You wouldn’t think that a TV weather forecast could badly fail UK regulator Ofcom’s painstaking standards. In a report that also chastises Playboy TV for a single complaint about an after-midnight broadcast on its Playboy TV Chat channel, it also criticises Al Jazeera for its sponsored weather report. “A complainant drew Ofcom’s attention to the […]
Dish Network, the US DTH giant, is in trouble with the US government over tele-marketing sales calls. The broadcaster has already faced sanctions when back in April the Federal Trade Commission filed its lawsuit alleging that Dish had violated the FTC’s rules and breached its ‘Do Not Call’ lists of consumers who had opted not […]
The pros and cons of 4K transmission have dominated this year’s IBC, with the debate causing deep divisions amongst some members of the broadcast community. Everyone recognises that 4K is now very definitely on the agenda, and most of the news is positive. Russia’s NTV+ plans of test transmissions of the Sochi Winter Olympics, for […]
Jersey-based O3b is the new satellite constellation designed to bring connectivity and broadband to the world’s ‘other 3 billion’ people currently not served, or under-served, by terrestrial suppliers. Google, SES and Liberty Global are amongst the system’s backers. However, there are problems. Two of the four satellites, launched in June, have suffered minor power anomalies. […]
In a few days’ time, delegates and exhibitors to IBC will be discussing the merits of 4K production for TV, with most industry observers now agreeing that 4K will be introduced commercially in 2014 and start making headway in 2015. But the decision to award to 2020 Summer Olympics to Tokyo fits in beautifully with […]
ViaSat is a satellite broadband supplier serving consumers over North America. It already has an action running against Space Systems/ Loral, a satellite builder, alleging that SS/L has misused patents granted to ViaSat for its High Throughput broadband satellite – which SS/L built. Now ViaSat is alleging additional patent infringements against SS/L. The new action […]
Here in the UK we have just closed the football transfer window. This is an artificial period of time in which all buying and selling of players has to take place. The idea is to remove the destabilisation of players coming and going throughout the season. Now we just have the destabilisation of the deadline […]
It seemingly never just rains on India cable MSOs but it pours! Not only are they struggling with an analogue to digital conversion task that’s massively complicated and much delayed and has some regions now officially blacked out, but the tax-man has hit some Kolkata cable players with tax demands and claims of financial irregularities. […]
Es’Hail-1, a joint-venture satellite with Eutelsat, has successfully launched from French Guiana towards its orbital position at 25.5 degree East. Eutelsat’s portion of the satellite will be operated as Eutelsat 25B. The massive 6.3 tonnes satellite – built by Space Systems/Loral – was launched on time at 8.30pm UTC and the craft’s solar panel deployed […]
The current and former BBC execs behind the £100 million+ cancelled Digital Media Initiative (DMI) have been condemned by new BBC Director General Tony Hall. Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, and following some bruising criticism from delegates to last week’s Edinburgh Television Festival, Lord Hall said the DMI project which he scrubbed in April “was […]