The deadlock over the Government’s plans to relax the media ownership regulations could be eased after influential Labour peer, Lord Puttnam, put forward a compromise to impose a special public interest test on large media groups wanting to buy Five. In their current form, proposals in the Communications Bill, which is now at its committee… Continue reading Puttnam Plan Could End Media Ownership Deadlock

The advertising downturn’s nadir looks to have passed, having hit in Q4 2002, according to Morgan Stanley. Media analysts at the broker say that they have become increasingly convinced that the worst is now over, with signs of stability seen in Q1 2003 persisting. The US remains stronger than Europe, with advertising growth of around… Continue reading Advertising Nadir Has Passed, Says Morgan Stanley

With its well publicised financial crisis consigned to history, NTL is in the best position to challenge the major players as the UK portal battle heats up. That is according to new analysis from Forrester Research. The research claims that the UK internet access market imitates the US in having the same top three portals.… Continue reading NTL Making Headway In UK Portal Market

Newspapers need to deliver a whole new range of services to advertisers if they are to provide real value for money. That is the recommendation of a new publication from the World Association of Newspapers (WAN). In the current era, return on investment (ROI) has acquired special significance in the media world and publishers are… Continue reading Offer Your Advertisers New Services, Publishers Told

US broadcast television revenues showed no year on year growth in the first quarter, according to a Television Bureau of Advertising (TVB) analysis of TNS Media Intelligence/CMR data. Given that last year’s Q1 contained a boost to spend from the Olympics and political campaigning, the lack of growth is to be expected. The one exception… Continue reading US Broadcast TV Sees Flat Revenues In Q1

The personal video recorder (PVR) may be the next killer application for BSkyB’s digital satellite service, with the current free trials to be followed by a marketing push towards Christmas. Speaking at a Merrill Lynch-hosted TMT conference this week, Sky’s chief executive, Tony Ball, outlined some of the company’s forthcoming plans. PVRs look set to… Continue reading PVRs Could Be The Next Killer App For BSkyB

US media ownership restrictions were yesterday relaxed by the country’s Republican-led Federal Communications Commission (FCC). In a 3-2 vote over the body’s Democrat contingent, rules governing cross media ownership and audience share limits were eased in a move that is similar to proposals in the UK’s pending Communications Bill (see Puttnam Threatens To Quash Communications… Continue reading FCC Relaxes US Media Ownership Rules As Expected

Culture Secretary, Tessa Jowell, has issued a stern defence of the Communications Bill, warning that if Rupert Murdoch takes control of Five, new rules will be introduced to prevent him from using the channel to cross promote his other media interests. Peers are due to gather in the House of Lords today to discuss the… Continue reading Jowell Hints At New Laws If Murdoch Moves On Five

The full scale roll-out of digital cinema installations could begin as early as next year, according to new analysis from Screen Digest. At present, only 160 screens worldwide have high-end digital cinema presentation capability, equivalent to just one-eighth of one per cent of total first-run cinemas. However, initial screenings have proved popular, with a recent… Continue reading Digital Advertising Kickstarts Cinematic Revolution

Online banking is expected to maintain its upward momentum in Western Europe with the number of accounts set to increase by over 50 million in the next five years, according to a new study from IDC. It is estimated that there were around 50 million European surfers accessing internet banking services by the end of… Continue reading Europeans Switch To Internet Banking