ITV

Tag: Casbaa

  • Soccer World Cup: Casbaa kicks off anti-piracy campaign

    Soccer World Cup: Casbaa kicks off anti-piracy campaign

    MUMBAI: The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa) has once again urged the Hong Kong hospitality sector to boost legitimate entertainment and sports industries, and not engage in signal piracy.

    As part of its long-term campaign, Casbaa and its members are seeking to further raise the consciousness of bars and clubs in Hong Kong that screening pay-TV services without legal subscriptions means they are operating outside of the law, states an official release.

    With the launch of the Fifa World Cup soccer competition in sight this Friday, Casbaa has reminded some 300 bars and clubs that legal action can be taken against those who air unlicensed pay-television broadcasts that infringe copyrights and the Hong Kong Broadcasting Ordinance. 

    The 300 advisory letters to the bars and clubs, including private members clubs, note that pay-TV television signal theft is not to be tolerated by government or industry, the release adds.

    Meanwhile, Casbaa commented that some progress is being made. During the past year, some bar owners have given undertakings to cease screening illegal TV broadcasts.

    “We commend those who screen only legitimate pay television broadcasts,” says Casbaa chairman Marcel Fenez. “And we continue to encourage bar-goers to contribute to Hong Kong’s economy by giving their patronage to businesses airing legal, Hong Kong-licensed TV services. Certainly we want the community to enjoy the World Cup, but to do so in a way that ensures adequate remuneration to Hong Kong’s service providers and the sports leagues who stage the games.”

    Under Hong Kong law, bars and clubs may only display pay-TV channels, under an appropriate subscription from a Hong Kong licensed pay-TV operator such as i-Cable or now Television. Other pay-TV operators such as UBC of Thailand, MultiChoice of South Africa and Dream of the Philippines are not authorised to offer pay-TV subscriptions in Hong Kong.

  • ABU,Casbaa & Unicef invite entries for Asia-Pacific Child Rights Award 2006

    ABU,Casbaa & Unicef invite entries for Asia-Pacific Child Rights Award 2006

    MUMBAI: The Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU), Cable and Satellite Broadcasters Association of Asia (Casbaa) and United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) are inviting Asia-Pacific broadcasters and producers to submit entries for the Asia-Pacific Child Rights Award 2006.

    The ABU-Casbaa-Unicef Child Rights Award, launched in 2001, is given each year in recognition of the best television programming on a child rights issue produced in the Asia-Pacific region. It recognises the efforts of broadcasters in pursuing both the production of top-quality children’s programming and news coverage of children’s issues.

    Programmes both for children and about children are eligible and can cover any child rights issue. Entries can include documentaries that detail the plight of children, dramas that help break down stereotypes and discrimination, or animation that teaches and entertains.

    Entries, which are free, must have been broadcast between August 2005 and July 2006, and must be received by 25 August 2006. The Award will be presented at the ABU Annual General Meeting in Beijing in November 2006.

    The past winners of the award are as follows:

    2005: Juvenile Injustice by Philippine broadcaster ABS – CBN Channel 2
    2004: Hong Kong Connection: Children In Need by Radio Television Hong Kong
    2003: Angels in Prison by Philippines’ GMA-7 Channel
    2002: Child Soldiers by Radio Television Hong Kong
    2001: Children Will Grow by Japan’s Mainichi Institute

  • CASBAA, PCTA sign anti-piracy agreement

    CASBAA, PCTA sign anti-piracy agreement

    MUMBAI: The Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) and the Philippine Cable Television Association (PCTA) have signed an agreement reinforcing their partnership to promote and protect intellectual property rights in the pay-TV industry.

    CASBAA CEO Simon Twiston Davies said, “Our commitment to support the growth of the domestic market in the Philippines and to protect its viability in the face of rampant piracy gains strength with our partnership with the PCTA. Through cooperative efforts, CASBAA and the PCTA aim to attain real results in the coming months.”

    CASBAA and the PCTA plan to jointly organize a Philippine Pay-TV Summit this year in order to raise industry and public sector awareness on intellectual property issues for cable, satellite and broadband markets in the Philippines.

    They have also agreed to work with the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) on an educational training scheme designed to help law enforcement and government officials as they work to combat piracy.

    PCTA President Antonio Selda said,”We at the PCTA have long been vocal in the campaign against all forms of copyright infringement. Signal theft, in particular, has a negative impact on the industry in the long-term. Legitimate cable operators are finding it difficult to survive in this climate, and the industry as a whole stands to suffer if piracy continues. Increasingly piracy stunts the industry’s growth in terms of programming and technological development. The number of illegal cable connections in the Philippines is close to overtaking the number of legal subscriptions.”

  • Casbaa supports converged regulatory environment in Hong Kong

    Casbaa supports converged regulatory environment in Hong Kong

    MUMBAI: The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa) has welcomed an announcement by the Hong Kong Government that it will begin a three-month consultation process on the establishment of a unified regulator for the electronic communications sector in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).

    “It is encouraging to see Hong Kong rationalising its approach to regulation, taking into account the digital revolution. We certainly support the concept of a converged regulatory environment in Asia Pacific markets and see models such as Ofcom in the United Kingdom addressing many of the complex issues arising from converged distribution. However, we also reinforce our position that a non-intrusive stance is the best for industry and the community at large,” said Casbaa CEO Simon Twiston Davies.

    In a recent report Casbaa assessed the regulatory environment for the pay-TV industry across Asia and found that Hong Kong had one of the most effective regulatory environments in the region. “We give full credit to Hong Kong for working to retain its position as a regional leader,” added Twiston Davies.