The Takeover Panel has this morning ruled against WPP’s attempt to free itself from its 555p-a-share offer for Tempus Group (see Tempus Confirms WPP Offer). WPP had made a submission to the Takeover Panel in an attempt to invoke the Material Adverse Change clause in its initial offer citing the further deterioration of the ad… Continue reading Takeover Panel Rules Against WPP

Several major online marketing companies have joined forces to set up a regulatory body to enforce codes of practice for the use of commercial email and to fight the proliferation of spam.The E-mail marketing association (eMMa) plans to set up codes of practice that advertisers, advertising agencies and internet service suppliers will be urged to… Continue reading New Standards For The Internet

The sales arm for the former Southnews regional press business is to be transferred to Amra. The move follows the group’s acquisition by Trinity Mirror last year (see Trinity Mirror Buys Southnews For £284m).Sales representation for the group’s stable of over eighty regional titles will be transferred on 4 June, further strengthening Amra’s position as… Continue reading Amra Takes On Sales For Southnews

The five communications regulators have announced an agreement to work together in preparation for the introduction of Ofcom. A new Memorandum of Understanding between the Broadcasting Standards Commission, Independent Television Commission, Office of Telecommunications, Radio Authority and Radiocommunications Agency, sets out the arrangements for working closely together on a wide range of issues.A steering group… Continue reading Regulatory Bodies To Join Forces In Preparation For Ofcom

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

Publishing companies in the UK have joined forces to ensure positive recognition of their industry as convergence gains pace. The Newspaper Society, the Publishers Association, Newspaper Publishers and the Periodical Publishers Association have formed the UK Publishing Media alliance to reflect the rapidly evolving nature of publishing into a range of connected and overlapping businesses.A… Continue reading Publishing Bodies Form Alliance To Represent Industry Concerns

The Radio Authority received three applications for the West Midlands regional digital multiplex licence in time for the deadline on Tuesday 12 December. The licence takes in an area including Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Coventry, which has an adult population of up to around 3.3 million.The requirements of the licence are that, in addition to providing… Continue reading Radio Authority Receives Three Applications For West Midlands Digital Licence

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has warned advertisers to show more respect for the older generation, having noted that the over-55’s seldom appear in advertisements, and that when they do, it is usually either to promote the accessories of old age or to provide humour in adverts aimed at a younger audience.In the case of… Continue reading ASA Warns Against Demeaning Depictions Of Old People In Adverts

The Radio Authority has received three applications for the local digital multiplex licence for the North-East England licence, advertised to run initially for a period of twelve years from commencement of broadcasting. The applicants are the Digital Radio Group, which counts The Wireless Group, GWR, Emap Digital Radio, SMG and the Carphone Warehouse among its… Continue reading Three Applications Received For North East Digital Radio Licence

The following is an edited version of the Worldview Address, delivered by Barclay Knapp, President and CEO of NTL, at the Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival, on Saturday.In 1905 Albert Einstein began the “creative destruction” of classical Newtonian physics with his theory of special relativity, proving that space and time could stretch and bend in… Continue reading “Television Is The Internet, The Internet Is Television”: Barclay Knapp, President Of NTL, Speaks