Switch-off for analogue TV April 17, 2012 LONDON’S analogue television signal was turned off in the early hours of this morning in the latest step of the UK’s digital switchover. BBC director general Mark Thompson and Arqiva chief executive John Cresswell last night drew a line under 75 years of analogue TV broadcasts to the capital as part of the nation’s upgrade [...]
BEST of the BROKERS April 11, 2012 BT GROUP JP Morgan Cazenove has downgraded the telecoms group from “overweight” to “neutral” following a strong share price performance that has seen it rise by 20 per cent over six months, compared to a drop of five per cent across the European telecoms sector. The broker sees revenue risk in both the full year [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING April 4, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES THREAT TO UK ACCESS TO VENTURE CAPITAL European rules on state aid have jeopardised small UK companies’ access to venture capital funding worth hundreds of millions of pounds each year, placing further strain on a sector already starved of credit. Under a measure included in the Finance Bill, venture capital trusts that invest [...]
Sky falls in on James Murdoch April 4, 2012 JAMES Murdoch yesterday resigned as chairman of BSkyB with immediate effect, just weeks after stepping down from News International to concentrate on his television businesses. After almost a decade on the Sky board, Murdoch yesterday announced to fellow directors that he felt “this is the right time to step aside… as attention continues to be [...]
Murdoch and Hannam’s departures symbolise power shift April 4, 2012 THERE can be no doubt that James Murdoch’s decision to step down as chairman of BSkyB is good news for the company. It will allow its highly capable chief executive, Jeremy Darroch, to continue building one of Britain’s most successful firms without being distracted by endless speculation about the future of its chairman. That said, [...]
RAPID RESPONSES March 29, 2012 Jobs for the girls [Re: Should we be nostalgic for the 1960s workplace?, Wednesday] In the 1960s I worked in market research on Madison Avenue in one of the top agencies of the day, Benton & Bowles. While most smoked, there was no alcohol around during the daytime. What I find particularly wrong with Mad [...]
Price of a first class stamp set to jump to 60p March 27, 2012 THE PRICE of a first class stamp will jump by almost a third to 60p next month, as Royal Mail attempts to offset lower volumes. Royal Mail said it will also hike the price of its second class stamp from 36p to 50p. Yesterday, Ofcom – now the postal regulator – said it would cap [...]
BBC’s Mark Thompson to leave after the Olympics March 19, 2012 THE BBC has stepped up its search to find the next director general after Mark Thompson confirmed yesterday he will leave the corporation in the autumn after the Olympics. Thompson, who has been in the job since 2004, told BBC Trust chairman Lord Patten of his departure in a meeting yesterday and said that the [...]
BC goes back to the future with new deal for Foxtons March 18, 2012 THE private equity firm that lost control of Foxtons amid the housing slump is on the verge of buying it back from its banks. BC Partners, led by managing partner Charlie Bott, is set to take a majority shareholding for between £55m and £75m, two years after the estate agent was shored up by a [...]
Ofcom gives approval for 4G March 14, 2012 THE NEXT generation of mobile connectivity could be in the UK this year after Ofcom yesterday issued approval for Everything Everywhere to update the airwaves it already owns for 4G use. This comes less than a week after Apple revealed its new iPad would offer a fourth generation (4G) connection, which will give a significantly faster [...]