The reclusive Barclay Brothers look set to take control of the Daily Telegraph after agreeing a £260 million deal to buy the global newspaper group headed by troubled media mogul Lord Black. The billionaire brothers are understood to have reached an “irrevocable” agreement to take over Hollinger Inc, in a move that will see them… Continue reading Barclay Brothers Agree Telegraph Takeover Deal

Beleaguered cable operator Telewest Communications has announced the resignation of its group managing director, Charles Burdick, after less than two years at the company’s helm. Burdick, who steps down with immediate effect, will stay on as a consultant to the company until the completion of its financial restructuring, but will then relinquish his directorship to… Continue reading Burdick Steps Down As Telewest Managing Director

Kelvin MacKenzie’s Wireless Group is planning to strengthen its position in the UK local radio market with the acquisition of Forever Broadcasting for £8.1 million. The Wireless Group already controls 16% of Forever Broadcasting, which owns a handful of local radio stations including Tower FM in Bolton, Peak FM in Chesterfield and The Wolf in… Continue reading Wireless Group Secures Forever For £8.1 Million

UK terrestrial broadcasters Channel 4 and Five are believed to have held exploratory merger discussions within the last six months. Reports suggest that Channel 4 chief executive Mark Thompson and Lord Hollick, chairman of United Business Media, the minority shareholder in the Five network, have met to discuss the possibility of integration. It had been… Continue reading Channel 4 And Five In Discussions Over Possible Merger

US advertising spend is expected to rise by 7.8% to $138.4 billion in 2004, with television categories driving the sector. TNS Media Intelligence/CMR calculates that revenues were up 7.0% during the first three quarters of 2003 (see US Adspend Rises 7% In First Three Quarters) and predicts full year growth of 6.7%. Signs are that… Continue reading US Ad Market To Experience Sound Growth In 2004

With broadband coverage now almost complete in the UK, the priority should be to encourage greater uptake of the technology, according to a prominent BT figure. Speaking to an audience of local government and regional development organisations in London yesterday, Patricia Vaz, BT regional director for the South East, iterated that the telecoms giant was… Continue reading BT Pushes For Increase In UK Broadband Uptake

The Wi-Fi gear market achieved remarkable growth in 2003 as prices fell and consumers embraced new technology. Shipments of wireless networking cards and access points totalled 22.7 million units, a 214% increase from 2002’s 7.2 million unit shipments, according to In-Stat/MDR. The emergence of 802.11g products and cheap prices for 802.11b equipment were behind this… Continue reading Wi-Fi Equipment Suppliers Reach For The Sky

The Government’s plans to switch off the analogue television signal by the proposed 2010 deadline have been boosted by news that sales of integrated digital TVs are set to double or triple this year. More than half of the UK population now receives multi-channel television either through Sky Digital, cable or the recently launched Freeview… Continue reading Digital Television Sales To Soar, Says Report

US online retail sales increased by 25% to almost $56 billion in 2003, according to figures from BizRate.com. The shopping search engine estimates that American consumers spent a total of $18.38 billion online in the fourth quarter of which $8.59 billion was outlayed in the month leading up to Christmas. BizRate does not take into… Continue reading Ecommerce Sales Hit New High In 2003

Reuters said today that revenue declines at the company have slowed and management is satisfied that the period of contraction is over. The global information company saw revenues fall by around 11% last year as demand for subscription services slumped (see Reuters Results Better Than Expected). However, the decline is expected to be no more… Continue reading Reuters Sees Light At The End Of The Tunnel