Hollinger International, the holding company of Hollinger Inc, has rejected a takeover approach by the Barclay brothers, which would have valued the company at $1.4 billion. It is believed to have rejected the deal because the 20% premium the Barclays offered was not high enough. The brothers have already agreed a $400 million deal with… Continue reading Hollinger International Rejects Barclays’ Bid

Capital Radio saw a leap in shares today on the back of a good performance by its flagship station Capital 95.8FM in yesterday’s RAJAR results, but Merrill Lynch analysts are not convinced that the company is out of trouble. The broker described Capital’s regaining of ground in the London market as a “catch-up” rather than… Continue reading Capital Playing Catch-Up, Says Merrill Lynch

The rising uptake of personal video recorders (PVRs) such as Sky Plus and TiVo could transform the media planning and buying process, even by as early as 2006, according to new research carried out by media agency PHD. The ongoing study into the effect of PVRs suggests that viewers’ ability to skip commercial breaks could… Continue reading PVRs Could Transform The Media Planning Process

Lehman Brothers has upgraded its earnings forecast for BSkyB in anticipation of a good set of first-half results next month. Analysts are particularly impressed by recent take-up of Sky’s PVR box, Sky+, and expect the company to announce an additional 90,000 subscriptions to the service in its first-half results on 11th February. The increase in… Continue reading Sky+ Sales Expected To Be Strong In BSkyB Interims

Fourteen years of gradual consolidation of the ITV Network will come to fruition on Monday 2 February, as the merger of Carlton Communications and Granada creates ITV plc. The single ITV company was listed on the Stock Exchange this morning with a share price of XXXX. Shares in Carlton and Granada were delisted at the… Continue reading Merger of Carlton Communications and Granada creates ITV plc

Highbury House Communications, publisher of Front and Fast Car, today issued an upbeat trading report. Trading in the last two months of 2003 had been in line with expectations, it said, and it expects profits for the full year to be as forecast. The company said that its shift towards becoming a pure consumer publisher,… Continue reading Highbury House FY Profits In Line With Market Forecasts

Independent News & Media (INM) is to sell its 50% stake in its Irish cable operation, Princes Holdings, to Liberty Media International for an undisclosed sum. INM had already confirmed that it did not intend to hold its investment in Princes Holdings – which trades under the brand name Chorus – for the long-term, as… Continue reading INM Sells Irish Cable Group Stake To Liberty Media

Radio revenues across the US remained weak during the final quarter of 2003, but the industry is showing signs of rejuvenation for 2004. Merrill Lynch predicts that US radio revenue growth during the fourth quarter will range from an increase of 1% to a decline of 2% year on year, compounded by weak local advertising… Continue reading US Radio Revenues Weak In Q4 2003, Says Merrill Lynch

The global economic recovery now appears to be shaping up, with the US leading the way, according to Jean-Philippe Cotis, chief economist for the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Cotis was keen to point out that in most countries the upturn is weaker than… Continue reading INSIGHTanalysis: Global Economic Recovery Shapes Up

ITV is investing in its interactive television capabilities by appointing Eckoh Technologies to provide interactive telephony services for the channel. Eckoh is one of Europe’s largest speech application service providers. Eckoh offers technology that will build on ITV’s existing interactive elements in programmes including This Morning, CITV and Ant And Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway. Eckoh… Continue reading ITV Builds Interactive TV Platform With Eckoh Deal