Harry Winston snaps up BHP diamond mine November 13, 2012 BHP Billiton has agreed to sell its Canadian EKATI diamond operation to Harry Winston for $500m (£315m), as the luxury jeweller bets on rising prices that could extend the life of Canada’s oldest diamond mine. Miner BHP – which has been narrowing its portfolio to focus on larger, long-life assets – announced the sale almost [...]
Windows chief Sinofsky exits in shock move November 13, 2012 THE HEAD of Microsoft’s Windows division has left the company, just weeks after releasing the latest version of the computing software, the firm said yesterday. Steven Sinofsky, who had been at Microsoft since 1989 and was previously tipped as a possible replacement for chief executive Steve Ballmer, decided to step down, staff were told via [...]
Media tycoon invests in online firm run by ex-Sun boss’s son November 13, 2012 HOLLYWOOD mogul Peter Chernin has ploughed £7.5m into a British digital media business run by the son of the former editor of The Sun, Kelvin MacKenzie. Ashley MacKenzie’s Base79 runs more than 500 YouTube channels, generating advertising revenue for content providers including the BBC and Ministry of Sound. Chernin spent 13 years as president and [...]
Johnston Press hit by ad sales November 13, 2012 REGIONAL newspaper publisher Johnston Press saw shares fall eight per cent yesterday as it said that market conditions in the third quarter of the year had been worse than expected. However, the company said it was “seeing some positive signs of a slowing in the rate of revenue decline in November”. It said it predicted [...]
TalkTalk gains despite falls November 13, 2012 TELECOMS operator TalkTalk said yesterday it expected to reverse a decline in revenue growth in this financial year as it expands its product range and adds more customers onto its own network. Although the company said first-half revenue slipped two per cent to £828m and its broadband customer base fell slightly in the second quarter [...]
Models mingle with moguls at Ronson party November 13, 2012 TO the grand, if a little belated, opening party for real estate tycoon Gerald Ronson’s Heron Tower restaurant Sushi Samba last night. An eclectic mix of City and fashion guests mingled on the 38th and 39th floors of the Heron building, sampling the restaurant’s Japanese, Brazilian and Peruvian dishes, as well as food drafted in [...]
City A.M. winner Chris casts a discerning eye over exhibition November 13, 2012 MANY congratulations to City A.M. reader Christopher Wilson from the University of Westminster, who won our competition to mark the start of ING Commercial Banking’s Discerning Eye exhibition. To celebrate ING’s link with arts charity The Discerning Eye, ING teamed up with City A.M. to offer readers the chance to win up to £1,000-worth of [...]
Lobby calls for more state aid to businesses November 13, 2012 A PROMINENT business group this morning called for a radical Autumn Statement from chancellor George Osborne, asking for more money and support from the government. The government should re-allocate £3.8bn spending from welfare measures towards supporting house-builders, growing firms, and business investment the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said yesterday. “The chancellor’s Autumn Statement must [...]
What brands can learn from Obama’s data-based win November 13, 2012 WHAT can the corporate world learn from Obama’s victory? I see two big lessons: first is the data-driven campaign that Obama ran, which can be replicated by brand owners. The second is that attitudes and behaviours are much more important than demographics when targeting potential voters/consumers. These two lessons are intertwined. It is the use [...]
Policymaker calls for tax on banks for being too big to fail November 13, 2012 BANKS should have to pay taxes or fees until they are no longer too big to fail, a top policymaker said yesterday, despite complaints that new regulations on banks are already hitting lending and growth. Michael Cohrs, an external member of the Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee (FPC) wants to use this money both [...]