Advanced Television

Broadcast

Brits accused in Spanish TV fraud

Seven Britons have been arrested in the Spanish coastal area of Orihuela for allegedly distributing pirated television signals to more than 15,000 clients, most of them also British. The Guardia Civil made the arrests in several urbanisations on March 17, with telecommunications and computer material also being seized. The group allegedly distributed the signal from […]

March 23, 2009

Half of Britons choose VOD

Video on demand services have now been used by half the population of Britain, with millions of viewers claiming to use the service every month, according to a survey, commissioned by industry regulator ATVOD, which shows that 50 per cent of the population have used on-demand services, with 20 per cent using them every week. […]

March 23, 2009

Digital media grows 20% in 2008

According to Strategy Analytics Digital Media Strategies (DMS) research, the top 27 digital media companies in the world increased earnings by more than 20 per cent, to $74 billion in 2008 up from $61.5 billion in 2007. Among the top five digital media companies in the world, Apple's 'Other Music Related Products and Services' segment, […]

March 23, 2009

Reckitt-Benckiser shifts $20m on line

Reckitt-Benckiser plans to move $20 million of its media spend budget from TV into online video for 15 of its brands, as it looks to secure more efficient advertising rates. Reckitt-Benckiser will partner with adserving video ad networks, including Glam, Tidal TV, YuMe and Brightroll, rather than TV network websites, which charge higher online CPMs. […]

March 20, 2009

3D TV will take off?

Media analyst Screen Digest says 10 percent of new TVs sold could have 3D capabilities by 2011, and 16 percent (2.8 billion) by 2015. That depends, however, on the industry developing a standard around the emerging technology – if not, only three percent (500 million) of new sets would pack the new tech. BSkyB has […]

March 20, 2009

Spain allows the sale or lease of DTT licences

From David Del Valle in Madrid The Spanish Government is finalising an overall TV law (Ley General Audiovisual) that will allow broadcasters to sell or lease their DTT licences whose renewal will be made automatic for 15 years periods (the current law only permits up to 10 years subject to Government’s approval). The sale or […]

March 20, 2009

BskyB can appeal Competition ruling

BSkyB has won permission to appeal against a Competition Appeal Tribunal ruling forcing it to reduce its 17.9% stake in ITV to below 10%. Last November, the Competition Appeal Tribunal rejected an appeal against the original ruling in October 2007 that the deal had restricted competition but Sky went to the Court of Appeal which […]

March 20, 2009

TV ads spend collapse

Advertising spend fell off a precipice in the fourth quarter of 2008 plunging almost 10 per cent year on year. The figures, compiled by the World Advertising Research Centre for the Advertising Association, highlight the speed of the erosion of the UK ad market, as companies slash budgets in the uncertain economic climate. The AA […]

March 20, 2009

TV schedule still important

From Colin Mann in Cannes Despite its oft-rumoured demise, the linear TV schedule still has a role to play in the multi-platform age, according to Simon Nelson, Controller, Platform and Portfolio, BBC Vision, Addressing a MIPTV Digital Forum on 'International Cross Platform Strategies', Nelson refuted suggestions that increasingly powerful search and recommendation engines make the […]

March 20, 2009

Western Europe DTV 100m subs

Western European digital television subscriptions broke through the 100 million household mark in 2008, according to a report by Strategy Analytics. The report estimates that Western Europe added 17 million net new digital households in 2008. On a platform level, Digital Satellite led in terms of overall subscriptions; however, Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) will fuel […]

March 16, 2009