ITV

Tag: BSkyB

  • Star One, Star Gold to debut in UK this Nov-Dec

    Star One, Star Gold to debut in UK this Nov-Dec

    MUMBAI: After Japan, it’s the turn of the UK for Star India channels to spread their wings. Star India has entered into a syndication deal with BSkyB to launch Star One and Star Gold.

    Entertainment channel Star One and movie platform Star Gold will debut in the UK later this month or early December on BSkyB, which is over-35 per cent owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp.

    Star One is already available on US-DirecTV along with, Star Plus, Star News and Star Vijay. Speaking to indiantelevision.com Star India official spokesperson refused to comment on when will Star Gold be available to DirecTV subscribers.

    While, on BSkyB, only two of channels –Star Plus and Star News are accessible.

    According to information available with Indiantelevision.com, the decision has been taken and most formalities are said to be been completed. The reason for taking these two channels, apart from already existing ones, to the UK is that there’s a sizable Indian-origin population residing there who would pay to watch Indian fare, especially Hindi movies.

    However, the programming on Star One and Star Gold may not be a photocopy of what’s seen back home. Reason: copyright issues. Especially those related to the satellite rights of Hindi movies.

    Earlier this week, Star had announced launch of five Indian and two international channels in Japan on a new IPTV and community platform World on Demand (WoD). On WoD, Star has launched Star Plus, Star One, Star News, Star Utsav and Vijay, along with Sky News and Fox News.

  • UK rights for ‘Lost’ move from Channel 4 to Sky

    UK rights for ‘Lost’ move from Channel 4 to Sky

    MUMBAI: New seasons of the show Lost will be seen exclusively on Sky One in the UK.

    An agreement has been done between BSkyB and Buena Vista International Television (BVITV). Sky One has secured deals for seasons three and four of the show which airs in India on Star Movies. With this agreement, Sky will also make the series available to viewers on its broadband and mobile platforms.

    The rights were earlier with Channel 4 which has aired the first two seasons. Sky One, Two and Three director of programming Richard Woolfe says, “We’re absolutely thrilled to bring Lost to Sky One. The series has defined TV drama over the last two years and has been the envy of every network. Today’s audiences demand more quality and flexibility than ever before.

    “So we are intending to use various digital media platforms to make Lost available to our customers when they want and how they want … ensuring that they never miss the mysterious goings on of the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815. This outstanding series will bring even more entertainment to Sky customers and demonstrate our strengths in multi-platform content and innovation.”

    BVITV executive VP, MD Europe, Middle East and Africa Tom Toumazis says, “We’re delighted to be partnering with Sky to launch much-anticipated new seasons of the globally successful US series in the UK. We are confident that Sky will build upon the established success of Lost across TV and digital media platforms, bringing the series to viewers in flexible ways, ideally suited to its watercooler, must-see status.”
     

  • Al Gore’s Current TV signs deal with BSkyB

    Al Gore’s Current TV signs deal with BSkyB

    MUMBAI: Former US Vice President Al Gore has unveiled plans to launch a UK version of his ‘user generated’ network, Current TV.

    Current has signed an agreement with UK pay TV platform BSkyB to launch a localised version of its viewer-created TV channel in the UK and Ireland.

    The announcement was jointly made by Current chairman Al Gore and BSkyB CEO James Murdoch. The agreement provides Current’s first presence outside the US and marks a step in fulfilling its plans of becoming an international media company, while for BSkyB it represents a first step in a strategy to develop a broader presence in the fast-growing field of user-generated content.

    Current TV is the first TV network created by, for, and with a young adult audience, enlisting its audience as creative partners. To tailor its output to the local audience, Current plans to deliver a channel specifically designed for the British and Irish markets.

    Viewer producers from the UK and Ireland will be able to submit their video segments via Current’s website and, if their work is selected for broadcast, they will also have a chance to have their pieces air on Current’s U.S. network and in other markets into which Current will expand in the future.

    Since its launch in August 2005, Current TV claims to have been a pioneer in the world of user-generated content, with its ‘viewer created content’ or VC2, programming model. Rather than a traditional network with primetime shows and “appointment television,” Current offers short-form, nonfiction programming, called “pods,” which are only a few minutes long and which explore the issues of interest to young adults, including technology, fashion, music and videogames, the environment, relationships, spirituality, politics, finance, and parenting. In the US, approximately 30 per cent of the network’s content is created by viewers.

    The agreement will allow Current TV to reach up to 22 million more viewers in 8.2 million households subscribing to BSkyB’s Sky digital service, equivalent to almost one in three households in the UK and Ireland. Over the past year Current has expanded its US carriage by 70 per cent from 17 million to nearly 30 million homes.

    Gore says, “We are grateful to be working with BSkyB in our first international venture. This is a big step in fulfilling Current’s mission of sparking a global conversation among young adults. Bringing our viewer-created content model to the UK and Ireland will give millions of young viewers the opportunity to not only watch but also to create television programming that is relevant to them. We’re excited about being able to unleash the creativity of young people in the UK and Ireland, enabling them to share their stories with their generational cohort here and around the world.”

    Murdoch says, “Current TV is bringing the web’s sense of empowerment to television for the first time. It has a uniquely collaborative approach to working with viewer producers that stands out among other platforms for user-generated video. As a first step towards Sky’s own moves in this fascinating field, we’re pleased to help give a voice to millions of young people throughout the UK and Ireland.”

    Murdoch incidentally was one of the first to back Mr Gore’s campaign to persuade big business to face up to green issues. He said the partnership with Current TV was the first step towards the broadcaster, which will make it available free to all its 8.2 million subscribers, launching other user-content initiatives.

    Internet networking sites such as MySpace and video sharing services such as YouTube and Google Video have forced broadcasters to learn from them. Political parties have also tried to get in on the act, as with the WebCameron Tory initiative.

  • Star appoints David Butorac as president, Platforms

    Star appoints David Butorac as president, Platforms

    MUMBAI: Star has appointed David Butorac as its president, Platforms. Butorac will report to Star CEO Michelle Guthrie.

    In this newly created role, Butorac will be responsible for developing opportunities in platform businesses across Asia to enhance the delivery of Star’s content to the consumer. He will also work to strengthen the operations of Star’s joint venture platforms, especially in light of the recent launch of the Tata Sky satellite service in India.

    Commenting on the appointment, Guthrie said, “As we continue to drive more quality content to more people across Asia, the distribution platform side of our business has become increasingly important to the success of our future growth. The need for someone of David’s calibre became apparent. David’s pay-TV experience in Asia, as well as with News Corporation platforms Foxtel and BSkyB, gives him credentials that are unmatched, and we feel very fortunate to have attracted him to Star.”

    Butorac said, “With diverse services and businesses that span Asia and beyond, Star is a unique media company, and I am very excited to come on board and work with Michelle as well as with the rest of Star’s talented team. With a lot of growth still to come in the region, I look very much forward to playing a part in Star’s further development, particularly with its platform businesses.”

    Butorac will join Star in November, upon the completion of his current duties as Group COO, Astro Asia Allnetworks Plc.

    Butorac, 44, has vast experience in the field of broadcasting. Prior to joining Astro as COO in 2002, he worked for 14 years at British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) where he held a series of positions, including head of Operations, BSkyB, from 1992 to 1995 and Station Manager from 1995 to 2002. While on temporary reassignment from BSkyB, he served as Operations director for the launch of Foxtel in Australia in 1995 and undertook consultant roles for other News Corporation broadcast companies. Prior to 1989, Butorac worked in television news broadcasting in Australia and the UK, states an official release.

  • Reliance Bluemagic receives LoI for DTH ops

    Reliance Bluemagic receives LoI for DTH ops

    MUMBAI: The direct-to-home broadcasting segment is set to witness some more action with the government clearing the application of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Enterprises. The proposed DTH project under the brand name Reliance Bluemagic, a subsidiary of Reliance Energy, has received the letter of intent (LoI).

    This will be the fourth licence issued by the government to a private operator. Nonetheless, even after the letter of intent is issued, it would be a while before the letter of approval and an actual DTH license is handed over to the Reliance Bluemagic.

    According to sources close to the government and DTH developments, the information and broadcasting ministry has issued the LoI. “The absence of any foreign investment or partner has simplified matters,” the officials pointed out.

    When contacted, senior officials at Reliance refused comment on the developments.

    Once the letter of approval is issued, the company would be granted a licence after depositing a bank guarantees of Rs 100 million.

    Reliance Bluemagic had applied under for a DTH licence under the name ‘Reliance Skymagic last year. However, News Corp had issued a caution notice, asserting ‘Sky’ was its registered trademark under which the company runs its DTH operations in UK under the name of BSkyB. Consequently, the trademark Sky was also registered in India.

    In the present scenario, besides pubcaster Prasar Bharati, which manages DD Direct, there are two private DTH service providers. Dish TV and Tata-Sky already operating. Although South Indian media major Sun Group’s Sun Direct TV received the LoI last year, it has yet to kick off operations.

    The government has set stringent entry norms for DTH operators. According to the norms, the applicant has to be registered under the Indian Company’s Act, 1956, while its total foreign equity holding should not exceed 49 per cent, of which not more than 20 per cent should be the FDI component. It also says the applicant company must have Indian management control, with majority representatives on board, and the company’s CEO must be a resident Indian.

    Reliance’s presence in DTH, FM radio and other segments of media and entertainment means that the group will enable itself to leverage its brand across all platforms.

  • DD to be available now in Canada, US

    DD to be available now in Canada, US

    NEW DELHI: Finally pubcaster Doordarshan will be available in the US and Canada.

    Prasar Bharati, which manages DD, has said that it has entered into agreements for the distribution of DD India channel in Canada and the US.

    Briefing fellow parliamentarians, information and broadcasting minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi said earlier in the week that a similar distribution agreement for the UK is under finalization.

    In the UK, DD is negotiating to be on the News Corp-controlled BSkyB’s pay platform.

    DD India carries news bulletins, features on topical events, entertainment programmes, feature films, music and dance shows, including children programmes in some regional languages.

    Dasmunsi said that the content medley of DD India is expected to serve the interests and needs of the Indian diaspora.

    A study on the reach and impact of DD India channel in Middle-East countries is also on the anvil.

    DD, AIR INITIATIVES ON REVENUE EARNINGS

    All India Radio (AIR) is charging tower rentals (including maintenance charges) for the infrastructures being offered to private broadcasters during Phase-II FM service as part of revenue generating prospects.

    The rentals for category A+, A, B, C and D cities are Rs. 1.3 million, Rs 0.8 million, Rs 0.4 million, Rs. 0.3 million and Rs. 0.18 million respectively.

    According to the I&B minister, Doordarshan has also decided to charge a carriage fee amounting to Rs. 10 million per annum from private channels that are interested in becoming part of the bouquet of channels carried on its DD Direct Plus subscription free DTH service.

    What’s more, AIR has introduced on line computerized booking system (Central Window Booking) at its Central Sales Unit, Mumbai, which has been linked to all its 15 Commercial Broadcasting Service (CBS) centres for all advertisers and clients.

    The minister said AIR is constantly devising new programming formats to suit local audiences. Local variation components of Vividh Bharati stations on AM frequencies are being increased to augment listenership and attract more
    advertisers.

    AIR has also introduced 1:1 bonus scheme for spot booking to attract more advertisers.

    For the fiscal ended 31 March 2006, AIR generated revenues of over Rs 1oo crore.

    Doordarshan too has taken various steps with a view to increase revenues, including opening marketing divisions in Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Delhi, Kolkata and Bangalore and setting up of Development Communication Division
    for securing business and catering to the publicity requirements of various government agencies and public sector undertakings.

    Cable operators have now been given the option to download signals either in analog or digital mode to improve the transmission quality as digitalization increases.

    DD’s commercial rate card is being constantly reviewed and revised to bring it in tune with market practices and the amount of bank guarantee to be submitted by accredited agencies increased from Rs 300,000 to Rs. 25 lakhs.

    Dasmunsi also said that an empowered committee, comprising Prasar Bharati CEO and other senior members of the board have been constituted for quick decisions in commercial matters and payment behaviour is regularly
    monitored.

    For FY06 DD’s total revenue earnings were over Rs. 10 billion.

  • BSkyB launches Sky+ remote record service enabled by weComm technology

    BSkyB launches Sky+ remote record service enabled by weComm technology

    MUMBAI: BSkyB, the UK’s leading provider of pay-TV services, has launched its Sky+ remote record service using weComm’s wave platform. It enables customers to maximise the value of their content by providing sophisticated, personalised services for mobile devices.

    Sky customers will be able to set their Sky+ to record their favourite shows using a mobile phone – either by sending a text message or with Sky by mobile. If they have downloaded the Sky by mobile application they can view Sky’s seven-day TV guide on their phone and select programmes to record. The guide they see on their phone looks similar to Sky’s light blue on-screen guide and enables people to browse listings and view programme details on the move.

    Sky by mobile is available on a large range of handsets, including Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Motorola and the RIM Blackberry, according to an official release.

    weComm COO Oliver Sturrock commented: “This is the first time that TV viewers will be able to remotely record their favourite programmes using a mobile phone from anywhere in the world.

    “We started working with Sky two years ago. We are constantly looking at ways to improve our technology to adapt to theirs and, ultimately, their subscribers’ needs. The launch of the Remote Record for Sky+ is a good example of how our collaboration with Sky is meeting those needs.

    “Our technology has proven to be very reliable for building applications designed for the mass market and we are now seeing tremendous demand, particularly from the media industry.”

    This is the third phase of weComm’s collaboration with Sky. The first generation of Sky by mobile was launched in June 2005 and provided the latest news stories and videos from Sky Sports and Sky News, up to the minute sports events scores and personalised services to users. It also allows viewers to place bets on sporting events through their Skybet account.

    In January 2006, weComm developed the second phase of the technology allowing viewers to subscribe to and watch Sky TV channels live on their handsets – Sky Mobile TV.

  • BSkyB’s revenues up eight per cen

    BSkyB’s revenues up eight per cen

    MUMBAI: UK pay TV service provider BSkyB has annnounced results for the year ended 30 June 2006.

    Revenue increased by eight per cent to £4.1 billion. Operating profit increased by seven per cent to £877 million, an operating margin of 21 per cent.

    DTH subscribers increased to 8.176 million, registering a growth of 77,000 in the final quarter and 389,000 in the year. Sky+ households increased by 75 per cent to 1.553 million. Multiroom households increased by 62 per cent to 1.047 million. This represents a 13 per cent penetration of total DTH subscribers.

    Preparations were made for the launch of Sky Broadband following the acquisition of Easynet Group. During the year, the company launched Sky HD, new customer management systems were implemented for all DTH customers and key rights to the FA Premier League secured for the 07/08 to 09/10 seasons.

    In addition were major contracts agreed with movie studio and third party channel partners. BSkyB also announced the creation of over 2,000 new jobs for customer advisors and home installation engineers.

    BsSkyB CEO James Murdoch said, “Our industry is changing faster than ever before and for Sky, 2006 has been an important and exciting year. The business and the team have performed well delivering good levels of customer growth, in line with our plans, and strong growth in both revenues and profitability.

    “We have a clear vision for the future growth and direction of our business and we feel encouraged by the strong demand our customers show for new entertainment and communications services. With a continued focus on providing more choice, flexibility and control, we feel confident as we look ahead to the substantial opportunity this market holds for us.”

  • Eutelsat reports marginal revenue growth

    Eutelsat reports marginal revenue growth

    MUMBAI: FGlobal Satellite operator Eutelsat has reported revenues for the year and fourth quarter ended 30 June, 2006. Revenues for the year stand at 791.1 million euros. This represents an increase of 5.4 per cent.

    Eutelsat CEO Giuliano Berretta said, “Thanks to the strong increase of our activities we have generated growth of 5.4 per cent, which exceeds our objective for 2005-2006. This performance highlights the quality of the execution of our strategy: to consolidate our leading position in European Union countries, and to optimise use of capacity through the creation and development of major new video positions, and the continued expansion of value added services.

    “In particular, our satellites today transmit more than 2,100 television channels, representing over 400 new channels compared to last year, of which more than half are from central and eastern Europe, Russia, the Middle East and Africa. In addition, our D-Star broadband service, for which the installed base of terminals grew over the year by nearly 30 per cent has benefitted from sustained demand from service providers in emerging markets and in regions in Europe not satisfactorily covered by terrestrial broadband networks.

    “Meanwhile, the 14.5 per cent growth in Multi-usage stresses the attractiveness of our satellites in this opportunistic segment. With a growing portfolio of activities across our markets, Eutelsat reaffirms its profile as one of the leading operators in the most profitable sectors of the industry, combining long-term visibility and growth.”

    In European Union countries served by the Hot Bird and Eurobird1 positions, the number of channels grew by 16.7 per cent year-over-year, from 1,051 channels to 1,227. Expansion was driven notably by the increased offer from blue chip pay-TV platforms, including Sky Italia, BSkyB and TPS.

    The launch of the Hot Bird 7A broadcast satellite increased capacity at the Hot Bird neighbourhood to 102 transponders and enabled replacement of Hot Bird. This event marked the last major phase in the switchover from analogue to digital at the Hot Bird position, with only four analogue channels broadcasting as of June

  • Sky launches a free broadband service for customers

    Sky launches a free broadband service for customers

    MUMBAI: UK pay TV service provider BSkyB has launched free broadband for Sky customers. The company says that the launch sets new standards in quality, ease and savings.

    Unveiling its new broadband internet access service, Sky Broadband, at an event for analysts and investors the Company disclosed some information:

    Operating and Financial outlook
    • Pay-TV business on track to achieve 2010 targets
    • Clear strategy to build a scale broadband customer base, targeting revenues from high growth opportunities in online advertising, search and content and increasing penetration of additional products
    • Anticipated investment of £400 million of EBIT to be invested over the next three years
    • Broadband expected to be earnings enhancing in the year to 30 June 2010 independent of any Pay-TV benefits
    • Capital expenditure of approximately £250 million in first two years
    • Targetting broadband ROCE of 15 per cent for the year ended 2011 including initial cost of Easynet acquisition
    • Progressive dividend policy to be maintained across investment phase.

    BSkyB CEO James Murdoch said, “Sky Broadband is a compelling product which rewards our 8 million customers with a quality service offering flexibility and great value. Sky is ideally equipped to enter the large and growing markets of broadband and telephony and by pushing the boundaries of the home entertainment market, we will help our customers realise the full potential from technological convergence.

    “The business case is clear; we believe our investment will enhance top-line growth, be earnings enhancing from 2010 and with the benefits of scale, deliver increasingly attractive returns thereafter whilst offering substantial savings and compelling value to customers. This is a transformational new initiative for Sky.”