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European revenue growth improved by a whole percentage point this quarter, jumping to 2.2% from 1.2% last quarter. Most of this (0.7 percentage points) was due to a reduced regulatory impact, and this should continue to improve throughout this year, with the impact due to drop from about 4% to less than 1% by early next year

The decline in broadband market growth has accelerated, with market net additions in Q1 down on Q4 for the first time in three years. Household penetration reached 59%

In our view the potential for synergies from an acquisition of Thus by C&W, though more limited than might be supposed, would still have a significant impact on the combined entity at the EBITDA level

We expect the TNS-GfK merger proposal to be examined closely by the European Commission, and anticipate competition concerns to be raised in the market for television audience measurement (TAM)

Having acquired national broadcast TV rights for premium content, France Télécom’s Orange TV will launch on satellite on 3rd July and introduce subscription football and film and series services from August, in a first for a major European telecoms incumbent

Vodafone Europe’s service revenue growth dropped by two full percentage points in the quarter to June 2008; Spain plummeted from +5.1% to -2.5%, but the UK and Italy’s underlying growth also fell, with only Germany stable

The TV advertising sector is haemorrhaging in the economic downturn, but troubles could also be brewing in the pay-TV sector. Sky still looks secure, but Setanta appears more exposed in its role of ancillary pay-TV provider in the high stakes and high risk world of premium sports

BT’s announcement of a project to extend fibre beyond the exchange for some existing homes as well as newly built ones is good PR, a useful regulatory gambit, and offers the prospect of regaining some initiative from unbundlers and Virgin Media at the wholesale and retail levels respectively

The current process for a sale of Tiscali Spa in whole or part appears to be breaking down, just as the prospects for standalone ISPs in the UK are becoming less certain