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| Today's Top Stories | August 26, 2004 |
Happiness
Eludes Britain's Gizmo-Laden Early Teens H
J Heinz Profit Sags 9% - Joy Reigns! Google
Shares Prosper Despite Wall Street Whinging| Europe; USA: Advertisers/Brands; Ecommerce |
| Microsoft-Time Warner Software Deal Under EC Spotlight |
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An in-depth investigation has been launched by the European Commission into the proposed purchase of anti-piracy software firm ContentGuard by Microsoft and Time Warner. The US giants together bought the majority of Xerox's share of ContentGuard in April this year [WAMN: 07-Apr-04], leaving the reprographics group with a small equity stake. EC antitrust regulators have raised concerns that the deal might lead to a Microsoft monopoly in anti-piracy technology and will determine its likely effect on other areas of the software titan's domain, explaining that it "may have spill-over effects on a number of related markets ranging from mobile telephony to word processors." Microsoft is still reeling from an earlier EC ruling of anti-competitive behaviour, and is vehemently fighting the associated €497 million ($601m; £334m) fine. But, conceded company spokesman Dirk Delmartino, "We understand that this is a complex area." The Commission's decision is expected by January 5 next year. Data sourced from: BBC Online Business News (UK); additional content by WARC staff |
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Related News Stories EC Devolves Cable Merger Decision to German Cartel Office - 11 June 2004 Microsoft, Time Warner Eye Digital Patents - 7 April 2004 Microsoft Purges Pop-Ups Worldwide - 19 February 2004 |
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| UK: Advertisers/Brands; Market Conditions |
| Happiness Eludes Britain's Gizmo-Laden Early Teens |
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The latest
study from UK researcher Mintel International Group paints a portrait
of pampered yet unhappy youngsters, isolated [or protected?] from the
outside world by their electronic gizmos. In its report Marketing to 11-14 Year-Olds, Mintel reveals that over three quarters of the sample have a TV set in their bedroom, nearly two thirds (64%) boast a personal DVD player or video recorder, and a quarter have a computer in their own room. Sixty-six per cent play computer games in their rooms -- half of whom (33%) do so alone, leading Mintel to comment that a 'significant number of children are not experiencing family life'. Three in five (60%) of the sample say that everyone at home is free to get on with their lives and interests. Over half (53%) also believe that as long as they study and do well at school they can do what they like. A similar proportion (51%) say that they like spending time on their own. As proof that there is at least some degree of communication with the outside world, 80% of kids in the surveyed age group own a cellphone -- up from 58% in 2001. Girls are more gregarious than boys with 85% cellphone ownership versus 75% of males. Seventy-eight per cent say they use the mobile to call their parents whereas only 68% say they call friends Texting is by far the main use of phones, with almost two in five (37%) having sent more than ten texts in the past week, and 14% more than twenty-five texts. Kids' worries? Over half (55%) say they are worried about problems at home. One in four (25%) believes that their parents do not understand them and one in three (33%) that their parents do not trust them enough. In their school lives, workloads worry as many as 83% of 11-14 year-olds, while even more (84%) claim to be worried about bullying. Says Mintel consumer analyst Jenny Catlin: "Over the past few decades families have changed. Children may now have older parents, fewer siblings and many more live in single-parent families or step families. "Sadly, it does seem that in many cases modern technology has now replaced the family unit, so that everyone does whatever they want, when they want, even if it means doing it on their own." For more information on the study click here. Data sourced from: Daily Research News Online; additional content by WARC staff |
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| Global: Advertisers/Brands; Company Results |
| H J Heinz Profit Sags 9% - Joy Reigns! |
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On the face of it Pittsburgh-headquartered food titan H J Heinz did not enjoy a good fiscal first quarter, net income decreasing by 9% to $194.8 million (€161.12m; £108.43m) compared with the same period last year when it notched $214m. However, the comparable May-July period in 2003 included $27.2 million net income from the disposal of its North American tuna, pet food, private-label soup and baby food businesses to the Del Monte Foods Company. In real terms, therefore, the current result had investors partying, not least because sales in the quarter rose 5.7% to $2 billion. The US and Canada led the sales surge, up year-on-year by 8.4% -- the first time in four consecutive quarters that sales in the region had risen. Gloated Mavin Roffman of Pittsburgh-based asset management firm Roffman Miller, which owns stock in the food company: "The new low-carb line [Heinz] just introduced here and the new Ore-Ida brands are doing very well." Data sourced from: New York Times; additional content by WARC staff |
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Related
News Stories Heinz Doubles First-Quarter Profits - 5 September 2003 Earnings Dive As Heinz Sheds Brands to Focus on Power Core - 13 March 2003 Heinz Fingers Increased Marketing Costs as Profits Slide - 12 September 2002 |
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| Global: Advertisers/Brands; Ecommerce |
| Google Shares Prosper Despite Wall Street Whinging |
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Sergey Brin and Larry Page, the ex-student founders of Google, continue to enjoy their excellent adventure in the treacherous terrain of Wall Street, despite one denizen's damning attack on the newly floated company's corporate governance. According to Institutional Shareholder Services, which advises pension funds on how to vote at annual meetings, Google has the worst governance of any company listed in the S&P 500 Index. The highest possible mark in the index is one hundred. Google's score: zero point two! ISS identifies no fewer than twenty-one weaknesses in the company's corporate character. One in particular infuriates the entrail-raker: a capital structure using two classes of shares that allows the founders to retain control [WAMN has no knowledge of ISS complaining about the similar structure erected by Hollinger's errant Lord Black]. Other whinges include
To all of which complaints Google shares remained serenely indifferent,
continuing their upward float from a pared-down launch price of $85 (€70.31;
£47.31) to close trading Tuesday at $109.40. |
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Related
News Stories Google's Founding Dudes Hit $1.66bn in IPO Triumph - 20 August 2004 Slowdown Forecast for Online Ad Sales Bad News for Google - 10 August 2004 IPO Values Google at $36bn - 28 July 2004 |
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| Top Stories | August 25, 2004 |
BBC Notches Olympic Record of 6m Interactive TV Viewers
'Unexpected
Workload' Prompts Resignation at Hollinger
Coke
Stands by Errant Teenage Soccer Wunderkind
Wal-Mart
Pessimistic Over August Sales
| UK: The Media |
| BBC Notches Olympic Record of 6m Interactive TV Viewers |
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This year's Olympic Games have provided welcome relief for an 'under the microscope' BBC, in the form of over six million interactive television viewers to date. The record figure exceeds the 4.1m who used the BBC's interactive facility for the Wimbledon tennis championships earlier in the year, and represents half the available i/a audience. Since the Games began on 13 August, 6.13m viewers have accessed BBCi for at least one minute. Of these, 80% spent at least three minutes using the service, while 46% perused it for over twenty-five minutes. BBC sport's head of new media, sports, news and development Andrew Thompson was 'delighted' by news of the Olympic figures, which should help dispel concerns within the board of governors that interactive viewing does not match availability. Says Thompson: "The Olympics are perfect for interactive television because there are so many events happening at the same time ... viewers are taking full advantage of that." Data sourced from: mad.co.uk; additional content by WARC staff |
| Global: The Media |
| 'Unexpected Workload' Prompts Resignation at Hollinger |
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Eighty-year old Canadian Richard Rohmer, a one-time army general and university chancellor, has beaten retreat from the board of Hollinger International [H-Intl], until recently the fiefdom of Lord Conrad Black and owner of Britain's Telegraph Group. Rohmer attributed his withdrawal after less than a year in the non-executive job to "the significant and persistent workload associated with my service on the board, which I did not anticipate when I joined . . . in January for what I thought would be a limited time because of a then pending significant transaction." His moment of departure is not without significance given that the expected hot potato of the H-Intl board committee's report (into allegedly improper payments made to directors under the regime of Lord Black) is due for release next Monday August 30. It could be that the Hollinger board is already digging-in for the media siege expected to follow publication. Data sourced from: Times Online (UK); additional content by WARC staff |
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Related News Stories Black's Nemesis, Tweedy Browne, Demands New Info - 23 August 2004 Ex-Governor Thomson Refuses to Quit Hollinger Board - 12 August 2004 Sun-Times Chops Circulation Figures by 23% - 3 August 2004 |
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| Global: Advertisers/Brands |
| Coke Stands by Errant Teenage Soccer Wunderkind |
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US beverage behemoth Coca-Cola is not prone to abandoning an investment into which it has already poured millions of dollars. Namely Wayne Rooney, the eighteen-year old Everton and England soccer wunderkind, recently alleged by the tabloid Sunday Mirror to have scored in a brothel. Rooney's behaviour does not accord with Coke's desired image, his post-pubescent hormones seemingly at odds with the brand's asexuality. But as dumping the randy Rooney would not be congruous with Coke's ROI policy (his contract still has two years to run) the Atlanta-headquartered company instead opted to issue a fatherly warning. The errant soccer star, it claimed, "regretted his mistakes and we believe that everyone deserves a second chance". Coke hoped he would henceforth "take full responsibility for his actions on and off the field, and concentrate on fulfilling his fantastic potential on the pitch". It added: "We're with him for his footballing ability and still believe that he is a great talent on the football pitch." However, should Rooney again be caught publicly with his pants down, Coke warned it would not be so lenient. Rooney's other bigtime sponsors, Nike and Ford Motor Company -- the latter providing the teenager and his family with cars -- were equally supportive. Although it is uncertain how the auto giant would react should the paparazzi discover Rooney attempting to repeat his feat in the back seat of a Galaxy. Data sourced from: MediaGuardian.co.uk; additional content by WARC staff |
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Related News Stories New Coke Marketing Chief is Named - 23 June 2004 Obesity Issues 'A Challenge', Admits New Coke Chairman - 18 June 2004 Coca-Cola Prez Quits, Miffed at Missing Out on Top Job - 10 June 2004 |
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| USA: Advertisers/Brands |
| Wal-Mart Pessimistic Over August Sales |
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A chill wind swept across corporate America in the wake of Hurricane Charley, prompted not by mid-Pacific weather systems but by the zipping of wallets by US consumers. Wal-Mart, the nation's (and the globe's) largest retailer, shocked economists and investors alike by downgrading its sales forecast for August. Same-store sales, it warned, are now likely to show an average growth of just 0.2% versus the 2% to 4% originally forecast. The retailer cited torpid back-to-school sales and, of course, Hurricane Charley -- the latter having closed [up to] seventy-five stores for [up to] three days. Across Florida and the south-eastern states, around 200 stores were affected in some unspecified way. A later-than-usual Labor Day holiday was also blamed. Data sourced from: Financial Times; additional content by WARC staff |
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Related News Stories Wal-Marts Image-Boosting Interest in Public Broadcasts - 17 August 2004 Time Warner and Wal-Mart Launch Customer Magazine - 4 August 2004 Wal-Mart Salivates for Pan-European Stake - 26 May 2004 |
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