Synergy will be the watchword as the company squeezes out value from moves like combining back of"ce capabilities at UTV's talkSPORT with that of SMG's Virgin Radio.

Goodbodys analyst Gavin Kelleher said in a Friday note that if John McGann of UTV can engineer a 50/50 merger, "it will be an optimal way of being at the forefront of consolidation in the UK media sector".

EYEWONDER Barry Bedford won't have a lot of time off after his leaving do last week.

The former MD of McConnells multimedia, who developed notable media campaigns including a Ryder Cup video-banner creative for AIB, is taking a couple of weeks off before opening the Ireland office of Atlantaheadquartered rich media agency EyeWonder.

EyeWonder works as a subcontractor to other agencies rather than directly with clients. But it's another sign that the online/rich media/digital advertising side of things is hotting up.

WPP group, a good indicator of global advertising spend, reported results late last week showing a 25% rise in pre-tax profits for the first half of the year to £333.2m. Martin Sorrell said that the growth was outside of traditional media space:

"We are finding that our industry is becoming more and more twopaced. Slow growth in traditional media, such as network television, newspapers and magazines, more rapid growth in new media, such as direct, internet and interactive, driven by new technology".

3PAY SPIRALING Mobile operator 3 Ireland is thought to have stumped up 400,000 to promote RTE 2's highlights coverage of the UK Premiership.

The promotion will include 10second stings promoting 3's video mobile football services at the start and end of each programme and a range of best goal competitions and prizes from 3. Media buying was managed by Mindshare.

The deal is part of an overall 2m media spend that 3 is currently undertaking.

In other 3 news, Thinkhouse PR released another promotional video via YouTube, this time promoting 3's 5c text and multimedia messaging offer by getting ex-Big Brother housemate Spiral to re-brand himself as the 10% discount version of 50-Cent, 5Cent.

GOOGLEZON'S REVENGE Hardcore meeja geeks may recall a little powerpoint presentation called EPIC2014 that made the rounds two years ago. It predicted a dystopian or, depending on your point of view, utopian future media universe in which Microsoft and Googlezon (nee Google, now merged with Amazon) slug it out for global domination.

Made by two then students, Robin Sloan and Matt Thompson, its Blade Runner for media was bad news for us hacks, good news for the programmers. Its punchline prediction was computer algorithms actually putting together news copy.

Well it's no longer just our nightmare. It's really happening.

Friday's Financial Times reported that Thomson Financial, the business information company, has since March been using computers to write news stories that are ready within 0.3 seconds of a company's "nancial results being made public.

The programme compares that set of results to previous results and earnings guidance in the Thomson database and analyses whether the company has done well or badly. The company says the goal is not to cut costs. We're not sure we believe them.

TIPS, BRIBES & ABUSE all welcome at rdelevan@tribune. ie