Category: Technology

MUMBAI: Sundance Channel will be seen for the first time in Thailand on TrueVisions, the country’s largest pay-TV operator and the second largest DTH platform in Southeast Asia.

AMC/Sundance Channel Global has announced new distribution deals for Sundance Channel in Asia and expanded on demand offerings in Europe.

Sundance On-Demand will also debut in China for the first time on BesTV, Shanghai Media Group’s booming IPTV platform business. In Europe, Sundance Channel will expand its on-demand offerings with a VOD launch on Belgacom, Belgium’s leading telecommunications company. It has also partnered with French cable operator Numericable to offer VoD rights for ‘Mad Men‘ to authenticated subscribers as a complement to Sundance Channel’s pre-existing linear service.

This news follows the distribution growth for Sundance Channel across Europe and Asia over the past few months. This includes new network launches in Taiwan, Korea, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Poland, Portugal and Hungary, along with the recent TV Everywhere launch in Spain on iPhone and iPad devices.

Sundance Channel was established by Robert Redford and offers audiences a diverse and engaging selection of independent films, documentaries and original programmes.

AMC/Sundance Channel Global president Bruce Tuchman commented, “AMC/Sundance Channel Global continues to see great momentum in building a truly global network of channels catering to audiences and markets all over the world. Our first-ever launches in Thailand and China will extend the Sundance brand across these high growth Asian markets. We’ll continue to pursue expansion across linear and on-demand platforms, including TV Everywhere initiatives, to offer audiences wider access to our iconic content on an authenticated basis to reinforce the high value of the pay-TV ecosystem.”

Sundance VOD will launch for the first time in China on BesTV, Shanghai Media Group’s IPTV platform. The BesTV offering will present a robust and eclectic mix of films representing the best in independent cinema. Shanghai Media Group will also make select Sundance VOD offerings available on its TV Everywhere service via mobile and tablet devices to authenticated subscribers following the VOD launch.

Expanding and enriching the 24/7 linear channel on Belgacom in Belgium, Sundance Channel will launch an on demand offering which includes both films and series. In France, the channel has partnered with Numericable to offer exclusive VOD rights for Mad Men to authenticated subscribers in addition to Sundance Channel’s pre-existing linear service.

Sundance Channel also continues to provide on demand offerings on Numericable which complement programming themes and stunts on the linear feed.

Sundance Channel is available to pay-TV operators worldwide as a standard and high definition linear television channel, VOD service and via online authenticated streaming. Additionally, select VOD program offerings are available during theatrical windows so audiences can watch films in the comfort of their own home while movies are still in theatres.

In addition to Sundance Channel, AMC/Sundance Channel Global offers We tv in Asia, a women’s lifestyle network that features wedding and celebrity driven reality programming such as Braxton Family Values, Joan and Melissa: Joan Knows Best, My Fair Wedding With David Tutera, Shannen Says and Tori and Dean.

NEW DELHI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai has issued directions to telecom service providers for delivering broadband services in a transparent manner by providing adequate information to the broadband consumers about various plans and Fair Usage Policy (FUP).

The step was taken to ensure transparency in delivery of broadband services and to protect interests of consumers in the telecom sector.

Through this Direction, telecom service providers have been directed to provide adequate information on Fair Usage Policy (FUP); to ensure that speed of broadband connection is not reduced below the minimum speed specified and to provide alert to consumers when their data usage reaches 80 per cent and 100 per cent of the data usage limit bundled with the plan.

MUMBAI: Indian film and entertainment services company, Reliance MediaWorks, has joined Digital Domain Media Group‘s (DDMG) 3D technology licensing programme to leverage processes patented by DDMG to provide stereo 3D conversion services to feature films.

Reliance MediaWorks, also Digital Domain‘s preferred visual effects production partner in London and Mumbai, joins Prime Focus World and Samsung Electronics, who have also licensed DDMG‘s 3D technology for 2D-3D conversion services and consumer electronics respectively.

Through its wholly owned subsidiary, the Digital Domain Stereo Group, DDMG owns the six U.S. patents that represent the original commercially feasible computerised process for converting 2-dimensional filmed imagery into 3-dimensional stereoscopic imagery.

“We have made clear our view that, while down-line technologies are certainly important, the current 3D feature film businesses is principally dependent on image capture and image creation, either the proprietary technology of native 3D camera pioneers, such as the Cameron Pace Group, or the 3D stereoscopic conversion pioneers of In-Three/Digital Domain,” commented Digital Domain Media Group chairman and CEO John Textor.

“We continue to be pleased with our new licensing efforts as important global companies, such as Samsung and Reliance, recognize the value of our invention. We look forward to an increasing financial participation in the growing 3D industry that we helped to create.”

MUMBAI: Roku, the streaming platform for delivering video, music and casual games to the TV, has received $45 million in a new strategic investment from News Corporation, British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB).

Prior Roku venture investors, Menlo Ventures and Globespan Capital Partners, and an unnamed strategic investor also joined the round.

The new relationships include both financial backing and business agreements that demonstrate the industry’s confidence in Roku as the leading distribution platform to bring streaming entertainment to mainstream consumers.

Roku will use the new capital to build further brand awareness through advertising, develop new international markets, and increase engineering and production to support sales growth of both hardware and digital media services on the platform including advertising, games, transactional and pay-per-view video as well as content packages.

In addition to its line of popular streaming players, the company will launch the Roku Streaming Stick this fall – a wireless, dongle-sized streaming device that seamlessly integrates with newer TVs and consumer electronics devices. The streaming stick is Roku’s first step in expanding its platform from streaming players to Smart TVs and other devices connected to the TV.

“We have watched Roku maintain market leadership since the launch of its streaming platform four years ago and we look forward to deepening our relationship, having already worked closely together on the launch of several products,” said News Corporation Chief Digital Officer Jon Miller. “Roku‘s significant technology advantage, coupled with a strong market position, places them in a unique position to be an integral part of the television landscape for years to come.”

“We’re delighted to have entered into this strategic relationship with Roku. As an innovative content company we’re committed to embracing a wide range of complementary platforms to create more choice and flexibility for customers,” said BSkyB Chief Financial Officer Andrew Griffith. “Coupled with the on-going strength of satellite distribution, online and mobile help us unlock even more value for customers. Working with Roku we look forward to extending our multi-platform leadership.”

“Our philosophy is to give consumers the best streaming TV experience, with the most content and at the best value in the market; and it has served us well as millions of consumers have brought Roku into their homes,” said Roku founder and CEO Anthony Wood. “With the News Corporation and Sky strategic relationships, we are poised to further grow our leadership position and to become the TV distribution platform of the future.”

MUMBAI: US internet subscription service for movies and TV shows, Netflix, has reported a fiscal second quarter net earnings of $6.1 million compared $68.2 million a year ago.

Revenue grew by 12 per cent to $889 million. Profit was $6 million compared to a loss of $5 million in the first quarter.

Netflix added 600,000 international subscribers in the second quarter, boosting its international subscription base to 3.6 million.

Gross margin narrowed to 27.6 per cent from 37.8 per cent. The company spent more on marketing as costs rose to $118.2 million from $94.9 million a year earlier. The company has warned that the Olympics will have a negative impact on business. It expects to add between 1 to 1.8 million new subscribers in this period.

The company letter to investors states, “For Q3 quarter-to-date, our domestic net additions are very nearly the same as Q3 2010 over the comparable partial period. In that quarter two years ago, we finished with 1.8 million domestic net additions. However, in the middle of that quarter, we launched Netflix on the iPhone to great reception, and we don’t have an equivalent launch this quarter. Moreover, this quarter the Olympics are likely to have a negative impact on Netflix viewing and sign-ups. So, our Q3 guidance is 1 million to 1.8 million domestic net adds. If we finish Q3 in the high end of that range, we would remain on track for 7 million domestic net additions for the year; otherwise it would be challenging to achieve that goal by year end. In either case, we are generating impressive growth this year in our most developed market.”

Talking about competition it said, “We have yet to see HuluPlus or Amazon Prime Instant Video gain meaningful traction relative to our viewing hours, but as we continue to build a domestic profit stream they are likely to increase their efforts to gain viewing share.”

Netflix plans to launch in a new market abroad in the fourth quarter which will cause a loss. “Our highly profitable US business, both streaming and DVD, is funding our international expansion. We believe this is the right long-term approach. In Q3, we expect to be profitable, while with the launch of a fourth international market in Q4, we will move to a consolidated loss.”

The unsatisfactory subscriber growth and a muddied outlook for the rest of the year scared investors. The challenge for Netflix is that content owners are asking for more money while Netflix charges customers $8 per month.

MUMBAI: Global social media revenue is forecast to reach $16.9 billion in 2012, up 43.1 per cent from 2011 revenue of $11.8 billion, according to Gartner.

Advertising is, and will continue to be, the largest contributor to overall social media revenue and is projected to total $8.8 billion in 2012. Social gaming revenue more than doubled between 2010 and 2011 and is expected to reach $6.2 billion in 2012, while revenue from subscriptions is expected to total $278 million this year.

Gartner senior research analyst Neha Gupta said, “Usage of online social media has matured, and more than one billion people worldwide will use social networks this year. Although the number of social media users is large, and in some cases increasingly mature in their usage patterns, the market is still in its early stages from a revenue perspective.”

Gartner expects the number of social media users will continue to increase at a moderate pace. New forms of media and entertainment will keep users engaged on social media sites and attract new ones. Rising competition among social media players, each vying for consumers‘ leisure time and attention, will lead to the rise of new forms of social media (Web based and mobile).

Marketers are allocating a higher percentage of their advertising budget to social networking sites. This is mainly driven by the fact that these sites offer a large pool of engaged users who spend considerable time on these sites — this increases the potential click-through rates (CTRs).

Social media sites enable marketers to target ads to discrete consumer segments by unlocking the interconnected data structures of users that include lists of friends, their comments and messages, photos and all their social connections, contact information and associated media.

“Social media sites are becoming more innovative in their ad products to attract marketers” . Social networking sites should deploy data analytic technologies that interrogate social networks to give marketers a more accurate picture of trends in accordance with consumers‘ needs and preferences” added Gupta.

Gartner analysts said that social media sites will continue to incorporate gaming techniques on their networks, driven by the monetization opportunities that it presents. The sale of virtual goods will remain the primary source of revenue. Major console gaming publishers have recently entered the social gaming arena and are adding momentum to the social gaming industry by utilising their intellectual properties.

Gartner expects this trend to have a favourable impact on social gaming revenue as consumers are likely to be attracted to familiar gaming titles. Some of the big social developers such as Zynga, GREE and DeNA have moved to an open-platform strategy, enhancing user convenience and choice.

The growth in users paying for professional networking accounts will continue to grow. However, social sites are moving toward lower subscription fees and shifting focus to other sources of revenue, such as advertisement-based sales. This is corroborated by the fact that many of the professional sites (including LinkedIn and Xing) that charge for premium services observed a decline in the subscriptions revenue ratio. Apart from a few exceptions, Gartner continues to see limited success with the premium subscription models.

The sale of virtual goods outside of social gaming is the largest revenue earner in the “other” category. The trend to sell high-value advisory services (such as public relations and reputation management) to brands so that they can better manage their presence on social networks is on the rise and is expected to continue.

Payments on social media sites will increase, providing increased revenue opportunities to social media sites to serve as a payment platform for transactions of digital content (to pay for applications, such as part of Facebook), as part of social gaming (for example, FarmVille), or to
make a person-to-person (P2P) payment to another user of the network site. New revenue opportunities for social media will also arise as both mobile and TV platforms integrate with social networking as a core service.

“New revenue opportunities will exist in social media, but no new services will be able to bring significant fresh revenue to social media by 2016. The biggest impact of growth in social media is on the advertisers. In the short and medium terms, social media sites should deploy data analytic techniques that interrogate social networks to give marketers a more accurate picture of trends about consumers‘ needs and preferences on a customized basis. In the meantime, however, they should also continue to exploit other channels of revenue like mobile advertising and social commerce,” added Gupta.

MUMBAI: Vserv.mobi, a global mobile ad network, has tied up to power application monetisation for Vodafone.

The partnership will enable powerful app monetisation for Vodafone‘s developers targeting app distribution through the VStore (Vodafone app store).

Vodafone‘s developers will benefit from the Vserv.mobi AppWrapper, which enables a combination of both, paid and free models running in parallel. This approach eliminates the dilemma of choosing only one model and maximises app monetisation with minimum effort.

The AppWrapper is an app monetisation platform that enables mobile advertising and innovative pricing models on any app, without coding, in one click. The patent pending AppWrapper platform currently powers App monetisation for over 10,000 Apps, from developers like Glu Mobile, Digital Chocolate, Indiagames (now part of Disney), Nazara, and Jump Games, the company said.

Vodafone India SVP business development and innovation Jonathan Bill said, “AppWrapper is a first-of-its-kind platform that enables free and paid App monetisation models, across both smart phones and feature phones without any coding effort. We believe that this will reinvigorate the mobile internet ecosystem by allowing developers to accelerate their monetisation efforts and trigger innovation.”

The paid monetisation capabilities enabled by the AppWrapper include innovative pricing models such as Try and Buy, Pay per Play and Subscriptions – all enabled in One Click, without any coding effort. It allows developers to connect into any billing mechanism – be it direct telco billing from mobile operators like Vodafone or App Stores like Nokia and Android Market.

Vserv.mobi head of marketing Binay Tiwari added, “Advertising combined with Micro transaction based pricing models are ideal for targeting the vast majority of prepaid mobile users in emerging markets. AppWrapper enables this in One Click, thus offering developers tremendous flexibility in go-to-market across geographies.”

MUMBAI: Sahara Group is acquiring a majority stake in Digicable Network (India) that will mark the Lucknow-based financial services-to-real estate-to-media conglomerate‘s entry into the cable TV business ahead of the government‘s digitisation mandate.

Ashmore will exit from Digicable after investing in the company in 2007. The UK-based global private equity fund held equal stake of 49 per cent in Digicable and Broadband Pacenet, both promoted by Jagjit Kohli and Yogesh Shah.

Digicable was 51 per cent owned by Broadband Pacenet, the Mumbai-based broadband services provider, and 49 per cent by Ashmore. This in effect gave Ashmore around 74 per cent stake in Digicable, the multi-system operator (MSO) with a pan India footprint.

Highly placed sources have confirmed the deal to Indiantelevision.com.

The transaction will be a two-way process. Steller Interactive Media Pvt Ltd, the parent company through which Kohli and Shah hold their stakes in Digicable and Broadband Pacenet, will first buyout Ashmore with the support of Sahara. Steller Interactive Media, after taking full ownership of Digicable and Ashmore, will then sell majority stake to Sahara.

Post transaction, Sahara is likely to hold 74 per cent stake in both the companies while the remaining will be with Kohli and Shah, sources said.

Sources could not confirm the exact amount Ashmore took home to exit from its cable and broadband investments in India. The private equity firm had poured in around $240 million into the company and was looking to exit from its sour investments.

Sahara had shown nascent interest in cable and IPTV business years back but did not venture into it due to the revenue leakages from the last mile that was owned by the local cable operators. The analogue cable market was also highly fragmented. Sahara’s interest now stems from the mandate to the cable TV industry to switch over nationally from analogue to digital by December 2014, beginning with the four metros over the next three months.

Sahara Group also owns a broadcasting business. Sahara One Media and Entertainment Ltd operates in the motion pictures and Television arena. The company runs three channels – Sahara One, Filmy and Firangi.
Digicable was started in 2007 by Kohli, along with his business partner Yogesh Shah, soon after he quit Zee Group‘s Wire & Wireless India Ltd (WWIL). He had then roped in Ashmore to invest in the business.

Also read:

UK private equity firm Ashmore takes 49% in Jagjit Kohli‘s new cable venture

MUMBAI: According to the Mobile Internet behavior and usage study conducted by ViziSense, 20 million of the estimated 48 million mobile internet users have cut their newspapers and TV consumption by 50 per cent.

ViziSense is an Indian online audience and ad measurement platform.

The study reveals that on the mobile screen what‘s being consumed is – entertainment, all categories of news, travel and sports content. Of all mobile internet users in India (estimated at 48 million by IAMAI in their August 2011 Mobile Internet in India report), 87 per cent are online on mobile every day. Almost half of these users go online through their cellphones every 2-3 hours and the duration of these visits is more than an hour. Almost 60 per cent of these users have been on this medium for over a year already.

This study has been put together through the results of an online survey conducted with ViziSense India online panelists (Internet users with mobile phones) and has recorded responses from 2,024 users who access Internet through their cellphones, the company said.

With access to email (99 per cent) and social media (95 per cent) being the primary drivers of mobile internet, consumption of content is starting to shift in favour of the two new screens – Mobiles and Tablets and the categories which see frequent or daily consumption include news, games and entertainment, travel, education and search (almost 50 per cent mobile internet users access this content through their cellphones v/s. other categories).

These users are also easing into mobile ecommerce with almost 80 per cent of the users having performed some form of financial transaction through their mobile phone – payment of utility bills, purchase of products, services and 28 per cent of mobile internet users have even used ‘mobile money‘.

The study reveals that the penetration of tablets and its rising demand is keeping the entire IT industry and media industry excited. The survey also revealed that 14 per cent of these users already possessed a tablet while another 60 per cent of the users plan to buy a tablet soon. (55 per cent of these aspirants hail from outside the top eight metros).

ViziSense VP and GM Amit Bhartiya said, “55 per cent of all daily mobile internet users hail from outside the top eight metros. Whilst limited access to branded products was the reason that these regions saw early adoption of ecommerce, errant electricity is one of the reasons why mobile internet is majorly scoring for users from these cities while reducing their dependence on TV as a medium for especially news and entertainment. The survey establishes two major trends- the shift in screens is for real and that English print is migrating to mobile phones through WAP sites and applications, especially around lifestyle, travel and sports content”.

The survey also tracked the usage by the 18 per cent women subset within this group of mobile internet users and revealed that women outscore men when it comes to accessing books or education, entertainment and travel-related content through their cellphones.

MUMBAI: Subhash Chandra-promoted Wire and Wireless (India) Limited (WWIL) has narrowed its fiscal-first quarter net loss due to a 10 per cent jump in carriage income and deployment of digital set-top boxes (STBs).

The multi-system operator (MSO) has mopped up revenue of Rs 240 million from sale of STBs in the quarter ended June 2012.

“We have deployed close to one million STBs so far. Our estimated target in the three metros of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata, which fall under the first phase of digitisation, is 2.5 million STBs. This quarter has been good for us and we have got Rs 230-240 million from activation charges (of STBs),” says WWIL COO Anil Malhotra.

WWIL‘s carriage revenue in the quarter stands at Rs 600 million, adds Malhotra.

The MSO had in the the quarter announced that it would offer local cable operators (LCOs) a share in carriage income in DAS (Digital Adressable Systems) markets. The government has set 31 October as the sunset date for digitisation, extending it by four months from the earlier deadline.

WWIL reported net loss of Rs 47.7 million for the quarter, down from Rs 420 million a year ago.Operating profit has jumped to Rs 277.4 million, from Rs 42.8 million.

Operating revenue rose 39.8 per cent to Rs 1.12 billion. “This has been one of our best quarters,” says Malhotra. “We have extended the momentum gained during the last fiscal into the first quarter of FY13. We are confident that the significant positive momentum of the business will not only continue to drive WWIL’s growth for the remainder of the fiscal year, but also strengthen the company for growth in the years to come.”

Consolidated operating expenses rose 12.6 per cent to Rs 857.6 million for the quarter ended June. Major cost item was cost of goods and services which stood at 600.5 million during the quarter, representing 53 per cent of the total revenue in comparison to Rs 567.3 million in the corresponding quarter of the last fiscal (71 per cent share of the total revenue).

How will WWIL strengthen its presence in Mumbai where it has lost ground over the years to the other MSOs? “We are reworking our plans for Mumbai. We will have some announcement to make,” says Malhotra.

WWIL‘s debt stands at Rs 4.50 billion. “Our funding is in place to take care of digitisation,” avers Malhotra.