Sir Martin Sorrell’s £70m: The defence (and not just from Sorrell and WPP) April 29, 2016 Advertising giant WPP today confirmed Sir Martin Sorrell's pay package totalled £70m last year in its annual report. The figure included a £62.8m long-term bonus. In recent weeks, Sorrell has been forced to defend his pay. And, perhaps unsurprisingly, WPP's annual report also defended its chief executive and founder: “While the value of Sir Martin Sorrell’s award is very [...]
Former Financial Times owner Pearson reports sales fall in first quarter as it seeks 4,000 job cuts April 29, 2016 Education company Pearson's share price was down slightly this morning after it reported a four per cent fall in sales in the first quarter of 2016. The figures Pearson, which sold the Financial Times and Economist last year, reported its revenue had fallen nine per cent year on year during the period. The company said [...]
Comcast’s NBCUniversal agrees $3.8bn deal for Shrek maker Dreamworks April 28, 2016 NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, has announced a $3.8bn (£2.6bn) deal to acquire Dreamworks Animation. Shareholders of Dreamworks Animation, the maker of Shrek and Kung Fu Panda, will receive $41 in cash for each share under the deal. On Thursday morning in the US, after the announcement, the share price of Dreamworks was up 24 per cent to [...]
As government talks up Channel 4 privatisation, analysts name Netflix, Viacom, BT and Discovery as potential suitors April 27, 2016 Netflix, Viacom, BT and Discovery have all been tipped as potential suitors for Channel 4 by media analysts. The government is currently considering selling off the channel, which is privately funded but publicly owned. And culture secretary John Whittingdale yesterday talked up the prospect of privatisation, saying it could leave the channel "better off". Read more: Why Channel 4's [...]
Arrr! Photo agency wants Brussels to force Google into walking the plank for turning people into “accidental pirates” April 27, 2016 A photo agency wants Google to walk the plank for turning people into “accidental pirates”. Yes, Google is facing yet more legal action in Brussels. This time, Getty Images has complained to the European Commission over Google Images. As well as accusing Google of creating pirates, Getty also said the search engine is "threatening innovation, and [...]
Media mogul Arianna Huffington is joining the board of ride-hailing service Uber April 27, 2016 Media tycoon Arianna Huffington will join the board of directors of the ride-hailing app service Uber. Travis Kalanick, Uber's chief executive, announced Huffington's appointment to Uber, which was launched in 2009, in an article on The Huffington Post. "For those of us who know Arianna, it's clear she knows a thing or two about being an entrepreneur," [...]
Shrek maker Dreamworks sees share price soar after news Comcast is considering $3bn takeover bid April 27, 2016 Shares in Dreamworks were up by more than 15 per cent on Wednesday after it emerged Comcast is considering a takeover of the company. Shares in Comcast, the creator of the Despicable Me and Minions films, were also up slightly following the news. Read more: Comcast pours cold water on ITV takeover talks Comcast is in talks to [...]
Thomson Reuters expects to complete sale of $3bn-valued intellectual property and science units this year April 26, 2016 Thomson Reuters expects to sell off its intellectual property and science units, which have been valued at around $3bn (£2.1bn), this year. The US media company said in its first quarter report, released today, that a sale process has been launched and a deal is due to complete in the second half of 2016. The figures Thomson [...]
How the internet is driving UK advertising market to be the fastest growing in Europe April 26, 2016 The UK has the fastest growing major advertising market in Europe, according to a new report. Adspend totalled £20.1bn in 2015, up 7.5 per cent on 2014. This was the biggest year-on-year growth on record since 2010. According to the Advertising Association/Warc Expenditure Report, spending on the internet made up £8.6bn of this, up 17.3 [...]
Don’t let Boaty McBoatface put you off: The lessons to learn around crowdsourcing content April 25, 2016 Unless you were hiding under a rock last week, you will be aware that a certain boat, due to be named Boaty McBoatface, has caught the media’s attention again. In any case, here’s a quick summary of the story so far. In an effort to raise awareness of its new vessel and research work, the Natural Environment [...]