S4 Capital acquires data analytics group in face of coronavirus May 26, 2020 The coronavirus crisis will not stop Martin Sorrell’s expansion plans, with his business S4 Capital today acquiring a data analytics group. Marketing guru Sorrell said: “Now is not the time to slow down, as we see Covid-19 accelerating digital transformation – at all levels, consumer, media and enterprise.” His comments came as S4 Capital today [...]
Children’s exposure to TV adverts halves over last decade amid rise of streaming May 22, 2020 Children’s exposure to TV adverts has almost halved in the last decade as young people increasingly tune in to streaming services. Children aged four to 15 saw an average of 115.9 ads per week last year, down more than 47 per cent compared to 2008, according to new figures from the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). [...]
Future’s profit jumps 77 per cent as consumers turn to online publications May 22, 2020 Publishing group Future has reported a 77 per cent increase in profit in the first half of the year, as consumers turned to its digital offering amid the coronavirus crisis. The company had a record-breaking 329m online users in March 2020, as global lockdowns upended traditional distribution. The figures Adjusted operating profit for the six [...]
Newspaper circulation figures to be kept private as sales crash due to Covid-19 May 21, 2020 UK publishers will no longer have to make their circulation figures public as the Covid-19 crisis continues to decimate newspaper sales and distribution. The Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC), which publishes the official data, today said it will no longer publish its public monthly report, though the figures will still be available to advertisers. The [...]
Mark Zuckerberg: Facebook is in fake news ‘arms race’ against rival states May 21, 2020 Mark Zuckerberg has said that Facebook is in an “arms race” to prevent misinformation from state actors as he defended his company’s crackdown on fake news about the Covid-19 crisis. The social media boss said his firm was battling to prevent interference from countries such as Russia, Iran and China, and admitted it was “behind” [...]
Amazon UK boss tipped as candidate for BBC director general role May 21, 2020 Amazon’s UK chief is said to be one of the frontrunners to take over as director general of the BBC amid concerns the job hunt could be pushed back due to Covid-19. Douglas Gurr, who has led the tech giant’s operations in the UK and Ireland since 2016, is one of four candidates on the [...]
BBC Three could return as on-air channel after Normal People and Fleabag success May 20, 2020 BBC Three could be brought back on air as the broadcaster looks to capitalise on a string of recent hits that have resonated with its vital youth audience. The channel was taken off linear TV and became online-only four years ago to save £30m, with the BBC arguing that young people were increasingly watching shows [...]
Bloomsbury print book sales drop during coronavirus lockdown May 20, 2020 Publishing group Bloomsbury warned this morning that print revenue has plummeted during the coronavirus pandemic as book shops around the world have closed during lockdowns. In Bloomsbury’s worst case scenario, print revenue, which comprised 79 per cent of total sales last year, could fall between 60 per cent to 65 per cent this year. In [...]
Tiktok poaches Disney streaming boss as new chief executive May 19, 2020 The veteran Disney executive behind the launch of its new streaming service is leaving the media empire to become the new chief executive of Tiktok. Kevin Mayer masterminded the rollout of Disney Plus last year but was overlooked for the role of Disney’s new chief executive. Mayer will take over at Tiktok from 1 June, [...]
Party crasher: BBC launches new co-watching feature to rival Netflix May 19, 2020 The BBC has today launched a new feature that will allow people to watch and listen to programmes together even while they are separated. BBC Together allows people to access video and audio content from iPlayer, Sounds, Bitesize, News and Sport at exactly the same time. The feature, which has been launched by the broadcaster’s [...]