Category: Software

HONG KONG: Anytime, Asia-Pacific‘s leading video-on-demand (VoD) channel, has signed a five-year distribution deal with Indian broadband player India On-Line Broadband Ltd.

Four million homes in Mumbai and Delhi will have access to Anytime VoD movie channel and interactive games channels by March 2007.

The VoD movie channel will be an exclusive provider of Hollywood programming and will form the cornerstone of the MTNL-IOL and BSNL-IOL IPTV platform, which are supported by the two government controlled telecom companies.

The Anytime channel is expected to go live in December this year, making a range of Hollywood movies— both recent and library titles— and interactive games available on d demand to consumers.

The announcement was made here at the ongoing annual convention of Casbaa.

Hong Kong: The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa) has announced the formal launch of the Casbaa Mobile Group, a team of organisation members dedicated to the effective, business-model focused deployment of mobile TV services across the Asia Pacific.

The announcement was made during the first plenary day of the Casbaa Convention 2006 in Hong Kong.

Among the Casbaa members participating in this Casbaa Group are mobile content providers such as Turner Broadcasting, ESPN Star Sports, CNBC Asia, BBC World, Star Group, Walt Disney Television International and Sony Pictures TV International, as well as platform operator PCCW, handset manufacturer Nokia and chipset supplier Sun Microsystems.

The Casbaa Mobile Group met with the DVB-H Asia Pacific Alliance (Dapa), which comprises DVB-H dedicated broadcast platform operators such as Bridge Networks of Australia, MiTV of Malaysia and MECA from Indonesia, as well as Nokia, an official statement from Casbaa said.

“The Casbaa objective is to create an environment where the regulatory and business issues surrounding Mobile TV can be debated with hard information exchanged to encourage the distribution of paid video content to as many Mobile TV subscribers as possible,” said Casbaa CEO Simon Twiston Davies.

The Casbaa engagement with Dapa followed a meeting earlier in the year with the Asia Mobile Initiative (AMI), where video-to-mobile streaming information was exchanged with roaming platforms M1-Vodafone (Singapore), Celcom (Malaysia), DTAC (Thailand) and SMART (Philippines).

“As is demonstrated by the heavy emphasis on mobile issues in our the Casbaa Convention programme this year, the pay-TV industry places the development of a robust business model for Mobile TV as one of its highest priorities for our digital future,” said Twiston Davies.

There is a long-term commitment by the content industry to work more closely with mobile platforms and manufacturers to create an economically viable business for everyone. This is just the beginning of the development of new and substantive revenue stream for our industry, he added.

Headquartered in Colorado in the US, EchoStar Communications Corporation is a public company with approximately 21,000 employees. The company and its subsidiaries deliver direct broadcast satellite (DBS) television products and services to customers worldwide, apart from recent interests in mobile television.

“We are always looking for opportunities in various parts of the world and India is no exception,” Zimmer told Indiantelevision.com here today on the sidelines of the annual convention of Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa).

However, he added that there are no immediate plans from EchoStar to invest in India, though Zimmer spent a few days recently in Mumbai to have first-hand information on Asia’s largest market after China.

In the short to medium term I don’t see ourselves making any commitment in India. But it’s too big a market to be ignored for too long by anybody,” Zimmer said.

According to him, whenever EchoStar gets into India it would be with a local partner and it’s “important to find the right partner.”

“India does have some DBS services (read DTH platforms) and I expect some more players to come,” Zimmer said, adding that the Zee group should have its work cut out to take on a “gorilla” like Tata Sky.

While Tata Sky, India’s second pay DTH platform, is a joint venture between the Tatas and News Corp, the Subhash Chandra-controlled Dish TV is chugging along without a foreign partner.

Indian media norms allow foreign direct investment of up to 20 per cent in a DTH venture and it is a subject of much debate within the industry whether this percentage should be increased or not.

Zimmer, however, refused to make any comment when asked whether he had held exploratory talks with the Essel/Zee group during his last visit to Mumbai.

“It would be improper on my part to make any sort of comment … (but) both the Zee Group and EchoStar share same sort of heritage in the sense that both grew from scratch,” Zimmer said.

Still, the man advising the legendary Ergen points out that while EchoStar’s competitor’s during the early stages were also growing in the US, the Zee group in contrast has a “gorilla like the Tatas” competing with it.

Zimmer also feels that what could be shying away some foreign investors from India is the presence of “strong and dominant” Indian companies like the Tatas and Reliance.

As per EchoStar‘s website, the company story began in 1980 when chairman and CEO Charlie Ergen entered the satellite television industry as a distributor of C-band TV systems. Joined by his wife, Candy, and friend, James DeFranco,
EchoStar Communications Corporation was formed.

In 1987, EchoStar filed for a DBS license with the Federal Communications Commission and was granted access to orbital slot 119° West Longitude in 1992. The company started its own DBS service on 28 December, 1995 with the launch of EchoStar I satellite.

That same year, EchoStar established the Dish Network brand name. EchoStar II, launched on September 10, 1996, and expanded Dish Network‘s capacity. Presently, the 14 owned or leased satellites that make up the EchoStar fleet have the capacity to provide thousands of channels of digital video, audio and data services via Dish Network service to homes, businesses and schools throughout the United States.

MUMBAI: Integrated Media Holdings (I-Media) has acquired global online auction and e-commerce company Bidchaser.

I Media builds and operates digital communications and media technologies businesses. The acquisition was completed through a 100 per cent share exchange with a Florida corporation owned by I-Media.

Bidchaser will continue to operate under the same trade name.

Bidchaser CEO Harish Shah and Bidchaser president and CTO Leonardo Cunha will continue in the key management roles.

Interestingly, Bidchaser is also planning to accelerate I-Media‘s broadband video business expansion by developing content clients and broadband video projects in India, the Middle East, and the Southeast Asian market – complementing Endavo‘s current North and Latin American business.

According to an official release, Bidchaser has already begun generating revenues from its newest e-commerce merchant services and e-commerce portal. The acquisition gives I-Media an e-commerce platform and a number of other critical technologies and business processes that significantly augment the entire I-Media Group‘s current capabilities.

“This transaction will significantly reduce I-Media‘s overall cost of our development and sales, while immediately improving our balance sheet by adding some important software assets,” said I-Media CEO Paul D Hamm.

“By acquiring Bidchaser, our top line growth will also be accelerated with their own e-commerce business and by augmenting our broadband video business with additional integrated platforms made available for content owners to sell movies and programs online,” he added.

The acquisition of Bidchaser gives I-Media its third wholly-owned high-tech subsidiary, joining Endavo Media and Communications and WV Fiber in the I-Media Group, informs the statement.

The three companies are joining forces to launch a new digital broadcast network, which provides content owners the first turnkey solution to monetise their programming assets over broadband and reach a broader consumer market.

I-Media has also announced that Bidchaser co-founder Harish Shah has been appointed to serve on the company‘s board of directors. Shah has served as the chief strategic planner for the Bidchaser Marketplace ecommerce network.

Over the last three years, he has led Bidchaser in building an auction, trading and community website that caters to the small retailer, the worldwide consumer and the auction enthusiasts, as stated in the statement.

Cunha said, “Bidchaser is excited to be a part of the I-Media group. The combined resources, expertise, and strategic vision in the digital commerce marketplace shared by Bidchaser and I-Media will make this a rapidly successful and profitable venture.”

MUMBAI: ASC Enterprises has appointed Hutchison Essar South Ltd Arun Kumar Kapoor as Dish TV CEO.

Kapoor fills in the post that had been left vacant after the departure of Sunil Khanna. Kapoor will be taking charge from 1 November and would be based out of company‘s head quarters in Noida, according to an official release.

Kapoor comes from Hutchison Essar South Limited, where he was functioning in the role of CEO for the Punjab Circle.

He brings along with him a vast experience of 23 years in various spheres of business across leading organizations in the country. A management graduate from Jamnalal Bajaj Institute, Mumbai, he has been instrumental in setting up and managing operations for Bharti Group/Spice Cell ltd. and lately for Hutch for the Punjab circle, informs the release.

He was associated with companies like UB Group, Gillette, Pepsi, Spice Cell, Airtel, IBM Daksh and Hutch.

Announcing Kapoor‘s appointment Dish TV business head Jawahar Goel said, “We are glad to have Arun with us. We are confident that his leadership experience will surely provide great impetus to the growth plans of Dish TV.”

MUMBAI: IBM has filed two patent infringement lawsuits against online book and retail major Amazon.com for unspecified damages.

The lawsuits come after nearly four years of attempts by IBM to resolve its concerns with Amazon.com over infringement of IBM’s patents.

The suits were filed in two District Courts for the Eastern District of Texas: one suit in the Tyler Division and the other suit in the Lufkin Division.

IBM Technology and Intellectual Property senior VP Dr. John E. Kelly III says, “We filed this case for a very simple reason. IBM‘s property is being knowingly and unfairly exploited. IBM is one of the world‘s leading creators of intellectual property and one of the most progressive in embracing new, highly collaborative ways of driving and managing innovation.

“Everything we do is premised on the fundamental principle that IBM‘s intellectual property is one of our core assets, and represents the work product of tens of thousands of scientists and engineers and billions of dollars of investment.”

IBM said that Amazon.com has willfully infringed and continues to infringe on a number of key IBM patents.

Dating back to September 2002, IBM says that it has notified Amazon.com numerous times of the infringement, but Amazon.com has shown no willingness to have meaningful discussions.

“When someone takes our property, without our permission through a license, we have no option but to protect it through every means available to us,” said Kelly.

IBM holds more than 40,000 patents worldwide and has been awarded the most US patents for 13 consecutive years. The company has a long history of licensing its patents covering e-commerce on fair terms. Over the past five decades, IBM has entered into numerous patent licensing agreements with companies that respect intellectual property rights in a broad range of industries. Many companies have licensed these five high-quality patents from IBM, as well as others, in “field of use” patent licenses.

MUMBAI: Viacom International Japan has launched the Flux video sharing site for broadband Internet users in Japan.

Flux is a free, advertiser-supported next-generation entertainment service that combines popular video from Viacom brands such as MTV, Nickelodeon and Bet – Black Entertainment Television, with music videos, Japanese animations, movie previews and content created by users themselves.

Japan’s 75 million Internet users can now watch pre-programmed channels on Flux and access video-on-demand from a vast library of diverse content. As Flux members, users can also create their own personal channels from the video library and watch channels created by other users.

MTV chairman and CEO Judy McGrath says, “Flux revolutionises the way audiences view and use video content – putting them in complete control. This innovative service significantly expands MTVN‘s digital media presence in Japan, enabling us to deliver our leading MTV, Nickelodeon and BET content to audiences in new ways. Through our global network we are uniquely positioned to share Flux innovations from Japan with more than 150 MTV digital media properties worldwide.”

Viacom International Japan senior VP and GM digital media Tony Elison commented, “Flux presents an entirely new way of interacting with entertainment – it’s 21st century television on the Web. Placing the consumer at the center of the programming universe, Flux offers endless opportunities for Japanese users to access the content they love, discover new entertainment and share their experiences with others.”

In addition to video created by users, Flux features content including – Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants; MTV’s Europe Music Awards and Jackass and local MTV Japan productions including Trainsurfer and Tempura, among others. Clips range from 3-10 minutes in length.

Flux will continuously launch new programming to enrich the Japanese online entertainment landscape. Next month, Flux will bring content from Viacom-owned BET Networks to Japanese audiences, including excerpts from the 2006 BET Hip-Hop Awards.

Bet chairman and CEO Debra L. Lee says, “Our mission is to provide high-quality entertainment to consumers of Black culture on a global basis. The launch of Bet content on FLUX provides access to an enormous audience who has long displayed an appetite for hip hop culture. This partnership allows Bet a chance to reassert our global brand presence while super-serving this passionate audience like never before.”

Also next month, the first co-production from Flux and MTV Japan called Nigoldeneye will debut simultaneously on both platforms. The docudrama series will follow Nigo, the creator behind the ‘A Bathing Ape’ fashion empire. Content produced exclusively for both Flux and MTV Japan will complement the online and on-air viewing experiences, encouraging audiences to migrate between platforms.

Flux also features more than 2,000 music videos – one of the largest selections online in Japan – licensed from local and international music companies such as Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group and Toshiba EMI. Artists featured on FLUX include international acts Madonna, Janet Jackson and Red Hot Chili Peppers, along with local acts. Additional licensing agreements with music companies will be announced soon.

Flux says that it provides this diverse and innovative video programming in a unique environment. The Flux video player displays contextually related clips during video playback, so that the user can easily watch more programming from sources he enjoys, without the need for a specific search. Flux also allows users to programme their own channels and share these channels with friends within a social network. Individual channels created can include anything ranging from self-made content, clips created by others, music videos, animations and more – building bridges between professional, independent, and amateur content providers. In this way, Flux says that it harnesses the power of technology and social networking to facilitate users’ discovery of new entertainment.

MUMBAI: Global European media conglomerate Vivendi has announced that it filed a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations Act (Rico) complaint in federal court in the State of Washington in the US.

The charge is that T-Mobile illegally appropriated Vivendi‘s $2.5 billion investment in Polish mobile telecom operator Polska Telefonia Cyfrowa (PTC), through a pattern of fraud and racketeering.

Named in the complaint are T-Mobile USA, T-Mobile Deutschland, Deutsche Telekom AG and . Zygmunt Solorz-Zak, who controls another Polish company Elektrim, which is Vivendi‘s joint-venture partner for its investment in PTC.

According to the suit, this case involves two companies, Vivendi and T- Mobile, that have substantial business activities in the US, one of whom (T-Mobile) colluded with Mr. Solorz-Zak in a pattern of racketeering activity over US wires as part of an unlawful scheme to take over an enterprise, PTC, and corrupt another enterprise, Elektrim.

Vivendi says that it considers that T-Mobile and Mr. Solorz‘ Elektrim illegally appropriated its $2.5 billion investment in PTC and, at every turn, have defied court orders. By filing this Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations Act complaint, it is asking the court for a simple remedy – give back its money or its PTC shares

MUMBAI: The 16th Broadcast India 2006 Exhibition and Symposium will be held from 26-28 October 2006 at the World Trade Centre, Mumbai.

Broadcast India 2006 will present the latest technology of newsgathering and telecasting of programmes live through a mobile phone.

From film making to television production and post production, from content creation in all formats to its management and finally to its delivery, the Broadcast India show will cover all the technologies, said an official release.

More than 400 companies from 31 countries will be at Broadcast India to showcase their latest products and services in Broadcast, Television, Audio, Radio, Film, Computer Graphics, Satellite, Special Effects and Multimedia. This year‘s show will throw light on IPTV, Mobile TV, Digital Cinema and High Definition.

Broadcast India Awards for Excellence in Film & Television will also be held at YB Chavan Centre on 25 October 2006 from 7 pm onwards.

The cable will connect the major countries in the region including India, UAE, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Italy and France to provide interconnection facilities with several existing and emerging systems in the regions.

The telecom consortium expects to get the IMEWE cable ready for service by mid 2008. The construction contracts are expected to be being awarded by end 2006.

The network, upon its commissioning, will provide high-speed connectivity to the Asian, Middle East, North & East Africa and Western Europe regions, and meet their exponentially growing bandwidth requirements.