Michael Stephenson. Credit: ARN
Media agencies have praised ARN’s first upfront for its scale, polish and ambition, describing it as a clear signal the company has moved beyond its radio roots into a broader entertainment ecosystem.
Held in Sydney, the event set out a vision that spans audio, video, social and live experiences.
Lorena Danes, media and investment director at Avenue C, said the showcase represented a major repositioning.
“It nailed the repositioning of ARN from a radio network to an entertainment company, with iHeart taking centre stage as the backbone of ARN’s evolving ecosystem,” she said.
“There was a huge focus on podcasts. It felt like the new frontier of podcast advertising, with more original content being produced than ever before,” she said.
Danes highlighted the integration of iHeart across every layer of the business, from Ruby’s client-funded podcasts to the iHeart Women’s Sport Network, iHeart Live events, and youth extensions via DAB+ and TikTok Trending.
“They are building full ecosystems around shows, creating stronger contextual opportunities for brands,” she said.
She said the national networks for both GOLD and KIIS would simplify buying for agencies and advertisers.
“The structure and sophistication of their offering make it easier than ever to brief ARN as a one-stop entertainment partner rather than a single-channel network,” she said.
Tara Lamond, group business director at Pearman Media, said the event stood out for its energy and ambition.
“It was anything but ordinary, bold, energetic, and packed with surprises,” she said.
“It marked a clear shift in how the network sees itself: not just an audio platform, but a full-blown entertainment powerhouse spanning audio, video, social media, and live events,” Lamond said.
She highlighted The Smallzy Show’s move to KIIS, Christian O’Connell’s new national breakfast show, and Jonesy & Amanda’s expansion to GOLD Drive.
“The tech partnerships are significant. Working with Westpac DataX, Experian, LiveRamp, Infosum, Magnite, and OpenPath via The Trade Desk shows ARN’s commitment to smarter, more targeted brand solutions,” she said.
Luke Amasi, senior client director at iProspect, said the presentation confirmed ARN’s shift from legacy radio to a modern, multi-channel media business.
“The bold-faced vision presented by ARN Media at its Upfront makes one thing clear: this is no longer simply legacy radio, it’s modern media business,” he said.
He highlighted the nationalisation of the KIIS and GOLD networks as central to the change.
“With women’s sport growing fast, brands that align here will not just advertise—they’ll underwrite expansion,” he said.
Aaron Jansen, director of commercial and media operations at Bench Media, said ARN’s evolution reflected how people consume content across platforms.
“With iHeart now at its centre, ARN isn’t just modernising its network, it’s building an ecosystem where content, data, and audiences flow seamlessly between live shows, streaming, and on-demand experiences,” he said.
“The redesigned iHeart app brings that vision to life by combining live radio with digital flexibility,” he said.
“The future of audio isn’t just heard, it’s seen. ARN’s transformation proves it’s ready for the next era of storytelling,” Jansen said.
Ana Suarez Pedroso, senior investment director at Carat, said ARN’s Upfront demonstrated the breadth of its entertainment offering.
“They played to their strengths with key talent and artists to show the breadth of their offering,” she said.
“The new iHeart Women’s Sports Network shows change is in the air, giving us the chance to support women in sports while promoting diversity and access,” she said.
Suarez Pedroso also pointed to new event-based formats such as Run Club Rave, Save our Pub, The Zone, and Kiised at Sea.
“It will be exciting to see how these formats come to life and resonate with audiences,” she said.
Taylor Fielding, CEO of TFM Digital, said the focus on community and experiences struck a chord.
“For us at TFM, the focus on community and experiences throughout really resonated,” he said.
“Creating spaces for large groups of niche audiences to feel seen is very much on the menu in 2026,” Fielding said.
“ARN as an ‘entertainment company’ was the repeated vision,” he said.
“The potential seems like it’s there across the new tech stack, but the jury is still out on how this channel plays out for client campaigns right now. Our curiosity has been sparked,” he said.
Zoe Lassig, group advocacy director at Havas Media, said ARN’s new positioning set a strong direction for the business.
“With 16M monthly listeners and 3M+ registered users, ARN is evolving beyond radio into a richer ecosystem across audio, video, social, and real-world experiences,” she said.
“ARN’s ambition is clear: this is not just a media evolution but a cultural shift, one that redefines how audiences and brands experience entertainment,” Lassig said.
Danes described the event as glitzy, high-energy, and expertly produced.
“It was a confident leap forward, full of energy, fresh ideas, and a clear message: ARN isn’t just in the audio game anymore. They’re in the entertainment business,” Lamond said.
Steve Allen, Pearman’s director of strategy and research, said ARN’s event was a significant pivot.
“The individual changes over the past months clouded what was really going on. A revolution at ARN. And in the audio sector overall,” he said.
“This was a comprehensive overhaul of how ARN will be seen by marketers, advertisers, and listeners.”
Allen said the upfront did a good job of hammering home its message.
“Connection was what it was all about. ARN will now be an Entertainment company,” he said.
“Major consumer events. Video will be embraced. Streaming embraced. Podcasting significantly grown. Hyper-local news.
“In some ways, ARN had to change. It has lost overall audience volume in all but Perth over the past three years.”
Jo Barnes, chief media partnerships officer at PHD, said ARN delivered a polished showcase of initiatives.
“ARN’s investment in app development, listener addressability and a robust data platform signals a shift from traditional audio advertising to a more audience-first model,” she said.
“The network’s focus on technology and data enables advertisers to target audiences in a privacy-safe, measurable way,” Barnes said.
“For agencies, this is about precision targeting at scale, not just reach,” she said.
Kim Norman, Sydney head of investment at Wavemaker, highlighted the launch of iHeart Women’s Sport.
“More than content, it’s a statement about inclusion and the kind of media Australians now expect,” she said.
“The new iHeart app and cross-platform partnerships create precision-targeting opportunities for advertisers,” Norman added.
“Brands can now align with content that drives engagement, not just listenership,” she said.
Veronica Gutierrez, general manager at Awaken, said connection had overtaken scale as ARN’s guiding metric.
“From KIIS’s national expansion to TikTok Trending on iHeart, the network is meeting audiences where they already are,” she said.
“The new content formats and partnerships embed brands into cultural moments rather than disrupt them,” Gutierrez added.
“For agencies, the key is integration, where creative, data and platforms work as one,” she said.
Sophie Carkeek, group business director at Involved Media, said ARN did not disappoint with its first upfront.
"(Next year) is going to treat ARN's audience of 16 million with bigger cash prizes, bigger celebs, new shows, new content, and branded alignment across markets," she said.
"For advertisers deeper integrations across audio, video, social, experiences and content, a much broader and stronger offering to the existing audio ecosystem, supported with tech, data and partnerships.
Sue Cant, head of investment at This is Flow, was also impressed by the presentation.
“For me, ARN’s Upfront was about scale + productisation: nationalising their key radio brands, upgrades to their tech and data plumbing, whilst really leaning hard into their live and experiential inventory via iHeartLIVE,” she said.
“ARN’s Upfront signalled a clear pivot from fragmented local buys to national, productised audio. With KIIS and GOLD going national, this converts their positioning from a tactical local channel into a national reach vehicle that needs to be priced and planned as such.
“The key promise was centred around making audio a combined one-stop, measurable buy for agencies and brands.”
Steven Flood, group trading director at UM said ARN made its new proposition a simple one, no longer just a radio network, but an entertainment company.
"It was that simple repositioning of the business that lead to an absolute firecracker of an upfront presentation that will leave a mark on the industry as we know it," he said.
"ARN’s upfronts demonstrated the shift to an entertainment company by giving the market a sense of what that can bring.
"While there was a clear radio strategy in play making it easier for buyers with the national roll out of KIIS and killing off the MIX brand, and the rebadging of stations to GOLD over the country, terrestrial broadcast took a back seat."
Flood said ARN took advantage of the opportunity to speak directly to key industry stakeholders.
"An upfronts presentation is the opportunity for a business to tell their story to the market and the ARN story is one that is charged and with a view to step change growth in their business," he said.
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