Wednesday 18 June 2014, AM
Media Focus - Fortnightly podcast giving the inside view on what's happening in the media
Paul Blanchard is joined by senior media professionals to discuss what's happening behind the scenes. Gain an insight into front-of-mind issues for journalists, editors, producers and key media influencers. - mediafocus.org.ukwww.mediafocus.org.ukTuesday 17 June 2014, PM
Set voters free - or pay the consequences - Comment - Broadcast
Paid voting should be killed off in favour of free interaction, says Monterosa chief executive Tom McDonnell. Live interaction regularly plays a part in the re-invention of TV formats. We’re seeing another generation of interactive ideas emerge this year — some will be good, some will fall flat, but at least one will be a hit. A greater shift to mobile and cloud computing is helping to power more convenient, scalable interactive technology. - broadcastnow.co.ukwww.broadcastnow.co.uk
RadioToday - Ofcom gets positive responses for DAB+
DAB is included in the minimum specification for any new radio sets which are sold in the UK, as revealed last December. Arqiva, owner of the first and only national commercial DAB multiplex wants to be assured the second national multiplex owner had the same rules on DAB as the first. The transmission company also wants confirmation on the 30 limit for DAB services whether thats in addition to the current 30 permitted use for data services or instead of. - radiotoday.co.ukradiotoday.co.uk
RadioToday - Ofcom to offer new licences for 12 years
Ofcom is to extend the duration of advertised or re-advertised local commercial analogue radio licences from seven to 12 years. The decision comes after a consultation earlier this year which received 12 replies. After considering responses, Ofcom has decided that its policy will now be to grant licences for a period of 12 years, the regulator says today. - radiotoday.co.ukradiotoday.co.ukMonday 16 June 2014, PM
YouView vows to appeal after latest Trademark defeat - seenit.co.uk
Total uses the similar Your View brand for a number of database products and argued that the YouView brand could cause confusion or dilute its own brand. Whilst Total may not compare to YouView in terms of size, we both operate in the same industry space. We protect our rights to brand ownership and wholeheartedly defend those rights as any business should otherwise we would never have registered our marks in the first place. - seenit.co.ukwww.seenit.co.ukSunday 15 June 2014, PM
Fox will get £6.8bn windfall from BSkyB's pan-European pay-TV deal - Media - theguardian.com
BSkyB, as Media Guardian reported last month, is seeking to buy out its sister companies in Germany and Italy. All three businesses are, of course, controlled by Fox. Together, they would form one of Europe's biggest and most profitable TV operators, serving nearly 20m households. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.com
Nearly half a million BBC iPlayer users avoid paying licence fee - Mail Online
Viewers who use the service to watch catch-up programmes online for free can escape the 145.50 annual charge by declaring they do not own a television set or see live shows. Last year, 463,846 opted out in this way, a rise of more than 35,000 in 12 months. Last year, 463,846 opted out of paying the licence fee by saying they only use iPlayer to watch television. - dailymail.co.ukwww.dailymail.co.ukFriday 13 June 2014, PM
Freeview announces connected television plans - informitv
Freeview and Digital UK have announced plans to develop a Freeview branded connected television service. The shareholders of the two companies, including the leading broadcasters in the United Kingdom, are backing a five-year plan to support the development and marketing of the service, which will bring together the best of broadcast television and video-on-demand delivered over broadband. Guy North, who was previously responsible for marketing Freeview, has taken over as managing director for the existing platform. - informitv.cominformitv.comStephen Fry MADNESS: 'New domain names GENERATE NEW IP NUMBERS' • The Register Forums
To be strictly accurate perhaps pedantic, perhaps not it was an ignorant assertion. He made the rather silly mistake of pontificating about something he apparently does not understand. It's edifying to reflect that this sort of behaviour is perfectly normal in the worlds of business, politics, literature, and culture in general. - forums.theregister.co.ukforums.theregister.co.uk
Ariel - The worst office jargons
13 June 2014 Last updated at 0950 It's natural that any language will change with time, absorb new phrases and export words abroad. They lend disproportionate significance to simple actions, or massage egos by validating their efforts. To stem this plague of linguistic crimes, we suggest you set up a charity swear box where perpetrators donate in penance. - bbc.co.ukwww.bbc.co.ukDTG :: News :: The Relationship between the D-Book and Digital UK's Freeview connected service
As an interoperability specification, the D-Book defines both the delivery and reception of services. DTG Staff 13.06.2014 Links open in a new window. The DTG is not responsible for the content of other web sites. - dtg.org.ukdtg.org.ukSheffield Doc/Fest 2014: Senza Parole - audio
download.guardian.co.ukFriday 13 June 2014, AM
Independence for Scots may close off BBC, says Gordon Brown - UK news - The Guardian
The former prime minister said Scottish households were able to share in the BBC television shows, radio and news services that cost nearly 4bn to produce each year, while paying little more than 300m in licence fees. The Voice talent show cost 22m a year to produce, EastEnders 30m and Strictly Come Dancing 10m figures derived from official reports and the media. Brown's aides estimated the cost of the top six shows was equivalent to only 7 a year for all 25m British households. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.comITV Player problems hit World Cup opening match coverage - Media - theguardian.com
ITVs online viewing service has been hit by problems during the opening match of the World Cup. Responding to a barrage of criticism on Twitter, the service said on its feed Were seeing unprecedented numbers of users during the game. It wasnt planned and we know it came at a crucial time during the match. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.comSky News: rolling news, the backbone for a digital future - Media - theguardian.com
The world is undergoing a period of rapid technological change which has prompted some Jeremiahs to suggest that in the digital age specialist news channels have had their day. Sky News is not only a rolling news channel, just as the Guardian is not only a newspaper. As more and more devices get connected to faster broadband, there are limitless opportunities for people to consume the latest content when, where and on the platform they want it. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.comSky News chief hits out at Alain de Botton’s criticism of news media - Media - theguardian.com
The head of Sky News has dismissed author Alain de Bottons criticism of news media as part of a staunch defence of rolling news channels, arguing that they play a critical role in the digital era. Ryley also hit back at critics who have recently argued that TV news channels have had their day and will be superseded by online video news, saying Sky News is live and on demand 24/7. He suggests that this quasi-religious aspect of news in the 21st century has a very specific consequence. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.comObjectivity and impartiality in digital news coverage - Media - theguardian.com
Are the traditional journalistic disciplines of objectivity and impartiality relevant or wanted in a digital news environment Broadcasters in many countries have been regulated to deliver impartial news. Print journalism has never been regulated in the same way, but the professional codes, standards, and norms of journalism, which developed in the early 20th century, delivered similar standards in the news pages for many decades. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.comSky's 'supplement for not having Sky TV' is the limit - Money - The Observer
Sky says it can't see a problem with charging customer for not taking up its TV service. If this is legal, when I next go to the supermarket, for example, I could be charged for not buying strawberries. It is beyond belief that I have to pay Sky for something I have not requested, nor purchased, and don't have. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.comThursday 12 June 2014, PM
'Freeview Connected will see consumers reappraise the Freeview brand' - News - Marketing Week
Freeview hopes Freeview Connected smart TV offering will make consumers reassess the brand as more modern. A timeframe has yet to be set on when the service will launch, but it is unlikely, given TV product development cycles, that it will roll out until at least 2014. Guy North, Freeview managing director, told Marketing Week We have an ambition to take the nation from the digital world we are in now into a connected world, in the same way Freeview took people from analogue to digital. - marketingweek.co.ukwww.marketingweek.co.ukSky News boss criticises press influence on television newsrooms - Media - theguardian.com
The head of Sky News has criticised TV broadcasters reliance on newspapers such as the Daily Mail for setting the news agenda. I have always been shocked from the very first time I started in TV news at the reliance on newspapers, he said. I am really keen we do not pursue newspaper stories that perhaps happened in the past. - gu.comgu.comMedia: BBC Radio cuts; Richard Ingrams; Sun special row.
downloads.bbc.co.ukWednesday 11 June 2014, PM
Media: BBC Radio cuts; Richard Ingram; Sun special row.
downloads.bbc.co.uk
Ariel - Radio to shed 65 more posts in second phase of DQF
10 June 2014 Last updated at 1255 Radio is to shed 65 more staff by next April, as it looks to find 6m of savings. Jobs will bear the brunt as radio stations are spared the axe in the second phase of Delivering Quality First. More than 30 production roles will go, while a divisional restructure will make savings by bringing the management and running of certain stations together. - bbc.co.ukwww.bbc.co.uk
Ariel - Trust seeks views on BBCs businesses
British programmes, and the corporation's commercial aspects, such as Worldwide's export of shows, after publishing a draft remit on Wednesday. The Trust will review the BBC's compliance with the finalised framework every five years. Business plans are the responsibility of the BBC executive board, who will report quarterly to the Trust. - bbc.co.ukwww.bbc.co.ukTuesday 10 June 2014, PM
Tuesday 10 June 2014, AM
Sky Sports launches new channel dedicated to European football
Sky today announces good news for millions of its customers ahead of the new football season with confirmation that Sky Sports is to launch the first ever television channel dedicated to European football. To take up the offer customers should go online to Sky.com/2yearsfree or call Sky from 12 June onwards. The channel is included as part of the Sky Sports subscription. - corporate.sky.comcorporate.sky.comMonday 09 June 2014, PM
Big Brother a target for ITV - Media - theguardian.com
ITV executives have weighed the merits of snatching Big Brother from Channel 5 the broadcasters latest two-year deal expires at the end of the year to boost programming across its expanding portfolio of channels. Big Brother, and its celebrity stablemate, could be used to give newcomer ITVBe a major boost against rival channels. It is thought that discussions at ITV are unlikely to progress to a bid for Big Brother, because the rights remain at a level of about 20m per year. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.com
Ariel - BBC Two gets Russell Howards Good News
The comedian's mix of topical comments and sketches is one of BBC Three's best-known shows and is regularly among the most popular programmes on iPlayer. If approved, the channel will be solely broadcast on iPlayer from autumn 2015. - bbc.co.ukwww.bbc.co.uk
BBC News - Smart TVs subverted by radio attack
9 June 2014 Last updated at 1155 Millions of smart TVs can be hijacked by burying attack code in signals broadcast to the net-connected devices, security experts warn. The attack exploits loopholes in widely used technology that helps smart TVs receive tailored adverts. Once hijacked, the TVs could be made to send messages on behalf of attackers, find other vulnerable devices in a home or launch other attacks across the net. - bbc.co.ukwww.bbc.co.ukSheffield Doc/Fest 2014: The Calling
download.guardian.co.ukSheffield Doc/Fest 2014: Love and Radio - audio
download.guardian.co.ukMonday 09 June 2014, AM
Sunday 08 June 2014, PM
Why all broadcasters should buy into Freeview Connected - Media - The Guardian
At last the free digital TV platform currently in 11m homes 20m if you count second sets in Sky and Virgin households is set to get the internet on-demand functionality it needs to stand any chance of competing with rival commercial platforms. But, well-intentioned and necessary though it undoubtedly is, this refocusing on Freeview raises awkward questions about why it has taken so long to happen. Broadcast TV would decline relatively rapidly to be replaced by on-demand services enhanced by new social media and other applications. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.comSaturday 07 June 2014, AM
Exeter residents hit by Freeview signal problems - Exeter Express and Echo
Television viewers and radio listening in Exeter are understood to be experiencing signal problems. Comments1 Television viewers and radio listeners in Exeter are understood to be experiencing signal problems. City residents have reported that their Freeview sets and digital radios suddenly went blank at the same time every evening so far this week. - exeterexpressandecho.co.ukwww.exeterexpressandecho.co.ukBritish TV should reflect the country it s made in, says Happy Valley writer - Television radio - The Guardian
Responding to critics of the violence in Happy Valley, Wainwright said it had been responsibly done because it showed the reality of violence. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.comSheffield Doc/Fest 2014: Love and Radio - audio
download.guardian.co.ukFriday 06 June 2014, PM
BBC and Channel 4 battle to keep younger viewers - TV Radio - Media - The Independent
The reduction is greater than that suffered by any of the other major British broadcasters and well above the market average decline of around seven per cent. ITVs portfolio saw a fall of three per cent among 25-34 television viewers. In the younger 16-24-year-old demographic, Channel 4 was hardest hit, losing 19 per cent of television viewers, while Sky lost 18 per cent. - independent.co.ukwww.independent.co.ukRobert Peston’s speech warns of threat to journalism from native ads – full text - Media - theguardian.com
It is a thrill and a privilege for me to be with you tonight, for two reasons. Not for Charles Wheeler the siren call of the public relations world, or spurious but well-paid consultancy of various sorts which too few of my own peers have been able to resist. He didnt quite do a Tommy Cooper, by passing away on stage. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.comFriday 06 June 2014, AM
RadioToday - Mercedes C-Class gets DAB as standard
Mercedes now has 60 of models with DAB digital radio as standard and is working towards including it across its range. 21.4 of all radio listening takes place in car. - radiotoday.co.ukradiotoday.co.ukThursday 05 June 2014, PM
You can t break copyright by looking at something online, Europe s top court rules Tech News and A
Meltwater is a Norway-founded media monitoring service that sent out daily digests including the headlines and ledes the first bit of the article of the newspaper stories, together with links to the full online articles. In the U.S., the suit was filed by the Associated Press, which effectively saw Meltwater as a freeloading rival to its own newswire services. In 2013, a federal court decided in APs favor, kicking out Meltwaters claim that what it was doing counted as fair use. - gigaom.comgigaom.com
BBC under fire for lack of staff diversity - TV Radio - Media - The Independent
The former RTS head complained that Today presenter James Naughtie had dismissed the lack of diversity on the flagship show by saying the programme was not a sociological laboratory. The actor and comedian Lenny Henry is leading a campaign to force action on the issue and has warned that viewers might withhold payment of the licence fee if change is not forthcoming. It does seem odd to me is that while people get very exercised about what someone like Jeremy Clarkson said off-air two years ago, no one at the BBC seems much bothered when one of Radio 4s ubiquitous presenters says something like this - on the record - now. - independent.co.ukwww.independent.co.uk
RadioToday - Nine presenters depart Radio 1 1Xtra
Phil Taggart will be on air Thursday nights from 9 10pm with a new music show. On Saturday afternoon, female rapper A.Dot joins 1Xtra with a new show from 4 7pm. In other changes, Skream joins Radio 1s Residency, which moves to a new three-hour slot at 10pm Thursday. - radiotoday.co.ukradiotoday.co.uk
Ariel - Harding points to significant job cuts
5 June 2014 Last updated at 1205 James Harding has admitted that 'a significant number of redundancies' are likely to be made in News. In an email to his staff, the director of news and current affairs reiterated that the division had to make savings of 'tens of millions of pounds' as part of DQF. 'I am afraid that there is no escaping the fact that there are likely to be a significant number of redundancies - most of our costs are tied up in people so there is limited scope for other big savings elsewhere,' he said. - bbc.co.ukwww.bbc.co.uk
Ariel - Freeview to launch connected TV service
5 June 2014 Last updated at 1241 The BBC is backing a Freeview-branded connected television service that will be developed over the next five years. The aim is for manufacturers to eventually launch a new range of connected Freeview HD televisions and boxes that consumers will be able to buy in-store. People will be able to watch the service via their TV aerial and current broadband provider without being tied to a contract. - bbc.co.ukwww.bbc.co.uk
BBC News - BBC to stream World Cup matches in 4K ultra HD
The format, also known as 4K, offers four times the resolution of 1080p high definition video. The matches - including the quarter final and the final - mark one of the first times a live event has been streamed over the air in UHD in the UK. They will only be made available to a limited number of TVs at BBC sites. - bbc.co.ukwww.bbc.co.ukBBC, Channel 4 and ITV agree £100m-plus Freeview Connect deal - Media - theguardian.com
They are launching Freeview Connect after scaling back their investment in YouView, although they remain shareholders in the rival internet-connected TV service. The 100m-plus five year investment in Freeview Connect is a clear fightback against YouView, which recently announced an identical level of backing in a new shareholder agreement. To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email mediatheguardian.com or phone 020 3353 3857. - gu.comgu.comThursday 05 June 2014, AM
STV Glasgow launches - FeaturesExec Media Bulletin
The launch of the channel, which began broadcasting Monday night, has coincided with a universal refresh of STV's logo and redesign of news programming studio sets. - featuresexec.comwww.featuresexec.com
London Live and Russia Today hobble Freeview recorders with dodgy EPG data - Recombu
- recombu.comrecombu.com
BBC Trust resumes Comux payments - News - Broadcast
The BBC Trust has restarted payments to Comux, the organisation responsible for building the infrastructure for local TV, following concerns over its handling of £25m of licence fee money. The Trust confirmed that the funding – which is used to roll out local television services across the UK – has resumed despite having not yet concluded its investigation into Comux’s financial affairs. The precise details of the allegations are unclear, but they are understood to stem from a dispute between Comux chief executive Ed Hall and Alan Judd, the owner of Canis Media Group, which manages Comux’s transmission network. Hall stepped down as the boss of Canis earlier this year. Hall has defended Comux’s handling of licence fee money, arguing that he personally signed off on all use of BBC funding. "We’re delighted the BBC Trust has resumed payments,” he said. “We will work to reassure the Trust that the financial systems at Comux are robust and fit for purpose." A BBC Trust spokeswoman said:"We have made a payment to Comux, subject to appropriate controls, pending completion of our audit.". - broadcastnow.co.ukwww.broadcastnow.co.ukFilm streaming and downloads to overtake box office in 2017 - Film - theguardian.com
Netflix's HQ the streaming service is eating into DVD sales. The study says that revenue from electronic home video ie streaming and downloading films will outstrip physical media in 2016, and that the market for physical media will drop from 12.2bn now to 8.7bn in 2018. They also predict that in 2017 electronic home video will overtake the traditional cinema as the biggest contributor to total film revenue in the US, reaching a total of 17bn the following year double the 8.5bn the sector currently generates. - theguardian.comwww.theguardian.compick a page