Online shoppers will spend a record $9.9 billion in the US during the upcoming holiday season – a rise of 43% on the $6.9 billion spend of the previous year, according to forecasts from Nielsen//NetRatings. The research company says that shoppers will buy products in 13 ecommerce categories and that more than 106 million people… Continue reading US Online Shopping Looks Healthy For Christmas Period

Research by theYankee Group claims that 93% of US PC-owning households now have web access. According to its Technologically Advanced FamilyÂŽ (TAFÂŽ) Survey, the group also estimates that the top three uses for home PCs are: Online services/Internet access with 76% of the online population, Games/Entertainment with 58%, and Personal/Household Finance Management with 30%. The… Continue reading 93% Of US PC Homes Now Have Web Access, Says Yankee Group

In its Q3 results, Vivendi Universal, revealed an upbeat outlook despite the gloomy ad climate which currently prevails. The company, Europe’s largest media group, has beaten Q3 forecasts and is on track to meet full year expectations. Q3 fell in line with the market; organic earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and ammortisation (EBITDA) grew by… Continue reading Vivendi On Track To Meet 2001 Earnings Targets

WPP has again extended its acquisition offer for UK media buying group Tempus, as the Takeover Panel considers the company’s appeal against the dismissal of the Material Adverse Change clause it was hoping to invoke (see Takeover Panel Rules Against WPP). WPP was hoping to withdraw from the agreed takeover offer on the grounds that… Continue reading WPP Extends Tempus Offer As Appeal Is Considered

In the current volatile and uncertain climate, media suppliers are faced with the difficult prospect of generating cost savings whilst cutting cost per thousands, according to Jack Myers, chief economist at Myers Reports. Myers says that the long-term strategies that corporations were building as recently as 1998 – pre dotcom boom – were based on… Continue reading Media Companies Caught Between Need For Investment And Falling Revenues, Say Myers

According to Forrester Research, declines in the tech sector will arrest during Q3 2002 and an upturn will begin in 2003. However, double-digit rises will not be visible until 2004 when growth will reach around 12%. “Forrester estimates that 12% of the IT sector’s volume in 2000 represented overspending, which amounts to a hefty $62… Continue reading Tech Market Will Recover In 2003, Says Forrester

Despite the fact that there are well over 6,000 ISPs operating in the US, 65% of all access revenues in 2000 were generated by the top ten providers, according to Cahners In-Stat. Cahners forecasts that the weak economy will result in some of the smaller companies being unable to compete and that they will go… Continue reading US ISP Market Will Consolidate Further, Says Cahners In-Stat

German media group, Bertelsmann, may be interested in making a takeover bid for the UK’s Carlton Communications, according to a report in yesterday’s Observer newspaper. The article claims that the two companies have held ‘informal discussions’ recently, but that there are no ongoing negotiations. Bertelsmann is currently prevented from tying up with the ITV giant,… Continue reading Bertelsmann Looks At Carlton Merger, Says Report

Rupert Murdoch has walked away from what many considered the ‘dream’ deal of his career – one which would have made him the greatest TV mogul ever, reaching more people in more countries than anyone else in history. For the past six months Murdoch’s News Corp has cogitated, negotiated and restructured in order to engineer… Continue reading Murdoch Walks Away From ‘Dream’ DirecTV Deal

Rupert Murdoch, frustrated by delays and months of torturous negotiations, has walked away from what many considered the ‘dream’ deal of his career – one which would have made him the greatest TV mogul ever, reaching more people in more countries than anyone else in history. For the past six months Murdoch’s News Corp has… Continue reading Insight Analysis: Murdoch Walks Away From ‘Dream’ DirecTV Deal