Category: Technology

MUMBAI: announced the airing of two of its channels, Zee TV and Zee Cinema have started telecasting in high definition in the UAE.

The broadcast giant has strategically tied up with E-Vision for the same. The channels will now be provided with the Zee HD package through eLife TV.

Zee Network territory head- Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan Mukund Cairae said, “With growing consumer demand for the richer, more immersive experience of HD, Zee viewers in the UAE will now have access to two new HD channels with high quality content all in crystal clear sound and stunning picture quality.”

Etisalat is the first operator in the region to offer Zee HD channels to its customers in the UAE as part of its eLife TV offering.

The HD channels will together be offered at a price of AED 10 per Zee Family subscriber per month.

BANGALORE: Fox Traveller is working on a couple of India produced shows, a source in the channel said. He, however, did not reveal further details.

Fox Traveller is set to air a 13 one-hour episode series, ‘It Happens Only in India’ (IHOI), every Sunday at 8 pm. The show will start from 6 May.

The IHOI series, anchored by female actor Sugandha Grag, runs through bizarre stories as Garg undertakes a fun journey through lesser known India. “Unlike the regular travelogue, there are no luxury hotels or cruise parties on this show, IHOI is all about the madness, the unimaginable customs, freaky traditions and improbable heroes that make our country unique,” said Garg during a press conference to announce the show in Bangalore.

Each episode of IHOI runs through 43 to 44 minutes. The anchor sponsor for IHOI is HTC, with Airtel as the associate sponsor and the show is powered by Pepsico’s brand ‘Lays’.

MUMBAI: IT security and data protection company Sophos announced a partnership with Facebook to help protect users from links that lead to malware or malicious sites.

Facebook will use the website reputation service provided by Sophos-Labs, global network of research centers of Sophos, along with their own security measures, to help assess whether a largely distributed link is malicious.

Facebook Chief of Security Joe Sullivan said, “We are pleased to begin partnering with Sophos to better protect our users both on and off of Facebook. We believe incorporating Sophos, the industry-leading computer security intelligence, and expertise, will help us provide even more security to those using Facebook.”

When Facebook users click a link, Facebook consults its database of malicious URLs to check the status of the link. Starting Tuesday, Sophos-Labs will be feeding malicious URL intelligence into this database.

Facebook will inform Facebook users if the link they clicked on is malicious. Users will be sent to a page that offers the choice to continue at their own risk, return to the previous screen, or obtain more information on why the link was flagged as suspicious.

Mac users will also be given the option to download the free Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac Home Edition from the Sophos Facebook Page as part of the Facebook AV Marketplace.

Sophos vice-president Mark Harris said, “For many hundreds of millions of people, Facebook has become the default forum for sharing and consuming opinions, news and personal content. Because content is typically posted by a trusted source – a friend, many users incorrectly assume links are safe.Scammers often take advantage of the trust relationship to fool users into clicking malicious links. Our partnership with Facebook will educate users to make more informed decisions regarding what they click on and will help reduce the spread of malicious links.”

MUMBAI: The e-commerce company Snapdeal.com has launched mobile application for android users.

The app will enable mobile users to have access to thousands of brands across various product categories, which are showcased on Snapdeal platform.

Snapdeal.com has recently launched its WAP site. The mobile app will further extend their presence in the mobile domain.

Snapdeal android app is compatible with android OS 2.2 and above. It has a wide range of products and services to choose from, depending upon users‘ preferences and location. Additionally, it has integrated payment options with inbuilt feature of ‘one time password‘ generation. The payment can also be made through ‘cash on delivery‘ option.

Snapdeal.com head – mobile initiatives Rishabh Arora said, “There are millions of android users in India and this app will be a great way of reaching out to these users and providing a seamless shopping experience on their smart phones. We will continue to optimise the features and work towards building one of the best android apps in this domain. We are in the process of rolling out apps for other platforms like iOS and Blackberry too.”

MUMBAI: SeaChange International, the leading global multi-screen video software company, has appointed Raghu Rau as permanent chief executive officer of SeaChange effective 1 May.

First appointed interim CEO of SeaChange in November 2011, Rau has led an aggressive strategy to focus the company on its core software business, delivering innovative software solutions for video service providers globally in cable, IPTV, and mobile while significantly reducing the overall cost structure of the company. Rau will also retain his seat on the company’s board of directors.

“Raghu’s leadership and excellent grasp of our business was apparent from the moment he assumed responsibility for the day-to-day operation of the Company. In a matter of just a few months, he has dramatically improved SeaChange’s overall operations and its ability to serve global markets, to the immediate benefit of our customers as well as our shareholders and employees,” said SeaChange chairman of the board Thomas Olson.

“Raghu accurately assessed our organization, and then moved decisively, initiating actions to ensure SeaChange’s continued leadership in the personalized multi-screen video market, such as shedding non-core businesses and realigning our workforce to enable more coordination and collaboration. The Board, having retained the services of CTPartners to assist, conducted an extensive CEO search over several months including both internal and external candidates. We were fortunate to have many very talented individuals interested in being considered for the SeaChange CEO position. However, given Raghu’s impressive background, together with the confidence he has inspired both inside the Company and with customers and investors, the Board decided he is the best choice for the permanent assignment. The positive momentum that has been visible since Raghu took the helm will now continue without pause or interruption,” Olson added.

Raghu Rau joined the SeaChange board in July 2010. He has previously held a number of senior leadership positions at Motorola, Inc. and served on the board of directors of Microtune, Inc, which was then acquired by Zoran Corporation. He currently serves on the board of Aviat Networks, a leader in wireless transmission systems.

NEW DELHI: The periodic meeting of the Task Force constituted to oversee and facilitate the implementation of digital addressable cable TV systems in the country failed to discuss the Cable TV Networks Rules or the Trai Tariff as participants said they had not had time to study these.

Protests were raised in the meeting presided over by Information and Broadcasting Ministry Additional Secretary Rajiv Takru against the steep hike in processing fee of Rs 100,000 for registration in place of Rs 10,000 as was the case until now.

Some of those present also said that it was unethical to demand submission of Content Agreement before signing on with a broadcaster or MSO.

It is understood that the meeting failed to take stock of the present situation as less than half the members were present.

MUMBAI: International publisher of video games 505 Games announced its worldwide agreement with global sportswear brand adidas to publish adidas miCoach console game.

The game will be available in the summer of 2012 for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and Sony‘s PlayStation3.

miCoach is a personal training system from adidas for athletes of all ages, gender and levels. Users can develop bespoke training plans according to their chosen sporting activity, track their workout progress, get coaching feedback, and see improvements. The game has been in development for one and half years with UK developer Chromativity (formerly Lightning Fish Games) under exclusive license from adidas.

The game has full motion-controlled support and full optical body tracking with the Kinect for Xbox 360 sensor and PlayStationMove which enables players to train alongside their sports heroes with over 400 exercises dedicated to optimising fitness levels for particular sports activities.

miCoach features 18 of adidas‘ globally recognised athletes across six different sports including Kaka, Dwight Howard, Manuel Neuer, Jessica Ennis, Jose Mourinho, Ana Ivanovic, Will Genia and Eric Berry all of whom provide Masterclasses for their sport.

adidas miCoach business unit director Simon Drabble said, “We are very excited to be bringing the miCoach console game to market. Training alongside your own heroes is a fun and engaging way to get better for your sport or simply help you reach your fitness goals.”

505 Games global brand head Tim Woodley added, “Working with adidas on bringing this game to market provides a very exciting and immediate opportunity. Bringing something truly new to the sports training and fitness segment on consoles, integrating it into the wider miCoach pantheon and capitalising on a packed summer of sport in 2012 is just the start of a great relationship.”

NEW DELHI: The News Broadcasters Association (NBA) has expressed its shock and dismay at the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India‘s tariff order for digital addressable systems as it has legitimised carriage fee that has deeply hurt their profitability.

NBA has that the Notification has ‘legitimized‘ the very practice the NBA had hoped would be ended – the payment of steep “carriage fees” by broadcasters.

It noted that the primary purpose of digitisation was to increase the number of channels that can be broadcast. The objective was to give consumers greater choice and to eliminate the phenomenon of “carriage fees”, which were being charged due to capacity constraints.

However, the NBA was distressed and disappointed that Trai‘s new Notification had actually legalised the practice of “carriage fees” and given distributors the freedom to unilaterally set the amount of “carriage fees” broadcasters must pay.

“This unfairly penalises broadcasters and threatens the very survival of the broadcasting industry,” NBA said, urging the government and Trai to look into this malaise and correct it urgently.

News broadcasters will be meeting the I&B ministry and Trai to express their grievances.

NEW DELHI: Tevision viewers will be able to get a minimum 100 free-to-air (FTA) channels at a maximum retail price of Rs 100, or pay a minimum Rs 150 per month for a la carte choice that may include pay as well as FTA channels.

This has been specified in the Telecommunication (Broadcasting and Cable) Services (Fourth) (Addressable Systems ) Tariff (first amendment) Order 2012, issued exactly a month after its own announced date of 31 March by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai).

Basic Service Tier

According to the regulatory framework for Digitalised Cable TV brought out by Trai “to safeguard consumers‘ interests”, cable operators will have to mandatorily offer a Basic Service Tier (BST) to viewers throughout the country that will consist of 100 FTA channels including 18 mandatory Doordarshan channels and the Lok Sabha channel.

Under the order, cable operators and multi-system-operators (MSOs) have to ensure that there are a minimum of five channels of different genres. The genres which Trai has named are General Entertainment Channels (GECs) in English, Hindi, Regional, Music, News, Movies, Sports, Kids Infotainment, and lifestyle.

“The BST shall be mandatorily offered by the cable operator. However, it will be optional for the consumer to subscribe,” Trai said. Consumers can choose a la carte FTA channels also.

The broadcast sector regulator also said that in case customers choose some option beyond the BST which includes some pay channels, a minimum monthly price up to Rs 150 would be paid. “If the total value of the channels/ bouquets opted by the subscriber exceeds Rs 150, only then actual subscription charges has to be paid,” Trai said.

Trai has also issued the The Telecommunication (Broadcasting and Cable Services) Interconnection (Digital Addressable Cable Television Systems) Regulations 2012. While the Tariff Order has been issued as an amendment to the existing Tariff Order for addressable systems, dated 21 July 2010, the Interconnection Regulation is comprehensive one for the Digital Addressable Cable TV Systems.

These rules will come into force along with the digitisation of the cable sector for which the government has already set up a deadline of 30 June this year in the four metros and December 2014 for the entire country.

Trai‘s latest tariff order has also laid down rules on the basis of which channels and bouquets will be priced.

All channels will have to be made available individually or on an a la carte basis that will ensure viewers will have the choice to take only the channels they want.

Trai has mandated that the rate of a single channel should not exceed three times the average channel rate of the bouquet. So, if on an average, a channel has been priced at Rs 3 by the cable operator, he cannot charge more than Rs 9 per channel in that bouquet.

MSOs to carry minimum of 500 channels from 1 Jan 2013

The Authority has mandated MSOs to carry a minimum of 500 channels from 1 January 2013. However as MSOs having less than 25000 subscribers may need some additional time for building the capacity, they have been given time up to 1 April 2013. To ensure that the consumer is not adversely affected, the Authority has prescribed that every MSO should have a minimum capacity to carry 200 channels from 1 July 2012.

The Authority asked all the MSOs operating in areas of Phase-II onwards to take suitable measures to enhance the channel carrying capacity to 500 channels. The Authority has ordered that from 1 January next year, all cable operators must carry Hindi, English, and channels in the regional language of the area concerned.

Carriage Fee

While not doing away with the carriage fee as demanded by broadcasters, Trai said it will have to be charged in a non-discriminatory and transparent fashion. All channels will be charged uniformly and the MSOs will have to file the fees with Trai. There is also a provision mandating that the regulator will intervene if carriage fees is found to be unreasonable.

Keeping in view the fact that substantial investment for implementation of Digital Addressable Cable TV Systems is made by the MSO and the cost involved in carriage of channels, the Authority has decided that every MSO may fix the Carriage Fee. However, it should be published in the Reference Interconnect Offer and applied in a uniform, non-discriminatory and transparent manner. The Carriage Fee cannot be revised upward for a minimum of two years. The Authority would intervene in case it is felt that the Carriage Fee is unreasonable.

The MSOs can fix the retail tariff and also package and price offerings. However, the sum of the a la carte rates of channels, forming part of a bouquet, shall not exceed 1.5 times the rate of the bouquet. Further, the a la carte rate of any channel shall not exceed three times the average channel rate of the bouquet.

The number of TV households in India is estimated to be around 147 million. The cable industry has grown from 0.4 million cable homes in January 1992 to an estimated 94 million cable TV homes in 2011 with more than 800 registered channels. Of these, around 160 are pay channels. There are a large number of channels which are transmitted as FTA channels.

Trai says the basic purpose of digitisation is to ensure ample choice to the consumer as well as to enable him to budget his subscription according to his paying capacity.

Must Carry Provision

Trai has also prescribed the ‘must carry provision‘. This means that MSOs will have to carry the channels.

Only those MSOs that have the requisite capacity, as mentioned above, can invoke ‘must provide‘ clause. The broadcasters shall not provide their channels to MSOs who have channel carrying capacity of less than 200 channels immediately and less than 500 channels from 1 January 2013 or 1 April 2013 in case of smaller MSOs.

The provision relating to amount charged by broadcaster to MSO remains unchanged. They can charge a maximum of 42 per cent of the rate they charge in the non-addressable systems.

Revenue share between MSO & LCO

The July 2010 Tariff Order provides that the revenue share between the MSO and LCO shall be based on mutual negotiations. The Authority has now prescribed that in case the mutual negotiations fail, the revenue share shall be in the ratio of 55:45 (MSO: LCO) for BST or FTA channels. The revenue share for Pay channels or bouquet of Pay channels with or without FTA channels shall be in the ratio of 65:35 (MSO: LCO).

Trai said, “Implementation of Digital Addressable Cable TV Systems (DAS) will lead to better choice to consumers, variety and quality of content, adequate revenue to stakeholders and healthy environment for the industry in addition to bringing in transparency in the business transactions and subscriber base. It would also ensure that the Government receives the due revenue.”

Ad-free channels

Referring to viability of ad-free channels, Trai said a large majority of the stakeholders, consisting of all the segments including the consumers, are of the view that the determination of viability of the ad-free channels in the Indian markets be left to the market forces to decide.

On the issue of tariff dispensation for the ad-free channels, “a large majority of the stakeholders have advocated forbearance at both the wholesale and retail levels in the DAS areas. Some MSOs have, however, suggested that the wholesale tariff be regulated, keeping the retail under forbearance whereas one cable operator association has suggested that tariff for ad-free channels should be regulated by Trai.”

As far as the sharing of the subscription revenue of the ad-free channels is concerned, all the broadcasters have said it should be left for the commercial negotiations between the service providers. The other stakeholders are divided over this issue. Some of these stakeholders have suggested that revenue share be decided in the same way as any other pay channel while others have suggested different percentages for broadcaster, MSO and LCO. However, they have not offered any justification for the same.

Offering of a channel in advertisement-free format (Ad-free channel) is a recent phenomenon in the Indian television market. These channels are driven by demand and generally cater to targeted segment of viewers. The ad-free channels, being solely dependent on the subscription revenue and demand based, in line with the view of a large majority of the stakeholders, the Authority has decided to keep the ad-free channels under complete forbearance. The niche channels, for example. HDTV channels and 3D channels – which require specialised STBs, are already under forbearance and would continue to remain under forbearance. The Authority will review the position at an appropriate time. As far as revenue share is concerned, it shall be shared between MSO and LCO in the same ratio as defined for other channels.

NEW DELHI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has launched the Telecom Consumers Complaint Monitoring System (TCCMS) portal www.tccms.gov.in to facilitate the telecom consumers in locating details of their service provider.

The site will help find the “Consumer Care Number”, “General Information Number” and contact details of the complaint centre and Appellate Authority of their service provider.

The complaint monitoring portal will track the current status of their complaints or appeals lodged with their service provider complaint centre or Appellate Authority.

This portal will also help Trai in monitoring the status of redressal of complaints lodged by the consumers with the service providers. The portal will enhance the effectiveness of the grievance redressal mechanism, the regulator feels.