Digital ad group the Ozone Project signs up Stylist as it fights back against tech giants October 31, 2019 Digital advertising marketplace the Ozone Project has announced a new partnership with the Stylist Group as it expands its roster of publishers. The female-focused lifestyle publisher, which will also represent the digital newspaper titles of parent company DC Thomson, will be the fifth organisation to join Ozone’s platform. Read more: Magazine publisher TI Media narrows [...]
Government’s smoke-free aim threatened by ‘moral panic’ over vaping October 30, 2019 The health of an entire generation of young Brits could be under threat if the UK falls victim to a “moral panic” over vaping, a new report has warned. Free market think tank the Adam Smith Institute (ASI) today urged the government to take a more liberal approach to e-cigarettes if it wants to achieve [...]
Twitter pulls all political advertising as voters support regulation October 30, 2019 Twitter tonight announced that all paid-for political advertising would be banned from its platform from 22 November in a move that will pile pressure on Facebook to do the same. Writing on the platform, founder Jack Dorsey wrote: “A political message earns reach when people decide to follow an account or retweet. Paying for reach [...]
Financial Times owner Nikkei loses $29m in apparent fraud October 30, 2019 Nikkei, the Japanese media giant behind the Financial Times, has lost roughly $29m (£22.5m) in an apparent wire transfer fraud. In a statement issued today, the company said an employee of its US subsidiary had transferred the funds after receiving “fraudulent instructions by a malicious third party who purported to be a management executive of [...]
Amazon ad banned for ‘misleading’ customers into signing up for Prime October 30, 2019 Amazon has been reprimanded by the ad watchdog over concerns the delivery options on its website may have misled people into signing up for Prime. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received 10 complaints about a promotion that appeared during the ecommerce giant’s checkout process. Read more: Microsoft beats Amazon to Pentagon’s $10bn cloud computing contract [...]
British satellite giant Inmarsat gets green light for $3.4bn takeover October 29, 2019 The government has given the green light for a $3.4bn (£2.6bn) private equity buyout of British satellite giant Inmarsat. Read more: Satellite firm Inmarsat ditches dividend ahead of $3.4bn private equity takeover Culture secretary Nicky Morgan today said she has waved through the merger after accepting a series of remedies put forward by Inmarsat and [...]
British film board rolls out new age ratings for Netflix films and TV shows October 29, 2019 The UK film regulator will this week roll out a series of new age rating symbols designed for online streaming platforms. The digital classification symbols, which will launch on Netflix from Thursday, are designed to help young people make more conscious choices about what they watch online. Read more: Netflix to set its own age [...]
Ad spend growth continues thanks to streaming and cinema boom October 29, 2019 Advertising spend hit £6bn in the second quarter as booming demand for films and TV shows helped drive sharp growth in the video on-demand and cinema sectors. UK ad spend grew 5.8 per cent year on year in the three months to the end of July, although the £6bn figure remained flat on the first [...]
Fitbit shares halted on reports of Google takeover bid October 28, 2019 Trading of shares in wearable device maker Fitbit was suspended today following a report that Google owner Alphabet has tabled a takeover bid. The Silicon Valley tech giant has held discussions with Fitbit, although there is no guarantee a deal will be secured, Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the matter. It is unclear how [...]
Sorrell’s S4 Capital beefs up analytics division with double acquisition October 28, 2019 Sir Martin Sorrell’s S4 Capital today said it has beefed up its data analytics capabilities, unveiling the acquisition of two data companies. The digital marketing firm said it has bought London data firm Conversion Works and South Korean consultancy Datalicious Korea for an undisclosed sum. Read more: Sorrell’s S4 Capital buys Silicon Valley agency Firewood [...]