MUMBAI : Sri Adhikari Brothers Television Network Ltd has entered into an agreement with Sirasa TV, Sri Lanka’s leading Channel, owned by Maharaja Group.
The company will be providing concepts and technical expertise and produce the programmes jointly with Sirasa TV, according to Bombay Stock Exchange.
The terrestrial television network — Sirasa’s most popular television programme in its brief history, may probably be the reputed musical reality show named Sirasa Superstar.
MUMBAI: The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has released its annual report indicating that the revenues and profits for Canada’s specialty and pay TV services have climbed steadily over the last five years.
The reports signifies that on an average, from 2001 to 2005, revenues for these services increased by 10 per cent per year, and their earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT), by 19.4 per cent.
EBIT for specialty, pay and pay-per view services rose even more significantly over the last year, posting an increase of 31.5 per cent. They climbed from $418.2 million in 2004 to $549.9 million in 2005. Also, revenues reached almost $2.2 billion in 2005, an increase of 6.3 per cent over the previous year, due in part to increases in the number of subscribers and reporting units.
More specifically, in 2005, revenues from cable distribution services grew by 4.7 per cent over 2004 from $886.9 to $928.4 million. Those for direct-to-home satellite distribution services (DTH) increased by 6.2 per cent, reaching $460.7 million in 2005, compared with $433.9 million in 2004. National advertising revenues rose by 8.7%, increasing from $691.5 million to $751.3 million.
This year, the report includes a new component: it details programming and production spendings by type of program, as provided to the CRTC by most Canadian specialty services. It shows that, for Canadian programming, services spent $162.5 million on drama, $128.4 million on news, $206 million on other information programming, $116.9 million on sports, $38.3 million on musical and variety shows and $45 million on general interest programs.
This report was produced using the financial statements of Canadian specialty, pay and pay-per-view services. It is one of a series of reports that the CRTC publishes annually in order to inform those interested in the state of the Canadian broadcasting industry.
The CRTC is an independent, public authority which was established to sustain and promote Canadian culture and achieve key social and economic objectives by regulating and supervising Canadian broadcasting and telecommunications in the public interest.
MUMBAI: UK pubcaster The BBC and ITV have announced plans for shared coverage of the UEFA Euro 2008 Championships in Austria and Switzerland.
Live coverage of the group stage will begin on 7 June with the BBC broadcasting the opening match between Switzerland and the Czech Republic, and ITV broadcasting the later match between Portugal and Turkey.
During the latter stage of the group phase where matches are played simultaneously, games will be shown live on BBC One, BBCi, ITV1 and ITV channels. Both broadcasters will simulcast all of their games online.
Both broadcasters will show live coverage of two quarter finals and will show one semi-final each, with ITV taking the first pick.
The final will be shown live on BBC One on Sunday 29 June, with highlights on ITV1 later in the evening.
BBC director of sport Roger Mosey said, “We’re confident many millions of people will enjoy the tournament on BBC television, radio and online. There will be plenty of familiar faces on the pitch, and some great matches in prospect.”
ITV director of news and sport Mark Sharman said, “Euro 2008 is one of the highlights of a huge year of live football on ITV and, with some of the world’s best players taking part, we are looking forward to an exciting tournament.”
MUMBAI:The international creators and producers of television programmes FremantleMedia has implemented Open Text’s Artesia Digital Asset Management solution (Artesia DAM) for a new Web-based system that will dramatically speed up access to programmes for broadcast customers in countries around the world.
The international creator has deployed the Digital Asset Management to speed up access to television shows globally.
The announcement was made at the National Association of Broadcasters conference, NAB 2006, the electronic media show at Las Vegas.
The Open Text’s Artesia Digital Media Group has a major presence at the event as sponsor of the Digital Asset Management Pavilion and the DAM Theater.
According to an official release, with this Web-based application, all of FremantleMedia’s regional offices have the ability to preview more than 1,000 hours of programming as well as new shows in more than 20 countries where FremantleMedia has production offices.
The solution initially supports the worldwide drama department and will soon scale across other departments.
“This is already one of our most important sales tools, letting broadcasters around the world tap into the breadth of our programming quickly and easily. We look forward to expanding the system across all of our departments,” said FremantleMedia Production executive VP production Worldwide Entertainment Rob Clark.
An important aspect of FremantleMedia’s business is identifying and selling “formats” globally. For example, the company reviews programmes when they are aired and determines whether the programmes have potential for remarketing in other markets.
A recent example is The Apprentice, which FremantleMedia brought to the UK and other international markets. A traditional format like The Price is Right, the world’s number one game show, took about 40 years to get to the point where it is now broadcast in 40 different countries.
Today improved communications and digital broadcasting mean that a format like Pop Idol in the UK has reached 30 countries in three years. By using Artesia DAM, the company is compressing this time even further.
“From the outset we were looking for a DAM solution that could meet our needs for at least the next five years. That meant it had to scale in two dimensions by volume and by the nature of the content used,” said FremantleMedia information systems & technology head Nigel Dixon.
“Other critical factors that led to the selection of Artesia DAM were the ability to integrate into our existing systems and other products, and production deployment within a six-month timeframe. We worked closely with the Artesia team to deliver the solution on time and under budget, ” briefs Dixon.
The initial implementation of Artesia DAM will give the company’s sales staff and broadcasters around the world immediate access to shows shortly after they are broadcast. At present, this is done by the distribution of DVDs which results in significant delays.
The company is already seeing a significant time-to-market advantage using the new system. In addition, more than 1,000 hours of FremantleMedia’s extensive programming archive is available in Microsoft Windows Media format through the Web application.
“FremantleMedia is leading the trend globally toward central management of program content and distribution using digital asset management along with Web-based user interfaces,” said Open Text’s Artesia Digital Media Group president Scott Bowen.
“Across the board we’re seeing that Artesia DAM delivers significant business value, helping to lower operational costs and improve the bottom line.”
Artesia DAM is a leading solution for managing large volumes of digital content, such as video, audio and graphics files, in global organizations. The solution helps customers manage this content more efficiently, and helps them to reduce costs, safeguard copyrights and derive new revenue streams by re- expressing and reusing existing content. It complements every phase of the video asset lifecycle including production, review and approval, distribution, and content preservation.
The company has a cliente based which includes leading media and entertainment companies, such as Comcast, Discovery Communications, DreamWorks, HBO, and MLB.com, informs the release.
MUMBAI: The Government of the small island nation of the Maldives has called on the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) to help it gain access to the Fifa World Cup 2006.
The country’s only free-to-air television station, TV Maldives, is being asked to pay more than $600,000 to broadcast a limited number of games.
The minister of Information and Arts Mohamed Nasheed mentioned this at the opening ceremony of the ABU’s 80th Administrative Council meeting held in the Maldives this week.
Situated in the Indian Ocean south of Sri Lanka, Maldives has a population of less than 300,000. The minister said that the local cable operator had been given the broadcast rights to all 64 games, but they had only 25,000 subscribers.
Most of the population on the 20 atolls which made up the island nation would therefore not be able to see the World Cup unless it was broadcast on free-to-air television.
The country was one of those badly affected by the 2004 tsunami and is still recovering from the economic hardships brought on by the catastrophe. Some of the islands were completely destroyed by the tsunami.
The minister suggested that the holder of the broadcast rights was taking advantage of the Maldivians’ love of football. “Charging a small public broadcasting organisation such as ours whose only interest is to show its nationals their life-blood game is like taking away the means of our life and charging an exorbitant amount to return those means.
“We cannot be victimised by this and we do not want to accept such manipulative deals,” the minister added.
Nasheed said that the satellite operator which had acquired the broadcast rights from Fifa was asking TV Maldives to pay “a tsunami amount of money”.
“$600,000 is equivalent to nearly 7.7 million rufiyaa. Divide that by 300,000 people, it comes to 25.7 rufiyaa per person. This is an enormous amount.
“And if we understand correctly, there are richer and bigger countries that would pay only US$40,000 to watch all the 64 games,” the minister said.
Nasheed has appealed to all members of the ABU to support its cause to obtain the Fifa World Cup 2006 rights “at a bearable cost that is commensurate with our nation, its population and its capacities.”
ABU secretary-general David Astley said that the price being asked of TV Maldives was a 3,000 per cent increase on what the broadcaster paid for the same rights in 2002.
“It is outrageous that the rights holder should be asking for an increase of this magnitude at a time that this small island nation is recovering from the devastation of the tsunami. The amount being asked is totally out of proportion to what other countries of this size are being asked to pay.”
Astley said he had been informed that the Government was drafting ‘listed events’ legislation which would require events like the World Cup to be made available to free-to-air television at a reasonable cost.
“This could have been avoided if the pay-TV provider had been willing to negotiate a fair price with the free-to-air broadcaster. I believe it is a case of the pay-TV operator simply not being aware of the market conditions in the Maldives,” he said.
Astley said that the ABU’s head of sport John Barton would hold discussions with the pay-TV operator concerned and was hopeful that a deal could be reached which would not necessitate the Maldives Government rushing new legislation through parliament.
The administrative council also discussed a number of proposals relating to how the ABU could assist broadcasters in dealing with a possible avian flu pandemic, and plans to hold the third World Electronic Media Forum in Asia in December 2007.
Following the meeting, the councillors visited a village community on a nearby island and also the studio facilities of Voice of Maldives and TV Maldives.
MUMBAI: MTV and Paramount Pictures are teaming with United International Pictures (UIP) for a global marketing partnership for the Mission: Impossible (M:i:III) film franchise in advance of the film’s release.
Different content related to the film will roll out on MTV channels in Asia, US, Canada, Europe, Latin America and Russia.
MTV channels across the globe will premiere two half an hour specials. The first, Making the Movie will be somewhat like a DVD feature and will have interviews with Tom Cruise and other cast members including Oscar winner Phillip Seymour Hoffman.
The other special Diary of Tom Cruise With Sway, features the actor spending the day with the MTV presenter. Web content related to the partnership will include the M:i:III film trailer, an MTV at the Movies review of the film, banner ads and a link to the official M:i:III site.
MTV channels will also make region specific content. MTV Italy is producing a special live TRL in Piazza del Poppolo in Rome dedicated to the film, and MTV UK is producing an M:i:III special for its new show 1 Leicester Square.
In France, MTV will air news reports from the red carpet premiere in Paris. One of the stars from the film Maggie Q will make an appearance at the MTV Asia Awards 2006 in Thailand on 6 May. In Japan, MTV will produce an episode of its weekly film show MTV Screen, as well as air news reports on the film and editorial coverage in its free consumer magazine MTV Paper. And TRL in the US will host Tom Cruise and the cast of M:i:III on 2 May.
The Yahoo Tie up: Meanwhile, Paramount and Yahoo will provide moviegoers a wide array of special features, behind-the-scenes footage, and music and movie content. As a result of the films presence on the Yahoo! network around the world, audiences will have the chance to see exclusive video from the film’s world premiere in Rome and US premiere in New York; a Q&A with Tom Cruise and director J.J. Abrams; music from the film; and never-before-seen clips.
Paramount senior VP interactive marketing Amy Powell says, “Tom Cruise and J.J. Abrams are bringing a fresh, high-tech look to the ‘Mission’ franchise and we wanted to deliver that to Internet users in an innovative way. As M:i:III kicks off the summer, we’ve got an outstanding lineup of behind-the-scenes and live content that rivals the very biggest interactive movie campaigns. We’re thrilled to be getting creative with Yahoo!.”
Yahoo! Movies’ exclusive video coverage of the 3 May US premiere of M:i:III currently includes plans to offer a camera view from Tom’s perspective as he arrives at the premiere and steps down the red carpet. In addition, Yahoo! plans to offer users the chance to ask Tom questions in real time and see his answers live from the red carpet. Tom will also be announcing the winner of the People’s Premiere contest, in which one entrant will win a private screening in their hometown, attended by Cruise.
Interviews with the star and co-writer/director will provide movie fans with DVD-style commentary on exclusive clips from the movie, and also give users a sneak peak into the “Top Ten Things You Didn’t Know About Mission: Impossible III.” Users also had the chance to use Yahoo! Answers (http://answers.yahoo.com), Yahoo!’s online Q&A community where real people ask and answer questions on any topic, to stump Tom Cruise on trivia from his many hit movies, with J.J. posing the users’ questions.
All content will be available on Yahoo.com as well as Yahoo! Australia, Yahoo! France, Yahoo! Germany, Yahoo! Italy, Yahoo! Spain, Yahoo! Taiwan and Yahoo! UK.
MUMBAI:MTS Allstream signs on Sony Pictures Television International to further expand MTS Video On Demand library Stock Symbol: MBT
Canada based communication solutions provider MTS Allstream has inked a a multi-year distribution deal with Sony Pictures Television Canada.
In a bid to expanding the quality and selection of its MTS Video On Demand movie library, MTS Allstream air titles such as Rent, Zathura, The Legend of Zorro, The Exorcism of Emily Rose, and The Fog, as well as MGM’s Into the Blue.
“MTS has always been committed to delivering the best choice and the best value to its customers,” said MTS Allstream Inc president consumer markets Kelvin Shepherd.
“By signing this agreement with Sony Pictures Television Canada, we can now give MTS TV customers more choice from an expanded MTS Video On Demand library. With new MTS TV features being rolled out on an ongoing basis, MTS TV continues to be recognized as one of the best digital television services in North America.”
“We’re very pleased to partner with MTS TV and to bring this huge catalogue of television entertainment to more than 50,000 MTS TV subscribers in Winnipeg,” said Sony Pictures Television International (SPTI) senior VP, pay television Mike Wald.
“MTS TV is widely recognized as setting the standard for quality of service and delivering choice and flexibility to customers, and we’re proud to be part of the exciting growth of MTS Video On Demand.”
With MTS Video On Demand, customers can use their remote control to order from a great selection of movie titles and other programs with the ability to watch them as many times as they want, whenever they want within a 24-hour
period.
MUMBAI: A 24-hour Arabic Islamic channel Al Resalah (The Message) is launched in Saudi Arabia. The channel, which aims to counter the misconception about Islam, was unveiled by prince Al Waleed bin Talal, chairman of Kingdom Holding Company.
Al Resalah’s supreme advisory committee comprises some of the renowned Islamic scholars, Shoura Council members and heads of Islamic organisations. The funding for the non-profitable channel has come from the personal contribution of Prince Al Waleed.
Al Resalah, transmitted through Arabsat and Nilesat, will broadcast a variety of programmes including educational, drama, songs, and game shows purely in the Islamic context. The channel will air open-minded viewpoints and the true message of Islam and its teachings.
“Islam is being hijacked and defamed by a group of deviants, who operate in the name of religion in several parts of the world. Al Resalah targets the new knowledgeable young generation and open-minded Arab audience to counteract the negative image of Islam, being portrayed in other societies of the world,” Prince Al Waleed has been quoted in media reports as saying.
MUMBAI: The second edition of the China International Cartoon and Animation Festival was kicked off in China on Thursday. The highlight of the festival is the 80th birthday celebrations of China’s cartoon and animation industry.
The week-long festival has chosen “cartoon and animation make life wonderful” as its theme. The event is co-sponsored by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television and Zhejiang provincial government.
Eminent cartoon producers from France, Japan, the United States, Hong Kong and Croatia are participating in the festival.
The festival will take a look at the progress made by China international cartoon and animation industry, apart from debating on the prospect the industry. A competition on cartoon and animation works in China will also be held.
MUMBAI: Ford Motor Company has announced its plans to produce a TV competition on the theme of designing a dream car. As per the concept, the reality show participants will work on developing a concept car with Ford designers.
Ford officials have been quoted in media reports as saying that the TV show will be shopped around in the hope of landing on a major TV network.
The company also launched a promotional video of the show. Ad agency J. Walter Thompson has designed the video.
The automobile major is one of two principal sponsors of the Fox’s American Idol reality show.