Ofcom has fined the BBC a total of £400,000 for faking winners and misleading audiences in phone-in competitions on shows including Comic Relief and Children in Need.It is the highest financial penalty to be imposed by Ofcom against the BBC, though falls well below the £5.675 million that Ofcom hit ITV with in May for… Continue reading Ofcom Fines The BBC A Record £400,000 For Latest Competition Scandal

Ofcom has dismissed the idea of giving Channel 4 a stake in BBC Worldwide as a way of plugging its funding shortfall, according to a leaked draft of its phase two public service broadcasting review.The industry regulator is thought to have said in its recommendations that giving Channel 4 a share of the BBC’s commercial… Continue reading Channel 4’s Proposed Share In BBC Worldwide Is Dismissed

eBay has launched an international business division at its headquarters in Bern, Switzerland, in an attempt to encourage advertisers to take advantage of the site’s global reach.The division will be responsible for looking after clients who want to reach eBay’s global audience, which is estimated to be at around 80 million users, according to reports.Advertisers… Continue reading Ebay Sets Up New International Advertising Division

Channel 4’s Big Brother pulled in nearly 3.3 million peak viewers last night, ahead of BBC One’s Colin Jackson – The Making of Me and ITV1’s Harley Street.The daily round-up of events from the Big Brother house, which saw Maysoon leaving and the housemates failing their weekly shopping task, gained an average 14.8% audience share… Continue reading Big Brother Tops BBC And ITV With 3.3 Million Viewers

Denise Van Outen’s future at 95.8 Capital FM is in jeopardy, following reports in the national press that she is quitting the show just months into her year-long contract.Van Outen is said to be “knackered” as a result of juggling her breakfast show on Capital, alongside co-host Johnny Vaughan, with her TV commitments.The presenter is… Continue reading Van Outen To Leave Capital

The Government has published a new consultation document, which includes plans to regulate product placement and video-on-demand services on British television.Current regulations state “that all EU members must prohibit product placement, but they may decide to allow certain exemptions”.However, product placement is banned on any UK made programmes and the Government has already said its… Continue reading Product Placement Proposals To Be Considered

Google search is by far the most popular website in the UK, with nearly 28 million unique users, according to figures released by Nielsen Online today.The search engine’s unique users are up by 15% from around 24 million in June 2007 to 28 million in June 2008 – miles ahead of other websites in the… Continue reading Google Races Ahead As Most Popular Website

ITV1’s Midsomer Murders pulled in more than 6.5 million viewers last night, beating Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise to the top spot.The ITV1 murder series attracted an average 29.6% audience share between 8pm and 10pm, with a peak audience of 6.7 million viewers at 9.30pm.BBC One’s film premiere of Spielberg’s War of the Worlds, starring… Continue reading Midsomer Murders Rockets With 6.5 Million Viewers

The BBC’s mobile TV trial only reached a peak of 580 viewers per day during its 12 month trial period, which ended in April this year, according to data released by the BBC Trust.The data also revealed that monthly content consumption of its BBC One, Three and News 24 channels reached a high of just… Continue reading BBC Releases Data On Mobile TV Trial

A new report reveals that online national newspapers attracted 94.8 million unique visitors in June, with 35.5 million of those UK readers.The report, carried out by the Newspaper Marketing Agency, encompasses web traffic statistics of the 16 national titles owned by its members, including Associated Newspapers, Mirror Group Newspapers and News International.The NMA report measures… Continue reading Newspaper Sites Attract Nearly 95 Million Visitors