Advanced Television

Cable

Court becomes Tru

One of the best-known cable networks in the US is demolishing a 16-year-old brand in a bold bid to become even bigger. Court TV will become “truTV” in one of the biggest marketing makeovers in cable history. The network will abandon Court's logo and its primetime “Seriously Entertaining” tag line in favour of a new […]

October 30, 2007

Virgin Media boosts channel line-up

Cable operator Virgin Media has confirmed the addition of new children’s, entertainment and movie channels from CSC Media and Sparrowhawk. Virgin Media TV customers are now able to receive Diva TV, Movies 24+ and the Pop and Tiny Pop channels.

October 29, 2007

PCCW to form Taiwan cable TV with Chunghwa

Hong Kong's PCCW is to form a cable TV joint venture with Chunghwa Telecom , Taiwan’s largest fixed line operator. PCCW will introduce its 'Now' broadband TV platform to the Taiwan market by the end of this year. Chunghwa has already applied to Taiwan’s telecoms regulator for a licence to offer the new service.

October 25, 2007

O2TV offers Disney films

Telefónica O2 Czech Republic has signed a contract The Walt Disney Company for the distribution of its films through O2TV fixed-line television. In addition to new titles, Telefónica O2 also has access to library titles from Disney-ABC International Television’s portfolio, from which they will present 40 films over the course of every year.

October 15, 2007

Cable Europe: 2m new digital subs; ad revenue targeted

From Colin Mann in Cannes European cable industry trade body Cable Europe, has revealed that cable TV operators in Europe added more than two million digital TV customers in the first half of 2007. The cable industry is expected to count more than 16 million digital TV customers by year-end 2007, that would be a […]

October 15, 2007

Subs sue for a la carte

Some cable subscribers are suing to get their programming a la carte. A multimillion-dollar class-action suit has been filed against the major cable programmers and operators for violating antitrust laws by bundling programming in expanded basic tiers. In a suit filed by veteran antitrust attorney Maxwell Blecher on behalf of 14 cable and satellite subscribers […]

September 24, 2007

Canadian regulator to give TV, cable operators more leeway

Canada’s broadcasting regulator should give more flexibility to cable operators and television stations on advertising, Canadian content and channel packages, according to a report commissioned by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. The study will feed into the federal regulator’s public consultations next year on speciality and pay channels and cable and satellites services. Lawyers […]

September 17, 2007

FCC sets cable requirement for digital switchover

US communications regulators have approved new rules designed to ensure that cable television subscribers who own analogue TV sets will still have access to local broadcast TV channels following the digital switchover in 2009. The FCC voted to endorse rules that require cable operators to continue carrying local broadcast channels that can be viewed on […]

September 13, 2007

US Cable and NAB explain digital

The US cable television industry has launched a $200 million (E146m) advertising campaign to assure customers they will still be able programmes after the transition to digital broadcasting. Ad spots open with a graphic that reads: “By law TV stations will end analogue broadcasts on February 17, 2009, and broadcast exclusively in digital.” That will […]

September 10, 2007

FCC still backs a la carte

Federal Communications Commission chairman Kevin Martin isn't backing down stand for la carte, saying he believed it could benefit, not reduce, diversity. But he did apologised for upsetting civil-rights groups who complained about comments he made last week Nonethelss he said claims that interest groups weren't independent came from a Center for Public Integrity study. […]

August 26, 2007