Advanced Television

Internet TV growing strongly

The number of people watching internet TV has increased steadily year on year according to Continental Research's Autumn 2007 Internet & Convergence Report. In particular the number watching shows they have previously downloaded from the Internet has doubled from 1.3 million in 2006 to 2.4 million in 2007. There is also substantial interest in Internet […]

October 18, 2007

EU broadband – big but patchy

Access to broadband has increased in the European Union to 90 million lines, but it should act to increase competition and tackle EU states that are lagging behind, the Commission says. Broadband access in the EU’s 25 oldest member states — excluding Romania and Bulgaria — increased by 28.7 per cent from July 2006 to […]

October 17, 2007

VI to clean up YouTube

Google unveiled new software to fight video piracy on YouTube and ease the concerns of critical media content providers. Google has begun offering what it’s calling “YouTube Video Identification,” which will make it easier for the likes of to identify their content and to manage how it is made available on the site, it is […]

October 17, 2007

US networks will spend $327m+ promoting DTV

US broadcasters promised to air more than $327 million (E231m) worth of television spots as part of a campaign to alert consumers about the approaching switch-over to digital television. The major television networks, as well as 95 station-owning broadcast companies, pledged to run the ads as part of a $697 million campaign designed to keep […]

October 17, 2007

Digital bonus could provide 100mb for all

From Sotires Eleftheriou in Paris The French Consultative Commission for Telecommunications has asked the government to use part of the digital bonus – the spectrum liberated after analogue switch-off – to be used to improve internet access to the population. Guy Roussel, head of Ericsson France and chairman of the commission, said that the freed […]

October 17, 2007

Spain cracks down on pay TV hackers

From David Del Valle in Madrid The Spanish police has disbanded a network of pay-TV hackers by arresting 27 people across the country who would have defrauded the pay-TV companies of E10 million. Amonsgt the detainees there are 10 distributors of keys and codes through the Internet, nine sellers of manipulated set-top-boxes and eight responsible […]

October 17, 2007

Cablevision privatisation slowed

The Dolan family's effort to take Cablevision Systems private is being opposed by a large shareholder and a major proxy advisory firm. Mario Gabelli, a longtime media investor, said that the funds he controls would vote against the proposed transaction at a special shareholders' meeting scheduled for October 24th. Gabelli said he believed his clients […]

October 17, 2007

AT&T ordered to apply for cable TV licence

Connecticut State utility regulators have ordered AT&T to get a cable television licence for the IPTV service it is currently providing in Connecticut. Department of Public Utility Control commissioners said a recent ruling by a federal judge made it clear that AT&T’s “U-verse” constitutes a cable television service, and the company is operating it without […]

October 17, 2007

BBC Mac friendly, Cloud deal

The BBC and Adobe Systems have revealed a strategic relationship around the delivery of web video. By adopting the Adobe Flash Player software, the BBC will make its free catch-up TV service – BBC iPlayer – available as a streaming service across Macintosh and Linux, as well as Windows, by the end of year. The […]

October 17, 2007

Vodafone Portugal entering IPTV market?

Vodafone’s Portugal unit is considering entering the IPTV market and is also contemplating participating in Portugal’s digital terrestrial television (DTT) tender, Jornal de Negocios reported, citing the company’s deputy CEO Antonio Coimbra. ‘Vodafone is ready to launch an IPTV offer in the short term if it decides to do so,’ Coimbra said. Though the company […]

October 17, 2007