US interactive advertising revenues will reach $8.6 billion by 2005, up slightly from this year’s anticipated $8.4 billion, according to new forecasts from GartnerG2. The group says that whilst agencies have so far been hesitant to embrace interactive formats, they are set to increase their spending over the next couple of years, almost doubling the… Continue reading US Interactive Adspend To Hit $8.6bn By 2005, Says GartnerG2

Sales of mobile phone ringtones are set to exceed those CD singles in the near future, according to new research from the Mobile Data Association (MDA). SMS ringtone advertising is now commonplace in newspapers and magazines and and pop songs, TV themes and classical tunes are widely available in monophonic and polyphonic formats. The MDA… Continue reading Mobile Ringtones Find The Right Rhythm

A recent poll from Horowitz Associates has found that one quarter of urban TV homes in the US get digital cable and there is potential for significant growth despite the competition in the multichannel market. As part of State of Broadband Urban Markets IV, a survey of 2,000 consumers and around 50 cable operators in… Continue reading Urban TV Audiences Willing To Go Digital

BSkyB’s £1.02 billion deal to broadcast live Premiership football for a further three years could be investigated by the European Commission following concerns it breaches competition laws. The Premier League had structured the deal in accordance with the EC’s desire that the media rights be split into four separate packages to promote competition and encourage… Continue reading BSkyB’s Football Rights Deal Could Face Investigation

Analysts claim that the cable television company NTL is set to announce a major fund raising exercise that will net around $650 million and increase the possibility of a merger with UK rival Telewest. According to a report in The Observer, NTL is planning to ask shareholders to subscribe to new shares with the cash… Continue reading UK Cable Merger Still Viable

Trinity Mirror has rejected a fresh approach from Candover Investments, the private equity house, for its national newspapers, according to weekend press reports. The Observer claims that Candover, which made an informal offer for the titles late last year, has returned with a new proposal since the appointment of Sly Bailey as Trinity Mirror chief… Continue reading Candover Rebuffed In Latest Bid For Trinity Titles

Almost 40% of companies are planning to increase their marketing and sales operations as business confidence returns to Britain, according to new research from the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM). The latest Marketing Trends Survey suggests the economy has enjoyed a powerful boost since the end of the war in Iraq, with businesses predicting that… Continue reading Survey Shows Business Confidence Is Returning To Britain

US radio advertising revenues are set for a good second half, with June’s figures already showing an indication of a pick-up in the market. National advertising jumped by 16% in June, whilst local was flat (see US Radio Revenue Strengthens With 4% Growth In June). The overall 4% rise in June is higher than the… Continue reading Merrill Lynch Forecasts Improving H2 For US Radio

US radio advertising revenues continued to show growth during June, with combined national and local spend rising by 4% year on year, according to the latest figures from the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB). National expenditure jumped by 16% in the month, whilst local remained flat. Across the whole of the first half, national revenues are… Continue reading US Radio Revenue Strengthens With 4% Growth In June

The number of mobile phone subscribers in the UK is set to hit 53 million by 2007, reaching 88% of the population, according to forecasts from The Research Room. This will place the UK mobile market as the third largest in western Europe, behind Germany with 67.6 million users and Italy with 54.1 million. The… Continue reading Almost 90% Of UK Population Will Use A Mobile By 2007, Says Report