ITV

Tag: Europe

  • Next IIFA awards, not at Vancouver

    Next IIFA awards, not at Vancouver

    MUMBAI: The 14th edition of the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards will not be held in Vancouver.

    The bid for the same by the British Columbia government on behalf of Vancouver was rejected for 2013, according to a statement by Wizcraft International, the organizers of IIFA.

    The bidding process for the awards is currently on with a number of countries from the Middle East, South America, Europe and Africa.

    “The decision is subject to many contributing factors that are required of a host destination in terms of support-initiatives for Hindi cinema production, funding and distribution; event-funding, support, facilitation, and infrastructure,” said IIFA and Wizcraft International director Sabbas Joseph. “We are committed to the film Industry and hosting an IIFA in any destination must meet the larger interests of Indian cinema and a spectacular-staging of the annual celebration,” he added.

    The dates and venue for the 2013 edition of the IIFA Weekend and Awards will be formally announced soon.

    Over the years, IIFA has been to destinations like London, Yorkshire, Johannesburg, Dubai, Amsterdam, Singapore, Bangkok, Colombo and Macau among other.

  • Eutelsat launches Ultra HD channel for Europe

    Eutelsat launches Ultra HD channel for Europe

    MUMBAI: Eutelsat Communications has launched a dedicated Ultra HD channel for Europe on the Eutelsat 10A satellite.

    Delivering a resolution of eight million pixels, four times the resolution of HDTV, Ultra HD is poised to mark the next big leap forward in the immersive viewing experience.

    Eutelsat‘s new channel is designed to benefit all actors in the broadcasting chain who want to acquire expertise in 4K, including production companies, pay-TV operators, rights owners and TV set manufacturers.

    The new channel will operate in progressive mode at 50 frames per second. It will be encoded in MPEG-4 and transmitted at 40 Mbit/s in four Quad HD streams. Eutelsat is partnering with Ateme, a video compression solution provider to the broadcast industry, for the transmissions that will be uplinked to the Eutelsat 10A satellite from its teleport in Rambouillet, near Paris.

    "This new step towards 4K continues Eutelsat‘s longstanding commitment to achieving new broadcast milestones that over the last 20 years have included digital TV, HDTV and 3D," said Eutelsat‘s Commercial Director Jean-François Leprince-Ringuet.

    "Early and close collaboration between all players in the broadcast chain will be a key success factor for this new revolution. We are delighted to propose this first Ultra HD platform for Europe.

  • Telefonica to provide satellite Internet connectivity in Europe through Eutelsat

    Telefonica to provide satellite Internet connectivity in Europe through Eutelsat

    MUMBAI: Telefonica Global Solutions has announced an agreement with Eutelsat Communications, Europe‘s leading satellite operator, to provide high quality satellite broadband services to carriers from across Europe through the high-performance KA-SAT satellite.

    With KA-SAT, Telefonica aims at offering fast Internet access to carriers from all over Europe, especially in areas that are not within reach of terrestrial broadband networks, such as rural areas or urban belts, as well as fully diversified backup solutions in areas that do have terrestrial access.

    The Telefonica Global Solutions wholesale unit is a leading global solutions provider in the international wholesale market, with a broad and competitive catalogue of outsourcing services and solutions for international carriers, present in the leading markets in Europe and America.

    Eutelsat‘s broadband subsidiary, Skylogic CEO Jean-François Fenech said, "Telefonica has followed a path that has established it as one of the most emblematic and admired companies in Europe, making it the ideal partner for increasing the reach of satellite broadband. We are convinced that the implementation of satellite broadband via KA-SAT will successfully address the challenge of building a strong and fair digital landscape throughout Europe."

    Telefonica Global Solutions Director Eduardo Guardincerri said, "The bid for Eutelsat Ka band is the logical step for the evolution of the business of data communications via satellite in Europe, where land-based infrastructures have increasing capillarity. KA-SAT will allow us to offer high quality services at competitive prices, allowing us to update our catalogue of services for operators and corporations. It also allows us to complement the overall strategy of the Telefonica Group providing another access technology for services such as M2M or iHealth."

  • BBC World News commissions new series ‘Changing Fortunes’

    BBC World News commissions new series ‘Changing Fortunes’

    MUMBAI: BBC World News has announced ‘Changing Fortunes‘, a new six-part series that will challenge assumptions about patterns of wealth in the early 21st century. Produced by Films of Record and Duke& Earl, the series will broadcast from 2 February 2013. The show is sponsored by Coutts.

    ‘Changing Fortunes‘ takes a contemporary look at the new generation of wealthy men and women that have emerged in the last two decades. The fall of the Soviet Union, the liberalization of India and the opening of China have brought vast new markets into the global economy. The resulting commodities boom has created an explosion of wealth from Brazil to Africa. And the internet and technology continue to generate new fortunes.

    As a result, the rich are getting younger, more female and less Western.

    From India, the US, to Brazil, Europe, Africa and China – the series meets some of the innovators, entrepreneurs and business success stories whose fortunes offer a window into our rapidly changing world.

    From the Nigerian entrepreneur heading one of Africa‘s largest energy companies to the world-renowned beauty expert and CEO of a leading US cosmetics company, each episode in the series profiles individuals who will reveal their extraordinary journeys to success.

    BBC World News head of commissioning Mary Wilkinson said, ” ‘Changing Fortunes‘ offers a fascinating insight into the economic history of the last twenty years and the accumulation of wealth. All of the individual stories we feature are remarkable and demonstrate that the newly rich are diverse and very global.”

    Coutts head of products, services and marketing Ian Ewart said, “Insight and deep understanding have driven Coutts‘ commitment to serving clients‘ needs for over 300 years, and that commitment remains as true today as it ever was. These outstanding programmes show how emerging trends find their origin in enduring client needs and how wealth generation originates from enduring truths. We want to answer the questions that wealth poses, and what it means today and for tomorrow.”

    Duke and Earl client services director Marc Heal said, “Duke and Earl are proud to be producing this exciting series for BBC World News. ‘Changing Fortunes‘ will challenge expectations and reveal how global patterns of wealth are shifting in the new economic paradigm. We are at a fascinating turning point for the world economy and it is a controversial time to be rich. Each programme in ‘Changing Fortunes‘ will challenge expectations and offer viewers a unique glimpse into the motivations and aspirations of the new wealthy.”

  • Pay-TV operators in Europe and Asia bet big on OTT

    Pay-TV operators in Europe and Asia bet big on OTT

    MUMBAI: Low ARPUs, growing competitive threats, and rival multi-screen services are driving many pay-TV providers in Europe and Asia to explore new business strategies in video services, according to international research firm Parks Associates.

    TV Everywhere: Growth, Solutions, and Strategies – Europe and Asia/Pacific, a new report from Parks Associates, indicates multi-screen services now reach 66 per cent of pay-TV subscribers in Western Europe, 21 per cent in Eastern Europe, and 9 per cent in Asia, compared to 90 per cent in North America.

    Many pay-TV providers are now leveraging their multi-screen services to offer over-the-top (OTT) services to non-pay-TV subscribers. The UK satellite provider Sky is offering Sky Go, which features live TV and on-demand content, to non-Sky TV customers via PCs, smartphones, and tablets, with monthly subscriptions at ?15-40.

    Italian pay-TV providers Telecom Italia, Mediaset, and FastWEB, Romanian incumbent Romtelecom, UAE-based Etisalat, and South Korean cable operator CJ Hellovision have all launched video services that are available to anyone with a broadband connection.
    Operators with niche content, such as Telecom Serbia, have also launched new, local-language services to reach segments of consumers outside their home market.

    In India, Zeel made its foray into OTT with Ditto TV which will also be available in UK, UAE, New Zealand and Australia. The OTT platform currently offers 35 channels across genres.

    "Now that Netflix has entered Europe and large players have acquired OTT services such as Lovefilm and Acetrax, the video services market will be increasingly competitive, forcing pay-TV providers to test new services and business models," said Parks Associates Director-Research Brett Sappington.

    "Operators in Europe and Asia have dramatically increased their multiscreen offerings, and some are expanding into pure-play OTT services, with offerings available outside their network footprint."

    These efforts will increase as new OTT offerings throughout Europe, including Netflix and HBO, threaten operators‘ premium TV revenues. Parks Associates‘ report examines the development of TV Everywhere/multiscreen services in Western Europe, Eastern Europe, and the Asia/Pacific region.

  • CNN launches digital travel platform ‘CNN Travel’

    CNN launches digital travel platform ‘CNN Travel’

    MUMBAI: CNN International has announced the launch of a new digital channel, CNN Travel, for the world‘s luxury, business and leisure travellers.

    Through a network of more than 800 travel contributors around the world, CNN Travel delivers up-to-the-minute travel news, destination insights, inspirational travel ideas, original observation and thoroughly-researched city and country insider guides with directions to the world‘s hottest restaurants, bars, hotels and activities.

    CNN Travel brings together the best of CNN‘s existing digital travel portfolio and CNNGo.com, the Asia Pacific-focussed travel start-up, launched in 2009. The Hong Kong-headquartered team which launched CNNGo.com and has managed the popular site ever since, will continue at the helm of the international CNN Travel platform, working with international travel contributors to provide users with the distinct voice, authority and local insights which have made CNNGo.com such a hit.

    CNN Travel editor in chief Andrew Demaria said, "CNN Travel takes the best of CNNGo.com, shakes it up and expands its horizons to create an online travel destination unlike anything else out there. We are incredibly proud of the success CNNGo.com has had over the last three years and are thrilled to be taking it global with the creation of CNN Travel".

    CNN International Digital VP, GM Peter Bale said, "CNN Travel‘s blend of reporting, global network, international partnerships, contemporary voice and social media reach will position the site as a compelling travel destination. What Andrew calls ‘CNN in jeans‘ gives the site a fresh and vibrant tone."

    CNN Travel features standalone destination guides on Latin America, North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, along with dedicated sections on Travel News, Aviation, Hotels, Food and Drink amongst others.

  • India’s first horror fest from 13 April

    India’s first horror fest from 13 April

    MUMBAI: In its endeavour to educate audience of horror short films, Cyrus Dastur’s Shamiana, a short film club that comprises film enthusiasts and budding filmmakers from across India, has organised India’s first horror short film festival starting 13 April.

    Said Dastur in a statement, “People are familiar with horror movies but the idea of short films in this category is pretty raw and hopefully will gain ground. Though our target audience falls in the clichéd 16-25-year age bracket, I think anyone who appreciates good horror films can enjoy them.”

    The festival will showcase six films, shortlisted out of 50 to 60 entries from across the globe. The short films to be screened on the occasion are: An Evening With My Comatose Mother (USA), Mazaak Mat Karna (India), Chambers (Norway), Love Hurts (Netherlands), Bloodtraffick (Hong Kong) and Divination (USA).

    Although horror short films are common in US and Europe, it’s an altogether new concept in this land.

  • BBC Worldwide prepares for Brand Licensing Europe

    BBC Worldwide prepares for Brand Licensing Europe

    MUMBAI: BBC Worldwide is heading to Brand Licensing Europe next month with a portfolio of brands launching to the licensing community for the first time and returning shows.

    BBC Worldwide will also showcase products hitting the high street this Christmas.

    BBC Worldwide head of UK Licensing Richard Hollis says, “We’ve been a key part of BLE since its inception and this year we’re raring to go with a raft of new properties set for success. Some of the licensing programmes we’re looking to kick-start are well-established brands calling out for licensing treatment, others are fresh on the scene and we think have huge potential. And no BBC Worldwide stand would be complete without the return of the jewels in our portfolio – from Doctor Who through to In the Night Garden and Top Gear.”

    64 Zoo Lane is about a seven year-old girl named Lucy who lives at 64 Zoo Lane, next door to a Zoo. Each night she is told a story by the animals present there. Characters include Georgina the Giraffe, Nelson the Elephant, Tickles and Giggles the Monkeys, Boris the Bear and Molly the Hippopotamus.

    The Adventures of Abney & Teal is an animation show with a literary feel made entirely from hand-drawn and painted elements, with a contemporary yet handcrafted feel.

    Abney and Teal are two friends who live on an island in the middle of a lake, in the middle of a park, in the middle of the hustle and bustle of the big city. They share their island home with a group of friendly and hilarious characters. And together they are always ready for adventure.

    The Adventures of Abney & Teal debuts on the children’s channel CBeebies on 26 September. BBC Worldwide will shortly be making announcements about the licensing plans for this new property.

    Baby Jake, meanwhile, is a cuddly and curious baby boy of 11 months who loves nothing more than being the centre of attention with his siblings. That’s when he’s not travelling to incredible lands, playing with amazing creatures and gurgling and goo-ing with his big brother Isaac. Heroic Jake has a life full of adventure and surprise in this pre-school series for two to five-year-olds.

    Baby Jake debuted on CBeebies earlier this year. Vivid is confirmed as the master toy licence for the property, Egmont will publish books and 2|entertain will release DVDs.

    Deadly 60 is a factual programme featuring wildlife presenter Steve Backshall’s quest to track down the world’s deadliest animals. In each series, he discovers 60 of the world’s deadliest species out in the wild.

    Deadly 60 brings the audience into the heart of the action, and brings a real sense of adventure and discovery to each sequence as Steve brings us close encounters with killers including tarantulas, sharks and vipers. Some use their weapons for defence, and some for attack, but whatever their size, these animals are truly deadly.

    BBC Worldwide has a full licensing programme under way for Deadly 60 and will make further announcements at the show.

    Doctor Who returns with the Doctor alongside newlyweds Amy and Rory, in a new season. Over 80 licensees have been appointed with new ranges for this year including construction toys, science toys, a powered ride-in Dalek, collector sculptures and wide ranges of new clothing designs for both adult fans and children. Over 3 million DVDs and 8 million action figures have sold to date and in November 2013 Doctor Who will celebrate its 50th anniversary.

  • CNN to air special series on green movement

    CNN to air special series on green movement

    MUMBAI: CNN International (CNNI) will roll out Going Green: Green Light for Business, a special series that concentrates on how the green movement is affecting the business sector across the globe.

    The coverage will be aired on 9 July at 6 pm and 11pm. Additionally, viewers can catch it on 11 July at 12.30 pm and 11 pm and on 12 July at 8.30 am, 1 pm and 8.30 pm.

    CNNI SVP Katherine Green says, “We want to know how the world’s most forward-thinking companies are achieving their environmental and economic goals, and bring the conversation to our international audience that cares about the impact of green initiatives in business.”

    CNNI will offer a full-week of coverage from the United States, Europe, Asia and Latin America. The channel will talk to brands like Google and Warner Brothers to discover how serious their claims are and how is it working for them.

  • ‘US, Europe and Canada are growing markets for Indian content’ : Adris Chakraborty – Globosat Entertainment director

    ‘US, Europe and Canada are growing markets for Indian content’ : Adris Chakraborty – Globosat Entertainment director

    With the Indian television market booming and the NRI community becoming more affluent, platforms in the UK and US are looking to service this community better. Hoping to take advantage of this is ethnic content aggregator Globosat Entertainment. Formed three years back, the company hatched a deal with Sahara to distribute its channels in the US, UK and Europe. It also markets the religious channel Aastha and works with various platforms.

     

    Indiantelevision.com’s Ashwin Pinto caught up with Globosat Entertainment director Adris Chakraborty to find out more about the company’s future plans.

     

    Excerpts:

    What are the changing trends for demand of Indian content overseas?
    Bollywood and cricket are the dominant forms of entertainment. Soaps fare less well as the connect is not there; dubbing or subtitling is needed, or else language becomes an issue. News works but to a much lesser extent, as a lot of the diaspora gets that from the internet. To get people to pay for a news service is difficult. People are to an extent also interested in Indian subjects like alternative healing systems, the investment climate, etc.

    How is Globosat positioning itself to take advantage of this?
    We want to leverage the appeal of Bollywood through video-on-demand service offerings. We are talking with production houses to make their content available on VoD through DTH (direct-to-home) and cable platforms. There are entertainment and movie channels.

     

    We are also talking with recently launched Indian broadcasters who want to have a presence abroad. We are also talking with FM radio stations to figure out opportunities to distribute their content on a national scale in the US, UK and Europe, under a subscription-based service model.

    Which are the Indian and South Asian channels that Globosat is currently distributing?
    We distribute the Sahara channels in the US, UK and Europe. We also market NDTV News and promote Aastha channel in the US.

     

    Besides, we are looking at value-added services like ring tones. We are in discussions with a technology service provider to offer subscription-based Bollywood ringback tone services for the South Asian diaspora. We want to work with them to also offer an SMS-based revenue service. The SMS based-revenue, which is big in India, is not being exploited for the South Asian audience. So an NRI watching an Indian Idol on Sony cannot participate through the SMS route. We want to create these kinds of alternative revenue opportunities for our broadcast partners.

    Is interest in Indian content also spreading among mainstream TV viewers in the US and other countries?
    Bollywood is doing that. It is appealing not just to Indians but also to Bangladeshis, Pakistanis and the Hispanic population. They have subtitles or dubbed content.

    What are the services that Globosat offers?
    We work in the ethnic content aggregation and distribution business with focus markets in the US, Canada and UK. Since we understand the South Asian market, we started off in this space.

     

    With a full-fledged marketing team, we help content owners promote and distribute their offerings under different platforms on a subscription basis. We work with multiple platforms and with multiple markets to get the best possible distribution and revenue for broadcast partners. Content distribution could be in the form of VoD for Bollywood movies. We work with DTH platforms and cable networks to help aggregate their VoD content. We have a 60,000-square-foot playout and broadcast facility in New York with five studios. We also have studios in San Francisco and in Toronto.
    ‘Demand overseas for Indian content is more dominant in the areas of Bollywood and cricket. Soaps fare less well as the connect is not there. News works but to a much lesser extent, as a lot of the South Asian diaspora gets that from the internet‘

    What are the platforms you have relationships with?
    Our partners include DirecTV, Dish, Rogers, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and BSkyB in the UK. As the platforms deal with many genres, it is important for us to help them give a marketing push to our offerings. The platforms, after all, do not have the time and energy to market our channels. We offer a value add as we understand the community.

    What is the scene for Indian regional channels in the US, UK?
    They have their own viewing pockets. They are mostly a-la-carte offerings on different platforms. However, there are three Bengali channels which are offered as a package and as a la carte as well.

    Do you use Soundview Broadcasting to create innovative content for South Asian audience in the US?
    We have a couple of shows. There is a show called Green Card about the process of getting one. Then we have Astro Guide and we also do a community news programme Your Voice where we cover the US. We do all this for Sahara. We provide NGOs an opportunity to come and discuss issues on a show called Centrestage.

     

    We produce some content for Aastha in the US. This includes religious festivities. We do some local programming and plug it on the feed to build up better connection with the subscribers. We also shoot film premieres, interviews and give it to our partners.

     

    Viewers want to know the reaction to a latest film, for instance. We do this from the point of view of building the subscriber base for our partners. Local production helps build an emotional connect.

    What is the strategy Globosat follows in terms of marketing its offerings?
    Our marketing mechanism is such that we participate in the major media, cultural and trade events in the US, UK, Canada and Europe which are relevant for South Asians. Sometimes we are allowed to put up a booth and run promos of our broadcast partners. We do a lot of cross promotions with print publications. In addition, we do direct mails, dealer network promotions, etc. We also sponsor events like Miss India USA.

     

    We work with platforms to create new offerings. In Europe, in conjunction with a few channels, we created a DTH platform in partnership with a technology playout called GlobeCast. We partnered with Sony in the UK and created a bouquet to be a compelling subscription-based service. This caters to the Indian and Pakistani diaspora. We also have a major Pakistani channel in that bouquet.

    Do you also do ad sales for channels?
    We have started a full-fledged media agency called Media Morphosis. We help clients with media and print placements. It could be PR or cross- promotion strategies. We are connected with large advertisers, and this helps our broadcast partners. We also use this to market the Globosat channels.

     

    We are in the process of launching Media Morphosis in India. The aim is to offer our services to Indian channels that are abroad and want help attracting advertisers. We will also help companies who want to reach the South Asian community in the US, UK and Europe. We are talking with Star to do their ad sales in the US.

     

    Mainstream travel agencies, insurance and money transfer companies in the US and UK find us useful if they want to reach out to the affluent South Asian community. These advertisers also want to partner with broadcasters. We help them leverage relationships in the most cost-effective manner.

     

    We also organise below-the-line activities, road shows, etc. From a media-buying point of view, we work with a lot of channels. The agency is two years old and we did a gross billing of $2 million with a 30 per cent margin.

    Will you be expanding your footprint to Africa, Australia and Europe?
    We would like to. However, at the moment the bandwith in Australia and Africa is limited. We want to maximise our distribution in the US and Europe which is a large exercise. Canada is a growing market for Indian content.

     

    South America, unfortunately, is fragmented on the distribution front. Piracy is rampant and the Indian population is also too small to justify going there and marketing our offerings.
    New media platforms like mobile, net, etc. are growing through platforms like JumpTV. How is this impacting the channel distribution business?
    It is a good thing for us and our broadcast partners. We have room to do more effective deals. Earlier, it was mostly DTH. If a broadcaster comes to us, we can now take him to all the platforms. One thing, though, is that mobile technology is very primitive in the US. So it will take time to develop as a broadcast medium there.

     

    In terms of revenue, what targets does Globosat have?
    With a turnover of $9 million, we are experiencing steady growth.

     

    What plans do you have for other ethnic content?
    We have tied up with an IPTV platform. They have created a bouquet of Chinese channels. They want us to help them promote and distribute that bouquet in Europe. Our affiliate Soundview also has an Afro-French channel, a Caribbean channel and a Punjabi channel which we distribute in the US and Canada.