Sky TV

1. Business / Trading Name: Sky Network Television Limited (trading as Sky).

2. Company number: 1579204 (New Zealand Companies Office).

3. NZBN: 9429035067818 (NZ Business Number).

4. Entity type: New Zealand Limited Liability Company (registered under the Companies Act 1993).

5. Business classification: Media and telecommunications (subscription television, sports and entertainment broadcasting).

6. Industry Category: Entertainment/television broadcasting and telecommunications.

7. Year founded: 1990

8. Addresses: Registered office at 10 Panorama Road, Mt Wellington, Auckland 1060 (NZ); mailing address PO Box 9059, Newmarket, Auckland 1149.

9. Website URL:

https://www.sky.co.nz

10. LinkedIn URL: https://www.linkedin.com/company/skynz (Sky New Zealand LinkedIn page).

11. Company Hub NZ URL: https://www.companyhub.nz/companyDetails.cfm?nzbn=9429035067818

12. NZ Companies Office URL: https://app.companiesoffice.govt.nz/companies/app/ui/pages/companies/1579204

13. Social Media URLs: Twitter (X) @SKYNZ (twitter.com/SKYNZ); Facebook (facebook.com/skynewzealand) (official Sky NZ page); Instagram (instagram.com/skynz)

14. Ultimate Holding Company: None – Sky NZ is a stand-alone publicly listed company (no disclosed parent).

15. Key Shareholders: Large shareholders include the Accident Compensation Corporation (~9.1%), HSBC and Citibank nominee accounts (~9.0% and 8.9%), State Street (6.5%), New Zealand Superannuation Fund (4.7%), various BNP Paribas/JP Morgan nominee trusts, etc. (Total public float; ACC and government-related funds are among top holders.)

16. Leadership: Key executives include Sophie Moloney (Chief Executive Officer), Philip Bowman (Independent Chairman), Keith Smith (Deputy Chair, Audit Chair), Andrew Hirst (Interim Chief Financial Officer), Chris Major (Chief Corporate Affairs Officer); other board members include Dame Joan Withers, Belinda Rowe, Mark Buckman, Mike Darcey.

17. Staff: ~1,000–5,000 employees (LinkedIn reports “Company size: 1,001–5,000”, with about 1,300 on payroll as of 2022).

18. Staff with prior government roles: None publicly noted. (No current Sky NZ executive or board member is a former government minister; most are career media/corporate executives.)

19. Past Employees: Founders Craig Heatley, Terry Jarvis, Trevor Farmer, Alan Gibbs (1980s); former CEO Martin Stewart; others have included media executives from TVNZ and foreign Sky operations. (No comprehensive public list available.)

20. Clients: Primarily New Zealand households (subscribers) and advertisers. Major content deals with sports bodies (e.g. NZ Rugby, NBA, etc.) mean sports leagues are de facto clients/partners, as is Warner Bros/Discovery via exclusive rights.

21. Industries/sectors represented: Media/broadcasting; entertainment; telecommunications (via Sky Broadband business); sports media.

22. Publicly Disclosed Engagements: Sky has made official submissions to government/industry processes (e.g. broadcasting levy consultations) and joined industry forums (e.g. Content Delivery/Classification debates). No comprehensive public list exists.

23. Affiliations: Member of the Screen Production industry; co-owner of Freeview (NZ free-to-air platform). Adheres to NZ corporate governance codes. (No political “soft” affiliations known.)

24. Sponsorships / Collaborations: Broadcast rights deals with major sporting organisations (e.g. Rugby Football Union, netball, golf, etc.); collaboration with Spark NZ (formerly) on streaming (Lightbox to Neon integration); partnership with Warner Bros Discovery for HBO/Max content (from Oct 2024). Sky also sponsors NZ film/TV awards and community events.

25. Events (held/organised): Television broadcast events (e.g. Sky Arena movie premieres, Sky Sports live broadcasts); no regular public conferences. Runs occasional subscriber events and promotional campaigns.

26. Political Donations: None disclosed. Sky’s 2022 annual report explicitly states “no donations were made to political parties” by Sky or its subsidiaries. (No large-party contributions appear in public donation records.)

27. Controversies: Regulatory complaints and merger battles. Sky (NZ) was involved in a controversial 2016–17 merger bid with Vodafone NZ (“Skodafone” – ultimately blocked on competition grounds). Sky has faced broadcasting complaints (e.g. a 2023 BSA case where a Labour Party advert aired by Sky was accused of being “misleading”). (There have been no major corporate scandals in recent years.)

28. Other information of note: Sky is listed on the NZX (ticker SKT) and ASX; in late 2023 it confirmed an unsolicited takeover approach (reportedly by US private equity) which it rejected as too low. Subsidary brands include Neon (streaming), Sky Sport Now, RugbyPass (international streaming), Sky DMX Music, and Sky Broadband (via Sky Network Services Ltd). It also returned to an on-market share buyback in 2023 after the takeover approach.

29. Recipient of Wage Subsidy Scheme: Not confirmed. (No public record of claiming COVID wage subsidies by Sky is readily found. If applied, the amount was not publicly disclosed.)

Spot anything in this entry that is wrong? Please either leave a comment at the end or email, in confidence: bryce@democracyproject.nz