Johnston Press has announced the acquisition of four paid-for newspapers from Mortons Media Ltd. The titles are all based in the Lincolnshire area and include the Horncastle News series, the Louth Leader series, the Skegness News and the Market Rasen Mail.The deal will be subject to approval from the secretary of state for trade and… Continue reading Johnston Press Acquires Four Titles From Mortons Media
WPP has announced the acquisition of Deen + Black, a leading public affairs firm based in California. The company will be incorporated within WPP’s PR agency, OgilvyPR Worldwide.The sum paid for Deen + Black has not been disclosed but the company had revenues of $4.5m during 2000 and its net assets are worth $935,000. The… Continue reading WPP Buys US-Based PR Firm
ITV claimed victory in the Christmas day ratings battle for the second year running, taking a 40.2% average audience share during peak time (18:00-22:30). Coronation Street was its top programme, watched by 13.7m, while 11.1m tuned into the later edition of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?.Despite spending £42m on its two-week Christmas line-up (see… Continue reading ITV Wins Christmas Day Ratings Battle
Following a year of debates over regulation and consolidation within the industry, the New Year’s Honours brought gongs for several members of the media community. Two of the CBEs which went the way of the BBC were awarded to Jenny Abramsky, director of BBC radio and music for services to news and radio and to… Continue reading Work of RAB And PPA Recognised In New Year’s Honours
The dotcom decline looks set to continue into the new year as it looks increasingly likely that Letsbuyit.com, a site which encourages consumers to club together and bulk buy products, will bite the dust. Despite this, tech companies Bright Station and Freeserve managed reasonable performances yesterday, rising ½p to 24p and 4p to £1.02 respectively.In… Continue reading Sharewatch
Speculation over the sale of Scottish Radio Holdings continued throughout the festive season. SMG failed to make a full bid for the group despite increasing its stake in its rival to 20.8% following a planned relaxation in legislation in the Government’s White Paper. SRH has said it would consider a stock purchase by SMG as… Continue reading Ownership Brief
Speculation over the sale of Scottish Radio Holdings continued throughout the festive season. SMG failed to make a full bid for the group despite increasing its stake in its rival to 20.8% following a planned relaxation in legislation in the Government’s White Paper. SRH has said it would consider a stock purchase by SMG as… Continue reading Christmas Developments
2000 was the year when media woke up to the realities of the digital age. Mega-mergers abounded as companies recognised the benefits of consolidation and vertical integration. Most significant for UK markets was Granada’s domination of ITV and the paving of the way for a single ITV with the Government’s White Paper. In publishing, brands… Continue reading A Look Back At 2000…
During the holiday period, shares were traded on the UK stock market on 27, 28 and 29 December and resumed trading for the New Year from today. The table below shows the closing prices for media shares on Friday 22 December and Friday 29 December 2000.Unsurprisingly, there was little movement during this period, although Scottish… Continue reading Sharewatch
Cinema adspend has been rising over the past decade in real terms, reaching a total of £87m for the 12 months to September 2000, according to CIA Medialab research. Cinema admissions have also risen over the period, from just under 90 million during 1989 to just over 100 million during 1999. However, this growth has… Continue reading Rising Cinema Admissions Echoed By Rising Advertising Revenues
