The latest Advertising Confidence Index (ACI) report from economist and media analyst, Jack Myers, suggests that the advertising downturn may have hit its lowest point in the US, although full recovery could still be a year and a half away. The ACI shows that there was a slight increase in marketers’ confidence during March, suggesting… Continue reading Myers Report Suggests US Ad Downturn May Have Peaked

According to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) British retail sales growth rose at the highest rate for almost four years in the three months to May 2001. In the period March to May the volume of sales recorded was 1.5% higher than for the previous 3 month period and 5.8%… Continue reading UK Retail Sales Growth Increases As US Fails To Live Up To Expectations

There are around 16 million internet users in the UK and this year 45% of them are women, according to the Annual Internet Survey from Which?. This is a 6% increase on last year and continues to narrow the gap between male and female web usage. There survey also shows that almost 8 million people… Continue reading Gender Gap Closes In Net Usage, According To Which?Online Survey

For the first time since the launch of digital TV in October 1998, BMRB reports that there has been no increase in the level of take up of services for four months.       Jan     Jun   Increase (%)   Increase (% points)  2000    15%    23%  53%  8  2001    29%    32%  10%  3  In a recent BMRB survey,… Continue reading BMRB Reports “Plateau” in Digital TV Take Up

Reports this morning suggest that talks between AOL Time Warner and IPC (see AOL Time Warner May Bid For IPC) have fallen through. The valuation of the company is thought to have been the reason for the breakdown as IPC and its largest shareholder, Cinven, deemed the offer price, of between $1.2 billion and $1.5… Continue reading AOL Time Warner Scraps Talks With IPC

Granada and Carlton Communications have hit a stumbling block in plans to bring their pay-TV businesses under the umbrella ITV brand (see Granada And Carlton Bring ONdigital Under ITV Brand), following discussions with some of the Network’s smaller franchise holders. Although all the parties involved have so far declined to comment on the talks, press… Continue reading Granada And Carlton Meet Opposition To ITV Brand Plans, Say Reports

French outdoor media company JC Decaux has delayed its IPO on the French stock market (see JC Decaux To Fund Growth With IPO On French Stock Market) following media scepticism and concerns over investor demand. The announcement follows a week of uncertainty in the French advertising industry as share prices fell following profit warnings from… Continue reading JC Decaux Cuts Price Of IPO

Two US publishing groups – Dow Jones and Knight Ridder – have announced that they are to make a number of job cuts in order to meet financial targets. Knight Ridder, the second largest newspaper group in the US, is to axe 1,700 jobs, costing the group $75 million in redundancy pay-outs. Late last year,… Continue reading US Newspaper Groups Cut More Jobs

As the BBC climbs further into bed with Sky (see BBC And Sky Team Up For Interactive Wimbledon Broadcasts), ITV has secured a more permanent arrangement by agreeing a 10 year deal with Société Européenne des Satellites (SES) for capacity on three digital satellite transponders enabling the broadcast of ITV services via ASTRA to the… Continue reading ITV Looks To Rival Sky With Transponder Lease Deal

French advertising and communications agency Publicis has given a cautious outlook in its AGM statement, saying that full-year global advertising growth is expected to come in at 3%. This is higher than ABN Amro’s expected 1.3%, but below Robert Coen’s estimate of 5% outside the US. Publicis CEO Maurice Levy expects his company to outperform… Continue reading Publicis Cautiously Optimistic For 2001