ITV has reportedly threatened to take legal action against departing executive Dawn Airey, who quit her job as managing director of global content to rejoin Channel Five. However, with wider business interests at stake – such as the relationship between ITV and Five’s owner, RTL Group, and the key programmes the latter produces for the […]

Britain’s biggest commercial broadcaster ITV has revealed the shock news that its managing director of global content, Dawn Airey, had resigned with immediate effect, less than a year after she joined the company. She will be taking an extended period of gardening leave prior to joining pan-European broadcaster RTL Group in a senior position, including […]

BBC commissioning editor Ben Gale has been confirmed as Five’s new director of programmes. Gale will replace Jay Hunt when she takes on the role of BBC One controller.

BT has appointed a former BBC policy adviser as its first head of media and convergence policy as it moves further into the media sector. The appointment of Simon Milner comes as BT is pulled into regulatory arguments about so-called converged services, which pull together online and broadcast offerings. Take-up of BT Vision has been […]

A consortium including Bob Geldof’s independent production company, Ten Alps, and ITN is to retain the Teachers TV digital television contract after being named as the government’s preferred supplier. Education Digital 2 is now in final talks with the Department for Children, Schools and Families over the £50 million (E70m) five-year contract to provide news, […]

Four of Europe's leading telecommunications network operators have been elected to the DSL Forum Board of Directors. The new members include Kevin Foster, of BT; Christophe Alter, from France Telecom; Mauro Tilocca of Telecom Italia; and Marcin Drzymala from Telekomunikacja Polska. Frank Van der Putten of Alcatel-Lucent, Les Brown of Infineon and Phil Skeba of […]

Co-founder of Pace Micro Technology Barry Rubery is returning to the digital TV industry by joining interactive technology provider Electra Entertainment as Chief Executive. Rubery joins Electra coinciding with the launch of its next-generation interactivity technology platform for digital terrestrial and satellite television Electra is part of General Entertainment Technology Corporation, the newly-established holding company […]

Virgin Media has confirmed the appointment of Neil Berkett to the role of Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect. Berkett has been Acting Chief Executive Officer of the company since the resignation of Steve Burch in August 2007. Neil will also be joining the Board of Directors of Virgin Media. It also announced Jacques Kerrest, […]

Kate Burns, one of Google’s first UK managing director, has been hired to run the British operation of YouTube competitor Dailymotion. Burns has the job of increasing the online video website’s user numbers, the amount of user-generated and official content uploaded, and boosting revenues.

ITV has hired former BBC1 controller Peter Fincham to replace Simon Shaps as director of television. Fincham quit the BBC in the row over editing a programme trail in a misleading way. The company has also extended Michael Grade’s reign as executive chairman by an extra year to the end of 2010. Dawn Airey, the […]