ITV

Tag: UK

  • NDTV inks distribution deal with BT for UK, US

    MUMBAI: British Telecom’s (BT) media and broadcast division has inked an agreement with news broadcaster NDTV to be its global network supplier. This will enable the distribution of NTDV to the pay TV platforms BSkyB and DirecTV in the UK and US respectively. This is part of NDTV’s global growth strategy. BT will carry the live NDTV news bulletins to multiple platforms on its state of art network specially rolled out for television and media companies.

    BT GM, client management Asia Pacific and EMEA Deepakjit Singh Chatrath said, “We are indeed excited about fuelling a certain part of NDTV’s global growth plans. This is indeed an excellent opportunity for BT to showcase its network especially in terms of resiliency, security and a round the clock global service. We are confident of building this relationship as a benchmark for today’s broadcast industry.”

    BT presently down links the signal at UK from the PAS 10 satellite, and then carries it over its Media – IP network to BskyB’s platform in UK. This also includes bringing the signal to the BT Tower and making it fit for the U.S. viewer and then transporting the signal to the DirecTV platform in Los Angeles for it to be broadcasted over the DirecTV’s US platform. BT also takes care of repurposing the formats and other services for the US market.

    BT already has implemented the carriage of signal to BskyB platform and to DirecTV is planned for launch by end of July.

    NDTV CTO Rahul Deshpande said, “For today’s broadcasters the big business goal is globalisation. We have chosen BT as it offers a suite of services such as world class security, end to end network monitoring and water-tight service agreements that have been built into BT’s IP network”.

    BT’s Media & Broadcast Media-IP network is the only IP network which can connect the customer to multiple platforms across many countries without getting out of the network.

  • Endemol COO Tom Barnicoat resigns

    Endemol COO Tom Barnicoat resigns

    MUMBAI: Tom Barnicoat, chief operating officer of television format owner and distributor Endemol, has resigned, the company announced today.

    Endemol, best known as the creator of the Big Brother format, offered no explanations as to the reasons for Barnicoat’s departure except to state that he would be stepping down with immediate effect.

    The responsibilities of Barnicoat will be taken over by other members of the Endemol management board until further notice.

    Barnicoat was previously Endemol UK CEO. He was appointed Endemol COO in January 2005.

    Barnicoat will receive a severance and pension payout of ?2.79 million (? 2,599,999 and ? 191,042 respectively).

  • BBC Trust approves plans to launch Freesat platform

    MUMBAI: The BBC Trust has provisionally approved UK pubcaster the BBC management’s proposal to develop and launch a free-to-view satellite platform, “Freesat”.

    BBC management envisages Freesat being achieved as a joint venture with other public service broadcasters. The Trust believes that the service would create significant public value by offering licence fee payers an additional means to access digital services, including the BBC’s digital television channels and radio services, which is subscription free and guaranteed to stay that way. It would be offered on the basis of a one-off initial payment only, to cover the cost of equipment and installation. The service would be future-proofed, through the designing in of high definition and personal video recorder compatibility, and would be marketed through retail outlets and via the internet. BBC management’s intention is to establish a joint venture company with other public service broadcasters to manage the marketing and technical aspects of the new platform. Set top boxes would be supplied by third parties working with retailers to a specification agreed with the joint venture company.

    The Trust has published its decision, and the evidence and analysis which informed its judgement, and opened a 28 day public consultation prior to making its final decision in April 2007.

    BBC chairman Chitra Bharucha said, “The BBC’s Royal Charter requires the Corporation to take a leading role in digital switchover which begins next year. From 2008 until 2012, as each UK nation and region switches to digital, all households that haven’t done so already will have to choose a new way to access television. One of the benefits arising from digital switchover will be greater choice for viewers. For those seven million homes yet to make the switch, it needs to be clear that the benefits of digital television do not need to equal ‘pay television’.

    “A new, guaranteed subscription-free satellite service would provide the public another option when deciding which platform to choose. Over half of those yet to switch fall outside the Freeview coverage area. For these homes, the new service would mean being able to access BBC digital services they have already paid for via their licence fee but until now have been unable to receive on a guaranteed subscription-free basis.

    “We have considered the market impact and whilst there may be some negative effects, in our view these should be balanced against the potential positive market impact of greater choice. Overall, we believe a “Freesat” service to be in the public interest and we hope that other public service broadcasters would join the BBC in a joint venture. We welcome all responses to our provisional conclusion during the consultation. “

    The BBC Trust has decided that Freesat meets the BBC’s Charter and Agreement definition of a ‘non-service’ activity and does not require a Public Value Test. Nonetheless, in reaching its provisional decision the Trust has considered the potential public value and market implications of launching the service.

    In particular, the Trust examined the proposition in four key areas:

    Whether the proposition would serve the best interests of licence fee payers:
    Of the 7 million homes yet to switch to digital, over half fall outside the Freeview coverage area. Inability to access free-to-view digital is an issue frequently raised by the public in its contacts with the BBC. For some, this would remain an issue until the analogue system is switched off entirely in 2012. The Trust considers failure to address this issue to be inconsistent with its public service duties.

    What public value the new platform might create:
    The Trust has provisionally concluded there is significant public value in the “Freesat” proposition. It believes such a service would have a positive impact by introducing choice to the market and a guaranteed subscription free alternative to Sky’s free satellite option. The costs to the BBC are modest and comparable with those of Freeview. Launching the proposition as a joint venture would further increase value for money.

    How the proposition fits with the BBC’s public service remit:
    The Charter and Agreement set out a number of public service duties for the BBC. The Charter includes a Public Purpose to help deliver the benefits of emerging technologies to the public, and to take a leading role in digital switchover. Meanwhile, the Agreement states that the BBC “must do all that is reasonably practicable to ensure that viewers, listeners and other users are able to access the UK public services that are intended for them”. The Trust has provisionally concluded that the objectives of the proposition are consistent with, and enhance, the BBC’s public service remit.

    The competitive impact of the proposals on the wider market:
    The Trust’s provisional conclusion is that the proposition would have some negative impact on the wider market but increase choice for consumers. The Trust’s view takes account of analysis of the proposition’s potential market implications carried out by its own independent advisers within the Trust Unit and external independent economists.

    Under the terms of the previous Charter the BBC submitted a proposal, approved by the Governors, to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in June 2006 to launch a free open standard satellite service. However the Charter expired before the Secretary of State reached a decision and, in line with the terms of the new Charter, the decision now rests with the BBC Trust. The Trust received the open file from the Secretary of State in January. Further to detailed scrutiny at its Finance & Strategy Committee and the provision of further independent advice referred to above, the Trust reached its provisional conclusion at its meeting on 21 February.
        
          

  • Parents place high value on originality of kids shows in the UK: study

    Parents place high value on originality of kids shows in the UK: study

    MUMBAI: According to the results of a YouGov poll, parents in Great Britain place a high value on originally produced, children’s programming and like to watch their favourite children’s programmes with their own children.

    The poll, commissioned by Pact – the trade association for independent producers – was conducted amongst a sample of 2551 adults across the UK.

    Other key findings of the survey include the following:

    • 66 per cent of parents believe original children’s programming provides families with shared cultural experiences

    • 70 per cent believe that original UK children’s programmes contribute to the UK’s cultural identity

    • 73 per cent agree that original UK produced children’s programmes encourage children to read and play imaginatively

    • 73 per cent agreed that original UK children’s programming is even more important in the age of multi-channel television

    • Just 21 per cent agree that programmes from countries like Japan and the US are just as high quality and family friendly as children’s programmes produced in the UK.

    These findings come at a critical time for the UK children’s programming industry. Over recent years there has been a steady decline in the level of new UK children’s programming shown on commercially funded public service broadcasters (ITV, Channel 4 and Five).

    ITV stopped commissioning new UK children’s programmes 12 months ago. It has continued with this policy despite Ofcom’s ruling that it is not allowed to cut the amount of children’s hours it broadcasts each week. Furthermore, it has also recently cut the total number of children’s hours to just two per week, despite Ofcom’s ruling.

    Pact also understands that Five’s commissioning of new UK programmes for older kids (outside the so-called pre-school genre) is under severe pressure.

    Historically the UK’s broadcasters have been renowned the world over for funding and broadcasting imaginative, high-quality and family-friendly programming.

    Successful contemporary shows made by the commercial broadcasters include:

    * My Life As A Popat: nominated for a Commission for Racial Equality award (ITV)
    * My Parents Are Aliens: deals with contemporary family values (ITV)
    * Fifi And The Flowertots: promotes the environment and health (Channel Five)
    * Peppa Pig: celebrates the warmth and humour of family life (Nick Jr)
    * A Different Life: teaches about children with unusual lives – from having rare disabilities to living in the South African bush (Five)
    * Art Attack: encourages kids to experiment (ITV)
    * Michaela’s Wild Challenge: explores nature and the environment (Five)
    * Brainiac: promotes science as fun (Sky1)

     

  • NDTV secures Rs 5.85 billion FIPB clearance for entertainment, lifestyle channels

    NDTV secures Rs 5.85 billion FIPB clearance for entertainment, lifestyle channels

    NEW DELHI: News major NDTV’s plans to enter the broadcast entertainment arena has just moved up a gear. The finance ministry has approved foreign investment of Rs 5.85 billion by NDTV Networks UK in wholly owned subsidiary companies – NDTV Imagine and NDTV Lifestyle.

    The approvals for foreign direct investment in the two companies are for the upcoming launch of NDTV’s Hindi general entertainment and lifestyle channels.
    It was Indiantelevision.com that reported that NDTV Group had floated Networks Plc, UK, which would play a big role in bringing in investments for the entertainment and other non news channels.

    The Rs 5.85 billion funding that NDTV has secured corroborates an earlier media report that had said that $106 million would be invested into NDTV Imagine while $25.23 million would be pumped into NDTV Lifestyle, a channel dedicated to travel, food, fashion, shopping and health and wellness.

    The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) cleared NDTV’s FDI application in its meeting held on 14 February.

    NDTV Networks will be driving the group’s new business initiatives worldwide comprising entertainment, lifestyle, convergence, outsourcing, new channels set up in different countries and software/technology development.

  • Ofcom to look into Sky buying into ITV

    Ofcom to look into Sky buying into ITV

    MUMBAI: The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in the UK has ordered that country’s media watchdog Ofcom to investigate pay TV service provider BSkyB’s purchase of a stake in commercial broadcaster ITV.

    The aim is to see how this might affect pubclic interest.

    The British trade secretary, Alistair Darling, has asked Ofcom to review whether BSkyB’s purchase of a 17.9 per cent stake in ITV “raises public interest concerns about the number of different owners of media enterprises”.

    The move reports state is a victory for Virgin Media. It has been lobbying for an investigation. its argument is that the investment in ITV by a firm that Murdoch’s News Corp has a stake in threatens media plurality in the UK.

    Ofcom’s initial findings will be submitted by 27 April. This could result in the BSkyB stake in ITV being referred to the Competition Commission for a fuller investigation. Last year in November BSkyB had purchased for £940 million 17.9 per cent of ITV.

    Cable firm NTL now known as Virgin Media had tried to buy ITV for £5 billion. Sky says that its minority shareholding in ITV has no bearing on the considerations of the public interest test relating specifically to media plurality. It says that it is inconceivable to suggest that, as a result of a 17.9 per cent shareholding in ITV, Sky would be able to influence ITV’s broadcasting strategy or policies, including programming or editorial decisions, which remain entirely the responsibility of the board.

    Sky adds, “In its short history, Sky has fundamentally increased choice for viewers, consistently pioneered innovations, invested in and developed quality on-screen content, and is now challenging incumbent telecom and cable providers with lower-cost broadband and phone services. Sky makes a significant contribution to plurality in the highly competitive media sector.”

    Meanwhile BSkyB could take a hit of up to 20 million pounds if it loses a deal to show its basic channels on Virgin Media. Interestingly though analysts say that it is the other firm that could suffer more in the long run. The deal concludes on 28 February 2007.

  • ‘Water’ to finally make it to Indian theatres

    ‘Water’ to finally make it to Indian theatres

    NEW DELHI: After bagging an Oscar nomination in the Best Foreign Language category and being theatrically released in 57 countries, including the United Kingdom and Denmark, and having already brought in $ 5.6 million at the North American box office where it played in 150 theatres, Deepa Mehta’s Water will finally be seen in Indian theatres early next month.

    The renowned director told a press conference in the Capital yesterday that the John Abraham-Lisa Ray-Seema Biswas starrer was being released on 9 March all over the country.
    The film figured among the final five nominees for the ‘Best Foreign Language Film Category’ for the Oscars beating Indian entry Rang De Basanti. It went to the Oscars as a Canadian entry. The Oscars are being presented on 25 February and will air live on Star Movies.

    The film is the third in the trilogy of films by Deepa Mehta after Fire and 1947 Earth, and deals with the plight of widows in the India of the 1930s. Fire tackled lesbianism while Earth dealt with the subject of India’s partition.

    Set against Mahatma Gandhi’s Civil Disobedience movement of 1938, Water is a deeply moving tale of three women and their uprising against gender injustice and servitude in the ‘widow houses’ of India. The film’s release in India has been made possible by BR Films, a distribution firm owned by filmmaker Ravi Chopra.

    Speaking at the press meet, Chopra said his decision to take up the release of the film in India was not impelled by the film winning an Oscar nomination. “The decision to release the film in India was made before the film bagged the Oscar nomination,” Chopra said. He added: ”It is a very cute film, a beautiful love story. It is a film which has won accolades and box office success galore in the US and in this sense made India proud in the West. This is all the more reason why I felt people in India should see this film.”

    The theatrical release for the film in India comes almost seven years after protests by fundamentalists forced the filmmaker to suspend its shooting in Varanasi and abandon the project. The protestors alleged that the film was “anti-Hindu” and the sets of the film were set on fire by radical Hindu protesters who also burned Mehta’s effigy in the streets and threatened the director. Hundreds of army troops were deployed to protect the cast and crew but the production was finally forced to shut down.

    The film was revived four years later with a different cast. John Abraham replaced Bollywood star Akshay Kumar while model-turned-actor Lisa Ray took the place of Nandita Das. The shooting of the film was undertaken in Sri lanka in 2005 though the locale is shown as Varanasi.

    Asked about the controversy surrounding the film, Chopra said, ”In the film, Deepa Mehta is talking about something that happened in India in the 1930s. One can differ with the director’s take on the hapennings, but nobody can deny that it happened. As an Indian I, after watching the film, did not feel that the film hurts Indian sensibilities in any way.”

    Initially, the film will be released with about 100 prints all over India, including nine in Delhi. ”The film will initially be released in theatres in metros like New Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kolkata. Later, depending on the response, we will take it to smaller centers,” Chopra said.

    Mehta said “winning a nomination at the Oscars is itself a matter of pride. from hereon it does not matter whether the film eventually wins an Oscar.” The film has been shortlisted along with Pan’s Labyrinth (Mexico), After The Wedding (Denmark), Days of Glory and the German Cold War drama The Lives of Others.

    John Abraham said, “Deepa Mehta is an actor’s director. She understands her actors’ sensibilities and projects her characters very well. In fact, I am proud to say that finally I have a Deepa Mehta’s film on my CV.”

    Released by Fox Searchlight in the US in April last year, Water went on to become one of the best reviewed films of the year, and the highest grossing Hindi-language drama
    ever released in North America. It received the Freedom of Expression award from the National Board of Review, was named one of the top ten best pictures by the New York Film Critics online and received their humanitarian award.

    Besides the Oscars nominations for Best Foreign Language film, Water has earlier recieved nine nominations and three awards at the 26th annual Genie awards (Canada’s Oscars), including an award for Seema Biswas for ‘Outstanding Actress in a leading Role’, ‘Achievement in Music-Original Score’ award for Mychael Danna and ‘Achievement in Cinematography’ award for Giles Nuttgens.

    The film also won for Deepa Mehta the Best Director and Lisa Ray the Best Actress award in the 2005 Vancouver Film Critics awards and recieved a nomination for Best Canadian Film.

  • Ofcom reviews the role of public service broadcasting on kid’s TV in UK

    Ofcom reviews the role of public service broadcasting on kid’s TV in UK

    MUMBAI: With the exploding children’s media landscape in UK, Britain’s content regulator Ofcom has announced a project to review the future of children’s programming with specific reference of public service broadcasting (PSB).

    The project will look at the state of children’s media in the UK and examine the role of television within this.

    The research will commence this month and a research report will be published in summer 2007.

    A full PSB Review is expected early in 2008.

    Currently, 18 dedicated children’s channels are available on multi-channel platforms hence, the review will examine the extent to which the purposes of PSB on television have been fulfilled. “It is proposed that the final focus of the project be on children’s television programming across PSB and non PSB channels; we ultimately aim to assess the desirability and scope of any public service interventions in this market.”

    The project, will also attempt to address some of the geographical issues relating to children’s programming like “the role of PSB children’s programming in reflecting the cultural diversity of the different nations and regions of the UK.”

     

  • BBC launches a kids magic reality hunt in the UK

    BBC launches a kids magic reality hunt in the UK

    MUMBAI: UK pubcaster the BBC’s kids chanel CBBC is launching a reality hunt to find The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.

    A boarding school set deep in the heart of the English countryside will become the home of magical adventure.

    14 scholars will be picked from auditions taking place across the UK. The successful applicants are then whisked away to magic school where they will have 18 days of intense training by top professional magicians.

    While the apprentices make the transformation from novice to magician, the children watching will also get to brush up on their own sorcery skills. In an accompanying series the magic mentors will give away some of their hottest secrets in step-by-step guides so children can learn how to perform magic tricks to amaze their family and friends at home.

    The apprentices will be schooled in the history of magic and folklore, the latin for casting spells, chemistry, card tricks and also look after resident magic animals. As their knowledge and skills progress they will be taught the art of illusion.

    At the end of each week, the children will compete, performing their magic in front of a live audience and the Sorcerer himself. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, being made for CBBC by independent production company Twenty Twenty, will be shown later this year.

    CBBC creative director Anne Gilchrist said, “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice is going to be a great event for CBBC. Children of all ages are fascinated by magic and this show will inspire and amaze in equal measures.”

  • Discovery focusses on ‘Planet Earth’ with an in-depth portrait

    Discovery focusses on ‘Planet Earth’ with an in-depth portrait

    MUMBAI: One of infotainment channel Discovery’s biggest shows of the year focusses on Planet Earth. It kicks off on 1 February 2007 and airs every Thursday at 8 pm.

    The 11 part show took five years to make. It used 40 cameramen filming across 200 locations. The programmes were made over four years by producer Alastair Fothergill and his team, who were responsible for the successful Blue Planet.

    Filming involved visiting 62 countries. Each of the 11 episodes (except the first) focusses on one of the Earth’s natural habitats and examines its indigenous features, together with the breadth of fauna found there. Several animals and locations are shown that have hitherto never been filmed, using innovative camera technology.

    Previously unseen animal behaviour includes: wolves chasing caribou observed from above; snow leopard pursuing markhor in the Himalayas; grizzly bear cubs leaving their den for the first time; crab-eating macaques that swim underwater; and over a hundred sailfish hunting en masse.

    From mountains to rivers, the series will take viewers on a journey through the challenging seasons and the daily struggle for survival in Earth’s most extreme habitats. The show uses HD photography and unique filming techniques.

    Some sequences do have potentially disturbing content. Examples include a lone elephant being brought down by lions and a polar bear unsuccessfully attacking a walrus colony and subsequently being overcome by hunger and exhaustion. Fothergill was quoted in reports saying that he asked BBC in the UK for an appropriate warning before transmission in such cases.

    In describing the show Attenborough in the opening montage says, “A 100 years ago, there were one and a half billion people on Earth. Now, over six billion crowd our fragile planet. But even so, there are still places barely touched by humanity. This series will take you to the last wildernesses and show you the planet and its wildlife as you have never seen them before.”