Pace signals a healthy full year outlook November 4, 2009 SET-TOP box maker Pace said yesterday it was on track to meet expectations for the year as it continued to perform well in a strong digital TV market. The company, which makes devices for BSkyB and Comcast, said average selling prices were increasing in the second half compared with the first half of the year, [...]
CITY VIEWS: IS SKY TOO DOMINANT IN THE PAY-TV MARKET? November 2, 2009 CHRIS CORNELL LLOYDS PRIVATE BANKING“Sports-wise they have definitely got too much power, to the detriment of the game, I think. It would make more sense from a viewer’s point of view if they were to wholesale premium content, though there is then an element of penalising Sky for its success.” ALISON FISHER CHARLES TAYLOR ADJUSTING“I [...]
C4’s Lygo paid more than the Prime Minister November 2, 2009 STATE-OWNED Channel 4’s director of programmes Kevin Lygo was paid five times more than Prime Minister Gordon Brown last year. The former comedy scriptwriter was the highest paid public sector worker, receiving £1.1m in the 2008/2009 financial year, compared to Brown, who earned just over £193,000. Lygo’s package was made up of a salary of [...]
A supersonic joyride in a bullet-holed combat plane November 1, 2009 SOARING at almost 10,000 feet above East Anglia in a jet aircraft, the view of the coast and out to sea never fails to amaze and delight. Far below, villages and towns are just tiny specks, while cities form darker smudges on the ancient rural landscape. Rolling the jet onto its back and pulling back [...]
Virgin Media: Why City A.M. is wrong about TV market November 1, 2009 IN his article last Friday about the pay TV market, City A.M.’s David Crow suggested that, by forcing Sky to wholesale its premium sports and movie channels to competing pay TV retailers, media regulator Ofcom is punishing Sky’s success. He compares Sky’s investment in sports and movies to car maker Toyota’s investment in hybrid fuel [...]
Clean sweep for Hoy as Brits stay top of the world November 1, 2009 SIR CHRIS HOY completed a stunning clean sweep in Manchester by leading his three-man sprint team to victory to ensure his 2010 World Championships qualification. In an all-British final, Hoy, Ross Edgar and Jamie Staff, in Team Sky+HD colours, finished 0.395 seconds ahead of Team GB’s Matthew Crampton, David Daniell and Jason Kenny. And Hoy, [...]
Sky’s rivals want to punish it for being a success October 29, 2009 BACK in 1997, Japanese carmaker Toyota took a gamble and spent $1bn (£603m) developing the Prius, its hybrid fuel vehicle. At the time, the panic over global warming had yet to develop and there was little call for a mass-market green car. In its first year of production, it sold just 300 units. Now the [...]
Lufthansa forecasts grey skies October 29, 2009 Deutsche Lufthansa provided a gloomy outlook for the airline industry yesterday, saying any green shoots of recovery were being swamped by pricing pressures in both passenger and cargo services. It said it was still too early to give the all-clear for the air cargo industry. Drops in volumes were not as severe as in prior [...]
Wenger and Redknapp can serve up goal feast October 29, 2009 ARSENAL vs TOTTENHAMTOMORROW 12.45PM – SKY SPORTS ACE OF BASE were topping the charts with their monster hit ‘All That She Wants’ the last time Tottenham won at Arsenal. Since then the Gunners have won nine and drawn seven of the 16 games at Highbury and the Emirates, while since the inception of the Premier [...]
Sky rivals call on Ofcom to speed up its probe into the pay-TV market October 28, 2009 Broadcasters have urged Ofcom to speed up its review of the pay-TV industry, calling on it to implement rules to force Sky to wholesale premium sports and movies content to rivals at fixed prices. The watchdog yesterday published submissions to its third consultation on the pay-TV review, which showed that Sky’s rivals are becoming increasingly [...]