‘Trading audiences not channels’: Seven streamlines its ad offering as it takes on the global streamers
“The future of total TV audience trading” is mere months away, according to Seven executives, who presented a 2025 slate focused on live streaming sport, bolstered news offerings, predictive AI insights, and a new ad-buying system that trades in audience members, not channels.
Seven announced all this and more at its annual Upfront in Sydney on Wednesday morning.
Headlining the event was the news that Phoenix, which the network dubs “the world’s most advanced total TV trading system”, will go live on March 2, 2025, with bookings open from early December.
According to Seven’s national television sales director Katie Finney, Phoenix will “forever change media buying” in Australia.
“How audiences are connecting with our content is changing every day, and we need to be responsive to those changes,” Finney explains.
“Phoenix provides a single view of brands and audiences across the Seven ecosystem, shifting us to trading audiences not channels. Whether it’s metro, regional or digital, we can deliver these audiences wherever they land.
“We will offer a streamlined media buying experience that delivers better value through new trading models, optimised campaign delivery, and data-driven audience insights.
“Our investment in technology will drive ease of access across all devices and platforms and consistency in trading approach. Our partners will be able to trade faster and more effectively across the screens of Seven.
“Our ambition is to eliminate makegoods and offer new trading models that optimise campaign delivery, backed by data-driven audience insights.”
Seven’s digital managing director Gereurd Roberts said Phoenix “uses inventory optimisation and AI audience prediction engines to make buying significantly more efficient and to deliver guaranteed outcomes, making every marketing dollar go further. Our vision is for every ad served digitally by Seven to be personalised, optimised and addressable.”
Adding to this granular personalisation is the launch of REDiQ4U, which Seven calls “a significant step forward in data-driven audience intelligence”. The new feature gives agencies and marketers direct access to Seven’s consumer insights data platform, 7REDiQ, allowing them “a powerful tool for transparent, future-focused audience insights, bridging the gap from consumer analysis to precise prediction and offering foresight into consumer behaviour, not simply hindsight.”
REDiQ4U gives marketers “secure, direct access to audience insights drawn from over 3,000 real-world and digital data points,” leveraging data from exclusive partner VISA, plus Ticketek, Coles360, CarExpert, Raiz, Equifax, LandmarksID and Weatherzone to allow brands to create impactful campaigns and then activate them across all of Seven’s channels.
Seven claims REDiQ4U can predict audience behaviour up to 28 days in advance with 95% accuracy, using insights from nearly 14 million “verified and consented” Australians.
Roberts said: We’re no longer just looking at last week’s customer data, we’re providing brands with reliable predictions and insights into future consumer behaviour, and the ability to plan how to best engage them. This tool is designed for advertisers who are ready to move beyond retrospective data and truly harness the future of audience behaviour.
“With REDiQ4U, advertisers gain access to a user-friendly, transparent platform that delivers granular insights to inform or validate audience and consumer sentiment. Unlike traditional CDPs, REDiQ4U offers a fully integrated, real-world view of consumers, moving beyond basic demographics to provide insights into specific lifestyle factors, purchasing preferences and location-based behaviours.”
Seven chief Jeff Howard said the networks aim for 2025 is “to foster a stronger relationship with our partners.”
“Through expanded content, enhanced data capabilities, and a focus on responsible AI integration, we will build deep and meaningful connections that drive growth for both Seven West Media and our valued clients.”
Programming-wise, Seven will be launching live, free streaming cricket and AFL for the first time in Australian history, with the cricket set to begin later this month, with AFL kicking off (or bouncing off) in March.
Seven will be presenting AFL content every day of the week during the 2025 season, including games on 22 Friday nights, 15 Thursday nights, 23 Sundays, eight Saturday nights, six marquee games, three roving marquee games, every game in the Finals Series, the Brownlow Medal and the AFL Grand Final.
Seven is also commissioning a pre-season documentary inside an AFL club titled Full Sweat, and, in a fun twist, the 7plus Sport and Seven AFL team are also working on an alternative kids’ commentary for selected Sunday afternoon matches.
“We felt it was time to change it up, to prepare for our new and younger audiences, and we’ve welcomed some fresh faces to help us reset the AFL media landscape for good,” explains Seven Network director of sport, Chris Jones.
“New recruits, including Kane Cornes, Nick Riewoldt and others will be joining our established commentary team. They make us more dynamic and drive our strategy to have a seven-days-a-week football offering.
“One of the first things we identified was that if we wanted to be the home of footy, we needed to fill out the offering and create the best footy programs in the land.
“From Monday to Friday every night, there will be AFL content to watch or stream on Seven and 7plus Sport. So, with more nights of footy programming throughout the 2025 AFL Premiership Season, as well as live match broadcasts streamed on 7plus Sport for the first time, there has never been a more exciting time for AFL fans.”
Likewise, Seven will be offering two distinct alternative commentaries this summer on 7Plus. “The first is Hindi commentary for all Australia vs India Test matches, tapping into an audience with an unparalleled passion for the game,” explains head of digital sport Kirsty Bradmore.
“The second alternative commentary will be from the comedic duo The Grade Cricketer. Covering a selection of BBL matches, they will bring a light-hearted take on the games aimed at younger fans and die-hard supporters alike. Providing alternate streams on 7plus creates new opportunities to partner with Seven, including our short-form offering of bite-sized, consumable products, such as minis, highlights and full match replays.”
Anthony De Ceglie
Seven is also focusing on its news offering, with a new hour-long midday bulletin each weekday, which will follow a newly extended The Morning Show, which adds 30 minutes a day to run from 9am to 12pm. These shows join the country’s top-rating 6pm news program, the #1 breakfast show Sunrise, 7NEWS Spotlight, Weekend Sunrise, and The Latest.
“On any given day, 10 of the 24 hours on Seven are proudly produced by the 7NEWS team,” news boss Anthony De Celgie said, “from Sunrise and The Morning Show to our morning, afternoon, prime-time 6.00pm and late-night bulletins, plus 7NEWS Spotlight on Sunday nights. 7NEWS.com.au is one of the most popular news sites in the country and there is also Australia’s only digital evening newspaper, The Nightly.”
De Ceglie said the new hour-long 12 noon bulletin would be “a game-changer” that would blend breaking headlines with debate and in-depth discussions.
“We know audiences are changing,” he explained. “The race for eyeballs has never been more crowded. We’re producing modern and dynamic content for high value audiences that have never been more engaged or informed with the news.”
Seven is also focusing on new drama for 7plus in 2025, with a strategy to premiere a new overseas show on the streaming service each month.
“We plan to drop one, premium new series on 7plus every single month during 2025, shows like Suits: LA, The Americas and much more,” Seven’s chief content officer Brook Hall explains. These include spin-off Suits: LA, crime procedural The Hunting Party, and The Americas, narrated by Tom Hanks.
For more on Seven’s new streaming-led focus, read our feature tomorrow.
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Nathan Jolly is the Features Editor at Mumbrella. He joined the team in July, 2023.
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