Near neighbours Romania and Slovakia are in many respects at opposite ends of the region’s TV industry spectrum. While the former is generally acknowledged to be a dynamic market attractive to foreign investors, the latter is resolutely low-key and at times feels cut off from the mainstream. These perceptions have to some degree been borne […]

Will the BBC’s commitment to digital switchover waiver under the new licence fee settlement? Julian Clover reports There is no doubting that the BBC has thrown itself fully behind the digital switchover process. First by launching new digital channels and later by bailing the government out of a major policy failure when ITV Digital went […]

Chris Dziadul looks at proposed, completed and doubtful deals across the region The news that Russia’s Sistema may be about to buy into one of Western Europe’s most powerful multimedia companies should come as no surprise. Securing even a minority stake in Telecom Italia, which is valued at around $60 billion (€46.3 billion) and has […]

Central and Eastern Europe was until recently quite low down in News Corp.’s list of priorities. Russia, certainly, wetted the appetite, and a foothold of sorts had been established in the Balkans through the Bulgarian national commercial station bTV. But for the region as a whole, investing in the TV industry was largely out of […]