Scottish broadcaster STV doubles dividend as it reduces debt August 28, 2014 Scottish broadcaster and production company STV is doubling its interim dividend to 2p a share after first half operating profit swelled by 20 per cent to nearly £10m. Revenues at the business, which airs The X Factor and soaps Emmerdale and Coronation Street north of the border as well as producing series including Catchphrase, climbed [...]
England bank on Stokes’ vigour to overcome India July 2, 2014 ALL-ROUNDER Ben Stokes has been backed to provide the “X-factor and vigour” that England selectors hope will lift the team from their malaise in next week’s first Test against India. Fit-again Stokes was yesterday named in a 13-man squad for the match at Trent Bridge, the only addition to the team that suffered an agonising [...]
Microsoft launches £15 Nokia 130 with an eye for emerging markets August 11, 2014 Microsoft is offering a new mobile phone that will set the buyer back just £15. The Nokia 130 reaffirms the world's largest software company's commitment to low-cost products after recently revealing plans to put an end to the Nokia X and Asha. The Nokia 130 is supposed to appeal to lower wage workers primarily in [...]
Subtle signals are crucial in business November 2, 2014 Even the smallest actions can make a huge impression – think carefully before asking questions. Subtle signals exist in all of our interactions, and the best businesspeople have a firm command over the messages they are sending. New Tesco boss Dave Lewis, for example, quickly decided to sell the firm’s fleet of private [...]
Destiny sales: Xbox and PlayStation evenly split despite Sony’s exclusive advertising September 16, 2014 In its first week on shelves, Destiny has sold more copies in the UK than any other new video game series in history. According to official sales monitor Chart Track, Activision's new game has beat a record previously set by Ubisoft's Watch Dogs in May. Activision will be cheered by the top-line figures, [...]
Boris insists an estuary airport has the X Factor January 16, 2014 THE MAYOR of London’s aviation adviser yesterday criticised the airports commission for making decisions like a judging panel on the X Factor. Daniel Moylan also complained Sir Howard Davies and his team were keeping City Hall out of the loop on an issue that could change the face of London. “They have treated the mayor [...]
Barclays’ clients lead charge out of dark pools July 21, 2014 THE NUMBER of shares traded in Barclays’ dark pool collapsed by more than half last week, industry data showed yesterday, as clients flee the private trading platform. The bank is facing allegations in the US that it misled clients trading on the LX platform, leading to a 66 per cent fall in shares traded on the site. [...]
Cineworld gets a box office kicking during 2014 World Cup July 3, 2014 The biggest player in the UK cinema market, Cineworld, has seen its UK box office revenues fall by 0.6 per cent in the first six months of the year. The cinema group said yesterday the slight fall in sales was largely due to the popularity of the World Cup, which began in early [...]
Space race take two? Putin speeds up building of Russian spaceport September 2, 2014 Russia has upped its game in the race to become a space superpower. Today, President Vladimir Putin announced that he was hastening Russia's efforts to build a multi-billion dollar spaceport in the East of the country. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia has relied on the Baikonur cosmodrome in [...]
WPP agency Mindshare’s UK boss Mark Creighton on wearable technology and collaboration between agencies November 9, 2014 It's no secret that the media business is changing irrevocably because of digital technologies. But while some agency execs yearn for the age of bulk media contracts negotiated over a long, boozy lunch with TV bosses, Mindshare’s Mark Creighton comes across as positively electrified by the new digital frontier. He talks to City [...]