RAI, the Italian state broadcaster faces the prospect of privatisation in a new set of proposals revealed by the country’s communications minister, Maurizio Gasparri. Gasparri is planning to introduce a bill into the Italian parliament that will result in the step-by-step privatisation of RAI, which broadcasts across three TV and eight radio networks. Silvio Berlusconi’s… Continue reading Italian State Broadcaster Facing Privatisation

27.08.02 RTL, the pan-European television group owned by Bertelsmann, has quashed speculation linking it with a takeover move for either Carlton or Granada. It will instead concentrate on developing its Channel 5 subsidiary. According to a report in the Financial Times, Didier Bellens, RTL chief executive, is set to increase programme spending at the channel… Continue reading RTL Rules Out ITV Acquisitions

AT&T, the US telecoms company, has completed the sale of its 27.6% stake in Time Warner Entertainment. AOL Time Warner has paid $9 million for full control of TWE and will now take sole charge of the Warner Brothers film studios plus a number of cable channels including HBO amd Comedy Central. The payment will… Continue reading AOL Finalises Deal With AT&T

The indebted cable operator, Telewest Communications has announced the appointment of a new finance director to lead it through a period of financial restructuring. Mark Luiz moves from his current position as chief operating officer to succeed Charles Burdick, who was promoted to managing director earlier this month (see Telewest Chief Executive Removed In ‘Boardroom… Continue reading Luiz To Manage Telewest Finances

This is the question being posed by market analysts currently, after recent worries over corporate profitability and a waning consumer confidence have raised the spectre of an economic dip into a second period of recession. The notion was given further credence by comments from WPP chief executive, Sir Martin Sorrell, who warned earlier this week… Continue reading Insight Analysis: Advertising – Double Dip Or Return To Growth?

US online retail sales increased by 3.7% in the second quarter of 2002, but market share slipped to 1.2%, according to the US Commerce Department. New figures show that ecommerce sales totalled $10.24 million, up from $9.88 million in the first quarter of the year. However online purchases were up by 24.2% year on year.… Continue reading US Ecommerce Sales Exceed $10 Million In Q2

The number of US broadband subscribers is likely to treble in the next five years, according to a study by the Leichtman Research Group. Analysts estimate that 12.5 million US households had high-speed access to the internet at the end of the first quarter of 2001. This is set to increase to 37.3 million by… Continue reading Broadband In Half Of Online Homes By 2007, Says Leichtman

The latest round of US newspaper publishers financial results show that advertising revenues are continuing to be weak, particularly in the national advertising sector (see US Papers Continue To Suffer Ad Declines). Now almost all US newspaper companies have published their results, analysts at Merrill Lynch are estimating that the overall July revenues were flat… Continue reading ‘Muted And Uneven’ US Press Recovery Predicted By Merrill Lynch

Internet penetration in Ireland has now reached 38% of adults, or 1.1 million adult users, representing a 5% increase on the second quarter of 2001. Data from Amárach Consulting also forecast that penetration will reach 46% by Q2 2004, although the rate of growth is continuing to slow. By way of comparison, Ireland’s internet penetration… Continue reading Ireland’s Net Penetration Hits 38%, But Growth Is Slowing

Imaging-enabled mobiles and personal digital assistants (PDAs) may be the mobile telecom industry’s much needed tonic, with shipments of such devices set to reach 151 million units by 2006, according to a new report from IDC. The report, Moving Pictures: The Future of Mobile Devices and Imaging, points toward the improvements that the much-touted 2.5G… Continue reading Image-Enabled Mobiles May Help Ailing Telecoms Market, Say IDC Forecasts