United Business Media (UBM) this morning said that its businesses are now trading in the most stable conditions experienced in the last two years, with the exception of some impact from the SARS virus. All business are now trading in line with expectations and UBM is continuing to act to keep costs down in order… Continue reading UBM Sees Most Stable Conditions In Two Years

Despite a lukewarm reception from consumers, European companies have high hopes for t-commerce and expect to expand their use of television for commerce, according to a report on eMarketer. A survey from Accenture has shown that t-commerce remains a minority activity but a significant proportion of executives are enthusiastic about the technology and plan to… Continue reading Marketers Tuning In To Television Commerce

Live Premiership football matches could return to ITV and the BBC for the first time in over a decade as the Premier League announces major changes to the way it sells its main media rights package. BSkyB has enjoyed a monopoly on live top-level English football since it first secured the broadcast rights to Premiership… Continue reading TV Giants Battle For Live Premiership Football Rights

Cordiant Communications has been valued at just £10 million by WPP’s rescue takeover deal, announced this morning. Before news of the loss of the Allied Domecq advertising account sent Cordiant’s shares spiralling down, the company had a market capitalisation of around £113 million (see Potential Buyers Circle Crisis-Ridden Cordiant). However, Cordiant will not come that… Continue reading WPP Seals £266m Cordiant Takeover

Internet banking continues to attract new custom with figures showing that traffic in the UK has increased by 65% in the last year. Online transactions are becoming a way of life, particularly for cash rich, time poor consumers and Hitwise reports that banking websites now account for 1.42% of all web traffic, up from 0.86%… Continue reading UK Surfers Check Out Online Banking

The UK government has described as a triumph the auction of 15 regional fixed wireless licences, which should enable broadband to reach a wider population across the country. The sale of remaining licences in the 3.4GHz spectrum had taken longer than expected due to a reluctance on the part of investors to commit funds at… Continue reading Government Sells Off UK Fixed Wireless Licences

Patricia Hodgson, chief executive of the Independent Television Commission, claims the BBC’s decision to launch a free satellite service will have a profound effect on the broadcasting landscape. Speaking at the IEA conference in London yesterday, Hodgson described the Corporation’s decision to end its conditional access deal with BSkyB and begin transmitting its channels unencrypted… Continue reading BBC Satellite Service Will Transform Digital Broadcasting

The success of digital terrestrial television (DTT) service, Freeview, should not impact too heavily on BSkyB’s pay-TV satellite business, as the demographic profiles of the customers of the two platforms are notably different, according to analysts at Merrill Lynch. Freeview currently attracts a significantly older customer profile than Sky, with almost three quarters of Freeview… Continue reading Freeview Success Should Not Hurt Sky, Says Merrill Lynch

WPP is now in exclusive and advanced negotiations to buy ailing advertising group, Cordiant Communications, the two companies announced last night. The news follows speculation that WPP was being outflanked by Maurice Levy’s Publicis Group. The French advertising giant recently struck a deal with Cerberus Capital Management, the US fund that already holds a significant… Continue reading WPP In Exclusive Negotiations To Buy Cordiant

Advertisers have welcomed the extension of Competition Commission’s inquiry into the proposed merger of Carlton and Granada as a sign that their concerns over the creation of a single ITV sales house are being addressed. Trade and Industry Secretary, Patricia Hewitt, yesterday announced that the deadline for the Commission to report on the planned £2.6… Continue reading Advertisers Welcome Delay On ITV Merger Judgement