Posts made in January, 2016

on Jan 26, 2016

By Jessica Goodfellow Charless Gurassa will replace Lord Burns as chairman of Channel 4, who is set to step down on Wednesday (27 January). Gurassa has been tasked with dealing with the government’s upcoming review of the broadcaster, which may result in privatisation. He has been appointed chairman for an intial three year period, a decision which has been approved by culture secretary John Whittingdale. The Guardian reported that Gurassa was Ofcom’s first suggestion to the department for culture, which can veto its suggestions. Gurassa joins Channel 4 from EasyJet, where he was deputy chairman. He has experience in taking companies public, having overseen Virgin Read full story › Source: The Drum...

on Jan 26, 2016

By Ronan Shields Verizon Wireless-owned AOL has this week launched a charm offensive on media owners including the purchase of France-based analytics platform AdelpD, claiming it will pose a notable alternative to the walled garden players such as Facebook and Google by not “force-feeding” them their technology. AOL yesterday (25 January) lifted the lid on ONE by AOL: Publishers, plus the announcement of AdelphD for an undisclosed sum, which the ad tech provider says is the culmination of over $1bn of investment. It claims the latest guise of its tech stack is “publisher-first” meaning that publishers “takes more of the advertising dollar”, according to Tim Read full story › Source: The Drum...

on Jan 26, 2016

By Tony Connelly Pinewood is launching a new TV division that will fund quality drama series as the studio looks to meet the rising global demand for high-end television. Home to the new Star Wars and James Bond films, Pinewood will now broaden its reach beyond Hollywood productions in order to accommodate shows with a minimum budget of £1m an episode. The new TV division will be led by Helen Gregory whose credits include Sky’s Fortitude, the BBC’s The Last Kingdom and Scandal, and Grey’s Anatomy creator Shonda Rimes’s upcoming series The Catch. Ivan Dunleavy, chief executive of Pinewood Group said the “global demand for high-end Read full story › Source: The Drum...

on Jan 26, 2016

By Charlotte McEleny Cheil Worldwide has instigated a project between itself, Samsung Medical Centre and charity Korea Hana Foundation, to help North Korean defectors better integrate and gain mental health support. The ‘Soulmate’ project follows on from a Cannes Lions Bronze awarded app created by Cheil called ‘South Korean – North Korean Translator’ that helped bridge language differences (video above). Soulmate tackles another common issue for defectors, regaining their mental health and adapting to differences, particularly for younger people and students. Professor Yoo-Sook Jung, from the Social Mental Health Institute, Samsung Medical Center, said: “Student defectors who were exposed to unordinary experience and environment have difficulties Read full story › Source: The Drum...

on Jan 26, 2016

By John McCarthy Animal welfare group Peta claims its latest provocative ad was ignored by Super Bowl 50 broadcaster CBS. The NSFW slot, entitled ‘Last Longer’ implies that vegan males last longer during sex than their meat-eating counterparts: “Cholesterol in meat, eggs, and dairy products slows the flow of blood to all the body’s organs—not just the heart. To have the not-so-subtle ad feature during SB50, Peta would likely have had to cough up somewhere in the region of $5m. A Peta spokesperson told the HuffPost that it had submitted the ad but “didn’t get a response from the executives at CBS”. Lisa Lange, Peta senior Read full story › Source: The Drum...