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Latest News [2009] archive from May 2009
| Sky to show content on Xbox 360
Sky has signed a deal with Microsoft that will see live football, TV and film content brought to the Xbox 360. | |
| CES ‘the world’s largest consumer tech tradeshow’ – it’s official
CES is officially the world’s largest consumer technology tradeshow and North America’s largest tradeshow of any kind. | |
| Electricals lead the way in John Lewis's best week of the year so far
John Lewis today reported its strongest trading week of the year so far (sales figures for last week to May 23 2009), up two per cent on the same time last year to £45.4 million, with electricals and home technology leading the way, accounting for 7.1 per cent of total sales. | |
| Don't expect customer loyalty after the recession
The post-recession UK is going to see the rise of the promiscuous, bounce-back consumer – one whose loyalty has to be won and re-won every day. 28 May 2009 | |
| Retail sales continue slide
Retail sales fell again in the year to May following a "broadly flat" April. 28 May 2009 | |
| More job losses announced at Grattan
Mail order catalogue company Freeman Grattan Holdings is to axe 160 jobs from its distribution centre in Listerhills, which currently employs 700 people. 28 May 2009 | |
| Red tape cost Europe's businesses Euro 1 trillion
Red tape has cost Europe's businesses Euro 1 trillion (around £870.9 billion) over the last 11 years, a new study has found. 27 May 2009 | |
| Jessops posts £5.9m loss
Photographic retailer Jessops notched up losses of £5.9 million in the six months to March 31. | |
| John Lewis names new-format stores
Department store group John Lewis is to call its new format home and electricals stores 'John Lewis at home'. 27 May 2009 | |
| Public service broadcasters to carry teleshopping channels for the first time ever
Commercial public service broadcasters (PSBs) ITV, Channel 4 and Five will be allowed to carry teleshopping for the first time, regulator Ofcom announced today. | |
| LG educates the trade and consumers on TV technology
LG has unveiled two new trade and consumer initiatives in response to independent research that revealed 80 per cent of UK households are confused by jargon associated with TV purchases. | |
| Philips to buy Gaggia owner Saeco
Philips is to buy expresso coffee machine company Saeco, which owns the Gaggia brand. 26 May 2009 | |
| Britons in the dark over recycling electricals
Britons are the worst in Europe when it comes to recycling electrical products. | |
| FA Cup and UEFA Champions League finals on Freesat
Freesat viewers will be able to experience the football FA Cup and UEFA Champions League finals in high definition on ITV HD. | |
| PAB goes into administration
Premium Appliance Brands (PAB) was placed into administration on May 12 2009. | |
| Hickmans scoops Freesat Independent Retailer of the Year
Swindon-based dealer Hickmans scooped the ERT ‘Take a Town’ Independent Retailer of the Year award at last night’s inaugural Freesat Awards in London. | |
| BSH claims to be in “stable position” despite economic crisis
BSH Home Appliances has reported annual sales of €8.76 billion, 0.7 per cent down on the same period last year. | |
| Akai brand returns to UK - ERT exclusive
The Akai brand is to be resurrected in the UK and used on a range of accessories, including headphones and cables. | |
| Exeter is UK’s first digital city
Exeter became the first digital city in the UK at 00:02 today, when analogue TV signals in the area were permanently turned off. | |
| Ofcom announces pay freeze
Ofcom, the independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries, announced today that there would be no pay increase for all staff in 2009-10. | |
| Free public Wi-Fi network helps consumers in digitally remote areas
Freerunner (http://www.freerunr.com), a free public Wi-Fi network to help consumers in digitally remote and underserved areas get broadband access, has launched today. | |
| Electrolux launches dishwasher water savings website
A new website from Electrolux (www.electrolux.com/WaterSavings) shows you just how much water your city could save if all the householders used a dishwasher rather than washing up by hand. | |
| DSGi sells Hungary stores for €1
DSGi has sold its Electro World stores in Hungary for €1. | |
| M & S cuts dividend after fall in profits
Marks and Spencer has cut its dividend by a third after reporting a fall in annual profits. | |
| Pure launches "world's first Works with iPhone" DAB micro system
Digital radio manufacturer has unveiled what it claims is the world’s first “Works with iPhone” DAB micro system – the Sirocco 150. | |
| Twitter now on new Samsung TV range
The social networking site Twitter is now available on the Internet@TV service on Samsung’s LED 6000, 7000 and 8000 Series of TVs, as well as the 6 and 7 Series LCD TVs. | |
| BRC Global Standards launches website
British Retail Consortium (BRC) Global Standards today launched its own dedicated website at www.brcglobalstandards.com. 18 May 2009 | |
| Jobless rise is fastest since 1980s
Unemployment is rising faster in this recession than at anytime since the 1980s, according to official figures. | |
| Flat start for Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, revealed a fairly flat performance in the first quarter of its financial year to April 30. 15 May 2009 | |
| Now Panasonic announces losses
Panasonic has announced a net loss of Yen 379 billion (around £2.6bn) for the year to March 31. 15 May 2009 | |
| Freesat announces shortlist for first Awards
Freesat, the free-to-air satellite TV service, has announced the shortlist for its inaugural Freesat Awards, which are to be held in London next Wednesday (May 20). | |
| Vodafone scraps European roaming charges
Vodafone is to scrap roaming charges across Europe this summer. | |
| Switchover could result in more dumped TVs
A recycling expert has predicted that digital switchover will result in an increase in TV sets being dumped. | |
| Revenues fall at Comet
Comet saw revenues fall 5.3 per cent , down 7.3 per cent like-for-like, in the last quarter of the financial year to April 30. 14 May 2009 | |
| Rents will fall and vacancies rise warns top commercial landlord
Britain's biggest commercial property company Land Securities warned that it expected rents to fall and vacancies to rise as it revealed a £4.7 billion (or 34.2 per cent) fall in the value of its properties. 13 May 2009 | |
| Growth will not return until next year warns Bank
The UK economy will not begin to grow again until the middle of next year predicted the Bank of England's latest quarterly inflation report. 13 May 2009 | |
| Sainsbury's sees profits soar
Sainsbury's saw its underlying pre-tax profits jump 11.3 per cent to £543 million in the 52 weeks to March 21 on sales that grew 5.7 per cent to £20.4 billion. 13 May 2009 | |
| Hitachi reports £5bn loss
Hitachi has posted net losses of Yen 787.3 billion (around £5.3bn) for the year ended March 31. 12 May 2009 | |
| Minimum wage rises by 7p
The UK minimum wage is to rise by 7p to £5.80 an hour in October. 12 May 2009 | |
| Sun and Easter boost April sales
Warm weather and Easter boosted UK retail sales last month with like-for-likes sales values 4.6 per cent ahead of a year ago and up by 6.3 per cent in total. 12 May 2009 | |
| Think about small businesses, EU candidates told
Candidates in the forthcoming European Elections are being urged to think about small businesses. 11 May 2009 | |
| Consumer confidence at record low
Consumer confidence is at a record low according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). 11 May 2009 | |
| Freeview iPlayer to be available this year
BBC iPlayer enabled Freeview boxes are expected to be available by the end of the year, according to the Telegraph. | |
| BBG merges with Peerless Industries Inc. - ERT exclusive
ERT can this afternoon exclusively reveal that BBG Distribution has merged with Peerless Industries, the leading US-based AV mounting company. | |
| New boss for Electrolux UK
Electrolux UK has appointed Ian Banes as its country head. He takes over from former managing director, Brad Tribble, who has moved to head up Electrolux’s Northern Region. | |
| Virgin pilots 200Mbps broadband for HD and 3DTV
Virgin Media is piloting broadband speeds of 200Megabit per second (Mbps) to test applications such as 1080p high definition TV and 3DTV. | |
| Rates on hold as MPC pumps another £50bn into economy
The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept rates on hold at 0.5 per cent today but crucially voted to pump a further £50 billion into the UK economy on top of the £75bn already agreed. 07 May 2009 | |
| EU vote could lead to energy label confusion
The European Parliament has voted for two different energy labels for refrigeration products and TVs in a move that retail chiefs said would cause maximum customer confusion. 07 May 2009 | |
| John Lewis to open smaller electrical and home stores
Department store group John Lewis is to open up to 50 smaller stores across the country that will sell electrical and home technology products and homewares. 07 May 2009 | |
| Freesat - one year old today
Free-to-air satellite TV service Freesat celebrates its first birthday today. 06 May 2009 | |
| Technical problem at Top Up TV
A software download on Sunday caused Thomson DTi6300 Top Up TV boxes to stop working. 06 May 2009 | |
| Shop price inflation slows
Shop price inflation is slowing down, according to new figures from the British Retail Consortium. 06 May 2009 | |
| Setanta in funding talks
Troubled Irish pay-TV broadcaster Setanta is in talks with a range of sporting bodies in an effort to renegotiate rights payment following a strategic review. | |
| Smeg moves into coffee machines
Smeg, the Italian domestic appliance manufacturer, has launched its first range of built-in coffee machines. | |
| HD content for BBC iPlayer via Virgin
BBC HD channel content is now available via BBC iPlayer on Virgin Media's TV platform | |
| New scheme claims to lift regulation burden for retailers
Retailers are being urged to take advantage of a new scheme partnering businesses with local authorities with the aim to lift the burden of regulation. | |
| Sky rollouts new Sky+ HD EPG
Sky has activated the new Sky+ HD electronic programme guide on another set of its fleet of high definition boxes, reports website Digital Spy. | |
| Bailed-out banks are failing SMEs
Cash-strapped small businesses are being failed by the very banks that are being propped up by the taxpayers' billions, MPs have argued. | |
