Advanced Television

Advertising

Content King only if you own it

ITV’s revenues and profits are resurgent, proving again that it has the world’s simplest business model and that you are just unlucky if you end up running it (or any other FTA commercial channel) in an advertising down turn. But the new management team says it doesn’t want to ride its luck and has set […]

November 16, 2010

Polsat buys out parent company

Cyfrowy Polsat SA, Poland’s biggest satellite television broadcaster, has agreed to buy Telewizja Polsat SA, its parent company which is also controlled by billionaire Zygmunt Solorz-Zak  , for 3.75 billion zloty ($1.3bn). Cyfrowy will pay 2.6 billion zloty in cash and the rest in the form of 80 million new shares valued at 14.37 zloty […]

November 15, 2010

Ex Ofcom man calls for Comms reform

Former Ofcom partner and ITN CEO, Stewart Purvis, has called for quick action on ITV, a reversal of European regulation, and relaxation of advertising and impartiality rules, in a speech delivered for the RTS (Royal Television Society) Fleming Memorial Lecture 2010. Entitled ‘Calling Time on Analogue Regulation – an agenda for the next Communications Act,’ […]

November 12, 2010From Colin Mann in London

European ad recovery lifts RTL Q3

Europe’s biggest commercial broadcaster RTL Group has posted a lift in third-quarter operating profit driven by strong performance in Germany, France and the Netherlands and said the fourth quarter has started well. The Luxembourg-based company reported that EBITA was E133 million, up 47.8 per cent. Group revenue rose 8.8 per cent to E1.16 billion. RTL […]

November 9, 2010

ITV says ad rules mean it makes rubbish

ITV could invest more in arts, factual programming and drama were it not for regulations, its managers has told a Lords committee.  Archie Norman, new chairman of the UK’s largest commercial broadcaster, and Adam Crozier, chief executive, told the communications committee that ITV had been driven into a “ratings rat race” by regulations, particularly the […]

November 3, 2010

RTVE ad ban transforms private TV

Spain’s largest private TV channels, Antena 3 TV and Mediaset’s Tele 5, have profited from the elimination of TV advertising on public broadcaster RTVE, since January. Both broadcasters made profits to September with Antena 3 increasing its profit by 261 per cent to E79.1 million and Tele 5’s net profit is up by 54.4 per […]

October 28, 2010From David Del Valle in Madrid

C5 out of Thinkbox

Channel 5 has pulled out of Thinkbox, the TV marketing body, arguing that the broadcaster can demonstrate its value to advertisers on its own. Channel 5 will stop being a Thinkbox shareholder from January 2011 and cease financially supporting the organisation. Other Thinkbox backers include ITV, Channel 4 and BSkyB. “Northern & Shell is committed […]

October 22, 2010

Cosmic display for Sky 3D launch

The solar system has been brought to life in a spectacular display over London’s skyline. The display comes ahead of a groundbreaking Sky 3D show charting the solar system The show above the Royal Greenwich Observatory was organised to promote the launch this month of Sky 3D – Europe’s first 3D TV channel. Nine helium-filled […]

October 22, 2010

YouView appoints ad agency

YouView is appointing ad agency Clemmow Hornby Inge to handle its £48.4 million (£54m) advertising account. The venture, which has partners including BBC, BT, Channel 4, ITV and Channel 5, aims to launch in the first half of next year. YouView will have a marketing budget of almost £50 million for its first four years, […]

October 21, 2010

Research: Online video to replace TV in Canada?

The first-ever study on Canadians’ viewing habits of online video conducted by Ipsos Reid and M Consulting finds 80 per cent of all Canadians indicate watching some video content online. Among those that have watched video online 41 per cent watch more online video content than they did last year. A growing audience means a […]

October 15, 2010