Advanced Television

80% of TVs 3D-ready

Research firm Parks Associates reports a modest increase in awareness of 3DTV among US broadband households in 2010, but the mainstream viability of 3D depends on availability of premium video content and not one-off events such as the World Cup. The firm’s latest report – Trends in 3DTV – finds 13% of households are familiar […]

August 23, 2010

BT Sky Sports offer fails to score

BT mustered a ‘reasonably pleased’ to describe sign-ups for its Sky Sport service. Unconfirmed reports put the number at only 60,000 despite the heavy marketing. Their campaign has been met by an even heavier one from Sky emphasising the value of taking all four Sky Sports channels. Strangely, Gavin Patterson, head of BT retail, claimed […]

August 16, 2010

Sport TV launches dedicated HD Premier League channel

From Branislav Pekic in Rome Portuguese pay-TV channel Sport TV has launched a HD channel solely dedicated to English Premier League football, with live transmissions of the new season and archive content. Sport TV Liga Inglesa will be available in the pay-TV packages of Zon, Meo and Clix, at no additional cost to subscribers of […]

August 13, 2010

Multi-service support Euromedia Feature May 2010

Multi Service Support Euromedia Feature May 2010 THE SERVICE PROVIDER WORLD IS CHANGING RAPIDLY, BUT WHAT ABOUT THE SOFTWARE GLUE THAT BINDS OPERATORS SERVICES TOGETHER? STEVE GOLD SPOKE TO SOME OF TODAY’S MOVERS AND SHAKERS IN THE MARKETPLACE TO WORK OUT HOW THIS IMPORTANT SEGMENT IS EVOLVING TO MEET THE DIVERSE NEEDS OF MULTI-SERVICE SERVICE […]

August 13, 2010

Home Networks feature from Euromedia 2010

Home Networks Feature Euromedia MAR/APR 2010 THE SEAMLESS TRANSPORT OF ANY MEDIA TO ANY DEVICE AROUND THE HOME IS THE MOST IMPORTANT NEAR-TERM CHALLENGE FOR SERVICE PROVIDERS. IT IS A SIMPLE PROBLEM THAT HAS MANY – OFTEN COMPLEX – SOLUTIONS. COLIN MANN FINDS OUT WHAT THE OPTIONS ARE FROM A RANGE OF INDUSTRY EXPERTS

August 13, 2010

Ofcom wants to regulate movies too; refers to Competition Commission

The hail of regulator references and appeals continues in the UK as Ofcom asks the Competition Commission to investigate its concerns regarding the sale and distribution of pay TV movies. Ofcom thinks the way in which first-run Hollywood movies are sold and distributed creates a situation in which Sky has the incentive and ability to […]

August 13, 2010

Think tank calls for Licence Fee scrapping and BBC reform

From Colin Mann in London Free-market policy research body The Adam Smith Institute is proposing that the TV Licence Fee should be abolished, and that the BBC should instead become a subscription service. The think tank makes its arguments in a report – Global Player or Subsidy Junkie? Decision time for the BBC – written […]

August 13, 2010

NTT Docomo to acquire PacketVideo

  NTT Docomo has reached an agreement with NextWave Wireless to acquire the remaining 65 per cent equity interest in PacketVideo, a subsidiary of NextWave Wireless, for $111.6 million, turning PacketVideo into a wholly owned subsidiary of NTT Docomo. Docomo acquired a 35-per cent stake in PacketVideo from NextWave in July 2009. Docomo aims to […]

August 13, 2010

Five cuts begin but Desmond pledges £1.5bn

Five is to lose seven of its nine executive directors in a management cull as new owner Richard Desmond looks to cut £20m (E24m) from the business. In total up to 80 jobs will go. Among the leaving are director of strategy Charles Constable and managing director Mark White. Dawn Airey, the Five chairman and […]

August 13, 2010

Two-thirds of French respond to ‘3 strikes’

Two-thirds of French respond to ‘3 strikes’  Around two-thirds of the French say they would stop downloading copyrighted material from illegal sites if threatened with the penalties included in the country’s Hadopi (‘3 strikes). The finding was part of a survey by Ifop for the recording industry association SNEP, which was interested in knowing how […]

August 12, 2010