Auckland; photo by Dan Freeman via Unsplash.
Outdoor media specialist oOh!media has been told by the Auckland Transport Authority that its contract, due to expire September 30, will not be renewed.
QMS' MediaWorks in New Zealand has secured a new long-term agreement with Auckland Transport for its four OOH assets: street furniture, vehicular based (transit) media, transport hubs and billboards.
“While oOh! is disappointed with this outcome, it has planned for this eventuality and is confident in maintaining a leading position in the New Zealand OOH market,” oOh!media told the ASX
The contract represented 4% of financial year reported revenue for oOh!.
“oOh! maintains a diverse lease maturity profile and strong contract discipline with a focus on achieving sustainable margin and earnings growth and returns on capital," the company said.
QMS and MediaWorks chairman Barclay Nettlefold said the win is a game changer and re-shapes the way OOH will be planned and bought by advertisers in New Zealand.
The new agreement with Auckland Transport follows the QMS acquisition of 100% of Oaktree Capital Management’s stake in MediaWorks in June this year.
“We are proud to be entrusted to operate the coveted Auckland Transport street furniture concession and are excited about the development plans that we have for the network," Nettlefold said.
“Renewing our existing Auckland Transport portfolios of transit, transport hubs and billboards enables MediaWorks to build on the past 10 years of partnership with Auckland Transport and firmly establishes us as the #1 OOH operator across New Zealand."
John O’Neill, CEO of QMS, said Auckland Transport Authority is a great win for MediaWorks.
"With the growing trend towards trans-Tasman trading, our shared expertise between QMS and MediaWorks will provide greater opportunities for our media agency partners and their clients to plan and buy across both markets," he said.
“Combined with the City of Sydney, this win further strengthens QMS as the pre-eminent digital out of home operator, the first in history to hold the two marquee street furniture contracts in the ANZ region simultaneously.”
oOh!media in May reported strong advertising revenue growth in the March quarter. The company posted total revenue growth of 13%, with Australian media revenue was up 16%.
The company posted flat revenue for the year to December. Revenue was up 0.3% to $635.63 million and profit was 5.7% higher at $36.577 million.
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