The UK has the most valuable online shopping market in the developed world December 12, 2014 The UK spends more money per head online than any other developed country, with the average Brit spending £2,000 per year on the likes of Amazon, Asos and John Lewis. In the UK, 59 per cent of people said that they had use online shopping at least once a week to buy products, according to [...]
Brits spend £2,000 on online goods December 11, 2014 PEOPLE in the UK spend an average of £1,968 online on goods from the likes of Amazon, Tesco and Asos every year, far more than people in the US, France or South Korea. Australia followed in second place with an average spend of £1,356 and the US came in third with an average spend of [...]
FTSE falls back but airlines soar after Osborne’s tax cut – London Report December 3, 2014 LONDON’S top share index edged down from a one-week high yesterday, with moves in stocks exposed to measures announced in the Autumn Statement dominating in an otherwise quiet session. The blue chip FTSE 100 index closed down 0.4 per cent at 6,716.63 points. Large-cap airlines easyJet, up 2.46 per cent at 1,668p, and British Airways [...]
Exclusive: TalkTalk chief Dido Harding says watchdog must consider BT and Openreach split December 2, 2014 TalkTalk chief executive Dido Harding has called on Ofcom to consider the separation of BT and its infrastructure arm Openreach, a move she said could create a new FTSE 100 business better incentivised for consumers. Her call comes as BT is believed to be considering asking the regulator for permission to fold its wholesale arm [...]
Ed Richards delivers blow to Royal Mail as Ofcom rejects competition claims and launches investigation December 2, 2014 The postal service is finding it tough grappling with rivals while having to provide the universal service. Royal Mail was hit by a double-whammy of bad news yesterday after Ofcom rejected its claims that competition was undermining its ability to deliver a nationwide service. On top of that rejection, the regulator said it was launching [...]
Royal Mail share price drops as Ofcom says the postal service “isn’t under threat” December 2, 2014 The UK’s postal service is not under threat, Ofcom has said, delivering a blow for Royal Mail, whose boss Moya Green told MPs it faced competitors which made a universal service “unfinanceable and uneconomic”. Shares in the newly-privatised Royal Mail fell 3.2 per cent in mid-morning trading, after it emerged its complaints competitors were undercutting [...]
Broadband industry slams BT’s monopoly for stifling innovation November 23, 2014 A trade group comprised of a dozen British telecoms firms, including Sky, Vodafone and TalkTalk, yesterday labelled BT’s control of national infrastructure a “monopoly position” that blocked competition and restricted innovation. The UK Competitive Telecommunications Association (UKCTA) called on Ofcom to let its members lay their own cables in BT ducts, use their own equipment [...]
Ofcom appoints Steve Unger as CEO until next year November 19, 2014 Communications watchdog Ofcom yesterday announced the appointment of Steve Unger as interim chief executive until the post is filled permanently in early 2015. He will replace Ed Richards who leaves his post at the end of the year. Unger is currently director of the strategy, international, technology and economist group at the regulator. Richards resigned [...]
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 [...]