Screenshot: Will nightclubs really reopen in June? March 5, 2021 This week: **Media Moment of the Week: Telly’s still got welly **Will nightclubs really reopen on 21 June? **The BBC turns back time Media Moment of the Week: Telly’s still got welly In the age of Silicon Valley streaming giants and relentless references to “content” and “eyeballs”, it’s easy to forget that TV can, sometimes, [...]
Jack Dorsey’s Square buys $300m stake in Jay-Z’s streaming firm Tidal March 4, 2021 Mobile payments firm Square has agreed to buy a majority stake in Tidal, the streaming service owned by rapper and producer Jay-Z, for $297m (£212m). Square, which was co-founded by Twitter chief executive Jack Dorsey, said it will pay a mix of cash and stock for the stake, while Jay-Z will join its board of [...]
Sports streaming firm DAZN taps former Disney executive Kevin Mayer as chair March 3, 2021 Sports streaming service DAZN has appointed former Disney executive Kevin Mayer as its new chairman. DAZN, which is backed by billionaire Len Blavatnik, said Mayer will lead the nascent streaming platform as it pursues an “aggressive” growth strategy. He replaces John Skipper, who is stepping down to focus on Meadowlark Media, a newly-launched content company [...]
ITV shares rise as channel secures Meghan and Harry Oprah interview March 3, 2021 ITV shares pushed higher today as the broadcaster revealed it has secured UK rights to Oprah Winfrey’s interview with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. The London-listed company fended off competition from rivals Sky and Channel 4 to acquire the eagerly-awaited chat, in which the couple discuss their decision to quit the royal family. The special [...]
Pandemic binge-watching drives UK entertainment spend to record high March 3, 2021 UK spending on films, music and gaming increased to a record high last year, driven by increased demand for streaming during Covid-19 lockdowns. Retail entertainment spend increased 18 per cent to a record £9.3bn in 2020, marking the eight successive year of growth in the sector and the fastest growth rate ever recorded. The final [...]
BBC Three to return to TV screens after Normal People and Fleabag success March 2, 2021 BBC Three will return as a broadcast TV channel next year after delivering a string of recent hits such as Normal People, Fleabag and Killing Eve. The youth-focused channel was made online-only in 2016 as part of a cost-cutting plan by the public service broadcaster. But after a run of popular shows over the last [...]
Tech platforms must be more transparent over news, says Reach boss March 1, 2021 Tech giants such as Facebook and Google must be more transparent over how they use news content, the boss of publishing group Reach has said. The social media companies have been embroiled in controversy surrounding their control over online media after Facebook blocked access to news in Australia. Jim Mullen, who leads the publisher behind [...]
Daily Mirror owner Reach sees profit fall despite stronger second half March 1, 2021 Reach today posted a 12.8 per cent fall in profit as the newspaper publisher reported a stronger second half of the year. The firm, which owns the Mirror and the Express, said that profit fell to £133.8m, in line with expectations. An 18.9 per cent decline in print revenue over the year sent the group’s [...]
Cyber criminals seek to cash in on Covid vaccines after fraudulent adverts pop up February 26, 2021 Cyber criminals seek to cash in on Covid vaccines after 100 fraudulent adverts discovered