Hooray!  I’ve managed to get my hands on one of the last remaining BlackBerry Storms in the UK.  This is the product touted by RIM as its iPhone rival, but better in some respects thanks to its clickable touch screen.  So, great excitement at getting to grips with this pocket wonder.

However, although it’s very early days, the signs are that this smart phone definitely falls into the category of ‘good, but not great’.  The good things include the versatility of the product, the ever-dependable functionality of the email, and – to an extent – the clickable screen, which can be satisfying when you get it right.  However, I’m already wondering if/thinking that I made a mistake in not going for the highly rated but more evolutionary BlackBerry Bold.  (more…)

According to the Press Gazette, the Telegraph Media Group is shedding 50 journalists, about 10 percent of its total, in response to the harsh economic climate.  The cuts are reported to be falling principally in its picture desks, magazine supplements and production.  Companies looking to take their news to TMG therefore might do well to consider ways they can help bridge the gap, for example by offering higher quality photo-led stories that can immediately fill a slot for the harder pressed remaining staff.

Possibly the longest-awaited cliffhanger in business aviation history ended this week, when Very Light Jet pioneer Eclipse Aviation finally filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.  Of course, this being Eclipse, the story doesn’t end there, and there is now much speculation as to what recently-arrived investor and CEO Roel Pieper’s plans mean for investors, customers, suppliers and the rest of it.  (more…)

A great, thought-provoking article by Roy Greenslade in the Evening Standard this week.  So perilous are the paper’s finances, he argues, that the Indy should make a virtue of necessity – and continue its pioneering tradition – by being the first national newspaper to go completely online.

I think there is a lot to this.  All papers are working hard to deliver a worthwhile online version – some more successfully than others.  The current mantra is multi-platform journalism, with the FT, Times and Telegraph arguably at the vanguard.  (For example, we’re presently working with the new online video unit created to supply high grade content to both timesonline.co.uk and sky.com.) (more…)

According to PR Week, British Airways delivered both bad and good news on the PR front last week.  The bad is principally for their incumbent agency Porter Novelli, which has lost the lion’s share of a client account reputedly worth more than £400,000 (ouch!). 

However, the good news is that bellwether BA has shown that PR has come of age as a crucial business function in a tough environment, their spokesman telling the magazine:

“Our PR activity will not be reduced but will most likely increase. PR is just as important in a downturn as it is in the good times.” (more…)