News Broadcasting

Last updated

News UK Broadcasting Limited
News Broadcasting
FormerlyUTV Media, Wireless Group Limited
Type Subsidiary
IndustryBroadcasting
Founded7 June 2007;16 years ago (7 June 2007)
(as Beechgrove Trading Limited)
Headquarters Belfast, Northern Ireland
Key people
 Scott Taunton
(Chief Executive)
RevenueDecrease2.svg £116 m (2014) [1]
Parent News UK & Ireland Ltd
Website www.news.co.uk/latest-news/welcome-to-news-broadcasting/

News UK Broadcasting Limited, doing business as News Broadcasting and formerly known as Wireless Group Limited and previously UTV Media, is a radio and digital broadcasting network with headquarters in Belfast, Northern Ireland and with radio operations in the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom. It currently operates five stations in Ireland and 18 in the UK. The company was formerly known as UTV Media, owned by UTV Television. Its television broadcasting services were sold to ITV plc in February 2016 and its radio, sales services and websites were spun off into a new company, Wireless, later purchased by News Corp.

Contents

In June 2016, Rupert Murdoch's News Corp reached an agreement to buy the company. [2] [3] The sale was completed in September 2016. [4] Prior to the acquisition, Wireless Group was a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap Index.

History

Background

The former Wireless Group headquarters at Havelock House. The company relocated to City Quays 2 in 2018. Havelock House, Belfast.jpg
The former Wireless Group headquarters at Havelock House. The company relocated to City Quays 2 in 2018.

The current UTV Limited (originally Ulster Television plc), which began in 1959 as an ITV franchise holder in Northern Ireland, purchased ISP Direct Net Access in March 2000 for £4.4m, rebranding it as UTV Internet and later UTV Connect. The service expanded into telephone market under UTV Talk in August 2004 and also provided broadband and fibre optic packages for Northern Ireland, the Republic and the rest of the UK. [5] The service was sold to Rainbow Communications and Vodafone Ireland in 2014.

The company also set up an online car dealership UTV Drive, created in partnership with Abbey Insurance, which was sold in 2014. [6]

Further expansion took place with the move into radio, starting in Cork with 96FM and C103 in 2001. Further acquisitions were undertaken over the next decade, with the largest investment being the purchase of The Wireless Group in 2005 for £97m, boosting its radio portfolio with additional local stations, digital radio multiplexes and national station Talksport. In 2005, the group also launched its first station, U105, which broadcasts to the Belfast area, and purchased Juice FM in Liverpool.

With the expansion, turnover increased, with 2005 being up 46% on 2004, pre-tax profits rising by 12%, and employment up by 500 people to more than double the figure in the previous year. In 2006, total sales were £113.6m of which the radio division accounted for 54%, television 37% and 9% from new media. 48% of operating profits were earned in the radio side of the business, with 47% derived from television and 5% from new media.

Reorganisation of UTV and proposed mergers

Following shareholder approval, Ulster Television plc changed its name to UTV plc in June 2006. [7] Then, on 16 August 2007, a re-organisation of the group was proposed, with the existing UTV plc, holding the ITV franchise only, becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of new holding company, UTV Media plc, and the remaining businesses transferred to the new holding company. The change was approved at an extraordinary general meeting on 19 September and came into effect on 15 October 2007, with shareholders receiving a 1:1 exchange of stock from the old to new company. [8] [9] The company, established on 1 June 2007 as Beechgrove Trading Limited, changed its name to UTV Media Limited on 13 August 2007, and to UTV Media plc on 21 August 2007.

In August and September 2006, the company made two merger proposals to STV Group plc, operator of the northern and central Scottish ITV franchises as STV. The latter proposal would have given SMG shareholders 52% of the merged company. On 20 September 2006, the plans were abandoned after SMG rejected the offer as unacceptable. [10] However, on 10 January 2007, the two companies announced that they had agreed a merger, with SMG shareholders to receive 46% of the merged company and UTV 54%. [11] After the details were expected to be finalised before the end of January, the deal was put on hold and then called off by SMG on 28 February 2007. [12]

UTV Ireland and further radio expansion

In January 2015, the company launched UTV Ireland, carrying many of ITV's programming including Coronation Street and Emmerdale , which had been previously broadcast in Ireland by TV3. The station produces some home-grown programming, including the twice-nightly national news programme Ireland Live .

On 27 March 2015, it was confirmed that Sound Digital, which was 30% owned by the company, had been successful in its bid for the second national digital radio multiplex in the UK, which would be launched in 2016. As part of the bid, the company would expand its Talksport station with new sister stations Talksport 2 and Talkradio, as well as running a relaunched Virgin Radio UK. [13] The multiplex was launched on 29 February 2016, with the new stations launching over the following month less talkBUSINESS, which was replaced by Share Radio on the multiplex. [14]

Sale of UTV to ITV plc

The Wireless Group logo until 2023. Wireless Group logo.svg
The Wireless Group logo until 2023.

On 19 October 2015, it was announced that ITV plc would acquire UTV's ITV franchise and UTV Ireland for £100 million, subject to regulatory approval. UTV retained its radio operations, but was required to rename itself after including the UTV brand in the sale. [15]

The sale to ITV plc was completed on 29 February 2016, when the company also rebranded as Wireless Group plc. [16] On 30 June 2016 Rupert Murdoch's News Corp announced an agreement to purchase the company for all-cash worth between $220–296 million. [2] [17] The sale was completed on 26 September 2016. [4] [18]

Financial results

In May 2019, it was reported that Wireless Radio (ROI) Ltd last year recorded pre-tax losses of €2.23m and this followed pre-tax losses of €4.33m for the preceding 18 months. [19]

Operations

The company splits its operations into three divisions, Radio GB, Radio Ireland and Digital.

Radio GB

Formed from the original Wireless Group purchase, the division has its origins from Talk Radio, the owner of the station of the same name, later renamed Talksport in 2000. A consortium including MVI, News International, Radio Investments and LMC Radio, headed by chief executive Kelvin MacKenzie, under the name TalkCo, purchased the group in 1998 for £15.5m. The company expanded when it purchased The Radio Partnership in 1999, gaining control of its nine local commercial stations and becoming the fifth largest radio company in the UK.

On 8 February 2019, it was announced that the local stations would be sold to Bauer Radio. [20]


Radio Ireland

Other divisions

The company published a free, London-based men's magazine called Sport until 2017.

Wireless Group also owns the digital agency Zesty and the internet hosting provider Tibus. [21]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ITV Digital</span> Former British subscription-based digital terrestrial TV service

ITV Digital was a British digital terrestrial television broadcaster which launched a pay-TV service on the world's first digital terrestrial television network. Its main shareholders were Carlton Communications plc and Granada plc, owners of multiple licences of the ITV network. Starting as ONdigital in 1998, the service was rebranded as ITV Digital in July 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ITV (TV network)</span> TV network in the United Kingdom

ITV is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network that is branded as ITV1 in most of the UK except for central and northern Scotland where it is branded as STV. It was launched in 1955 as Independent Television to provide competition and reduce the current monopoly to the then BBC Television. ITV is the oldest commercial network in the UK. Since the passing of the Broadcasting Act 1990, it has been legally known as Channel 3 to distinguish it from the other analogue channels at the time: BBC1, BBC2 and Channel 4.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sky Group</span> British media and telecommunications conglomerate

Sky Group Limited is a British media and telecommunications conglomerate, which is a subsidiary of the American conglomerate Comcast, and headquartered in Isleworth. It has operations in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy. Sky is Europe's largest media company and pay-TV broadcaster by revenue, with 23 million subscribers and more than 31,000 employees as of 2019. The company is primarily involved in satellite television, producing and broadcasting. The current CEO is Dana Strong.

Regular television broadcasts in the United Kingdom started in 1936 as a public service which was free of advertising, which followed the first demonstration of a transmitted moving image in 1926. Currently, the United Kingdom has a collection of free-to-air, free-to-view and subscription services over a variety of distribution media, through which there are over 480 channels for consumers as well as on-demand content. There are six main channel owners who are responsible for most material viewed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ITV1</span> British free-to-air television channel

ITV1 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the British media company ITV plc. It provides the Channel 3 public broadcast service across all of the United Kingdom except for the central and northern areas of Scotland where STV provides the service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ITV plc</span> British-based media company

ITV plc is a British media company that holds 13 of the 15 regional television licences that make up the ITV network, the oldest and largest commercial terrestrial television network in the United Kingdom.

Talksport, owned by Wireless Group, is a sports radio station in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The station was originally launched as Talk Radio UK in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UTV (TV channel)</span> Television channel in Northern Ireland

UTV is the ITV region covering Northern Ireland, ITV subsidiary and the former on-air name of the free-to-air public broadcast television channel serving the area. It is run by ITV plc and is responsible for the regional news service and other programmes made principally for the area.

Bauer Media Audio UK is a UK-based radio division of Bauer Media Group owning core brands; Absolute Radio, Greatest Hits Radio, Jazz FM, Scala Radio, Hits Radio, KISS, Planet Rock, Magic, Kerrang! Radio and Heat Radio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">STV (TV channel)</span> Television channel in Scotland

STV is a free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the STV Group. It is made up of the Central Scotland and Northern Scotland ITV public broadcaster licences, formerly known as Scottish Television and Grampian Television respectively.

Analogue terrestrial television in the United Kingdom was originally the method by which the significant majority of viewers in the UK, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man received television. Analogue terrestrial television broadcasts have fully ceased in the UK with Northern Ireland being the last region to have ceased transmission analogue terrestrial television broadcasts. Northern Ireland switched off the last analogue television signals, making all of the United Kingdom only capable of receiving digital television, in the early hours of 24 October, 2012. It has been completely replaced by digital terrestrial television and other non-terrestrial means as of the end of 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Virgin Media Television (Ireland)</span> Irish television company

Virgin Media Television Ltd is a commercial television company in Ireland, based in Dublin. Launched in 1998 as TV3 Television Network, the TV3 Group was formed in January 2009. The company was acquired by Liberty Global in 2015, and the channels were rebranded to Virgin Media Television in 2018.

The following is a list of events relating to television in Ireland from 2007.

This is a list of events in Scottish television from 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">News Corp</span> American multinational mass media company

News Corporation, stylized as News Corp, is a mass media and publishing company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It was formed on June 28, 2013, following a spin-off of the media outlets of the original News Corporation as 21st Century Fox (21CF). Operating across digital real estate information, news media, book publishing, and cable television, News Corp's notable assets include Dow Jones & Company, News UK, News Corp Australia, REA Group, Realtor.com, and book publisher HarperCollins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">STV Group</span> Scottish media company

STV Group plc is a media company based in Glasgow, Scotland. Beginning as a television broadcaster in 1957, the company expanded into newspapers, advertising and radio; after completing a restructuring in 2010, STV Group is active in broadcast television, video-on-demand and television production. The company is a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap Index.

Virgin Media Three, also called Virgin Three, is an Irish free-to-air television channel owned by Virgin Media Television.

This is a timeline of the history of the British broadcaster Scottish Television. It provides the ITV network service for Central Scotland.

This is a timeline of the history of Ulster Television. It provides the ITV network service for Northern Ireland.

References

  1. ↑ "Preliminary Announcement" (PDF). UTV Media. 2 September 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  2. 1 2 Gallivan, Rory (25 June 2016). "News Corp Buys Wireless Group for $296 Million". The Wall Street Journal. New York.
  3. ↑ Lodderhose, Diana (1 July 2016). "News Corp. Moves into Radio, Acquires U.K. Giant Wireless Group". Variety.
  4. 1 2 Mayhew, Freddy (26 September 2016). "Rupert Murdoch's News Corp completes Wireless Group takeover". Press Gazette. London. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  5. ↑ "The ITV Hub".
  6. ↑ UTV Drive
  7. ↑ UTV Plc Archived 10 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine – UTV Notice of 2005 AGM
  8. ↑ "UTV PLC: Result of EGM". Investegate. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  9. ↑ "UTV Media PLC: First Day of Dealings". Investegate. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  10. ↑ "UTV scraps plans for STV merger". BBC News. 20 September 2006. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  11. ↑ Edgecliffe-Johnson, Andrew (11 December 2006). "SMG comes cap in hand back to UTV". Financial Times. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  12. ↑ Crawley-Boevey, Sarah (28 February 2007). "SMG and UTV call off merger plan". Media Week. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  13. ↑ "Sound Digital wins national DAB multiplex". RadioToday. 27 March 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  14. ↑ "A dozen stations launched on new DAB multiplex". RadioToday. 29 February 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  15. ↑ "UTV Media agrees sale of TV stations to ITV for £100m". BBC News. 19 October 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  16. ↑ McDonnell, Francess (29 February 2016). "UTV rebrands as Wireless Group and shifts focus to radio". The Irish Times. Dublin. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  17. ↑ "Talksport owner Wireless Group bought by News Corp". BBC News. 30 June 2016. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  18. ↑ "News UK announces the completion of Wireless Group acquisition" (Press release). News UK. 26 September 2016. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  19. ↑ Deegan, Gordon (8 May 2019). "Murdoch media group records €3.4m earnings". Irish Independent. Dublin.
  20. ↑ "Bauer buys Wireless Group's local radio stations". RadioToday. 8 February 2019. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
  21. ↑ "UTV buys Dublin-based PR agency Simply Zesty". BBC News . BBC. 6 March 2012. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.