BSkyB has launched its free-to-air digital satellite package, Freesat, offering viewers more than 200 television and radio channels for a one-off payment of £150.The service, unveiled by BSkyB chief executive James Murdoch, is being seen by many as an attempt to rival the success of the BBC-backed Freeview platform, which has gone from strength to… Continue reading BSkyB Launches Freesat To Rival Freeview

Speculation that Scottish Radio Holdings is on the brink of being take-over by Emap has intensified following news that the company is looking for advisors in anticipation of a potential deal.Speculation has been rife that Emap would launch a take-over bid for Scottish Radio Holdings since the cross-media giant expressed an interest in increasing its… Continue reading Emap May Move On Scottish Radio Holdings Next Year

Media super-regulator Ofcom has today revealed six bidders will compete to take control of the new local FM radio licence for the Ashford area in Kent.The six broadcasters battling for the coveted M licence include Ashford FM, Ashford Local Radio, Lark FM: KMfm, Time FM, A10 FM and East Kent Radio. All of the proposed… Continue reading Six Bidders To Compete For Ashford FM Licence

MediaTel Group has launched its third annual charity sports quiz. In the last 2 years the quiz has raised over £8,000 for charity. For the chance to win some great prizes, you need to predict the outcome of 25 sporting events taking place between December and May. Prizes include Ashes tickets, tickets to a Chelsea… Continue reading MediaTel Group Sports Quiz Returns

BBC Radio Stations Weekly Reach (000s) Year On Year Comparisons Station Survey Period Ending Sep 03 Ending Sep 04 % Ch 1Xtra from the BBC Q 331 312 -5.7 BBC 6 Music Q 154 228 48.1 BBC Asian Network Q 214 171 -20.1 BBC Asian Network UK H 495 473 -4.4 BBC Essex Q 252… Continue reading RAJAR Results Q3 2004: Performance By Ownership

Sky Media has appointed Paul Curtis to the newly created position of deputy managing director, following the departure of Mark Chippendale as head of advertising sales last month.Curtis, currently managing director of Viacom Brand Solutions, will report to Nick Milligan, managing director of Sky Media, with a brief to deliver more integrated solutions to advertisers… Continue reading Sky Picks Curtis As New Advertising Sales Boss

IPC’s veteran music weekly NME has secured Wella ShockWaves as the headline sponsor of its annual awards, which are to be broadcast on Channel 4 early next year.The event will be held on Thursday 17 February in London and will be promoted by a week of programming on Channel 4 featuring highlights from the awards… Continue reading NME Secures ShockWaves To Sponsor Annual Awards

The following tables show the best and worst performers, in terms of weekly reach and share of listening, of the local commercial stations broadcasting outside London. Top/Bottom 10 Weekly Reach (000s) % Change Station Survey Period Ending Sep 2003 Ending Sep 2004 % Change Star 107 (Cambridge/Ely) Y 14 39 178.6 Classic Gold 1431/ 1485… Continue reading RAJAR Results Q3 2004: Local Commercial Stations

A growing number of households in the US are swapping their landline telephone for a mobile phone, according to a new report from Mediamark Research Inc (MRI), as the number of homes without a landline nearly doubles over the last four years. In 2000, 4.2% of households had no landline but this figure has risen… Continue reading Landlines Losing To Mobile Phones

New projections out today from eMarketer show that 2004 is likely to be another boom year for US online advertising, with spending expected to increase by 28.8% year-on-year to $9.4 billion, while 2005 is predicted to climb by 21%. Paid search, which accounts for 42% of the market, is also expected to grow significantly over… Continue reading US Internet Ad Market Set To Grow By 28% In 2004 & 21% In 2005