A dispute over satellite frequencies between Eutelsat and Arabsat over Iranian–claimed broadcasting rights has not been settled by the ITU, and is now to be presented to the global ITU conference of telecom authorities in January. The argument also concerns the wealthy Gulf state of Qatar. The argument concerns the so-called Zohreh-2 ‘satellite’ which never […]
Sony Corp is likely to lose a staggering $1 billion this year, which will maintain a terrible four-year record of losses under CEO Sir Howard Stringer. A Tokyo press conference outlined how the giant electronics-to-movies plans to trim some 125 billion Yen ($1.6bn) from annual costs over the next few years. This further bad news […]
On October 24, UK media regulator Ofcom cancelled the licences of three channels (Babeworld, House of Fun and The Other Side). These channels are perhaps not the most important UK broadcasters, but now Ofcom is looking at the licensing of channels that do have a somewhat higher profile. Ofcom’s concerns revolve around who actually controls […]
Japan’s public broadcaster NHK is cutting its annual licence fee by 120 Yen (about $1.60) a month. This is the first such cut since 1968 when the nation’s radio licence was terminated. The monthly fee is currently 1345 Yen (about $17.74). Viewers who want the additional free-to-air satellite services pay an extra 945 Yen ($12.40). […]
Giant Norwegian telco has unveiled its Q3 results, and most of its various broadcasting-related divisions reported fairly flat revenues. For example, Canal Digital, Telenor’s pay-TV arm, saw overall revenues drop by NOK12 million (1 per cent), to NOK1,047 million (from NOK 1,059m) although total EBITDA improved by 9 per cent. Canal Digital’s DTH subs numbers […]
The ‘Democratic Voice of Burma’ (DVB) web-site says that licences for satellite television receivers are likely to be issued again in Burma following a six-year ban claimed at the time by observers to be an attempt to control the flow of information into the country. The notification came from communications minister Thein Htun after […]
Technology company NDS is now serving more than 20 million homes in India, representing more than 100 million viewers, with its encryption and middleware expertise. Dr Abe Peled, executive chairman of NDS, speaking exclusively to Advanced-Television.com from New Delhi where he was attending an event to celebrate the milestone, said the best part of the […]
Satellite operator SES and German cable giant Kabel Deutschland both make Morgan Stanley’s stock pick of “20 for 2015” which the investment bank says helps identify those companies with long-term sustainable competitive advantages. KDG, says the bank’s report to investors, “is Germany’s largest cable TV operator (by revenues), Europe’s largest cable TV company and amongst […]
Discovery Communications, one of the TV industry’s highest-regarded broadcasters, needs to make its corporate governance more transparent. Same with News Corp, says corporate research firm GMI Risk List, which regularly reports on quoted companies which have, in the view of GMI, “particular [risk] factors that may correlate with negative events,” said Kimberly Gladman, GMI’s Director […]
It is easy (I find it particularly easy) to criticise businesses that seem to spend endless energy, time and money on consumer research and focus groups. As with bringing in consultants, it often seems mostly a way for management to avoid making the decisions it’s paid to make or, at the very least, to establish […]