Should Royal Mail still have to deliver to all the UK for the same price? November 19, 2014 Duncan O’Leary, deputy director of Demos, says Yes. Before Royal Mail was privatised, business secretary Vince Cable stated that the “overarching objective” of the sale was to secure the universal service obligation. In doing so, the government entered into a contract with two groups. First, shareholders, who knew what they were investing in – a [...]
James Murdoch steps down as Sky Deutschland chairman after pension fund questions “conflicts of interests and suitability” November 19, 2014 James Murdoch has stepped down from his role as chairman of Sky Deutschland following today's AGM. Murdoch will remain on the supervisory board, with Sky's chief executive Jeremy Darroch taking on the chairmanship role. Andrew Griffith has also joined the board as a member. The move comes two days after the Local Authority [...]
Ofcom kicks off Premier League TV rights probe in shake-up of English football broadcasting November 18, 2014 A radical shake-up of the way English football is shown on television and sold to broadcasters has moved a step closer after regulator Ofcom launched an investigation into the Premier League. The probe could result in an increase in the number of top-flight matches broadcast live and a reduction in the cost of subscribing [...]
McDonald’s made bubblegum flavoured broccoli to get kids to eat healthier November 16, 2014 How to get children hooked on healthy food? McDonald’s attempted to solve that conundrum by making it taste like unhealthy food. The company's chief executive, Don Thompson, has been quoted as admitting that the restaurant tried to get kids to eat healthier by designing broccoli that tasted like bubblegum. According to reports [...]
Russia Today found guilty of bias and warned of sanctions by Ofcom November 10, 2014 Broadcasting regulator Ofcom has judged TV station Russia Today to be guilty of biased reporting, and has warned it will face tough sanctions following any future failures to provide impartiality. Russia Today, which is funded by the Russian federal government, failed to provide balanced reporting on the on the Ukraine crisis in March, according [...]
BT scores key win in battle for Sky Sports November 5, 2014 Britain’s largest pay TV broadcaster BSkyB was left bruised yesterday after a UK court ruled that it must make its flagship sports channels available to its biggest rival, a measure it had resisted for four years. The interim ruling is the latest episode in a four-year legal saga stretching back to an era when Sky [...]
Goal for BT as BSkyB loses sports channel legal battle November 5, 2014 BSkyB will be forced to offer its sports channels to BT's YouView customers after it lost a legal battle with its new rival. The UK Competition Appeals Tribunal ruled today that rules which determine what price Sky must offer its channels at should also cover internet television services. Until now, the broadcaster has resisted providing [...]
Argos to launch online workshops October 12, 2014 ARGOS has pledged to help some of the 9.5m Britons who still lack basic online skills by offering training courses at over 120 of its UK stores. In a statement released today, Argos said around 10,000 people will be able to sign up to workshops across the UK designed to teach the basic skills such [...]
EE’s Olaf Swantee: In Britain’s super-competitive mobile space growth can be the hardest game October 12, 2014 As chief executive he’s overseen two re-brandings, launched 4G in the UK and now plans to take on rivals in the living room with EE TV – but Olaf Swantee’s greatest challenges may still lie ahead Jogging through Richmond Park most mornings couldn’t be further from Olaf Swantee’s day job. The boss of Britain’s [...]
Ex-Ofcom boss Dame Colette Bowe hired to keep tabs on bankers October 9, 2014 Dame Colette Bowe was appointed yesterday to head the new Banking Standards Review Council (BSRC), a body which aims to promote and maintain good behaviour in finance. The council was set up by former CBI chief Sir Richard Lambert, at the behest of the big banks, as an independent body to monitor behaviour in [...]