Category: Technology

Time Warner secures deal with DirecTV for Lakers channel

MUMBAI: Leading US pay-TV platform DirecTV has entered into an agreement with the new Time Warner Cable SportsNet and Deportes to make the Lakers and other local teams available to Southern California customers.

With this deal, Time Warner now has carriage agreements in place with several distributors including Cox Communications, Charter Communications, Verizon Communications Inc and AT&T. It is believed that Time Warner Cable has paid about $2 billion over 20 years for local broadcasting rights to Lakers‘ games.

The two channels are the local TV homes for Los Angeles Lakers, LA Galaxy and Los Angeles Sparks games, as well as in-depth, dedicated, team-focused programming.

Time Warner Cable SportsNet will be available for DirecTV customers on channel 691 throughout Southern California (Los Angeles, San Diego, Bakersfield and parts of Fresno) as well as Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, Las Vegas and Hawaii. Time Warner Cable Deportes will be available on channel 458.

"DirecTV is pleased that Los Angeles Lakers, LA Galaxy and Los Angeles Sparks games and programming will now be seen by so many people whose loyalty remains the life‘s blood to each team," said DirecTV chief content officer Dan York. "We appreciate our customers’ patience and are happy to have arrived at an outcome that benefits everyone involved. We know that our customers will enjoy the great programming of these three franchises for many years to come.”

“Our partners at DirecTV value Southern California sports as much as we do and we’re thrilled to work with them to bring Lakers, Galaxy and Sparks games and programming to our viewers,” said Time Warner Cable Sports SVP Dan Finnerty. “Time Warner Cable SportsNet and Time Warner Cable Deportes will help bring DirecTV customers closer to these teams than they have ever been before.”

November 16, 2012
No relaxation on digitisation in Delhi, Mumbai & Kolkata

NEW DELHI: The Government has ruled out any possibility of allowing multi-system operators (MSOs) and local cable operators (LCOs) in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata more time to completely switch over to digital delivery of television channels, as has been offered in Chennai.

During the hearing of a case in the Madras High Court, the ministry had said it was willing to extend the digitisation deadline to 31 December for Chennai if all the MSOs or LCOs signed affidavits assuring that they would go digital within the extended deadline.
Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry sources said the extension in deadline offered for Chennai was not applicable to Mumbai, Delhi or Kolkata since the situation in the southern metro was very different.

The sources said while the ministry had signed agreements for digital addressable system with 11 MSOs in Chennai, the largest MSO – the state government-owned Arasu –had only analogue delivery system and needed more time to convert to DAS.

The sources also said I&B Minister Manish Tewari had categorically ruled out any extension of the date in any of the phases, of which the first phase covering the four metros became effective on 1 November. The second phase of digitisation covering 38 cities takes effect on 31 March and all the cable TV delivery systems across the rest of the country are scheduled to go digital by December 2014.

The ministry sources admitted that there would be some differences in the figures given by it on implementation of digitisation or installation of digital set top boxes (STBs) with the actual figures on the ground, but it does not pose any problem as the consumers of these four cities were keen to go digital.

November 15, 2012
Intelsat signs multi-year agreement with Time Warner Cable Sports

MUMBAI: Intelsat, a leading satellite services provider, has signed a multi-year agreement with Time Warner Cable Sports for a turnkey solution that combines the IntelsatOneSM terrestrial network with capacity on Galaxy 17 for the distribution of two new sports-themed channels.

Intelsat will add Time Warner Cable SportsNet and Time Warner Cable Deportes to its video neighbourhood at 91° West, the premier orbital location for sports programming delivery in the United States. The agreement will enable reliable and broad distribution of the new 24/7, high-definition regional channels to viewers in the continental United States and Hawaii.
Through partnerships with the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Galaxy, Los Angeles Sparks and the California Interscholastic Federation, the networks will feature more than 150 live events, extensive team coverage and unparalleled behind-the-scenes access. In addition, Time Warner Cable Deportes will be the first U.S. regional sports network to broadcast entirely in Spanish.

Intelsat will provide on-site encoding and multiplexing at Time Warner Cable’s facility in El Segundo, California, as well as fiber connectivity and uplinking via IntelsatOne. The agreement allows Time Warner Cable Sports to scale its network easily and access Intelsat’s other solutions, such as occasional use services, to provide coverage of live games from across the country.

“With nearly 100 percent penetration of the U.S. cable market, Intelsat’s video neighborhoods are the leading choice for sports programmers, such as Time Warner Cable Sports, seeking maximum viewership in the United States,” said Intelsat Regional Vice President of North America Sales Mark Rasmussen. “This agreement on Galaxy 17 reinforces our long tradition of providing effective delivery solutions to the top content providers in North America and across the globe.”

November 15, 2012
SES launches iPad app showcasing SES satellites

MUMBAI: Leading satellite operator SES has launched a new iPad application, showcasing the SES global fleet of 52 satellites and including over 150 footprints. The app – SES Satellites – is designed by SES to engage its customers and enable them to easily locate the satellites covering their markets.

SES Satellites is the first satellite fleet iPad application with a search tool that displays satellite coverage based on one‘s location and has an augmented reality view which allows customers to easily locate the position of SES satellites by holding and pointing an iPad toward the sky.

Augmented reality view is a camera view of one‘s surroundings, enhanced with digital information. The iPad application also includes facts and figures of the SES satellites and high quality footprints.

“We are pleased to showcase our fleet and coverage using the capabilities of the iPad, with 3D earth navigation and an augmented reality view,” said SES SVP of Marketing and Corporate Communications Niclas Friese Greene.

“This tool illustrates the concept of satellites in space and coverage over the earth, as well as provides information that will enable our customers to learn more about our global fleet. With this new application, we are literally putting our satellite fleet in the hands of our customers.”

November 15, 2012
Online ad revenue projected to reach $143 bn by 2017

MUMBAI: Global online advertising revenues will reach $143 billion in 2017, double the $66 billion recorded in 2010 and considerably up from the $92 billion predicted for 2012, according to a new report from Digital TV Research.

According to Online Advertising Forecasts report, the US will remain the dominant territory for online advertising expenditure. Its share of online advertising revenues
stay at 40 per cent of the global total, although its online ad spend will grow from $26 billion in 2010 to $58.13 billion in 2017.

The report covering 40 countries takes into account the advertising expenditure of fixed broadband. Online advertising is defined in net terms (rate card prices less discounts, agency commissions and production costs).

The UK is projected to retain second place, recording $11.7 billion in 2017 while China is expected to overtake Japan to take third place in 2014. China’s online
advertising revenues will grow from $2.6 billion in 2010 to $10.8 billion in 2017.

This impressive global online advertising growth will be helped as more and more households covert to fixed broadband, the study noted.

By 2017, 745 million homes in 40 countries will subscribe to fixed broadband, up from 473 million in 2010. The 2017 total represents 49.2 per cent of total households, up from 33.5 per cent at end-2010. So online advertising per fixed broadband household will increase from $165 in 2012 to $197 by 2017.

November 15, 2012
RFI deploys RadioTV, Orad’s solution for automated TV production

MUMBAI: Radio France International (RFI), an entity of the AEF Group, leverages Orad‘s solution for automated TV production to record several talk shows in its programme line-up.

The goal is to increase the broadcasting of RFI‘s programmes beyond the availability of on-demand audio contents, while rationalising production costs.

RFI has chosen RadioTV, Orad‘s solution for the automatic production of radio shows, to publish two of its flagship shows on its website and social media channels. A French public radio station RFI‘s long term plans are to rely on Orad‘s solution to offer a sizeable portion of its programmes on different media such as smartphones, tablets, etc.

More often than ever, radio stations give their online audience the opportunity to watch talk shows live, especially political shows.
"Video can give radio the chance to reach a younger, more web-savvy audience, thus broadening its listener base, more so than podcasts. However, we have no intention of getting into video without full mastery of our production costs. In addition, we immediately dismissed single-camera systems, which offer little added value" explains Thierry Fanchon, who is in charge of information systems and technical management at the AEF (Audiovisuel Extérieur de la France)."

Orad‘s RadioTV is a fully automated system based on a voice detection algorithm; as soon as one of the participants speaks into a microphone, the system automatically starts recording video. Transitions from one speaker to the next are done in real time and with no human intervention. For longer exchanges, RadioTV uses a library of pre-defined scenarios allowing, for instance, splitting the screen or offering any other type of visualisation, depending on parameters that are included in the system.

Once the preparation phase was over, the first show to be broadcasted both on radio waves and in video streaming was "L‘invité du Matin" ("The Morning Guest"), hosted by Frédéric Rivi?re, in December 2011. "We chose a two-camera system, since this show revolves around one guest who is a prominent figure in political, economic and social activity, and whose reactions to French or international news are influential. This results in exchanges that are rather guided."

Starting in March 2012, another of RFI‘s flagship shows, ‘Mardi Politique‘ (‘Political Tuesday‘), was fitted with the RadioTV system in a more complex format: "This new show involves four journalists and one guest from the political sphere. In this situation, the system manages four cameras that film the guest (one camera) and the four reporters (two of them are filmed by a single camera), as well as a fifth camera for a wide-angle shot."

Started in April, the show is also streamed live on DailyMotion.

RadioTV also offers many overlay features, allowing users to set up a true window displaying information or to be used as a way to monetize content. "We aren‘t quite there yet, but we intend on moving towards online television as well as tablets or mobile devices."

RFI will soon move to a new location in Issy-les-Moulineaux (southwest of Paris), with larger studios. "We will have 14 studios, in which we should be installing RadioTV systems on a more ambitious scale. The four-camera system was a first step, but we are now looking at every possibility."

November 12, 2012
Euroconsult anticipates 1075 satellites to be built by 2021

MUMBAI: Euroconsult‘s newly released research report, Satellites to be Built & Launched by 2021: World Market Survey, anticipates that 1075 satellites will be built for launch worldwide over the next 10 years by 2021.

The report expects revenues from the manufacture and launch of these 1000 plus satellites will be worth $198 billion, up 36 per cent from that generated by the 800 satellites launched in the past ten years.

In 2011, the industry entered a growth phase with 100 satellites launched that year, an activity unknown since the late 1990s when the first generation of the two commercial constellations for global mobile personal communications were deployed into low Earth (LEO) orbit.

In the next six years, an average of 120 satellites should be orbited each year, then the launch tempo will decelerate at the end of the period as government and commercial satellite constellations complete their deployment.

Governments continue to dominate the space industry

Governments worldwide are responsible for almost two-thirds of the 1000 plus satellites to be launched and for the same proportion of the $198 billion expected in revenues. With 260 satellites to be launched in the decade ahead, Earth observation is the largest satellite application for governments that operate electro-optical and radar satellite systems through national agencies, multilateral cooperation and public/private partnerships.

Satellite demand of civilian government agencies will be much stronger than that of military agencies since military space remains concentrated in a limited number of countries for dedicated applications such as imagery intelligence. Despite the continuous emergence of new space countries globally, the six established space powers continue to dominate 85 per cent of future government satellite demand.

According to Rachel Villain, Director for Space at Euroconsult and Editor of the research report, "Governments in established space countries continue to drive innovation for satellite systems with benefice for their local industries even if systems‘ replacements are more carefully assessed in the countries where cost limits become stricter."

Emerging space countries should represent a market of 110 satellites of different size and capabilities to be developed by local suppliers with the support of foreign companies.

Commercial satellite demand driven by the replacement of existing capacities

In the commercial space sector, almost 75 per cent of recent satellite orders will be launched to replace aged satellites operational in geostationary (GEO) orbit. The sector is made of 50 companies that procure and operate GEO satellite systems to retail satellite bandwidth for communications and broadcasting services.

Despite consolidation through mergers and acquisitions, the sector has enlarged significantly in recent years with numerous government-backed operators acquiring their first satellite to become independent from third parties for satellite bandwidth. 15 satellites are now under development for newcomers such as Turkmenistan, Laos, and Belarus.

Commercial satellites outside the GEO orbit will boost with 120 units to be launched into low and medium Earth orbits in the decade ahead. According to Euroconsult, the market value to manufacture and launch these 120 satellites will be less than 10 per cent of that derived from commercial GEO satellites.

November 12, 2012
Raj TV inks revenue share deal with Google

MUMBAI: Chennai-based Raj Television Network has entered into content hosting services agreement with Google Ireland for content sharing in Google Internet platforms with various mobile, internet based and hand held devices.

The company, which runs a clutch of channels across five languages, expects substantial revenue contribution from Google agreement from advertisement and viewership mode of revenue share.

The agreement will ensure 100 per cent presence for Raj TV Network on Google‘s internet platforms. The company’s various channels content with different genre are available at youtube.corn/rajtv.

The company has 50,000 hours of video contents and company proposes to start a separate exclusive Internet portal for content sharing in addition to the tie up with various platform providers including Google.

The agreement with Google and proposed own portal for E-mode of content sharing will enable the viewers around the globe, to watch various genre of TV broadcasted contents on real time and archived mode with help of internet and will augment additional revenue source to the company’s business.

Raj Television Network is engaged in broadcasting five channels namely Raj TV, Raj Digital Plus, Raj News 24×7, Raj Muzix and Vissa. It is one of the largest Tamil television and broadcasting companies in the southern region.

November 10, 2012
Contradictions in Cable Bill to ban illegal channels: Parliamentary Committee

NEW DELHI: A Parliamentary Committee has strongly recommended that various inconsistencies and infirmities in the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) (Second Amendment) aimed at checking telecast of illegal channels should be given due attention before the legislation is presented to Parliament.

The Committee also said issues relating to enforcement of the provisions made in the Cable Act should be given due attention in consultation with the Law and Justice Ministry and other concerned Departments/Agencies before the amending Bill is taken up for consideration by the Parliament.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology which covers Information and Broadcasting in its ambit found it very interesting that while the Bill was to prohibit transmission or retransmission of illegal and unregistered channels, the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill referred to only ‘prohibition of re-transmission of unregistered channels’.

The Ministry was not satisfied with the explanation of the then I&B Secretary that the legislation covers both transmission and re-transmission ‘and there may be some editorial corrections which are possible to make’. The representative of the Law and Justice (Legislative Department) during the course of deliberations acknowledged that little addition in the marginal heading may save a lot of litigation.

The report also said while the Statement of Objects and Reasons talks about Uplinking and Downlinking, the proposed section 5A(a) mentions only downlinking of television channels. The representative of Law and Justice (Legislative Department) during the course of oral evidence clarified that there would be same interpretation.

The extracts from the Statement of Objects and Reasons in this regard says ‘several complaints have been received by the Central Government against cable operators showing illegal channels which have neither been permitted to uplink from India nor permitted or registered to downlink into India, as per the Uplinking and Downlinking Guidelines’.

The Committee said ‘although it may be a matter of technical interpretation, referring to both uplinking and downlinking in the Statements of Objects and Reasons whereby the Bill states only about downlinking has created confusion.’

The Committee said it failed to understand how the amending legislation would address the issue and act as a deterrent when it had not been possible to take action against the cable operator although sufficient provisions exist in the Cable Act for not adhering to the provisions made under the Cable Act which include adherence to Programme Code.

Referring to 25 illegal channels that the Ministry had referred to, the Committee said no action could be taken pursuant to Intelligence Bureau feedback about these channels which were found to be not conducive to the security environment of the country and posed a potential security hazard, although sufficient provisions are there under the extant Cable Act and Rules thereunder to take action in this regard.

The Ministry could not categorically respond as to how and by whom the content being ‘anti-national’ is decided. The Ministry also could not respond categorically when asked about the parameters on which Intelligence Bureau decided that the contents shown by channels are not conducive to the security environment of the country and pose a potential security hazard. The Ministry further opined that the purpose of the amending legislation was to actually create a deterrent kind of act.

The Committee said it was unable to understand how the proposed provisions would act as a deterrent without being able to enforce the provisions. In this connection, the Committee endorsed the views expressed by the then Chairman of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India that the Authorized Officers have to do, what they are expected to do under the law and unless that is done the cable operator would never learn what he is not supposed to do.

November 10, 2012
CommunicAsia to address satellite connectivity across biz environments

MUMBAI: CommunicAsia and EnterpriseIT, the ICT industry event, will bring together hundreds of companies in 2013 as demand for greater connectivity increases, new technologies continue to be deployed and more players come into play.

Both shows – held from 18 to 21 June 2013, will be housed at the Marina Bay Sands and have already witnessed strong exhibition space bookings by returning and new exhibitors, seven months ahead of the event.

Satellite connectivity still reigns in today’s telecoms landscape. CommunicAsia and EnterpriseIT will debate and stage live demonstrations across the latest technology breakthroughs and applications, ranging from cloud, mobile, broadband, security, satellite, M2M and vertical solutions.

2013 promises to parallel this year’s success with a host of satellite communications and technologies exhibitors already signed up, including Asia Broadcast Satellite, Asia Satellite, Advantech Wireless, APT Satellite, China Satellite Communications, Cobham, Comtech Telecommunications, iDirect, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Newtec, Measat Satellite Systems, Novelsat, Russian Satellite Communications Company, SES, Singapore Technologies Electronics, SkyPerfect JSAT, Thaicom Public Company and Work Microwave.

These companies will form part of SatComm2013, which is incorporated with CommunicAsia2013 and EnterpriseIT2013. SatComm2013 is the choice business platform in Asia for the satellite communications industry, and exhibitors are leveraging this to provide turnkey solutions that address critical issues surrounding Asia’s telecoms ecosystem, whilst heightening their presence in the region’s robust marketplace.

Many satellite exhibitors are also returning in 2013 to increase their presence at the show and have invested in expanding their exhibition booth space. Intelsat, which has exhibited at the event for the past ten years, will again be supporting 2013’s event.

Intelsat RVP, Asia Pacific sales Terry Bleakley said, “CommunicAsia and EnterpriseIT are truly international shows in Asia where business professionals across a range of industries come together in one place. For the past decade, the events have been a focal point of our business and they will continue to play a key role in our operations to support our outreach both in the region and beyond.”

Satellite communications specialist, Newtec has been involved with CommunicAsia for more than a decade, playing a major role in the company’s expansion. Newtec CEO Serge Van Herck said, “CommunicAsia represents a good investment for us as it explores the future of satellite communications while providing fantastic networking opportunities and enabling us to showcase our latest innovations to further support our customers.”

Singapore Exhibition Services (SES) project director of communications events from show organiser Victor Wong said, “The evolving focus for 2013’s events will echo current changes taking place and give show participants invaluable insight into current and new industry trends, while providing them the opportunity to connect with peers and potential customers”.

“The task of ensuring CommunicAsia and EnterpriseIT constant evolve to stay relevant and match the pace of the fast changing business and technology landscapes remains top priority,” Mr. Wong enthuses.

The conference will address key business concerns surrounding satellite networks. The CommunicAsia2013 Summit will ride the next wave with the ICT community, providing a dedicated platform for industry leaders and professionals to share and discuss key issues, trends and challenges in the industry.

The SatComm Evolution track, a part of CommunicAsia2013 Summit, will bring together Asian and global satellite operators as well as suppliers of satellite technology to discuss vital business issues that are driving the industry today, and transforming the business for tomorrow. This track already boasts several confirmed speaking companies, such as Gilat Satellite Networks CEO Erez Antebi; Hughes VP of sales Ramesh Ramaswarmy and Speedcast CEO Pierre-Jean Beylier.

Key areas that will be addressed include the future of satellite businesses, determining which business models will be most suitable to monetise new technologies, and solutions to meet the demands of the vertical markets.

In addition to SatComm, the Conference will also feature focused forums and workshops that will bring to light the most thought provoking issues as well as offer experts‘ insights on future business landscapes in relation to broadband evolution, M2M, SatComm Telecom CEM, Cloud Computing, enterprise mobility, and mobile marketing services and commerce.

Three largest industry events of its kind in Asia at one venue BroadcastAsia2013, Asia’s largest integrated event for the pro-audio, film and TV industries, will showcase a global array of the newest, ground-breaking technologies for these industry verticals. In addition, the exhibition will also cast a spotlight on the myriad of applications, equipment and solutions developed for Multi Streaming, Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV (HbbTV), Playout Services, Over The Top (OTT), Cloud Broadcasting and Digital Radio.

A host of industry luminaries already signed up to the BroadcastAsia2013 International Conference will address key issues surrounding OTT, the adoption of DVB-T2 and T2 lite, bandwidth restrictions within Asia, transmission quality, and how technology is converging in gaming and learning through Smart TV adoption.

For the first time ever, BroadcastAsia will join CommunicAsia and EnterpriseIT at the Marina Bay Sands in 2013. Visitors attending BroadcastAsia, such as international broadcasters, will be further exposed to the world’s top satellite players such as MEASAT, which provide end-to-end solutions from content acquisition, uplink to content distribution, as well as their latest communication technologies at one single event.

November 10, 2012