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NEWS Monday 23rd May to Friday 27th May 2005
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IPTV is the engine of the "content everywhere" era. IPTV International is the new journal from Advanced Television Ltd. To find out more and apply for a free subscription click here |
The European Commission has urged EU Member States to accelerate the switchover from analogue to digital broadcasting. The Commission expects the transition to digital to be well advanced by 2010 and has proposed a deadline of early 2012 for phasing out traditional analogue terrestrial broadcasting. The Commission has also called for a co-ordinated approach to making freed-up spectrum available across the EU.
Information Society and Media Commissioner Viviane Reding said that by recommending 2012 as EU deadline for the digital switch-off, she would like to give a political signal to market participants and customers alike that digital TV would soon be a reality. "The sooner we complete switchover, the sooner our citizens and businesses will benefit," she claimed, adding that pan-European co-ordination of spectrum use would then give citizens access to new services that combine mobile telephony and broadcasting, such as mobile ‘datacasting’ of videos, or multimedia content.
Although a number
of Member States have yet to communicate an intended date for digital switchover,
Reding noted that the majority that have done so have chosen 2010, with six
others choosing 2012 "at the latest." The seven countries opting
for 2010 are: Austria, Germany, Spain, Finland, Italy, Malta and Sweden. Those
targeting 2012 areBelgium (in the Flanders region), Greece, Slovenia, Slovakia,
Hungary and the UK. Breaking news from Spain suggests that the 2010 date may
be brought forward.
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Spain
amends DTT law
From David del Valle in Madrid
The controversial Government-sponsored DTT law has suffered a new setback, following the Spanish Senate's decision, backed by the opposition (the conservative party PP and the nationalist CIU), to amend it and change it substantially.
The Senate approved retaining the current limit of three national TV channels which annulled the previous article allowing more services. The amendment was approved (and backed by PP and CIU) on the grounds that new analogue TV channels would delay the development of DTT.
The Senate also amended the analogue switch-off deadline. Echoing conservative proposals, it brought it forward to 2008, two years earlier than the socialist-proposed deadline in 2010.
The socialist party hopes that these two amendments are refused by the Parliament that now has to give its final green light to the DTT law before Summer.
The Senate also
approved an amendment whereby those experienced local TV stations that have
been operating for many years will have many more opportunities to get a digital
licence than those launched in recent years. Likewise, the Senate approved
to grant all 17 Spanish regions with a second multiplex, allowing them to
have up to eight regional DTT channels.
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NTL
Broadcast becomes Arqiva
From Colin Mann in London
Following the November 2004 sale of NTL’s broadcast business – NTL Broadcast – to a consortium led by Macquarie Communications Infrastructure Group, the unit is rebranding with a new name and fresh start.
As of 1 June the company will be known as ‘Arqiva’. The company suggests that the re-branding provides an opportunity for Arqiva to re-establish itself as a stand-alone company with strong credentials and proven track record in broadcast services, tower leasing and public safety communications.
Arqiva CEO Tom
Bennie said the rebranding was about connections, "with our customers
and their customers". He also suggested that the company had an important
role to play in the transition to digital, pointing out that a major re-engineering
programme was necessary. Some 5,000 new transmitters needed to be installed,
along with 100 new antennas. He estimated the capex requirement to facilitate
digital switchover to be in the region of £400 million to £500
million (E582 million to E727.5 million).
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Bluewin TV set for 2006 launch
Swisscom Fixnet plans to complete its triple play offering by introducing a television over broadband (ADSL) service in 2006. Swisscom suggests that because of its high long-term potential, IPTV is of major strategic importance for the telco.
Although a commercial launch had been planned for the second half of 2005, Swisscom following admitted that that the technology currently available is not yet suitable for serial delivery, "in particular since the set-top box has no internal hard disk and only one television channel is available".
Moshe Lichtman, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft's IPTV division – a partner in the project – said that working closely on the test deployments with Swisscom and our other customers had been extremely valuable in ensuring that Microsoft and its technology partners delivered a complete IPTV solution that encompassed software, set-top boxes, encoding solutions, content and all other components critical to the success of IPTV.
An initial release
of Bluewin TV will be installed for employees of the Swisscom Group and Microsoft
by the end of 2005. The commercial launch will take place during the next
release in 2006, and the exact date will be decided after the conclusion of
negotiations with the suppliers. The aim is to launch a full TV service offering
with a broad range of television programmes, a set-top box with integrated
hard disk and the possibility of recording and viewing simultaneously via
a single connection.
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ITV plc, the UK commercial broadcaster formed from this year's merger of Granada and Carlton, has revealed higher-than-expected interim profits. The company reported a 42 per cent increase in underlying profits to £132 million (E192 million) in the six months to June 30, and revealed that annual cost savings of £100 million (E145.5 million) were being delivered ahead of schedule. Advertising revenues for all ITV's channels rose 4.9 per cent, with advertising revenues estimated to be up 5.5 per cent in the quarter to September, with September up nearly 10 per cent on last year.
ITV Chairman, Sir Peter Burt, said that the broadcaster’s new channels - ITV2 and ITV3 - were performing "exceptionally well" and were the leading digital channels in DTT homes. He said that ITV could now exploit the opportunities it had in the digital world including objectives to lead and grow the UK commercial TV market; develop its content production business; and increase its revenue streams beyond spot advertising.
He noted that
the recent acquisition of SDN, the operator of one of the DTT multiplexes,
gave ITV the opportunity for future capacity on the digital platform "where
our highly successful family of channels performs best". Charles Allen,
Chief Executive, said that ITV would launch another new is likely be based
on the existing ’Men and Motors’ channel.
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ONO’s
Auna bid strengthened
From David del Valle in Madrid
Spanish cable operator Ono has joined forces with four private equity firms to strengthen its E2.6 billion bid for Auna Telecomunicaciones, the cable division of telco holding Auna.
The private equity firms now involved in the operation are Quadrangle, Hellman & Friedman, JP Morgan Private Equity and Candover. .
Providence, Carlyle,
Permira and Blackstone have already reportedly shown interest in teaming up
with ONO and making a E9 billion separate offer for Auna's mobile phone company
Amena.
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UK broadcasters await sponsorship relaxation
UK media and communications regulator Ofcom is proposing to relax the rules on commercial sponsorship of television and radio, a move that may well create additional revenue opportunities for broadcasters and reduce their dependence on advertising.
Ofcom will also
review the ban on product placement in UK-produced programmes prohibited under
national and European rules as part of an industry consultation later this
year on broadcast advertising.
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Telenor Group and Nokia in broadband arctic adventure
Nokia and Norwegian operator Telenor have extended their frame agreement for the supply of Nokia VDSL broadband equipment, which will bring IP-based TV and other services to Svalbard, one of the world's northernmost settlements. Under the deal, Nokia will supply its latest generation D500 IP DSLAM (Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer).
The agreement with Nokia will enable new services such as multichannel IPTV, predominantly for the town of Longyearbyen, Norway's main administrative centre on Svalbard. At 78 degrees north, the Svalbard archipelago, also known as Spitzbergen, forms one of the world's most northern settlements. Sixty per cent of the area is covered by glacier, and the inhabitants experience the extremes of long polar nights and summer-long midnight sun.
"Svalbard
has earned a reputation as a place for arctic adventure and we are pleased
that Telenor now will be able to offer Longyearbyen's inhabitants telecom
services ahead of the Norwegian mainland," says Mr. Vegard Gjerde, Managing
Director of Telenor Svalbard AS. "We chose Nokia to work with us on IPTV,
something new for DSL services as we see great opportunities ahead for it
and other broadband applications."
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European FTTP deployments set for growth
Although fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) in Asia and in the US is at the forefront of broadband news, a recent study has suggested that Europe’s achievements should not be disregarded. According to IMS Research, FTTP subscribers in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region are forecast to exceed three million by the end of 2009.
The first edition of the study, ‘The Worldwide Market for Fibre-to-the-premises’ notes that in 2004, there were more subscribers to FTTP in Europe than in all of the Americas. IMS Research suggests that both the US and Europe have been taking a similar approach to FTTP deployments, with utilities and municipalities driving fibre build-out, yet Europe has over three times the number of subscribers to FTTP delivered services than the US. "This is primarily due to large deployments in Italy and Sweden, each of which outnumbered the US in terms of FTTP subscribers at the end of 2004," notes the report.
"There are
several countries in Europe that have already deployed FTTP networks on a
large scale, yet none of these have been driven by incumbent telcos,"
stated Jack Mayo, analyst at IMS Research. "We expect that within the
next five years, European telcos will become more active in deploying FTTP
technology, further strengthening the market."
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Japanese
broadcasters plan Index Corp investment
From Shveta Malik in New Delhi
Four TV networks are considering a combined equity investment of more than US$0.92 billion in content producer and provider for cellphones Index Corp, according to sources in Japan. The broadcasters expect to draw on Index’s technologies to develop new cellphone services based on their own programming.
Two of the companies, Fuji Television Network Inc and TV Asahi Corp, already own 1.73 per cent and 1.37 per cent, respectively, of Index’s outstanding shares. The remaining two, Nippon Television Network Corp and Tokyo Broadcasting System Inc, will be obtaining equity stakes in Index for the first time, according to local media. The four broadcasters are expected to buy new Index shares worth several billion yen each through a third-party allocation in the near future, the sources said.
Analysts suggest that the development emerges as the terrestrial digital broadcasts are expected to be received on cellphone handsets by the end of March at the earliest.
Some of the companies
are also considering a cross-shareholding relationship with Index. The four
TV broadcasters and TV Tokyo Corp, another major TV network, set up a joint
venture with Index in November. In April, the venture, called TeMo Inc, began
offering a service enabling cellphone subscribers to watch TV programs on
their handsets, according to local media.
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CASBAA warns Hong Kong pirates
The Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA), has served notice that the Hong Kong pay-TV industry remains fully engaged in the battle against signal piracy. CASBAA and its members have been seeking to raise the consciousness of bars and clubs in Hong Kong that screening pay-TV services without legal subscriptions is against the law.
In particular, legal action is being taken against a bar which, despite being warned, has refused to give an undertaking to cease and desist from airing unlicensed television broadcasts. CASBAA has filed a lawsuit seeking an injunction and damages against the bar, as an example.
CASBAA is also
issuing a further series of advisory letters to bars and clubs, as well as
to private members clubs, noting that pay-TV television signal theft is not
to be tolerated. This issue will be raised with club managements and, if necessary,
action will be taken against those that continue to infringe.
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Kudelski picks up UPC and C+ deals
The Kudelski Group has won two significant operator deals covering broadband cable and digital terrestrial television. The first is with pan-European operator UPC, a subsidiary of the international cable operator UnitedGlobalCom Broadband; the second is with the Canal+ Group.
Kudelski’s Nagravision unit has signed a global co-operation agreement to provide conditional access and content protection systems to UPC Broadband. In the initial ongoing implementation phase, Nagravision is supporting the digital migration of UPC Broadband cable network in the Netherlands, where UPC Broadband expects to begin a large-scale digital migration project in the fourth quarter of 2005. UPC Broadband expects eventually to deploy over 2 million digital set-top boxes to accelerate the growth of digital TV in the Dutch market.
The Canal+ deal will see Nagra France supply its MediaGuard conditional access system to secure four pay-TV channels Canal+, Canal+ CINEMA, Canal+ SPORT and Planète over France’s digital terrestrial television network. This decision extends the relationship between the two companies, while providing an opportunity for Kudelski to expand its presence in the European digital terrestrial television market. Following the successful roll-outs in Italy and the United Kingdom, Kudelski now positions itself as the reference supplier of conditional access solutions for DTT.
André
Kudelski, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Kudelski Group, noted
that back in 1989, Canal+ chose Kudelski to secure its analogue television
service offering and was now relying on Kudelski to secure its new DTT service
.
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Digital TV networking solutions provider Scopus Network Technologies has unveiled its Piccolo Small Cable Headend Solution, targeting the thousands of small cable operators worldwide seeking a smooth transition for moving their businesses to the digital domain.
Piccolo aims
to improve operator competitiveness and increases revenues by enabling them
to offer subscribers an expanded line-up of regular and premium channels.
According to Gidi Raz, Director of Cable Segment at Scopus, "Piccolo
is the ultimate anti-churn platform. It assists small operators to maintain
and enlarge their subscriber base by granting them the features and capabilities
to compete against large cable system operators, while also acting as a powerful
obstacle against satellite and IPTV encroachment.
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Mobile television company SmartVideo is to carry content from E! Entertainment Television direct to smartphones. As part of SmartVideo’s mobile video offering – which includes news, weather, sports, comedy and film shorts, Smartphone users (on any major US cellular carrier) will now have access to the latest celebrity and entertainment news content.
This deal follows
similar key announcements from SmartVideo, who brings mobile video to smartphones
at a minimum of 15 frames per second on 2.5G cellular networks, at least 24
FPS on the new 3G networks, and close to 30 FPS on WiFi. The company revealed
recently that it had become a member of the Microsoft Partner Solutions Center,
a state-of-the-art product development programme.
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According to the FT, Rupert Murdoch has authorised executives to pursue more aggressive international growth.
Murdoch is said to be focusing on international expansion that promises faster growth than mature US media businesses. Among expansion opportunities, News Corp has earmarked the acquisition of several outdoor advertising companies in Russia, Turkey and Ukraine. The company is expected to announce deals in the first half of the year, with funding for the Russian bids coming partly from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
News Corp is
understood to be seeking further international growth amid reduced internal
concerns about the intentions of Liberty Media, which holds almost 19 per
cent of News Corp voting stock. There is the prospect of a News Corp share
buy-back that could dilute Liberty's holding. John Malone, Liberty Chairman
and Chief Executive, has hinted that he could assign voting rights in News
Corp to Murdoch family interests, which already control 29 per cent of the
company, without selling down his stake.
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BBC
reveals Broadcast bid shortlist
From Colin Mann in London
The BBC has announced the shortlist of bidders for the sale of BBC Broadcast Limited, the Corporation's broadcast services unit. The four companies which have been selected to enter the final stage are Apax Partners, Exponent Private Equity, Macquarie Group and Thomson/Technicolor.
This follows an extensive evaluation of bids from both financial and industry buyers. The BBC will now enter into detailed negotiations with the four companies to determine the right partner for the BBC in delivering future services, whilst also offering the best possible opportunities for BBC Broadcast staff. The sale is subject to the final approval of the BBC Governors and Executive Board and the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.
Peter Phillips, Director, Business Development, said the BBC had received serious interest from a wide range of private equity and trade buyers.
While Apax and
Exponent representing the financial community, Macquarie and Thomson/Technicolor
are both active in the broadcast services market. Thomson expanded its broadcast
services activity with the November 2004 acquisition of Corinthian Television
Facilities in London, and is targeting opportunities in key segments of the
growing television broadcast management and services market. Australian investment
vehicle Macquarie Communications Infrastructure Group was part of a consortium
that acquired ntl Broadcast in November 2004. Apax is advised by Greg Dyke,
the former BBC Director General.
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AOL in exclusive VOD deal with Sony
America Online
is to gain exclusive access to SonyBMG's music videos for its online video-on-demand
service according to the New York Post, in a deal worth more than $25 million
(E19.8 million). In April, AOL announced non-exclusive pacts with Warner Music
Group and Universal. Record labels have increasingly been turning to online
outlets like AOL and Yahoo! to market and promote new music and artists. About
22 million users visit AOL Music each month, and advertisers are taking notice.
AOL Music clinched a $5 million (E3.9 million) sponsorship deal with Chevrolet
earlier this month.
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O2 has forged a partnership with Anschutz Entertainment Group - provider of live entertainment, sport events and facilities. In a deal valued at £6 million (E8.7 million) per year from 2007, the two companies will work together to rejuvenate the former Millennium Dome and the surrounding area, turning it into one of the UK's premier venues. From May 25, the facility will be renamed 'The O2' and is set to open in early 2007.
In addition,
O2 customers will benefit from exclusive content from leading artists and
priority access to shows, major sports events and exhibitions.
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Advertisers not impressed with BBC review
The BBC licence fee should be challenged well before 2016, according to the response from the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising to the Corporation’s Royal Charter, which is being consulted on by the Government.
The strongly worded response says there should be a "re-examination of alternative funding mechanisms taking place well ahead of the end of the next Charter period as soon as the implications of digital transfer become clear". It said that the examination should concentrate on the "blatant and aggressive cross-promotion of the Corporation's services".
Jim Marshall,
Chairman of the IPA Futures Group, said: "We would want the more aggressive
element of the BBC's competitiveness to be curbed and that would include those
parts of its approach that are designed entirely to steal audiences away from
the commercial sector."
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New figures show broadband subscribers in the OECD reached 118 million by the end of 2004, adding 34.1 million broadband subscribers during the year. The OECD broadband penetration rate reached 10.2 subscribers per 100 inhabitants in 2004, up from 7.3 subscribers per 100 inhabitants in December 2003.
The fastest growth
of 2004 was realised during the final quarter of the year (an increase of
11 per cent from the previous quarter). Korea leads the OECD in broadband
penetration with 24.9 subscribers per 100 inhabitants. The Netherlands moved
into second place with a penetration rate of 19.0 subscribers per 100 inhabitants,
followed closely by Denmark, Iceland and Canada.
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Barb, the TV audience research body, is launching a major consultation asking the ad industry what they want from the organisation, whose shareholders include the major broadcasters and the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising.
Although it is
still widely regarded as the ‘gold standard’ for TV measurement,
Barb – which uses a panel of 5,000 households – faces major challenges
in key areas such as the huge proliferation of digital channels, the growth
of interactive TV and the arrival of mobile TV content. It has been criticised
for failing to represent digital viewers in general and specifically Sky+
homes.
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Nokia has unveiled a pocket-sized Web browser for wireless broadband networks, which is the Finnish firm's first Linux-based device and its first product without a built-in mobile phone.
The new device, the Nokia 770, has a four inch horizontal touch screen that can display normal Internet pages. It will sell for $350 excluding VAT or E350 including VAT.
The product marks a significant strategy expansion for Nokia which is venturing outside its mainstay cellular phone business. Nokia aims to sell the device through broadband home Internet providers and directly to consumers on its Internet web site.
Several of the
innovations already in the pipeline are upgrades by early 2006 to enable Voice
over Internet protocol (VoIP) calls and instant messaging. Anyone who buys
the device now will be able to upgrade the software next year. VoIP phone
calls from this portable device may cannibalise cell phone voice revenues
from Nokia's main customers which are all of the world's biggest mobile networks.
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The Community
Channel has launched a red-button service allowing viewers to find out about
volunteering opportunities in their area via their digital TVs. The service
builds on an existing facility to donate money via the red button, and is
based on a system built by Sky Interactive. Speaking at the BAFTA launch BSkyB
boss James Murdoch said: "I’m very proud that Sky has been able
to support and develop this service the Community Channel and hope that thousands
of people will volunteer as a result."
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Satlink Communications has launched its fibre connection between Satlink premises in Israel and the GlobeCast hub in London.
The Satlink Teleport at Neve Ilan Israel is now connected by DS3 ATM fibre to GlobeCast's MCR at 200 Gray's Inn Rd. London, UK and then onto Paris, Madrid and the rest of the GlobeCast fibre network.
The link will
provide 45 megabits of video, voice and data communications in both directions,
making the Satlink teleport virtually available in Europe, allowing it to
offer permanent and occasional services at very competitive prices.
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The Taiwan telecom industry is making history today with the initial launch of Taiwan's first 3G service by Taiwan Mobile. Supported by Nokia throughout the long process leading up to this milestone, the initial launch, branded "catch 3! catch your eyes!", will give subscribers their first taste of 3G services.
As Taiwan Mobile's
sole supplier of its WCDMA system, Nokia endeavours to promote 3G services
together with Taiwan Mobile. During the preparation stage, Nokia not only
provided 3G solutions and technologies, but also shared global 3G business
experiences with Taiwan Mobile and provided handsets customisation as well
as facilitated mobile content development.
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The world's largest MNO has posted its 04 results and said it had signed up 2.4 million subscribers to 3G, ahead of forecasts. The company declared an operating profit of £10.3 billion (E15 billion) but this was reduced to a loss of £4.7 billion by write downs on acquisitions and the value of its 3G licence. Sales rose 2 per cent to £34.13 billion.
During the year to end March, the company saw its customer base rise by 12 per cent to nearly to 154.8 million. Vodafone said it would buy back £4.5 billion worth of its own shares, and double its dividend payment.
However, the
City marked the stock down over worries in Japan. The company declined to
provide a forecast for its Japanese business for the current year, but sales
there fell 11.2 per cent in the year to March 31 as customers defected to
rivals. Japanese customers have been unimpressed with 3G phones designed for
Europe.
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Germany’s largest cable operator, Kabel Deutschland, reports revenues up by 5.9 per cent to E1.044 billion the year ending March 31. The EBITDA was E400 million, E5 million down on last year. The reason for this, KDG says, is the increased investment in marketing to promote new services and the acquisition of small NE4 cable operators.
The number of
homes served rose slightly to 9.64 million. Also the number of digital subscribers
to the new pay bouquets rose Q1 of this year by 46,000 to over 224,000. With
its fast internet access KDG reached 12,100 by the end of Q1, compared to
4,900 in the same period of last year. By the end of this year the service
will be available "at least" in 15 cities, KDG says.
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Spanish pay-TV group, Sogecable, owner of Canal Plus and digital DTH platform Digital Plus, is finalising the project to turn pay-TV channel Canal Plus into a commercial TV station. It expects to be ready for launch by the end of June when the Government is due to give Sogecable its green light to broadcast free-to-air 24 hours a day.
The new Canal Plus is busy recruiting for the station: Fernando Jerez, former director of programming at Antena 3, is likely to be the director of broadcast and Miguel Morant, former director of fiction in Tele 5, will be responsible for fiction content. The director of programming at TeleMadrid, Alberto Alarcon has also been hired. The new Canal Plus will focus on fiction, sports and live programmes.
Sogecable is
intensifying its campaign to accelerate the migration of Canal Plus's 400,000
subscribers to Digital Plus.
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BBC Chairman Michael Grade has outlined the main response to the government Green Paper on broadcast funding. Grade said that the BBC Board of Governors accepted the set of clear and measurable purposes outlined in the Green Paper and welcomed the decision to grant a new Charter for ten years with continued licence fee funding.
Given the extensive debate about the BBC's role during this Charter Review he urged the Government to wait until digital switchover before embarking on the next funding review and expressed the BBC's fundamental opposition to the idea of contestability - or top slicing - the licence fee. He warned that it would pose a threat to the political independence of the BBC and weaken its ability to invest in public service content. "Using the licence fee to solve a theoretical future deficit in public service broadcasting provision is a thoroughly bad idea. Not good news for viewers and listeners."
He said the Board accepted governance changes to a Trust model, recognising that it would increase public confidence by creating a clear separation from management and maintain the BBC's independence on behalf of licence fee payers, not the institution itself.
He said trustees should be chosen for skills and expertise rather than representing special interest groups, the exception being a trustee representing each devolved nation.
On scale and
scope, the BBC accepted the Green Paper proposal for increased flexibility
when it comes to adding or removing services, subject to a public value test,
in response to changing audience expectations and technologies.
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Pirating of the new Star Wars film seems to be becoming symbolic for the US movie industry. It has now threatened to push for action against China in the World Trade Organisation as illegal DVD copies went on sale in Beijing days after the film’s opening.
Dan Glickman, president of the Motion Picture Association of America, said piracy had not diminished in China despite the seizure of 500 million discs by authorities in the last five years. "This is the kind of thing that could raise trade tensions to the point where they affect bilateral relations," he said in an interview at the end of his first trip to China since his appointment in September.
Glickman, a former
agriculture secretary in the Clinton administration, is one of a succession
of senior US visitors to China in recent months to have warned Beijing about
a backlash brewing in Washington. WTO rules governing intellectual property
rights allow member states to file complaints against other nations on the
grounds that their copyright regimes are not acting as a deterrent against
piracy.
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Draft legislation on digital TV transition circulating around Capitol Hill apparently contains a hard date of January 1, 2009, for switchover. Consumer Electronics Association President and CEO Gary Shapiro said: "We have long supported a hard cut-off date for analogue broadcasts to provide certainty to manufacturers, retailers, consumers and all others with a stake in the transition. A hard date will foster innovation and strengthen America's security, while completing the DTV transition in a timely and understandable manner."
Among the other
items in the draft is a proposal to require the Federal Communications Commission
to issue final digital channel assignments by the end of 2006. The bill also
would require TV manufacturers and retailers to inform customers that analogue
sets will eventually require connections to a digital receiver, analogue-to-digital
converters or digital cable services to continue receiving broadcasts after
the December 2008 deadline. In addition, the draft contains dual-carriage
requirements, reports said.
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UK local telco
Kingston Communications’ full-year results to the end of March reveal
profits (before exceptionals) of £25.9 million (E37.5 million) compared
to £3.9 million a year ago – on turnover up 23.6 per cent to £364.3
million. Chairman Michael Abrahams says: "We are greatly encouraged by
the progress we are making in integrating our newly-acquired businesses and
look forward to the year ahead with continued confidence."
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Rogers Broadcasting Ltd., Toronto, has received approval from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, Canada's broadcast regulator, to purchase NOWTV, a Vancouver, British Columbia-based religious broadcaster, from Trinity Television.
The agreement also includes expansion of NOWTV's broadcast into Victoria, B.C., through the installation of a separate transmitter, and the licence to launch a similar station, CIIT in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Rael Merson, Rogers Broadcasting president, says that the company is absolutely committed to fulfilling the station's mandate for religious and spiritual programming. NOWTV offers, as part of its licence requirements, 18 hours of 'balanced programming' each week, which includes faith-specific, non-Christian programmes.
As part of the
overall NOWTV transaction, Rogers will spend Cdn$1.3 million (E821,000) on
initiatives to support the production and distribution of Canadian religious
television programming. This includes the development of a number of new funds
such as a NOWTV Documentary Fund, grants for local independent productions,
and scholarship awards. And, as part of Rogers' commitment to the communities
of Victoria and Vancouver Island, Rogers will augment the NOWTV documentary
fund by Cdn$250,000 (E158,000) and offer grants to local producers of Cdn$100,000
(E63,000).
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Apple will reportedly
support podcasts in the next version of its iTunes and iPod software. Steve
Jobs, Chief Executive, demonstrated how Apple's podcasting organisation and
downloading process would work at a Wall Street Journal technology conference.
The updated software "organises the podcasts within the iTunes store."
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Narrows step launch City TV for Glasgow
Narrowstep, the TV on the Internet Company, has launched www.Glasgow.tv the world’s first city broadband television channel.
Glasgow is the first channel to launch on the CityTV platform which can be used to build and deliver a television station for a city over the Internet to 817 million viewers worldwide. From a central console all elements of the system can be controlled, including programming, scheduling, advertising insertion, pay per view events and statistical analysis.
Glasgow.tv has
been created to showcase Glasgow. The new broadband channel will broadcast
international events from the city, carry advertising and act as an information
source for overseas visitors and ex-pats
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Thomson has announced the integration of the Cypher Virtual SmartCard from Widevine into its IP900 Series Platform set-top boxes. With the integration of the Virtual SmartCard, operators who deploy the Thomson IP900 series are assured of risk-free delivery of secured content to their end users, say the companies.
The Thomson IP900
series is a low-cost, ultra-compact set-top box that delivers home entertainment
and broadband services over IP networks. The IP900 series fully supports interactive
applications including broadcast video, video on demand, gaming, and messaging.
Widevine is the most widely deployed provider of comprehensive conditional
access and digital rights management solutions to the video over IP market
worldwide.
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Volantis, the supplier of Intelligent Content Adaptation solutions for the mobile Internet, announced it has been chosen by Channel 4 New Media, to develop and host the first dedicated Channel 4 branded mobile portal.
Mobile.channel4.com will go live on May 27 2005 to coincide with the launch of Big Brother 6. Later versions will include a wide variety of content from Channel 4’s top programmes, including Channel 4 News.
The Channel 4
direct-to-consumer mobile portal is a single-destination, 100 per cent branded
website, optimised for mobile phones. It enables precise control of content
and a direct relationship with consumers, and can be reached by any UK resident
with access to the Internet via their mobile phone.
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i3 micro technology and Accedo Broadband have announced a strategic partnership agreement to provide advanced triple play services on the i3 Mood 300 IP Set-top Box. i3 has licensed the Mood software development kit (SDK) to Accedo Broadband, making it possible for Accedo to offer service providers an enhanced portfolio of entertainment and communication applications on Mood STB, thereby extending the range of managed triple play services beyond that of basic IP-TV functionality.
The Mood 300
IP Set-top Boxes offer enhanced capabilities for IP-TV services. Advanced
MPEG-4 decoding and PVR functionality delivers optimal bandwidth savings and
a flexible viewing experience. The Mood 300 series is designed to provide
the end-users with advanced functionality and high quality viewing while reducing
cost of implementation and maintenance. New service revenues and personalised
viewing capabilities are made possible with the integrated personal video
recorder – a key ingredient in future media consumption. An integrated
hard disk allows for convenient and silent personal video recording that is
both advanced and secure.
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Espial, the provider of set-top box software and IPTV applications, and Pace Micro Technology, announced an agreement to embed the Espial Evo TV middleware and applications in the new Pace IP215 set-top box (STB). Espial says Evo provides an unparalleled consumer experience by eliminating performance penalties associated with browsers such as progressive page loading and blanking. Espial Evo, building on its unique client middleware framework, includes applications such as Electronic Program Guide, Video on Demand, Walled Garden Portal, Settings and Browser.
The Pace IP215
is the industry's first hardware H.264 IP set-top box. Together with the inclusion
of the Evo modular application framework, this new set-top box will offer
Pace customers an entry-level, robust, turnkey client solution.
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SCM Microsystems,
says it has achieved a breakthrough in the European pay-TV market – the
company now offers digital TV security modules for all European Conditional
Access (CA) systems. In large volume the DVB Common-Interface (CI) modules
are available for less than E20 and therefore are an attractive solution both
for manufacturers of integrated digital TVs (IDTVs) and set-top boxes, as
well as for pay-TV operators seeking to protect their pay-TV content from
hackers and piracy. With its module technology, SCM Microsystems claims to
enable open and secure access to encrypted digital TV content and interactive
services. All relevant security functions are separated from the set-top box
and integrated in a removable DVB-CI module, which can be loaded with the
appropriate CA security system to legitimately access subscription-based content
and services throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
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Telenor, Norway’s largest telecoms group, has bought Sweden’s Bredbandsbolaget and Denmark’s Cybercity for SKr6bn (E595m) and DKr1.4bn (E174m) respectively.
The move emphasises the growing importance of sophisticated broadband networks to former monopoly operators. "The companies add scale and offer substantial synergy to our Nordic operations. Broadband is an important distribution channel for future voice and content services, and we are well positioned for the high broadband growth in the Nordic region," said Morten Karlsen Sorby, Telenor executive vice president.
Bredbandsbolaget is the second largest provider of broadband services in Sweden with 335,000 customers, representing a 24 per cent market share. It operates an all-IP fibre and DSL network, launched Voice-over-IP in 2003, and currently serves some 80,000 voice customers.
Cybercity, with
90,000 customers and an 8 per cent market share, is Denmark’s third-largest
supplier of broadband services. Covering 70 per cent of Denmark with its own
DSL infrastructure, the company focuses on the high-end residential, home
office and SME segments.
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Private equity lines up for Auna
Three consortia of private equity groups were expected to submit preliminary bids for Auna. The group is valued at close to E12bn including debt.
An E11bn offer by a five-strong private equity team was rejected by shareholders last year as too low, while a separate offer for Amena, Auna's profitable mobile business, was also turned down.
The Providence
consortium which includes Carlyle and Blackstone of the US and the UK's Permira
will table an offer for Amena – the groups MNO - while some of the partners
will back a separate bid by Ono, another Spanish telecoms group in which Santander
has a stake, for the fixed-line and cable assets of Auna. These are valued
at about E2.6bn. A team of KKR, Goldman Sachs and BC Partners is likely to
make an offer for all of Auna, competing with a third consortium of Apax,
CVC and Cinven.
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John Malone, chairman and chief executive of Liberty Media – one of the largest shareholders in Time Warner – has told the FT he is critical of the groups failure to integrate AOL.
Malone, who controls 4 per cent of Time Warner, also said Time Warner's recent $17.6bn joint bid for Adelphia, was driven by tax considerations and a desire to unwind its relationship with Comcast, the rival cable group that owns about 17 per cent of Time Warner's cable business. Malone is a non-executive director of Cablevision, a US cable group that proposed a $17.1bn counter-offer for Adelphia.
Speaking for
the first time about Cablevision's motives, Malone said the company acknowledged
there was "a low probability" of outbidding the agreed Time Warner-Comcast
offer. "Effectively theirs was a transaction where [Time Warner] gets
a $3bn tax advantage by paying off Comcast with cable systems," he added,
referring to Comcast's decision to exchange its stake in Time Warner's cable
division for Adelphia cable systems.
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Q1 05 results for SBS show continued revenue growth with E175m against E140m last time and the operating loss was narrowed from E2.5m to E0.18m.
Commenting on the results, Markus Tellenbach, Chief Executive Officer said: "In the first quarter we continued to improve our operating performance and our revenue growth outpaced the market in most of our territories. We also continued to invest in popular programming, start-up operations and complementary activities. Through the successful launch of new digital channels and the acquisition of the C More Group we are rapidly expanding and diversifying our revenue streams. Moreover, we are executing this growth strategy in a manner that enables us to continue to expand our cash generating ability.
With the successful
conclusion of our recent €325 million bank refinancing, we have repaid
our C More acquisition debt and called for redemption our 12 per cent Senior
Notes."
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A Russian Proton Breeze rocket carried the DirecTV 8 satellite into orbit on Sunday, a day after the original launch date. International Launch Services, the Lockheed Martin-backed launch services provider that co-ordinated the mission from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, reported on the lift-off of DirecTV 8 on its Web site.
The hybrid Ku/Ka-Band
satellite, built by Space Systems/Loral, will allow DirecTV to enhance its
programming services at the 101-degree orbital slot and take over service
from an older satellite at that orbit location later this summer. DirecTV
8 will also provide support for the expansion of new digital and high-definition
services, the company said.
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The research by the Association of Online Publishers, 63% of its members are now charging for online content, compared with 58% in 2004.
The findings,
however, reveal a decline in one-off payments and an increase in subscription
based models. Bill Murray, AOP chairman and managing director for group information
strategy at Haymarket, said it is becoming clear how much trust and credence
that consumers attach to content. "With increased maturity in the online
space, AOP members can look forward to developing more ambitious, profitable
activity with greater confidence," Murray said.
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Pace has developed the first hardware H.264 decode set-top box – the IP215 – to provide telcos and operators with an entry-level solution for the lucrative IPTV market.
The IP215 uses the latest silicon technology to enable MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 compression decoding to take place in the hardware, replacing more expensive software based solutions. This hardware decoder, based on H.264 video compression technology, enables bandwidth to be utilised much more efficiently while also providing far superior quality pictures – offering operators a high performance, entry-level solution.
The first demonstration
of the IP215 will take place at ANGA Cable 2005 on the Pace stand - Hall 14.2,
Stand C7.
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The French broadcasting regulator CSA has decided to authorise operators to begin testing mobile digital TV services. It was considering a request jointly presented by candidate consortia to test mobile TV in the Paris region.
The consortia
are SFR/Canal+/Towercast on Channel 29; Orange/Bouygues/TPS/TDF on channel
37. The CSA authorised the players to start technical tests prior to the consumer
tests, likely to start in September. The CSA also agreed to a request from
RFI and Skyrock to test radio using DVB-T.
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Despite rigorous precautions, the final Star Wars film was on to an Internet file-sharing network hours after it opened in cinemas. A 'work print copy' of Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith with a time code, appeared online on Thursday.
A tracker site showed more than 16,000 people were downloading the film.
The film opened
simultaneously in cinemas in more than 100 countries on Friday in the biggest
ever simultaneous release. Some 18,700 prints are in cinemas around the world
- including 9,700 distributed to 3,700 North American theatres. The previous
five Star Wars films have made a total of $3.8 billion at box office.
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Noos
launches Noos Tel
From Sotires Eleftheriou in Paris
UPC-Noos (formerly Noos), the leading French cable operator, now part of United Global Com, has finally launched its' long awaited cable telephone service under the name Noos Tel in the Paris region.
The new service comes as part of a triple play with digital television and broadband Internet but it can also be subscribed to separately. UPC-Noos says it is the only alternative to France Telecom that can provide a telephone-only service. Telephony will be available to the 650,000 homes the network passes in Paris and the surrounding region. Two kinds of subscription are on offer. A basic for E7 a month, with payment per call (but at rates considerably lower than France Telecom) with a range of prepaid packs. Then a premium subscription, for E20 a month (or E10 a month if taken with a TV subscription) giving unlimited local and national (but not to mobile) calls. There are a range of add-on services (conference call, call waiting, call follow-on, caller ID, etc). Connecting involves changing the cable modem to a Scientific Atlanta Webstar.
UPC-Noos is planning
to invest E100 million over the next three years to equip its network and
is hoping to have 150,000 telephone subscribers by the end of this year.
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For the first time ProSiebenSat.1 will make a live transmission of a major sports event in high definition. The UEFA Champions League final between FC Liverpool and AC Milan on May 25, 2005 will be transmitted live from the Atatürk Olympia Stadium in Istanbul in high-resolution HDTV.
Apart from the
national SD signal ProSiebenSat.1 Produktion, service provider of the ProSiebenSat.1
Group and in charge of all productions and technical plant and equipment,
will take up the world feed provided by the UEFA in high definition quality.
Broadcasting is carried out via transponder 16 on frequency 11,4355GHz vertical
on ASTRA19.2° East.
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Debbie Mason,
ITV Interactive's commissioner has reportedly quit her job after just seven
months. Broadcast quoted colleagues saying she was "frustrated with the
time it was taking to get new projects off the ground".
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The FCC has said VoIP operators must supply emergency number services. The ruling was spurred by incidents in which emergency calls went unanswered. It will force Internet phone companies to offer more direct connections to the 911 service, and to ensure that callers' phone number and location are transmitted to authorities.
Vonage Holdings, the largest internet carrier, with about 650,000 customers, said that it welcomed the decision, and planned to spend between $10 million and $20 million to comply. The privately-held company has already struck an agreement with Verizon to offer enhanced 911 in New York, and is currently in negotiations with other carriers. "It's always been an issue of access and not an issue of money," Vonage said.
Meanwhile Vonage
said it had teamed up with office supplies firm Staples to sell its cut-price
Internet telephone service in the UK. Vonage said the tie-up would see it
selling its services from Staples' 136 stores in Britain, and it was looking
for similar arrangements with other UK retailers.
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Space
TV plans service by end-2005
From Shveta Malik in New Delhi
Space TV, the 80:20 Tata Group-Star JV, is expected to launch its direct-to-home service by the end of this year. Vikram Kaushik, Chief Executive Officer, Space TV told CNBC that the company hopes to introduce pay-per-view movies and interactive sports channels in its bouquet of over 100 channels.
An interesting issue in the coming months would be the non-discriminatory carriage of content. Content companies and DTH platforms cannot deny each other mutual access, according to regulator TRAI.
The other players
in the DTH segment include ASC Enterprises and state-run DD Direct Plus. DD
Direct Plus, launched in 2004-end, is a free-to-air DTH service and claims
to have over two million viewers, while ASC Enterprises' Dish TV, launched
in September 2003, has about 200,000 subscribers.
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