WPP returns to revenue growth as UK ad market bounces back April 28, 2021 WPP today reported a surprise return to revenue growth in the first quarter as clients began to increase their marketing spend after a frugal pandemic year. The London-listed ad giant posted a 3.1 per cent rise in revenue less pass-through costs — its key metric — to £2.3bn for the first three months of the [...]
Spotify earnings: Is the music streaming giant facing a subscriber lag? April 28, 2021 Spotify will be in the spotlight this afternoon as it reports its first-quarter figures, with all eyes on the streaming giant’s subscriber numbers. The Swedish music platform enjoyed a bumper year in 2020, with paid subscribers hitting 155m thanks to higher demand for music and podcasts during the pandemic. But Spotify warned that pace of [...]
Covid connections: Pandemic narrows digital divide as more Brits go online April 28, 2021 While it may be hard to find silver linings in lockdown, it appears the rapid shift to online services has had its benefits. A surge in demand for internet services over the last year means the UK’s digital divide has narrowed even further, with more and more Brits getting connected. The proportion of homes without [...]
Spotify launches podcast subscriptions as Apple rivalry heats up April 27, 2021 Spotify today revealed plans to launch a paid subscription platform for podcasters as the streaming service’s rivalry with Apple continues to heat up. The feature, which will initially launch in the US, means podcast creators can mark certain episodes as subscriber-only and publish them on Spotify, as well as on other podcast services. It comes [...]
Rupert Murdoch ditches plans for ‘commercially unviable’ TV channel April 27, 2021 Rupert Murdoch’s News UK empire has scrapped plans to launch a TV news channel after a review found the project was “not commercially viable”. News UK, which owns the Times and Sun newspapers, had been developing plans to regain a footing in the TV market with a new channel focused on delivering news programming via [...]
Telegraph profit jumps as pandemic boosts subscriber numbers April 27, 2021 The Telegraph has booked a sharp rise in profit for the year as continued growth in subscriber numbers helped to offset a wider downturn in newspaper revenue during the pandemic. Telegraph Media Group (TMG), which publishes the Daily Telegraph, Sunday Telegraph and Telegraph website, posted operating profit of £28.3m in 2020 — up 76 per [...]
Screenshot: Is the Super League the biggest PR disaster of all time? April 23, 2021 This week **Media Moment of the Week: Radio loses a legend **Is the Super League the biggest PR disaster of all time? **Is Netflix’s pandemic party finally over? Media Moment of the Week: Radio loses a legend For many Brits, radio has been a much-needed source of entertainment (and company) during the pandemic. But long [...]
GB News: What is the new TV channel and when will it launch? April 22, 2021 There’s been a flurry of announcements in recent weeks ahead of the launch of GB News, a new opinion-led channel promising the biggest shakeup of British broadcast media for 30 years. The venture has caused a stir, with no shortage of controversy over its promise to take a “boldly different” approach. Plans are still being [...]
Informa pins hopes on exhibition return as it swings to £1.1bn loss April 22, 2021 Informa today said it was hoping for a gradual return of exhibitions this year after the Covid-19 shutdown pushed the events group to a hefty loss. The FTSE 100 company swung to a £1.1bn pre-tax loss in 2020, compared to a profit of £318m the previous year. Adjusted operating profit came in at £268m, down [...]
Brit Awards 2021 to go ahead in person with key worker crowd April 22, 2021 The Brit Awards 2021 will go ahead in person next month as planned with a limited audience made up mainly of key workers, organisers have announced. The annual music jamboree will take place at the O2 Arena on 11 May in front of a live audience. It will also be broadcast on ITV and ITV [...]