BT profits on the up as broadband plans unveiled May 13, 2010 COMMUNICATIONS giant BT today unveiled plans to roll out super-fast broadband to two-thirds of UK homes by 2015 as it celebrated its return to profitability. The FTSE 100 group revealed group profits of £1bn for the year to 31 March – up from a £244m loss last year – after a significant improvement in its [...]
TalkTalk sees revenues rise 22 per cent May 11, 2010 TALKTALK held off defections from its former Tiscali customers to add 42,000 new users this quarter. The internet and phone provider has flourished since cutting itself free from retailer Carphone Warehouse in March. It will now seek to maximise revenue and loyalty from its existing user base and improve customer integration. Its user-base has risen [...]
Tap into high dividends for a reliable income May 11, 2010 INCOME-SEEKERS have had a torrid time of it over the past 18 months or so. Faced with a market in meltdown and reduced margins, even the most reliable of dividend payers such as BT have slashed their pay-outs to shareholders. But there are signs that the dividend market is picking up once again. Several UK [...]
BT expects to return to profit May 9, 2010 BT is this week expected to announce a return to profit while also revealing it has cut 5,000 more jobs than expected. The firm, which recorded its first loss for eight years in 2009, is expected to report annual pre-tax profits of £1bn to £1.1bn, compared with a £134m loss in 2009. Concerns are likely [...]
Cut-price Sky Sports moves a step closer April 29, 2010 SKY’S stranglehold over subscription TV took a hit yesterday as a court refused to postpone a ruling forcing it to slash the price it can charge rivals for Premier League football. The ruling guarantees top flight games will be available across four platforms by the start of next season. Sky, led by chief executive Jeremy [...]
Sky ready for round one with Ofcom April 21, 2010 SKY and Ofcom will tomorrow begin what promises to be a long and tortuous legal battle over the future of pay TV. Sky will appear before the Competition Appeal Tribunal to request a stay of implementation on Ofcom’s new rules forcing the broadcaster to slash the prices it can charge rivals for Premier League football. [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS April 21, 2010 Royal London Asset Management The asset management firm has promoted Ian Goulsbra to the role of head of wholesale relationships, effective immediately Goulsbra joined RLAM in 2007 as a business development manager for the south of England. He was previously at Premier Asset Management, where he was head of institutional sales, and also spent time [...]
Pace set for World Cup sales boost April 19, 2010 PACE, the set-top box maker, is expecting a World Cup sales boost as operators role out high-definition TV ahead of the summer football tournament. The UK-based company said sales in the first half of the year will outpeform the second six months as millions tune into the World Cup. However trading for the overall year [...]
Demand for bank shares lifts FTSE 100 to a 22-month high April 15, 2010 THE FTSE 100 share index hit a 22-month high for the second day yesterday, as US data and earnings reports fanned hopes that a recovery in the world’s largest economy was gathering pace, with banks also buoyed by bullish broker comment. The FTSE 100 closed 28.76 points higher at 5,825.01 – its highest close since [...]
Quinn has a second chance April 11, 2010 LIKE BT Group, the former state-owned telecoms firm, Qinetiq has struggled to shake off its public sector ethos since it was privatised in 2003. It has a remarkably impressive history; starting life as the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (Dera), its scientists invented the liquid crystal display and carbon fibre. But a prohibitively expensive cost [...]