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Liberty Media has become the latest group to withdraw from the bidding process for Vivendi Universal’s US entertainment assets, following in the footsteps of MGM and Comcast (see Comcast Not In The Running For VUE). After conducting its own analysis of Vivendi Universal Entertainment’s (VUE) assets, Liberty concluded that the synergies offered are not sufficient… Continue reading Liberty Leaves VUE Auction As Shortlist Is Narrowed

ITV’s joint managing directors have attacked the idea of splitting off their ad sales departments in response to wide-ranging proposals put forward by the former head of Channel Five, David Elstein. Writing in today’s Financial Times, Mick Desmond and Clive Jones, claim that contracting out advertising sales to two separate houses would involve “undoing much… Continue reading ITV Chiefs Dismiss Ad Sales Proposal

WPP is still confident about growth prospects for 2004 despite a fall in revenues and profits in the first half of this year. The performance of the global communications group tends to reflect the state of the advertising economy as a whole. In its interim results issued today, WPP said that revenues in the six… Continue reading WPP Undeterred By Profit Fall

The long awaited recovery in the advertising economy is imminent with all the factors in place to ensure an upturn in spending in 2004, according to WPP boss Sir Martin Sorrell. Sir Martin, whose pronouncements carry considerable weight, has consistently forecast that the advertising industry would experience a ‘bath-shaped’ recovery with 2004 seen as the… Continue reading Ad Market Begins To ‘Climb Out Of The Bath’, Says WPP

Liberty Media has revealed plans to increase its shareholding in UnitedGlobalCom, the cable group, and remains in the running for the US entertainment assets of Vivendi. UGC’s founders, including chairman Gene Schneider, have agreed to convert their class B shares for Liberty stock. This takes Liberty’s holding in UGC to 75% and voting rights to… Continue reading Liberty Throws Its Weight Behind UGC

The war-induced anxiety that characterised the first half of 2003 has now passed and UK media firms are becoming increasingly sure that a revival in the advertising economy is imminent. The quarterly survey of media companies carried out by the MediaGuardian and NOP found that almost a quarter expect growth in UK adspend over the… Continue reading UK Media Companies Upbeat On Recovery

Advertising revenues at the Telegraph Group dropped by almost 12% in the second quarter as the downturn in the recruitment sector persisted. The group, which publishes the Daily Telegraph and the Sunday Telegraph said that operating profits were down by £2.1 million to £76.2 million in the three months to June. The two titles saw… Continue reading Ad Revenues Plummet At The Telegraph

Publicis has acquired WPP’s 25% stake in ZenithOptimedia for $75 million, thus securing full control of the media buying agency. A deal had long been on the cards as Cordiant Communications, which is now owned by WPP, had a put option to sell its holding to Publicis in January 2004 (see Market Downturn Takes Toll… Continue reading WPP Sells Zenith Stake To Publicis

Hollinger International, the US-based publisher of the Daily Telegraph and the Sunday Telegraph, has issued a profits warning. The costs of a special investigation into executive payments are being blamed for a prospective shortfall of 17%. In a US regulatory filing, Hollinger said that operational income for the full year would be in the $54… Continue reading Financial Probe Impacts On Hollinger Profits

The number of Britons using online banking services is set to hit 11.5 million by the end of the year, according to a new report from Datamonitor. The number of online bankers has almost doubled since the height of the dotcom boom in 2000 when they numbered 5.6 million. Moreover, traffic to online banking sites… Continue reading Britons Cash In On Online Banking