The UK is Europe’s slowest-growing major ad market in 2006 and, were it not for the internet, would also be in 2007, according to a new report from Group M. Group M also predicts internet advertising will comprise 18% of media investment in 2007, v regional newspapers 18% and national newspapers 12%. It adds that… Continue reading UK Is Europe’s Slowest Growing Major Ad Market

More than 40 million mobile phone users in the UK have used their handsets for downloads and browsing the internet during Q3 2006, according to the latest figures from the Mobile Data Association (MDA). A total of 40.7 million users were recorded as having used their phones for this purpose. In July, the figure was… Continue reading More Than 40 Million Use Mobiles To Browse The Net

ITV has rejected NTL’s merger bid, saying that there is “little, if any, strategic logic for ITV to combine with NTL.” The rejection by ITV comes after BSkyB acquired a 17.9% stake in the broadcaster for £940 million on Friday (see ITV Share Price Falls After BSkyB Acquires Stake). The NTL bid offered 105p cash… Continue reading ITV Rejects NTL Merger Bid

Shares in ITV have dropped 5% after BSkyB acquired a 17.9% stake in the broadcaster for £940 million. The move by Sky now makes a possible takeover by NTL of ITV (see NTL Telewest Could Merge With ITV) unlikely. The BBC quotes Sir Richard Branson, NTL’s biggest shareholder, as saying of the Sky deal: “BSkyB’s… Continue reading ITV Share Price Falls After BSkyB Acquires Stake

RTL Group, which is rumoured to be interested in acquiring ITV, has announced that it has sold its remaining 25% shareholding in Sportfive, the European sports rights marketing firm, to Lagardère SCA. Last week it was reported that RTL, Europe’s largest broadcaster, was in talks with private equity backers on a possible £5 billion bid… Continue reading RTL Sells Sportfive Stake To Lagardère

More people in the US will watch more TV and video content in the future, not less, according to a new report from eMarketer. The US DVD and VOD Usage report explores the ways viewers watch television and states that viewers will consume content in a variety of different ways in the future, for example… Continue reading US Viewers Will Watch More TV And Video Content

The percentage of households with HDTV equipment had increased from 2% in February to 6% in July, an installed base of just over 1 million, according to a new report from Continental Research. Continental Research’s Autumn 2006 Digital TV Report says that over 1 million people already have HDTV-enabled TV sets, with another 3.5 million… Continue reading HDTV Households Increase To Over 1 Million

Personalisation and interactivity will be the key drivers of mobile TV according to a new report commissioned by Nokia and carried out by the London School of Economics (LSE). The report, titled This Box Was Made For Walking, predicts that the introduction and adoption of mobile TV will ultimately give way to a more personal… Continue reading Personalisation And Interactivity Key Drivers of Mobile TV

Merrill Lynch (ML) is again raising its US online ad forecasts, to account for the third quarter IAB results and its own higher fourth quarter growth estimate. ML is now forecasting Q4 growth of 30% year on year, up from 27%, and full year growth for 2006 of 34%, up from 31%. For the full… Continue reading Merrill Lynch Raises US Online Ad Forecast

Reed Elsevier has announced that it is on track to deliver on its target of 5% organic revenue growth for the year, although its eduction division has suffered from underperformance and a weak textbook market. In an update on trading, Reed Elsevier said that it is performing well in the Science and Health markets, with… Continue reading Reed Elsevier On Target To Deliver 5% Revenue Growth