Stock in BSkyB dropped heavily yesterday following the group’s interim financial results (see BSkyB To Cease Analogue Broadcast This Summer), to end down 52p (6.1%) at 804p. Shares continued to fall as trading opened this morning; they were down a further 11p to 793p by midday. Whilst Sky’s figures were in the main strong, with… Continue reading BSkyB Financial Results – Reaction

The costs of investing in internet development are showing at Chrysalis Group, as interim financial results for the six months to 28 February, show a group-wide pre-tax loss of £5.6 million. Chrysalis spent £9.1 million on new media activities, giving an operating loss of £4.8 million (compared to a £1.1 million profit for the same… Continue reading New Media Costs Push Chrysalis Into The Red

News Corp, parent to News International and BSkyB in the UK, released its financial results last night, showing a net profit after tax of $127 million, down slightly on the $193 million of last year. The fall was principally due to a weaker Film market, according to analysts at ABN Amro. Newspaper revenues, however, were… Continue reading Newspapers And BSkyB Strong For News Corp

Cable group NTL has this morning announced a quarterly revenues increase of 6% to £622 million, for the three months ended 31 March. At the same time EBITDA increased by 32% quarter on quarter to £86 million. Earlier in the week the group’s wholly-owned subsidiary, NTL Communications Corp, placed $1 billion worth of Convertible Notes;… Continue reading NTL Raises Cash For The Future

WPP’s wholly-owned global branding, identity and consulting group, The Brand Union, has acquired UK-based Marketing & Communication Agency (“MCA”), an internal communications consultancy, for an undisclosed sum. MCA has offices in London, New York and Stockholm and specialises in providing multinational clients with brand-building tools, on both a corporate and employee level, through the creation… Continue reading WPP Acquires UK Communications Consultancy

—> According to the latest figures from Neilsen NetRatings, about 379 million people around the world now have Internet access from home, and 211 of those are described as ‘active’ Internet users. These figures represent a growth rate of seven million new home users in March and ‘active’ use began growing again after February’s drop.… Continue reading Global Home Net Use Latest From Nielsen NetRatings

According to a recent Oftel study of around 700 small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), a net connection is still a desirable asset and one which many have already invested in. 92% of medium businesses and 59% of small businesses are already connected to the internet

The truth may be difficult to bear, even unthinkable. But could it be the case that an advertising-based model of the internet simply does not work? This is certainly the contention made by analysts at McKinsey Quarterly in their new report, Can Broadband Save Internet Media?. The report claims that, ‘despite brutal evidence to the… Continue reading Insight Analysis: Is An Advertising-Based Internet Really Feasible?

BSkyB plans to switch off its analogue broadcast completely, on target, during the summer of this year, the company announced this morning. Having grown its digital subscriber base to 5.4 million with a record quarter growth of 252,000 sales, Sky is in line to meet the target of 7 million digital customers by 2003. The… Continue reading BSkyB To Cease Analogue Broadcast This Summer

Publishing group Highbury House says that there has been a deterioration in newsstand sales during February – a trend which may have continued into the following months. Speaking at the company’s AGM this morning, executive chairman Ian Fletcher said that as newsstand sales can only be accurately quantified two months in arrears, it is difficult… Continue reading February Warns Of Deteriorating Newsstand Sales For Highbury House