• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, December 7, 2014

Mediacom Australia is under fire from pay TV service Foxtel, Insurance Australia Group and KFC over concerns the media agency engaged in nefarious media reporting and billing practices. Following the concerns, Foxtel has moved its account to Mindshare. 

At issue is whether or not Mediacom charged clients for bonus ad spots, whether or not the agency informed clients about media credits it was holding for them and whether or not agency staff inflated delivery figures in post-buy analysis reports.

A review of the irregularities will be conducted by Ernst & Young with a final report expected by mid-January. The audit will cover GroupM, Mediacom, Mindshare, Maxus and MEC. Reportedly, three Mediacom staffers have left in relationship to the irregularities. Natalie Feehan, group marketing manager for Mediacom Melbourne client REA Group said: “We are investigating the ­situation further and it is certainly something that we are taking very seriously."