Sharewatch: GWR Rises As Rock Station Unveiled

Commercial radio group GWR saw healthy growth of 4.35% yesterday, pushing the company’s share price to 240p as it unveiled the name of its Edinburgh-based radio station which will compete for an FM licence on the region.

107 FM The Rock will be submitted by GWR against rival bids by Chrysalis Radio, the Scottish Media Group and Guardian Media Group ahead of a decision by Ofcom in late September. The station was selected through a lengthy consultation process with the people of Edinburgh, resulting in a clear desire for a classic and contemporary rock station (see GWR Prepares To Rock Edinburgh With Licence Bid).

Elsewhere, BSkyB saw its share price stumble yesterday, losing 0.42% as news came that the company has launched a multi-million pound lawsuit against American IT firm EDS. The broadcaster is suing the computer firm, claiming that it breached a contract to design and create new IT facilities to handle Sky’s customer services department.

Global advertising giant WPP saw a slight rise, climbing by 0.30% to 496p. Yesterday saw another bidder emerge for US advertising group, Grey Global. WPP has previously expressed an interest and may now be forced to hurry its decision making as reports suggest that Grey is keen to tie-up firm offers by early September.

The FTSE 100 closed practically unchanged yesterday, dipping by less that 0.1% to finish at 4,355.2, while the FTSE 250 rose by 0.1% to close at a healthy 5,915.5.

The closing prices of media company shares on Wednesday were: