RTL, the German media group, is apparently working with private equity backers on a possible £5 billion bid for ITV. The RTL bid, according to today’s Financial Times, would see private equity groups putting forward most of the funds needed to acquire ITV. A deal structured in this way would enable RTL to acquire a… Continue reading RTL And Equity Firms Could Make ITV Bid

Sir Martin Sorrell, chief executive of WPP, has named Michael Jackson, former head of Channel 4, as his preferred candidate for the chief executive role at ITV. According to reports in the trade press, Jackson, at the moment president of programming at InterActiveCorp, is being lined up to become chief executive if the NTL/ITV merger… Continue reading Sorrell Gives Jackson Backing For ITV Top Job.

Ofcom today announced a total ban on advertisements for food and drink products which are high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) in all children’s programming, broadcast at any time of day or night, which hold particular appeal for children up to 16. Ofcom has estimated that the impact on total broadcast revenues could be… Continue reading TV Junk Food Ban Could See Channel’s Lose £39 Million Per Year

Arqiva has announced the signing of a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with BT to acquire the full-time service components of BT’s satellite broadcast services business for £25 million in cash. The deal will include long-term customer contracts, operations and personnel located in the USA, France, Italy and the Netherlands, as well as the UK.… Continue reading Arqiva To Acquire BT’s Satellite Broadcast Business

Clear Channel Communications has been sold for $19 billion, to private equity firms Bain Capita and Thomas H Lee. Last week it was rumoured that JCDecaux was on the verge of making a bid for Clear Channel Outdoor, which would have seen it become the world’s largest outdoor advertising company, worth an estimated £12 billion… Continue reading Clear Channel Sold For $19 Billion

The owners of digital music players (DMPs) in the US represent an attractive audience for consumer electronics advertisers, according to new research from comScore Networks. ComScore says that 27% of all US internet users currently own one or more DMPs, with online DMP owners slightly more likely to be male (53%) and more than one… Continue reading Owners of Digital Music Players Have High Affinity For Online Shopping

A new study on product placement in the US from Nielsen Media Research has found that 57.5% of television viewers recognised a brand when viewing a product placement in combination with a commercial, as compared to 46.6% of those viewers exposed only to a commercial for that brand. Nielsen Media Research adds that the reinforcement… Continue reading US TV Ads Get 20% Boost In Brand Recognition From Product Placement

Most leading ad executives in the US expect a significant proportion of broadcast and cable TV ad dollars to shift to online video by 2010, with 33% predicting that switch will be between 10% and 19%, according to new research from the American Advertising Federation (AAF). In addition, 2007 budgets for online advertising are expected… Continue reading US TV Ad Dollars Expected To Shift Online

Internet advertising revenues reached an estimated new record of $4.2 billion for the third quarter of 2006 in the US, according to a new report from the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). The 2006 third quarter revenues represent a 33% increase over $3.1 billion in Q3 2005 and a 2% increase over the… Continue reading US Online Ad Revenues Reach Estimated $4.2 Billion

The chief executive of Bollore Investissements, the company through which Vincent Bollore own his 29% stake in Aegis, has held meetings with investors in Aegis, in order to explain Bollore’s intentions ahead of next week’s shareholder meeting (see Aegis Announces EGM For Bollore Board Bid). Cedric de Bailliencourt met with investors in London on a… Continue reading Bollore Emissary Lobbies Aegis Investors