Media buyers this week applauded Nine’s retailer media launch – but wanted more detail. They always do. Sales chief Michael Stephenson and CMO Liana Dubois unpack it here, alongside Nine’s bid to take the fight to Meta, Google and TikTok with a self-serve AI-powered ad platform aimed squarely at Australia’s 2.5 million small businesses currently spending $1.5bn a year on “less efficient” social video. For big advertisers, Nine is bringing all its data, reach and assets to bear as it fires the starter pistol on a decade-long Olympics run, with new ‘9Tribes’ or segments being created from 20 million signed in users and new ways to match. Dubois is backing the games to drive major audience growth – and help convert light and lapsed viewers to heavy long-term users. Either way, she says Australia’s population will be at 30m by 2032, which means TV, and every other media channel, has 3.5m more eyeballs to aim for – and user experience will determine winners. Media buyers at Nine’s Upfront also warned the network is making a “big mistake” by not following the likes of Netflix and Foxtel into SVOD advertising. Stephenson insists they are wrong. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.