Week commencing 4th August 2008
 The BBC's mobile TV trial only reached a peak of 580 viewers
per day during its 12 month trial period, which ended in April this
year, according to data released by the BBC Trust. The data also
revealed that monthly content consumption of its BBC One, Three
and News 24 channels reached a high of just 13 minutes per month
during the trial. Radio figures were kept under wraps but were thought
to be lower still, according to a report in NMA. The public service
broadcaster hoped the trial would provide them with a detailed insight
into consumer behaviour, as well as testing the effectiveness of
3G as a means of distribution. However, following the low level
of usage unveiled by the recent data, the BBC is said to be is trying
to persuade the Trust to add mobile to the distribution channels
of its TV and radio stations. Source: MediaTel
The Government has published a new consultation document, which
includes plans to regulate product placement and video-on-demand
services on British television. Current regulations state "that
all EU members must prohibit product placement, but they may decide
to allow certain exemptions". However, product placement is
banned on any UK made programmes and the Government has already
said its "initial view is not to change this". The consultation
will focus on three specific issues - product placement in television
and video-on-demand services, introducing a system for regulating
video-on-demand services and finally, controls over the content
of non-EU satellite channels. The proposals come as part of a comprehensive
consultation on how the UK should implement the EU Audio Visual
Media Services (AVMS) Directive. The consultation will run for three
months, closing on October 31 2008. Source: MediaTel
 BBC Magazines is to launch Lonely Planet magazine in the
UK later this year. The launch of the title is the first major brand
extension of the travel guide publisher, since the BBC's commercial
arm, BBC Worldwide, acquired a 75% stake in it last October. The
title will be available on news-stands and through subscriptions.
The monthly title will be aimed at frequent travellers and feature
a mix of editorial and photography, with a particular focus on ideas
for future trips, both short breaks and long-haul journeys. Source:
Media Week
News International has dropped the cover price of The Sun
to 30p across the UK today. Previously, The Sun was sold at a 5p
discount in London, the South East and Scotland. Today's move means
The Sun is priced at 30p nationwide. The paper's management said
the price cut is "recognition that customers are looking to
save every penny possible in a time of economic uncertainty".
Source: Media Week
Telegraph Media Group has redesigned its mobile platform
to improve usability and allow more consumers to access the newspaper
from their mobile phones. The new platform, which allows users to
access content on the move, will be available on all major mobile
phones. Its launch follows TMG's redesign of its website last month.
The service, which launched on Monday, offers news, sport and travel
and will be updated throughout the day. The revamp is part of TMG's
wider strategy of offering consumers content via numerous platforms.
Source: Media Week
 New
Virgin Radio owner TIML, backed by Times of India parent
company Bennett and Coleman, is in talks with music labels to launch
a subscription-based music service that would take into competition
with the likes of Sky and Apple. Should its music on demand plans
come to fruition, TIML would be entering an increasingly crowded
market. Last month, Sky announced the launch of a music subscription
service with Universal Music. It was also revealed that TIML would
introduce a new brand for Virgin Radio in the days following this
year's Virgin Mobile sponsored V Festival, which takes place on
the 16th and 17th August. Under the terms of its acquisition of
the station from previous owner SMG, TIML decided to save millions
of pounds annually by not continuing to license the Virgin brand
from Virgin enterprises. The company will have to stop using the
Virgin brand by 1st October at the latest. Albion, a creative agency
previously responsible for developing brands like Skype, is in charge
of rebranding. TIML chief operating officer, Clive Dickens said:
"We have a word (new name) right now, but that needs to be
developed into a brand and we want to work on that with our 5 million
strong community." Source: Media Week
 Over
two million more people used the internet in Q1 2008 than in the
same period last year, according to figures released by BMRB. Growth
is up 6.6% across the UK, to 31.6 million people compared to the
same period last year. Source: MediaTel
Guardian.co.uk has become the first national newspaper website
to break the 20 million unique users mark. The figures, released
by ABCe, show that the Guardian gained a further 1.7 million users
over the month of June. Source: MediaTel
IPC-owned Nuts.co.uk and NME.com both more than doubled
their online audiences during the 12 months to the end of June 2008,
the next set of ABCe results will reveal. Source: Media Week
ITV-owned social network Friends Reunited plans to make
video a key feature of the service as it looks to increase traffic
and drive advertising revenue after scrapping subscription charges
in May. Source: Media Week
BT is launching a social networking site in an attempt to
rival services being launched within the burgeoning online directory
sector. The site is currently in beta format, enabling BT's new
online directory service, BTexchanges.com, to research user behaviour
ahead of the official launch later this year. Source: Marketing
Yell, the directories company, have launched a new mobile
internet service in a bid to join together its 118 247 directory
and Yell.com mobile offering. The move, which aims to build on its
mobile portfolio, will use a two-channel approach to target consumers.
Source: Marketing
Online gaming operator 888 Holdings is plotting a raft of
launches of new games over the next few months. Up to 50 casino,
bingo and other games are thought to be in the pipeline. Source:
Marketing
Travel firm Thomas Cook is dropping four of its brands' stand-alone
websites as it prepares for a relaunch of Thomascook.com. Source:
Marketing
A Californian start-up co-founded by engineers who helped create
Google's market-leading technology have launched a rival search
engine, Cuil.com, pronounced "cool.com". The website
claims to have indexed more than 120 billion web pages compared
with Google's estimated 40 billion. Source: Media Week
Yahoo's share of UK search spend slipped during the second quarter,
dropping 1.3% to 10.6% of the market. Source: Media Week
MySpace and Warner Music Entertainment have teamed
up to launch a new online comedy channel this week, MySpace Comedy
UK. Source: Media Week
Websites offering consumers' discounts were among the fastest growing
UK websites over the past year, as concerns about the economy impacted
consumers decisions, according to Nielsen Online. Source: Media
Week
 Clear
Channel Outdoor has added to its
range of targeted audience portfolios with the launch of Keep Fitters,
a series of posters aimed at people who enjoy exercising. This pack
was devised on the back of research from Mintel, which showed that
36% of UK adults are trying to slim. The multi format inventory
will include spots within 300m of local authority sports centres,
private gyms and parks. Source: Media Week
 The
Dark Knight has climbed past US$400 million (£200m) at
the box office in just 18 days, the fastest pace ever. As of Monday,
it had taken $400m domestically, and the film hit that mark in less
than half the time it took for the previous record-holder, Shrek
2. Warner expects the film to pass the original Star Wars in about
two weeks, making it number two on the all-time domestic list behind
Titanic. Source: Pearl & Dean
UK Box Office Chart (Fri 1 Aug - Sun 3 Aug)
1. The Dark Knight (12A)
2. Mamma Mia! (PG)
3. Wall-e (U)
4. The X-Files: I Want to Believe (15)
5. Angus, Thongs And Perfect Snogging (12A)
6. Kung Fu Panda (PG)
7. Space Chimps (U)
8. The Love Guru (12A)
9. Hancock (12A)
10. Journey To The Center Of The Earth (PG)
Source: Pearl & Dean
Newsletter edited by Anna Kilborn, Andy Travis, Bex Cunnah,
Craig Blyth and Sze Yeung |
