Media regulator, Ofcom, has laid out phase two of its new telecommunications guidelines as the market moves from analogue to digital and has warned telecoms giant British Telecom (BT) that it must let rivals have ‘real equality of access’ to BT phone lines.As BT currently owns the majority of the telephone and broadband lines in… Continue reading Ofcom Urges BT To Open Its Network To Rivals

Dixons, the electrical superstore, said yesterday its sales had slowed and warned margins would come under pressure in the run up to Christmas as consumer spending seems to have lost pace in the past few weeks.The festive period, which is traditionally the busiest for retailers, seems to have been stunted by recent interest rate rises… Continue reading Slow Down Of Electrical Goods May Hit Sky Subscriptions

Scottish Radio Holdings has this morning reported record results for the past year, as group revenues grew by 14%, beating the group’s expectations of 9%.For the period ending 30 September 2004, turnover was up 15% to £96.3 million, spurred on by strong revenue growth in both the radio and press divisions which was up 20%… Continue reading SRH Exceeds Expectations With Record Results

UK Online has launched a broadband service that is 16 times faster than the average high-speed package, which will allow services such as video-on-demand and broadband television to become a reality in many homes.The 8 megabyte broadband connection will be available to 4.4 million UK households and will bring ‘groundbreaking speed at a groundbreaking price’,… Continue reading UK Users Offered Broadband At 16 Times Standard Speed

Digital video recorders (DVRs) are set to enjoy massive growth over the next five years, says a new report from Informa Media, with penetration expected to reach 11% of television households world-wide.By the end of this year, just over 9 million homes are predicted to own a DVR, however this figure is expected to rocket… Continue reading DVRs Set To Become Essential Household Items

Telecoms giant, British Telecom (BT), is in advanced talks with a number of broadcasters, including BSkyB, ITV and the BBC to discuss the possibility of delivering popular television programmes over high-speed internet connections.According to a report from Ovum analyst, John Delaney, BT has plans to break in to the pay-per-view television market with the launch… Continue reading BT In Talks To Offer Advanced Freeview

Outdoor advertising group, JCDecaux, has added to the record-breaking results it achieved in the first half of this year, as third-quarter revenues topped expectations, climbing by 7.9% to €375.3 million.Over the nine month period from January to September, revenues climbed by 5.6% to €1,167.6 million, spurred by a strong performance across all of the group’s… Continue reading Another Record Quarter For JCDecaux As Revenues Climb

Advertising giant, WPP, exceeded expectations in the third quarter of this year, as revenue rose by nearly 4% to £1.068 billion, marking the first time ever the company has broken through the billion-pound barrier in a three-month period.Today’s trading update for July to September 2004 shows, revenues in the United Kingdom grew by 12%, outstripping… Continue reading WPP Revenues Exceed Expectations And £1bn Barrier

Northern & Shell made a pre-tax loss of £3.2 million last year after its owner Richard Desmond paid himself a total of £46.2 million, according to accounts filed at Companies House.Reports suggest that Desmond paid himself a salary of £15.1 million last year, a significant increase compared to the £629,000 he was paid in 2002.… Continue reading Desmond’s Northern & Shell Moves In To Loss

The impact of personal video recorders is expected to hit the UK commercial broadcasters the hardest, with television advertising revenue predicted to drop in Britain by nearly 4.0% by 2010, according to a new report from Merrill Lynch.The PVR – Rise of The Machines report shows that PVR penetration in the UK is expected to… Continue reading PVRs To Hit UK Commercial Broadcasters Hardest