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By me: Last month, ITV chief executive Carolyn McCall announced a nearly two-thirds fall in its pre-tax profits in 2023 to £193m, with revenues falling 3% to £4.2bn. McCall laid the blame on, you guessed it, the “challenging advertising market”. Like all commercial broadcasters, ITV is in a tough spot, made all the more diffcult by the fact that the largest UK commercial broadcaster has only lately pivoted to streaming, and still relies on linear advertising from its traditional channels business for half its revenues and the lion’s share of its margin. To counter the ad fall, ITV’s ‘restructuring and cost-efficiency’ programme will be accelerated beyond an earlier hiring freeze, McCall said, with the target of £150m in cost savings by 2026, a year earlier than originally planned. The market liked that and the stock rose, but the plan is expected to include redundancies as well as operational efficiencies. ITV is not alone in cutting costs. Channel 4 has announced it will shed some 18% of its workforce (240 posts) as part of its shift away from dependence on traditional TV advertising towards digital income streams. Germany’s ProSiebenSat.1 is just coming out of a two-year ad market slump, with prices down 10%. ProSiebenSat.1 is also leaning into streaming via its online platform Joyn but, like ITV, it needs time and expertise to develop this new and very different business. According to Enders Analysis, costs at ITV have risen 19% since before Covid, yet revenues have risen only 10%. This is unsustainable, hence McCall’s move to ramp up efficiencies. The big unknown is when the advertising monies will fl ow again, and at what level. There is cautious optimism that ad revenues are returning – but will it simply be a ‘dead cat bounce’? Even in a more robust ad market, there is another problem: the cannibalisation effect. As the streaming business grows, how much is it siphoning ad monies from the linear advertising business? And while ITV appears to have succeeded in its mission to attract ‘lighter viewers’ through ITVX, this hasn’t been enough to offset the decline in linear viewing: ITVX grew viewership in February by circa 35%, but overall viewing in the same month was down 3.4%, according to ITVX Debrief, published by the broadcaster. Put bluntly, broadcaster video on demand viewing (BVoD) is a small part of total viewing, and even robust digital advertising growth – ITVX was up £72m (21%) year on year – was unable to balance out the £225m drop in linear ad revenues. ITV was the slowest UK broadcaster to embrace BVoD, and ITVX claimed 9% of total viewing for all UK broadcaster platforms in 2023, lagging behind both BBC iPlayer (17%) and Channel 4 (14%), according to Enders Analysis. McCall forecast light at the end of the tunnel, predicting ad revenues will rise 3% in the first quarter of 2024 – and that the Uefa Euro 2024 football tournament in the summer will keep the momentum going. Let’s hope for ITV’s sake England plays well.

In-person events continue to play an important role for B2B organisations in APAC, so how are they connecting the dots and creating synergy between physical events and their digital strategy? Here's a great (and short) video that shows how our BrightTALK Studios team can turn your physical conferences & events into great online content, where buyers spend the most time evaluating their next tech purchase. https://rb.gy/9c6t04

Previewing your products and offering prospects the opportunity to purchase first in the market, like at the PositiveMedia upfronts, is crucial for several reasons: Building Anticipation: Showcasing upcoming products creates excitement and anticipation among potential customers. It helps generate buzz and interest before the official launch. Early Feedback: Early previews allow you to gather valuable feedback from prospects. This can help you make any necessary adjustments or improvements before the full market release. Exclusive Access: Offering first-in-market opportunities makes your prospects feel valued and special. It creates a sense of exclusivity and urgency, encouraging them to act quickly. Market Positioning: Being the first to offer new products can position your brand as an innovator and leader in the industry. It sets you apart from competitors and can attract media attention. Strengthening Relationships: Events like upfronts provide a platform to engage directly with your audience. Building these relationships can lead to increased loyalty and long-term customer retention. Sales Boost: Early access can drive initial sales and create momentum for your product launch. It helps establish a strong market presence right from the start. By leveraging these benefits, PositiveMedia can effectively introduce new products, enhance brand reputation, and drive business growth. Come and see for yourself 🌟

Grateful to be one of the Voices of Audacy’s Mix 104.1 Boston for a while. Over 20 years. A lot has to go right for a major market station or any market size radio property to have rating dominance like this. Starts with a major team concept, strong local market management and ownership who supports the on/air mission, cool on air people that are local, and you know it when you hear it, strong promotions and a strong community connection. Local news, info, entertainment awareness - a Mix of the right on-air communication has Mix manufacture it's all time best ratings book ever. Congrats 🎉 to the whole local staff in Boston🤪wooohoo🎉🎉 AUDACY Hot AC WWBX (MIX 104.1) found its way to the 6+ winner’s podium after landing its largest share ever (7.0-7.8!) This ended the seven-book winning streak for BEASLEY Sports WBZ (98.5 THE SPORTS HUB), which drifted down to #2 (7.7-7.5). WWBX made it back-to-back Adult 25-54 victories as it posted a double-digit share. WXKS (KISS 108) remained at #2 with its third down book in a row. The stations were better than four shares apart. How dominant is WWBX with the 18-34 crowd? Let us show you. The station was #1 for the fourth book in a row, and seventh time in the last eight surveys. The station was also in double figures for the seventh time during that eight-book span. We’re not finished. Its share was larger than the next three stations – combined! WWBX was #1 and in double figures 18-49 to the third straight survey. WOW!!!!

Comprehensive Trade Show Marketing Support Service Launches in Time for 2024 IBC Season IBC - International Broadcasting Convention #IBC #IBC2024 #IBCNEWS #TRADESHOW #MARKETING #BROADCAST #MEDIA '#ENTERTAINMENT

Warner Bros Discovery has finalised its rollout plans for streamer Max in Europe but a UK launch date is still no clearer. Unveiling the service’s near-future plans at his Series Mania keynote in Lille yesterday, WBD streaming chief JB Perrette revealed that Max would launch in its first European countries on 21 May. He added that “additional future markets will arrive in 2025 and beyond”. Max will hit the Nordics, Iberia, and Central and Eastern Europe in May, followed by Poland, the Netherlands, France, and Belgium – the latter being the first new countries where WBD has launched a streamer in over two years. Perrette reiterated WBD’s desire to bring Max to the UK, noting that the streamer has “yet to touch big, critical countries like the UK, where our content is already incredibly popular”, but he did not give an indication as to when. WBD has intimated that Max will launch in the UK some point soon after the expiry of WBD’s long-term content deal with Sky next year. There has been speculation within the industry as to how WBD would react to a post-Sky deal, with many suggesting that the relationship would continue in some way. Sky currently has distribution deals with numerous streaming majors including Paramount+ and Netflix and Sky customers can access its stablemate NBCUniversal-owned platform Peacock. A distribution deal with Sky would immediately give WBD access to over 11m homes in the UK and Perrette talked up the existing relationships the US company currently enjoys worldwide.  have relationships and viewing habits and devices with existing companies.”  Perrette also used the session to highlight that WBD’s headroom for growth is large in case there are fears that Max’s staggered launches and lack of presence in big markets such as the UK, Germany and Australia puts them steps behind more mature streamers such as Netflix.  He noted that the number of streaming subscribers will hit 2bn in 2027, doubling the number from 2020 and streaming revenues will reach $147bn (£116.8bn) by 2028.  “We at WBD are just getting started in streaming. We stand here today in the early days of an ever-growing video medium. And when we look at the global expectations for streaming, we see a demand that is consistently building with way more of its future ahead of it, than behind.”  https://lnkd.in/eHdsVYAu

What are broadcast media tours? This overview outlines the 3 types of broadcast media tours and how to plan and execute a media tour. ✅Boost brand awareness ✅Launch a product ✅Manage a crisis ✅Make an important announcement ✅And More!

Hey just wanted to let you know about a service we offer here at Guesthouse - Guesthouse Audio. Unlike almost any humans on Earth, we like to take radio and audio briefs and make them great, so you don’t have to. What’s wrong with us? We don’t know! Here are a few reasons agencies and station groups have come to us: -Taking radio off your team’s plate. No one likes doing it and it’s usually a wasted opportunity. We have a weird fetish for radio that can’t be helped. -Helping you win awards this award season. We have a ridiculous track record of radio and audio-based Cannes Lions, One Show Golds, and Radio Mercury Best in Shows. We recently helped an agency create some really funny radio for a local client to help with the agency's awards entries this year. Let’s send you to glory in the world’s weakest ad awards category. -Training. We can work with your writers to help them learn how to make the good kind of radio, and not “Say Bob, have you heard about the sale at JCPenney?” Give us a call! guesthouseaudio.com #advertising #marketing #radio #touchthatdial

What is a hybrid event? It's more that just broadcasting a conference. I's about making sure online participants are given as many opportunities for interaction as the ones on site. Learn more on our Hybrid events guide 101 https://lnkd.in/dwWPM9We #HybridEvents #ComeTogether

Cumulus Media's Q3 financial report shows a dip in revenue by 11.2%, total of $207.4 million. Despite a tough ad market, digital revenue climbed 6.6%. The company remains focused on digital growth and efficient cost management. #MediaNews #CumulusMedia #DigitalGrowth