Category: Software

MUMBAI: Asian mobile media services firm i-Pop will kick off the inauguration of action adventure network AXN Asia‘s mobile interactive WAP site wap.axn-asia.com.

The mobile launch is in conjunction with the debut of AXN‘s biggest original production in Asia – The Amazing Race Asia between 9-14 November. The series will be broadcast across Asia through AXN‘s four programming feeds.

i-Pop has been appointed to develop and manage an interactive, user-friendly mobile Wap site that will further bridge AXN‘s on-air offerings with its viewers. The mobile platform will immerse viewers through value-added interactivity of their award-winning series and original productions, allowing them to have a seamless, well-rounded, enriching entertainment experience that complements their TV viewing.

i-Ppop says that it will play a key role in facilitating the network‘s tri-media approach of on-air, online and mobile platforms in promoting the key properties of AXN. The SMS entry mechanism enables content downloads and on-air contests to be accessed via the ease of a mobile phone. The aim is to optimise viewer participation and create greater synergies in the branding prowess of AXN as well as its advertisers, through integrated campaigns that will enhance viewer experience.
Jointly working with telecommunication and cable operators in the various regions – Starhub (Singapore), Astro (Malaysia), Smart (Philippines) and other major operators in Hong Kong, i-Pop spearheaded the Phase One launch of AXN Mobile that will allow viewers to download funky ringtones and wallpapers at AXN mobile storefront.

Fans of the The Amazing Race Asia can also subscribe to a video streaming service for interviews and clips from the latest episodes. Viewers can also expect MMS content, mobile gaming and other services to be made available in more countries in the coming months.

iPop executive VP Colin Miles says, “i-Pop has had four years of front line experience working strategically with the topmost media brands in Asia to effectively enable mobile integration across all their key touch points. We are delighted to support AXN‘s suitably adventurous approach, grasping the challenge and setting a strong direction to utilise mobile in a truly connected way for their viewers across the region. i-Pop is proud to be able to work with this leading network in delivering dynamic rich media content to its mobile viewers”.

Mobile phone content, such as music, gaming and video, is forecast to reach $43 billion in sales worldwide by 2010, according to a report by research firm iSuppli Corp. Media organisations are now seeing the significant value and a new source of revenue in applying mobile media services to their brand output and viewer relationships. Even the most casual viewer cannot fail to see SMS interactions and mobile contest being widely propagated across both terrestrial TV stations and cable networks.

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MUMBAI: AsiaSat satellite system operator CEO Peter Jackson has been awarded with the Casbaa chairman‘s award 2006 for outstanding contribution to the Asia Pacific multi-channel cable, satellite and broadband pay-TV industries in the previous 12 months.

Jackson has been a member of Casbaa for almost all of the association‘s 15 year history and a member of the board of directors for seven years.

The Casbaa chairman‘s award 2006 was presented at the conclusion of the Casbaa TV advertising awards held on the final day of the Casbaa Convention 2006 in Hong Kong.

Casbaa chairman Marcel Fenez said, “With his pan-regional responsibilities and a background in telecommunications, Peter has developed an almost unique understanding of media and telecoms issues which has hugely benefited our industry and the association.”

The formal citation for Jackson‘s award reads, “In recognition of Peter Jackson‘s unparalleled professionalism and integrity in one of the most competitive sectors within our industry and his ongoing commitment to the association.”

“Beyond that, Peter‘s contribution‘s to the association as a board member and the leading representative of the satellite sector has helped enormously to create the credible industry voice that we are today,” added Fenez.

Jackson said, “I am honoured to receive this award. But the honour is as much for the team at AsiaSat as it is for me. I also think the award is an endorsement of the general achievements of Casbaa itself in the years that I have been involved. “

The other nominees for the 2006 Casbaa chairman‘s award were:

HBO
For the launch (and marketing) of the new HBO multiplexes which maintain programming quality whilst adding to customer choice and ease of proposition understanding.

Nokia
For the promotion of the DVB-supported DVB-H standard and its efforts to generate a greater understating of the mobile TV opportunity to both mobile platform operators and content providers.

PCCW – NOW TV
For the continued expansion of its subscriber base and the proactive marketing of a secure and advanced pay-TV platform with a growing interactive capability.

Star TV
For establishing a broad range of tailored channels, to cater to specific needs (such as South India programming). The network has also demonstrated a deep understanding of the industry‘s future, both on-air and into platforms such as mobile. And STAR TV has been a leader in branded content.

Starhub
For aggressively expanded its channel line-up and invested in enhancing and marketing its services. The total number of channels has increased to 94. Starhub recently introduced a digital video recorder set-top box; launched pay per view service, FlexiWatch – engaged in an HD trial; and, launched a new brand campaign ‘For the life that I love, I am a hub‘ to drive subscription.

Marketing Magazine (Singapore)
In recognition of its excellent work in promoting the delivery of key demographics by cable and satellite channels to advertisers.

MUMBAI: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) has added more programming from MGM’s television library to iTunes Store.

The 22 half-hour episodes from the first season of the television classic The Addams Family are available on iTunes.
Other popular MGM classics, including 32 one-hour episodes from the first season of the original science fiction series The Outer Limits and 32 half-hour episodes of the animated Pink Panther television series will also be available from the iTunes Store later this week.

“We are excited to launch more of MGM‘s premium and classic television programming through the iTunes Store,” said Doug Lee, MGM new media division executive vice president. “We have over 10,000 hours of television programming so making MGM hit series available to the iTunes community is a great way for us to continue our expansion in the new media world.”

Earlier this year MGM made episodes of the hit science fiction/adventure series Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis available for purchase and download through the iTunes Store.

Since forming its new media division in April of this year and recruiting Lee to supervise the unit, MGM continues to expand in the new media world, exercising the upside potential of the company‘s massive programming library. Additional new media announcements are expected in the future.

MUMBAI: Hungama Mobile and Excel Entertainment, the producers of Don, have launched two mobile games on the movie and is said to be the first ever multiplayer online game for any bollywood movie on www.gaminghungama.com .

The graphics of the game have been done at the same level as the quality of special effects in the movie to give it a contemporary look and the action sequences are just as slick as the movie itself.

The game created by Hungama Mobile, was unveiled by Shah Rukh Khan in Mumbai, along with the film‘s producer Ritesh Sidhwani and the director Farhan Akhtar.

Speaking at the launch, Shah Rukh said, “Not only is it a treat for the game lover‘s but also a great way to merchandise.This is just an initial step for this kind of a market and i‘m sure it will grow tremendously in the time to come”

Hungama Mobile MD and CEO Neeraj Roy said, “Our creative and gaming team visited Kuala Lumpur for the making of the movie to understand the flow of the movie and decide on game play. They came back and worked on the concept and created a storyboard and later the virtual game.”

“The Hungama creative team watched the movie rushes including car crashes in Kuala Lumpur, sky diving and some of the fight sequences and have incorporated all those hair-raising stunts in the game,” said movie director Farhan Akhtar.

The game is available on mobile and online as a multiplayer game. All operators in India including Hutch, Airtel, Reliance, Tata, Idea and others will provide the Don game. Besides, it will also be available across the Hungama mobile distribution network with over 50 carriers in 20 countries.

MUMBAI: Music label BMG Japan and software major Apple have announced the availability of Japanese and international artists on the iTunes Store in Japan.

The addition of the BMG Japan catalogue brings Japaenese pop and international artists to the iTunes Store beginning today, including Alicia Keys, Avril Lavigne, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Foo Fighters, Justin Timberlake, Kasabian, Outkast, Pink, Seamo, Suga Shikao, Sukima Switch, Usher and more.

v executrive VP, co GM Daniel DiCicco says, “BMG Japan is delighted to join forces with Apple to make the wealth of our catalogue available through the iTunes Store in Japan. We look forward to continuing to drive BMG Japan’s digital development through this very important relationship by connecting the iTunes community to top J-Pop and international artists from BMG Japan.”

Apple VP iTunes Eddy Cue says, “Top artists, breakthrough pricing, seamless integration with iPod and groundbreaking personal use rights have made iTunes the number one online music service in Japan. We’re thrilled to bring BMG’s impressive catalog to iTunes so fans in Japan can download and enjoy even more great music.”

The iTunes Store in Japan now features more than two million songs, 3,500 music videos, Disney and Pixar short films, 65,000 podcasts and 16,000 audiobooks. With over 90 percent of songs priced at just 150 yen per song, the iTunes Store offers the great value and features that have made iTunes the number one online music service in the world, with over 1.5 billion songs purchased and downloaded. BMG Japan will continue to add more of its extensive catalog to the iTunes Store in the coming months.

MUMBAI:Global media firm Zonemedia has announced the launch of the first made-for-mobile horror series, When Evil Calls in the UK.

Digital channel Zone Horror and its sister company Zone Mobile, have joined forces with Pure Grass Films to create the 20-episode series. The series launched in association with British mobile firm O2. Viewers who prefer a more traditional TV watching experience will be able to tune into Zone Horror next week, when a behind the scenes documentary will be broadcast.

When Evil Calls centres around the mysterious appearance of a text message that grants the students at Willburn Hall their wildest desires. A-cup Alice wants bigger breasts, until her cup runneth over in an explosive mathematics class. Hilary would give her right arm to lose weight and the blades of a kitchen waste disposal unit oblige. One by one, Willburn s students learn a lethal lesson: be careful what you wish for.

When Evil Calls is written and directed by rising British horror star Johannes Roberts. Each two minute episode has been shot expressly for mobile devices. It stars Jennifer Lim, Dominique Pinon and Chris Barrie.

Roberts says, “When Evil Calls has forged new ground in my film-making career. Shooting two minute episodes meant really focusing the writing and intensifying the story. The result is a fast-paced, hilarious and scary romp that I hope will be enjoyed on cell phones throughout the world.”

The series is available for download for O2 customers in the UK via O2 Active. Customers can access the content from within the Film section of the O2 Active portal or alternatively they can text the word WISH to 61616 where they will receive a WAP push with a WAP URL which will link them straight into the content. It will also be available on general release through the Zone Horror Wap site and all major UK mobile operators.

Zone Horror‘s Tanya Gugenheim says, “We are breaking new ground. Mobile television is set to change they way we tune in to our entertainment. Together with our partners Pure Grass Films and O2, Zone Horror is proud to present a small screen series with big screen production values.”

O2 UK capability and innovation director Russ Shaw says, “We are very pleased to be delivering such a high value video production to our customers across the entire video enabled device range through O2 Active. When Evil Calls is a great piece of light entertainment that our subscribers will have a lot of fun with during the Halloween season and beyond.”

Producers Zone Horror and Pure Grass Films advise viewer discretion as the series contains scenes of a violent and sexual nature, horror, nudity and intimidation. O2 will only make the series available after the 9 pm watershed to safeguard the younger audience

MUMBAI: Skycom Satellite Systems is being selected by MediaCorp to develop a High Definition TV set top box in Singapore for the HDTV trial starting June 2007 for a period of six months.

Skycom Satellite Systems has manufactured different models of Satellite and Terrestrial set top boxes being sold directly to end users, TV Operators as well as OEM manufacturing for various established brands.

In this HDTV STB project, which is considered the first in the world, Skycom Satellite Systems is the main development center using technologies from Singapore, India and HK/China, according to an official release.

With less than six months to start from concept development, to product and software development, comprehensive testing in laboratory and with Mediacorp and ST engineers, plus the boxes to be manufactured and delivered in June, the official launch date of Singapore HDTV service,the mission is critical with huge time pressure.

And it is foreseen that there is requirement to integrate IPTV function with DTT box or vice versa. For example, Skycom box, with further R&D development, can receive the IPTV service(s) that may be launched in Singapore.

According to official statement, plans are underway to offer hundreds of channels on IPTV in the near future to the company / MTNL subscribers.

“We are very pleased that Star TV has taken the lead in the IPTV Revolution, which is set to sweep the country. By signing up with IOL Broadband, Star TV will be the first bouquet of channels to be made available on the IOL / MTNL Broadband Networks,” IOL Broadband director Oberai said

MUMBAI: Rainbow HD Holdings, LLC (Rainbow), has added new Voom HD content to its slate of offerings distributed by Tangerine Global, LLC to five star hotels in Hong Kong.

Rave HD is said to be the fifth Voom HD brand to be distributed by Tangerine Global, with the other four brands-Rush HD, Equator HD, Ultra HD and Gallery HD.

Rave HD will be accessible to Mandarin Oriental Hotels‘ newly refurbished flagship property in Hong Kong, according to an official release.

Provider of customised television entertainment for the hospitality industry, Tangerine Global first turned to Rainbow last year to provide high-quality HDTV content for its five-star hotel clientele, informs the statement.

The companies began with a lineup of four Rainbow brands for distribution to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group and The Peninsula Hotels.

Rave HD was added to the lineup earlier this month, when Hong Kong‘s Mandarin Oriental Hotel reopened to a gala celebration after undergoing a $140 million dollar rennovation to incorporate revolutionary technology, comfort and design.

All guest rooms and suites now feature flat screen high-definition televisions on which guests will find Voom‘s thematic programming and two additional custom HD channels-Wine & Beverage and Fitness & Yoga-developed by Tangerine.

Tangerine Global CEO Stuart Levin adds, “The innovations made to The Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong are awe-inspiring, making it truly the perfect setting in which to enjoy Voom HD‘s top-of-the-line programming.”

HONG KONG: Nokia stamped its commitment to broadcast mobile TV by live simulcast demonstration of pay-TV channels on its Digital Video Broadcast-Handheld (DVB-H) enabled Nokia N92.

Being showcased for the first time at the Casbaa convention, which brings together the leading participants in the Asia-Pacific region’s television industry, the demonstration includes the first-ever broadcast of Casbaa TV channel that is broadcasting the conference proceedings live, and several other international pay-TV channels during the convention.

“The first-ever broadcast of the Casbaa TV channel and several pay-TV channels on the Nokia N92 at the annual Casbaa convention gives the industry further proof that broadcast mobile TV using DVB-H technology is a reality,”
an official statement quoted Jawahar Kanjilal, Director, Multimedia Experiences, Asia-Pacific, Nokia, as saying.

“With pay-TV subscriptions approaching saturation in many countries, the industry’s leading participants now have first-hand evidence of how the mobile device can help extend their broadcast footprint across the region,” he added.

During the week of the convention, Casbaa delegates and officials have been issued with Nokia N92 multimedia computers, which will enable them to stay connected with the conference while enjoying the personal television experience.

“Nokia is fully committed to broadcast mobile TV and the DVB-H technology, and we will strive towards an open and competitive ecosystem similar to the one that has made GSM/WCDMA-based mobile telephony so successful today,”
added Kanjilal.

In September this year, Nokia and the Vietnam Multimedia Corporation, Vietnam’s leading national broadcaster and operator in digital broadcasting, announced the decision to launch commercial broadcast mobile TV services to Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi by the end of 2006.

Consumers in both cities will enjoy seven digital TV channels and a near video-on-demand service – on the Nokia N92, from a catalog of selected titles offered by VTC.

In June this year, the DVB-H Asia Pacific Alliance (DAPA), comprising Australia’s The Bridge Networks, MECA from Indonesia, Malaysia’s MiTV, and Nokia was established to promote the sharing of best practices and to keep member companies appraised of new business and technological developments in broadcast mobile TV.

The group will also support regulatory preparation and discussion to facilitate the adoption of DVB-H as the standard for mobile TV in the Asia Pacific region.

Nokia also announced interoperability agreements with Sony-Ericsson and Motorola earlier this year.

During the FIFA World Cup in Germany this year, multivendor interoperability was showcased with the Nokia N92 multimedia computer and DVB-H enabled devices from other manufacturers, in a pilot project run by German mobile network operators E-Plus, O2, T-Mobile and Vodafone.

In the Asia Pacific region, Nokia has participated in broadcast mobile TV trials in Singapore, Australia, Malaysia, India, Indonesia, and Taiwan (R.O.C).

Globally, pilots and market research studies so far have shown high positive feedback for broadcast mobile TV services.