US telecoms firm Verizon would “look at” Yahoo if it went up for sale December 7, 2015 Verizon has indicated its interest in Yahoo, saying it would "look at" the internet business if it were put up for sale. The US telecoms company's finance chief Fran Shammo told a conference in New York it was too early to talk about acquiring Yahoo, but that it could be interested if "Yahoo was right". Verizon has been pegged [...]
The new influence: The&Collective founder Jenny Halpern Prince on why vlogs matter December 6, 2015 Video bloggers, or “social influencers” are fast becoming the BFF of marketers looking to court younger consumers. Brand advocacy is widely agreed to be more powerful than brand awareness, and social influencers with thousands of followers allow brands to engage with highly social audiences, unlike more traditional paid media. Last week, Jenny Halpern Prince, [...]
Why strong brands are stock market darlings December 6, 2015 The marketing industry is built around the understanding that a strong brand can drive sales and therefore deliver returns to shareholders. But new research from brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance has now put hard numbers behind this. The consultancy releases an annual list of the world’s most valuable brands, the Global 500. In 2015, for [...]
Alan Yentob quits £183,000-a-year BBC creative director role following Kids Company storm December 3, 2015 BBC stalwart Alan Yentob has stepped down from his creative director role following revelations about his involvement with the now defunct charity Kids Company. In a statement he said: The BBC is going through particularly challenging times and I have come to believe that the speculation about Kids Company and the media coverage revolving around my role is [...]
Yahoo shares rise on speculation of “core” business sell-off and Alibaba stake as Marissa Mayer and board meet December 2, 2015 Shares in US media and tech firm Yahoo have shot up more than six per cent as speculation surrounding the company's future mounts. It's been suggested Yahoo is considering selling off its core internet business – it's main news and sports website and email service – when its board meets this week. Just a fortnight ago, activist investor [...]
Richard Desmond hopes Trinity Mirror chief Simon Fox “Fox off” over Mirror Express deal December 1, 2015 Northern and Shell owner Richard Desmond has told rival newspaper group boss Simon Fox to "Fox off" over rumours that Trinity Mirror wants to buy his Express newspapers – but admitted that he had tried to arrange meetings to buy the Mirror. In a strongly worded retort to Fox, who said he still has his "sights set" on [...]
Brand secrets for the digital age: Dentsu Aegis UK CEO Tracy De Groose on agency agility and the industry’s diversity problem November 29, 2015 Few in the UK’s advertising industry will have failed to note the aggressive expansion of Dentsu Aegis Network. Since it was formed last year in the largest merger ever seen in the industry, the UK arm has acquired a number of agencies, to disrupt the hegemony of the more established players. Its most recent [...]
BBC Three will stop broadcasting by February as it moves online-only, Trust confirms – but there’ll be no BBC One +1 channel November 26, 2015 BBC Three will cease broadcasting by February next year, the corporation confirmed today, in an attempt to save millions of pounds. The channel, aimed at a young adult audience, will move online-only. BBC Three controller Damian Kavanagh defended the move as better serving them and the way younger audiences view television. "BBC Three is not closing, we are [...]
How did this unknown Spanish lottery video win the Christmas advert battle of 2015, giving Mog and Man on the Moon a run for their money? November 23, 2015 Move over John Lewis and Sainsbury’s, a new Christmas contender in the festive ad race has emerged. And it has come from the most unlikeliest of places – the Spanish Lottery. “Justino” is a beautiful animated ad which in a week has overtaken a number of leading British brands to become the third most shared [...]
Brands without borders: OMD’s Nikki Mendonca on the digital single market November 22, 2015 Sharing data across jurisdictions remains a headache for brands that operate within a number of different markets. The situation may be about to become a lot easier in Europe, however, due to the European Commission’s digital single market strategy. “I’m optimistic about what these changes would mean for brands,” says Nikki Mendonça, president of OMD [...]