Channel 4’s head of commercial marketing and research, Hugh Johnson, has announced that he will be leaving the channel in March, to pursue other work ventures.Johnson has worked for Channel 4 for 14 years, since joining in 1991, and has agreed with Andy Barnes, director of sales, to work for the Channel on a consultancy… Continue reading Hugh Johnson Leaves Channel 4

ITV has confirmed that its flagship soap opera, Coronation Street, will receive a boost with the creation of dedicated interactive features in the near future.In a report by the Financial Times, Jane Marshall, controller of interactive television services at ITV, said: “The time is right for us now to look for the next level of… Continue reading Flagship Soap To Receive Interactive Boost

Dennis Publishing has ceased publication of fledgling computing title PC Projects just seven months after its launch, intended to capitalise on the growing number of homes equipped with a computer.At the time of PC Projects’ launch, the title’s publisher Peter Wootton, said: “People want to get more from their home PCs, as the recent and… Continue reading Dennis Drops PC Projects After Just Seven Months

Commercial broadcaster, ITV has announced the appointment of the chief executive of Guardian Media Group (GMG) as a non-executive director of ITV.Sir Robert Phillis will be joined in this role by Baroness Usha Prashar CBE, chancellor of De Montfort University.Industry sources have speculated that the move will give ITV much needed expertise on the boardroom… Continue reading GMG Chief Executive Joins ITV Board

Local digital directional advertising is predicted to increase revenues globally to $10.9 billion by 2009, with the US share of this market estimated to reach $5.1 billion, according to recent research published by strategic research analysts, The Kelsey Group. The Kelsey Group defines ‘directional media’ as advertising that is delivered to potential buyers when they… Continue reading Local Digital Directional Advertising To Make $10.9 Billion By 2009

The marketing profession remains broadly optimistic about the future economy, supporting the widely held view that the expected slowdown in 2005 will represent a change of gear rather than a recession, according to the latest survey results from the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM). The study, based on the views of 500 senior marketing professionals… Continue reading Little Sign Of Recession, Says CIM Study

The compact revolution within the newspaper industry has not had the success that publishers had hoped for, with misleading increases in circulation figures disguising the sector’s increasing struggle with advertisers, according to a new paper published by The McKinsey Quarterly. The rise of the internet and subsequent influx of online news sites has resulted in… Continue reading Tabloid Format May Not Deliver Success

Magazine publisher, Highbury House Communications has announced the proposed sale of its business publishing operations, BCom, to Ergo Science Corporation for gross profits of £12.5 million. This will put the Group on track to achieve its stated strategy of reducing indebtedness and focusing on its consumer newsstand business. It is estimated that net proceeds are… Continue reading Highbury Sells Business Publishing Arm

Paris based advertising group, Havas has released a positive trading update for 2004, revealing that the company has increased organic revenue growth by 2% to €1,494 million, thanks to a positive quarter four which saw revenue increase by 4.6%, compared to the same period in 2003 (see Havas Organic Revenue Spurred On By Europe). All… Continue reading Strong Q4 Boosts Havas 2004 Revenue

Confidence in the European media industry looks set to continue this year, indicating that the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) arena will be worth watching in 2005, according to a new PricewaterhouseCoopers report released yesterday. PwC, the audit and corporate finance group, is anticipating in excess of 110 transactions in 2005,compared to the number of deals… Continue reading Confidence In European Media To Fuel M&A