Market research group GfK 'may bid' for TNS (AFP)

AFP - German market research group Gfk said Wednesday that it was mulling a takeover bid for British peer Taylor Nelson Sofres after the pair ended their plans to merge.

Sir Bernard Audley

Sir Bernard Audley played a lively and important role in the development of British market research, and notably the calculation of TV viewing figures. After a varied early career in publishing and business he co-founded AGB Research, which began trading in 1962.

Taylor Nelson Sofres to open books to WPP, despite merger agreement with GfK

British market research firm Taylor Nelson Sofres PLC said on Monday that it will open its books to rejected takeover suitor WPP Group PLC, a week after agreeing to a merger with Germany's GfK AG.

Monday Manifesto: David Lowden of TNS plays for high stakes in GfK merger

David Lowden is playing for high stakes. If he gets it right, the chief executive of Taylor Nelson Sofres gets to run a company twice the size. If it goes wrong, the 50-year-old loses his job and becomes a victim of Sir Martin Sorrell's WPP.

TNS merger with GfK could include cash sweetener

Taylor Nelson Sofres' (TNS) £2.1 billion all-share merger with Germany's GfK could be restructured to give the UK market research group's investors a cash sweetener but may result in management control passing to the German group.

Olympic Sponsorship A Boon For Some Companies

Study by CTR Market Research shows that Chinese consumers regard corporate identification with Games as a stamp of quality but sometimes associate the wrong firms with the event.