ITV

Tag: satellite

  • France 24 now in HD in Asia-Pacific region

    France 24 now in HD in Asia-Pacific region

    France 24 has signed a distribution agreement with satellite operator AsiaSat, making its English channel available in HD via AsiaSat 5.

    France 24 English HD is currently available exclusively in the Asia-Pacific region and this launch marks an important new step in the channel’s development.

    This agreement reinforces the attractiveness of the channel for cable operators, DTH and IPTV as well as for major hotel chains.

    Thanks to recent distribution deals in South Korea and the granting of a broadcast license in Vietnam, France 24 is now available to 60 million TV households and more than 300,000 hotel rooms across the Asia-Pacific region.

    For further information about how to include France 24 English HD in your offer, please contact Brice Bertrand and David Couret attending CASBAA Convention 2016:

  • CBFC won’t ‘chill’; Pan Bahar ‘Bond’ ad banned

    CBFC won’t ‘chill’; Pan Bahar ‘Bond’ ad banned

    MUMBAI: CBFC has refused to ‘chill’ as per the wishes of the ad agency that conceived the Bond ad for a pan product. The Pierce Brosnan aka James Bond ad for the mouth freshener Pan Bahar has been banned from national and satellite television by the Central Board of Film Certification.

    Brosnan, as reported by indiantelevision.com, shocked everyone when social media got flooded with trolls and jokes around an advertisement flashing his picture holding a box of Pan Bahar instead of a gun!  The man who once defined style using his charm had now taken to Pan Bahar to look cool. Twitter, needless to say, had a field day, Indian Express reported.

    All tobacco, paan masala, alcohol ads are automatically and unconditionally banned, CBFC head Pahlaj Nihalani said. Even the liquor ads showing big stars like Saif Ali Khan and Shah Rukh, which play surrogate to sell alcohol products are illegal.

    When India woke up to a white haired Brosnan, peering intensely out from a full page ad on The Times of India, holding a jar of Pan Bahar, the nation did a double take. Soon enough, Twitter and Facebook was flooded with a wide range of mostly polarized reactions — from mildly amused to some outright offended.

    Also read:

    ‘Chill,’ says DDB Mudra to Pan Bahar-Pierce Brosnan ‘bond’

  • CBFC won’t ‘chill’; Pan Bahar ‘Bond’ ad banned

    CBFC won’t ‘chill’; Pan Bahar ‘Bond’ ad banned

    MUMBAI: CBFC has refused to ‘chill’ as per the wishes of the ad agency that conceived the Bond ad for a pan product. The Pierce Brosnan aka James Bond ad for the mouth freshener Pan Bahar has been banned from national and satellite television by the Central Board of Film Certification.

    Brosnan, as reported by indiantelevision.com, shocked everyone when social media got flooded with trolls and jokes around an advertisement flashing his picture holding a box of Pan Bahar instead of a gun!  The man who once defined style using his charm had now taken to Pan Bahar to look cool. Twitter, needless to say, had a field day, Indian Express reported.

    All tobacco, paan masala, alcohol ads are automatically and unconditionally banned, CBFC head Pahlaj Nihalani said. Even the liquor ads showing big stars like Saif Ali Khan and Shah Rukh, which play surrogate to sell alcohol products are illegal.

    When India woke up to a white haired Brosnan, peering intensely out from a full page ad on The Times of India, holding a jar of Pan Bahar, the nation did a double take. Soon enough, Twitter and Facebook was flooded with a wide range of mostly polarized reactions — from mildly amused to some outright offended.

    Also read:

    ‘Chill,’ says DDB Mudra to Pan Bahar-Pierce Brosnan ‘bond’

  • Opening DTT to private sector; discussion planned

    Opening DTT to private sector; discussion planned

    NEW DELHI: An open house discussion will be held on 19 October 2016 on a Consultation Paper on “Opening Up Digital Terrestrial Transmission.” The OHD will be held in the PHD Chamber near Sirifort Auditorium at 10.00 am.

    The Paper by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India was issued on 24 June 2016, about a year after Prasar Bharati – which is the only terrestrial broadcaster in the country – unanimously recommended that DTT should be opened up to the private channels. Apart from Prasar Bharati, several private channels have already responded to the paper, which was followed by a linked paper on sharing infrastructure issued on 21 September 2016.

    In its response to the DTT paper, the pubcaster said even as it supports the move, it feels that the potential of available distribution options need to be critically analysed to fulfill their requirements (for example coverage, capacity, reception mode, and type of service etc).

    The public broadcaster has also said that the terrestrial broadcast platform will be relevant in the long term if its usage offers veritable benefits to the broadcasters, the audiences and the society as a whole. Even in countries where cable, satellite or broadband hold a significant market share, terrestrial broadcasting is usually regarded as an essential, flexible and reliable way of delivering broadcast content to a mass audience.

    In its response to 11 questions asked by TRAI in its Consultation Paper on ‘Issues related to Digital Terrestrial Broadcasting in India,’ the pubcaster says that the terrestrial platform must be digital to remain viable in the long term.

    Prasar Bharati CEO Jawhar Sircar, who had told indiantelevision.com in an interview earlier that it had cleared DTT for the private sector more than a year ago, said at the recent Indian Digital Operators Summit (IDOS) that it was willing to give its infrastructure to the private TV and radio channels.

    Also read:

    http://www.indiantelevision.com/television/tv-channels/terrestrial/idos-2016-prasar-bharati-could-share-infra-with-private-players-sircar-161001

    http://www.indiantelevision.com/videos/event-coverage/one-on-one-discussion-with-jawhar-sircar-ceo-prasar-bharati-161004

     

  • Opening DTT to private sector; discussion planned

    Opening DTT to private sector; discussion planned

    NEW DELHI: An open house discussion will be held on 19 October 2016 on a Consultation Paper on “Opening Up Digital Terrestrial Transmission.” The OHD will be held in the PHD Chamber near Sirifort Auditorium at 10.00 am.

    The Paper by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India was issued on 24 June 2016, about a year after Prasar Bharati – which is the only terrestrial broadcaster in the country – unanimously recommended that DTT should be opened up to the private channels. Apart from Prasar Bharati, several private channels have already responded to the paper, which was followed by a linked paper on sharing infrastructure issued on 21 September 2016.

    In its response to the DTT paper, the pubcaster said even as it supports the move, it feels that the potential of available distribution options need to be critically analysed to fulfill their requirements (for example coverage, capacity, reception mode, and type of service etc).

    The public broadcaster has also said that the terrestrial broadcast platform will be relevant in the long term if its usage offers veritable benefits to the broadcasters, the audiences and the society as a whole. Even in countries where cable, satellite or broadband hold a significant market share, terrestrial broadcasting is usually regarded as an essential, flexible and reliable way of delivering broadcast content to a mass audience.

    In its response to 11 questions asked by TRAI in its Consultation Paper on ‘Issues related to Digital Terrestrial Broadcasting in India,’ the pubcaster says that the terrestrial platform must be digital to remain viable in the long term.

    Prasar Bharati CEO Jawhar Sircar, who had told indiantelevision.com in an interview earlier that it had cleared DTT for the private sector more than a year ago, said at the recent Indian Digital Operators Summit (IDOS) that it was willing to give its infrastructure to the private TV and radio channels.

    Also read:

    http://www.indiantelevision.com/television/tv-channels/terrestrial/idos-2016-prasar-bharati-could-share-infra-with-private-players-sircar-161001

    http://www.indiantelevision.com/videos/event-coverage/one-on-one-discussion-with-jawhar-sircar-ceo-prasar-bharati-161004

     

  • ItzCash gets bullish on DTH, cable, movie and mobile bookings

    ItzCash gets bullish on DTH, cable, movie and mobile bookings

    MUMBAI: Essel group company and digital payments facilitator ItzCash generates around 20 per cent to 22 per cent of its Rs 3,000 crore business from satellite cable / DTH recharge by subscribers for Dish TV. Now the company has set itself a scorching growth target of 42 per cent per annum as it bids to notch up business worth Rs 5,000 crore by 2018.

    It is banking on the rapid growth in pay TV subscriptions, its new strategic partnerships with India’s largest online ticketing entertainment brand Bookmyshow, mobile bookings and Zee TV group’s on the go OTT platform dittoTV to help it get to that target.

    BookMyShow has added a new Cash Top-Up feature to its ‘MyWallet’ to make it even easier for everyone to transact on the app or website. The partnership allows users to recharge their MyWallet by paying cash at the nearest ItzCash World outlet. While in its partnership with dittoTV, the company aims to capitalise on its offline network to offer revolutionary Rs 20 easy-recharge for monthly subscription.

    Says ItzCash chief growth officer Bhavik Vasa, “Our partnership with BookMyShow and dittoTV will benefit the larger sections of the society while enhancing customer experience. While with these tie-ups, our partners will leverage our deep entrenched retail network, we plan to aggressively build on our customer base in the online entertainment industry.”

    ItzCash has a presence across various segments serving 35 million consumers having 110 million accounts and over 75,000 franchisees branded as “ItzCash World” in 3000 plus cities and towns.

    To be fair, the company has been growing at 40 per cent per annum year on year in the entertainment sector. And that’s what’s making Vasa that much more confident.

    Says he: “ India is fast becoming a digital country and will soon be the world’s second largest market with 650 million internet users and 520 million smart phone users by 2020 as per a recent Google-BGC Digital Payments report. The food and entertainment sector tops the list of adoption and growth of digital payments.”

    Adds BookmyShow vice-president business intelligence and marketing Marzdi Kalianiwala: “At BookMyShow, we believe in customising our offerings to address the needs of our consumers. While acceptance for online payments is on the rise, a significant set of users still remain to be apprehensive about it, either due to lack of proper internet infrastructure facilities or security concerns, which prevents them from actively using BookMyShow to meet their entertainment demands. By introducing Cash Top-Up to our ‘MyWallet’, we are eliminating these barriers and extending our services to those who prefer cash as their preferred mode of payment. We are delighted to partner with ItzCash, which will enable users book tickets on the BMS app and website without having to use their credit/debit cards or net banking.”

  • ItzCash gets bullish on DTH, cable, movie and mobile bookings

    ItzCash gets bullish on DTH, cable, movie and mobile bookings

    MUMBAI: Essel group company and digital payments facilitator ItzCash generates around 20 per cent to 22 per cent of its Rs 3,000 crore business from satellite cable / DTH recharge by subscribers for Dish TV. Now the company has set itself a scorching growth target of 42 per cent per annum as it bids to notch up business worth Rs 5,000 crore by 2018.

    It is banking on the rapid growth in pay TV subscriptions, its new strategic partnerships with India’s largest online ticketing entertainment brand Bookmyshow, mobile bookings and Zee TV group’s on the go OTT platform dittoTV to help it get to that target.

    BookMyShow has added a new Cash Top-Up feature to its ‘MyWallet’ to make it even easier for everyone to transact on the app or website. The partnership allows users to recharge their MyWallet by paying cash at the nearest ItzCash World outlet. While in its partnership with dittoTV, the company aims to capitalise on its offline network to offer revolutionary Rs 20 easy-recharge for monthly subscription.

    Says ItzCash chief growth officer Bhavik Vasa, “Our partnership with BookMyShow and dittoTV will benefit the larger sections of the society while enhancing customer experience. While with these tie-ups, our partners will leverage our deep entrenched retail network, we plan to aggressively build on our customer base in the online entertainment industry.”

    ItzCash has a presence across various segments serving 35 million consumers having 110 million accounts and over 75,000 franchisees branded as “ItzCash World” in 3000 plus cities and towns.

    To be fair, the company has been growing at 40 per cent per annum year on year in the entertainment sector. And that’s what’s making Vasa that much more confident.

    Says he: “ India is fast becoming a digital country and will soon be the world’s second largest market with 650 million internet users and 520 million smart phone users by 2020 as per a recent Google-BGC Digital Payments report. The food and entertainment sector tops the list of adoption and growth of digital payments.”

    Adds BookmyShow vice-president business intelligence and marketing Marzdi Kalianiwala: “At BookMyShow, we believe in customising our offerings to address the needs of our consumers. While acceptance for online payments is on the rise, a significant set of users still remain to be apprehensive about it, either due to lack of proper internet infrastructure facilities or security concerns, which prevents them from actively using BookMyShow to meet their entertainment demands. By introducing Cash Top-Up to our ‘MyWallet’, we are eliminating these barriers and extending our services to those who prefer cash as their preferred mode of payment. We are delighted to partner with ItzCash, which will enable users book tickets on the BMS app and website without having to use their credit/debit cards or net banking.”

  • Telangana state government sets up committees to track the television sector

    Telangana state government sets up committees to track the television sector

    MUMBAI: This is one state which is taking the central government’s order to keep a check on the content being aired satellite TV channels following the hue and cry which was raised after the Peace TV controversy. We are referring to the Telangana state government.

    Yesterday it constituted the State and District level monitoring committees whose job will be to ensure effective implementation of the Cable Television Network (Regulation) Act.

    The committees are expected to meet at least once a year and submit a detailed annual report for Telangan, including district-wise data of cable operators registered within the state and estimated number of TV homes/viewers, to the I&B ministry before 31 December 31 annually. Their job would also be to recommend action and forwarding complaints against satellite television channels that are violating the government’s orders on the programme and advertising codes to the I&B ministry, to ensure that respect, dignity and self-esteem of children and women and other sections of society are duly protected, to see whether the authorised officers are effectively performing their duties, to see how many cases are handled by them and what decisions are arrived at, to give suggestion/ guidance to district/ local level committee, to take decision on the matters referred to it by district/ local level committee, to collect data/ information from district/ local level committee and forward it to I&B secretary.

    On the state level committee would be the following: the principal secretaries of revenue and home, secretary and commissioner of I&PR department, Doordarshan Kendra Hyderabad director and commercial taxes commissioner.

    The district level committee would have the following members: district collector, superintendent of police, commercial taxes deputy commissioner or his representative and the district public relations officer.

    Observers believe that the setting up of the committees is a step in the right direction, but the state would have done well to have other representatives from society and the private sector to give a more holistic perspective.

  • Telangana state government sets up committees to track the television sector

    Telangana state government sets up committees to track the television sector

    MUMBAI: This is one state which is taking the central government’s order to keep a check on the content being aired satellite TV channels following the hue and cry which was raised after the Peace TV controversy. We are referring to the Telangana state government.

    Yesterday it constituted the State and District level monitoring committees whose job will be to ensure effective implementation of the Cable Television Network (Regulation) Act.

    The committees are expected to meet at least once a year and submit a detailed annual report for Telangan, including district-wise data of cable operators registered within the state and estimated number of TV homes/viewers, to the I&B ministry before 31 December 31 annually. Their job would also be to recommend action and forwarding complaints against satellite television channels that are violating the government’s orders on the programme and advertising codes to the I&B ministry, to ensure that respect, dignity and self-esteem of children and women and other sections of society are duly protected, to see whether the authorised officers are effectively performing their duties, to see how many cases are handled by them and what decisions are arrived at, to give suggestion/ guidance to district/ local level committee, to take decision on the matters referred to it by district/ local level committee, to collect data/ information from district/ local level committee and forward it to I&B secretary.

    On the state level committee would be the following: the principal secretaries of revenue and home, secretary and commissioner of I&PR department, Doordarshan Kendra Hyderabad director and commercial taxes commissioner.

    The district level committee would have the following members: district collector, superintendent of police, commercial taxes deputy commissioner or his representative and the district public relations officer.

    Observers believe that the setting up of the committees is a step in the right direction, but the state would have done well to have other representatives from society and the private sector to give a more holistic perspective.

  • Dish TV to introduce card-less set top boxes

    Dish TV to introduce card-less set top boxes

    MUMBAI: Dish TV India is looking at moving away from set top boxes requiring smart cards for subscribers to its satellite pay TV service. This is likely to take place over the next three or four months.

    Last weekend, India’s largest DTH provider announced that it had selected Rambus’ Cryptomedia security platform for use in its pay TV satellite system. The platform, which includes a hardware root-of-trust embedded in the set-top box chipset, ensures secure distribution of premium content for cable and satellite operators while eliminating the need for a smart card and enhancing usability of the set-top box.

    “As we look to grow our customer base from the current 13 million subscribers, the demand for cost-effective and robust content protection solutions becomes increasingly important for consumers seeking premium content,” said Dish TV India managing director Jawahar Goel. “By leveraging the embedded CryptoMedia core, we no longer need a smart card to provide secure access to premium content, significantly reducing the cost and improving the security of the set-top box.”

    The CryptoMedia Content Protection Core, developed by Rambus Cryptography Research, is one of several new security elements to be integrated in Dish TV India’s latest set-top boxes. Together with the CryptoMedia operator services, the solution provides a flexible security foundation that allows Dish TV India to easily update and reconfigure software and hardware security throughout the lifecycle of the set-top box. Dish TV India will launch the new platform in broad commercial operation later this year.

    “By using the CryptoMedia Content Protection Core, Dish TV India recognizes the value of enabling another level of protection in the set-top box chipset alongside security elements provided by CAS vendors,” said Martin Scott, senior vice president and general manager of the Security Division at Rambus. “Our CryptoMedia Security Platform provides Dish TV India with extra protection for the delivery of content, utilizing our expertise in both embedded security and ecosystem enablement.”

    Formerly part of the CryptoFirewall family, the CryptoMedia Content Protection Core is designed to provide strong security and superior system design flexibility for premium content distribution. The solution minimizes the risk of security failure and helps simplify product development. The core is available in a broad range of set-top box and smart TV chipsets and is compatible with the leading CAS and DRM systems to prevent unauthorized access to content and services, including features like pay-per-view and service-tier upgrades.