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US entertainment giant Viacom withstood ongoing pressures in the advertising marketplace and has reported a profit for the first quarter of 2003. The corporation has also agreed a deal to take full control of the the Comedy Central network. In the three months to March, Viacom, the world’s third largest media company, saw revenues rise… Continue reading Viacom Buoyed By First Quarter Earnings

Almost three-quarters of UK businesses believe that their marketing spend will rise over the next twelve months by levels up to or exceeding the rate of inflation. According to a survey by Black And White Public Relations, 73% of respondents are expecting this rate of marketing growth, whilst 27% predict that budgets will remain static… Continue reading UK Businesses See Increasing Marketing Spend

According to press reports, Dennis Publishing has launched a bid for for the magazine company, I Feel Good as it seeks to extend its portfolio of titles in the UK. IFG announced last week that it had received a bid for its assets, which include adult comic Viz and lads mag Jack. The Sunday Times… Continue reading Dennis Linked With Move For IFG

Omnicom Group remained the world’s largest advertising organisation in revenue terms in 2002, according to the newly-released Advertising Age Agency Report from AdAge. The report shows that Omnicom’s 9.4% rise in revenues extended its lead over number two network, Interpublic Group, which saw an 8.7% decline year on year. With WPP remaining in third place… Continue reading Omnicom Holds Global Ad Network Top Spot

The advertising industry in the US is beginning to move again following a ‘general paralysis’ immediately before and during the initial stages of the war in Iraq, according to analysts at Merrill Lynch. The broker says that this paralysis has now begun to dissipate, although caution over the state of the broader economy is still… Continue reading US Advertising To Move Out Of ‘Paralysis’ In Q3, Says Merrill Lynch

The topical issue of Return On Investment will be the central topic at the 2003 Advertising Effective Symposium in Frankfurt this June.Hot on the heels of ZenithOptimedia claiming ROI as a core principle, the two conferences, Effective Communications and Advertising Effectiveness, will take a fresh look at the issues.According to the organisers: “The notion of… Continue reading Ad Conference To Address Issues Surrounding ROI

Global advertising and marketing group, Havas, is expected to report first quarter revenues down by 13.3% in a statement that will focus on continued weakness in Europe and marketing services, with an uncertain outlook for 2003. This is according to analysts at Morgan Stanley. The broker has reduced its full-year 2003 revenue growth from -4.5%… Continue reading Morgan Stanley Sees Sense In Havas’ Marketing Services Slant

The merger of Carlton Communications and Granada into a single ITV group is unlikely to receive regulatory approval with a combined sales house, according to Lehman Brothers. After analysing the OFT’s submission to the DTI, the broker believes that the two companies will struggle to get their merger plans passed without any conciliatory adjustments. In… Continue reading ITV Merger Unlikely With Combined Sales House, Says Lehman Brothers

Shares in regional newspaper publisher, Johnston Press, were down by 4.5p at 361.5p by 10.00am today, after Merrill Lynch analysts downgraded the group from Buy to Neutral. Worries that consumer spending patterns are about to take a dive underlie the broker’s downgrade (see Neil Blackley Sees ‘Dire’ Decline In Media Industry). Johnston Press derives around… Continue reading Consumer Dip May Put Squeeze On Johnston Press, Say Analysts

The downturn in advertising spend in the US has reached its bottom and is now recovering, Jack Myers quotes JPMorgan analyst Spencer Wang as saying this week. In the Jack Myers Report, Wang is said to be relatively cautious in the short-term, but believes that the long-term fundamentals for media companies remain intact. Looking at… Continue reading US Ad Market Is Recovering, Says Analyst