Goesting,"new" week-end mag at Belang van Limburg

Belang van Limburg (Mediahuis) has decided to replace their weekly TV supplement Hallo by a new week-end magazine named Goesting. It will be available both in print and via the App of Belang van Limburg. The content consists of tips for going out, especially in the province Limburg, gastronomy, cultural agenda, films and book reviews and podcasts.

La Libre to launch podcasts

In synergy with DH Radio, La Libre is now extending its content to audio. Topics announced cover politics, economy and culture. The podcasts may be accessed either through the site or the App. The sales house IPM Advertising also foresees advertising opportunities. The other title from IPM, la Dernière Heure, is expected to follow soon.

Podcasts are a trending topics for (originally print) publishers. According to the last Establishment Survey from CIM, more than 950.000 French-speaking adults declare they have listened to podcasts more or less recenty.

CAZ2 for more series in the Flemish TV Landscape

March 2020: DPG Media recycles the linear channel of former VTM Kids Jr. This new channel is reported to be dedicated to series, Flemish and international. It will showcase the "Walter presents" that was until now only visible through VTM GO, featuring fiction series in other original languages than English. Thematics will differ by weekday: fi crime on Monday, action on Thursday (fi SWAT) and fantasy/horror (fi Blood Drive) on Friday. Next to that series as Clan, Cordon, Zuidflank and Mr. Robot will be frequently aired with multiple episodes per evening. 

Facebook to shut down Audience Network for mobile sites

As of April 11th, Facebook is about to shut down Audience Network: it will no longer be available on the mobile segment of the Audience Network. The Audience Network is a digital platform for advertisers to extend Facebook campaigns on third-party apps or mobile websites.

From then on, Facebook will focus on its own platforms, especially on Instagram, that generated 1/4 of the group's revenue in 2019 (a total of about $20 billion in ad value)

Reasons given for this change are as follows:

• Instagram has turned out to be a better player to the core Facebook product.
• Growing concerns about privacy and brand safety, along with legal restrictions on data-sharing.
•  Consequence of Google announcement last month that third-party cookies will no longer be available to online advertisers within its Chrome browser.

And of course selling advertising space on third-party applications is less profitable for Facebook than advertising on its own platform.

Kinepolis free to extend its Belgian presence

A legal decision has cancelled the limitation imposed to Kinepolis by the Belgian Competition Authority (BCA). For a long time now (1997!) the group was not free to open up new complexes in our country. As of 12/08/2021 Kinepolis will be allowed to set up new locations without prior clearance from BCA. During the transition period, the group is allowed to prepare the openings. This gives the group more space for organic growth. Looking at their current geograhical split, gaps may be easily spotted.

Worth noting, when it comes to acquiring existing complexes in Belgium, existing rules still apply.