It’s already looking like annus horribilis for Andy Duncan, chief executive of Channel 4 – and we’re only into two months of it so far. After three years of relatively calm weather during which he has successfully surfed digitalisation and steered a…
ITV has admitted overcharging viewers who voted in the last series of hit show X Factor. The broadcaster says it overcharged Sky customers who voted via the red button. It says it will pay back affected viewers and donate £200,000 to charity. ITV says it has notified premium rate services regulator Icstis, which has “welcomed” […]
IKEA, the Swedish furniture retailer, is reviewing its 5m advertising account in the UK.
Vision Express has appointed Miles Calcraft Briginshaw Duffy to handle its 7m advertising business, following a final pitch against Publicis…
RadioCentre, the body representing commercial radio, has appointed Simon Redican as managing director of the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB). Redican joins RAB from News International were he was a media account director. He will report to RadioCentre chief executive Andrew Harrison and take up the position at the end of May. The announcement follows the […]
Broadband providers are sacrificing customer service levels in their pursuit of market share, according to a leading analyst.
Dell is understood to be plotting a move into mobile phones after poaching Motorola executive Ron Garriques to run its new global consumer group. The news comes just weeks after rival Apple announced details of its long-awaited iPhone. Garriques resigned as president of Motorola’s $28bn (£14.4bn) mobile devices division earlier this month and industry sources […]
Channel 4 is introducing advertising on its 4oD video-on-demand (VOD) service as the broadcaster moves from a pay model to free-to-view. Chief executive Andy Duncan says the broadcaster will begin taking ads on the broadband service later this month. Currently viewers pay between 99p and £1.99 to download content such as Desperate Housewives and Ugly […]
Michael Grade has roundly condemned government restrictions on advertising as “nonsense”, and is rallying broadcasters and advertisers to fight off further restrictions together.
Unilever is gearing up for a major assault on the chilled ready meal market with the launch of a range of meals that contain branded ingredients. The Colman’s, Knorr and Bertolli ready meals will be launched in the third quarter of this year. It is thought to be the first time that Unilever has extended […]
Walt Disney has appointed Anne Gates to the newly created position of executive vice-president and managing director of Disney Consumer Products (DCP) Europe. Gates will be responsible for all DCP merchandise licensing, retail, sales and marketing, and support functions for the company’s European arm. She will take responsibility for Disney Store Europe in an effort […]
Turner Broadcasting has promoted Jeff Kupsky to president of Turner Broadcasting System Europe, covering Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). He will take control of all EMEA television and multi-platform operations including Cartoon Network, Boomerang, TCM (Turner Classic Movies) and all commercial activities for CNN International. Kupsky’s appointment is effective immediately. He replaces Nan Richards, […]
Publicis chief executive Grant Duncan has resigned from the agency after eight years without a job to go to. It is not clear if Duncan, who leaves the agency at the end of April, will be replaced. Duncan’s departure comes at a difficult time for the agency, which has lost £90m worth of business and […]
EMAP is expected to unveil a brand-led structure, with each brand operating its own profit and loss (P&L) centre. The media giant is making an internal announcement this week. The restructure will create a brand director for each of the various brands, including FHM, Heat and Closer. They will be responsible for all the brand […]
Virgin Media’s fourth-quarter losses widened as costs more than doubled due to the company’s increased marketing spend. The cable operator, which rebranded from NTL last month, says it lost a net 37,000 customers in the quarter. The net loss was £122m, compared with a loss of £56.2m a year earlier, the company says in a […]