Four groups were expected to submit first round bids for Virgin Radio by today’s deadline. Bidders for the SMG owned station are understood to include Charles Allen’s Global Radio, UTV (see UTV Could Bid For Virgin Radio) and private equity firm Vitruvian Partners. Global Radio bought Chrysalis’ radio division, including the Heart and Galaxy brands,… Continue reading Deadline For Virgin Radio Bids

Yahoo! has acquired online video platform provider Maven Networks for $160 million in order to expand consumer video and advertising experiences on Yahoo!.com and Yahoo!’s network of premium video publishers. Yahoo! said that it intends to invest in the growth of Maven’s overall video business, continuing to provide premium publishers with both publishing and new… Continue reading Yahoo! Acquires Maven Networks

Five has strengthened its newly-formed digital media team with two new appointments.Chris Kerwin joins in the new role of digital controller, with responsibility for the commercial side of Five’s digital businesses including video-on-demand and online. Scott Jeffrey becomes VOD editor and will be responsible for Five’s new VOD service.Five said that the “appointments reflect the… Continue reading Five Strengthens Digital Media Team

Dennis Publishing is to launch another digital only magazine in March, following on from the success of online lads’ mag, Monkey.iGizmo will be a consumer technology digital magazine, which will launch on 11 March and be distributed as an email free of change.Dennis says that iGizmo will take “the best elements of magazines, websites and… Continue reading Dennis Launches Second Digital Only Magazine

Google is in danger of becoming a company that everyone wants to see fail, according to a panellist at today’s MediaTel Group seminar on the ‘Future of Online’. One of today’s talking points was the possible take-over of Yahoo! by Microsoft and the effect consolidation could have on both the market and its main player,… Continue reading Google ‘Could Become Company Everyone Wants To Fail’

This year will be an interesting year for mobile internet, but it won’t be as groundbreaking for the format as some commentators have predicted, according to panellists at today’s MediaTel Group ‘Future of Online’ seminar. Richard Firminger, outgoing regional sales director, northern Europe, at Yahoo!, said that mobile adspend forecasts were going to be a… Continue reading Mobile Internet Not Quite Ready For Breakthrough

Google is in danger of becoming a company that everyone wants to see fail, according to a panellist at today’s MediaTel Group seminar on the ‘Future of Online’. One of today’s talking points was the possible take-over of Yahoo! by Microsoft and the effect consolidation could have on both the market and its main player,… Continue reading DAB Problems Due To ‘Unrealistic Expectations’

Only 10% of US adult broadband users have used an online download service either to rent or purchase movies, and most of them do so infrequently, according to new research from The Diffusion Group (TDG). “Online movie services have to date failed to gain a critical mass of users,” said Michael Greeson, president of TDG… Continue reading Only 10% Of US Adult Broadband Users Have Used Online Movie Services

Yahoo! is reportedly seeking to restart merger discussions with AOL in a bid to fend off the $45 billion (£23 billion) hostile takeover bid from Microsoft. A report in today’s Times says that the internet giant and its advisers from US investment banks Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers have spent the past week looking at… Continue reading Yahoo! Could Restart Merger Talks With AOL

GCap Media’s chief executive, Fru Hazlitt, has confirmed the intended sale of the group’s majority stake in Digital One, and a move away from DAB digital radio. The “radical but realistic” sets of measures are intended to boost profits and maintain long term growth for the company, which include the closure of some digital stations… Continue reading GCap Media Unveils “Radical” Profit Boosting Measures