Pace in £300m deal for 2Wire July 26, 2010 PACE, the world’s largest set-top box maker, has agreed to buy US broadband technology firm 2Wire for £306.6m to broaden its customer base beyond cable and satellite into the Internet TV market. The British company, which overtook to claim the top spot in May, said 2Wire had an established relationship with North American telecoms providers [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING August 10, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES HIGH COURT RULES INVESTOR BROKE BUY-OUT FUND CONTRACT An important precedent for the private equity industry has been set by a High Court ruling that Robert Adair, chairman of oil group Melrose Resources, breached a contract by refusing to put more money into Advantage Capital’s buy-out fund. Adair, who owns more than half [...]
Fight must go on for Five July 18, 2010 SOURCES close to pan-European broadcaster RTL Group yesterday poured cold water on speculation that newspaper tycoon Richard Desmond has sealed a deal to buy its beleaguered UK television channel Five, calling it “wishful thinking”. Desmond, the owner of Express newspapers and OK! magazine, was though to be on the brink of clinching an agreement to [...]
Britain’s private sector jobs miracle September 20, 2010 WITH the money supply dipping in August, and a flurry of other downbeat indicators, it is clear that the economy won’t grow especially quickly in the next few months. But this doesn’t necessarily bode ill for jobs. One of the great surprises of the past two years has been the performance of the labour market, [...]
The City is back but under new management December 21, 2010 BRITAIN’S financial landscape has been transformed since we last shone a light on the City’s most powerful figures two years ago. The City A.M./CityJet Power Hundred 2011 list ranks the most influential figures in UK finance as we head into the new year. It should be no surprise that it is very different from 2009. [...]
The City is back but under new management December 21, 2010 BRITAIN’S financial landscape has been transformed since we last shone a light on the City’s most powerful figures two years ago. The City A.M./CityJet Power Hundred 2011 list ranks the most influential figures in UK finance as we head into the new year. It should be no surprise that it is very different from 2009. [...]
Labour hits out at Sky tie-up plans July 7, 2010 LABOUR is gearing up to oppose Rupert Murdoch’s proposed £12bn takeover of satellite broadcaster BSkyB. Shadow culture secretary Ben Bradshaw has written to opposite number Jeremy Darroch demanding he launch an investigation into plans by News Corp. to acquire the 61 per cent of Sky it doesn’t already own. And a group of Labour MPs [...]
Labour hits out at Sky tie-up plans July 7, 2010 LABOUR is gearing up to oppose Rupert Murdoch’s proposed £12bn takeover of satellite broadcaster BSkyB. Shadow culture secretary Ben Bradshaw has written to opposite number Jeremy Darroch demanding he launch an investigation into plans by News Corp. to acquire the 61 per cent of Sky it doesn’t already own. And a group of Labour MPs [...]
Hugh Hefner launches campaign to take Playboy empire private July 12, 2010 HUGH Hefner, the doyen of top-shelf magazines, has launched a bid to take his Playboy Enterprises empire private. The octogenarian mogul yesterday announced a proposal to buy out all of the outstanding shares in the group for $5.50 per share in cash, a premium of over 30 per cent, valuing the firm at around $185m [...]
Penthouse publisher hires adviser to pursue Playboy July 15, 2010 FriendFinder Networks, the owner of adult magazine Penthouse, has hired a financial adviser as it prepares to counter Hugh Hefner’s bid to buy Playboy Enterprises. FriendFinder, an internet-based social networking and multimedia entertainment firm, yesterday said it has retained Imperial Capital. On Monday FriendFinder said that Hefner’s offer of $5.50 in cash for each of [...]