Advanced Television

France: Catch-up continues to grow

Catch-up TV totalled 506.9 millions views in July in France, down 7 per cent over one month but up 1.5 per cent over the year to 3.9 billion videos viewed. Some 79.5 per cent of French broadband users watch catch-up, and  TV remains the most popular device to watch on. According to the CNC monthly […]

October 2, 2017From Pascale Paoli-Lebailly in Paris

Satellites: “Still boldly going”

A major report from Sami Kassab, the specialist equity analyst at investment bank Exane-BNP/Paribas, highlights the fact that satellites in general are now entering what Kassab describes as “new space”, and with the “pace of innovation in satellite technology accelerating to unprecedented levels. This will enable further capex efficiency gains, supporting Free Cashflow generation. On […]

October 2, 2017

NOS, Vodafone Portugal to share fixed and mobile infrastructure

NOS and Vodafone Portugal have signed a national infrastructure development and sharing agreement, which will allow them to launch commercial offers on the shared network, starting from 2018. According to NOS, the agreement foresees the reciprocal sharing of dark fibre in about 2.6 million homes, with both company sharing the required investment equally. This partnership […]

October 2, 2017From Branislav Pekic in Rome

Analyst: VR headsets to drive near-term growth

International Data Corporation (IDC) is forecasting the combined augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) headset market to reach 13.7 million units in 2017, growing to 81.2 million units by 2021 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 56.1 per cent. According to new forecast data from the IDC Worldwide Quarterly Augmented and Virtual […]

October 2, 2017

Airbus to build a “space tug”

There are already various space projects designed to rescue orbital satellites, not least Orbital ATK’s Mission Extension Vehicle which has booked a launch on an International Launch Services (ILS) Proton rocket next year. Other projects, from NASA’s DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) and Canada’s MDA also include ‘rescue tugs’. SES of Luxembourg has contracted […]

October 2, 2017By Chris Forrester

Sky Ocean Rescue FTA pop-up channel

To support ocean health, Sky is launching a dedicated Ocean Rescue ‘pop-up’ channel, giving viewers an exclusive opportunity to watch live events and panels from the EU Our Ocean Conference in Malta on October 5th and 6th. The Sky Ocean Rescue channel will air in the UK (channel 566), Germany (channel 384), and Italy (channel […]

October 2, 2017

TiVo renews agreement with Sony

Sony Corporation has renewed its multi-year intellectual property (IP) licence deal with TiVo. The licence to TiVo’s patent portfolios covers all of Sony’s worldwide products and services. “This licence agreement accentuates the value TiVo’s patent portfolios bring to the fast-growing and competitive entertainment industry,” said Arvin Patel, executive vice president and chief intellectual property officer, […]

October 2, 2017

Double success for Ariane

Arianespace achieved a double success on September 29th. The launch was the rocket company’s 81st success without interruption in a row. The two satellites launched into geostationary transfer orbits were Intelsat’s important 37e (‘Epic’) craft, and Japan’s BSAT-4a. These two were originally due for launch back on September 5th but a last-minute glitch meant a […]

October 2, 2017By Chris Forrester

Evolution Digital launches eVUE-NOW streaming service

Evolution Digital has launched a new app-based streaming video service, eVUE-NOW, for cable and telecommunications operators across the US, enabling the delivery of a cost-effective skinny package of local broadcast and cable channels to consumer-owned streaming devices. The service also provides access to free IP VoD content provided by the operator. End-users will be able […]

October 2, 2017

Quidditch League seeks broadcaster

The Quidditch Premier League, a contest inspired by the sport played by wizards in the Harry Potter books, is looking to sell broadcasting rights for its upcoming 2018 season. After a successful inaugural launch last year, the Quidditch Premier League has announced it would like to work with a broadcast partner to “bring the sport […]

October 2, 2017