Raymond Snoddy comments on yesterday’s release by News International of updated figures for The Times/Sunday Times paywall experiment, which began in July last year.

Raymond Snoddy on the BBC cuts: Blank screens late at night would not be a good idea. You have to show something. The last person who tried blank screens was Prime Minister Ted Heath during the miner’s strike and it didn’t get him very far.

Raymond Snoddy on what went wrong: When it comes to relaunches, gentle, gradual, evolutionary change is obviously best. But everyone forgets that. The excitement of the new and shiny takes over. Daybreak managed to put its finger on every mistake it was possible to make and include it in the big plan.

Raymond Snoddy remembers many a meeting with the quiet, shy and unassuming media tycoon – “The horns are difficult to see but there is no doubt he is relentless – sometimes ruthless – in pursuit of the one thing he is really interested in, the greater glory of News Corp”

Raymond Snoddy says Jeremy Hunt has chosen to take the “courageous” route and must hope that it does not come back to bite him. Ultimately Sky News could be brought to its knees within a decade if the Murdoch dynasty tire of paying to keep the loss-maker afloat…

Raymond Snoddy says Adam Crozier, the ITV chief executive, has a perfectly rational “transformational” five-year plan for the company but he will have difficulty building up ITV Studios, whichever brilliant executive is in charge. The one deal that would be truly transformational in production terms for ITV would be the acquisition of All3Media…

Raymond Snoddy says more than ten years after the CRR was first dreamed up by Granada a lot of the heat could have oozed out of the argument and CRR may be no more contentious than product placement.

Raymond Snoddy says the picture is not entirely bleak but it really helps when those owning and running local and regional newspapers actually believe in their future…

Raymond Snoddy on radio – a talkSPORT football match made in heaven; record audiences; and how to replace dead Radio 4 listeners…

Raymond Snoddy says “the Press is drinking at the Last Chance Saloon”…again and the industry had better pay attention.