The ITU’s research working party (ITU-R Working Party 6C) has met and agreed the parameter values for the “next two generations” of TV transmission technology. These are the (so-called) 4K and 8K UHDTV formats. The meeting took place alongside a Forum on Emerging Media Technologies in Geneva, Switzerland. David Wood, the EBU’s deputy technology and development director, chairs the WP6C [...]
The UK government has revealed that a new code of practice setting out new anti-piracy measures and procedures is expected to be published in June. The suggestion came in the government’s response to the Film Policy Review Panel’s report – A Future For British Film: It begins with the audience… The response, prepared by the Department for Culture, Media and [...]
The May 14th news that India’s broadcasting regulator is changing the rules on advertising has created some major headaches for local broadcasters. The new rules are wide-reaching but the main problem focuses on the maximum ‘12 minutes in any hour’ limit. Bosses from India’s general entertainment channels met in Mumbai and Delhi on May 15 to consider a possible legal [...]
India’s media regulator has upset most broadcasters by limiting the number of TV ads that can be shown in any 1 hour period to 12 minutes. Worse, as far as broadcasters are concerned, is that unused ad-minutes cannot be carried over. This reverses a pattern of operation where broadcasters could average their ad-minutes transmitted from the low-impact overnight hours to [...]
Barry-Diller-backed TV platform Aereo, which allows paying customers to record and watch over-the-air television stations online, could destroy the economic model behind television, according to a court filing from NBCUniversal The Internet TV service is being sued by all of the major television broadcasters in federal court in New York, where the service was launched mid-March. Matt Bond, NBCUniversal executive [...]
Comms regulator Ofcom has invited applications for 21 local TV channels across the UK. This follows new duties given to the regulator by Parliament to license local TV. The local TV channels will broadcast on a specially-reserved ‘multiplex’; this is a discrete amount of spectrum used for broadcasting over digital terrestrial TV (DTT). In addition to inviting applicants for 21 [...]
The Netherlands has become the first country in Europe to adopt laws that protect net neutrality. The new legislation, approved last summer, blocks ISPs from slowing down or blocking traffic to specific websites or services, and from charging extra for access to certain websites or apps. It’s now been officially passed into law. Last year, the European Union’s Commissioner for [...]
The European Commission has presented a report on the application of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD). The AVMSD enables the free circulation of audiovisual content and meets important public policy objectives such as banning incitement to hatred, protecting minors from harmful content and promoting European audiovisual works. The key issues covered in the report are advertising practices and the [...]
Twenty seven cities throughout the UK are in the running to become ‘super-connected’, Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt has announced. The cities are able to bid for a share of a £50 million pot to help them roll out ultrafast-broadband, driving growth and attracting new investment. In the Budget, the Chancellor George Osborne announced the new fund, which will help create [...]
The BBC has accused Chinese authorities of attempting to censor its World News channel’s coverage of the prominent dissident Chen Guangcheng. Peter Horrocks, the BBC’s head of global news, said that the corporation’s international news channel had been deliberately “jammed” by Beijing authorities in recent days. Horrocks said the BBC was targeted over its coverage of Guangcheng, the blind Chinese [...]
