More Media Business articles

The chances of the Government’s Communications Bill becoming law in its current form looked increasingly tenuous yesterday as opposition to the proposed legislation gained momentum in the House of Lords. A group of peers, headed by Lord Puttnam, chairman of the Joint Scrutiny Committee have already successfully tabled two amendments on the Bill, which is… Continue reading Lords Flex Muscles In Communications Bill Debate

The Daily Mail & General Trust has failed to overturn a ruling by the Office of Fair Trading that one of its Scottish newspaper divisions was guilty of predatory pricing against a rival. The OFT ruled last September that Aberdeen Journals, owned by DMGT subsidiary Northcliffe Newspapers, had been guilty of anti-competitive conduct (see Northcliffe… Continue reading DMGT Fails In Predatory Pricing Appeal

RTL, the pan-European broadcaster, plans to retain its stake in UK terrestrial station, Five, despite the Government’s plans to clear the way for non-EU investors to acquire the business. The relaxation of the media ownership regulations has prompted fierce speculation that RTL may decide to sell its 65% stake in the channel to Rupert Murdoch’s… Continue reading RTL Not Interested In Selling Five Stake

The belief that movie downloading is doing significant harm to the film industry is wide of the mark, if a new report from The Yankee Group is to be believed. Unlicensed downloading is one of the reasons cited by recording companies for the current demise in music sales (see Fall In US Music Sales Blamed… Continue reading Downloading Poses Little Threat To Movie Business

Trinity Mirror has refused to comment on speculation that it is planning to sell its titles in Northern Ireland as part of a shake-up at the UK publisher. According to a report in the Financial Times, senior executives from Trinity Mirror have approached regional publishing groups Gannett and Johnston Press to sound out the possibility… Continue reading Trinity May Sell Irish Titles

UBC Media, the UK radio station operator and programme producer, broke into operating profit in its last financial year, the group announced this morning. Before development costs, operating profit was £73,000 for the year ended 31 March 2003, up from a loss of £210,000 the year before. The group moved into the black during the… Continue reading UBC Moves Into Profit In 2003, Airtime Outlook Mixed

French media and telecommunications giant Vivendi Universal, will this week assess the bids received for its US entertainment assets, according to a report in today’s Financial Times. The Vivendi Universal Entertainment (VUE) division comprises a music company, film studios, theme parks and cable channels. It has received interest from the likes of Liberty Media, General… Continue reading Vivendi To Assess US Entertainment Bids

Online advertising has strengthened its position in the marketing mix, but still lags someway behind more traditional types of marketing such as local press and direct mail, according to a new study from Continental Research. The 2003 E-Commerce Report shows that 24% of UK companies regularly use online advertising, helping it to see expenditure increase… Continue reading Online Advertising Lags Behind Traditional Marketing

The Government’s plans to relax the media ownership regulations came under increasing threat in the House of Lords yesterday, as support grew for Lord Puttnam’s proposal to impose public interest tests on large media groups wanting to buy Channel Five. Reports suggest that peers from all parties have vowed to vote down the Communications Bill… Continue reading Government Faces Growing Threat From Rebel Peers

WPP’s plans to buyout Cordiant Communications (see WPP Seals £266m Cordiant Takeover) may be scuppered yet, if intransigent majority shareholder, Active Value, manages to gather together a sufficient holding in Cordiant to block the deal. Active Value has explicitly stated that it would like to see Cordiant remain independent and has proposed to inject more… Continue reading Active Value Ups Cordiant Stake To Block WPP Deal