ITV

Category: Software

  • AT&T adds six HD channels from MTV Networks

    MUMBAI: AT&T, the largest provider of local, long distance telephone services in the United States, has added six new high-definition (HD) channels from MTV Networks to the U-verse TV lineup.









    The channels that have been added include MTV HD, VH1 HD, CMT HD, Nickelodeon HD, Comedy Central HD and Spike HD, thus enhancing the telco‘s 100-plus HD channel count.

     

    Last month MTVN announced the launch of those six network feeds in MPEG-4 format on two SES Americom-New Skies satellites.

    AT&T offers two HD options with U-verse TV: HD service is included with the U450 programming package (starting at $109 per month) or is available for an additional $10 a month with any other U-verse TV programming package.


    The telco offers a separate HD Premium Tier for an additional $5 a month, comprising four channels: MGM HD, Palladia, Smithsonian Channel HD and Universal HD.

  • Tata Indicom broadband unveils single bill service

    MUMBAI: Tata Communications‘ Tata Indicom Broadband announced the launch of ‘One World, One Account service‘ allowing customers to access high speed internet


    roaming in over 160 countries using their same account.

    Customers can use various forms of internet access



    like broadband, Wi-Fi, dial-up and other services like gaming, movies, music and anti-virus on a single account. This service is aimed at home and small business users giving them the convenience of a single bill and access through multiple technologies.


    “People are now used to using mobile phones on roaming. Internet roaming is the next step in customer convenience and productivity enhancement for businesses. The launch of ‘One World One Account‘ is aimed at such customers and will empower our customers to make the very best use of the Internet,” said Tata Indicom brand head (sales and marketing) Mehul Kapadia.

  • IRS R1: C&S reach up 7%, FM radio also on an upswing

    MUMBAI: The reach of cable and satellite (C&S) to individuals is on a 7.05 per cent upswing, according to the latest Indian Readership Survey (IRS) survey conducted by Media Research Users Council (MRUC).









    As per the Round 1 (R1) survey (January–December 2008), the total number of individuals exposed to the C&S service stand at 307.69 million, as against 287.43 million individuals in IRS R2 (July 2007-June 2008) survey.


     

    On the whole, a total of 36.1 per cent individuals in R1 2009 (sample size 852,333,000) accepted using C&S as compared to 34.1 per cent in R2 (sample size 842,905,000).



    On the other hand, the reach of television, which was 55.4 per cent in R2 2008, went up to 55.7 per cent in R1 2009. On actual individual basis, the reach went up by a meagre 1.66 per cent.


    In the radio sector, the reach stands at 21.1 per cent (179.84 million individuals) in R1 ‘09, down by 0.30 per cent as against R2 ‘08 figure of 21.4 per cent (180.38 million individuals).



    In the FM radio space, however, the reach has increased by 4.92 per cent. The survey shows a reach of 13.8 per cent (117.62 million individuals) in R1 2009, up from 13.3 per cent reach of R2 2008 (112.11 million individuals).

  • NDTV hops on to DirecTV for ‘Profit’ and ‘Good Times’ in US

    NEW DELHI: NDTV has launched its English business news channel NDTV Profit and lifestyle channel NDTV Good Times on DirecTV, a DTH service provider in the US.









    Distributed by BT‘s media and broadcasting arm in the US, NDTV Good Times and NDTV Profit are available from 7 May on DirecTV‘s HindiDirect and HindiDirect II programming packages, which are part of the international programming platform and are tailored toward Hindi speaking audiences within the US. International customers must first subscribe to DirecTV Basic ($12.99 per month) or any DirecTV base programming package ($29.99 per month or above).

     

    “The US has been keenly following the trends emerging in South Asia – right from politics to business to lifestyle. With NDTV 24×7 already available on DirecTV, we‘re glad to extend our relationship by offering the US audiences a complete insight into all that what India has to offer,” says NDTV Group head – affiliate sales and distribution Rahul Sood.


    “The launch of NDTV Good Times and NDTV Profit on DirecTV’s international programming platform allows us to deeply engage the South Asian audience in the US while strengthening our commitment to provide the highest-quality programming,” adds WorldDirect Inc VP John de Armas. “Our exclusive content gives the US Indian community a memorable television experience that is available only on DirecTV. The channels are most sought after Indian channels in the US and are only available on DirecTV‘s international programming platform.”


    Earlier, NDTV had signed similar agreements with BT to distribute NDTV‘s Arabia channel in the Dubai market and NDTV Imagine, the Hindi general entertainment channel, in the UK and US market over the Eurobird sky platform and EchoStar.

  • Airtel, Alcatel form managed services JV for broadband & telephone services

    NEW DELHI: Bharti Airtel and Alcatel-Lucent have formed a joint venture to design, plan, deploy, optimise and manage Airtel’s broadband and telephone services in India.









    Alcatel-Lucent will further manage Airtel’s transition to Next Generation Networks (NGN) ) to offer advanced services like high-speed internet, triple play, media-rich VAS, MPLS and VPN for both retail and business customers.

     

    A new legal entity is being formed which will be operated by Alcatel-Lucent.


    Says Bharti Airtel CEO and joint managing director Manoj Kohli, “This joint venture is another step towards Bharti Airtel’s vision to continuously redefine and deliver the benchmarks of customer experience. We will leverage Alcatel-Lucent’s global expertise in IP transformation and network management while allowing us to focus on customer delivery and market growth”.


    “It will also help us accelerate performances as we migrate to Next Generation Networks for our broadband and telephone customers, opening the door to advanced services and applications,” adds Kohli.


    Additionally, the partnership will drive optimal capital investment and increase operational efficiency by moving voice and data traffic onto a single, packetized infrastructure.


    “We appreciate the opportunity that Bharti Airtel has given us to demonstrate our worldwide expertise in network transformation, managed network services and IP transformation. The expansion of our relationship is drawn on our strengths as a global services player, ready to partner with innovative customers in their business transformation plans,” avers Alcatel-Lucent CEO Ben Verwaayen.

  • ABS-CBNi chooses Intelsat’s satellite to expand DTH capacity

    MUMBAI: Intelsat, the fixed satellite service provider company, has signed a multi-year contract with ABS-CBN International (ABS-CBNi), the Filipino-owned entertainment and broadcasting company based in North America.


    As per the deal, ABS-CBNi will use capacity on Intelsat‘s Galaxy 19 satellite, located at 97? W, to offer increased regional programming in North America to its clients. This will be done via ABS-CBNi’s fully-owned and operated San Francisco International Gateway teleport.


    Intelsat‘s Galaxy 19 satellite hosts one of the largest ethnic video platform in North America distributing approximately 180 international channels. It is located within Intelsat‘s premier Galaxy neighborhood.


    “The growing demand for our international programming within the US viewership requires that we have a solid satellite transmission partner who is able to meet our expansion needs. This contract will enable our San Francisco International Gateway to deliver more news, entertainment and specialty content to target audiences in North America,” said ABS-CBNi head of global engineering and technical services Sherry Ann Supelana.


    “We continue to see a surge for international programming into North America, and the reach of our Galaxy 19 satellite offers our customers the ability to maximise the value of their content, seamlessly transmitting it throughout the region,” added Intelsat VP Asia-Pacific David Ball.

  • NBA.com to add five video channels

    MUMBAI: NBA.com will unveil Barkley Zone, the new video channel that will cover exclusive videos of TNT analyst Charles Barkley during the 2009 NBA Playoffs.









    Additionally, four other video channels namely Highlights, Top Plays, NBA TV and TNT Overtime will also be launched. These video channels are part of the revamp exercise that NBA.com underwent especially for Playoffs.

     

    Barkley Zone will have Barkley speaking on various issues with ‘Sound Off‘ as he catches up with his ex-colleagues in a segment called ‘Where have they been?‘. The first to be in the show would be Mayor Kevin Johnson.”Charles is one of the most popular broadcasters in sports television. Our goal is to offer compelling video content across all our digital platforms to our fans and Charles is the perfect fit to lead the way for our playoff site with a channel of his own,” says NBA Digital SVP and GM Bryan Perez.

  • Pyramid Saimira to exit gaming biz













    MUMBAI: Pyramid Saimira Theatre Ltd. (PSTL) is exiting from the gaming business and is in the process of selling its gaming subsidiary Aurona Technologies.


    Though the company states that it‘s quitting the gaming business as the segment holds no long-term prospective.

     

    UK-based Aurona Technologies was acquired by the theatre chain group in January last year. The company was acquired so that Pyramid could make its presence felt in the European markets. Now, faced with a cash crunch in a downturn economy, the company is ready to negotiate the deal at low values.





     

    PSTL promoter and CMD PS Saminathan sold 6.037 per cent stake in the company following tight liquidity crunch in January this year. He also sold 1.7 million (1,707,000) shares in an off-market sale between 20-31 December last year.

  • CommunicAsia2009 & BroadcastAsia2009 expect strong participation

    MUMBAI: The organisers of CommunicAsia2009 and BroadcastAsia2009 are expecting a major presence of about 2,000 exhibiting companies from 65 countries and regions from across the globe during the show.


    The exhibitions, which will be held during 16-19 June at the Singapore Expo, are considered as biggest networking and sourcing platforms for the global infocomm and media industries.



    “The global gloom has accentuated the gleaming potential in Asia and increased the urgency in which international companies are moving into the continent,” said Singapore Exhibition Services CEO Stephen Tan. “CommunicAsia and BroadcastAsia’s established reputation and repeated ability to attract trade professionals from across the Asia Pacific region makes the shows the first choice for exhibiting companies, especially in the current environment of tighter budgets.”


    CommunicAsia2009 will focus on the latest “hot technologies” for applications, solutions and hardware. These key technologies include IPTV, mobile entertainment, WiMAX, navigation and LBS, satellite, Femtocell, e-Government, Green IT, and mobile internet.




    BroadcastAsia2009 will feature key technologies that draw interest and demand from the market. These include Broadcast-to-Handheld/Mobile TV, digital media asset management, high-definition technology, IPTV, mobile broadcasting and professional audio technology.


    Also, digital signage, which reflects the growing global demands of the retail, hospitality, transportation and entertainment industries for a medium to captivate their audiences, will be featured for the first time during the exhibition.



    A form of electronic display that is installed in public spaces, digital signage is set to replace the conventional printed posters with digital display panels. Visitors can look forward to displays from companies like Blackberry, Google, Harris, Huawei, LG, Navteq, Samsung, Yahoo! and ZTE.



    CommunicAsia, BroadcastAsia, CG Overdrive, as well as various inter-government meetings, are part of the Infocomm Media Business Exchange (imbX). It brings together business leaders, companies and industry professionals to showcase their latest innovations, network, exchange ideas and tap new markets, the company said in a release.

  • 110 pay channels are on cable networks in India: Tr









    MUMBAI: There are 110 pay and 180 free-to-air channels jostling for space on Indian cable networks, according to information provided by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India based on data collected from various multi-system operators (MSOs).


    Overall, there are 129 pay channels as on 31 December 2008. This is based on data provided by 19 broadcasters or their distributors to the sector regulator.


    Trai has also updated the figures for digital set-top boxes in Cas (conditional access system) areas till 31 December, 2008. The number of digital STBs has increased to 767,616, up 6.95 per cent from the previous quarter.



    The DTH subscriber base, served by five private operators, has touched 11.1 million till 31 December, 2008.


     

    In the radio business, apart from All India Radio, there are 245 operational private FM Radio stations across India, said Trai. In the three months, September-December only nine FM channels have been launched.



    Trai said that out of 60 licensees of community radio stations, 41 are in operation. In the previous quarter (ending 30 September), there were 57 community radio station licensees, out of which 36 were operational.



    Trai also mentioned that as per the reports submitted to it, 84 Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are providing broadband services in India. However, out of these 84 ISPs only 15 service providers are having a base of more than 10,000 subscribers each and these 15 service providers share 98.64 per cent of total subscriber base in this quarter.



    Internet wireline subscribers have reached 12.85 million, as compared to 12.24 million during the previous quarter (30 September, 2008). There are 5.52 million broadband subscribers, up 12.65 per cent from the previous quarter.


    The Average Revenue Per User (Arpu) for dial-up Internet subscribers remained Rs 221.97 for the quarter ending December, 2008, while the minutes of usage for dial-up access per subscriber/month is 214.23 minutes.



    The report also suggests that there are 101.1 million wireless Internet subscribers, capable of accessing Internet through mobile handset (GSM/ CDMA), for the quarter ending December 2008.



    Trai also mentioned in the report that the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has retained its top position with a subscriber base of 6.70 million Internet subscribers at the end of December 2008 against 6.38 million at the end of last quarter.