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Our Latest Issues
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Scroll down page or click below for news - latest first
Tuesday
Friday 4th January
Over half US homes have digital TV
75% ad growth will come from search
LG and Netflix to stream movies to the TV
Sogecable and Orange in a triple play deal
TRAI: India should auction mobile TV licences
Motorola media player
CCTV launches HD
Discovery joins the Picnic
UAE licence for mobile TV by mid 2008
Guangdong Telecom invests RMB5bn in IPTV
Turner brands for Mobix
Micronas exits IPTV STBs
Over half US homes have digital TV
More than 50 per cent of US households now own a digital television (DTV), according to research released by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA).
Gary Shapiro, CEO of CEA said: "2008 will continue to demonstrate the growth and success of DTV, with nearly 32 million units forecasted to ship. Consumers are particularly keen to add HDTV to their homes, with high definition expected to account for 79 per cent of total DTV shipments in the US in 2008."
According to new CEA sales projections, manufacturers will post 11 per cent revenue growth, to over $25 billion, from sales of digital televisions in 2007. CEA also forecasts 13 percent revenue and 17 per cent unit sales growth for digital television in 2008.
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75% ad growth will come from searchInternet search is expected to contribute up to three quarters of all UK advertising revenue growth this year, while traditional media stagnates. WPP’s GroupM predicts that advertising will grow by 6 per cent in 2008, but without the contribution from Google and other search engines, the rate of improvement across other media would be only 1.5 per cent.
Internet advertising will also come close to overtaking television advertising in 2008, emphasising how fast the new medium has become a mainstream means of promotion. This year Internet spending is predicted to hit £3.4 billion, (E4.9bn) up from £2.6 billion in 2007, on GroupM’s estimates. GroupM predicts television revenues of £3.57 billion, up 0.9 per cent, although Zenith-Optimedia, its rival, is forecasting growth of 2.2 per cent.
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LG and Netflix to stream movies to the TVNetflix, the world's largest online movie rental service, and LG Electronics, are joining forces to develop a set-top box for consumers to stream movies and other programming from the Internet to HDTVs – bypassing the need to use a personal computer.
The collaboration is expected to deliver a new online home entertainment service via technology embedded in an LG networked player planned for the second half of 2008.
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Sogecable and Orange in a triple play deal
From David Del Valle in MadridSpain's Sogecable and France Telecom-controlled IPTV operator Orange TV have signed an agreement to launch a triple play offer, Trio Plus, from early 2008. The new service will be similar to Telefonica-Sogecable's current offer combining this time Orange's high-speed Internet and mobile phone services and the Spanish firm's pay-TV platform, Digital Plus, in an attempt to find an extra source of revenue.
Orange and Sogecable have also teamed to launch Sogecable's Digital Plus Mobile via Orange's 3G cell phones, including more than 20 channels. Both companies are planning to launch a HD version of Digital Plus Mobile through Orange cell phones during 2008.
The agreement with Orange is part of a new Sogecable's strategy to exploit its TV content through different platforms, boost subscriptions and capture more financial resources. The first move of this was made at the end of 2006 with its agreement with Vodafone to distribute Digital Plus to its 3G customers, it now has around 100,000 subscribers.
Owned by Spanish media group Prisa and Telefonica, Sogecable currently has more than 2 million subscribers to its pay-TV platform, Digital Plus.
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TRAI: India should auction mobile TV licencesIndia's telecoms regulator has recommended auctioning licences for broadcasting mobile television services. Foreign investment in a provider will be allowed up to 74 per cent, but no more than 20 percent must be owned by broadcasting companies, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India said in its draft recommendations.
Operators that win licences will automatically be allotted at least 8 megahertz of spectrum, and will have to share infrastructure with other providers.
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Motorola media player
Motorola has unveiled a mobile media player that shows live television, on-demand video clips and programming saved on digital video recorders. Motorola, which has lost share in the mobile phone market, said it would showcase its Mobile TV DVBH compatible DHO1 device at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next week. The device will be smaller than a paperback novel, it said.
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CCTV launches HDChina's Central Television (CCTV) has commenced the launch of its high definition TV services. The service rolled out on 1st January, will first broadcast in Beijing, and then throughout the country over the next few years. The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television has unveiled the technical standards to receive the HD channels signals.
Meanwhile, six other channels of SD digital TV programmes will also be offered - they include four CCTV channels, one Beijing TV channel and China Education Channel.
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Discovery joins the PicnicDiscovery Networks UK is to offer a factual channel on Picnic TV, the new pay-TV service that Sky proposes to launch on UK digital terrestrial television. Discovery becomes the second third-party broadcaster to join the proposed service following confirmation that Disney would become the channel provider for children’s entertainment. The Discovery Channel will be available to Picnic TV customers between 6am and 6pm every day.
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UAE licence for mobile TV by mid 2008The telecom watchdog of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will issue a licence for the mobile digital TV service in the country by the middle of 2008. The UAE Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (TRA) have appointed a consultant to advise it on licensing issues and procedures, according to local newspapers. TRA is to issue the licence to the operator by the middle of 2008, TRA Director General Mohammed Al Ghanem said. Currently, there are two mobile telecom operators in the UAE - Etisalat and Du.
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Guangdong Telecom invests RMB5bn in IPTVGuangdong Telecom says it will invest another RMB5 billion (E0.46bn) to expand IPTV services. Guangdong began to deploy IPTV in the second half of 2004. It later tested the IPTV system of mainstream manufacturers in early 2005 and arranged a bidding for the IPTV programme at the end of 2005, which benefited about 100,000 users. At present, IPTV is the main source of income for Guangdong Telecom.
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Turner brands for MobixTurner Broadcasting System and Mobix have launched three of Turner’s most popular brands as on-portal video-on-demand propositions and via Sky’s mobile TV pack. Following on from the successful broadcast launch of the country’s leading lad’s mag on Freeview, Nuts TV is now available to all operators as a mobile TV channel. Also available as an on-portal video-on-demand proposition is children’s channel Cartoon Network and adult entertainment channel Adult Swim.
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Micronas exits IPTV STBsMicronas Semiconductor Holding will discontinue its activities in the area of set top boxes for IPTV as part of its restructuring efforts aimed at streamlining its product portfolio in the consumer division.
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Thursday 3rd January 2008
FCC digital transition
Search will be 75% of ad growth in 08
The Federal Communications Commission has approved new rules giving broadcasters more flexibility in making the switch to digital television from traditional analogue signals. The rules will even allow some stations to make a "phased transition" to digital broadcasting; stations will be allowed to reduce or terminate their analogue service before the February 17, 2009 deadline for the transition "if doing so is necessary to achieve their transition," the FCC said.
"The rules we adopt in this item attempt to provide broadcasters the flexibility they need while at the same time ensuring that any disruption to over-the-air viewers is minimized to the fullest extent possible," FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said in a statement.
The government will subsidize the cost of buying an STB converter box by offering $40 discount coupons to anyone who owns an analogue television set. The converter boxes are expected to cost between $50 and $70 and will be available at most major electronics retail stores. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is accepting requests for two $40 coupons per household to be used toward the purchase of the boxes.
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Search will be 75% of ad growth in 08
Internet search is expected to contribute up to three quarters of all UK advertising revenue growth this year, while traditional media stagnates. WPP’s GroupM predicts that advertising will grow by 6 per cent in 2008, but without the contribution from Google and other search engines, the rate of improvement across other media would be only 1.5 per cent.
Internet advertising will also come close to overtaking television advertising in 2008, emphasising how fast the new medium has become a mainstream means of promotion. This year internet spending is predicted to hit £3.4 billion, (E4.9bn) up from £2.6 billion in 2007, on GroupM’s estimates. GroupM predicts television revenues of £3.57 billion, up 0.9 per cent, although Zenith-Optimedia, its rival, is forecasting growth of 2.2 per cent.
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