17 November 2003
Head of Radio Kontynent, a private Kiev-based FM station, Serhiy Sholokh, has sent an open letter to Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma, asking him not to allow Kontynent’s broadcasts to be stopped. The letter has been published on the web site of Ukrainian human-rights organisation the Institute of Mass Information.
Sholokh says he has learnt from reliable sources that the leadership of the presidential administration “has issued a secret instruction to uniformed agencies, the State Committee for Communications and Information Technology and tax authorities to take urgent steps to stop the broadcasting of Radio Kontynent”.
Because Kontynent rebroadcasts foreign news services – the Voice of America, the BBC, Deutsche Welle and Polish Radio – Sholokh believes that any actions against his radio station can also be considered as aimed against the presence of these stations in Ukrainian information space.
17 November 2003
Representatives of staff at Canal France International (CFI), which supplies French-language programmes to TV stations worldwide, fear their company could close down, largely because of plans for the international French news channel (CFII or CII).
“The latest developments concerning the CFII project, in which CFI is no longer involved, and the current budgetary uncertainties give us grounds for fearing that ultimately our company will, quite simply, just close down,” the CFDT, FO and CFE-CGC inter-union committee, staff delegates and elected representatives of the CFI works council said in a statement.
In May, CFI staff representatives approved proposals by the National Assembly, which included CFI in an alliance with private groups to create CFII. However in the end the government reneged on this and came out in favour of an equal partnership comprising the public group France Televisions and TF1.
17 November 2003
Merging French know-how with Chinese mass-scale manufacturing capability, consumer electronics group Thomson has agreed a deal with China’s TCL to create a joint company that could become the world’s leader in the television and video manufacturing industry.
The company will be called TCL-Thomson. The French group will initially hold a 33 per cent stake in the company while its Chinese partner will hold a 67 per cent stake. TCL International Holdings Limited (TCL International) is the leading manufacturer of multimedia and consumer electronic goods in China.
17 November 2003
Continuing its drive to establish FM broadcasts worldwide, the BBC has opened a new FM transmitter in Mzuzu, on 87.9. BBC World Service is also available on FM in Malawi on 102.5 in Blantyre and 87.9 in Lilongwe.
Kari Blackburn, Regional Executive Editor of the BBC’s African Service, said: Malawi is a key market for the BBC with nearly two million listeners tuning in. We are confident this new FM will bring us even closer to our audience”.
12 November 2003
CNN has made a series of changes to its senior staff with the international newsgathering operation being integrated with CNN International to form a new directorate. This new directorate will report to Chris Cramer, who has been appointed to the new role of Managing Director, CNN International.
Cramer’s new role gives him oversight of the editorial and programming side of CNN International as well as the worldwide newsgathering operation covering 28 non-US bureaux.
Eason Jordan, CNN chief news executive, takes on the new role of managing CNN’s editorial relationships with international affiliates, business partners and governments. In addition, training, the International Professional Programme and the World Report programme and conference fall under Jordan’s remit.
Meanwhile, Tony Maddox – a regular speaker at the AIB Global Media Business Conference – takes up the new post of senior vice president, news operations, within CNN International. Maddox will relocate from London to the head office in Atlanta.
4 November 2003
After weeks of speculation, rumours have been confirmed, and James Murdoch, 30-year-old son of News Corp chairman Rupert Murdoch, is to be the new CEO of leading pay-TV company BSkyB. News Corp controls 35.4% of BSky B.
But will there be a shareholder revolt about this over-close relationship? In several instances recently, UK shareholders have successfully challenged board decisions.
A Nomination Committee has seen several candidates, but still came up with James Murdoch as their favourite. Was it a fix all along? To calm investors fears, the highly-influential Lord Rothschild has been appointed deputy chairman of BSkyB.
In a statement, Rupert Murdoch added: “The Board and I are pleased that the Nomination Committee has completed its task and it is unanimous in its conviction that James is the right man for this job.”
Some investors demanded further assurances about the selection process. Peter Montagnon, head of investment affairs at the Association of British Insurers, said Mr Murdoch’s appointment would need “a really compelling explanation”.
