The latest figures from the Office of National Statistics showed that while February’s underlying rate of inflation rose slightly on January’s record figure (see Inflation Rate Lowest Since Records Began) of 1.7% to 1.9%, it still remains well below the target set by the Government of 2.5%, as has been the case for the past… Continue reading Inflation Rate Stays Below Target For 22nd Consecutive Month
Almost a third of people living in the UK who have yet to get digital TV say that they never will, making the Government’s plans to switch off the analogue signal within a decade “fatally flawed”, according to a report released this week.The report, published by the Consumers’ Association, acknowledges that for 73% of the… Continue reading Consumers’ Association Report Suggests Achieving A Digital UK Will Not Be Easy
The minister for consumers and corporate affairs, Kim Howells, has published draft undertakings in relation to the proposed acquisition of British Interactive Broadcasting (Open, as it is now known) by BSkyB. Plans for Sky to increase its stake in the interactive TV company to full ownership were announced in July last year (see BSkyB Takes… Continue reading Comment Invited On Proposed BSkyB Takeover Of Open
Taylor Nelson Sofres published positive results yesterday, showing pre-tax profits up 16.5% (see Taylor Nelson Sofres Releases Positive Year End Results). This led to the company’s shares being among the few media stocks that rose yesterday, increasing 5½p to £2.35½.More results, this time from Future Network, confirmed expectations about what the chief executive described as… Continue reading Sharewatch
RTL has confirmed that its director of strategy and content, Richard Eyre, will be leaving the company at the end of this month. Rumours about Eyre’s decision to quit the company just over a year after he joined surfaced yesterday (see Former ITV Chief Executive Richard Eyre Quits RTL).RTL has announced that Tony Cohen, currently… Continue reading RTL Confirms Eyre’s Departure, Announces Promotions In His Wake
A week of gloom as the foot and mouth crisis deepened, affecting advertising spend, the Japanese and US economy teetered on the brink of recession and evidence that the dotcom bubble has well and truly burst came as media companies made further cuts to internet investment, meant that all but one of the media companies… Continue reading Sharewatch
Monday MediaTel’s weekly media focus and analysis, Media Track, is featured in Media Business.Future Network and Taylor Nelson Sofres release final results for the year 2000.Tuesday The consumer retail prices index for February is released by the Office for National Statistics.Wednesday Johnson Press, Independent News & Media and RTL all release final results for the… Continue reading The Week Ahead
Natmags has announced that Prima Baby, the parenting magazine launched as a brand extension of Prima in 1996, will move from a bi-monthly to a monthly as from the April issue which went on sale on 5 March.The title was one of five acquired by the National Magazine company in July last year when it… Continue reading Prima Baby To Go From Bi-Monthly To Monthly Editions
Future Network was “pushed off course” in 2000 in what was this morning described by chief executive Greg Ingham as a “bruising year” for the company.In October last year, accounting anomalies at Future’s French subsidiary emerged. This, along with a ‘soft’ computer games market (a key sector for Future’s magazines), caused the company to issue… Continue reading Future Network “Pushed Off Course In Bruising Year”
Telewest has announced the signing of a £2.25bn debt restructuring package, which should see the separate debts of Telewest and Flextech, which merged last year (see Telewest And Flextech Agree Terms Of £2.26bn Merger), merged as part of the deal. The loans mature in 2007, by which time the group is expected to be profitable.Charles… Continue reading Telewest Signs £2.25bn Refinancing Deal
