GMG Radio’s 102.2 Smooth FM is to launch its first major consumer advertising campaign, encompassing major TV, London Underground and outdoor activity to boost the profile of the fledgling station, which launched in June.The marketing activity will be highly visible across London throughout September as the heavyweight campaign, costing £1.5 million, kicks off to attract… Continue reading GMG Radio Launches First Marketing Drive For Smooth 102.2

The continued adoption of consumer electronics and internet access is predicted to enjoy significant growth over the next five years, with new research from Forrester claiming that by 2010, 62% of US households will have broadband access to the internet. The State of Consumers and Technology: Benchmark 2005 also found that by the end of… Continue reading Strong Growth Continues In Electronics And Internet Uptake

Text messages leapt to a remarkable 2.7 billion in July, marking the highest ever total, according to the latest figures released by the Mobile Data Association (MDA). Person to person texts sent across the UK GSM network operators during July showed an increase of 23.5% on the total sent during the same period in 2004,… Continue reading Over 100 Billion Texts Sent Across The UK

The number of households subscribing to satellite television has increased dramatically over the past year, with the platform continuing to erode cable’s market share, according to a new report from J.D Power and Associates. The 2005 Residential Cable/Satellite TV Satisfaction Study, shows that currently 27% of US households subscribe to satellite services, up from 19%… Continue reading Satellite Continues To Creep Up On Cable

US Newspapers enjoyed double-digit growth in their online advertising revenues in the second quarter of 2005, with online adspend rising to $500.7 million, up 28.6% compared to the same period last year. According to the Newspaper Association of America (NAA), overall advertising revenues for newspapers and their websites totalled $12.2 billion for the second quarter… Continue reading US Newspapers Enjoy Strong Growth In Online Advertising Revenues

More than 50% of television industry executives feel that the government is not doing enough to educate and communicate with consumers about the impending digital switchover, according to a new study conducted by the London Business School on behalf of Video Networks. The Digital Consensus report highlights an industry lacking any consensus on digital switchover,… Continue reading TV Executives Call For Clear Switchover Strategy

95.8 Capital FM has announced that Elizabeth Arden’s latest fragrance, Fifth Avenue After Five, will be sponsoring its evening, Feelgood Friday Show with the deal marking one of the first long-term sponsorships on radio by a fragrance brand.The six month campaign will cover on-air, online and sampling activity. The radio show will target listeners in… Continue reading Elizabeth Arden Smells Success With Capital Sponsorship

American media giant Viacom is the latest broadcaster to show interest in Telewest’s Flextech television business, which is believed to be on the auction block ahead of the cable firm’s merger with rival ntl.The US-based group joins other possible bidders, including ITV, BSkyB, Discovery Communications and RTL Group according to this morning’s Financial Times.A successful… Continue reading Viacom Preparing Bid For Flextech

BSkyB has announced the line up of channels to be included in its high-definition services, due to be launched early next year.The new service will offer a Sky Sports channel, Sky One, Artsworld, a Sky Box Office channel and two Sky Movies screens from launch, allowing viewers to enjoy a wide variety of programming with… Continue reading Sky Announces HDTV Channel Line Up

Top city analysts have warned Sky that a move towards providing free Sky+ set-top boxes to subscribers is uneconomical and could cost the company around £2 billion in total.A report by Broadcast magazine states that Citigroup analysts fear a full subsidy could cost the broadcaster around £250 per subscriber. The company’s UK TV report claims… Continue reading Analysts Warn Against Free Sky+ Boxes