100% Media Roundup: 30 May- 3 June

This is a daily digest of news stories from around the media world, updated by The Media Leader team, to ensure you’re 100% up-to-date.

Wednesday 1 June

Disney+ reports Obi-Wan Kenobi is most-watched original series premiere

The official Star Wars account on Twitter has announced the series of Obi-Wan Kenobi was the most-watched Disney+ original series premiere globally to date.

This was based on hours streamed although no data was supplied to support the claim

Thank you to the best fans in the galaxy for making #ObiWanKenobi the most-watched @disneyplus Original series premiere globally to date, based on hours streamed in an opening weekend. pic.twitter.com/bC5WI0kAby

— Star Wars (@starwars) May 31, 2022

Netflix’s Stranger Things season 4 has biggest premier weekend ever

Series four of Netflix’s Stranger Things has registered 286.79 million hours viewed globally since it was released last Friday.

This makes it the biggest opening weekend for an English language TV show on Netflix.

Stranger Things was the number one most-watched TV show in English in 83 countries with previous series also coming back in to Netflix’s top ten lists.

There are seven episodes in volume one of the newest series, with two more to be released on 1 July 2022 in a second volume.

Bauer Media Audio completes acquisition of Portugal’s Media Capital Rádios

The commercial radio operator, Bauer Media Audio, has confirmed its entry into the Portuguese market by finalising its acquisition of Media Capital Rádios.

Media Capital Rádios holds four out of the Top-10 most-listened to radio stations in Portugal, has a weekly reach of 4.5 million listeners and will become known as Bauer Media Audio Portugal.

Through this acquisition Bauer Media Audio will extend its weekly reach to more than 61 million listeners.

The deal, first announced in February, follows acquisitions by the company in Slovakia, Ireland and Finland in 2021.

Eurosport registers biggest viewing week for seven years

Warner Bros. Discovery Sports’ Eurosport delivered its biggest week in television viewers since 2015 with the Roland-Garros opening and Giro d’Italia final.

It was Eurosport’s best ever Roland-Garros opening week on with audiences on Eurosport 1 and 2 increased by 43% and 24% respectively compared to 2021.

There was also strong digital engagement with four times as many people streaming the first week of Roland-Garros on discovery+ than in 2021.

Eurosport also registered a 26% growth in unique video viewers over the last week than the same time in the previous year.

Tuesday 31 May

ITV and Twitter ink multi-year content partnership

ITV and Twitter have renewed a multi-year partnership in the UK.

As a result of the agreement, Twitter users will see 1200 real-time highlights from the commercial broadcaster from shows like Love Island and I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! and can engage with ITV Sport’s programming like the Rugby World Cup and Emirates FA Cup.

Sponsors can also use the Twitter Amplify tool to position and target their ads next to ITV’s premium video content.

The Twitter Next team will also produce a series of activations across ITV’s schedule building on previous successes like Love Island Bingo and Casa Amor Predictions.

Dyson official sponsor of Good Housekeeping centenary event

Dyson will sponsor Good Housekeeping Live, a three-event celebrating the lifestyle magazine’s centenary year.

As part of the sponsorship, Dyson will create several activations including a Healthy Home AR experience, a Good Housekeeping Institute recommended product demonstration space and a beauty activation using Dyson tech.

Good Housekeeping, a Hearst UK title, has the highest print and digital circulation in women’s lifestyle magazines in the UK.

The Economist to consider experimenting with a podcast paywall

The Economist’s director of podcasts John Prideaux has said its podcasts may not be free forever, according to an interview in Press Gazette.

Prideaux said the publication would be looking to experiment with a paywall over the next decade but that it was more “complicated” than putting a paywall on a website.

The Economist‘s portfolio of podcasts currently reaches more than three million people a month.

the7stars appoints head of display and audio activation

Independent agency, the7stars, has promoted Michelle Sarpong from trading director to head of display and audio activation.

Sarpong’s new responsibilities will include managing the implementational planning and buying across audio and display include out-of-home.

She will now report into the joint heads of activation Rhys Williams and Rhiannon Murphy.

Sarpong (pictured- above) joined the agency in 2018 from Dentsu agency Amplifi where she was an account director in the media investment division.

Prior to this she was investment manager at OMD UK, account manager at Mindshare, and press buyer at MediaCom.

Monday 30 May

Rebecca Candeland rejoins Spark Foundry as head of AV

Publicis agency Spark Foundry has named Rebecca Candeland as head of AV.

She replaces Tim Greene and will start in the role on 13 June reporting in to Lee Lythe, chief investment officer at Spark Foundry.

Candeland (pictured below) will be responsible for a team of nearly 40 people and work closely with Charlotte Taylor, head of publishing and audio, and Publicis Media’s central trading team, Publicis Media Exchange, led by Steve Bignell.

She re-joins Spark Foundry from Total Media where she has held the role of head of broadcast since April last year.

She started her career at Blue449 as a graduate TV buyer in 2010 and worked there for more than ten years. Blue449 later became Spark Foundry following a merger.

Wavemaker wins jeweller Garrard’s media strategy and planning account

WPP agency Wavemaker has been appointed by luxury brand Garrard to handle its multi-market media strategy and planning after a competitive pitch.

The jeweller plans to expand its media activations in the UK, US and Middle East.

The media agency’s first assignment is the launch campaign of Garrard’s Blaze collection inspired by the design of Princess Diana’s blue sapphire and diamond engagement ring.

Culture Sec Nadine Dorries posts Online Safety Bill rap on TikTok

The Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries posted a 41-second rap explaining elements of the Online Safety Bill on TikTok on Friday.

The MP posted the video on her account and seemed to hit back at criticisms of the bill saying it would restrict freedom of expression.

@nadinedorriesmp

How we’re making the internet safer 🖐🏻🎤 #onlinesafety #internet #ukpolitics #nadinedorries #news #government #law #freespeech #content #blowthisup #fyp

♬ Funny Song – Cavendish Music

The Evening Standard to publish special edition ‘Jubilee Standard’

The Evening Standard will publish an edition on a weekend and bank holiday for the first time to commemorate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

The one-off special edition (pictured- main image) is sponsored by Lloyds Bank and will be distributed to the crowds expected in the capital over this long weekend.

The Jubilee Standard will include details on how to enjoy the Jubilee weekend and highlights of royal coverage of Her Majesty the Queen’s 70 year reign.

Sky awarded anti-piracy injunction

The first ever injunction prohibiting a licensee from Sky has been issued in England.

Nancy Maxwell, the premises licence holder of the Railway Tavern in Edmonton, is accused of screening Sky Sports illegally.

If the Injunction is breached, Maxwell could be found to be in contempt of court and face a potential prison sentence. The Injunction will remain in place until a full hearing into the breaches of Sky’s copyright are heard later in 2022.

S4 Capital posts 35% Q1 gross profit growth

Sir Martin Sorrell’s digital agency group S4 Capital reported a 34.5% rise in first-quarter gross profit and is still forecasting strong demand this year despite forecasts of slowing global economic growth.

In case you missed it last week:

Stranger Things opens rifts in major landmarks for global campaign

Twitter fined 3% of revenue over targeted ads deception

Amazon’s Audible chooses Wavemaker for global media-buying

Growing global ecommerce sales ‘leading multinationals to reassess’

Now Love Island has a ‘coffee partner’ in Emmi Caffe Latte

Five out of 138 countries will account for most streaming revenue growth