Northern Irish multimedia group UTV has apparently re-entered discussions with SMG about a possible merger, according to reports in the trade press. SMG, which owns cinema advertising business Pearl & Dean and Virgin Radio, confirmed in August that it had received a merger bid from UTV which would have given SMG shareholders 50% of the… Continue reading UTV Reopens Merger Talks With SMG

Clear Channel has denied that it is in talks with JDecaux or any other company about the sale of its outdoor arm Clear Channel Outdoor. In a statement, Clear Channel said: “Clear Channel Communications and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings today confirmed that they are not in discussions with JCDecaux, or any other company, involving the… Continue reading Clear Channel Denies Outdoor Sale

Branded advertising revenue growth for Yahoo! US is likely to be down 40% on last year at 20% this quarter, according to predictions from Merrill Lynch. Despite the projected slowdown in growth, the report was positive overall, with Merrill Lynch reiterating its buy recommendation. “Our industry contacts indicate that Yahoo!’s premium inventory remains a differentiated… Continue reading Yahoo! Branded Ad Rev Down 40% Year On Year

NTL’s major shareholders are becoming frustrated with the cable giant’s attempts to acquire ITV and would prefer it if the company focused on integrating Telewest and Virgin Mobile. According to a report in the Guardian, some of NTL’s largest shareholders want the company to forget about bidding for ITV and to concentrate on matters closer… Continue reading Shareholders Want NTL To Forget About ITV Merger

Social networking behemoth YouTube has made a definitive step towards going mobile, after the company singed a deal with US telco Verizon.The deal will see some of the most highly rated YouTube videos available on Verizon handsets, where subscribers to the Verizon Wireless’ V Cast package, who pay around £7.50 a month or £1.50 a… Continue reading YouTube Takes A Step Towards Going Mobile

Frustration is brewing amongst NTL shareholders, who feel that the cable group should focus on integrating Telewest and Virgin Mobile rather than a bid to buy ITV, according to a report on mediaguardian.co.uk.The ITV board unanimously rejected a merger bid by NTL recently, claiming there was “little, if any, strategic logic for ITV to combine… Continue reading NTL Shareholders Want Company To Shed ITV Takeover Plans

ITV is preparing for the launch of ITV Local, the broadcaster’s local broadband service, after the appointment of a launch managing director and the acquisition of online business directory Scoot.ITV has appointed Mohammed Raja, who has worked at search and directories companies including Thomson Directories, 192.com, Ask Jeeves and UpMyStreet.com, as managing director, to spearhead… Continue reading ITV Gears Up To Launch Local Broadband Service

Freeview is threatening Sky’s dominance in parts of the UK, according to a new spatial model of the TV landscape by Point Topic. According to the model, Sky’s market shares can be as high as 40% and as low as 27% depending on the options available in a given region. Tim Johnson, chief executive of… Continue reading Freeview Threatening Sky’s Dominance

In November, research from Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities, revealed that nearly half of all individuals in the European Union used the internet at least once a week in 2006. Eurostat said that 52% of households had access to the internet during the first quarter of 2006, compared to 48% during the… Continue reading INSIGHTanalysis: Media Healthcheck – November 2006

Increased broadband penetration across Europe has positively impacted the numbers of hours Europeans spend online, according to the European Interactive Advertising Association (EIAA). The EIAA study shows that 45% of internet users in Europe now go online every day of the week, which the EIAA says demonstrates the increasing importance of the internet in our… Continue reading Europeans Spending More Time Online