Posts made in April, 2014

on Apr 24, 2014

By John Glenday Wine and spirit specialists Pernod Ricard has reported sales of € 6,186m in the first nine months of the 2013/14 financial year, a stable performance from the first half but which nevertheless represents a 7 per cent decline once unfavourable foreign exchange rates are factored in. The French drinks firm reported organic growth of 4 per cent in the Americas thanks primarily to the powerhouses of Brazil and the US, although growth in the latter slowed slightly from the first half of the year. Europe meanwhile was a tale of two halves with performance stable in Western Europe at 2 per cent Read full story › Source: The Drum...

on Apr 24, 2014

By Jessica Davies Facebook has reported an 82 per cent year on year hike in advertising revenue to $2.27bn, with mobile advertising accounting for 59 per cent of the total, in the first quarter of 2014. Mobile ad revenue surged from 30 per cent in the first quarter of 2013 to 59 per cent, while overall revenue for the social network jumped 72 per cent to $2.5bn in Q1 this year. The results confirm Facebook as a chief competitor to Google in the mobile advertising space. The global mobile ad market grew 105 per cent to $17.96bn in 2013, according to eMarketer up Read full story › Source: The Drum...

on Apr 23, 2014

By Gillian West The crowned winners of agency sourcing specialists RAR Awards 2014 were unveiled earlier this evening at a black-tie event held at London’s Marriott Grosvenor Square, with Intermarketing and The Agency cinching the Grand Prix prizes. Split by agency size Intermarketing took home the ‘Over 40 staff Grand Prix’, with The Agency receiving the ‘Up to 40 staff Grand Prix’. Now in its fifth year the RAR Awards Grand Prix is awarded on a points system based on the number of finalist places gained and the number of category wins. Other larger agencies performing well at this year’s awards included Proctor Read full story › Source: The Drum...

on Apr 23, 2014

By Noel Young Apple socked it to the doubters yesterday with a 7% increase in quarterly profit and a $30 billion stock-buyback programme because, said CEO Tim Cook, the company’s shares are undervalued. “That should show you how much confidence we have in the future of the company,” Cook told The Wall Street Journal. Apple raised its share repurchase authorisation to $90 billion from the $60 billion level announced last year. The company also lifted its quarterly dividend by about 8% and said it would split its stock 7-for-1 in June. Apple shares jumped more than 7% in after-hours Read full story › Source: The Drum...

on Apr 23, 2014

By Angela Haggerty US whistleblower Edward Snowden has been officially installed as rector of Glasgow University. Snowden was elected in February after the surprise announcement a month before that Snowden had agreed to stand for the position after being contacted by students. He addressed the ceremony via a satellite link from Russia, where he has been granted temporary asylum, and told those attending he could not attend in person because he is not allowed to enter to the UK. He said: “In a democracy people have a right to know the policies of their government. This idea that if we believe in something Read full story › Source: The Drum...