More Industry News articles

This week sees the start of Friday Night Lights on ITV4, the latest in a somewhat dwindling line of US television imports.Just as it’s getting harder for UK heavyweight channels BBC One and ITV1 to come up with fresh, new, audience-grabbing programmes, it’s even tougher in the harsh world of US network TV.For the current… Continue reading US Imports – The Hits & Misses

Women’s celebrity glossy Hello! has just launched a new digital edition, available online as soon as the print edition hits newsstands.A user friendly format, accessed through hellomagazine.com, replicates the print version, even allowing users to flick through its virtual pages.The digital mag also includes a search feature, enabling readers to track down a specific story… Continue reading Hello! Launches Digital Edition

Viacom in the US is set to become the first major TV/movie producer to sign a deal with Joost, the forthcoming television and video over the internet project from the founders of VOIP service Skype.The deal involves licensing hundreds of hours of programming from Viacom’s properties, like MTV, Comedy Central, Spike TV and Paramount Studios.… Continue reading Viacom To Strike Content Deal With Skype Founders

Graham Dene has been recruited by GMG Radio to front the breakfast show on its soon to be relaunched London station Smooth.Dene will be part of the new look Smooth as it changes format from a jazz and soul station to an easy-listening one aimed at the over-50s on March 26.There are however, rumours that… Continue reading GMG Radio Wants Dene For A Smooth Breakfast

BBC Staff, together with a group of MPs, have written a letter to the BBC Trust urging it to reject proposed advertising on its BBC.com international website.The letter, published today in national newspapers, was signed by 10 MPs and follows an Early Day Motion submitted by Labour MP Austin Mitchell.The MPs are concerned that hosting… Continue reading MPs And Staff Say No To BBC Web Ads

Sir Martin Sorrell, head of WPP, has said that those in charge of running media companies should make sure that they keep up with the shift in power taking place in the media industry.Sorrell, speaking yesterday at a Chrysalis event, said that media owners need to get their heads around the fact that profitability will… Continue reading Sorrell: Media Owners need To Keep Pace With Change

The increasing power of digital media and the new ways in which consumers use the media to communicate are central to the future of the industry, according to Sir Martin Sorrell, CEO of WPP. Sorrell, speaking to LBC’s Nick Ferrari at a Chrysalis event, said that a significant shift is taking place which will see… Continue reading Sorrell: New Media Central To Future Of Industry

De Agostini, the Italian publisher, is understood to be preparing a bid for Endemol, the producer of Big Brother. It is believed that De Agostini has hired US bank Citigroup to examine the possibility of making a bid for the 75% stake which Telefonica could be putting up for sale (see Telefonica Board Meets To… Continue reading De Agostini Could Make Endemol Bid

Eight out of ten internet connections are now via broadband, according to a new report from the Office Of National Statistics. The survey of internet service providers shows that in December 2006, broadband connections accounted for 79.2% of all internet connections. The Office of National Statistics says that the year-on-year increase in broadband connections was… Continue reading UK Broadband Connections Increase

Residential subscriptions to broadband internet services grew 20% in 2006 to exceed 50 million US households, according to Digital Lifestyles: 2007 Outlook, a new study from Parks Associates. The report estimates that US residential broadband subscriptions will surpass 60 million households by the end of 2007, accounting for 55% of all US households. Kurt Scherf,… Continue reading US Residential Broadband Penetration Grows