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With London Lite Going, Should The Evening Standard Charge Again?
We’ve documented the stranger than fiction story of what is going on in the London PM newspaper market, and now comes the latest twist – London Lite is conferring with staff (translation: it’s closing down). So after all that has happened the Evening Standard survives as the only PM game in town, although now under Russian ownership and it’s free.
So, really there seems to be just one more twist for the plot to be complete. Having turned itself into a free newspaper two weeks ago, and therefore pressuring Associated Newspapers to close down the only remaining free London PM newspaper (Murdoch already having done with the deed with his free newspaper) how long before the Evening Standard returns to charging 40 pence or 50 pence – enough of this free nonsense. And then we’re right back where we started when this fiasco started in 2006, except that Associated Newspapers, instead of owning 100% of The Standard now owns just shy of 25%. Way to go, guys.
A Murdoch Win Against Berlusconi
We’ve documented the stranger than fiction story of what is going on in Italy (yes, that line should sound familiar) and in its latest twist Murdoch’s Sky Italia has now won its court case against Prime Minister Berlusconi’s Mediaset for preventing Sky buying all the ads its wanted on a couple of Mediaset’s TV networks. A judge ruled that was anti-competitive and illegal.
The court did not, however, award any damages. Mediaset acknowledged in a statement the ruling means it cannot refuse Sky Italia ads in order to favor its own pay-TV platform, although there was no ruling that it had to start such sales immediately.
Sky said in a statement it hopes to commence “a calm and constructive commercial negotiation” soon, implying it wants its ads showing up quickly.
Let the combat begin.
Lost: Athens Edition
Explains everything
This is side splitting. US radio newsletter RadioInk reports (October 26) “more than one” American broadcaster went to Athens last weekend expecting to see the NAB Europe radio conference. It was cancelled – very publicly – more than a month before the show. Unfortunate, but dismal economics got the best of it this year.
Imagine: all the talk about “pee-pee-em” and “dialing for dollars” left in Athens taxi cabs.
American commercial radio is in free-fall after the consolidation love-in and accounting high-jinks. Now we understand. (JMH)
US WSJ To Stop Printing In London
It turned out to be a short-lived experiment – The US edition of the Wall Street Journal started printing in London in August last year but now the company has announced that will stop in mid-November when Dow Jones relaunches yet again the Wall Street Journal Europe (WSJE).
None other than Dow Jones CEO Les Hinton was on hand last year as the US WSJ edition began London sales, printing some 3,000 copies of its US edition daily targeting the financial centers and the airport, while at the same time the WSJE celebrated its 25th anniversary. The hint at the time was that London may be just the first European city where the US edition paper would go on sale, the idea presumably to go after the readers of the International Herald Tribune which is now billed as the global edition of the New York Times, and we all know how Rupert Murdoch wants to hurt The Times any way he can.
But a lot changes in a year and now with a new editor and publisher the WSJE has announced yet another relaunch – its last relaunched was in October, 2006 when it shrank to compact size (the word tabloid being taboo). The ftm review of that first issue was scathing and our headline called the paper “very disappointing” for a variety of issues ranging from a lack of convergence of stories to web content and the grayness of the paper – some color but not near enough, just to name two disappointments.
Dow Jones promises for the new paper, launch day November 17, “new analysis features, new columnists, combined with easier navigation, a more simplified layout, and a greater use of color.” Gee, that sounds like our review of the last launch was spot-on. We look for better November 17.
It’s Opinion, Not News They Want
At the Atlanta and New York CNN centers executives must wish huge breaking news would happen 24 hours a day, for when CNN covers such it gets top ratings. The trouble is, there has not been a whole lot of that lately, and so CNN in the US this month rated bottom of the US cable news networks.
And what scored better? Opinion. Even opinionated shows on CNN Headline News did better than CNN news programs on its main domestic network.
It’s not in the Ted Turner heritage for CNN news programs to be opionated – (well, there is Lou Dobbs but even he did rotten in the ratings) but if CNN wants the ratings, and thus the big advertising dollars, will heritage now get confined to the woodpile?
Ted Turner let it be known a few weeks ago he would love to have CNN back. FTM has often complained that CNN International has forgotten its breaking news heritage and places far too much emphasis on scheduled programming and only when absolutely necessary does breaking news get in the way. Boy, it would be nice to have Ted back.
Consumers will spend, advertisers not so much
Up and away
The German media industries will see revenues of €57.9 billion in 2013, says a PriceWaterhouseCoopers report (October 27). The vast majority of that loot (€45.5 billion) will be consumer spending on internet services and pay-TV. Cinemas could get a boost, to a bit over €1 billion, from HD and 3D projections.
Advertising, however, will continue to simmer under 2008 spending levels. PWC says ad spending in Germany will increase less than 1% per year through 2013 to €12.4 billion. Newspaper advertising will fall 1.2% per year to €3.96 billion. Television advertising will be €3.74 billion, still short of 2008 spending levels.
Internet ad spending in 2013 will be, says PwC, about €1 billion, roughly equal to the 2008 level.
German consumers may be spending even a bit more as Parliament considers changing the public broadcasting license fee to a ‘media tax’ on a consumers. (JMH)
Live Sports Sells Higher Than Drama
What’s the regular US TV program with 30-second spots selling for more than anything else? It’s NBC’s Sunday Night Football according to a study by Advertising Age.
The one-time-a-year program with spots costing the most is, of course, the Super Bowl with CBS, the 2010 host, saying it is more than 80% sold-out with 30 second spots running anywhere around $2.7 million. But as a regularly scheduled program, NBC’s Sunday Night Football sells its 30-second spots on average at $339,700, according to the study, the most of any regularly scheduled program. By comparison ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy sells 30-second spots at $240,462.
The feeling seems to be that sports events are watched live so with no fast forward when the commercials come on, it’s a captive audience, and there is big value in that.
It’s A Tough Time for Conde Nast Magazines
If you really wanted a great expense account and enjoy the good life as a journalist or editor then the place to work was Conde Nast. That is, it was until McKinsey were invited in and the whispers in the corridors said that a 25% workforce reduction was in the cards, so it was then “keep heads low” time, although for many it’s now too late.
Already gone this month are Gourmet, Modern Bride, Elegant Bride and Cookie Magazines. There have been job losses at such names as Vogue, W, Vanity Fair, GQ, Glamour, Lucky, Details, Golf World and Bon Appétit.
No longer the fun place to be.
Kremlin TV takeover disputed
Entertainment, yes; propaganda, no
Officials of Russia’s National Media Group (NMG) strongly refuted media reports inside and outside Russia that news content on its national REN TV and St. Petersburg Channel 5 will be taken over by sinister Kremlin forces. NMG previously reported a management restructuring of the TV channels including, perhaps, co-locating news production with State funded Russia Today (RT).
“The editorial policy of news and informative content will not change," said newly appointed NMG director general Alexander Rodnyansky to Lenizdat.ru (October 22). REN TV and St. Petersburg Channel 5 may get technical support from RT. (See previous article here)
Both channels are, however, being “reoriented,” said NMG TV director Vladimir Khanumyan to Kommersant (October 23), to “thrill fans and lovers of entertainment." Khanumyan also said Channel 5 would not be moving to Moscow.
RTL Group is a significant minority shareholder in NMG.
In an unrelated note: Offices of RT’s Arabic service in Baghdad were destroyed (October 25) when a terrorist suicide bomber blew up the hotel where it has been housed. RT reports considerable damage but no injuries to staff. (JMH)
No contest for Euro 2012 rights
Spot rates set for World Cup
Euro 2012 football championship broadcast rights for Germany were awarded – if that’s the correct term – to public networks ARD and ZDF. The figure quoted by Spiegel online (October 24) was about €110 million. European football federation UEFA had wanted more but, well, there were no other bidders. Sky Deutschland (formerly known as Premiere) sat it out.
UEFA set aside Europe’s biggest television markets – Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the UK – for competitive bids through sports marketing firm SportFive. In mid-September UEFA concluded a rights deal through the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) for Euro 2012 rights in countries not set aside. All 31 matches will be shown on free-to-air TV in Germany.
AS&S, the sales-house for ARD and ZDF, has set spot prices for the 2010 Football World Cup in South Africa. The cheap spots in matches without Germany playing will go for €75,000. Half-time 30 second spots in the first round – Germany playing – will cost €258,000. Because of legal restrictions, games starting after 8 pm (2000 CET) will carry no advertising on ARD or ZDF. (JMH)
Development agency partners with newspaper group
Yet to be determined
The work of international development agencies is a distinguished and often overlooked story. Many of these agencies - funded by national governments - tackle media development, typically within the government’s interest. Media development is, itself, a highly developed undertaking with many specialists.
The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and WAN-IFRA announced a partnership for bringing expertise to developing regions of interest to the Swedish government. (Read WAN-IFRA presser here) With a staff of about 650 and an operating budget of SEK 16.8 billion (about €1.6 billion) in 2009, Sida is a recognized leader in international development, focusing on environmental, education and health issues.
In partnerships with other organizations Sida has participated in several media development projects. It has, for example, a funding relationship with Media Development Loan Fund (MDLF). The partnership with WAN-IFRA is its first with a private sector organization. Sida funded projects with WAN-IFRA are “yet to be determined,” according to the statement.
Over the last few years the major international aid agencies – like Sida, OXFAM, USAID, UNESCO, et.al. – have complained about a lack of coordination for media development projects. (JMH)
Digital Radio Dims
Same debate, same outcome
Broadcasting luminaries gathered in Paris hoping to light the digital future. Another delay was announced. Big broadcasters are looking for a low cost alternative.
Speaking at the Siel-Satis-La Radio expo (October 21) broadcasters, largely, expressed support for radio – at least in concept – as if the medium might soon pass into the darkness of buggy whips and printing presses. CBC / Radio Canada vice-president of French services Sylvain Lafrance spoke of convergence, strong brands – radio, TV and internet – each being unique and the difficulty for those in one medium to make the switch to converged media.
Without question, the main discussion point – again – was digital radio. Digital radio was set to ‘launch’ before the end of the year, dozens of channels being authorized last May for major French cities. Regulator CSA has pushed back the big day until mid-2010. (More on digital radio here)
Two arguments prevailed; analogue shut-off and standards. Under rules adopted earlier this year, radio receivers in new automobiles must have digital capability by 2013 and all receivers sold must include that digital radio chip by 2015. Citing differences between digital TV and digital radio, most broadcasters hesitated calling for hard dates for analogue shut-off.
The French adopted the T-DMB standard for digital radio but kept open the possibility of competing standards like DRM, the digital standard for medium wave transmission. Other European countries have a different set of standards – DAB and DAB+. Still in the grand debate is whether or not France can support a digital radio standard different from the rest of Europe.
Digital radio proponents, frustrated, talked of simply getting on with it out of fear of being left behind. “Habits are changing,” plead digital radio developer Joêl Pons. “It is a necessity. It will serve the public. Radio must remain a major media, closer to people (and) must be consistent with modern technology.”
Major commercial broadcasters have become even more hesitant. Representing the major commercial network operators, Bureau de la Radio president Michel Cacouault talked about the bottom line. Broadcasters revenue is down 18%, he said, and the cost of broadcasting in both T-DMB and FM for an extended period would cost each broadcaster between €2 and €4 million a year. Quieting the crowd, he said a less expensive digital alternative must be found. (JMH)
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