Hot topics click link for more
Lagardere changes Europe 1 head
…more shuffling in French radio…
Thirty-five year old Alexandre Bompard will take leadership of French national radio channel Europe 1. He replaces Jean-Pierre Elkabbach, whose resignation was accepted by Arnaud Lagardere. Europe 1 has struggled for audience share against market dominant RTL. (read about the most recent France audience survey here)
Bompard comes from television channel Canal+. He was director of sports. Read into that whatever you want. His first high profile hire is TF1 Moscow correspondent Olivier Ravanello as chief editor.
Nothing in French media happens in a vacuum. Lagardere just lost Christophe Sabot to NRJ Group. Both companies have suffered a variety of problems, audience being only one. Expect both to mount considerable resources, however different the directions.(JMH)
Researcher merger
…50-50 ‘merger of equals’
Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS) and GfK made public their ‘merger of equals’ (June 3) l after TNS rejected WPP Group’s takeover bid. The deal will create the world’s 2nd largest market and consumer research company, EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes’ opinion yet to be heard. The plan was first reported in April with the intention of rocking AC Neilsen’s boat.
Both TNS and GfK provide radio and TV audience ratings throughout Europe. Based on 2007 reported figures the combined TNS-GfK revenue is about €2.7 billion. (JMH)
New guy at NRJ
…not quite new…
Christophe Sabot was named (June 2) NRJ Group deputy director, not a new face at the French broadcasting house. He worked there for about ten years, leaving about ten years ago. More recently he’d been head of programming for Lagardere’s radio division.
Two weeks ago NRJ principal owner Jean-Paul Baudecroux severed NRJ Group CEO Marc Pallain with immediate effect. Coincidentally, Sabot walked from Largardere just hours later.
Expect the Baudecroux -Sabot duo – they were together at NRJ when the company was at the top of its game - to shake things up. (JMH)
New investors for UK radio
…Bollywood in. CanWest out?…
Times of India publisher Bennett, Coleman purchased UK broadcaster Virgin Radio from Scottish Media Group (SMG) according to Reuters (June 1) citing sources in India. The agreed price was 4.5 billion rupees (€67.75 million). Bennett, Coleman’s wholly owned TIML Golden Square will manage the UK radio channels with Absolute Radio, which had failed in its bid.
Irish and UK sources all but declared Absolute Radio the auction winner mid last week. It must have been the money. SMG sought to unload Virgin Radio to “concentrate on core business” – meaning TV. TIML may or may not be able to use the Virgin Radio brand name. Sir Richard Branson controls brand name rights. Absolute Radio operates an FM station in Oxford, which programs the syndicated Jack FM brand.
Meanwhile, CanWest seems ready to leave UK broadcasting, according to the Telegraph (UK) (May 29). The article quotes CanWest European Operations president Rick Hetherington saying, “anything is for sale at any time at the right price.” The CanWest share price has recently taken quite a beating. (read about CanWest's 2005 entrance here) (JMH)
|
