Kyle Sandilands reaches settlement with KIIS FM owner

Kyle Sandilands has reached a settlement agreement with his former employer, KIIS network owner ARN media, as part of a deal that brings to an end one of two high-profile legal battles involving the company.

Under the agreement, ARN will pay Sandilands a cash settlement sum of $12.09 million, with $3 million payable in July and the balance paid in monthly instalments until June 2029. As part of the agreement, ARN will provide Sandilands with $1.5 million worth of advertising over the next three years as Sandilands chases independent media opportunities.

That amount is far less than the $85 million Sandilands had previously sought from the embattled radio network, but leaves unresolved parallel litigation launched by his former co-host Jackie “O” Henderson against the station. The pair had been employed on contracts worth $200 million over a decade.

The two parties have agreed to a net revenue sharing arrangement, with ARN to receive a contribution of 19.9 per cent for a period of up to three years from Sandilands’ new venture. Sandilands is barred from working with ARN’s direct competitors until March 2027.

The settlement negotiations advanced late last week, as this masthead first foreshadowed on Monday, leaving those close to both parties confident that an agreement could be reached as early as this week.

ARN terminated Sandilands’ contract in mid-March, following the expiry of a two-week deadline it had set for the controversial broadcaster to fix his “serious misconduct” against Henderson, after the pair had an on-air bust-up in February which reduced her to tears. Henderson has launched separate legal action against the company. Those proceedings remain ongoing, ARN said in its release to the market. Her agent was contacted for comment.

In legal documents to launch his court claim in March, Sandilands’ lawyers wrote that the exchange was “congruent with the style, tone and nature of the show and the robust character” his employer desired.

Sandilands, as a result, argued the termination was invalid because he did not commit a serious misconduct or breach. His lawyers argued that if there was a breach, he had no reasonable opportunity to “remedy” it, given Henderson’s contract had already been terminated.

In late March, Sandilands’ lawyers argued for an expedited hearing to try to get the controversial shock jock back on air as soon as possible, but were unsuccessful.

Sandilands had previously said he was still owed upwards of $85 million as part of the deal agreed in 2023, which also included a $200,000 consultancy fee among a series of clauses.

The settlement agreement will allow Sandilands to go public with his plans for a new online subscription show with the working title Kyle Sandilands Live. The plans for the new show, revealed by this masthead on Monday, involve a number of former staff from The Kyle and Jackie O Show and will be “uncensored”.

It will be marketed as a 6am breakfast product, according to one person familiar with the plans, which will pit the show against Sandilands’ former employer. The timing of the plans remains subject to Sandilands’ settlement negotiations with ARN.

If the show is a success, ARN will reap some benefit, thanks to the 19.9 per cent revenue sharing arrangement agreed to in its settlement with Sandilands. Under the settlement, the company will also provide Sandilands $1.5 million worth of advertising for his new venture on its partner platforms. Those promotions are likely to appear on ARN’s smaller digital streaming platfrorms rather than Sandilands’ former home, KIIS FM.

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