David Elstein, the former chief executive of Channel 5, has launched a scathing attack on ITV, claiming that the network has been brought to its knees by a decade of “profound mismanagement.”Speaking at this year’s Guardian Edinburgh International TV festival, Elstein, a former head of programmes at Thames TV and once a contender for the… Continue reading GEITF 2002: Former Channel 5 Boss Attacks ITV
Week on week analysis of the media sector saw a solid performance from Carlton and Granada, seen up 18.99% and 19.73% respectively. Although the shares could be knocked by press reports that Gerry Murphy, chief executive of Carlton, has claimed that merger talks between the two ITV companies could be delayed for 3 years because… Continue reading Sharewatch
Channel 4’s chief executive, Mark Thompson, has criticised British television for being “dull mechanical and samey” and has outlined his plans to reinvigorate TV as a creative medium.Delivering the annual MacTaggart lecture at this year’s Guardian Edinburgh International TV Festival, Thompson attacked “risk-averse” broadcasters for their “pervasive sense of predictability” and warned that Government plans… Continue reading GEITF 2002: Thompson Outlines New Vision For Channel 4
Dawn Airey, chief executive of Channel 5, claims that ITV is loosing audiences because it is too “bland”.In an interview in today’s Times, Airey, who is being tipped as the candidate most likely to take over from David Liddiment as ITV’s director of channels, says that more new drama and high-profile entertainment hits are needed… Continue reading Airey Criticises ITV For Being Too Bland
Brands have been relatively slow to catch onto the potential of interactive TV advertising, but the increasing uptake of digital TV and the success of Big Brother is turning brands on to the potential of the medium. Doug Stoddart, director of interactive solutions consultancy, Purple Lizard, explains…The opportunity for TV advertising to evolve from a… Continue reading NewsLine Column: Lowering the Veil On Interactive TV Advertising
Chairman of the Joint Scrutiny Committee, Lord Puttnam, has urged the Government to recognise that the long-term future of the BBC lies “most securely” within Ofcom.Delivering the annual Worldview lecture at this year’s Guardian Edinburgh International TV Festival, Puttnam warned of the dangers of the BBC abusing its position of “tremendous power” and called on… Continue reading GEITF 2002: Puttnam Calls For BBC To Come Under Ofcom
Over 50 million text messages were sent each day during the A-Level and GCSE results period, between the 15th and 22nd August, according to figures released by the Mobile Data Association.The exam-results period saw a 10% increase in the number of text messages sent daily and the figures show that person-to person text messaging reached… Continue reading Exam Results Boost July’s Text Message Total
Large numbers of sports fans logged on to make the official commonwealth games sites one of the most popular sports portals in August, according to research from Hitwise.The official website of Manchester’s commonwealth games leapt up almost 1,000 places in the overall rankings between May and July achieving its highest ranking of 218 amongst all… Continue reading Commonwealth Games Website Goes For Gold
Wallpaper* has appointed Christopher Lockwood as publisher with responsibility for leading the magazine’s advertising and commercial arm.Lockwood will report to publishing director Richard Johnstone who commented: “Christopher’s track record of working within the luxury brand advertising and fashion markets will complement the Wallpaper* business.”Prior to joining Wallpaper* Lockwood worked at rival Dazed group, where he… Continue reading Wallpaper* Appoints New Publisher To Lead Ad Arm
RTL, the pan-European television group owned by Bertelsmann, has quashed speculation linking it with a takeover move for either Carlton or Granada. It will instead concentrate on developing its Channel 5 subsidiary.According to a report in the Financial Times, Didier Bellens, RTL chief executive, is set to increase programme spending at the channel in an… Continue reading RTL Rules Out ITV Acquisitions
