A group comprising members of the House of Lords, academics, campaigners and trade unionists has written an open letter to the Financial Times urging Jeremy Hunt, the Culture Secretary, to refer News Corp’s bid to acquire the 61 per cent of BSkyB that it does not already own to the Competition Commission. The letter’s signatories […]

“I believe this is a world first,” said Giuseppe Flores d’Arcais, Co-Founder of Bestv and Director of Motive; “This latest innovation, 3-D on terrestrial television, using our Bestv technology, is a major step forward, both for broadcasters and viewers. The success of this service confirms that Bestv is at the forefront of high added value, […]

A report from the European Commission (EC) has suggested that rates of intellectual property infringement in the EU are “alarming”, and accepts that while an EU law on IP rights has had some effect, the legal measure was not designed to deal with online piracy. According to the EC, current laws are not strong enough […]

Mobile Content Venture (MCV), a joint-venture comprising 12 major US broadcast groups dedicated to developing a national mobile content service that delivers live television and on-demand video content, has revealed technology agreements in the mobile TV space with MobiTV and Nagra-Kudelski, as well as commitments from several manufacturers to create MCV-compatible devices. Value-added content protection […]

Broadcast and professional solutions supplier Grass Valley has confirmed that Francisco Partners, a leading technology-focused investment company, has completed the closing process with Technicolor and finalised the acquisition of the Grass Valley Broadcast and Professional business. As of January 1, 2011 Grass Valley began doing business as an independent company, under the trade name ‘Grass […]

As the 2010 working year drew to a close, it emerged that a report looking at whether News Corp’s proposed acquisition of the 61 per cent of BSkyB it does not already own would give the media group too much media power, was sent to the British government without being made public. The UK government […]

Consumers are using the connected features of their connected TVs and say that they are pleased with the results, according to The NPD Group. The research firm’s Connected TV Owner Study reveals that nearly half of US consumers (45 per cent) who say they have an Internet-connected TV, access Internet features. Of those who have […]

Sonic Solutions’ RoxioNow platform licensee, Sears, has launched its online movie download service, Alphaline Entertainment. The new service enables the US retail giant and its Kmart customers to download entertainment online, including new movies on the same day they are released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc. Sonic is working with Sears on a multi-phase rollout […]

UAE-based telco du is planning­­ to be among the first companies in the Middle East to provide its customers a 3D TV viewing experience. The company has confirmed that its video-on-demand service is now 3D-capable and has started airing its first 3D content. Du has struck a deal with the UK’s On Demand Group to […]

The proposed acquisition of BSkyB by News Corporation should be subject to an independent investigation, according to an ICM poll. The results revealed that 63 per cent of respondents support an independent probe into News Corp’s plans to acquire the 61 per cent stake it doesn’t already own. The ICM survey was commissioned by telco […]