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As folks head for their favorite summer holiday destination smartphones are all important. From checking in with Facebook or the news it’s the season for being and going mobile. Video content is, of course, the big thing.
“We have seen throughout the year the percentage (of traffic) from mobile use has gone up, but in the summer the tendency is especially strong,” said Norwegian news portal TV2.com acting editor Derek Bjolgerud, to kampanje.no (July 9). “The majority are using mobiles now, and that's not where it was half a year ago. The growth in traffic from social media is very big.” (See more about mobile media here)
It is hardly surprising as 85% of Norwegians have smartphones, according to TNS Gallup, with 95% of those under 50 years having theirs in hand. “We do not know a country other than South Korea that has such a high prevalence,” said media research manager Knut-Arne Futsæter, adding that “growth has stagnated for the last two years.” Just 58% of Norwegians over 60 years have smartphones.
“In June and so far in July about 50 percent of the visits to the VG (website) are from mobiles,” reported digital editor Ola Steberg. “And now we’re going into the big holiday season. There are more mobiles than laptops on the beach.”
Roundtable gatherings of major industry sector chief executives are typically public relations opportunities, very friendly and not particularly newsworthy. The four leaders of Spain’s major radio broadcasters appeared together last week to conclude a radio week organized at the Menéndez Pelayo International University (UIMP) campus in Santander. They had a lot on their minds.
The four - public broadcaster RNE director general Alfonso Nasarre, COPE general director Ignacio Armenteros, Onda Cero general director Ramón Osorio and Cadena SER CEO Vicente Jiménez - agreed that radio in Spain “is in good health.” Coming as it did shortly after the latest EGM audience estimates were released, turns were taken talking about measurement. “One of the challenges for Spanish radio is to change this system,” said Sr. Nasarre, quoted by El Mundo (July 6). “With the current system we cannot make important decisions.”
More sanguine were the others. “As the radio (audience) leader it won’t be me who criticizes the EGM,” said Sr. Jiménez. “That would be bad business.” Sr. Armenteros urged “support for the only system we have.” The measurement system could be improved, offered Sr. Osorio, “like everything in life.” (See more about media in Spain here)
As the conversation made its inevitable way to digital media the four radio riders shared their views of the future of radio. “We will have radio without towers and the networks,” said Sr. Osorio. “It is the elimination of the barriers of time and space. We will have to generate more content to reach more audience and encourage hybrid radio that does not consume as much data as smartphones but rather connect FM broadcasts and the internet.”
"You can not go against technological development,” said Sr. Nasarre. “That is stupid.” Continuing that theme, he referred to the internet as “something Orwell might have included in 1984.” Taking a shot at social media, Sr. Jiménez observed that “a trending topic is 80 aunts tweeting on the same subject.”
Talks at a early stage between Axel Springer SE and ProSiebenSat.1 Media were reported by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) (July 6), citing unnamed sources familiar with things like that, stunning German media watchers. Later other sources confirmed that, indeed, something that may result in combining the two companies is under discussion. By virtue of owning the tabloid Bild Axel Springer SE is Europe’s biggest newspaper publisher. ProSiebenSat.1 Media is in the TV business as a broadcaster and producer.
“Haven’t we been here before?” noted most media watchers in and out of Germany. A decade ago, Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner negotiated a purchase and sale agreement with ProSiebenSat principal investor Haim Saban for €3 billion. Herr Döpfner really wanted to be in the TV business, correctly understanding the limited future of a stand-alone newspaper and magazine publisher. The German Federal Cartel Office and the Commission on Concentration in the Media (KEK), alas, turned down the deal. Cash in hand, the disappointed Herr Döpfner appealed the decision over and over and, eventually, won. By then, last year, Mr. Saban had already sold ProSiebenSat to private equity take-over specialists Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and Permira Advisers who, in turn, exited in 2014 and the company became 97% freely traded. (See more about media in Germany here)
So much for history. Herr Döpfner turned to shedding lessor print titles, acquiring e-commerce websites and expressing often his fear of Google. For 2014, Axel Springer reported €3.038 billion in revenues with free cash flow of €244 million. ProSiebenSat CEO Thomas Ebeling ramped up TV production and international marketing of same, shed non-German broadcasting outlets and invested in online media from news portals to gaming to YouTube marketing. ProSiebenSat reported 2014 revenues of €2.875 billion with €470 million cash on hand. Market capitalization of ProSiebenSat is €9.7 billion, according to the WSJ, (rising to €10.2 billion after the merger rumor surfaced) about twice that of Axel Springer.
Neither company would, officially, dignify these merger rumors. The Axel Springer no-comment statement (July 7) noted that the idea of “a relinquishment of control” by Friede Springer, widow of the founder with a 57% stake in the company, is “completely unfounded.” A week earlier (July 1) the ProSiebenSat board extended Thomas Ebeling's contract for four more years.
Broadcasters will broker airtime to other broadcasters for the re-transmission of programs. Some turn this into a reasonably lucrative business. A radio broadcaster in Poland is in trouble with the regulator for that decision.
Poland’s media regulator KRRiT has started proceedings against Radio Hobby, located in Legionowo slightly north-east of Warsaw, for transferring control over its transmission for money. At issue is re-transmission of Radio Sputnik, the notorious propaganda service of the Russian Federation, for one hour a day. Radio Hobby has been re-broadcasting the hour from Radio Sputnik, and previously Voice of Russia, for four years. The station’s concession is in jeopardy. (See more about media in Poland here)
Radio Hobby is paid €1,400 a month for the hour between 21h00 and 22h00. “This is not big money,” said station manager Tomasz Brzezinski to wirtualnemedia.pl (July 7). “But it does allow us to hire four or five people. At that hour almost nobody listens.”
“It’s a political decision,” he added, noting that complaints were only raised after Russian military involvement on Ukrainian territory. The contract with Radio Sputnik expires in 2016. “We would gladly opt out of it as soon as possible,” said Mr. Brzezinski. “I'm trying to find other sources of livelihood, but it's a very difficult market.”
News coverage in Greece of the EU austerity referendum was, by all accounts, quite over the top. Nearly all news outlets took clear positions, the possible exception being newly minted public broadcaster ERT and a few online portals. With the referendum result now known questions have been raised about election law violations.
An investigation into "violations of the electoral legislation in the way the media handled the issue of the referendum” was ordered by Athens district public prosecutor Elias Zagoraios, reported typologies.gr (July 7). Allegations surfaced last week but the prosecutor “did not intervene earlier” to avoid appearance of “an attempt to silence the press.” It is unclear whether or not the National Broadcasting Council will pursue a separate investigation. (See more about media in Greece here)
News coverage during the run-up to the referendum by privately-owned TV channels Mega TV and Skai, both sympathetic to the “yes” position, raised attention. Mega TV, reportedly, photoshopped scenes of cash-machine lines that originated from an unrelated 2012 item in Brazil. Both stations avoided coverage of rallies by “no” supporters for “technical reasons.” Employees of Skai allegedly assisted organisers of demonstrations supporting the “yes” position a day before the voting, after which SYRIZA - the political party of prime minister Alexis Tsipras - withdrew participation in Skai news broadcasts.
A bid for Russian entertainment TV broadcaster CTC Media, announced this past weekend, could end foreign investment in Russian media. As a NASDAQ traded company incorporated in the US State of Delaware CTC Media is required by law to make formal notifications of prospective major share trades. Last year the State Duma, at the request of President Vladimir Putin, passed legislation limiting foreign holdings in Russian media to 20% effective January 1st, 2016.
Russian TV broadcaster YUTV made a non-binding offer for 75% of CTC Media, reported vedomosti.run (July 6), apparently sufficient to satisfy Russian law. YUTV is principally owned by mobile telecom MegaFon principal and CEO Ivan Tavrin and billionaire Alisher Usmanov, also a MegaFon investor, owner of Kommersant and mail.ru, YUTV operates the Disney Channel in Russia. (See more about media in Russia here)
In the strongest signal yet that Modern Times Group (MTG), the largest shareholder in CTC Media, is ready to give up the fight and move on the company informed regulators it would reclassify its investment from “equity participation” to “discontinued operations.” MTG holds a 37.9% stake in CTC Media. Russian billionaire and Bank Rossiya principal Yuri Kovalchuk holds a 25.4% stake through a Cyprus shell company and the rest (36%) is freely traded. Two weeks ago CTC Media asked the Russian government for an extension on the divestment deadline.
“Our ambition is to get out completely and not be left with any ownership after the process is complete,” said MTG spokesperson Per Lorentz, quoted by Dagens Industri (July 6), who also indicated no other offers had been received.
The uncertainty has devastated CTC Media’s market value, which has fallen from US$1.8 billion to US$337 million in a year, reported Bloomberg (July 2). The YUTV bid, reported vedomosti.ru, is US$200 million. A Russian minority shareholder called the offer “simply humiliating.”
Last week Russian state broadcaster VGTRK announced the dismissal of all staff from the Russia 2 channel. President Putin gifted the channel to Gazprom-Media for an all-sports channel last month. Gazprom-Media is in “the process of evaluating employees,” said spokesperson Irina Osadchaya, quoted by vedomosti.ru (July 1). “Of course, we do not keep all employees, but most of them.” Program details of the new all-sports channel are still forthcoming.
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