Industry headlines:
Week ending Friday 4th November
Television:
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04/11/11 BT Vision is UK's fastest-growing pay-TV service
BT Vision, the company's pay-TV offering, reported its strongest performance in two years, adding 41,000 viewers in the third quarter compared with 26,000 for BSkyB. It is the first quarter that BT Vision has beaten BSkyB for pay-TV subscribers since launching in mid-2007. Occupying a cheaper niche than BSkyB, it combines Freeview channels with on-demand sport and films via broadband, as well as access to the BBC iPlayer. With 638,000 customers, compared with BSkyB's 10 million satellite subscribers and Virgin Media's 3.76 million cable customers, BT Vision remains a minnow in the pay-TV stakes, but investors reacted warmly to better than expected third-quarter results. Pre-tax profits increased by more than a third to £552m in the three months to the end of September. -
04/11/11 Downton Abbey: ITV confirms third series
ITV has confirmed there will be a third series of its popular period drama Downton Abbey. Filming for a new series of the Julian Fellowes drama, set in 1920 and 1921, will begin in the new year, and be broadcast from September 2012. The final episode of the second series, set just after the end of the first world war and starring Maggie Smith and Hugh Bonneville, airs this Sunday on ITV1. The third series will cover a period of 18 months in the lives of the Crawley family between 1920 and 1921. The second series of Downton Abbey has managed to pull in about 9 million viewers on Sunday evenings, about a third of the audience in that time slot, despite some criticism that it did not live up to the critically acclaimed first series. The average audience so far for the second series rises to 11.5 million when consolidated viewing, -
04/11/11 ITV signs Nationwide for first Coronation Street product placement deal
The likes of Ken Barlow and Sally Webster could become loyal customers of the Nationwide following a product placement deal which will place one of the bank's ATM machines in Dev Alahan's 'Coronation Street' shop. The product has been placed inside the shop as part of an initial four-month deal understood to be in the low six figures and is the first to be included in the show. A branded swing board has also been placed outside the premises and, depending on the storyline, could appear in episodes transmitted on screen from 14 November.
Press:
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04/11/11 Sainsbury's magazine celebrates biggest-ever edition
Sainsbury's magazine's December issue will be the biggest in its 18-year history, thanks to a 70% boost in advertising. Customer publisher Seven said the 276-page bumper Christmas issue, which came out on 2nd November has 119 ad pages, and has 88 more editorial pages than compared with average issues. The £1.60 title includes a 12-page advertorial booklet on Christmas drinks and several features on festive foods.
Radio:
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04/11/11 Capital One gives cashback with Absolute Radio's Christian O'Connell
Capital One, the credit card brand, has signed an eight-week sponsorship deal with Absolute Radio's 'Christian O'Connell Breakfast Show'. The activity will promote the Capital One World MasterCard, which offers customers 5% cashback on purchases up to £2,000 in the first three months and up to 1.25% unlimited cashback after that. During the sponsorship period O'Connell and his team will give away weekly prizes of £500 in cash to Absolute Radio listeners, while online users will have the chance to win an iPhone 4S. -
04/11/11 Dave and Absolute Radio back comedy award
Dave, the UKTV-owned blokes channel, has struck a partnership with Absolute Radio to promote its new comedy club award. The 'Dave's One Night Stand' award is open to all 95 clubs currently involved in Dave's nationwide two for one comedy tickets scheme, which launched in June. Promotional activity starts on Monday (7 November) with both media owners giving it coverage on-air and on their online and social media properties. Voting opens on 7 November via an app on Dave's Facebook page and a text to vote mechanic.
Digital:
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04/11/11 BBC Children in Need rolls out Facebook donation drive
BBC Children in Need has partnered with Facebook and PayPal to create the "digital cake" Facebook app, which accepts donations directly through the social networking platform. PayPal, the eBay-owned payments company, will be collecting donations from users who interact with the cake on the 'Fancy a Spot of Cake?' app on BBC Children in Need's Facebook page ahead of the appeal event on 18 November. Users can customise and grow the cake by adding a decoration for £1, icing or sponge for £5 or their own tier for £20. After donating they will be tagged in the cake and can share their activity with their friends via their profile page or on Twitter. -
04/11/11 Half of video ads on YouTube are now skippable
Around 50% of all video ads served on YouTube are now skippable, according to the video platform. YouTube rolled out the skippable format, called In-stream, last December as the first of a series of interactive video ad formats launched under the TrueView umbrella brand. The In-stream format lets viewers skip the ad after five seconds and is charged on a cost-per-view basis. This means advertisers are only charged for the ad if it has been watched In full or for at least 30 seconds (nma.co.uk 1 December 2011). -
04/11/11 LoveFilm strategy shifts from physical media to streaming
LoveFilm is “nudging” its business on a “day-to-day” basis as it looks to shift its strategy from renting out physical DVDs and games to streaming content online. The company is set to launch an ad campaign promoting the launch of its service on LG internet-connected televisions, the next shift in its move to change consumers’ behaviour when it comes to watching films. -
04/11/11 Virgin Media to launch Spotify app in the next month
Virgin Media is to launch its first Spotify-integrated app on web-TV service TiVo in the next month. Virgin Media subscribers will also have access to Spotify across its online, mobile and TiVo services from the next few weeks. Those using the Spotify service via Virgin Media’s platform will also have access to additional, exclusive content from the latter’s gigs and festivals. This will also extend to competitions, behind-the-scenes footage from concerts and V Festival (pictured), as well as gig tickets via the VM Music tab.
Outdoor:
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04/11/11 Eurostar appoints JCDecaux Airport to sell St Pancras International
JCDecaux Airport, the airport advertising media owner, has won a competitive tender to manage the sales of digital advertising in the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras International Station. It will be the first time digital outdoor advertising has been available at the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras International since the high-speed service to mainland Europe moved to the station in 2007. Under the five-year contract, JCDecaux Airport intends to install and sell advertising on 32 40-inch screens in the departures lounge of the Eurostar terminal and four 70-inch screens in the arrivals area. -
04/11/11 Outdoor ad revenue up 1.1% in third quarter
The outdoor industry has returned to growth in Q3, posting a 1.1% increase in revenue, according to the latest figures from the Outdoor Media Centre (OMC). During the period from July to September 2011 revenues reached £214.4m, up on the second quarter revenues of £208.9m, which represented a 1.2% drop on quarter one. Despite this one setback, six out of the last seven quarters have now recorded positive growth.
Mobile:
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04/11/11 Nearly 90% of the UK without all 3G networks
Only 13% of the UK's land mass is covered by all five 3G phone networks, while mobile "not spots" are still a problem in rural and remote areas as operators focus on infrastructure in the cities, according to the media regulator. In its first report on the UK's communications infrastructure, Ofcom said signals from all five networks – Vodafone, O2, Orange, T-Mobile and Three – were not available in the majority of the UK's landmass, though 73% of buildings receive 3G signals from all operators. The data show that over 97% of buildings have mobile signal from all four 2G network operators (those listed above excepting Three), but geographic coverage from the operators is 66%. -
04/11/11 Nokia backs free Wi-Fi trial in London
Nokia is sponsoring a trial of free Wi-Fi access in the busiest streets in London, initially consisting of 26 hotspots. Internet access is initially available from today (1 November) until the end of 2011. The trial will assess users' browsing behaviour and demand for the service. If the trial is successful, plans are in place for a large-scale rollout across London from early 2012. John Nichols, head of marketing at Nokia, said: "From tourists finding their way around the capital, to commuters updating Facebook or browsing on the move, we all depend on mobile to share our everyday experiences and enhance our lives. "Nokia is pleased to sponsor this pilot which we hope will connect people even more easily than ever before."