MEDIABLAB DECEMBER 5
December 5th 2007 01:31
From MediaBlab news service compiled daily by Peter Olszewski for Dow Jones' Factiva
NEWS CORP PREPARES DETAIL FOR IMMINENT DOW JONES TAKEOVER
News Corp, in preparing for the imminent Dow Jones takeover offer, which is for either cash or shares, has informed the Australian Stock Exchange that it estimates that up to 50,700,000 shares may have to be issued to satisfy the share alternative when the takeover occurs.
But News Corp may not have to issue so many. It just depends on what Dow Jones shareholders decide to do.
WEDDING ADS FOR THE AUSTRALIAN MARRIAGE OF FAMOUS MYANMAR ACTOR’S DAUGHTER BANNED BY JUNTA
Newspaper advertisements celebrating the forthcoming Sydney, Australia wedding of prominent Myanmar movie actor Kyaw Thu's daughter Myint Mo Oo to Kyaw Ko Ko have been banned in Yangon.
The couple will marry in Sydney on December 16 but, according to Mizzima news agency, “In a blatant act of vindictiveness, a wedding advertisement for prominent movie actor Kyaw Thu's daughter has been banned by the Burmese military junta's censorship board, allegedly for the actor's involvement in the monk-led protests in September.”
The bride-to-be’s father, actor Kyaw Thu told Mizzima, “As for me I have been banned from all my work like acting or directing. And my name cannot be published in any of the journals or newspapers. Even to advertise my daughter's wedding I cannot include my name."
During a rare press briefing held at Myanmar’s new capital, Nay Pyi Taw, the Myanmar Information Minister Brigadier General Kyaw San described artists and writers who participated in the September monk-led protests, as 'those lacking patriotism'.
The Myanmar actor along with several other artists, poets and writers during the protests in September offered 'Swan', food offerings, to the protesting monks at Burma's most revered Shwedagon pagoda.
The junta, in its effort to punish the artists, has banned all works of artists who took part in the protests. More than 20 of Kyaw Thu's films are currently banned from being released in theatres.
FORMER AUSTRALIAN TV WEATHERMAN UNDER ATTACK FOR BECOMING CHINA’S LEADING FOREIGN TV NEWSREADER
Former ABC TV weatherman Edwin Maher, who achieved fame in Victoria for not taking the weather too seriously and is today the TV news voice of China, has received a drubbing from The Los Angeles Times.
Essentially Maher has been attacked as a shameless propagandist and a sell-out.
Maher presents the English-language news on China Central Television from Beijing and when he first started he was the only foreigner working on air for a Chinese broadcaster.
The Los Angeles Times reported, “Maher is the first non-Chinese news anchor for state television's English-language station, CCTV International. He speaks almost no Mandarin, but that's of little concern to his bosses.
“He was hired in 2003 as the station introduced a Western face to shake its image as a stodgy government mouthpiece, famous among foreigners for its wooden presentations and sometimes-tortured English. Maher anchors the news up to four times a day for millions of viewers worldwide, including the US. Critics say Maher isn't a reporter at all, but a shameless government yes-man who gives all Western journalists a bad name. Maher answers bluntly: he says he simply doesn't care.
“Maher made his mark as a sort of Aussie Willard Scott, an eccentric weatherman who ad-libbed his reports by using map pointers such as carrots, sceptres and an ice cream cone. Maher has given the weather standing upside-down and once poured a cup of water over his head during an Australian heat wave.
“He came to China on a whim after his wife died from a brain tutor in 2001. Since then, he's become a minor celebrity who has also written a series of articles for government-run China Daily on his fumbling efforts to learn the language and culture. This year, the illustrated columns have been turned into a book, published in English and Chinese.”
The article criticised Maher for obviously toeing the Chinese line when reading news reports and said, “During a recent broadcast on the impact of the controversial Three Gorges Dam, he reported only the government's assurances that no environmental damage was being done, with no mention of warnings from the West that the massive project could become an ecological disaster.”
The Times quoted Neil Henry, a UC Berkeley School of Journalism professor saying that Maher’s job “sounds like an effort to lend a whiff of Western-style credibility to their news operations, in a superficial way, without having to actually adhere to high standards such as fairness, independence, balance, public service and accuracy.
“But a propagandist is a propagandist, no matter what one's race or country of origin."
Orville Schell, a China expert at the Asia Society in New York, said, "China has a long tradition of kept foreigners who are friends of the government through thick and thin," Schell said. "What he is doing is not journalism as we understand it in the West. I'm not sure I would want an exclusive diet of news from a 'friend of China.' "
Joan Bieder, a senior lecturer at UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism who specialises in TV reporting, writing and production, and who has run training sessions for TV reporters working for Singapore's government-run network, said of Maher, "Most Americans would say he's a sellout."
Suring his time at the ABC in Victoria, there was an Edwin Maher Appreciation Society, a book (Confessions of a TV Weatherman), a rap song featured on ABC TV's Rage (Your Weekend's Gonna Be Ruined, But It's Not My Fault!), frequent Living Legend listings and a busy schedule as a public speaker.
The most interesting aspect of the LA Times article is the revelation of the inherent antipathy shown by the American media against the Chinese.
SBS TV LANDS AUSTRALIAN RIGHTS TO LIVE BROADCASTS OF EURO 2008 SOCCER MATCHES
SBS TV in Australia has secured the rights to broadcast selected live Euro 2008 football matches, including the opening game and final.
The free-to-air agreement allows SBS to broadcast eight live matches, including the opening game and final, in addition to a daily highlights programme, match replays and a “Road to Euro” preview series.
SBS Radio will broadcast matches in languages of the participating nations in addition to English, with daily updates, interviews and live crosses in most language programs.
“2008 will mark eight years since Euro has been available on free-to-air and this is just another example of SBS’s commitment to providing all Australians with access to world class events,” said SBS managing director, Shaun Brown.
“Being able to deliver an international tournament of this significance, across the corporation’s multi-media platforms is a fantastic opportunity for the network.”
The UEFA European Football Championship (Euro) is the world’s second major football event, topped only by the FIFA World Cup, for which SBS is the official broadcaster.
Euro 2008 will be co-hosted by Austria and Switzerland, June 7-29 and will also be broadcast on subscription television through Setanta Sports Australia.
DUN & BRADSTREET BUYS ALLBUSINESS.COM FOR US$55 MILLION
Dun & Bradstreet has acquired AllBusiness.com, Inc for US$55 million. AllBusiness is an online media and e-commerce company that leverages its proprietary publishing platform and a broad range of content to help users run their small businesses.
The AllBusiness acquisition directly supports D&B’s strategic stake of growing its internet business. AllBusiness will enhance D&B’s internet capabilities while expanding its advertising-based revenue stream. In addition, the acquisition will provide a significant opportunity to market D&B’s products and quality business information to new and existing customers.
AllBusiness generates high-quality traffic by publishing rich content on the web and leverages its expertise in search engine optimization to generate higher listings of its content on each search inquiry. The company has an existing base of more than 2 million unique monthly visitors, and it monetises its traffic through online display advertising by national advertisers. The AllBusiness acquisition also provides a platform to generate cross-selling opportunities for D&B products aimed at small business professionals, which is the key online market that D&B serves today.
Given the timing of this acquisition, AllBusiness will have no impact on D&B's 2007 financial guidance, and is expected to generate approximately US$10 million of incremental revenue for D&B in 2008. D&B will leverage its financially flexible business model to absorb the approximately $0.06 of dilution associated with the acquisition in 2008 without impacting its previously announced 2008 operating income or EPS outlook. The company expects AllBusiness to be accretive to earnings in 2009.
SEVEN NETWORK EXTENDS TAKEOVER BID FOR UNWIRED GROUP
Seven Network Ltd subsidiary Network Investment Holdings Ltd, has extended its takeover bid for the fifth time for Unwired Group Ltd shares to next Monday evening.
It has already secured over 90 percent ownership of Unwired, and will proceed to compulsorily acquire the remaining shares in the company.
Seven said it extended the bid simply to allow remaining shareholders to accept the offer for shares before compulsory acquisition – it also makes the process simpler and less expensive for Seven.
AUSTRALIAN DIRECTOR WINS FIRST APPEARANCE AWARD AT AMSTERDAM DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL
Australian director Robert Nugent has received the First Appearance Award at the 2007 International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam for his feature documentary End of the Rainbow.
The feature was Nugent’s directorial debut.
End of the Rainbow is the first Australian film to win the First Appearance Award that supports young and upcoming filmmakers. The film was awarded a prize of EURO5,000.
End of the Rainbow is an elegiac portrait of the changes brought by the arrival of an industrial gold mine in a remote region of West Africa. It was described as a “critical and multi-facetted story of globalisation,” by International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam jury chair Arik Bernstein.
The film was produced by Mitzi Goldman, written by Rachel Sanderson and
edited by Andrea Lang. It is an Australian/French co-production that received funding from the FFC.
Australian documentaries had a strong year at the festival with three other Australian projects also screening during the prestigious festival.
Night (writer/director Lawrence Johnson) had its European premiere in the Joris Ivens competition, Donkey in Lahore (director Faramarz K-Rahber) screened in First Appearances and His Mother’s Voice (director Dennis Tupicoff) was part of Animation Docs.
AUSTRALIAN FILM ABOUT ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TIES FOR FIRST PLACE IN ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL
An Australian film Lucky Miles about illegal immigrants surviving in the outback, and produced by Adelaide-based sisters Lesley and Jo Dyer, has tied for best film at the landmark Asian Festival of 1st Films held in Singapore, according to The Australian.
Lucky Miles tied for best film with Dharm, a courageous film by Indian producer Sheetal V Talwar dealing with the sensitive subject of radical Hinduism in India.
Jo and Lesley Dyer also won best producer at the festival.
This is the first time Australian films have been admitted to this festival in their own right.
Sydney film student Maja Newell won best director of documentary for Richard, a controversial film about an introspective western-Sydney toy collector who tragically took his life during filming.
Foreign journalists at the festival gave their award to Kabul Express, a story about two journalists who set out from India to interview members of the Taliban.
REUTERS SELL PRICE MIGHT PROVE EXORBITANT FOR THOMSON’S DUE TO CREDIT CRISIS
Rafat Ali reports that if Reuters is affected by credit crisis in Europe and the US, Thomson's already "pricey price" for Reuters might look more even more exorbitant now.
The Wall Street Journal carries an analysis of thinking among analysts and other buyers of Reuters' financial info services and Felix Nahi, an analyst at Vancouver broker Odlum Brown, was quoted as saying, “It's terrific for Reuters shareholders, but what's the benefit for Thomson?"
Rafat Ali said, “Reuters's main clients are investment banks and hedge funds and if layoffs hit that sector in the next year, as many expect, demand could weaken for Reuters terminals. Meanwhile, Thomson has long delivered steady profit growth, and only has a 30 percent of revenues come from financial markets.
GLOBAL KIDS MEDIA CONFERENCE KICKS OFF TODAY IN SOUTH AFRICA
Young people from around the world will converge on South Africa’s legendary Robben Island to take part in the eighth annual Bush Radio Media Kidocracy Konfrence which runs from today until December 10.
Bizcommunity.com reports that the main theme of this year’s conference is the celebration of rights and it comes at the time of the 18th anniversary of the UN Convention on the rights of the child.
Some of the topics identified for discussion by the children at this year's conference include virginity testing and circumcision, child trafficking, cultural identity, global warming, human rights and sexuality.
The conference aims to enable children and youth to identify the social issues pertinent to themselves and their peers as well as to talk about the power of the media – and how to use it.
The conference culminates with a live broadcast from the island, on the International Children's Day of Broadcasting. December 10, 2007, on Bush Radio 89.5fm.
AMERICAN RADIO REVENUES FALL IN OMINOUS QUARTERLY SLUMP
Media Daily News reports that US radio revenues fell 5 percent in the third quarter of 2007 to US$5.5 billion.
In percentage terms, this decline is the worst quarterly slump in years. After many quarters of flat revenue or small declines of 1 percent, the ominous third-quarter results may mark the beginning of accelerating declines like those affecting newspaper publishers
SALE OF REVEILLE TO ELISABETH MURDOCH’S SHINE GROUP IS IMMINENT
MediaBistro Ben Silverman won't need his pay cheque as co-chairman of NBC Entertainment after he sells his Reveille production studio to Elisabeth Murdoch's Shine Group for a proposed $US200 million.
Two sources involved in the talks confirmed yesterday that a deal to sell Reveille to Murdoch is imminent. Though talks have been going on informally for about two years, they have recently gathered steam.
US FINANCE BAD NEWS IS GOOD NEWS FOR INTERNATIONAL ‘VIEWSPAPER’ THE ECONOMIST WITH SURGING PROFITS
The influential Economist magazine is not only weathering the US economic downturn, but it hopes it can drive up its readership, according to a Guardian report.
The Economist Group posited a 25 percent jump in half-year profits this week for its weekly title, as well as its information and conference businesses and politics-focused newspapers.
Helen Alexander, group chief executive, put much of the success down to the Economist's "global perspectives" on stories.
"Circulation in January to June was nearly 1.3 million and that continues to grow. We have international writers in most countries, and readers get to look at what is going on from perspectives from outside their country. Particularly in the US market, that perspective is very important."
The Guardian said, “The print edition has enjoyed a boost similar to that of the online versions of UK newspapers and other internationally sourced news services, which are increasingly popular in the US. The Economist now has American print sales of almost 700,000 and circulation continues to rise. It sells in more than 200 countries in total.
“Though some advertisers warn that the credit crunch will hurt spending on marketing and therefore put pressure on media companies, Alexander sees a potential boost from the turmoil.”
She said, "On critical financial things people do turn to the Economist ... but we have yet to see that come through fully yet. It comes back to the point of how we make sense of the world. It's absolutely a highlight of the brand: forming opinions and having points of view. A viewspaper, not a newspaper."
The group, half-owned by the Financial Times publisher Pearson, posted a 25 percent rise in operating profits to GBP20.8 million on revenues up 4 percent to GBP124.6 million in the six months to end-September.
The Economist group has also made investment in the Indian market and has a continuing focus on China.
KIWI SURRENDERS YOUTUBE DOMAIN NAMES FOR $NZ8000
India's official domain registry has a notice stating YouTube acquired the domain names http://www.youtube.co.nz, http://www.youtube.co.in and http://www.youtube.in for a sum of NZ$8000 from Rohit Kohli from New Zealand.
REPORTS OF PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN NEWS CORP AND LINKEDIN SOCIAL NETWORK SITE SAID TO BE FALSE
AAP reports that despite rumours over a future partnership, sources close to LinkedIn and News Corp deny there are any discussions for Rupert Murdoch's media giant to acquire the fast-growing business online social network.
British media reports suggested that the two were discussing a deal worth about $A1.13 billion, but AAP’s source claims to have shot such reports down.
News Corp and LinkedIn declined to comment.
BRIDAL MAGAZINE WINS AUSTRALIA’S BELL AWARDS FOR SPECIALIST AND BUSINESS PUBLISHERS
A bridal publication, Real Weddings, has won the magazine of the year title at Australia’s Bell Awards for specialist and business publishers, as well as being named best consumer magazine with a circulation of less than 30,000 copies.
The magazine is published by wife and husband team, Kirsten and Tony MacKelden, and their publishing business, Indigo Media Group, was named in BRW magazine's 2006 Upstarts list as one of Australia's fastest-growing young companies.
MacKelden got the idea for the magazine start-up while leafing through other magazines in 2001 while planning for her own wedding overseas.
She told The Australian newspaper, “I thought, 'Where is the Vogue of the bridal market in Australia? Where is the beautiful content and engaging editorial? I couldn't get it out of my head that there must be other women like me who wanted more from a bridal magazine than 300 pages of ads put together.’"
She embarked on a three-month publishing course at New York University, and then, using her husband’s savings as start-up funds, she launched Real Weddings in May 2002 as a bi-annual in Victoria. The title went national from its third issue and now comes out in June and December.
Last year she also launched Real Weddings Style, which appears in September, and plans to hopes to publish another annual March.
INDIAN MAGAZINES POST 15 PERCENT INCREASE IN AD REVENUE
Advertising in Indian newspapers increased by only 1 percent in the period to September 30 this year.
But during this period, advertising in Indian magazines increased 15 percent, according to a study by Adex India, a division of Tam Media Research.
India’s Business Standard said the growth was largely due to the proliferation of niche magazines in the Indian market.
Advertising in magazines rose by 55 per cent in January-September 2007 compared with the advertising during the same period in 2004.
Women and current affairs magazines had the biggest ad share, while advertising increased the fastest in the fashion and lifestyle segment. Monthly magazines attracted most of the advertisements, with an ad ratio of 70:30 for English and regional magazines respectively.
Publications dedicated to women, business and current affairs enjoyed a combined share of 52 percent of the total ad volume in magazines, compared with the numbers in the same period in 2004.
In the women’s segment, 40 magazines contributed to 22 percent of the total ad volumes, while 35 current affairs magazines had a share of 21 percent.
Of the 23 magazine categories surveyed, 16 showed ad growth.
Media and advertising and city-centric magazines were the two other fastest-growing genre, with ad volumes increasing 120 percent and 110 percent respectively.
Advertisers focused more on monthly magazines, which enjoyed 44 percent of all advertising in magazines, followed by weekly magazines with a 31 percent share and fortnightly publications 22 percent.
English language magazines enjoyed 69 percent ad volumes as opposed to regional language publications.
The top five sectors were services, personal accessories, media, banking and finance and auto.
RED CROSS REPORTS SEVEN COUNTRIES HAVE JOINED TO ENSURE SAFETY OF JOURNALISTS IN WAR ZONES
Seven countries including the US and Britain have joined to ensure the safety of journalists in war zones, the International Red Cross said on Friday.
France, Germany, Australia, Canada and Denmark also committed themselves to accept a new nonbinding accord on protecting correspondents in line with the Geneva Conventions on the conduct of warfare, it said.
AP reports that media rights campaigners cautiously welcomed the pledge at a meeting of the 194 signatories of the Geneva Conventions, but said its effectiveness would be measured by what the countries did in practice.
Under the pledge, countries promise to educate their soldiers and security forces in international humanitarian law. The agreement also asks them to preserve media independence and act against those who seriously violate the rights of journalists.
Other media rights campaigners lamented that so few of the 194 signatories to the Geneva Conventions have taken the opportunity to reaffirm their commitment to protecting journalists.
AUSTRALIA’S SEVEN TV NETWORK REACHES OUT-OF-COURT SETTLEMENT WITH SINGAPORE-OWNED OPTUS TELCO
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the Seven Network in Australia has reached an out-of-court settlement with Singapore-owned telco Optus over costs in the now-famous $200 million C7 case, leaving telco Telstra as the only party holding out for its costs to be awarded by Justice Ronald Sackville.
Seven has agreed to pay a confidential sum to Optus, which spent $9.2 million successfully defending the case in the Federal Court.
Seven's appeal against Justice Sackville's July decision is listed for its first procedural hearing in February. The appeal is against News, PBL and Telstra only.
SOCCER GROUP IN AUSTRALIA LAUNCHES INTERNET DOCUMENTARY SERIES TO ATTRACT MORE FOLLOWERS
The Football Federation of Australia has launched a made-for-internet documentary series showing the transformation of a non-fan into a soccer devotee following last week's exhibition match featuring footballer David Beckham.
The Fansformation series, which will screen at fansformation.com, shows three fanatical Sydney Football Club fans doing their utmost to convert a bagpipe-playing, Burt Bacharach-loving barrister called Lachlan into a fan of the club and the sport.
The FFA was also keen to create some content of its own and test ways to develop marketing channels beyond traditional advertising.
The Fansformation series, created by Sydney content agency The Conscience Organisation, will screen as seven three-minute webisodes, but could make an appearance on mobiles and as a 22-minute TV show, pending the outcome of talks with Fox Sports.
NEWS CORP PREPARES DETAIL FOR IMMINENT DOW JONES TAKEOVER
News Corp, in preparing for the imminent Dow Jones takeover offer, which is for either cash or shares, has informed the Australian Stock Exchange that it estimates that up to 50,700,000 shares may have to be issued to satisfy the share alternative when the takeover occurs.
But News Corp may not have to issue so many. It just depends on what Dow Jones shareholders decide to do.
WEDDING ADS FOR THE AUSTRALIAN MARRIAGE OF FAMOUS MYANMAR ACTOR’S DAUGHTER BANNED BY JUNTA
The couple will marry in Sydney on December 16 but, according to Mizzima news agency, “In a blatant act of vindictiveness, a wedding advertisement for prominent movie actor Kyaw Thu's daughter has been banned by the Burmese military junta's censorship board, allegedly for the actor's involvement in the monk-led protests in September.”
The bride-to-be’s father, actor Kyaw Thu told Mizzima, “As for me I have been banned from all my work like acting or directing. And my name cannot be published in any of the journals or newspapers. Even to advertise my daughter's wedding I cannot include my name."
During a rare press briefing held at Myanmar’s new capital, Nay Pyi Taw, the Myanmar Information Minister Brigadier General Kyaw San described artists and writers who participated in the September monk-led protests, as 'those lacking patriotism'.
The Myanmar actor along with several other artists, poets and writers during the protests in September offered 'Swan', food offerings, to the protesting monks at Burma's most revered Shwedagon pagoda.
FORMER AUSTRALIAN TV WEATHERMAN UNDER ATTACK FOR BECOMING CHINA’S LEADING FOREIGN TV NEWSREADER
Former ABC TV weatherman Edwin Maher, who achieved fame in Victoria for not taking the weather too seriously and is today the TV news voice of China, has received a drubbing from The Los Angeles Times.
Essentially Maher has been attacked as a shameless propagandist and a sell-out.
Maher presents the English-language news on China Central Television from Beijing and when he first started he was the only foreigner working on air for a Chinese broadcaster.
The Los Angeles Times reported, “Maher is the first non-Chinese news anchor for state television's English-language station, CCTV International. He speaks almost no Mandarin, but that's of little concern to his bosses.
“He was hired in 2003 as the station introduced a Western face to shake its image as a stodgy government mouthpiece, famous among foreigners for its wooden presentations and sometimes-tortured English. Maher anchors the news up to four times a day for millions of viewers worldwide, including the US. Critics say Maher isn't a reporter at all, but a shameless government yes-man who gives all Western journalists a bad name. Maher answers bluntly: he says he simply doesn't care.
“Maher made his mark as a sort of Aussie Willard Scott, an eccentric weatherman who ad-libbed his reports by using map pointers such as carrots, sceptres and an ice cream cone. Maher has given the weather standing upside-down and once poured a cup of water over his head during an Australian heat wave.
“He came to China on a whim after his wife died from a brain tutor in 2001. Since then, he's become a minor celebrity who has also written a series of articles for government-run China Daily on his fumbling efforts to learn the language and culture. This year, the illustrated columns have been turned into a book, published in English and Chinese.”
The article criticised Maher for obviously toeing the Chinese line when reading news reports and said, “During a recent broadcast on the impact of the controversial Three Gorges Dam, he reported only the government's assurances that no environmental damage was being done, with no mention of warnings from the West that the massive project could become an ecological disaster.”
The Times quoted Neil Henry, a UC Berkeley School of Journalism professor saying that Maher’s job “sounds like an effort to lend a whiff of Western-style credibility to their news operations, in a superficial way, without having to actually adhere to high standards such as fairness, independence, balance, public service and accuracy.
“But a propagandist is a propagandist, no matter what one's race or country of origin."
Orville Schell, a China expert at the Asia Society in New York, said, "China has a long tradition of kept foreigners who are friends of the government through thick and thin," Schell said. "What he is doing is not journalism as we understand it in the West. I'm not sure I would want an exclusive diet of news from a 'friend of China.' "
Joan Bieder, a senior lecturer at UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism who specialises in TV reporting, writing and production, and who has run training sessions for TV reporters working for Singapore's government-run network, said of Maher, "Most Americans would say he's a sellout."
Suring his time at the ABC in Victoria, there was an Edwin Maher Appreciation Society, a book (Confessions of a TV Weatherman), a rap song featured on ABC TV's Rage (Your Weekend's Gonna Be Ruined, But It's Not My Fault!), frequent Living Legend listings and a busy schedule as a public speaker.
The most interesting aspect of the LA Times article is the revelation of the inherent antipathy shown by the American media against the Chinese.
SBS TV LANDS AUSTRALIAN RIGHTS TO LIVE BROADCASTS OF EURO 2008 SOCCER MATCHES
SBS TV in Australia has secured the rights to broadcast selected live Euro 2008 football matches, including the opening game and final.
The free-to-air agreement allows SBS to broadcast eight live matches, including the opening game and final, in addition to a daily highlights programme, match replays and a “Road to Euro” preview series.
SBS Radio will broadcast matches in languages of the participating nations in addition to English, with daily updates, interviews and live crosses in most language programs.
“2008 will mark eight years since Euro has been available on free-to-air and this is just another example of SBS’s commitment to providing all Australians with access to world class events,” said SBS managing director, Shaun Brown.
“Being able to deliver an international tournament of this significance, across the corporation’s multi-media platforms is a fantastic opportunity for the network.”
The UEFA European Football Championship (Euro) is the world’s second major football event, topped only by the FIFA World Cup, for which SBS is the official broadcaster.
Euro 2008 will be co-hosted by Austria and Switzerland, June 7-29 and will also be broadcast on subscription television through Setanta Sports Australia.
DUN & BRADSTREET BUYS ALLBUSINESS.COM FOR US$55 MILLION
Dun & Bradstreet has acquired AllBusiness.com, Inc for US$55 million. AllBusiness is an online media and e-commerce company that leverages its proprietary publishing platform and a broad range of content to help users run their small businesses.
The AllBusiness acquisition directly supports D&B’s strategic stake of growing its internet business. AllBusiness will enhance D&B’s internet capabilities while expanding its advertising-based revenue stream. In addition, the acquisition will provide a significant opportunity to market D&B’s products and quality business information to new and existing customers.
AllBusiness generates high-quality traffic by publishing rich content on the web and leverages its expertise in search engine optimization to generate higher listings of its content on each search inquiry. The company has an existing base of more than 2 million unique monthly visitors, and it monetises its traffic through online display advertising by national advertisers. The AllBusiness acquisition also provides a platform to generate cross-selling opportunities for D&B products aimed at small business professionals, which is the key online market that D&B serves today.
Given the timing of this acquisition, AllBusiness will have no impact on D&B's 2007 financial guidance, and is expected to generate approximately US$10 million of incremental revenue for D&B in 2008. D&B will leverage its financially flexible business model to absorb the approximately $0.06 of dilution associated with the acquisition in 2008 without impacting its previously announced 2008 operating income or EPS outlook. The company expects AllBusiness to be accretive to earnings in 2009.
SEVEN NETWORK EXTENDS TAKEOVER BID FOR UNWIRED GROUP
Seven Network Ltd subsidiary Network Investment Holdings Ltd, has extended its takeover bid for the fifth time for Unwired Group Ltd shares to next Monday evening.
It has already secured over 90 percent ownership of Unwired, and will proceed to compulsorily acquire the remaining shares in the company.
Seven said it extended the bid simply to allow remaining shareholders to accept the offer for shares before compulsory acquisition – it also makes the process simpler and less expensive for Seven.
AUSTRALIAN DIRECTOR WINS FIRST APPEARANCE AWARD AT AMSTERDAM DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL
Australian director Robert Nugent has received the First Appearance Award at the 2007 International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam for his feature documentary End of the Rainbow.
The feature was Nugent’s directorial debut.
End of the Rainbow is the first Australian film to win the First Appearance Award that supports young and upcoming filmmakers. The film was awarded a prize of EURO5,000.
End of the Rainbow is an elegiac portrait of the changes brought by the arrival of an industrial gold mine in a remote region of West Africa. It was described as a “critical and multi-facetted story of globalisation,” by International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam jury chair Arik Bernstein.
The film was produced by Mitzi Goldman, written by Rachel Sanderson and
edited by Andrea Lang. It is an Australian/French co-production that received funding from the FFC.
Australian documentaries had a strong year at the festival with three other Australian projects also screening during the prestigious festival.
Night (writer/director Lawrence Johnson) had its European premiere in the Joris Ivens competition, Donkey in Lahore (director Faramarz K-Rahber) screened in First Appearances and His Mother’s Voice (director Dennis Tupicoff) was part of Animation Docs.
AUSTRALIAN FILM ABOUT ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TIES FOR FIRST PLACE IN ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL
An Australian film Lucky Miles about illegal immigrants surviving in the outback, and produced by Adelaide-based sisters Lesley and Jo Dyer, has tied for best film at the landmark Asian Festival of 1st Films held in Singapore, according to The Australian.
Lucky Miles tied for best film with Dharm, a courageous film by Indian producer Sheetal V Talwar dealing with the sensitive subject of radical Hinduism in India.
Jo and Lesley Dyer also won best producer at the festival.
This is the first time Australian films have been admitted to this festival in their own right.
Sydney film student Maja Newell won best director of documentary for Richard, a controversial film about an introspective western-Sydney toy collector who tragically took his life during filming.
Foreign journalists at the festival gave their award to Kabul Express, a story about two journalists who set out from India to interview members of the Taliban.
REUTERS SELL PRICE MIGHT PROVE EXORBITANT FOR THOMSON’S DUE TO CREDIT CRISIS
Rafat Ali reports that if Reuters is affected by credit crisis in Europe and the US, Thomson's already "pricey price" for Reuters might look more even more exorbitant now.
The Wall Street Journal carries an analysis of thinking among analysts and other buyers of Reuters' financial info services and Felix Nahi, an analyst at Vancouver broker Odlum Brown, was quoted as saying, “It's terrific for Reuters shareholders, but what's the benefit for Thomson?"
Rafat Ali said, “Reuters's main clients are investment banks and hedge funds and if layoffs hit that sector in the next year, as many expect, demand could weaken for Reuters terminals. Meanwhile, Thomson has long delivered steady profit growth, and only has a 30 percent of revenues come from financial markets.
GLOBAL KIDS MEDIA CONFERENCE KICKS OFF TODAY IN SOUTH AFRICA
Young people from around the world will converge on South Africa’s legendary Robben Island to take part in the eighth annual Bush Radio Media Kidocracy Konfrence which runs from today until December 10.
Bizcommunity.com reports that the main theme of this year’s conference is the celebration of rights and it comes at the time of the 18th anniversary of the UN Convention on the rights of the child.
Some of the topics identified for discussion by the children at this year's conference include virginity testing and circumcision, child trafficking, cultural identity, global warming, human rights and sexuality.
The conference aims to enable children and youth to identify the social issues pertinent to themselves and their peers as well as to talk about the power of the media – and how to use it.
The conference culminates with a live broadcast from the island, on the International Children's Day of Broadcasting. December 10, 2007, on Bush Radio 89.5fm.
AMERICAN RADIO REVENUES FALL IN OMINOUS QUARTERLY SLUMP
Media Daily News reports that US radio revenues fell 5 percent in the third quarter of 2007 to US$5.5 billion.
In percentage terms, this decline is the worst quarterly slump in years. After many quarters of flat revenue or small declines of 1 percent, the ominous third-quarter results may mark the beginning of accelerating declines like those affecting newspaper publishers
SALE OF REVEILLE TO ELISABETH MURDOCH’S SHINE GROUP IS IMMINENT
MediaBistro Ben Silverman won't need his pay cheque as co-chairman of NBC Entertainment after he sells his Reveille production studio to Elisabeth Murdoch's Shine Group for a proposed $US200 million.
Two sources involved in the talks confirmed yesterday that a deal to sell Reveille to Murdoch is imminent. Though talks have been going on informally for about two years, they have recently gathered steam.
US FINANCE BAD NEWS IS GOOD NEWS FOR INTERNATIONAL ‘VIEWSPAPER’ THE ECONOMIST WITH SURGING PROFITS
The influential Economist magazine is not only weathering the US economic downturn, but it hopes it can drive up its readership, according to a Guardian report.
The Economist Group posited a 25 percent jump in half-year profits this week for its weekly title, as well as its information and conference businesses and politics-focused newspapers.
Helen Alexander, group chief executive, put much of the success down to the Economist's "global perspectives" on stories.
"Circulation in January to June was nearly 1.3 million and that continues to grow. We have international writers in most countries, and readers get to look at what is going on from perspectives from outside their country. Particularly in the US market, that perspective is very important."
The Guardian said, “The print edition has enjoyed a boost similar to that of the online versions of UK newspapers and other internationally sourced news services, which are increasingly popular in the US. The Economist now has American print sales of almost 700,000 and circulation continues to rise. It sells in more than 200 countries in total.
“Though some advertisers warn that the credit crunch will hurt spending on marketing and therefore put pressure on media companies, Alexander sees a potential boost from the turmoil.”
She said, "On critical financial things people do turn to the Economist ... but we have yet to see that come through fully yet. It comes back to the point of how we make sense of the world. It's absolutely a highlight of the brand: forming opinions and having points of view. A viewspaper, not a newspaper."
The group, half-owned by the Financial Times publisher Pearson, posted a 25 percent rise in operating profits to GBP20.8 million on revenues up 4 percent to GBP124.6 million in the six months to end-September.
The Economist group has also made investment in the Indian market and has a continuing focus on China.
KIWI SURRENDERS YOUTUBE DOMAIN NAMES FOR $NZ8000
India's official domain registry has a notice stating YouTube acquired the domain names http://www.youtube.co.nz, http://www.youtube.co.in and http://www.youtube.in for a sum of NZ$8000 from Rohit Kohli from New Zealand.
REPORTS OF PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN NEWS CORP AND LINKEDIN SOCIAL NETWORK SITE SAID TO BE FALSE
AAP reports that despite rumours over a future partnership, sources close to LinkedIn and News Corp deny there are any discussions for Rupert Murdoch's media giant to acquire the fast-growing business online social network.
British media reports suggested that the two were discussing a deal worth about $A1.13 billion, but AAP’s source claims to have shot such reports down.
News Corp and LinkedIn declined to comment.
BRIDAL MAGAZINE WINS AUSTRALIA’S BELL AWARDS FOR SPECIALIST AND BUSINESS PUBLISHERS
A bridal publication, Real Weddings, has won the magazine of the year title at Australia’s Bell Awards for specialist and business publishers, as well as being named best consumer magazine with a circulation of less than 30,000 copies.
The magazine is published by wife and husband team, Kirsten and Tony MacKelden, and their publishing business, Indigo Media Group, was named in BRW magazine's 2006 Upstarts list as one of Australia's fastest-growing young companies.
MacKelden got the idea for the magazine start-up while leafing through other magazines in 2001 while planning for her own wedding overseas.
She told The Australian newspaper, “I thought, 'Where is the Vogue of the bridal market in Australia? Where is the beautiful content and engaging editorial? I couldn't get it out of my head that there must be other women like me who wanted more from a bridal magazine than 300 pages of ads put together.’"
She embarked on a three-month publishing course at New York University, and then, using her husband’s savings as start-up funds, she launched Real Weddings in May 2002 as a bi-annual in Victoria. The title went national from its third issue and now comes out in June and December.
Last year she also launched Real Weddings Style, which appears in September, and plans to hopes to publish another annual March.
INDIAN MAGAZINES POST 15 PERCENT INCREASE IN AD REVENUE
Advertising in Indian newspapers increased by only 1 percent in the period to September 30 this year.
But during this period, advertising in Indian magazines increased 15 percent, according to a study by Adex India, a division of Tam Media Research.
India’s Business Standard said the growth was largely due to the proliferation of niche magazines in the Indian market.
Advertising in magazines rose by 55 per cent in January-September 2007 compared with the advertising during the same period in 2004.
Women and current affairs magazines had the biggest ad share, while advertising increased the fastest in the fashion and lifestyle segment. Monthly magazines attracted most of the advertisements, with an ad ratio of 70:30 for English and regional magazines respectively.
Publications dedicated to women, business and current affairs enjoyed a combined share of 52 percent of the total ad volume in magazines, compared with the numbers in the same period in 2004.
In the women’s segment, 40 magazines contributed to 22 percent of the total ad volumes, while 35 current affairs magazines had a share of 21 percent.
Of the 23 magazine categories surveyed, 16 showed ad growth.
Media and advertising and city-centric magazines were the two other fastest-growing genre, with ad volumes increasing 120 percent and 110 percent respectively.
Advertisers focused more on monthly magazines, which enjoyed 44 percent of all advertising in magazines, followed by weekly magazines with a 31 percent share and fortnightly publications 22 percent.
English language magazines enjoyed 69 percent ad volumes as opposed to regional language publications.
The top five sectors were services, personal accessories, media, banking and finance and auto.
RED CROSS REPORTS SEVEN COUNTRIES HAVE JOINED TO ENSURE SAFETY OF JOURNALISTS IN WAR ZONES
Seven countries including the US and Britain have joined to ensure the safety of journalists in war zones, the International Red Cross said on Friday.
France, Germany, Australia, Canada and Denmark also committed themselves to accept a new nonbinding accord on protecting correspondents in line with the Geneva Conventions on the conduct of warfare, it said.
AP reports that media rights campaigners cautiously welcomed the pledge at a meeting of the 194 signatories of the Geneva Conventions, but said its effectiveness would be measured by what the countries did in practice.
Under the pledge, countries promise to educate their soldiers and security forces in international humanitarian law. The agreement also asks them to preserve media independence and act against those who seriously violate the rights of journalists.
Other media rights campaigners lamented that so few of the 194 signatories to the Geneva Conventions have taken the opportunity to reaffirm their commitment to protecting journalists.
AUSTRALIA’S SEVEN TV NETWORK REACHES OUT-OF-COURT SETTLEMENT WITH SINGAPORE-OWNED OPTUS TELCO
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the Seven Network in Australia has reached an out-of-court settlement with Singapore-owned telco Optus over costs in the now-famous $200 million C7 case, leaving telco Telstra as the only party holding out for its costs to be awarded by Justice Ronald Sackville.
Seven has agreed to pay a confidential sum to Optus, which spent $9.2 million successfully defending the case in the Federal Court.
Seven's appeal against Justice Sackville's July decision is listed for its first procedural hearing in February. The appeal is against News, PBL and Telstra only.
SOCCER GROUP IN AUSTRALIA LAUNCHES INTERNET DOCUMENTARY SERIES TO ATTRACT MORE FOLLOWERS
The Football Federation of Australia has launched a made-for-internet documentary series showing the transformation of a non-fan into a soccer devotee following last week's exhibition match featuring footballer David Beckham.
The Fansformation series, which will screen at fansformation.com, shows three fanatical Sydney Football Club fans doing their utmost to convert a bagpipe-playing, Burt Bacharach-loving barrister called Lachlan into a fan of the club and the sport.
The FFA was also keen to create some content of its own and test ways to develop marketing channels beyond traditional advertising.
The Fansformation series, created by Sydney content agency The Conscience Organisation, will screen as seven three-minute webisodes, but could make an appearance on mobiles and as a 22-minute TV show, pending the outcome of talks with Fox Sports.
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