Kyle Sandilands and Jackie “O” Henderson have officially signed a multi-milliondollar deal with Australian Radio Network that will see them remain on-air for another 11 years.
The Sydney radio duo signed their blockbuster new contracts live on-air Wednesday morning, telling listeners on The Kyle & Jackie O Show that they have extended their contract with ARN for another decade worth a reported $200 million. The landmark deal will also see their show broadcast in Melbourne from next year.
“Melbourne listeners, you’ll hear us on KIIS 101.1 on the Melbourne FM,” Sandilands declared, without mentioning the fate of station’s current hosts, Jason Hawkins and Lauren Phillips, who appear to have been axed.
“We want to thank the listeners. Staff. All the clients. Even senior management, I’ll give a nod to. They actually did something brilliant,” Sandilands continued.
A source close to the negotiations tells news.com.au the contract “is worth more than $200 million and includes a base salary, shares, sign on bonuses, revenue share and ratings bonuses”.
Further, in the new contract, Sandilands has a clause that gives him the ability to broadcast the show from “anywhere on the earth” at the drop of a hat.
The 10-year deal kicks off at the end of the duo’s current deal, which finishes at the end of next year.
This will see the powerful pair stay with ARN until 2034.
The groundbreaking deal means Sandilands and Henderson will each earn $10 million per year, which is double their current salary of around $5 million per year.
A source tells us that negotiations to re-sign with ARN started back in January. The pair also had conversations with Southern Cross Austero and streaming services that had potential to expand the show globally to millions more listeners.
The source close to the negotiations said ARN’s offer came with more guaranteed cash than the streamers could deliver.
Another source close to the show told news.com.au in September that the pair were leaning toward staying with ARN.
The clincher in choosing a network, for Sandilands and Henderson, was whoever could offer them the most listeners, with the pair wanting to take their show nationwide. Currently, their popular breakfast program only airs on KIIS FM in Sydney, but from next year they will be on the airwaves in Melbourne.
This means the current KIIS breakfast show Jase & Lauren will seemingly be axed. The show is hosted by Lauren Phillips and Jason Hawkins, who is a longtime friend of Sandilands.
Last month, ARN and private equity firm Anchorage Capital Partners made a non-binding takeover offer for rival radio broadcaster Southern Cross Media that values the company at $330 million. The source says this did not impact The Kyle & Jackie O Show deal.