Category: Software

There are trials being conducted by three operators and the ministry of information is hoping that the service would launch after several months. As far as HDTV is concerned, there is one commercial service already on and two trials are running. Five operators are already offering IPTV.

TV Mobile, a subsidiary of Mediacorp, was the first channel in the world to pioneer the use of DVB-T technology to deliver content to consumers on the move, Dorrucci said.

TVMobile is currently available in 1,500 buses, shopping malls, food courts, ferries and academic institutions. It airs from 6 am to midnight. It currently has one transmitting site, nine filler transmitting sites and two transponders located island wide. The digital signal is carried via ATM and microwave transmitting medium to the main transmitting site before being retransmitted to the filler sites.

Meanwhile, TV2Go is the first independent mobile TV broadcasting network in Singapore. It is undergoing a trial on multiple platforms and on many consumer appliances. It supports over 20 digital channels and is available on a variety of electronic devices like PDA, laptops and PCs. GK Media is also launching new broadcast advertising platforms that will support the live reception of TV2go on taxis, buses and OOH billboards. It functions on the Terrestrial DVB-H standard.

The programme has been launched by the Directorate General of Employment and Training (DGET) using the EDUSAT satellite in the labour ministry on a pilot basis.

The lectures are being transmitted to 12 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) being covered under the Centres of Excellence (COE) scheme of DGET in Karnataka. The pilot programme is also being received in a number of other locations in the southern states.

The lectures cover subjects like life skills and engineering drawing.

The Central Government is the nodal agency for monitoring, supervision and coordination of vocational training in the country.

Director General of Employment and Training Sharda Prasad said the pilot programme has been launched to test the technology in the Vocational Training System and DGET also proposed to introduce it in all the ITI s of the country by setting up a National Studio at the Apex Hitech Institute in Bangalore and Regional Studios in different parts of the country in a phased manner.

Speaking at the Mobile TV Forum at Broadcast today, Nokia‘s Pawan Gandhi said that with the Oxford Pilot in England had 83 per cent satisfactory results.

The drivers were the choice of channels offered and strong quality of picture and sound. It also did pilots in Paris and in Madrid and Barcelona. A majority of the triallists were willing to pay for the service with 76 per cent willing to take it up in a year if the price was right.

Mobile TV will combine broadcast and user generated content in future, he said. Advertising on this platform will have to become brand related, engaging and entertaining.

Mobile TV will put a lot of emphasis on personalization and interactivity. This will be one of the keys to whether it succeeds or not.

Gandhi also advocated an open global standard that would offer value for money. There will be both cost and price reductions with volume growth as several vendors invest. It will also allow for a wide range of offerings at attractive prices.

Nokia is working with DVB-H, IPDC and OMA BCAST standardisation efforts. Last year Motorola and Nokia had announced their common interoperability message.

Nokia is also a member of industry bodies to push the cause of mobile TV. “DVB-H changes the mobile media delivery landscape. It has upto 50 TV channels, hundreds of radio channels, and is DRM enabled,” Gandhi said.

International Association of Broadcasting Manufacturers (IABM) CEO Roger Crumpton elaborated on the complex supply chain scenario while presenting the top-line findings of a global research study into the issues facing the broadcast and media technology space.

There are over 1400 technology suppliers out of which eight have a share of 45 per cent, he said.

Non-broadcast specialists are coming in from the sellers side. The role of intermediaries is growing in terms of system integration, he elaborated.

Storage and test quality control are the two areas that have seen a rise in prices as channels buy equipment. Playout and delivery and the biggest areas in broadcast technology. For broadcasters though, there is uncertainty as mergers and acquisitions are happening on the sellers side.

The dynamics of the market are complex. Indonesia, for instance, has 60 million homes half of which own a TV.

In Malaysia, the overall population is six million but 96 per cent have a TV. While 37 per cent have pay TV in Malaysia, in Indonesia it is just 0.2 per cent. More and more broadcasters will outsource technology requirements and firms like Siemens have stepped in.

Library and asset management products are growing at 25 per cent. This kind of information allows channels to know from where they can expect a good price. However, there is a problem which was focussed upon in a panel discussion.

The speakers included Tandberg Television executive VP and GM – Asia Pacific Graham Cradock, Miranda Technology president – Asia Pacific Richard Brice, Software Generation sales and marketing director, Bernie Walsh. The problem is that there are not enough IT specialists on the broadcast side and not enough broadcast specialists on the IT side. In Asia, channels expect hand holding in terms of how technology works as well as support and maintenance. They are not used to paying for it which is not the case in Europe.

Free service is a cause for concern for firms like Tandberg Television. The sellers at the same time need to get their people up to speed on issues of real time in a broadcasting facility. A crunch time will be coming soon in terms of equipment and pricing.

Also, suppliers find that channels that deploy equipment on new platforms experience problems later on. It is crucial for channels to have workflows organised in terms of how technology is implemented.

While there are new software workflow tools coming out, the technology people at many channels have to be trained each time a new piece of equipment is bought.

Sometimes channels go back to the old system, which results in a waste of money. Channels need to, thus, spend money on training at centers. Also suppliers need to interact more with channels to find out their requirements.

Singapore‘s MediaCorp Technologies VP, new media Kenneth Lee offered a broadcasters perspective in terms of adapting to a rapidly changing technology environment. Technology is not a business driver but an enabler, he said.

MediaCorp did an Open TV trial for interactive TV in 2000, he elaborated. The business model for this platform at that time, however, was not viable. Now they are looking at MPEG 5, encouraged by the success of Sky Digital in the UK.

Technology is all not the be all and end all. For news, MediaCorp implemented a project, Advanced Digital Asset Management (Adam). Here there is a central server where one can pull out data for playback, editing. However the firm also made sure that their workflow was in order. So there is a project director under whom there are three groups.

MediaCorp is also trialling HDTV as it feels that now is the right time for it with prices dropping. The firm did an Air Review project and created a server based recording system on Windows Media. All content was recorded. Then the MobTV pay service was launched online. This allows people to download archival material for a fee.

Crumpton also dwelt on how content that was createsd for linear television is being used in a non linear manner. Youtube is a great example. A show called Britain‘s Go Talent featured an aspiring opera singer who works in a warehouse. On Youtube, it got 3.7 million views and 8000 comments.

IT and telecom are impacting the broadcasting space. Today one buys telephone, broadband and TV from a single source. Since India has a lower age demographic, the adoption of new technologies will be faster here. That is what suppliers and channels need to bear in mind. For channels it is good that the telecom firms who are entering broadcasting, are investing heavily on R&D.

This was the focus of Asia Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) director, technical department Wayne Heads‘ address this morning at BroadcastAsia.

Showcasing the status of technology deployment in a number of key countries in the region, Heads said digitalisation significantly improved services to the viewer like interactivity. In radio, there is also an enhancement in existing services like HD Radio. There are also new services in new frequency bands with DAB, ISDB-TSB & satellite radio.

New platforms are coming up with internet radio and mobile phones. Enhanced analogue is happening with Visual Radio. Many radio stations like AMP (Astro), Media Corp Radio, RTM, RNZ, KBS, TRT, IRIB, RTB, NHK are fully digital.

However progress is slow in terms of transmission and receivers are the main inhibitor to progress.

There are a few operations underway for the standards DAB, DAB+, DRM, DRM+, HD Radio. While Singapore is going for DAB, Australia will go for the DAB+ standard.

In television, digital standards are settling down. DVB-T is leading the way in Asia. The Asean countries will adopt DVB-T which could be a major step forward.

MPEG-4 AVC will help in the compression process.

In terms of studio development, there has been major deployment of non-linear editing systems for post production and newsrooms by most major and medium size broadcasters. Many have digitalised transmission playout like TVNZ in New Zealand. However progress in terms of comprehensive asset management systems, has been slow to come as costs are high. HD compatible equipment is increasingly becoming the norm but the debate still continues over extra costs.

As far as mobile TV goes, it is getting introduced in Korea and Japan. But there is a battle of the systems – DMB -T/S, DVB-H, MediaFlo. China, Indonesia, Malaysia and others are running trials and planning to implement this. Regulators in some countries are allowing the market to decide the system. Though receivers are expensive, variety of choice is available in the market. Content developments for small screen are on the rise and this is also being driven by 3G.

In terms of media on the internet, internet radio is underway.

iPOD audio content is offered. TV content downloads are on offer but copyright is a concern. The feasibility of P2P and multicasting is being studied in some countries.

IPTV over broadband is taking place in Korea. What is hampering digitsation in Asia is that many countries have hardly started planning their digitalisation unlike Australia, US and the UK. While there is a long way to go, Asian broadcasters in many countries are embracing the new ecosystem.

“Now MySpace users can discover classic TV shows in a stylized, modern format.Teaming with Sony to debut The Minisode Network exclusively on MySpace gives our millions of users yet another reason to make MySpace Video a daily destination,” said MySpace CEO Chris DeWolfe.

Sony pictures television president Steve Mosko said, “We are thrilled to be launching The Minisode Network, which will bring some of America‘s favourite television shows to a whole new audience in an interesting new format that‘s perfect for digital platforms.”

Each Minisode is three to five minutes in length and has the full story arc of the original episode.

The Minisode Network will launch with three episodes each from 15 classic series: Partridge Family, Starsky & Hutch,TJ Hooker, Charlie‘s Angel, Diff‘rent Strokes, Facts of Life,Silver Spoons, Who‘s the Boss?, What‘s Happening!!, Dilbert,Sheena, Fantasy Island, Police Woman, VIP and Ricki Lake.

New minisodes will be added weekly with more than 500 episodes available by the end of the year, an official release stated. MySpace video‘s announcement to debut The Minisode Network is the latest in a series of announcements of upcoming product and content developments, including a branded channels section featuring premium content from top news and lifestyle brands.

All IT technology and services should be based on broadband Internet.

However, without good user experiences in broadband environment, people can‘t notice new technology and new business model for broadband internet. These points were made by E-Book Systems COO Akira Kamei who dwelt on what the advent of broadband would mean for consumers. In terms of new applications for broadband and new business models, what is required is broadband infrastructure and an advanced user interface.

He dwelt on the Back Mirror Phenomenon. In the early stages of any new media development, existing contents of the “old media” tend to be transferred to the new media directly. Movies in early stages showed only theater plays. Specially made movie productions came later. TV programmes in the early stages showed mainly movie contents.

Contents in broadband have started out with songs and movies. Likewise, specially made new contents will come to broadband internet also.

“Softbank Creative has investigated the possibility of the eBook business and done many trials for more than five years. We have selected FlipBook technology and established E-Book Systems in 2004. The friendly interface is exactly the same as the real book. For scrolling there is multi-page flipping. It also offers a new internet ad platform,” says Kamei.

He stresses that the eBook Business for Softbank Creative is not just conversions from paper books but creating new type of an eBook for broadband internet.

It is looking at ad revenue because it takes two to three years for users to change their behaviour to pay for content.

MUMBAI: Disney-ABC International Television (Asia Pacific) hosted the Second Annual Digital Media Showcase in Asia Pacific with participation from the Walt Disney Internet Group, Disney Channel, ESPN Star Sports, and its U.S. television network ABC.

A cross-section of broadcasters, mobile operators, content aggregators, ISPs, and triple-play providers from around the region attended the event. Executives from across The Walt Disney Company showcased how the Company views and is leading the way in the digital media space and how it‘s addressing the challenges and opportunities created by new technology and the consumers who use it. This showcase is in line with the Company‘s commitment and focus on the application of technology to enhance its content and expand its distribution, states an official release.

Senior U.S. executives from the Disney-ABC Television Group shared perspectives and insights into the landmark initiatives that have revolutionized the way consumers view content, including the ABC.com broadband media player, with a live demo shown to guests for the first time internationally and the unprecedented multi-year agreement with Sprint for news, kids, and entertainment programming on mobile.

Also announced by Disney-ABC International Television (Asia Pacific) was the first internet movie VOD deal in Australia with Telstra BigPond. Over the past year and a half, Disney-ABC International Television (Asia Pacific) has concluded a number of digital media deals worldwide.

MUMBAI: Yahoo Inc. has appointed co-founder Jerry Yang as CEO. He replaces chairman and chief executive Terry Semel, after pressure from investors for a management shake-up.

Semel, a former Warner Brothers executive who took charge of Yahoo six years ago, had met with criticism of failing to meet the challenges posed by Google in web-search and advertising and more recently after the rise of social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook.

At the annual shareholders meeting last week, agitated investors called for a management overhaul and ballots representing a third of investors casting ballots opposed re-electing one or more directors. This built up pressure on Yahoo‘s board for changes in the management structure.

Analysts however say that the shake-up may only be a prelude to a more substantial corporate overhaul, which might include a merger or a sale.

Yang and Semel said that they had been considering changes for sometime and Semel notified the board that he wanted to step down sooner or later.

In an interview to International Herald Tribune, Yang said some of his primary functions would be reinvigorate the company and attract top talent, not to overhaul its strategy. “We have a very clear strategy in place and we are executing on it. I very much see the CEO role as something I plan to do for a while,” he said.

The development is likely to take place across 1,450 stores when Blockbuster expands its hi-def offerings next month. The decision was helped in large part by the increasing availability of titles in Blu-ray, according to sources.

Since last year, both the formats have been highly competitive. Studios are hoping that the HD discs, with sharper picture, interactive special features and games will replace standard definition DVDs.

The formats are incompatible though and neither will play on standard DVD players, although standard DVDs can be viewed with either a Blu-ray or HD DVD player.

Till now, Blockbuster Inc. has been renting both Blu-ray and HD DVD titles in 250 stores since late last year. Consumers habits revealed that Blu-ray titles were being rented more than 70 per cent of the time. However, Blockbuster will continue to rent HD DVD titles in the original 250 locations and online.