Latest news with #JamesRooke
Scottish Sun
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Iconic Glasgow nightclub to be completely transformed after council approves plans
Read on to discover what will be inside the former disco DISCO CHANGE Iconic Glasgow nightclub to be completely transformed after council approves plans PLANS to transform an iconic Glasgow venue into student accommodation have been approved. The O2 ABC on Sauchiehall Street has lain empty for seven years after it was damaged by the fire at the Glasgow School of Art. Advertisement 4 Glasgow's O2 ABC was ripped apart by a demolition crews Credit: Alan MacGregor Ewing 4 The Glasgow School of Art's Mackintosh building was destroyed by fire Credit: PA 4 Plans were revealed to transform a Glasgow venue into student accommodation Credit: PR Handout The legendary music venue was unable to open its doors after it was ruined by the devastating blaze in June 2018. Flames from the art school spread to the ABC and tore through the building, as well as Jumping Jaks, the pub next door. And the O2 ABC has been derelict and lying abandoned ever since, with locals frequently branding the site an "eyesore". But now a huge transformation has been approved and is scheduled for completion in summer 2028. Advertisement James Rooke, Planning Director, Vita Group said: 'Over the past two years, we've worked closely with Glasgow City Council and other key stakeholders on a scheme that will become a landmark destination for Glasgow. "We are delighted with the news today and are as eager as everyone to get started on site and help towards the regeneration of this part of Sauchiehall Street. 'Our aim has always been to regenerate this anchor site by bringing forward exciting plans which celebrate the city's best independent food and minds. "The beautifully designed destination food hall will breathe new life into this iconic location creating a place for the people of Glasgow to come and enjoy together whilst revitalising Sauchiehall Street. Advertisement "Meanwhile the student accommodation above will play a pivotal role in reducing the number of students finding their way into Glasgow's private rented accommodation in their second and third years.' The development will feature a ground floor food hall providing space for five emerging food brands as well as a large bar. Secret Gig: Fans React to Screwfish Mystery Show in Glasgow Moving from day into night the food hall will become an events space featuring music, entertainment and a community hub. The student accommodation will offer 356 bed spaces comprising 306, four, five and six bedroom 'houses' with a shared kitchen and lounge, and 50 studio spaces. Advertisement It will also feature a fitness centre, social and study spaces, café-style lounges and cycle storage. Elsewhere the Glasgow School of Art has reportedly raised concerns over the rebuild of the O2 ABC.
Business Wire
17-06-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
As More Advertisers Seek to Use TV as a Full Funnel Marketing Solution, Comcast Advertising Unveils Several Industry-First, Performance-Based Solutions Across Its Portfolio of Brands
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Comcast Advertising, the advertising division of Comcast, today unveiled an array of new performance-driven offerings across its portfolio to equip brands of all sizes with advanced measurement and attribution tools that demonstrate the clear impact of TV advertising throughout the marketing funnel. Television has long been used as an effective centerpiece of advertisers' media strategies, but in the social media era of 'last click' attribution and immediate reporting, TV does not always get the credit it deserves for influencing action and driving sales. A new study from Comcast Advertising in partnership with AdExchanger shows that advertisers are 30% more likely to use TV to build awareness rather than to drive action. However, 63% of advertisers said they would increase spend if there was more attribution demonstrating uplift in consumer spend linked to TV ad exposure. By introducing enhanced attribution solutions for national to regional advertisers, Comcast Advertising is demonstrating TV's effectiveness at delivering lower funnel results, including sales and conversion data. "At Comcast Advertising, our goal is to help advertisers unlock the full potential of TV by making it more measurable, actionable, and aligned with business outcomes,' says James Rooke, President of Comcast Advertising. 'The truth is, TV is a results engine that connects top and bottom funnel in a way that no other medium can. Endless studies have shown this. However, we don't make TV advertising as easy or seamless as social media platforms do. Our goal across Comcast Advertising is two-fold: make it easy and prove it works.' In its continuing work to illustrate the connection between TV campaigns and business outcomes, Comcast Advertising is announcing three new innovations in performance, many of which are first to market: Mastercard Partnership with Comcast Advertising Enables Accurate Campaign Measurement for Advertisers of all Sizes Comcast Advertising is partnering with Mastercard to increase the accuracy of campaign analysis by analyzing the effect ad campaigns have on geographically aggregated spend. The fidelity of Comcast's data, paired with the broad scale and reach of Mastercard's acceptance allows this Comcast Media Solution offering to be used not only by large national but also regional advertisers. With beta testing sales lift across key categories like automotive, retail, home services and furniture, advertisers can be confident their media spend is delivering the most impact, and change up the campaign, if it is not. For instance, a recent study of campaigns for five major Home Improvement & Furnishing brands revealed a 3x incremental return on ad spend as well as increases to store traffic, average order value and consumer spend. Marpipe Partnership with Universal Ads Introduces Dynamic Product Ads Within Connected TV for the First Time Universal Ads, which enables brands of any size to seamlessly create, buy and measure ads across premium video, is launching a first-of-its- kind partnership with Marpipe, the world's leading platform for catalog advertising, to bring dynamic product ads to connected TV for the first time. This integration enables brands to automatically generate personalized, shoppable ads for streaming from live product catalogs, bringing the performance marketing playbook to the biggest screen in the house. "This partnership brings the best of Marpipe's creative automation to the most exciting frontier in advertising: Connected TV,' says Dan Pantelo, CEO of Marpipe. 'Together with Universal Ads, we're transforming TV from a brand-only channel into a scalable performance engine for ecommerce." According to research from Meta and Marpipe, regular Dynamic Product Ads deliver 70% higher return on ad spend (ROAS) compared to standard image or video ads, while enriched product catalogs drive performance more than twice as effectively—insights now featured on our homepage. Expansion of FreeWheel's Attribution Capabilities for Advertisers Comcast's FreeWheel, a global technology platform for the television advertising industry, is introducing enhanced partnerships and new tools to improve attribution and advertiser performance measurement across its buying technology. The streaming industry has faced unique challenges in delivering the robust outcome measurement that performance-based agencies and advertisers need to unlock the full potential of premium video advertising. To help solve these challenges, FreeWheel introduced the FreeWheel Identity Network, an industry leading identity resolution interoperability solution. Through its buying technology suite's direct connection with the FreeWheel publisher suite, advertisers have seen over 8x increase in audience match rates compared to other in-market solutions, a key component to accurately measure attribution. To build on this strength and further enhance its advertiser attribution capabilities, FreeWheel is announcing a new partnership with PlaceIQ, a location-based audience targeting and measurement company, to drive better campaign performance and efficiency for advertisers. As a result of these enhancements, FreeWheel's buying technology now offers advertisers streamlined in-platform tools for retargeting and attribution: Location-based targeting and attribution metrics connecting advertising exposure to physical location foot traffic Enhanced reporting logs allowing users to easily analyze campaign insights and performance while protecting user privacy 'FreeWheel's powerful combination of sophisticated programmatic buy-side capabilities, direct premium streaming supply access, and advanced identity resolution align seamlessly with our Open Intelligence vision—enabling more efficient campaign activation, fewer intermediaries, and a strong commitment to privacy," says JiYoung Kim, Chief Operating Officer at WPP Media North America. "Together, we're helping advertisers better understand and optimize their data across the full media strategy.' As advertisers try to navigate the burgeoning TV ecosystem, Comcast Advertising is committed to providing the tools and solutions that enable a transparent and efficient media buying supply chain that benefits publishers, advertisers, and consumers. About Comcast Advertising Comcast Advertising is the advertising division of Comcast. As a global leader in media, technology and advertising, the company fosters powerful connections between brands and their audiences as well as among publishers, distributors, MVPDs, agencies and other industry players. Comcast Advertising's Media Solutions team provides a streamlined way for advertisers to build brand relevancy and sustainable business outcomes through multiscreen TV advertising campaigns--powered by the media, data and technology assets of Comcast. FreeWheel, its media and technology arm, provides the technology, data enablement and convergent marketplaces required to ensure buyers and sellers can transact across all screens, data types and sales channels, in order to ensure the ultimate goal – results for marketers. And, Comcast Advertising's Universal Ads enables brands of any size to seamlessly create, buy, and measure ads across premium video directly from top publishers with no fees. Comcast Advertising, along with NBCUniversal and Sky, is part of the Comcast Corporation. About FreeWheel FreeWheel empowers all segments of The New TV Ecosystem. We are structured to provide the full breadth of solutions the advertising industry needs to achieve their goals. We provide the technology, data enablement and convergent marketplaces required to ensure buyers and sellers can transact across all screens, across all data types, and all sales channels, in order to ensure the ultimate goal – results for marketers. With offices in New York, Chicago, London, Paris, Beijing, and across the globe, FreeWheel, A Comcast Company, stands to advocate for the entire industry through the FreeWheel Council for Premium Video. For more information, please visit and follow us on X and LinkedIn. About Universal Ads Universal Ads enables any brand, of any size, to seamlessly make and buy commercials across premium video reaching new qualified audiences at scale. Universal Ads combines premium and brand-safe video content directly from the most influential media companies with the ease and familiarity of social ad buying. It is your one-stop shop for high-quality video ads delivering unmatched scale. Universal Ads is a part of the Comcast Corporation, a global media and technology company that connects people to moments and experiences that matter. About Mastercard Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we're building a resilient economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential. About Marpipe Since the Mad Men era, the process behind making and launching ad creative has remained stubbornly unchanged. The process of guessing and checking, or simply deferring to the opinion of the highest paid person in the room, no longer works in today's competitive digital environment. Marpipe changes the creative workflow from the very beginning by letting brands take their designs and ideas, create and test all the potential creative possibilities within days, and have their audiences determine which creative executions to build out and scale. This new workflow means marketers can reliably achieve better-performing ad creative, while creatives see how to produce and deliver ads they know will work better. About Precisely As a global leader in data integrity, Precisely ensures that your data is accurate, consistent, and contextual. The Precisely PlaceIQ programmatic advertising solution allows you to understand real-world audiences and patterns using movement and location data that prioritizes privacy and helps you accomplish your business goals. Over 12,000 organizations in more than 100 countries, including 93 of the Fortune 100, trust Precisely software, data, and data strategy consulting. Learn more at
The Herald Scotland
13-06-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Glasgow O2 ABC plans recommended despite 'negative impact'
The document also states that 'the scale of the proposed development would overall not be considered to preserve or enhance the character or appearance of Listed Buildings and the Conservation Area'. But, the recommendation concludes that 'this negative impact is considered to be outweighed by the significantly positive impact of developing this site'. The document details plans for a mixed-use student accommodation and hospitality site. Over eight floors - including a basement - House of Social would include student accommodation, as well as a food hall, a public courtyard, a bar, a gym and more. New images illustrating proposals for the site of the former ABC music venue building on Sauchiehall Street were unveiled on Friday: New O2 ABC plan concepts revealed today (Image: Vita Group) (Image: Vita Group) If successful, the proposed Vita development, featuring their House of Social brand, will bring around £70million investment to Sauchiehall Street. The ground-floor food hall would provide space for five emerging food brands, with over 400 covers and a large bar. Moving from day into night, the food hall would become an events space featuring music, entertainment, and a community hub. The student accommodation would feature 356 bed spaces, comprising 306 four, five, and six-bedroom 'houses' with a shared kitchen and lounge and 50 studio spaces. It would also feature a fitness centre, social and study spaces, café-style lounges, and cycle storage. (Image: Vita Group) (Image: Vita Group) James Rooke, Planning Director for Vita Group, who has successfully created other new sites in Glasgow, said: 'We believe our proposals offer a unique approach to student living and the benefits the development will bring extend far beyond the student community. "It will generate significant economic benefits, will help to reenergise Sauchiehall Street and contribute to the city's Golden Z ambitions. 'This is an incredibly challenging site to redevelop, and we've worked hard to create proposals that are deliverable and appropriate.' Plans for Glasgow O2 ABC recommended despite 'negative impact' (Image: Supplied) The proposals have the support of a wide range of stakeholders, including local businesses and the Chamber of Commerce. Stuart Patrick, Chief Executive of the Chamber has welcomed the plans and said: 'It is critical that this key site is brought forward for development as soon as possible. "There's no doubt it's been a blight on Sauchiehall Street, and we need to secure this much-needed investment, which would be transformational.' The half-demolished O2 ABC site has been dormant for months after initial demolition works were completed at the end of last year. O2 ABC site branded an 'eyesore' (Image: Newsquest/Colin Mearns) The former cinema turned nightclub had lain derelict since the second Glasgow School of Art fire spilt over onto its roof in July 2018.
Scottish Sun
13-06-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Plans to transform iconic Glasgow nightclub take major step forward
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) PLANS to transform an iconic Glasgow venue have taken a major step forward after being submitted to councillors. The O2 ABC on Sauchiehall Street has lain empty for seven years after it was damaged by the fire at the Glasgow School of Art. 5 The O2 ABC suffered extensive damage after the blaze at the Glasgow School of Art in June 2018 Credit: PA:Press Association 5 Bulldozers demolished the building in October 2024 Credit: Alan MacGregor Ewing 5 New plans will see the site turned into a new development with student accommodation Credit: VITA GROUP The legendary music venue was unable to open its doors after it was ruined by the devastating blaze in June 2018. Flames from the art school spread to the ABC and tore through the building, as well as Jumping Jaks, the pub next door. And the O2 ABC has been derelict and lying abandoned ever since, with locals frequently branding the site an "eyesore". But in January year, plans were revealed to revive the site by developer Vita Group to transform it into modern student accommodation. The plans involve tearing down the C-listed building and replacing it with the new development, which would house 356 students. This first part was carried out in the following October with bulldozers demolishing the huge building. Around 306 of the spaces will be in four, five and six-bedroom flats, and there will also be 50 studio apartments in the new complex. The ground-floor food hall would provide space for five emerging food brands, with over 400 covers and a large bar. There would also be space for bars, a gym and a courtyard. The firm previously said it believes adding the private student halls to the site will help revitalise one of Scotland's busiest streets, which has been left to fall into a "sad and sorry" state. Huge fire erupts at Glasgow School of Art before spreading to O2 music venue as Sauchiehall Street is evacuated And now, councillors have been urged to approve the new plans after an application was submitted this week. However, the document submitted to Glasgow City Council admits that the proposed plans have a "significant issue of the negative impact on the Conservation Area", according to the Glasgow Times. It adds that "the scale of the proposed development would overall not be considered to preserve or enhance the character or appearance of Listed Buildings and the Conservation Area". However, despite this, councillors are still being recommended to approve the new development. The official recommendation states that "this negative impact is considered to be outweighed by the significantly positive impact of developing this site". This is because the new site could bring a huge £70million investment to Glasgow's Sauchiehall Street if it is successful. James Rooke, Planning Director for Vita Group, who has successfully created other new sites in Glasgow, told the Glasgow Times: 'We believe our proposals offer a unique approach to student living and the benefits the development will bring extend far beyond the student community. "It will generate significant economic benefits, will help to reenergise Sauchiehall Street and contribute to the city's Golden Z ambitions. DJ playing Glasgow's O2 ABC at time of School of Art fire tells of 'blind panic' THE O2 ABC DJ who was playing at the time of the massive blaze which tore the building apart has described the moment the club was evacuated during his set. Grant Robertson, 24, was playing the club with his friend Lewis Wake at the time of the fire which started in the Glasgow School of Art. The flames spread to the adjacent O2 ABC and Campus nightclub and the roof of the Sauchiehall Street club was engulfed in a raging inferno. Grant and Lewis were interrupted by security guards who urged them to turn the music off and get out of the building. He said: "It was crazy and bizarre. It was a blind panic. It was about 11pm when we were ushered out. "Security did a great job - they came up and told us to turn the music off and said 'the Art School is on fire everybody needs to get out.' "Everyone was ushered to the exits and even on the street the did a good job of shepherding folk out. "I was just in shock. I was on auto pilot. It still hasn't sunk in." Read the story here 'This is an incredibly challenging site to redevelop, and we've worked hard to create proposals that are deliverable and appropriate.' Stuart Patrick, Chief Executive of the Chamber, added: 'It is critical that this key site is brought forward for development as soon as possible. "There's no doubt it's been a blight on Sauchiehall Street, and we need to secure this much-needed investment, which would be transformational.' The ABC building was first built in 1875 and was later rebuilt in the 1920s, and has had several renovations over the years. Before it had been tragically burnt down in the fire, it was regarded as one of the city's busiest and most distinguished live-music venues. It currently sits between Sauchiehall Street and Glasgow School of Art's Mackintosh Building. 5 Councillors have been urged to approve the new plans Credit: VITA GROUP
Glasgow Times
13-06-2025
- Business
- Glasgow Times
Plans for Glasgow O2 ABC recommended despite 'negative impact'
This is despite the planning document admitting that the plans have a 'significant issue of the negative impact on the Conservation Area'. The document also states that 'the scale of the proposed development would overall not be considered to preserve or enhance the character or appearance of Listed Buildings and the Conservation Area'. But, the recommendation concludes that 'this negative impact is considered to be outweighed by the significantly positive impact of developing this site'. The document details plans for a mixed-use student accommodation and hospitality site. Over eight floors - including a basement - House of Social would include student accommodation, as well as a food hall, a public courtyard, a bar, a gym and more. New images illustrating proposals for the site of the former ABC music venue building on Sauchiehall Street were unveiled today: New O2 ABC plan concepts revealed today (Image: Vita Group) (Image: Vita Group) READ MORE: Pictures show how new plan for Glasgow's O2 ABC will look If successful, the proposed Vita development, featuring their House of Social brand, will bring around £70million investment to Sauchiehall Street. The ground-floor food hall would provide space for five emerging food brands, with over 400 covers and a large bar. Moving from day into night, the food hall would become an events space featuring music, entertainment, and a community hub. The student accommodation would feature 356 bed spaces, comprising 306 four, five, and six-bedroom 'houses' with a shared kitchen and lounge and 50 studio spaces. It would also feature a fitness centre, social and study spaces, café-style lounges, and cycle storage. (Image: Vita Group) (Image: Vita Group) READ MORE: Historic Glasgow venue is an 'eyesore' say furious locals James Rooke, Planning Director for Vita Group, who has successfully created other new sites in Glasgow, said: 'We believe our proposals offer a unique approach to student living and the benefits the development will bring extend far beyond the student community. "It will generate significant economic benefits, will help to reenergise Sauchiehall Street and contribute to the city's Golden Z ambitions. 'This is an incredibly challenging site to redevelop, and we've worked hard to create proposals that are deliverable and appropriate.' Plans for Glasgow O2 ABC recommended despite 'negative impact' (Image: Supplied) The proposals have the support of a wide range of stakeholders, including local businesses and the Chamber of Commerce. Stuart Patrick, Chief Executive of the Chamber has welcomed the plans and said, 'It is critical that this key site is brought forward for development as soon as possible. "There's no doubt it's been a blight on Sauchiehall Street, and we need to secure this much-needed investment, which would be transformational.' The Glasgow Times previously reported that locals branded the historic Glasgow music venue an 'eyesore'. The half-demolished O2 ABC site has been dormant for months after initial demolition works were completed at the end of last year. READ MORE: No answer for Glasgow residents over rats at the O2 ABC O2 ABC site branded an 'eyesore' (Image: Newsquest/Colin Mearns) The former cinema turned nightclub had lain derelict since the second Glasgow School of Art fire spilt over onto its roof in July 2018.
