Advanced Television

M&A

Sony and Disney buy FilmFlex

FilmFlex, the cable movies VOD service in UK, has been bought by Sony Pictures and Disney. The two studios already owned a third each of the business, and acquired the remaining third held by SeaChange subsidiary OnDemand Group. The stake was acquired for approximately $14.5 million

January 10, 2008

MTVN expands net syndication

MTV Networks has unveiled its targeted online syndication strategy, announcing partnerships with select online video sites to deliver a vast library of video content from MTVN’s popular brands. These sites include Dailymotion, GoFish, imeem, MeeVee and Veoh, and join AOL, Bebo, Comcast’s Fancast, Joost and MSN to comprise MTVN’s portfolio of online syndication partners. MTVN’s […]

January 10, 2008

News Corp scoops Premiere stake

News Corporation has acquired a 14.58 per cent stake in German pay-TV operator Premiere, in a E287 million cash deal, making it the company’s biggest single shareholder. The shares were acquired from Unitymedia, Germany’s second largest cable MSO, which took the holding in February 2007 as part of a deal which enabled Premiere to show […]

January 9, 2008

Ka-band for Eutelsat

Satellite operators Eutelsat has selected EADS Astrium to deliver its first satellite operating exclusively in Ka-band frequencies. The satellite will form the cornerstone of a major new satellite infrastructure programme designed to expand significantly capacity for consumer broadband services across Europe and the Mediterranean Basin, while providing new opportunities for local and regional television markets. […]

January 9, 2008

blinkx Partners with ITN Source

blinkx has formed a partnership with ITN Source, one of the world’s leading providers of professional video content, to give blinkx viewers direct access to ITN Source’s market-leading collection of moving image libraries and stock footage on the Web. Leveraging its unique AdHoc platform, blinkx will also place contextually relevant advertising against the footage, and […]

January 9, 2008

NBC takes stake In India's NDTV

NBC Universal has taken a major stake of around 30 per cent in NDTV's UK arm in a deal rumoured to be worth $100 million. The stake is in NDTV Networks Plc, the UK-registered company which owns five subsidiaries of NDTV: NDTV Imagine Limited, NDTV Lifestyle Limited, NDTV Convergence Limited and NDTV Labs Limited and […]

January 7, 2008

BSkyB to appeal?

Sky has until February 25th to decide whether to appeal the Competition Commission’s ruling that it must sell more than half its stake in ITV, a decision that was endorsed by the government this week. Sky said it will recognise a £343 million (E460m) impairment charge on the whole 17.9 per cent stake in its […]

December 31, 2007

BSkyB ordered to reduce ITV stake

From Colin Mann in London UK Business and Enterprise Secretary John Hutton has ordered BSkyB to reduce its 17.9 per cent holding in ITV to a level below 7.5 per cent, having concurred with the Competition Commission’s decision that the transaction resulted in a substantial lessening of competition within the UK market for all television. […]

December 30, 2007

Bertelsmann: no to remainder of RTL

German media group Bertelsmann said it decided not to buy the remaining 10 per cent of European broadcaster RTL Group it does not already own because of legal uncertainties. But Bertelsmann retains the right to increase its stake in RTL and to consider all options to reach its aim to delist RTL shares from the […]

December 24, 2007

Carlyle buys stake in Numericable

US investment fund Carlyle is set to acquire a 35 per cent stake in French cable operator Numericable, formerly known as Noos, and which has almost total dominance in the French market. Numericable’s current shareholders are Altice with a 30 per cent stake and Cinven with 70 per cent. In a joint statement, the three […]

December 24, 2007