United Business Media (UBM) has announced the purchase of US events business Shorecliff Communications for $12.3 million, and the events assets of MediaLive International for $65 million. The acquisition of Shorecliffe will see the company’s four principal events focussing on the high growth technology markets of radio frequency identification, broadband services, wireless infrastructure and telecoms… Continue reading UBM Extends Reach In Events Arena

Global advertising body, WPP, has announced that its relationship marketing network, Wunderman, will merge its Danish operations with one of Denmark’s leading independent agencies, Emerge. The merged company will be renamed Emerge/Wunderman, with WPP retaining a minority share in the business, with options to acquire a majority interest. The consolidation of the two companies will… Continue reading WPP’s Wunderman To Merge With Emerge

Visits to UK travel websites reached 5.41% for the week ending 7th January 2006, up by 15% year on year, according to online competitive intelligence monitor, Hitwise. Hitwise revealed that last week, the sector reached its second highest peak over the last 15 months, while visits to travel websites were up by 25% from the… Continue reading Strong Start To 2006 For UK Online Travel Sector

US analyst eMarketer has made a series of predictions for the advertising and media industry in 2006, signalling seven trends that will rocket to the forefront of the arena. The internet yet again looks set to dominate the media world, with 5.4% of all US adspend forecast to be devoted to online advertising, marking the… Continue reading Top Trends Forecast For 2006

Mobile phone gaming is growing into a multi-billion dollar market, with increasing advances in technologies pushing the industry further in terms of revenue growth. According to eMarketer’s new Mobile Gaming brief, world-wide gaming revenue reached $2.5 billion in 2005, with James Belcher, senior analyst and author of the report, saying the industry is “not a… Continue reading Mobile Phone Gaming Continues To Grow In Popularity

Podcasting has made its presence felt on the internet over the past year, with data from Bridge Ratings showing that around 5 million radio listeners downloaded at least one podcast in 2005, with the figure predicted to nearly double this year, and double again in 2007. A new survey commissioned by Podtrac and conducted by… Continue reading Podcasting On The Rise

Last night saw a clash of the celebrities, as ITV’s Soapstar Superstar went head to head with Channel 4’s Big Brother, but both were floored by BBC One’s time-travelling detective drama, Life On Mars.The BBC drama scored an average adult audience of 6.8 million, while ITV drew 5.7 million and Channel 4 attracted 3.5 million.Channel… Continue reading Life On Mars Eclipses Celebrity Showdown

Channel 4 has poached one of ITV’s highest profile stars, with Paul O’Grady switching sides to leave ITV management “ashen faced.”O’Grady will front a daily show for Channel 4 for half the year beginning in spring, as well as taking on some peaktime work with the broadcaster. Richard and Judy will present a teatime show… Continue reading O’Grady Latest Chat Host To Leave ITV

Emap’s Kiss has appointed former brand marketing director of Chrysalis Radio’s Galaxy Network, Nick Button, as its new marketing director.Button will take up the newly-created position on 16 January, overseeing all of Emap’s Kiss marketing, creative and brand strategy planning, initially focusing on the London-based Kiss 100 before developing the network as a whole.Commenting on… Continue reading New Marketing Director For Emap’s Kiss

News International will next month launch its first women’s weekly magazine, putting increased pressure on an already crowded market and, according to industry speculation this morning, sparking a price war as rivals scramble to attract readers.The publisher has remained tight-lipped over its plans for new title, Love It, but has reportedly hired former New Woman… Continue reading New Launches Threaten Price War For Women’s Weeklies