Category: Technology

MUMBAI: Disney‘s distribution arm Buena Vista International Television (BVITV) along with Walt Disney Internet Group, Disney Channel, ESPN, ESPN Star Sports, and its US television network ABC hosted its first New Media Showcase in the Asia Pacific region in Singapore.

Broadcasters, mobile operators, content aggregators, ISPs, and triple-play providers from around the region attended the event at which executives from across the Company showcased how Disney is combining cutting-edge technology with great content to create unique entertainment experiences for audiences allowing them to enjoy content whenever and wherever they want it.

Buena Vista International Television (Asia Pacific) senior VP and MD Steve Macallister said, “This is an extremely exciting time to be in the media industry and it‘s a particularly exciting time for The Walt Disney Company. We‘re buoyed by the rapid developments and change facing the industry and are pleased to be the first US studio to undertake an event of this scale in the region.

“Disney‘s ‘road map to the future‘ lay in combining the riches of our entertainment properties with new forms of distribution. Asian consumers have a voracious appetite for both technology and content, and across our businesses we are embracing this sea of change. There really is no other entertainment company better equipped to navigate the changes in our industry than The Walt Disney Company.

“The New Media Showcase has been a marvellous opportunity for our current and potential clients to view for the first time in one place, the new media content offerings from our many businesses.”

BVITV-AP showcased Desperate Housewives and Lost available for new media platforms such as for mobile, internet and video-on-demand. BVITV-AP says that it was the first studio to launch wireless content in South Korea in October 2005. In this mobile content deal with TU Media, the first-ever with a US studio, over 250 hours of programming including Desperate Housewives and Alias went to air via its linear channel “Blue”.

In the US Disney-ABC signed a deal with Apple to offer Disney and ABC content on iTunes and ad-supported, full-length episodes of four ABC primetime series on abc.com. Disney is looking after sports fans too. The World Cup soccer tournament currently gripping sports fans everywhere has underscored the international opportunity available in the wireless space.

ESPN Star Sports‘ latest mobile service offering in Asia, includes video, data and WAP services in addition to java games, wallpapers and ringtones. Keeping fans up to date with the action on the pitch is ESPN Here We Go.

This has the latest match insights, previews, predictions and analysis from the World Cup, and SportsCenter Mobile News, providing the latest in coverage of the top sports stories. Using SMS and Wap services, ESPN Football Live is keeping audiences abreast of the latest breaking news, injury reports, fixtures listings, and half-time and full-time scores.

ESPN Insider sends fans first hand match development and predictions with expert commentary. ESS recently launched Mobile ESPN. This mobile service brings the best of video, SMS, WAP, games and downloads for sports fans.

Younger audiences also have new platforms on which to enjoy and interact with content. Disney Channel‘s programming, digital media and marketing teams are working seamlessly to create an engaging experience empowering viewers to connect with the brand across multiple platforms, ultimately reinforcing and supporting the linear Disney Channel.

Disney Channel‘s strategy for creating compelling content for new media channels focuses on providing constant and personalised entertainment at the viewers‘ convenience. In June, Disney‘s shows That‘s So Raven and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody will be available in six different languages, on the re-launched broadband site, DisneyChannel.com. The local language tracks include English, Mandarin Chinese and Hindi.

The musical movie High School Musical is doing well among kids, tweens and families in the US. It recently premiered on Disney Channel Australia and New Zealand, followed by international roll-out across over 100 countries this year, and had 1.2 million unique visitors to DisneyChannel.com – the most ever for the site. Distributed by Walt Disney Records, the music album was number one on iTunes Music Store for three weeks and 1.3 million single tracks have been purchased digitally.

MUMBAI: comScore Media Metrix, which provides insight into American consumer behaviour and attitudes has released its monthly analysis of consumer activity at top online properties and categories.

The social networking phenomenon continued its stratospheric ascent, as MySpace.com reached new heights with 50 million visitors in May and YouTube.com nearly doubled its traffic from April, reaching 12.6 million visitors.

In addition to shopping for moms and grads, checking out job sites, and staying on top of personal finance and politics in May, Americans also flocked to their favourite TV show and sports sites, including those focused on the World Cup and NBA playoff games.

comScore Media Metrix president and CEO Peter Daboll says, “The popularity of social networking is not expected to wane in the near future. This is a phenomenon we‘re seeing not only in the U.S., but also around the world. The challenge for social networking sites will now be monetisation and how advertisers will respond to the global marketing potential of these sites.”

Americans demonstrated their interest in the World Cup soccer tournament and NBA Playoffs in the weeks preceeding the June tournaments. The NBA Internet Network attracted 6.3 million visitors in May which represents a 24 per cent increase versus April. fifaworldcup.yahoo.com — the official World Cup site — doubled its traffic, reaching more than 788,000 visitors.

Even more impressive was the worldwide traffic to the official World Cup site during the opening days of the tournament, with more than five million unique visitors from around the globe visiting the site on 9 June. Traffic to the site remained strong throughout the opening weekend, with average daily visitors through 11 June surpassing 4.4 million visitors.

Television fans headed to TV web sites in numbers to check out details for the season finales of their favourite shows. ABC, which aggressively promoted streamed versions of Lost and Desperate Housewives was rewarded with a 39 per cent increase in visitors to ABC.com, surging to 6.9 million visitors.

Traffic to the Lost site increased 71 per cent to 1.2 million visitors in May. Meanwhile, the Desperate Housewives site attracted 528,000 visitors, up 36 per cent from the prior month, and the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
site saw a 41 per cent uptick in traffic to 286,000 visitors. The season finale of NBC‘s long running ER drove traffic to the show‘s site, with 236,000 visitors in May, up 49 per cent compared to April.

SINGAPORE: The second session at the Asian D-Cinema Summit, at the Broadcast Asia summit 2006, was all about taking stock of the Asian scenario in the digital age. In some ways, the conference did touch upon interactive possibilities, along with new ways of storytelling in the digital age.

However, the main focus was to critically take stock of Digital Cinema, in terms of investment, content and technology; apart from offering a brief update on the regional scenario.

Starting of the discussion on the Asian scenario, Mediacorp Technologies CEO Mock Pak said, “It looks like a rather positive scenario in the Asian region, with most of the countries racing ahead in the digital race. Korea, China and India, with its vibrant Bollywood industry, will definitely lead the way further. In percentage terms, more than 44 per cent of the digital films are from Asia.”

Quoting from her presentation on the Thailand Update, Golden Duck International Thailand‘s Yupayong Liewluck said, “Thailand has moved from 29 digital screens to more than 500 screens. In the future, the audience will have to pay more to enjoy the hi-end movie watching experience and from the exhibitors point of view it‘s going to be a more high investment proposition.”

Liewluck was of the opinion that though going digital is a high investment proposition, it‘s still not known what the business model will be like in the days to come. Also, what‘s the reliability of the final product and what will justify the cost of the digital cinema.

So, the moot question is how digital cinema will justify the high investment though in terms of distribution it provides an excellent platform to keep the films running.

Moving on to the Japan update, the presentation took off from the example of Narnia which featured 2k digital cinema projectors. Media Networking Laboratory executive manager Tetsuro Fujii said, “In Japan, more than 50 screens have gone digital and more than 30 screens are DCI complaint with 2K digital cinema.

The country is going at a very high speed to comply with Digital Cinema Initiative, while maintaining the highest standards of 4k digital cinema which has been a rule in the country. Now, the second phase has seen the likes of 4k cinema as the country is almost ready with its broadband network technologies.”

The Chinese film industry, on its part, continues to grow by leaps and bounds but steps are yet to be taken for a speedier development of digital cinema. Offering a slightly different perspective to the entire scenario, China Film Group chief engineer Chen Fei said the effort is really to maintain a cultural identity in the race to go digital. “After all, technology can sometimes destroy what culture has brought in.”

Shaw Organisation Singapore senior manager Mark Shaw said, “More than 26 screens here have digital screens.” What came across from the discussion was that Singapore is soon emerging as a hub in providing the support system for many Asian countries in going digital.” Said Shaw, “The Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) and the Media Development Authority of Singapore (MDA) are collaborating to develop the digital cinema industry in Singapore, riding on the combined strengths of both agencies. The IDA‘s efforts are also in the direction of helping out other countries to comply with the digital norms.”

SINGAPORE: Is the whole world soon going to be divided into the Digital and the Non Digital? Well, looks like. And not just that, but understanding the digital world seems like the only way to remain relevant in the rapidly converging media & entertainment industry.

Broadcast Asia 2006, aptly embodies a theme, titled Digital – The Journey Forward. And to go with the theme, the mega event which is made up of exhibitions, conferences and meetings, started off bang on with ‘The Asian D-Cinema Summit.‘

The summit focused on the rollout of digital cinema, which has revolutionised the cinematic experience for moviegoers around the world. Setting the agenda for a day-long discussion, Mike Connors, chairman Connors & Associates, Singapore, began the session by shedding light on the overall scenario.

He said, “The coming days are going to pose newer challenges for people in the movie business. Cause: digital cinema is more than just perfect images and sounds, but it impacts on how a movie is actually made (production), distribution and projection in the theatres. So, it‘s not just about digital capture but also about digital delivery and projection. So, going the digital way is all about setting up systems that ensures a uniform and high level of technical performance along with quality control.”

So, how does the movie industry flourish as well as move towards a smooth transition to a digital future? What came across was that one has to move towards one digital distribution and exhibition format. And that format is clearly complying with the Digital Cinema Specifications (DCI which came across in 2002).

Taking the discussion further, Thomas Lim, Director, Education, Learning, Digital Media & entertainment, IDA Singapore, said, “The film fraternity across the Asian region seems to grappling with issues of complying with the Digital Cinema initiatives, to ensure great quality control. In fact, Singapore is fast emerging a great hub by playing a strong support to the industry in terms of helping comply and convert content to the norms of DCI.”

Some of the other questions which were raised during the opening session were what are the technical developments that will help enhance the conversion to digital screens? In the future, who will bear the technology cost? How will distributors and exhibitors work out their new equations? Will we have to create fresh content as the theatres go digital? Or will moviegoers have to pay more to enjoy digital cinema.

“Though, the answers to these queries will emerge in the time to come, it looks like we are getting there,” said Al Barton VP, Sony Pictures Entertainment, USA. He added, “Last year we were here speculating the specifications laid down to go digital but this time for people involved in the film business, we are here really to discuss how more countries have start adopting to digital screens. The systems which have worked in the US can also be applied in other parts of the world, in spite of the fact that the scenario does is differ from region to region. Like, France has independent producers and Germany is a country where most of the prints are used twice in the country. So, we‘ll have to come to a flexible solution for digital films being distributed across the world.”

The opening session also looked at the various technological challenges that the digital world will pose for the industry. Equipment manufacturers will have to invest in compatible equipment so as to help theatrical projectors to create a uniform and compatible digital cinema. But hopefully, as the market gets more competitive, the price of the equipment and its installation which were previously thought to be a major barrier to digital cinema will become increasingly affordable.

SINGAPORE: Radio as we know it, is soon going to be a thing of the past. With new and emerging technologies, radio is all set to get a face lift.

Radio in Asia, is the most accessible of the media and what‘s more… it‘s free. There are a few key factors behind the success of analogue radio. It‘s simple and user friendly, has a wide variety of content, it‘s portable and mobile and has a broad audience appeal. But the big question is – Will analogue radio survive in a digital world?

The answer to that is anyone‘s guess. The next generation of radio – Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) – is now vying for consumer attention.

While DAB radio defines the next generation of radio receivers, it must cross the cultural divide first and gain consumer acceptance. The hurdle it faces are that users don‘t want to move into new and unfamiliar technology and hence DAB Radio must offer much more than FM / AM. Also, incremental cost must be justified by content and new features and it has to change the way traditional radio is consumed. Perhaps, the most crucial thing is that DAB radio must offer more than just radio.

Highlighting the key strengths of DAB, Frontier Silicon UK VP sales and marketing Steve Evans said, “DAB has better quality audio, is easy to tune in, has more channels, provides data services, has future proof technology and value added features. However, it is not just about high quality radio. Compared to conventional analogue radios, DAB has to be much more. Moreover, broadcasters can capitalise on the potential of DAB technology to transmit more attractive data services.”

“On the other hand,” Evans said, “Receiver manufacturers can develop receivers that enable the consumption of the services. However, there has to be cooperation between broadcasters and receiver manufacturers.”

What‘s more, DAB also enables EPG (Electronic Programme Guide) and allows the iPod generation to get their music, where they want it and when they want it. “EPG allows listeners to see what‘s on now and for the next seven days, search programmes by genre, by time, and allows them to set advanced timer recordings. It also enables recording of programmes in real time or at a later date in the same way as a personal video recorder (PVR) apart from enhancing the user‘s radio listening experience,” Evans said.

Another important feature of DAB is that it gives the consumer the ability to pause, rewind, fast-forward, and record live radio to variety of storage mediums. “This is a growing feature that is becoming synonymous with DAB digital radios. It works both on audio data and DLS text messages, however, small incremental price due to additional RAM memory required for rewind buffers,” said Evans.

DAB‘s Dynamic Label Segment also allows broadcasters to send text information and control characters along with the audio service. The text can be used to provide more information about the station and also to increase advertising revenue for the broadcasters. Apart from this, a Slide Show feature in DAB allows broadcasters to send a sequence of images (JPG/BMP) associated with tracks being played. “Visual along with audio would greatly help radio advertisers to increase advertising revenue and is already being trialled by numerous broadcasters,” Evans said.

Additionally, content can also be repurposed for different delivery platforms. Evans said, “DAB is an ideal transport channel for web site content to be delivered to users using the DAB BWS user application. Broadcast Website (BWS) allows DAB multiplex operators to use the internet as source content and deliver an entire web site to a DAB receiver using only the broadcast channel of DAB. Content on the web site can be used to promote the broadcaster and provide interactivity to the consumer.”

Another aspects of DAB is that it enables mobile digital TV by using T-DMB (Digital Multimedia Broadcast). “DAB can act as a transport mechanism to deliver video to receivers and has the capability to deliver video up to 1.5Mbps. It also enables the long awaited mobile TV deployment using broadcast technology, rather than cellular based point-to-point service, which has traffic handling limitations,” Evans said.

T-DMB services have already commercially launched in Korea, China and very recently in Germany.

However, these data services are useless unless suitable receivers are introduced into the market. DAB receivers should:

• Present the data in a ‘usable‘ and ‘attractive‘ manner
• Low power consumption to ensure long battery life
• Low cost to promote mass market uptake
• Easy integration to enable more manufacturers
• Sufficient processing power to cope of datacast decoding
• Programmable to cope with changing standards

The key features of Next Generation radios include:

• Large display to show more contents
• Built-in memory for data caching applications (pause/rewind)
• Support for external memory plugin to read audio files (USB host/slave)
• Support for Firmware Upgrade (USB) to cope with changing standards
• Applications including DAB, FM, Audio decoders, Picture/Video decoders, PVR like capability

MUMBAI: Online content service provider MSN has announced an alliance with LivePlanet, a Los Angeles-based production company with the aim to bring a new generation of storytelling online.

The first show that will be launched under this recently announced MSN Originals initiative is LivePlanet‘s production Fan Club: Reality Baseball.

The upcoming show aims to move unscripted programming into the big leagues of new media with always-accessible content and interactivity that puts the MSN audience at the center of a unique entertainment experience.

Fan Club MSN says gives fans control of the Schaumburg Flyers, a real professional minor league baseball team based in a suburb of Chicago. Each day, new online content will tell the stories of the Flyers‘ players, giving the fans intimate knowledge of “their” ballclub, as well as the team‘s coaches, wives, girlfriends and personalities, revealing their dreams, demons, triumphs and difficulties, on and off the playing field.

MSN users will manage the team on a daily basis, voting to determine such key decisions as the batting lineup, fielding positions and pitching roster. Fantasy baseball meets reality TV in “Fan Club: Reality Baseball,” where the fans run the team and control the action.

MSN director of business development Joe Michaels says, “We are going to hit one out of the park with Fan Club: Reality Baseball. We were a bit stunned at first that a professional baseball team would allow our audience to manage it, but we quickly realized that ‘Fan Club‘ is a fabulous programming concept which is perfect for the Web.

“We are thrilled to be working with LivePlanet because they are great storytellers who can deliver the drama and excitement behind the scenes of this professional sports team. Fan Club is a great example of what we‘re doing with MSN Originals: providing our audience with new and engaging entertainment experiences and opening up significant opportunities for advertisers.”

LivePlanet CEO Larry Tanz says, “This is Bull Durham meets fantasy sports, and it‘s all real. We expect ‘Fan Club‘ to appeal to anyone who has ever yelled at their TV because they thought they could do a better job running the team — now the fans will have their chance.

“Fan Club will appeal to sports fans and non-sports fans alike with the type of behind-the-scenes, unscripted drama seen in shows like Project Greenlight. Because MSN reaches hundreds of millions of users, the show will have access to a vastly larger audience than television. And the interactive features of MSN are the key to allowing fans to control their ballclub, something television can‘t currently accomplish.”

The Northern League in which the Schaumburg Flyers play divides its season in half, with the winners of each half meeting in the playoffs.

Fan Club: Reality Baseball is slated to go live in mid-July in time for MSN users to manage the team day to day for the full second half of the 2006 season, determining whether or not the Flyers will make the playoffs.

MUMBAI: Indian mobile value added services provider Mauj Telecom has just served an ace. In partnership with the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, Mauj Telecom has launched an exclusive Wimbledon Mobile portal. This partnership has been facilitated by IMG Media. The multi-modal portal is available on sms, voice and WAP/GPRS.

Tennis buffs can catch match schedules, score updates and Wimbledon news by sending ‘Wimbledon’ as a sms to 7007. The Mauj Talk Voice portal can be accessed by calling 5057007 on the mobile phone. Radio Wimbledon is another innovation that will be available live on this. Wallpapers, videos, video ringtones, themes, colour logos and other mobile content will be available on www.mauj.com on the net and on wap.mauj.com on GPRS / edge phones.

The content also includes 2005 Championship Round-Up and 2006 Championship Preview. Throughout the Wimbledon fortnight, wallpapers and videos of daily preview, individual match highlights, player interviews and daily round-up will be updated approximately within two hours of the matches.

A separate zone is being built featuring 101 Golden Moments of Wimbledon History. This features videos and images of some of the most memorable moments at Wimbledon, including the historic tennis battles between Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf, John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg, Andre Agassi and Goran Ivanisevic, Pete Sampras and Goran Ivanisevic.

Sampras’ epic seven victories and the fierce battles of the Williams sisters will also be there.

IMG Media sdenior intl VP Andrew Wildblood said, “IMG Media is excited to partner with Mauj to bring Wimbledon mobile content to India. IMG is always trying to extend the reach of its premier sports properties like Wimbledon beyond the traditional broadcast viewing. Mauj is the best of class mobile partner and distributor in India and will help us extend the reach of Wimbledon among the fastest growing mobile markets in the world”

Mauj Telecom CEO Arun Gupta said, “Mobile phones are becoming the centre of the entertainment universe. In the past, too, we have been bringing quality mobile content to cell phone customers, be it entertainment, sports or Bollywood. Mauj Telecom is extremely glad to partner with Wimbledon and IMG Media to launch the content exclusively in India on 7007, 5057007 Mauj Talk and wap.mauj.com portals. With this, we bring the best tennis action to the 90 million mobile consumers in India.”

Mauj Telecom is part of the People Group, which also owns internet brands such as Shaadi.com, Astrolife.com and Fropper.com. Mauj‘s wap portal wap.mauj.com offers mobile gaming, mobile music, mobile video and GPRS/EDGE/WAP space facilities. Its shortcode is 7007