The seven-year deal will mean that WIN would broadcast Nine’s free-to-air content from its 9, 9Go, 9Gem and 9Life into markets that included Queensland.

Three regional television news bulletins in Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales will be axed in the coming months as the Nine Network changes its affiliation again from Southern Cross Austereo back to WIN TV.

The announcement led to a plunge in SCA shares which were down 13 per cent this morning.

Under the deal, WIN will pay an affiliation fee of 50 per cent of its regional advertising revenue to Nine.

The decision is likely to lead to a shake-up of regional newsrooms and Marks has reportedly told staff that some roles would be impacted, but there has been no official confirmation.

Nine chief executive Hugh Marks said the relationship with Southern Cross had been strong but the opportunities presented by WIN to extend the reach of Nine’s content into more regional areas under one agreement meant it was the right time to return to WIN.

“The terms of this agreement should be positive to Nine’s EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) from the full year 2022 through the broader reach of Nine’s channels and by enabling incremental efficiencies across both sales and news,” Marks said.

The deal leaves Southern Cross, which had been Nine’s broadcast partner since 2016, out of the Queensland market but it still has program supply agreements with Seven West Media covering Tasmania, Central and Spencer Gulf markets which generates 20 per cent of SCA television advertising revenue.

WIN’s chief executive Grant Buckley said before its Nine deal in 2016, it had been affiliated with Network Ten for more than 20 years.

“SCA looks forward to discussions in coming weeks with Network Ten to establish a new affiliation in regional Queensland, Southern NSW and regional Victoria from July 1.” he said.

Meanwhile, Australia’s media union has again warned of the need for a policy reset to prevent more closures and job losses.

MEAA boss Paul Murphy said there were fewer than 10,000 journalists in Australia. The number has fallen by about 5000 in the last decade, with most of the job losses in regional areas.

He said change to competition law was needed, with the union concerned government policy supports consolidation rather than diversification of the media.

The MEAA also reiterated its calls for a new single regulator of media content to ensure quality and reliability.

-with AAP