Following the October revelation that it would be launching a subscription streaming service in the UK and Ireland in early 2012, Netflix has inked a new multi-year licensing agreement with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios that will make Netflix the exclusive subscription streaming service in for most first-run feature films from MGM. MGM titles will be available for […]
According to independent retail analyst Verdict Research, piracy will continue to impact on the home entertainment market and slow its recovery. Consumer reluctance to spend with entertainment retailers is also a contributory factor, suggests the firm’s Global Home Entertainment market report. A combination of piracy, free access to streaming services such as Spotify, Grooveshark, YouTube […]
Time Warner has bid about $1.4 billion for Netherlands-based entertainment producer Endemol. The debt-laden producer of ‘Big Brother’ has been trying to restructure its debts for more than a year and Time Warner is reportedly ready to put up another $100 million in fresh working capital. A few days ago, Endemol gained permission from its […]
Arabsat is now carrying 30 high-definition channels. The number has been boosted by the signing of a six-channel HD deal with ‘Saudi Sport’. The six HD channels are complemented by six in standard definition from Saudi Sport. The channels are dedicated to carrying the soccer matches and sport activities of Zain Saudi league, claimed to […]
Discovery Communications has made its first acquisition of an independent production company by snapping up Betty – the UK firm behind shows such as Dirty Sexy Things, The Joy of Teen Sex and Freaky Eaters. The US factual broadcaster is reported to have paid about £10 million (€11.7m) for Betty as it looks to expand […]
Experimental transmissions have started of Jordan’s Al-Yarmuk channel, according to BBC Monitoring. In a press statement, Wa’il al-Saqqa, head of the Al-Yarmuk channel board of directors, said that the channel aims to present a sincere objective national media message that can be added to the diverse Jordanian media, so that it can contribute effectively in […]
GlobeCast has signed a contract with broadcaster Trace to broadcast its new HD channel, Trace Sports, on the NSS-806 satellite. Thanks to this new coverage, Trace Sports HD will enter the region with strong growth in the pay-TV sector and have access to a potential audience of 18 million DTH and cable homes in North, […]
GlobeCast has signed a contract with broadcaster Trace to broadcast its new high-definition channel, Trace Sports HD, on the NSS-806 satellite. Thanks to this new coverage, Trace Sports HD will enter the region with strong growth in the pay-TV sector and have access to a potential audience of 18 million DTH and cable homes in […]
A coalition of companies and trade bodies within the creative industries led by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) has formally requested that BT block The Pirate Bay, one of the largest filesharing websites in the world, after winning a landmark high-court ruling designed to enforce UK copyright law. The BPI has written to BT, asking […]
Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) President and CEO Gary Shapiro has reacted strongly to a Motion Picture Association of America blog on intellectual property legislation under consideration in Congress which suggests that Shapiro is alarmist about the threat to technology companies of the proposed measures. “On behalf of 2,000 of the nation’s leading technology companies, CEA […]