most of us running business work 7 days a week and very long hours to support the channel and earn an income).
Still no word on the where the distribution centres that will service us are.
Where are the delivery drivers coming from? Rumor has it that applications are underway for over 100 457 visa’s for Indian drivers to come into the country!!
Not a very transparent process.
Anyone thought about the newspaper boys and girls that have runs on a Sunday ( I have 2 and they share receive half of my current commission plus any tips they may receive). Under this planned rollout I will also have to let them go as there is not enough commission to go around. Maybe the new distribution companies will bring some overseas kids in to fill that void also.
No comms disclosed to current delivery agents regarding the announcement to our customer base that both organisations require given to them. The Big Bang approach is it… just send an invoice and pay or else.
Cats already out of the bag via the ABC.
Once dismantled you won’t put it back together.
You would have thought their Plan B regarding the new distributors would have been in place as the safety net for agents that handed back their delivery rounds and not to penalise those efficient and long supportive agents that actually wanted to keep their delivery rounds.
Hardly surprising Nine followed the News lead given all
Newspapers are printed by News
Well done , probably big bonuses in play now you have effectively made newsagents redundant and we can all rebrand now as sub agents or cafes.
Anybody told Rupert yet what’s going on!!!
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Yep, 100% failure rate for me since the new system came in, couldn’t find my house apparently. [Edited under Mumbrella’s comment policy] delivery person has replaced long time employee to save a few dollars while Nine pays obscene money to vacuous “celebrities”. Arseholes.
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Nothing but trouble with Daily Telegraph deliveries since the contractors took over – paper not arriving, wrong paper, constant late deliveries – and they have the hide to increase the cost now!
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Three weeks on new service , incorrect publication 4 days, missed altogether 5 days.
Score 9 failures, 12 successful, a pretty lousy rate!
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Since new distribution started 4 weeks ago I have not received one copy of my S.M.H., have complained many many times and reply is a client number then a follow up e-mail “How did we do?”
I will be cancelling my subscription after being a SMH Reader since 1969.
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