KEY POINTS:
The pay and free-to-air television industries are bunkering down for a lobbying war and this time the row is not over Freeview - well, not directly, anyway.
They are lobbying over a new law that would allow Sky and internet broadcasters to rebroadcast free-to-air channels such as TV One, TV2 and TV3 for free.
A proposed amendment to the Copyright Bill opening up access was set to be considered by Parliament in March but has been delayed until later in the year.
The row over rebroadcast rights will be settled in a battle between veteran MP-luncher Tony O'Brien, TVNZ lobbyist Peter Parussini and MediaWorks' Roger Beaumont.
But it seems that the free-to-airs also have the backing of Government officials and the production industry, who stand to lose a lot of their intellectual property rights.
With the expected growth of new internet media, free access to free-to-air could effectively kill off revenue prospects.
The Copyright Bill is complex and addresses big changes in the media. The part that has got the broadcasters animated is section 88.
It is understood that - with a few exceptions - Labour politicians have bought the TVNZ and MediaWorks line and are mostly opposing the amendment.
Sky supporters will likely be pulled into line and vote to repeal the amendment.
Sky's Tony O'Brien has had more success convincing Nats they should ensure that TV programmes - including those made with taxpayer subsidies - should reach the widest possible audience.
But some of the more worldly, business-focused Nats are horrified by the amendment. They are concerned that political intervention into a commercial arrangement over commercial intellectual property rights would set a bad precedent.
At the moment both TVNZ and MediaWorks operate rebroadcast agreements with Sky TV.
TVNZ's deal harks back to the days when it was a shareholder in Sky Television and runs out in 2011.
MediaWorks' deal runs until 2017.
Neither are opposing their signals being on Sky. They just think that Sky should have to pay, as pay operators do in other countries.
In Australia pay TV gives 20c a subscriber a month for each channel.
If politicians decide to repeal the proposed amendment that would open the door to a high-stakes stoush between Sky - initially with TVNZ in the run-up to 2011.
About 40 per cent of the free-to-air audience watches TVNZ and TV3 through Sky decoders so TVNZ would be brave if it tried to stop Sky buying rights.
On the other hand, if Sky was to lose free-to-air rights it would make it less attractive.
The strategic factor will be the growth of Freeview, the free-to-air digital platform that is emerging as an alternative to Sky.
Could Freeview - with fewer than 100,000 subscribers now - be big enough for TVNZ to take the free-to-air signals away from Sky? And what of Sky asking for Government intervention?
Sky might relish the idea, which could save it several million dollars. But if the state intervened this time it could do so again to introduce legislation that shuts Sky out of the rights to show key sports events.
Neither scenario is likely. But critics of the amendment say it's a reminder of how important it is to keep a consistent philosophical approach to intellectual property rights - not one based on lunchtime chats with lobbyists.
Sky's Tony O'Brien is known as one of the most assiduous lobbyists around Wellington and his assisting of the Parliamentary Rugby Club to arrange tours was surely a masterstroke, allowing a word in ministers' ears about Sky's position.
One of the key players in the rugby team was, of course, Trevor Mallard, who was made Minister of Broadcasting in the latest Cabinet reshuffle.
Parliamentary insiders thought Mallard would be less sceptical of Sky than his predecessor Steve Maharey - who is somewhat phobic about the Murdoch empire - but they doubt he would back Sky on the rebroadcast row.
Talking cars
TVNZ still struggles with priorities and how it spends taxpayer subsidies. Last Sunday's edition of the children's entertainment show What Now showed how TVNZ, New Zealand On Air and the Government's broadcasting policy is terminally flawed.
What Now, paid for in large part by New Zealand On Air subsidies, is generally entertaining and makes do on a small budget, but producers are paid so little that they have to cover the costs with sponsorship deals, including one with Ford New Zealand.
The result is that TVNZ's main kids' programme on Sunday featured a low-rent advertorial segment for Ford Motors in which kids were entertained with comparisons of the "talking" Fords on display.
Producer Janine Morell insists she is not obliged to broadcast from the car lot, and said the talking Ford segment was heavy-handed and "an aberration".
TVNZ says it has limited cash and if it paid extra for What Now it would have less for pre-school shows. This is what they call charter TV.
More to come
The OMD New Zealand super-agency owned by Omnicom will fuel expectations of further consolidation in Agencyland.
The merger of three firms - OMD, Media Direction and Clemenger BBDO media division in Wellington - was announced yesterday, creating New Zealand's largest media agency.
It is a move that has long been expected in the ad industry and aims to improve services to clients. But it is also a structural decision and raises the question: How long will it be before WPP, the next biggest global giant in this market, does the same?
For a tiny market, New Zealand maintains a lot of agencies to make ads and buy time.
WPP directly operates two big media buying agencies - Mediaedge (CIA attached to Y&R) and Mediacom, which is linked to Grays Advertising.
WPP New Zealand boss Ross Goldsack acknowledged a merger was being considered but said nothing was imminent. As in the Omnicom merger, WPP has to work out how it can make the change to create a better offering and not just to cut costs.
Category clash
While the advertising world braces for more consolidation, many advertisers are nervous about a reduction in the number of competitors in the ad market.
That is because of "category clash" and concerns by some advertisers that their agency should not be working with their competitors.
Big companies making huge global deals aren't worried the deals won't make much sense in small markets like New Zealand. They just demand an agency in each country that does not deal with their competitors.
David Walden of advertising agency body CAANZ insists that advertisers are more realistic now about category clash.
But managing director of the new superagency OMD New Zealand, Kath Watson, acknowledged there were category clash issues with some clients and these were being worked through.
Where there are clashes you would expect that advertisers could work with other Omnicom media-buying agencies in this country - Mediawise, Spark PhD and, from January, Total Media.
Clarification
By the the way, OMD New Zealand rejected an estimate based on industry figures published yesterday that the combined agency would have billings of $160 million, saying it would was significantly higher.
A Business Herald article yesterday said the new superagency, called OMD New Zealand, would be owned by OMD and Clemenger BBDO. In fact, it will be 50 per cent owned by Clemenger Communications and 50 per cent owned by DDB (NZ). Both are part of Omnicom.
