De Agostini, the Italian publisher, is understood to be preparing a bid for Endemol, the producer of Big Brother. It is believed that De Agostini has hired US bank Citigroup to examine the possibility of making a bid for the 75% stake which Telefonica could be putting up for sale (see Telefonica Board Meets To… Continue reading De Agostini Could Make Endemol Bid

Eight out of ten internet connections are now via broadband, according to a new report from the Office Of National Statistics. The survey of internet service providers shows that in December 2006, broadband connections accounted for 79.2% of all internet connections. The Office of National Statistics says that the year-on-year increase in broadband connections was… Continue reading UK Broadband Connections Increase

Residential subscriptions to broadband internet services grew 20% in 2006 to exceed 50 million US households, according to Digital Lifestyles: 2007 Outlook, a new study from Parks Associates. The report estimates that US residential broadband subscriptions will surpass 60 million households by the end of 2007, accounting for 55% of all US households. Kurt Scherf,… Continue reading US Residential Broadband Penetration Grows

New research from Frost & Sullivan reveals that the global set top box market has been experiencing significant growth, due in most part to Internet Protocol Television (IPTV). The World Set Top box Semiconductors Markets report shows that this market earned revenues of $1.77 billion in 2006 and forecasts that it will reach $4.2 billion… Continue reading IPTV Boosts Set Top Box Market

Jeff Smith, director of UK and international programming at Napster, has been named as the new head of music at Radio 2.He will take over from Colin Martin on March 26 this year, following the announcemt of Martin’s retirement in December 2006.Smith joined Napster in 2004 where he was responsible for sourcing all content and… Continue reading Radio 2 Names New Head Of Music

Sky will be launching the TV version of its Anytime package in March, allowing customers to watch a selection of the week’s best programming on-demand.Anytime on TV will be available to more than one million customers, making use of the additional capacity available on more recent Sky+ and Sky HD boxes.Launched next month, the service… Continue reading Sky Anytime Moves To TV In March

Virgin Media has signed a major content agreement with Warner Bros which will see US shows like Friends and ER made available to subscribers via its on-demand service.Over three million cable customers will be able to access more than 500 episodes of top-rating US shows such as Nip/Tuck and The OC.This agreement follows recent content… Continue reading Virgin Media Signs Warner Bros Content Deal

BBC Worldwide’s TV sales are set to reach around £190 million for this financial year due to strong growth in traditional programme sales and an increasing number of deals with digital media platforms. This figure is up from last year’s £171 million and was announced by BBC Worldwide prior to the BBC Showcase event being… Continue reading BBC Worldwide’s TV Sales Grow

The US companies Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio have agreed a merger, which will create a company valued at $13 billion. The deal will see Sirius acquire XM in a $4.6 billion deal, although the merger could face problems. It is believed that US terrestrial radio companies are likely to make objections and… Continue reading US Satellite Radio Companies To Merge

The BBC is to begin a research trial on the Freeview platform of a video on demand (VOD) service which will utilise the platform’s interactive capabilities.Ashley Highfield, the BBC’s director of future media and technology, said that the BBC is currently working with a manufacturer of set-top boxes in order to segment a section of… Continue reading BBC Begins Research On Freeview VOD Service