ITV

Tag: Casbaa

  • CASBAA inducts new members

    CASBAA inducts new members

    MUMBAI: The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) announced a new patron member and four new corporate members of the association.

    The CASBAA patron member is a newly-launched pay-TV network Asia Broadcast Networks while the corporate members include children’s content specialist HiT Entertainment, Singapore-based satellite services provider Globecast, conditional access supplier Viaccess and New Zealand-based broadcaster Television New Zealand. Meanwhile, global satellite capacity supplier Intelsat has upgraded its CASBAA membership to Patron status.

    “The breadth of the new memberships highlights the dynamic environment for Asia’s pay-TV market,” said CASBAA CEO Simon Twiston Davies

    “The response to CASBAA’s year-end 2006 activities, including the CASBAA Convention in Hong Kong and the release of our year-end industry data clearly illustrates the value of the Association.”

    The CASBAA members program for 2007 — which includes training schemes (the CASBAA Media College), CASBAA Market Reports (Indonesia and Taiwan, among others), IPR seminars and networking events, as well as the CASBAA Satellite Industry Forum (June 18th), the CASBAA China Forum (late August) and the CASBAA Convention 2007 (Oct 30th – Nov 2nd) – will provide new value to CASBAA members and the industry at large, said Mr Twiston Davies.

    “CASBAA looks forward to working with our new members in particular throughout 2007,” said CASBAA chairman Marcel Fenez. “With this type of sectoral and geographic support our effectiveness as a voice for the industry and as a networking organisation continues to grow.”

  • Casbaa lauds Philippines in piracy case

    Casbaa lauds Philippines in piracy case

     MUMBAI: Casbaa lauded the Philippines Department of Justice (DoJ) for its recommendation in filing of 12 criminal cases under the “information for copyright infringement” law against cable operator Maguindanao Skycable CATV and its directors and officers.

    Speaking on behalf of the Casbaa members who filed complaints with the DoJ against Maguindanao Skycable, Casbaa said the DoJ had strengthened the industry’s faith in a government commitment to protect intellectual property rights.

    “With this decision, the DoJ strongly demonstrates the Philippine government’s strong political will to address the worsening pay-TV piracy situation. We are pleased with this development and eager to see the prosecution of the complaints,” said Casbaa CEO Simon Twiston Davies.

    Casbaa and its members filed the complaints against Maguindanao Skycable for illegally acquiring and transmitting copyrighted programming from channels-AXN, CNN International, Cartoon Network, Discovery Channel, the Disney Channel, ESPN Star Sports, HBO Asia, MTV Asia, National Geographic, Star Movies, Star World, and Star Sports.

    The complaints were filed based on evidence gathered by the National Bureau of Investigation – Intellectual Property Rights Division (NBI-IPRD) following a period of intensive surveillance and a raid on Maguindanao Skycable’s offices and head-end in Cotabato City in southern Philippines.

    Under the Phillipines Republic Act the accused persons who have illegally transmitted copyrighted programs face a jail term of up to three years and fines amounting to Php 150,000 for the first offense.

    The courts may also order a convicted operator to pay damages for economic losses resulting from the unauthorized broadcasting of copyrighted programs.

    The Philippine Cable Television Association (PCTA) also welcomed the DoJ resolution, saying it is a “positive step towards creating a competitive Philippine pay-TV market that provides a level playing field for cable operators”.
     

  • Casbaa to pursue mobile, regulatory agenda in 2007

    Casbaa to pursue mobile, regulatory agenda in 2007

    MUMBAI: The Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa) has announced its strategic direction for 2007, as well as the results of 2006 Annual general meeting elections to the Casbaa council of governors and board of directors.

    According to Casbaa chairman Marcel Fenez, in 2007 the association is to focus on the increasing impact of Mobile technology, also noting a clear signal from the council of governors to step up initiatives in India and China. Casbaa will continue to engage the regulatory authorities in multiple markets and promote industry development in Indonesia, Vietnam and Pakistan, among others.

    In addition, Casbaa will strive to demonstrate the effectiveness of pay TV as an advertising medium and thus challenge other traditional media for advertising revenues, asserts an official release.

    Fenez said, “On an almost daily basis Casbaa is engaging with decision-makers across the region regarding regulatory and intellectual property rights issues while maintaining a steady output of studies on markets and the benefits of effective regulation and the cost of pay-TV piracy.”

    Casbaa also announced that the following were newly elected to the Casbaa council of governors, the association’s leading advisory body, Anytime president and COO Craig Zimbulis; Mabuhay Satellite president and CEO Garie Pimentel; MIH Asia president Ian Barnard; SkyVision Corporation (Sky Cable) head of programmes acquisition Juno Henares Chuidian; AGB Nielsen Media Research CEO Malcolm Spry and Standard Chartered Bank head of creative media and tech industries client relations Susan Ho.

    The results of Elections to the Casbaa board of directors were as follows: HBO Asia CEO Jonathan Spink; AsiaSat CEO Peter Jackson; United Broadcasting Corporation EVP-chairman Sompan Charumilinda; BBC World regional director distribution and business development Nic van Zwanenberg and Celestial Pictures CEO William Pfeiffer.

  • Asean, Casbaa, USPTO heighten awareness of broadcast IPR

    Asean, Casbaa, USPTO heighten awareness of broadcast IPR

    MUMBAI: The Asean Secretariat and US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), with the support and assistance of the Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa), today launched a high-level, two-day seminar focusing on best practices in anti-piracy enforcement and intellectual property (IP) rights in broadcasting.

    The seminar marked the first time the Asean Secretariat, Casbaa and the USPTO have combined resources, bringing together government officials with pay-TV industry executives, local and international cable operators, content creators, regional regulators and IPR experts.

    Robert L. Stoll, Director, Office of Enforcement (USPTO) said, “A robust regulatory framework is crucial for protecting and promoting the flow of creative work of all of the individuals and companies in the broadcast business.”

    Rohazar Wati Zuallcobley, Deputy Director General, Malaysian Intellectual Property Office speaking on behalf of the Asean Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation said, “The television industry has enormous potential for growth in many Asean economies. However, we must act with urgency to strengthen the protection and enforcement of IP rights to fully realise that potential.”

    “We are pleased to support the USPTO and the Asean Secretariat in this joint initiative,” said Marcel Fenez, the Chairman of Casbaa. “Cooperation between government and the private sector plays a significant role in reducing piracy and driving the pay-TV sector’s contribution to economic progress within Asean countries.”

    Casbaa recently released estimates showing that annual losses from illegal pay-TV connections will reach US$1.13 billion in 2006.

    Key issues addressed at the forum included how to the structure regulatory regimes to successfully protect IP in broadcasting, the latest developments in anti-piracy technology and the challenges posed by new delivery platforms such as mobile TV and web casting.

  • ‘Kansai’ wins 2006 ABU CASBAA Unicef child rights award

    ‘Kansai’ wins 2006 ABU CASBAA Unicef child rights award

    MUMBAI: Kansai telecasting corporation of Japan has been named as the winner of the ABU CASBAA Unicef child rights award 2006 for its documentary entitled Conquering the Darkness – The fight against memories of abuse.

    The child rights award , is given each year in recognition of the best television programming on a child rights issue produced in the Asia-Pacific region.

    The documentary follows Aya, a 33-year-old mother, who suffered abuse as a child and subsequently abused her own children. It is the tale of a parent’s personal struggle to end the cycle of child abuse in the family.

    “We are often quick to point the finger at parents who abuse their children, but patterns of abuse so often begin in childhood, creating a chain that can continue over generations, ” said documentray producer Shinichi Sugimoto.

    This year, the child rights award received a total of 40 entries from countries such as Bangladesh, Bhutan, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Japan, Mongolia, Philippines, Republic of Korea and Singapore.

    Broadcasting union secretary-general Asia-Pacific David Astley said, “The child rights award is a significant platform that allows broadcasters in the Asia- Pacific to demonstrate their ability to produce quality programming on children’s issues. The ABU wants to encourage broadcasters to continue to invest in such programmes in the future.”

    CASBAA CEO Simon Twiston Davies said, “The continued participation of regional broadcasters in the child rights award is welcome and clearly underlines their resolve towards producing educational and entertaining programmes for and about children.”

    The panel of jurors included, Amar Keshar Simha, an independent producer from Pakistan; producer China central television (CCTV) Wang Yan; Mongolian radio and television director of Children’s Programme Ariunjargal Luvsantseren; Infocus Asia executive producer Francis Smith; Australia Network chief executive Ian Carroll and Discovery Networks Asia vice president programming James Gibbons.

    The top ten finalists in 2006 are:

    Winner

    – Conquering the Darkness – The Fight Against Memories of Abuse (Japan)

    Finalists

    – Dark Street Kids (Malaysia)- This documentary chronicles the hardship, as well as the stigma and discrimination of children who are born and live in dark alleys or brothels of Malaysia.

    – Korean Children – I am All Alone (Korea)- This documentary is about Minho is an 11-year-old boy neglected by his parents. His only friend is a TV set. A stark portrayal of how a child is deeply affected by the problems and negligence of his parents.

    – Tuesday Report: Pocket Money (Hong Kong) – This programme documents the life of three children who live in cramped flats and have to sell scrap paper and scrap metal for their pocket money.

    – Young People on Wheels (Bhutan) – The documentary follows a group of unemployed youths who are creating awareness of a campaign on HIV and AIDS in Bhutan.

    – The Orphans, Childless and Predators (Singapore) – The documentary looks at on how orphaned children coped with the devastating experienceof Tsunami. It also features a child trafficker who agreed to tell his side of story and tries to justify his actions.

    – Get Real Child Sex Tourism – Sold for Sex (Singapore) – The programme investigates the plight of child sex workers on the Indonesian Island of Batam.

    – Emergency – Junior Boxer (Philippines) – Residents of general santos city are very fond of boxing even children undergo intensive training to become professional boxers during which many sustain grave injuries that sometimes even result in death.

    – We Shall Overcome (Bangladesh) – This documentary chronicles the life of an eight-year-old girl who is deaf and mute and believes she can succeed in her dream to become a fine arts teacher.

    – School of the Highlands (Philippines) – The importance placed on education by indigenous communities in the Philippines is recounted in this documentary which looks at the challenges families face in schooling their children and promoting their rights.

  • Anytime inks VoD India On-line Broadband

    Anytime inks VoD India On-line Broadband

    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.

    IOL has a fully integrated backbone network delivering broadband Internet access in India and the Anytime channel will run over the company’s own fiber metro ethernet network as well as fixed line ADSL networks of BSNL and MTNL.

  • Casbaa launches mobile TV group

    Casbaa launches mobile TV group

    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.

  • Nokia unveils TV enabled Nokia N92 mobile phone

    Nokia unveils TV enabled Nokia N92 mobile phone

    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.

  • ‘UK’s Ofcom model difficult to export to Asia’

    ‘UK’s Ofcom model difficult to export to Asia’

    HONG KONG: Do any industry players love their regulators? The answer, probably, is a big NO.

    And, in return, a regulator should not expect love, but should have a relationship with a regulatee that is based on transparency and integrity, amongst other things. Ditto for a vice versa relationship.

    This was the message that Kip Meek, senior partner for competition and content at Ofcom in the UK and chairman of the European Regulators’ Group said here today at the ongoing annual convention of Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa).

    Speaking at session, aptly titled `How to love your regulator’, Meek also said that the Ofcom model of regulation is difficult to transport to other places; especially Asia. Reason? Ground realities may differ from market to market.

    “Is the Ofcom model exportable (to Asia)?” Meek posed a question and answered in the negative.

    Detailed regulation should follow on-ground realities, he explained, adding that content regulation in all countries cannot be the same.

    For instance, he said, Ofcom is quite liberal in comparison to some other regulators in developed countries as far as content goes.

    On cue, a majority of over 70 per cent in the audience voted against common regulatory standards in Asian countries, when asked to after Meek had finished speaking.

    According to Meek, the phrase ‘light touch of regulation’ may also sound an absurdity though Ofcom in the UK regulates on three principles, which include unbiased and least intrusive regulation.

    Meek also opined that a converged regulator is better placed to regulate in the present environment, provided it’s “truly independent and truly unbiased.”

    “A fully converged regulatory model does work… but don’t go for harsh measures,” he said.

    However, Meek felt there is a possibility of a converged regulator being considered too powerful.

    Moral of Meekspeak: a regulator-regulate is not the usual run of the mill tale.

  • Videocon mulls entry into DTH market

    Videocon mulls entry into DTH market

    HONG KONG: After aborted attempts to start a television channel, Indian consumer electronics major Videocon Industries Ltd now is trying to cobble together a DTH dream.

    And, what’s more, the Dhoot-promoted company thinks the DTH project can be commissioned in a year’s time, which would make it some time in 2007.

    “We have undertaken a project report (on DTH) and feel that the venture can be started as it has a lot of synergy with some our existing businesses,” an executive of Videocon Industries told Indiantelevision.com here on the sidelines of the three-day annual convention of Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa).

    According to the company executive, if undertaken prudently, a DTH project can be put together at a cheaper cost than what has been touted till now by Tata Sky and the Subhash Chandra-controlled Dish TV, the two private sector DTH service providers in the country at present.

    “The cost should not be over $ 100 million,” the executive said, pointing out that it could even be done at almost three-fourth of that cost ($ 75 million).

    The synergies that Videocon Industries, manufacturers of TV sets and other consumer durables, sees in starting a DTH operation is that it already makes analog set-top boxes and has a widespread distribution network in India, which can be exploited for sale of DTH hardware.

    However, industry observers are sceptical about Videocon’s claims as in the media sector the company’s track record hasn’t been much to right home about. “That is exactly the perception we would like to change,” the Videocon executive asserted.

    Videocon has twice announced plans — the first being in the late 1990s — to start a television channel, which have never seen the light of the day and later were taken as abandoned.