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“Honestly, it’s possibly where the industry could—or even should—be heading, especially given the decline in visibility on search,” said Enders Analysis senior analyst Abi Watson. 

“If The News Movement launches SaySo under The News Movement’s aegis, they risk confusion around what SaySo is as a product,” Watson said. “Repositioning under a holding company makes it easier to sell across the portfolio without diluting TNM’s identity.”

Douglas McCabe, a media analyst, said in a report this year that publishers were losing money as their content was “used but not rewarded”, adding: “Many publishers have used their websites to replicate the article format but the website itself is no longer the primary destination for consumers as it struggles to meet expectations, while AI erodes monetisation.”

Karen Egan, head of telecoms at Enders Analysis, said Bharti had invested in BT “not just because they see it as a sound investment story but because they feel that they have something to contribute”. 

“I think that their vision for BT is aligned with that of the BT management, although Bharti are likely to be inclined to move more aggressively on several fronts — from digitisation of the organisation to targeted pricing initiatives,” she added.

Yet my hesitation grows as a cursory media search shows me reports that G.Network is indebted and may be up for sale. Enders, the research firm, calculates that altnets are collectively carrying more than £7 billion of net debt, with some facing higher interest bills than they make in revenue. 

Regulator Ofcom offers consumer protection should any fail. Ultimately, I, like other users, want robust and reliable connectivity plus good customer service. For now, and for most households, the speeds from part-fibre are entirely sufficient, according to Enders.

Karen Egan, head of telecoms at Enders Analysis, said that in the past the only way to keep up with the rapid development in mobile technology was to buy a new phone. “But now new models are just an evolution of the previous one rather than introducing revolutionary change.”

She said that with better battery lives and software updates older phones can do many of the same things as the latest models and “people are happy to hold on to them for longer especially with the cost of living crisis continuing to bite”.

She agreed with Ives that the average replacement cycle in the UK had doubled since 2020 from just over two years to about four years. “People need to feel they are missing out on new features in order to get them to upgrade.”

“At the very top, people are still upgrading,” Egan said. “They’re the people that are still on the contracts with a free upgrade every two years. They’re similar to the people who lease cars and get a refresh every few years.”

“The proposed merger would have been voted against by a huge number of external shareholders,” says Claire Enders of Enders Analysis. “I don’t think the issues put forward then are going to go away. With lawsuits against Fox and the Wall Street Journal I don’t think a merger will be at the top of the list.”

Claire Enders, from Enders Analysis, said Channel 4 had made an “excellent appointment”, adding that Mr Cooper’s extensive board experience made him well-suited to the requirements of the role.