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Our Latest Issues
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Scroll down page or click below for news - latest first
Tuesday
Friday 11th June
Virgin wants Ofcom to force lower Sky prices
Time Warner: TV Everywhere to reach 50m homes
SARFT takes control of IPTV in China
ITV in talks for mobile catch-up app
Canal+ services for iPad
Online video platform industry soars past $200bn
Kabel Deutschland 2010 loss narrows
BBC HD launches on CYFRA+
One third of UK will watch World Cup online
AT&T U-launches ESPN 3D Channel
MultiChoice selects Pace for HD PVR
Spotify joins Telia TV service
Viasat to launch free sports channel in Sweden
Virgin wants Ofcom to force lower Sky pricesVirgin Media says Ofcom has been too lenient with BskyB and has lodged an appeal against the broadcasting regulator’s efforts to set fair prices for the market in Premier League football coverage.
In its case to the Competition Appeals Tribunal, the cabler challenges Ofcom’s wholesale pricing regime set for BSkyB’s Sky Sports 1 and 2 channels. It thinks the price should be lower and Virgin wants Ofcom to include Sky Sports 3 and 4 in the regulated pricing and it wants limits on bundle prices that include the sports channels in combination with film channels.
Ofcom set the price for a bundle of Sky Sports 1 and 2 at £10.63 per customer (E12.88), 23.4 per cent below what BSkyB charges Virgin Media, currently its only wholesale client. The price for a bundle of both channels was set at £17.14, which is 10.5 per cent less than now.
Ofcom said in its judgement it would closely watch for any switching of valuable programming away from the main sports channels 1 and 2 and if this occurred it would consider regulating 3 and 4 also.
BskyB objects to any and all wholesale price regulation and is appealing the whole decision.
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Time Warner: TV Everywhere to reach 50m homesMore than half of all pay-TV homes could have access to a TV Everywhere-type option come next summer, according to Time Warner CFO John Martin who said he "wouldn't be surprised" if the number hit 50 million over the next 12 months.
Currently, Time Warner estimates that about 20 million homes paying for cable, satellite or telco TV service can access some restricted programming online at no extra cost. "TV Everywhere" is a catchall term for pay-TV operators allowing subscribers to view programming on the Web if they go through an authentication process to prove they pay a monthly bill.
Martin said "every meaningful distributor" believes in leaving some online content open to its customer base and they are working with Time Warner at least on moving toward a trial.
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SARFT takes control of IPTV in ChinaChina's evolving plans for media convergence now appear to grant control of IPTV to the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television. The apparent move by the State Council, China's cabinet, could clarify a previously grey area in a potentially lucrative media arena in the world's largest Internet market.
On the opening day of the Shanghai International Television Festival, the State Council's plan to grant SARFT control of IPTV was revealed by Bao Ran, editor-in-chief of China Digital TV magazine. There had been much speculation since the State Council laid out a general proposal to synchronise its telecommunications, broadcast and Internet media in January - a process that has been dogged by scattered cable TV networks and conflicts of interest between different administrative bodies and local governments.
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ITV in talks for mobile catch-up appITV is in talks with Apple, Blackberry and Google’s Android team about launching an ITV Player mobile app, which would allow users to catch up on the broadcaster’s content any time and anywhere.
It will be the first app to be released from a major UK broadcaster allowing TV catch-up on the most popular mobile devices, beating both the BBC and Channel 4. The BBC iPlayer and Channel 4’s 4onDemand service are both available via mobile browsers – but have yet to launch dedicated TV catch-up apps. The BBC Trust is considering whether the corporation should be permitted to launch dedicated news and sports mobile apps, following representations it had received from the media industry, claiming the apps would ‘distort’ the market.
The ITV Player app, which the TV company is hoping will be live in each smartphone’s respective app store by the beginning of September, will have a small initial charge but will be funded by ongoing advertising.
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Canal+ services for iPad
After successful launches on iPhone and iPod Touch, Canal+ Group channel offerings are now accessible on the Apple iPad in WiFi and 3G/3G+. Subscribers to Canal + Channels and / or Canalsat who own an iPad can download the application free-of-charge to access unencrypted Canal + services (live and VOD) and the rolling news channel i TELE, but also benefit from continuity of their chosen TV services.Included in the five-star subscription at no additional cost, access to the service is available at E5 per month for three and four star subscribers via a WEB + MOBILE option which, in addition to the primary television access, extends the offer to PC, mobile and now the iPad.
The Canal+ mobile application is already available on iPhone and iPod Touch with more than one million downloads to date.
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Online video platform industry soars past $200bn
The global online video platform (OVP) industry—the logistics providers for online video sites—has grown into a substantial business sector in a short time and already generates hundreds of millions of dollars a year, according to a Strategy Analytics report. Strategy Analytics predicts that this sector will generate more than $1 billion in five years."The online video platform industry is benefiting from the explosive growth in online video users," said Jia Wu, Analyst at Strategy Analytics Digital Consumer Practice and author of the report. "More than half of the US population already watches online video on a regular basis. This industry is set for continued rapid growth in the coming years".
"As tech giants such as Cisco, Microsoft and others increase their efforts in the fast growing OVP market, incumbent market leaders, such as Brightcove and thePlatform, will come under considerable pressure," added Martin Olausson, Director of Digital Media Research at Strategy Analytics. "The key to long-term prosperity for OVPs will be the ability to offer flexible and increasingly sophisticated solutions to a progressively divergent set of customer needs."
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Kabel Deutschland 2010 loss narrowsKabel Deutschland, Germany’s largest cable-television operator, said its full-year loss narrowed as more customers added Internet and phone services to their TV subscriptions.
The net loss for the 12 months through March 31st was E45.3 million compared with E144.3 million a year earlier. Sales rose 9.6 per cent to E1.5 billion.
"We are confident that we will continue our growth trajectory" Kabel Deutschland Chief Executive Adrian von Hammerstein said.
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BBC HD launches on CYFRA+
BBC Worldwide Channels and CanalL+ Cyfrowy, operator of Poland’s digital DTH platform CYFRA+, have signed a new distribution deal to make the international high-definition channel from the BBC immediately available to subscribers of CYFRA+.BBC HD is now available as part of the Presti_owy HD+ tier and the HD Mix option, as well as a standalone channel on CYFRA+. The channel is available with a dual language option enabling viewers to access both a Polish audio and the original English-language option.
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One third of UK will watch World Cup online
The World Cup will be watched online by nearly a third of British football fans, according to a study released by PC World. The retailer questioned over 3,000 in the run up to the World Cup following a surge in sales of its wireless networking and video streaming gadgets.Feedback revealed that:
- 30 per cent of fans, which equates to over 14 million of those expected to watch the World Cup live, are planning on doing so over the internet.
- Nearly a quarter (23 per cent) revealed they would be using laptops or desktop PCs.
- One in ten (10 per cent) expect to follow the action using a smart phone such as a BlackBerry.The research also revealed that more replays of the games will be watched online than on televisions. When questioned, over 10 per cent more fans revealed they use the Internet to watch repeated footage online immediately after a game. World Cup games will be available for up to a week after each match and available to download for free from BBC iPlayer and iTV.
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AT&T U-launches ESPN 3D ChannelAT&T and ESPN have confirmed the addition of ESPN 3D to the U-verse TV channel line-up. AT&T U-verse TV customers will be able to enjoy the industry's first 3D sports television network that will deliver 25 2010 FIFA World Cup matches and nearly 100 live sporting events in the next year.
The first ESPN 3D 2010 FIFA World Cup match will air today, featuring South Africa vs. Mexico. Other events to be delivered in 3D include the 2010 State Farm Home Run Derby, X Games 16, Winter X Games 15, college basketball and football games and the 2011 BCS National Championship Game.
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MultiChoice selects Pace for HD PVRSouth Africa-based pay TV operator MultiChoice, has chosen Pace, its existing HD technology partner, to develop a second generation HD personal video recorder PVR. The new STB is currently available to subscribers and will also be rolled out to other African countries. MultiChoice, which has over 2.4 million pay TV customers, has a successful, longstanding partnership with Pace; the two companies started collaborating on digital TV technology in 1995.
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Spotify joins Telia TV serviceTeliaSonera is launching a version of the popular Spotify music platform through its digital-TV service in Sweden and Finland. The version of Spotify that is being launched will allow users to play all playlists that have been compiled to date, and to mix music, as they please. Several accounts can be saved on Telia's digital-TV box so everyone in the family, or their friends, can quickly access their favourite music. Spotify on a television offers the advantage of allowing users to easily enjoy music through a home theatre system Spotify can be used by approximately 120,000 Telia digital-TV customers. The service is easily managed on the remote control used for their digital-TV box.
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Viasat to launch free sports channel in SwedenModern Times Group (MTG) will launch a new free-TV sports channel in Sweden on 7 September 2010. The new channel – TV10 – will be made available to Com Hem’s 1.65 million TV households, as well as on Viasat’s own DTH satellite TV platform, which together represent more than 50 per cemt of Swedish households. Further distribution agreements will be signed to further boost the channel’s penetration levels.
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Thursday 10th June
Hulu will charge within weeks
TiVo's "Time Warp" patent invalid
Imagenio expands HD line-up
Canal Plus targets international
OnLive gaming package coming to BT Vision
Neuf Cegetel boosts IPTV service
iiNet launching IPTV this month
Humax confirms OTA Freeview fix
Vestel selects Access
Altech UEC STB underpins TopTV launch in South Africa
Hulu will charge within weeksHulu plans to begin charging customers ‘within weeks’ say American reports. It is also looking to expand the service to portable devices including iPad and Xbox.
Hulu, which is thought to have generated $100 million in advertising in 2009, will continue to offer newer episodes free of charge, but it will charge viewers a monthly fee to see older episodes and other content.
Since its launch in 2008, Hulu has been one of the winners in OTT services with advertising has enabling it to be free. However with rates lower than for equivalent audiences on TV it is bound to experiment with pay models. The question is whether users already paying hefty pay-TV fees at home will also pay for the added convenience of Hulu, or whether it will encourage ‘chord cutting.’
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TiVo's "Time Warp" patent invalidIn a rare win for Echostar in its long running patent row with TiVo, the US Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) has ruled TiVo’s ‘Time Warp’ patent invalid. This has been at the heart of the dispute.
"We are pleased the Patent and Trademark Office issued a Final Office Action maintaining its rejection of the software claims of TiVo's patent," said Dish and EchoStar in a joint statement. "These software claims are the same claims that EchoStar was found to have infringed in the contempt ruling now pending for en banc review by the Federal Circuit. In the Final Office Action, three examiners of the PTO considered TiVo's response and, in a detailed 32-page decision, finally concluded that the software claims were unpatentable."
TiVo, though, says this is but one step in the review process and it is still pursuing its court action against Echostar. "While TiVo is disappointed with this recent PTO office action, this is just one of several steps in the review process," said TiVo. "We will continue to work with the PTO to explain the validity of the claims under review..the PTO proceeding is separate and apart from the ongoing litigation against EchoStar and does not impact the current United States Court of Appeals en banc review of the district court's finding of contempt against EchoStar and the related injunction."
The stakes couldn’t be higher for both companies. If Echostar loses it will have to pay massive damages and/or face the ruinous expense of swapping out its DVR population. If TiVo loses its whole licensing business model would be seriously undermined.
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Imagenio expands HD line-upTelefonica’s IPTV operator Movistar Imagenio has incorporated four new HDTV channels on its offering. The new HD channels are: MGM HD, Unitel Classica HD, Eurosport HD and National Geographic Wild HD. The platform already offers GolTV HD and AXN HD. Eurosport HD and AXN HD are already included within Sogecable's satellite pay-TV operator Digital+.
Sogecable’s Digital+ is reorganising its channels list in order to integrate its new HD offering as well as other new channels.
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Canal Plus targets internationalCanal Plus is once again ready to hit the international expansion trail, according to Chief executive Bertrand Meheut. He told Dow Jones the company was targeting a number of overseas pay-TV providers. Last year it failed, in a joint bid with Telefonica, to take over the Spanish platform Digital Plus.
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OnLive gaming package coming to BT VisionA new gaming service will be available through BT's TV packages in 2011. The OnLive platform has just made its debut in the US and will be launched in the UK towards the end of next year.
BT said games usually available on consoles will be offered through the platform. "Over time, as consumer broadband connectivity increases and as games become more complex, we expect cloud-based distribution models for gaming to become increasingly attractive and mainstream."
As well as being available through BT, the service is also set to be open to those who subscribe to deals from the likes of Plusnet.
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Neuf Cegetel boosts IPTV serviceFrench telco Neuf Cegetel has enhanced its IPTV service with several new additions, including a new VOD service and linear channels.
The VOD service, called Pass Cinéma, provides customers with a choice of up to 50 films each month for an initial subscription of E4.99 and E9.99 per month thereafter. Titles available include content from the catalogues of Disney, Sony and NBC Universal, with five HD titles available each month.Neuf Cegetel has also started offering customers picture-in-picture, and a dual-tuner equipped STB, enabling users to watch one channel while recording another. The telco has also added 19 new linear channels to its content line-up, including five in HD.
iiNet launching IPTV this month
iiNet will launch a new IPTV service in Australia this month.
"The actual product should be available for purchase before the end of the month," chief executive Michael Malone confirmed. He did not mention particulars of pricing plans except that the public could expect details in the coming days.iiNet has teamed up with FetchTV, a new wholesale pay-TV provider that has support from an Asian pay-TV provider, Astro All Asia Networks. The service will compete with other large ISPs; Internode is set to launch its own IPTV service with FetchTV shortly, and Telstra is pushing strongly into the market with the impending launch of its T-Box STB.
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Humax confirms OTA Freeview fix
Humax has confirmed the dates for over-the-air (OTA) software downloads to upgrade its range of PVRs and fix recent usability issues and slowdown in operation for the PVR-9200Tand PVR-9300T digital TV recorders.The OTA software upgrades will resolve issues that have occurred due to the increasing complexity of the UK’s broadcast infrastructure, particularly the digital switchover, such as freezing, locking up and missed recordings.
Humax has ensured that the new software will also eliminate the risk of future problems and have introduced a new feature that will significantly reduce the time it takes to display the on-screen EPG from minutes to just seconds.
The upgrades will automatically take place on all PVR-9200Tand PVR-9300T models on the following dates, as long as they are in stand-by mode overnight.
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Vestel selects Access
Vestel has selected Access NetFront Browser, NetFront Living Connect and the recently unveiled HbbTV Plug-in package for its entire range of connected digital TVs and STBs.
Vestel will use Access technologies to add cutting-edge capabilities to its rich family of DTV products, including TV-optimised full Internet browsing with NetFront Browser, new digital home networking capabilities with NetFront Living Connect and seamless access to broadband and broadcast programmes and services alike, with the HbbTV Plug-in package. Vestel is the second largest global OEM supplier of digital TV products, with 10 million units sold last year.
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Altech UEC STB underpins TopTV launch in South AfricaAltech UEC, developer of digital STBs and interactive software solutions, has confirmed that the Johannesburg based commercial satellite subscription service provider, TopTV, had successfully launched UEC’s purpose built STB. The UEC TopTV STB is designed to TopTV’s specific requirements and draws on the latest DVB-S2 and MPEG4 technology in order to deliver optimum levels of performance and reliability.
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Wednesday 9th June
Portugal joins World Cup 3D line up
Sky accepts EDS settlement
Monaco Telecom digital TV service goes live
Online TV viewing diverges from off line
Broadband Forum new initiatives
Pace adds Wi-Fi to STBs
Amino Romtelecom deal
Sony’s Crackle goes international
TVonics going HD
BigBand and Technetix partner for IP video solutions
ADB delivers HD solutions to INEA
Portugal joins World Cup 3D line up
From Branislav Pekic in RomePortuguese pay-TV operator Meo has announced it will broadcast the World Cup in 3D. For E1, users will be able to follow live broadcasts in True 3D from the Campo Pequeno in Lisbon and in the UCI cinema multiplex in Porto. The games that will be aired will be Portugal vs Brazil (in the first stage), as well as the quarter-finals, the semi-finals and final itself.
Meo customers can watch all the matches at the World Cup in HD, with 64 games live on the pay-TV channel Sport TV HD and 28 games live on RTP HD. Also available will be a free interactive channel on the World Cup, thanks to a partnership with public broadcaster RTP, with news videos and statistics.
Meanwhile Pyramid Research projects that the 2010 World Cup will boost the uptake of mobile video and mobile TV services in Western European markets, while the effect on the service adoption in most Central and Eastern European markets is likely to be negligible. In 2010 the number of mobile video users (including mobile TV) will increase by 8.4 million in Western Europe, while in Central Europe, the market will see only 1.5 million additional mobile video users. The service adoption gap between the two regions will further widen throughout the forecast period.
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BskyB will be paid a total of £318 million (E386m) as settlement in its long-running compensation case against the Electronic Data Systems, now a subsidiary of Hewlett-Packard. The final settlement is over a contract issued 10 years ago to build a new customer relationship management system.
The broadcaster hired EDS, taken over by Hewlett-Packard in 2008, in 2000. The contract was cancelled in March 2002 after a "woeful" performance, according to Sky. Sky was originally seeking £709 million in compensation from the data provider over the original £48 million contract.
EDS has agreed to pay £318 million in damages, costs and interest, including an interim payment of £270 million made in February.Sky told the high court that the project eventually took six years to complete and if the contractor had been honest about its abilities, BSkyB would have chosen a different supplier.
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Monaco Telecom digital TV service goes live
From Colin Mann in Monte CarloMonaco Telecom has launched the Principality’s next generation, connected TV experience, bringing the telco’s vision of tomorrow’s connected home a step closer to reality. The initiative comprises three new developments: the launch of a new generation TVBox, the arrival of a number of new channels and video on demand and the launch of a 30Mbps ultra-broadband‚ at the same price as broadband.
Available immediately, digital television gives access to a new and free of charge minimum service consisting of 18 DTT channels, which can be received by all households in the Principality by simply adjusting the television set or adding a suitable decoder. The principality has been modernising its cable TV network for some years now in order to make it entirely digital and to be able to offer an equivalent quality of service to the residents of Monaco. The E10 million upgrade was carried out by the telco with support from the Principality’s Department of Public Works, Environment and Town Planning.
Monaco Telecom has partnered with IPTV provider Netgem to introduce the service’s new TVBox, which gives access to a larger number of interactive and recording functions, as well as a catalogue of 3,000 international films in VoD, HD television and OTT content on the TV. The service combines digital cable-delivered broadcast HDTV and pay-TV channels with OTT TV services into one, branded user experience. OTT services provided by Netgem include VOD films from Netgem’s sister company Video Futur and a bespoke, interactive Monaco Telecom channel that aggregates its existing online weather, traffic and news services, updating content updated in real time.
"Its an important day for Monaco Telecom; we’ve been preparing for it for a long time," said Martin Péronnet, General Manager of Monaco Telecom. The service had been announced by Netgem and Monaco Telecom at the IBC broadcast technology trade fair in September 2009, but Péronnet stressed that the telco didn’t want to launch the service until it was satisfied it could offer the consistency of quality expected by Monaco residents. HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco, inaugurating the service, said that it was important that the Principality joined the rest of the international community in making the switch to digital.
Christophe Aulnette, Managing Director of Netgem, said the Monaco Telecom deployment represented an interesting challenge for his company as it was a converged communications provider in a densely-populated area.
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Online TV viewing diverges from off lineSideReel, the largest independent destination for people to track and watch shows online, has measured markedly different viewing trends among its online TV audience than Nielsen’s offline audience.
Shows regularly topping the Nielsen charts - like American Idol, Dancing with the Stars and NCIS - are absent from SideReel's most viewed shows, while series with lower Nielsen ratings - like Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill and Scrubs - are perpetual SideReel favourites. Gossip Girl, for example, ranked No. 125 in the Nielsen ratings this season but regularly holds the No. 1 spot on SideReel.
"Online TV viewers are younger and more discriminating," said CEO and co-founder Roman Arzhintar. "They’re driving consumption away from the TV set to the computer." Since August 2009, advertising dollars have also followed this valuable demographic online. 80 per cent of SideReel users are between 18 and 34 years old and watch between 10-20 hours of online TV per week.
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Broadband Forum new initiativesBroadband Forum, the global consortium of approximately 200 leading telecommunications service providers, network equipment manufacturers and software companies driving broadband solutions around the world, has announced a comprehensive range of initiatives aimed at empowering next generation access solutions in a variety of technologies, including ADSL2plus, VDSL2 and GPON.
Robin Mersh, COO of the Broadband Forum, highlighted the extension of the Broadband Forum’s testing and conformance efforts, encouraging the evolution of access technologies. This work includes:
- Recent enhancements to the ADSL2plus functionality test plan (TR-105 Corrigendum 2)
- Introduction of the new VDSL2 test suite (TR-114/TR-115 and TR-138)
- Development of a new Vectoring best practices white paper (MD-257)
-Recently added GPON interoperability abstract test development and testing being performed in conjunction with Full Service Access Network (FSAN). This work includes ongoing.
- Plugfest events, open to all FSAN and Broadband Forum equipment and chipset vendors.
- Additional fiber-related work is also moving forward addressing EPON.Another critical new area of the Broadband Forum's work includes specifications addressing end-to-end architecture evolution requirements. With a focus on establishing the global bar for multi-service architectures, a body of work has been launched to help service providers migrate to a more flexible, IP and MPLS-based mesh network approach aimed at facilitating efficient and cost effective delivery of multimedia services, assuring new levels of excellence in end-user quality of experience. This pending release will be based on TR-144 "Broadband Multi-Service Architecture & Framework Requirements" and anchored by key work in progress, such as WT-145 "Broadband Architecture Requirements" and WT-223 "Requirements for MPLS over Aggregated Interfaces". A new white paper associated with this work is also in development titled "Unified MPLS: Enabling next generation transport and services using MPLS-TP".
"Our role is to ensure that the industry has all the specifications and tools it needs to optimize networks, advance interoperability, and ultimately to capture the full potential of broadband worldwide," says Robin Mersh, COO of the Broadband Forum. "These new initiatives and joint efforts will provide those tools needed to expedite the migration to the next generation broadband network."
Pace has announced its membership of the Wi-Fi Alliance and the incorporation of Wi-Fi technology into selected upcoming STBs.
Pace is pioneering the development of technologies to consume and share content around the home; Wi-Fi will be a crucial part of the future converged home entertainment environment.
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Amino Romtelecom dealAmino has signed a deal with Romanian telco Romtelecom to supply DVRs. Romtelecom’s Dolce Interactiv IPTV service has rolled out in ten cities, including the capital Bucharest. Amino is providing Mood400 DVRs, which can deliver various service, including VOD, in-home media sharing and instant messaging.
Amino has also delivered a half-year trading update: "Continuing on from the strong order intake in the second half of the last financial year, the company is pleased to report first half revenues and unit sales booked in the period and a healthy order backlog at May 31st 2010. Gross margins are expected to be lower than in previous years as a result of foreign exchange rate movements, higher component prices and increased sales to higher volume Tier 2 customers."
The company expects to report a significantly reduced loss compared to the 2009 figure of £3.1 million (E3.75m).
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Sony’s Crackle goes internationalSony Pictures Entertainment’s multi-platform video entertainment network is now available in the UK and Australia. Crackle’ content can now be found in both markets, as well as in the US, at AOL, Bebo, Boxee, Break, Dailymotion, Friendster, Metacafe and YouTube, and via Sony’s Bravia Internet Video enabled television sets.
Advertiser supported, Crackle features original short-form series, full-length and short-form television shows, and motion pictures from the Sony Pictures library.
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TVonics going HDTVonics has announced that it will deliver leading edge HD STBs to market in July 2010 as part of its ongoing HD strategy.
TVonics is placing its Freeview HD product development at the heart of its HD strategy and using it as the foundation for the future of its digital TV products. The technology is enabling TVonics to design and develop its own connected TV products, joining the world of broadband TV and broadcast in a seamless way.
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BigBand and Technetix partner for IP video solutionsBigBand Networks, a specialist in digital video networking, has expanded its presence in the European cable market to deliver IP video solutions through a reseller partnership with Technetix Group, the European broadband cable and telecommunications equipment supplier.
Through this partnership, the companies say they can provide a turn-key, integrated approach to IP delivery that includes BigBand's vIP PASS, an end-to-end video IP delivery platform, and CVEx (Converged Video Exchange), the industry's first intelligent software control plane that facilitates convergence between different video applications and end-user screens. BigBand's vIP PASS is designed to allow service providers to achieve IPTV goals with a faster time to market and lower operating and capital expense than with other transport alternatives.
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ADB delivers HD solutions to INEAAdvanced Digital Broadcast (ADB) is supplying Poland's INEA - the largest local operator in the Wielkopolska region - with two advanced HD interactive digital cable solutions. ADB's open standards based solutions are delivered via the ADB-5810CDX high definition digital video recorder and the ADB-5810CD high definition set-top box. Both products include EURODOCSIS 2.0, a USB 2.0 port for media access and Timeshift, and Ethernet for interactivity and future services such as VOD.
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Tuesday 8th June
Blinkbox free streams to combat piracy
YouTube may load all channels metadata
Marketing blitz drives consumers to take 3D plunge
Logitech unveils Google TV STB
SES Astra broadband for NASK
Neovia provide payment processing for Big Brother
UTV movies now available on BT Vision in UK
Blinkbox free streams to combat piracyUsers will be able to watch their choice of movies at home for nothing, as a group of Hollywood studios team with UK’s Blinkbox to run a week-long free streaming service in an effort to lure Internet users away from pirated material.
As part of the "Full Stream Ahead" campaign, which is backed by the UK Film Council and BFI, anyone accessing the Blinkbox website will be offered £20 (E24) credit to spend on films from studios including Paramount, Sony Pictures, Universal, 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros.
Users will be able to stream their choices over the Internet to watch them on computer or television. The film studios are hoping video streaming services will attract people who may otherwise turn to file sharing networks.
Michael Comish, chief executive and co-founder of Blinkbox. "By the time the music industry enabled strong and good-quality legal [streaming] services it was arguably too late. We are in the early days of digital retail for movies, and our ambition is to make people aware of the benefits of streaming services before it is too late."
Research by Global Web Index last year showed that web users were turning to unlawful filesharing sites because the content they wanted was not easily available elsewhere. The survey showed that 45 per cent of filesharers said they would consume films legally if the technology allowed them.
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YouTube may load all channels metadataOn the heels of BBC iPlayer saying they will ingest metadata for programmes from other broadcasters, YouTube is set to do the same. It is said to be in talks with UK broadcasters with which doesn’t have a programme carriage deal.
YouTube already has deals to host catch-up TV from 4oD and Demand Five but ITV has declined deals with YouTube and others while it builds up ITV Player. BBC does let YouTube carry its channels but not its iPlayer VOD service. At least carrying the listings for services it doesn’t host allows YouTube to build towards its aim of being an on ramp for all available TV services. There is little downside for broadcasters as it will help built traffic to their players.
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Marketing blitz drives consumers to take 3D plungeAccording to US market research firm Interpret, marketing campaigns of TV manufacturers and product demos at retail have spurred consumer interest in 3D technologies. Five per cent of heads of households stated that they are "definitely interested" in purchasing a 3D TV in the next 12 months, and another 8 per cent are "probably interested."
"Even though consumer self-reported purchase intention needs to be discounted significantly, the percentage of 3D TV intenders is high" said Michael Cai, VP of Research at Interpret. "Based on consumer data, we anticipate more than 4 million 3D TV sets to be sold in the US in the next 12 months."
The report also reveals that 3D TV intenders are willing to pay 8-10 per cent more for a 3D TV than a 2D set of similar size and intenders for a 3D Blu Ray player are ready to shell out 35 per cent more for the ability to play back 3D movies at home. Furthermore, consumers want more than 3 pairs of 3D glasses for their households but are only willing to pay $23 for a pair.
"The 20-25 per cent premium carried by today's 3D TVs is higher than what consumers are willing to bear; however, we expect promotions around the 2010 holiday season to push many early adopters over the edge," said Cai. "We do advise manufacturers and retailers to bundle additional pairs of glasses into their offerings to sweeten the deal."
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Logitech unveils Google TV STBLogitech has confirmed plans to launch a STB to bring Google TV content direct to HDTVs. Removing the need to purchase a Google TV-branded HD TV, the Logitech box will also host Harmon Link technology to allow for centralised management of all infrared controlled devices.
Unveiled last month, Google Smart TV will allow users to browse the web for TV content. Through the Harmon Link system, Logitech’s Google TV box will also scrap the need for multiple remote controls as any device with an IR remote will be able to be controlled centrally. A keyboard will accompany the STB allowing users to quickly and conveniently search for content.
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SES Astra broadband for NASKSES Astra has entered into a distribution agreement with Polish data network operator NASK to offer its satellite-based broadband service Astra2Connect to business customers in the Polish market. The service is available immediately. Astra2Connect has more than 60,000 end users.
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Neovia provide payment processing for Big BrotherNeovia Financial, the alternative payments business, will provide payment processing to Perform for live IPTV streaming of the final series of Channel 4's Big Brother show. This follows Neovia's recent announcement that it is handling payment processing for the SeeSaw VOD platform. The 11th series of Big Brother will start with a live show on Wednesday 9th June and will broadcast on Channel 4 and E4 throughout the summer. Channel 4 will charge 49p a day or £1.99 a week to access the live stream online.
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UTV movies now available on BT Vision in UKUTV foreign language movies are now available for UK audiences on the IPTV platform BT Vision. UTV has a deal with Shemaroo Entertainment UK which has an exclusive content aggregation agreement with BT Vision.
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Monday 7th June
Sky, Virgin Media in channel sale and distribution deal
Canal Plus on cable for the first time
Qualcomm CEO: Flo TV flailing
1 in 4 UK homes to have 3D TV by 2015
Disney CEO: Monetisation in New Media still achievable
Report: The state of online video
3 bidders for HK mobile TV
C4 barred from buying Five
Canal+ Sport HD kicks off
Miniweb partners with Brightcove
Telstra, Foxtel in Internet TV deal
Fibre network drives broadband adoption in Singapore
Viasat to distribute Premier League channels in Norway
ProSiebenSat.1 inks Fox deal for maxdome
Sky, Virgin Media in channel sale and distribution deal
From Colin Mann in LondonFollowing months of speculation, British Sky Broadcasting and Virgin Media have confirmed the acquisition by Sky of Virgin Media Television (VMtv) in a deal worth up to£160 million in cash. The companies have, in parallel, agreed to enter into a number of agreements providing for the carriage of certain Sky standard and high-definition (HD) channels.
The agreements cover the following:
- Sky will acquire VMtv for a total consideration of up to £160 million in cash, with £105 million paid on completion and the remainder paid following the regulatory process. The acquisition will expand Sky's portfolio of basic pay TV channels and eliminate the carriage fees it currently pays for distributing VMtv channels on its TV services.
- Sky will assume responsibility for selling advertising for the newly acquired VMtv channels from January 2011.
- New carriage agreements will secure wholesale distribution of Sky's basic channel line-up, including Sky1 and Sky Arts, and the newly acquired VMtv channels, on Virgin Media's cable TV service.
- For an incremental wholesale fee, Virgin Media will, for the first time, have the option of carrying any of Sky's basic HD channels, Sky Sports HD 1 and Sky Sports HD 2, and all Sky Movies HD channels.
- Virgin Media will make available through its on-demand TV service a range of content from Sky's basic and premium channels, including the newly acquired VMtv channels. Virgin Media will also have access to red button interactive sports coverage and the opportunity to deliver selected standard definition programming over the Internet.The acquisition of VMtv involves Sky acquiring LIVING, LIVINGit, Challenge, Challenge Jackpot, Bravo, Bravo 2 and Virgin1. Sky will not license the Virgin brand and will announce the new channel brand for Virgin1 in due course.Completion of the agreements is conditional on obtaining merger control clearance in the Republic of Ireland. The deal does not include the UKTV channels, which Virgin Media co-owns with BBC Worldwide.
Jeremy Darroch, CEO, BSkyB described VMtv as an attractive investment opportunity which complemented Sky’s existing content business and delivered strategic and financial benefits. "We are pleased that, through commercial negotiation, we have been able to ensure wide distribution of our channels to a growing pay TV universe, " he added.
Neil Berkett, CEO, Virgin Media, said the sale of its channels business had generated substantial value. "Together with the new commercial agreements we've announced today, it will allow us to focus more closely on our strategy of exploiting Virgin Media's super-fast connectivity to offer our customers a range of the very best content through a highly versatile next generation entertainment application," he said
Channels including Sky1, Sky News and Sky Sports News became available to Virgin Media customers again in November 2008 after the cable TV company and BSkyB reached a deal to end their 20-month row over distribution
Sky will no longer have to pay £30 million a year to distribute Virgin's channels via its satellite TV service. Buying Virgin1 provides Sky with a coveted channel slot on the Freeview digital terrestrial TV service, with the service to be rebranded accordingly.
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Canal Plus on cable for the first time
From David del Valle in MadridIn an unprecedented deal, Prisa-owned premium pay-TV channel, Canal Plus will be available on a Spanish cable network the first time since its launch 20 years ago, following the agreement with Telecable, an Asturias-based cable operator with 150,000 subscribers.
It will be the first time Canal Plus has been made available outside of the digital DTH platform, Digital Plus. The channel will be free of charge until the end of August and will subsequently be offered at E9.63 a month to Telecable triple-play subscribers, E12 for those with two services and at E15 for only TV subscribers.
Along with Canal Plus, two other Sogecable-produced channels, Caza y Pesca TV (dedicated to hunting and fishing) and DCine Español (dedicated to Spanish cinema), will also form part of the package through the cable network.
The agreement comes at a time when Digital Plus, Spain's biggest pay TV operator, saw subs fall 189,000 in 2009 to 1.85 million, following the launch of rival Mediapro's pay DTT soccer service Gol TV.
Operating in Asturias, north of Spain, Telecable is owned by the Caja de Ahorros de Asturias bank and publishing group Prensa Iberica and will expand to Spain's Extremadura region, west of Spain, by year-end.
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Qualcomm CEO: Flo TV flailingFlo TV, a service from Qualcomm that delivers television shows to mobile phones and other portable devices, hasn't found the audience the company had hoped for, according to Qualcomm Chief Executive Paul Jacobs.
Speaking at The Wall Street Journal's All Things Digital conference, Jacobs said Flo TV hasn't done well despite Qualcomm's efforts to build an audience for the service with high-profile advertisements during the Super Bowl and elsewhere. "There are people who love it, but the numbers are not nearly what we expected," Jacobs said.
Jacobs said he envisions Flo TV evolving into a more general system for delivering data to mobile devices that isn't limited to video. Qualcomm designed Flo TV as a service that can efficiently deliver content to a wide audience through traditional broadcasting methods, an approach that can reduce the network congestion caused by individuals streaming video to their mobile devices.
Jacobs showed a screen technology called Mirasol developed by Qualcomm that he said would allow cellphones and other mobile devices to display text with the legibility of an electronic-book reader such as Kindle, but with colour and video capabilities. Jacobs said Mirasol will consume so little power compared with other devices that handset makers will be able to use it to leave mobile-phone screens lit all the time, rather than shutting them off when they're not in use.
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1 in 4 UK homes to have 3D TV by 2015Several weeks after the launch of the first 3D TV in the UK, a report from Kelkoo, the shopping comparison website, reveals that almost one in four households (23 per cent) will own a 3D enabled television set by 2015.
With prices predicted to fall by 60 per cent from £1,720 today to just £786 over the next five years, it is estimated that the UK market will be worth an estimated £7.25 billion by 2015 with 7.6 million consumers investing in the new technology.
In addition, the hype surrounding this year's FIFA World Cup will also play a pivotal role, boosting HD TV sales by five per cent or £118 million, as consumers flock to upgrade their home entertainment systems.
Bruce Fair, Managing Director of Kelkoo UK, comments: "HD TV sales have reached a natural point of saturation so the world cup effect will provide a welcome sales boost for retailers and manufacturers alike. Historically, major sporting events can have a significant impact on the sale of consumer electronics products, and the arrival of 3D ready televisions in time for the World Cup is no coincidence."
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Disney CEO: Monetisation in New Media still achievableWalt Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger has said it's too early to discount the ability of media companies to drive revenue from emerging new media platforms, such as Apple’s iPad or the online video site Hulu.
Perhaps the most aggressive of major media moguls in making content available on new media platforms, Iger defended his distribution decisions from critics who question whether Disney is releasing too much of its popular content into channels that don't have a viable business model.
"It's too early to write the epitaph of new media when it comes to monetisation," Iger said at an investor conference in New York. "We've taken a position as a company to be present on those platforms."
Disney's ABC broadcast network is one of the few major networks that has chosen to make its programming available on the iPad. Some observers view the decision as a result of Iger's close relationship with Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs, who sits on Disney's board of directors and is the company's largest shareholder.
Iger said he wants Disney's content to be present on new technologies that are popular with consumers like the iPad, even if the business model behind the technologies has not yet fully evolved.
"We felt there was value in being on that platform first," Iger said, adding that it makes Disney's brands more relevant. "We believe that while we are monetising our content there today through advertising, and that's growing nicely, we'll find other and more robust ways to monetise in the future."
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Report: The state of online videoSeven in ten adult Internet users (69 per cent) have used the Internet to watch or download video. That represents 52 per cent of all adults in the US, according to Pew Research.
Moreover, video creation has now become a notable feature of online life. One in seven adult Internet users (14 per cent) have uploaded a video to the Internet.
Driven by the popularity of online video among 18-29 year-olds, there have been dramatic increases since 2007 in the number of American adults watching:
- Comedy or humorous videos, rising in viewership from 31 per cent of adult Internet users in 2007 to 50 per cent of adult internet users in the current survey
- Educational videos, rising in viewership from 22 per cent to 38 per cent of adult Internet users
- Movies or TV show videos, rising in viewership from 16 per cent to 32 per cent of adult Internet users
- Political videos, rising in viewership from 15 per cent to 30 per cent of adult Internet users"We are seeing a surge in online video watching that is driven by a combination of broadband access, the increasing use of social networking sites, and the popularity of video-sharing sites," explains Kristen Purcell, Associate Director for Research at the Pew Research Centre’s Internet & American Life Project and author of the report. "To tap into these trends, untold numbers of websites now showcase online video as part of their content."
Adding to that content are the 14 per cent of adult Internet users who have uploaded their own video to the Internet. That figure is almost double the 8 per cent of Internet users who were uploading video in 2007.
Home video is far and away the most popular content posted online, shared by 62 per cent of video uploaders. And uploaders are just as likely to share video on social networking sites like Facebook (52 per cent do this) as they are on more specialised video-sharing sites like YouTube (49 per cent do this).
While video-sharing is growing in popularity, adult internet users have mixed feelings about how broadly they want to share their own creations. While 31 per cent of uploaders say they "always" place restrictions on who can access their videos, 50 per cent say they "never" restrict access. The remaining 19 per cent fall somewhere in the middle.
Purcell explains, "People are increasingly enthusiastic about the opportunity to share their own video content online, but there’s a lot of variation in terms of how people control access to the videos they post, who they think is watching, and concern about how their video might be used."
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3 bidders for HK mobile TVHong Kong’s Telecommunications Authority has announced the three bidders for a ‘Broadcast-type Mobile TV Services’ licence, to operate between 678-686 MHz in the UHF band. They are: China Mobile Hong Kong Corporation Limited; City Telecom (H.K.) Limited; and Hong Kong Telecommunications (HKT) Limited.
Even though Hong Kong has adopted the Chinese digital terrestrial system for TV broadcasting it says that the auction for a mobile TV services is technologically neutral. As a result they will accept applications for any widely accepted technology that will work within the terms and conditions of the licence in the 8MHz slot offered.
"At present, 2.5G and 3G mobile operators are deploying streaming-type point-to-point technologies to deliver audio-visual content to consumers. The assignment of the 678-686 MHz band will enable the deployment of broadcast-type point-to-multipoint technologies to deliver audio-visual content to a much larger number of consumers," suggested an OFTA spokesman when bids were invited.
The licence will be valid for 15 years and the successful bidder will be required to use at least 75 per cent of the transmission capacity to deliver mobile TV content. Service coverage must reach at least 50 per cent of the Hong Kong population within 18 months from the grant of the licence.
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C4 barred from buying FiveChannel 4 is legally barred from buying Channel Five, which has been put up for sale by its owner RTL. Provisions in the Broadcasting Act 1990, and amended in subsequent acts, specifically prevent Channel 4 from taking control of Five's terrestrial licence.
Channel 4 has not indicated that it would like to acquire Five, but it is one of several possible buyers for the broadcaster, including ITV and BSkyB.
An obscure clause in the 1990 Act effectively disqualifies Channel 4 and the BBC, or any of their subsidiaries, from operating the terrestrial licences for either Five or ITV.
The BSkyB and Virgin Media deal is expected to trigger further consolidation in the UK commercial television sector.
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Canal+ is launching an HD sport service for its French viewers on June 8th, in time for the 2010 Football World Cup. After the tournament, Canal+ HD will screen such events as Wimbledon Tennis and Champions League football.
The service will initially be available to the pay-TV provider’s HD subscribers, and subsequently rolled out across its partners’ ADSL platforms.
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Miniweb partners with BrightcoveMiniweb, developer of connected TV experiences, has partnered with Brightcove, the online video platform, to enable Brightcove’s media customers to use Miniweb’s Connected TV Platform to extend their reach to the TV, with a minimum of integration effort.
Brightcove’s customers will be able to add their content to the Miniweb platform with minimum integration effort. The content will then be accessible on any Miniweb connected TV device, in multiple territories worldwide, giving content providers the widest possible reach.
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Telstra, Foxtel in Internet TV dealAustralian telco Telstra has come under fire after pay-TV provider Foxtel made an application to the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) to allow its Internet television service to be available only to Telstra's broadband customers.
The move has led to calls of anti-competitiveness against Telstra, with the competition watchdog to review whether Foxtel can supply Internet TV via its iQ STBs solely on the condition that users connect through Telstra's BigPond broadband service.
Negotiations between the two companies and the ACCC have occurred over the past month, as competition increases in the broadcasting industry.
Fibre network drives broadband adoption in Singapore
The rollout of a new fibre network in Singapore will enable higher fixed connection speeds, boosting adoption and service capabilities and helping to drive service revenue to $5.1 billion by 2014, according to a report from Pyramid Research.
Despite Singapore's high penetration rate in 2009, there is still much room for growth in mobile data, broadband and pay-TV markets, notes Tae-Hyung Kim, analyst at Pyramid Research and the co-author of this report. "Market players are betting strongly on these areas, with investments being made in 3G and in a national fibre network to enable higher data speeds and more advanced services provision," says Kim.
Data services revenue currently accounts for 31 per cent of total service revenue and will further expand its importance to 38 per cent by 2014, as demand for both mobile and fixed data services grows, notes Kim. "Service revenue from mobile data will grow at a CAGR of 10.7 per cent in local currency terms during the next five years, driven by increased mobile Internet and mobile broadband usage," says Kim. "Furthermore, about 14 per cent of Singaporeans now subscribe to mobile broadband connectivity services, a figure we expect to reach 40 percent by the end of 2014."
"In the fixed sector, growth in broadband subscribers – DSL, cable modem, and fibre – will be the principal driver behind increasing revenue, especially following the completion of the new national fibre network," Kim says. "A larger base of broadband subscribers will increase the adoption of both VoIP and IPTV, which we forecast to grow at a CAGR of 20.4 per cent and 41.1 per cent, respectively, during the next five years," he adds.
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Viasat to distribute Premier League channels in NorwayModern Times Group (MTG), the international entertainment broadcasting group, has announced that Viasat Broadcasting has signed an agreement with Norwegian broadcasting group TV 2 AS to distribute TV 2’s three Premier League channels – TV 2 Premier League HD, TV 2 Premier League HD 2 and TV 2 Premier League HD 3 – on its Norwegian DTH satellite pay-TV platform.
The agreement is the first of its kind in Norway following TV 2’s acquisition of the Barclays Premier League rights for Norway in March. TV 2’s three Premier League HD channels will be available for Viasat’s subscribers from of the start of the 2010/11 season in August. MTG already holds the exclusive rights to the English Barclays Premier League in Sweden and Bulgaria. Viasat’s subscribers will now have access to all Barclays Premier League matches until the end of the 2012/13 season.
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ProSiebenSat.1 inks Fox deal for maxdomeThe ProSiebenSat.1 Group has completed its US studio majors portfolio for its VOD service maxdome by concluding a new transactional video-on-demand deal with Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. Starting in June 2010 with blockbuster movie Avatar, the long-term licence agreement will grant the Group non-exclusive VOD rights to Fox’s numerous new releases, as well as the studio’s expansive catalogue portfolio.
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