Ofcom has awarded the UK’s second national commercial digital radio multiplex to Channel 4 Television, having rejected a competing bid from National Grid Wireless

Ofcom’s decision to hold a consultation on Sky’s pay DTT proposal will prevent its launch before Q1 2008 at the earliest and could be delayed to 2010 if Ofcom’s current investigation of the UK pay TV market ends, as seems increasingly likely, with a referral decision to the Competition Commission

Emap, the consumer and business-to-business (B2B) publisher, appears ripe for a break-up. This report examines the health of the group's principal consumer magazine and radio assets, as well as its B2B assets. The latter, in our view, could prove particularly attractive to media-hungry private equity, based on recent valuations of business media assets. The consumer magazines segment is under pressure from circulation declines, and Emap’s digital strategy for its titles has yet to bear fruit. Meanwhile, Emap’s radio division has not been spared the market's overall decline

This presentation expands on our report on Classified Advertising in Print and Online [2006-58], by examining the online classified market segments of recruitment, property and automotive, and their likely development to 2011. We anticipate the value of the UK classifieds market could be worth about £5.5 billion in 2011, compared to about £4.5 billion in 2006. We however expect exponential growth in online classified ad volumes, placing pressure on prices of all classifieds. Although disruptive effects on the classified supply chain are anticipated (e.g. estate agents, car dealerships), we believe these will be harder to break than new entrants might believe

The distribution business had a strong year, marred by a longer than usual Christmas hangover in the last quarter, but the early signs for the new financial year are promising

Broadband penetration and Internet usage in continental European countries are catching up with the US and UK, but consumer e-commerce and internet advertising spend still massively lag behind. Online advertising is growing more rapidly in Germany and France than in the UK, driven by rapid take-up of paid search by advertisers

50% of UK households now have a broadband line installed, but market growth is dropping. Rolling 12-month net additions were below three million for the first time since Q3 2004

Vodafone achieved its 2006/07 full year targets on revenue and profitability, with solid revenue growth (underlying about 2% in Europe) but dropping margins (by around 2pps in Europe)

Steep drops in US and UK recorded music sales dragged EMI’s group revenue 15.8% lower for FY 2006/07. EMI’s underperformance of the sagging recorded music industry highlights the scale of the challenge facing any prospective new owner

The performance of the international business remains solid