Traditional media spend has dropped whilst digital and direct media continue to thrive, growing by 22% and accounting for a quarter of all advertising media spend compared to a fifth just a year ago, according to KPMG and Thomson Intermedia’s most recent quarterly bulletin. Total advertising spend was up 3.4% in the first quarter of… Continue reading Digital And Direct Media Drive Ad Spend Up

The UK paid search market will grow to £1.26 billion in the next year – a 67% increase on 2005 when the paid market was worth £757m, according to E-consultancy’s 2006 Search Marketing Buyer’s Guide (see Online Search Sees Explosion In Sponsored Links). The report also says that search engine optimisation will be worth £147… Continue reading Growth In Paid Search Market

Just three weeks after a management buyout took the company out of the BBC Worldwide stable (see BBC Offloads Origin In Management Buyout), Origin Publishing has made two key promotions.Cath Potter, who joined Origin seven years ago as editor of Cross Stitch Crazy, becomes publishing director across the complete craft and hair portfolio.Colleague Anna Davenport… Continue reading Origin Has New Positions Sewn Up

This year’s Edinburgh International TV festival looks set to spark controversy, as a string of opinionated media figures go head to head in what promises to be a heated debate over the industry’s future.Politicians George Galloway and Al Gore will join the creators of South Park and former Sun editor Kelvin MacKenzie in speaking at… Continue reading Opinionated Line Up For TV Festival

The smooth roll out of Sky’s high definition service has been thrown into doubt, with rumours circulating that a shortage of set top boxes will leave some early adopters unable to enjoy Monday’s launch.Those customers scheduled for installation in the first couple of days should escape the set top box shortage, although viewers slated for… Continue reading Set Top Box Shortage Threatens To Delay Sky HD

The leading American TV networks are failing to wow the advertisers, in the traditional parade of up-and-coming programmes set to be shown in the lucrative autumn and winter schedules. Currently taking place in New York, the ‘upfronts’ are a catwalk for the TV industry, with channels showcasing their schedules in an attempt to woo a… Continue reading Advertisers Unimpressed By Big Apple TV Bonanza

Vincent Bolloré, chairman of Groupe Bolloré, has upped his stake in Aegis to 28.8%, after yesterday’s announcement by the Aegis board that they would not be supporting his nominees (see External Candidates For Aegis Board). The nominees, Philippe Germond, ex-president of French mobile firm Alcatel and Roger Hatchuel, former owner of the Cannes Lions International… Continue reading Bollore Increases Aegis Share Ownership

Freeview has announced plans to launch a digital recorder brand, Freeview Playback, by September this year, due to growing concerns that consumer awareness of digital recording technology is scant.The new Freeview Playback products should be available in December, just in time to be slipped inside Christmas stockings.Although the clock is ticking in the countdown to… Continue reading Freeview Has Digital Recording Taped

Business freesheet City AM is considering a launch into the American market, according to industry reports, with a paper preparing a New York edition, dubbed Wall Street AM.According to Marketing Week, the new edition could launch before the end of the year, although doubt still surrounds the launch schedule for the title, which is likely… Continue reading City AM Eyes Expansion Through American Edition

More than £1billion will be spent over the next fortnight by football crazy fans eager to see their heroes bring back the biggest prize in sport via state-of-the art equipment.New research by Direct Line Home Insurance says that one in five football fans (18%) in Britain will be splashing out on over a million widescreen… Continue reading World Cup Fever Grips Widescreen Viewers