Telegraph owner Sir David Barclay dies age 86 January 13, 2021 David Barclay, the billionaire co-owner of the Daily Telegraph, has died aged 86 after a short illness. Late last night the newspaper announced that Barclay, who took over the Telegraph with his brother Frederick in 2004, had died. The twin brothers built up a business empire encompassing hotel ownership, shipping, and retail. They moved into [...]
Nature calls: David Attenborough hologram to front £28m 5G trial January 13, 2021 Sir David Attenborough is set to star in a holographic video showcasing the wonders of the natural world as part of a £28m government-funded 5G trial. The beloved British broadcaster will feature in a new augmented reality app, to be released alongside upcoming BBC series The Green Planet. The app, developed by a consortium of [...]
Broadband firm Community Fibre launches London TV service January 12, 2021 Challenger broadband firm Community Fibre has launched a new pay-TV service that it hopes will offer Londoners a more affordable alternative to Sky and Virgin. The new service, launched with TV provider Netgem, gives customers access to 135 channels, as well as a range of streaming services and on-demand content. Community Fibre TV will be [...]
BBC Sounds launches on Sky in latest streaming tie-up January 12, 2021 Sky has agreed a deal with the BBC to embed the Sounds app on its platform, marking the pay-TV giant’s latest effort to become a one-stop shop for streaming services. From today the BBC Sounds app will be available to all Sky Q customers in the UK, offering more than 80,000 hours of audio content. [...]
Apple and Amazon suspend Parler from web stores January 10, 2021 Apple and Amazon have followed Google’s lead and suspended Parler from their respective app stores over concerns that the social media platform has not done enough to regulate content inciting violence. The app, which styles itself as an “unbiased” platform, has proved popular with users who have been kicked off other platforms. The suspensions come [...]
Mirror publisher Reach stock jumps on digital good news January 8, 2021 Reach stock jumped this morning on the news the business had seen impressive digital growth in Q4 2020. The Mirror publisher’s stock jumped 25 per cent this morning on the news the publisher was doing better than expected. The publisher, which owns brands including the Express and the Daily Star saw digital revenue in [...]
Screenshot: Will Sunak save music festival season? January 8, 2021 A weekly column from City A.M. bringing you all the biggest stories and trends in technology, media and telecoms This week **Media Moment of the Week: Reporting from the ruins of democracy **A rallying cry to save music festivals **Youtube, Talk Radio and the quagmire of online regulation Media Moment of the Week I usually [...]
Shopify joins Facebook and Instagram Trump ban January 7, 2021 Donald Trump has been banned from Facebook and Instagram until the presidential transition is completed, Mark Zuckerberg has confirmed – and the ban could go on for longer. Zuckerberg, the founder and CEO of Facebook, which owns Instagram, confirmed the current US President would be banned from posting on the platforms for the remaining days [...]
MPs urge Rishi Sunak to save music festivals amid threat of collapse January 7, 2021 MPs have urged chancellor Rishi Sunak to roll out emergency support for music festivals this summer, warning many events are at risk of permanent collapse. In a letter today the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) committee asked the chancellor to launch a government-backed insurance scheme to ensure festivals and live music events [...]
GB News promises ‘boldly different’ TV channel as it secures £60m funding January 6, 2021 An upcoming TV channel promising to shake up the rolling news market will start recruiting 120 journalists after sealing the final tranche of its £60m investment. GB News, which is spearheaded by Andrew Neil, today said it had secured backing from Dubai-based investment firm Legatum and hedge fund manager Sir Paul Marshall. The funding round, [...]