From Colin Mann in Las Vegas As content protection and monetisation specialist Irdeto marks its 40th year in business, it has unveiled a series of deals at NAB covering web, on demand and cable services. Setanta Sports has adopted Irdeto's Content Management Solution for its new content on demand service Setanta-i. Irdeto is working with […]

French legislators have rejected legislation to permit cutting off the Internet connections of people who illegally download music and films. The government nevertheless plans to resurrect the bill for another vote later this month. Backers of the bill – record labels, film companies and law-and-order parliamentarians – couldn’t rally the needed support during in a […]

The Motion Picture Dist. Association of India (MPDA), which is the local arm of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), is stepping up on anti-piracy initiatives across India. MPDA managing director Rajiv Dalal said that he launch of the Indian arm of MPAA reflected “the coming together of Hollywood and Bollywood in this drive […]

Virgin Media has confirmed that, following the departure of former CEO Malcolm Wall, Jonathan Webb has been appointed to the new position of Executive Director, Virgin Media Television. Webb will be responsible for leading the continued development of the company's portfolio of multiplatform entertainment brands, including Living, Virgin 1, Bravo and Challenge. Webb was appointed […]

Walt Disney Co. CEO Robert Iger has told NCTA that cable must find an online model that works for both programmers and distributors, appearing to dismiss a subscription model proposal, TV Everywhere, made earlier this year by Time Warner. "Cable television is vitally important to our company. It provides us with a crucial connection with […]

Ignoring Bob Iger's dismissal of the online subscription model, Time Warner chairman and CEO Jeff Bewkes unveiled HBO Go, a broadband complement to the premium network only for subscribers to the linear service. “We’re all being too slow,” Bewkes said. “We should put up all our networks on the Internet, out on broadband right now. […]

Internet traffic in Sweden fell by 33% as the country’s new anti-piracy law came into effect. Sweden’s new policy – the Local IPRED law – allows copyright holders to force internet service providers (ISP) to reveal details of users sharing files. The new law, which is based on the European Union’s Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement […]

Playboy TV’s UK operation has been fined £22,500 (E24,700) by Ofcom for broadcasting what it termed explicit adult content free-to-air. The fine applies to its Playboy One service, which broadcast as an unencrypted, free-to-air channel until September. Seven programmes broadcast between September 2007 and December 2007 were investigated by Ofcom and it concluded that “the […]

Microsoft and AT&T have revealed details of a collaborative effort to use Microsoft PlayReady content access and protection technology to enable shared content and converged entertainment experiences across AT&T’s TV, broadband and wireless services. As part of this collaboration, Microsoft intends to add support for PlayReady into its Microsoft Mediaroom IPTV software platform, enabling access […]

Virgin Media is selling its home-shopping broadcaster Sit-up TV to Munich-based investor Aurelius – owner of RTL Shop – for an undisclosed sum. Sit-up TV operates three digital home-shopping channels – bid tv, price-drop tv and speed auction tv. Virgin said the company’s live programmes are available to viewers in more than 20m homes in […]