Samantha Cameron’s stepfather in line for slice of £40m windfall after sale of firm behind Octonauts

Samantha Cameron’s stepfather is in line to share a £40million windfall after selling part of the TV production business behind hit children’s show Octonauts. Viscount William Astor will split the cash with media mogul Lord Waheed Alli thanks to a deal which valued their firm Silvergate Media at between £70million and £80million. Shamrock Capital Advisers – a […]

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STW/WPP: the mammoth merger

The merger of WPP and STW in Australia creates an $850 million business. It dwarfs the nearest competition by a long way and CEO of the newly formed WPP AUNZ, Michael Connaghan, expects it to punch through $1 billion before too long. With more than 90 agencies in the combined business, consolidation is inevitable. Connaghan said as much, speaking to AdNews just hours after the merger was passed by shareholders

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UBM acquires Business Journals in the US

BJI serves the men’s apparel and women’s apparel and accessories markets under the following leading tradeshow brands: AccessoriesTheShow, EDIT, FAME, Moda, MRket and Stitch. These shows run multiple times a year and in some cases are located in the same venues as UBM shows. BJI also operates several websites and publications serving the fashion sector. In 2015, BJI’s revenues were approximately $40m – $33m from Events and $7m from Other Marketing Services

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Publicis confirms talks with Cheil

In a Q1 earnings announcement Publicis said: “We don’t expect this year to be a year of large or numerous acquisitions” with the possible exception of Samsung’s ad agency Cheil Worldwide, the second largest Asian agency outside of Japan. Levy confirms acquisition talks, believing the South Korean-based agency would be a great fit to complement its digital expertise and global footprint. But he says these discussions have had “ups and downs” and “we are in a plateau today.”

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Iris acquires Founded, extends B2B reach

Iris, part of Cheil Worldwide, is acquiring Founded, a creative agency with offices in London and San Francisco. This deal will further extend Iris’ expertise in business-to-business (B2B) marketing, CRM, creative technology and strategic planning. Plus, Iris will now have a footprint on the west coast through Founded’s San Francisco office, opened in 2015. Terms of the deal were not disclosed

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Burson-Marsteller agrees to acquire majority stake in Turkish consultancy Effect PR

NEW YORK, April 20, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — Burson-Marsteller, a leading global strategic communications and public relations firm, announced today it has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Turkish communications firm Effect PR. Headquartered inIstanbul, Effect PR has been Burson-Marsteller’s exclusive affiliate partner in Turkey since 2012. Following the acquisition, it will become a full member of the network and be renamed Effect Burson-Marsteller

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Hearst and Verizon acquire Complex

Publishers are scrambling quickly to launch Millennial content hubs, but Hearst is opting for the turnkey approach. The company announced that it’s extending its partnership with telecommunications giant Verizon to acquire Complex and its massive Millennial video audience

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Why does Jack Ma want to own a newspaper?

Why would a hugely successful businessman make himself an easy target for critics who suspected his real intent was to prune an occasional thorn in Beijing’s side? SCMP readers are now asking exactly the same question of Jack Ma, the Chinese magnate who has agreed to pay $266m for the paper. The Alibaba Group chairman is China’s second-richest man and has expanded from his internet base into sectors as diverse as financial services and sport

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Media barons Bollore and Berlusconi team up to battle Netflix and Sky in £1.25bn bet on streaming future

Silvio Berlusconi and Vincent Bollore, two of Europe’s most powerful media barons, have agreed a €1.75bn (£1.25bn) pact to create a European rival to Netflix and stronger continental opposition to Sky. The deal is expected to be approved this evening by the directors of Mr Berlusconi’s TV company Mediaset. It will see Mr Bollore’s French media giant Vivendi take full control of Mr Berlusconi’s Mediaset Premium. The loss-making pay-TV arm owns rights to top-flight Italian football and competes with Sky Italia

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