The Arab League, an assembly of all the Arab nations, has formally asked Arabsat and Nilesat to cease transmissions of Libya’s Jamahiriya Satellite Channel and “any other channel” that might be sympathetic to the Libyan government.  The decision was taken at the end of a special meeting in Cairo on May 15th. However, the request […]

An independent review into how the intellectual property system can better drive growth and innovation is set to recommend that a revolution in copyright law could make the UK as important a centre for the distribution of digital content as it became in financial services after the Big Bang, according to the Financial Times. The […]

US senators have re-introduced a bill aimed at giving US authorities more tools to crack down on websites selling pirated movies, television shows and music and counterfeit goods. Senator Patrick Leahy, a Democrat from Vermont, said the legislation would protect the investment American companies make in developing brands and creating content and protect the jobs […]

Long-delayed efforts by Mexican fixed line incumbent Telefonos de Mexico (Telmex) to enter the pay-TV sector appear to have moved one step forward after the telco announced that a federal court had ruled that the Secretario de Comunicaciones y Transportes (SCT) must make a decision on its request to offer such services. Telmex has previously […]

Intellect, the trade association for the UK’s technology sector, has called for a reduced role for government on Digital Terrestrial Television issues once digital switchover is complete, marking the end of the ‘digital tick’ symbol. In its report – The future of digital terrestrial broadcasting –  Intellect warns that excessive regulation of DTT could stifle […]

Google is facing a wide-ranging investigation into its online advertising system by the US justice department, which could cost the Internet giant at least $500 million. The justice department has launched an investigation into whether Google’s lucrative advertising system unfairly treats some unnamed advertisers. Google is facing a similar probe by the European commission, as […]

Portuguese telecommunications regulator Anacom is to take legal action against Zon Multimedia for the way it has been selling pay-TV services in Alenquer, the region that switches off analogue on May 12th. Anacom director, Luis Eduardo Cardadeira, has judged Zon’s behaviour as “absolutely unacceptable”.  According to Anacom, Zon installed mobile kiosks in Alenquer with signs […]

BBC Monitoring is carrying a Press Trust of India report saying that Pakistan’s media regulatory watchdog has barred live broadcasts by major foreign television channels from the garrison city of Abbottabad, where Osama Bin-Ladin was killed by US forces, in an apparent bid to clamp down on coverage of the incident. The Pakistan Electronic Media […]

Russia should introduce an initiative to regulate copyright on the Internet, according to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. At a meeting with the country’s Internet community he stressed the need to optimise the work of the online services and mass-media, saying that protection of the intellectual property, copyright and prevention of cyber crimes were among the […]

India’s information and broadcasting Minister says that 31 new satellite channels are awaiting government approval to start broadcasting. 653 TV channels are already licensed, said the Minister, Mrs Ambica Soni. Perhaps even more of a revolution is the number of new radio stations that are awaiting licences. The Minister said that more than 800 new […]