AudioMedia - November 2008 - (Page 18)

w h a t ’s u p UK whatsupuk@audiomedia.com Among the masses of stormy grey economic clouds, KEVIN HILTON finds a few that have a silver lining. Storm Clouds Of The Economy times have moved on considerably since June and September, so there is likely to be an even gloomier conclusion to be drawn for the next bulletin, due at the end of December. Marcus Brooke, Managing Director of Sonifex, reflects that the credit crunch has “become something else” and the consequence of whatever it is now means that people are “holding on to their cash”. The clearest example of that is Channel 4 Television cancelling its proposed move into digital radio, which not only leaves the future of the second national commercial DAB multiplex in doubt but also puts paid to the project to build new studios for the project. Oxford Sound & Media had been working on the design of the radio studios at C4’s Horseferry Road headquarters, which were to have been built into the space vacated by the broadcaster’s play-out facilities. This operation has been outsourced to Red Bee Media as part of a planned cost-cutting exercise, but now C4 has reported “a rapid downturn” in its core revenues. So, with the need to save £100 million on its operational costs, radio was a luxury it could not afford. Radio has its own problems, as money tightens from even tighter advertising budgets. With less money to go around and more centralisation, the old wireless is proving an increasingly difficult market, with companies that traditionally did well in the sector moving into audio for television to maintain business levels. That’s really the key to this particular downturn/slump/almost recession; look at one sector and everything seems grim, examine another and there appears to be more hope. Andrew Riley, Managing Director of Oxford Sound & Media, comments that despite the loss of the C4 contract there is plenty of work in hand, particularly in the theatre world. He is not complacent, however, and realises the full impact F inancial crises come and go, but may hang around for a while. What feels different about the one we are in the midst of right now is that it seems to have been played out in the media more than any other, with the BBC’s Business Editor, Robert Peston, as an unlikely a harbinger of doom as he is an unlikely television presence. Central to the coverage in recent weeks has been the speculation that UK Plc. is on the brink of a recession (the official definition of which is a fall in gross domestic product for two successive quarters). Certainly there are parallels with the last time we were in such a situation, the early 1990s with its financial collapses, property slumps, and massive recriminations. What has changed is that inflation is no where near as high as it was during any earlier financial crisis, and interest rates are similarly low. But the number of house repossessions is rising, property prices are falling, and building projects are being cancelled, leading to job losses in that sector, adding to the overall increasing unemployment figures. The official interpretation is that the British economy is shrinking, a conclusion backed up by a survey conducted on behalf of the CBI (Confederation of British Industry). The most recent quarterly Industrial Trends report from the CBI reveals falling demand for manufactured goods and a severe drop in output, both of which have severely dampened manufacturing confidence, apparently the biggest fall in one quarter for 28 years. Over the three months to October only 16 percent of manufacturers saw an increase in new orders, compared to 46 percent experiencing a decrease. The International Association of Broadcasting Manufacturers (IABM) reflected a similar darkening mood in its last Trend Survey and Market Study, but of what is happening now could be felt on design and construction business in a year or two years. The weak British pound does not help trading, and a number of manufacturers have had to raise prices to keep in line with the Euro. Yamaha Commercial Audio in the UK has put up its prices three times since April, partly because it has to keep in line with its European headquarters, which, naturally, works in Euros. The cost of commodities has also risen and this has been passed on to UK-based distributors like Yamaha’s operation here. The disparity against the dollar will also cause problems as British subsidiaries and distribution companies have to pay approximately 15 percent more for goods from the US than previously. The broadcast and pro audio equipment sector does have the advantage of being a specialist area. Keith Watson, Marketing Director of the Soundcraft group, says that this gives some insulation compared to companies dealing in more general commodities. “If there’s still demand and a market, then we’re in a better position than people in other sectors,” he says. But there is a tendency to almost panic in these situations and make cuts in areas that should not be touched, like R&D. Watson was working in aerospace at the time of the last recession, 1992, and remembers companies slashing budgets for research, which, he says, made getting momentum going again when better times came more difficult. As American author and finance expert Jeffrey Robinson has said, markets work on reality and expectation. We have been through almost unprecedented times of late, and there could be more to come, but if we just refuse to think anything can be done then the only thing to grow will be the piles of newspapers with headlines predicting the end of the civilised world. ∫ Introducing the new PortaGig. Glyph’s second generation PortaGig 800 can handle over 55 tracks of 24bit/48k audio, with edits, running on FireWire bus power. Weighing less than 10 ounces, all this power is backed by Glyph’s Advance Replacement and Data Recovery Policies. Up to 320GB capacity (2) FireWire 800, (1) USB 2.0 port 7,200 or 5,400 RPM SATA II drives Universal AC power supply included Store in a cool place.. A U D II O M E D I A NN O V E M B E R 2 2 0 8 5 AUD O MEDIA OVEMBER 000 Steyler Str. 121 D-41334 Nettetal +49 (0) 2157 870 22 32 mrichert@glyphtech.com glyphtech.com 18 http://www.glyphtech.com http://www.glyphtech.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of AudioMedia - November 2008

AudioMedia - November 2008 Contents Recording News Post News Broadcast News Geofocus: Italy What's Up UK AES Review For the Record Studio Snapshot: Aquarium Abbey Road Plug-ins Brilliance Pack Neumann TLM67 Mercenary Audio KM-69 IZ Technology ADA Final Cut Special: Bond TC Powercore 6000 EP Productions Nagra VI Product Sampler: Location Tools Video Guide AMSR News Shure KSM9 Big Beach Boutique 4

AudioMedia - November 2008

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