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A settlement between US state attorneys general and the major tobacco marketers over sponsorship agreements is expected shortly. It is expected that each company will be limited to one sponsorship deal only.

Sweden, Finland, Denmark and the United Kingdom are pressing the EC to scale down trademark restrictions on branded goods imported into the EU. They claim this hinders free trade and harms consumers. The EC is waiting for the publication of a study into the economic impact of parallel imports, early next year. This followed an… Continue reading EU: Restrictions on branded goods

Carlton and Granada are to link up with WebTV Networks to carry out an interactive television UK trial in London and Liverpool this year (see Newsline).The trial with gather information on how consumers will use interactive television. WebTV has 500,000 users in the US, and the aim of its service is to provide better TV… Continue reading Carlton And Granada In Interactive Television Trial

The European Parliament has adopted a controversial report on consumer protection which calls for additional responsibility from manufacturers of defective products. Adopting the Roth-Behrendt report on farmers’ liability, MEPs voted in favour of amendments which call into question a number of EU principles over producer liability. Speaking on behalf of the Commission, Mario Monti said… Continue reading EU: EP Report on Consumer Protection

The EP’s call for proposals for a Europe-wide code to govern media ownership, has received a mixed response. The Association of Commercial Television (ACT) said that MEP’s demands came as no surprise, but “the debate has moved on. We are now in a digital age.” The European Newspaper Publishers Association (ENPA) welcomed the debate as… Continue reading EU: Media Ownership proposals

DMG Radio, a subsidiary of Daily Mail & General Trust, has agreed to acquire Sussex-based Radio Mercury for £3.75 million.Radio Mercury runs Mercury FM and Fame 1521 AM which broadcast across the Reigate and Crawley area and have a combined weekly reach of 87,000 listeners according to the latest RAJAR figures. The takeover will be… Continue reading DMG Radio Acquires Radio Mercury

The German government’s case concerning the EU Directive on tobacco advertising reached the European Court of Justice on 19th October. The government’s core argument against the legality of the Directive is that the EU has no competence to set up rules in the area of health protection. The German company Salamander AG has filed an… Continue reading DE: Legal action gets under way

The South African Health Minister has presented a bill to the Parliament’s health committee proposing a ban on all forms of tobacco advertising and sponsorship, plus a ban on smoking in any public area including the workplace. Enforcement measures have not yet been defined.

On 17 November at the Culture Council, Commission Oreja will present a joint paper with Commission Van Miert, on the funding of public service broadcasting. Having considered proposals from a commissioned think tank, Oreja claims to have reached a solution which will achieve a consensus. However, opposition exists between Germany, whose Länder have a direct… Continue reading EU: Public Service broadcasting

During a two-day Health Council meeting last week, EU Health Ministers were told that the German Government is considering dropping its objections to the tobacco advertising ban. During a debate which focused on EC progress in the fight against tobacco addiction, Commissioner Flynn announced a series of measures to provide more information to consumers on… Continue reading EU: Germany to review Court action