29 Jan 10
Weekly Broadcast News
29th January 2010
ITV CEO Crozier ‘will bring change’
ITV's incoming chief executive Adam Crozier will bring "transformational change" to the broadcaster, ITV Chairman Archie Norman has pledged. Following a lengthy and high-profile ten-month search for a new leader, ITV yesterday announced the surprise appointment of former Football Association chief executive Crozier. Norman said in a message to staff that Crozier is a "terrific leader" with a track record of bringing "transformational change in consumer businesses". In a later statement, he further revealed that Crozier was the "unanimous choice" of the ITV non-executive directors following a thorough selection process. He added that the 46-year-old's first task will be to "bring together" the talent within ITV and help drive forward the broadcaster to greater prosperity. Crozier, who will reportedly walk away from the Royal Mail with up to £2m in bonuses, expressed his excitement at joining a company with the heritage and brand status of ITV. When he takes up the role, Crozier will have to focus on unlocking new revenue streams for ITV to avoid its dependency on a free-to-air advertising model. Possible avenues for exploration include increasing the international sales output of ITV Studios or making ITV's digital channels, ITV2, ITV3 and ITV4, available on a subscription-only basis. Another issue facing the new chief executive is a recent court ruling that Sky must reduce its 17.5% stake in the broadcaster to just 7.5%. The forced stake sale could create an opening for a takeover bid from a rival broadcaster or media firm.
Cinema admissions hit record levels in 2009 + Avatar becomes the highest-grossing film of all time
The latest Cinema Advertising Association (CAA) figures show record cinema admissions in 2009, with the highest number of people flocking to the cinema since 2002. The overall cinema admissions for 2009 stand at 173.5m - a 5.6% increase on the previous year, despite blockbuster releases such as The Dark Knight and Mamma Mia! in 2008. These findings highlight that, in spite of the recession, audiences have shown no sign of reducing their cinema attendance. Massive movie releases such as UK hit Slumdog Millionaire, plus blockbusters such as Star Trek, Up, Ice Age 3 and of course Avatar, have all contributed to 2009's cinematic success. The strongest month for admissions in 2009 was July, which saw the release of 2009's highest-grossing film, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. July 2009 was also the 4th highest month for cinema admissions on record, with 20,039,500 going to the cinema. 16.3m cinemagoers headed to the big screen in December alone, a year-on-year increase of 32.2%. The emergence of 3D as a powerful new entertainment technology saw Avatar become the number one draw in December, taking £26.9m in just 13 days. Since then Avatar has put in another sterling ratings performance at the UK box office and has now become the highest-grossing film of all time. Last weekend, the film took £5.1m at cinemas around the UK. Avatar's success has already scooped it two Golden Globes and eight BAFTA nominations, and it has been named the highest-grossing film ever at the Odeon Leicester Square. As such, it is rumoured that the 3D fantasy film's director Cameron is already planning a sequel, which may move the plot beyond the world of Pandora.
SeeSaw secures more content deals
SeeSaw has announced further content deals for its video on-demand platform, including agreements with Channel 4, Five and various independent production firms. Based on technology developed for collapsed joint venture Project Kangaroo, the Arqiva-owned service provider today confirmed deals for around 3,000 hours of programming. The platform, which entered closed beta on Tuesday (26.01.10), will host Channel 4's 4OD and Five's Five On Demand when it fully launches around March. A deal is already in place with BBC Worldwide for a range of BBC programming, leaving just ITV remaining from the terrestrial networks. However, SeeSaw has reached a separate agreement with UK independent distributor Digital Rights Group, which will result in flagship ITV1 dramas, such as Doc Martin and Kingdom, being available at launch. The firm has also agreed the "first of many" US content deals with RHI Entertainment for 50 made-for-TV movies. All announced content will be available for free on the site, but supported by pre-and mid-roll advertising. SeeSaw has also agreed separate deals with independent production firms Shed Media and TalkbackThames for a variety of programming.
‘History’ 3D style – Arsenal v Man U
BSkyB is aiming to make history this Sunday (31.01.10) by airing the Premier League clash between Arsenal and Manchester United in 3D. Sky will be showing the special 3D feed of the clash in a handful of pubs across the country, and claims it will be the first transmission of a live 3D TV sports event to a public audience. Sunday's test broadcast comes ahead of a plan to roll out the 3D TV service to thousands of UK pubs that subscribe to Sky TV from April. The pubs have not been named for fear of overcrowding. The broadcaster is estimating that between 450 and 700 viewers will get to see the match in 3D and is confident they will not mind having to sport 3D spectacles to watch the game.
Guardian website attracts nearly 37 million monthly unique users
Guardian.co.uk achieved its second record-breaking month in a row with nearly 37m unique users for December, a record for a UK newspaper website. This surpassed its November record by 3.3%, according to figures released this week by the ABCe. Mail Online took second spot with the highest month-on-month increase of 5.1%, followed by Telegraph Online. Guardian News & Media's website network, which includes content from the Observer, attracted 36,980,637 unique users.
Record 10m TV sets sold in the UK in 2009
A record ten million TV sets were sold in the UK last year as the digital switchover and growing popularity of video gaming continues to boost demand, new research has revealed. According to a report by GfK, large flat-screen TV sets were among the few consumer electronics products to retain robust demand during the ongoing economic slowdown. Over the past five years, around 32 million flat-screen models have been sold in the UK. GfK director Nigel Catlow said that a drop in prices, coupled with progress in the switchover and increasing demand for video games has helped encourage more people to invest in a new TV model. In November last year, the switchover commenced at the Winter Hill transmitter group, which covers an estimated 7.2 million viewers in the Granada TV region. All other areas of the UK will make the transition to digital television by 2012. Catlow highlighted that a Freeview-integrated 32'' high definition TV set can now be purchased for under £300, which makes it a much less weighty purchase for consumers. The commercial launch of Freeview HD in the spring, along with Sky's forthcoming 3D TV channel, could further boost new TV sales over 2010.
Sky to provide HD boxes as standard
Sky has now started to provide high definition set-top boxes as standard to all new subscribers and existing customers upgrading to Sky+. Buoyed by strong financial results this week, including the Sky+ HD subscriber base breaking the 2m mark, Sky plans to reduce the presence of standard definition boxes from its product portfolio. Any new customers or existing subscribers upgrading to Sky+ will receive an HD box as the standard offering. The receiver will cost £49, with a £30 installation fee for new customers, or £99 and £60 installation for existing subscribers. Anyone subscribing to the HD pack of channels will receive the HD box for free, with installation priced at £30 for new customers and £60 for existing. Sky will continue to provide SD boxes, but only as like-for-like replacements for existing SD receivers or as upgrades for the Multiroom service.
Results for the half year ended 31 December 2009:
Net Customer Additions (000s) 9,708
Sky+ 6,455
Sky+HD 2,082
Multiroom 1,999
Sources: MediaGuardian.co.uk / BBC / MediaTel / WARC / Digital Spy / brandrepublic.com / nma.co.uk / broadcastnow.co.uk / Ofcom / T3 / BSkyB