Advanced Television

Pay TV

Sky Europe gets Bavaria green light

BSkyB has obtained unconditional media concentration clearance from the state media authorities in Bavaria, and Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein, for the acquisition of 57.4 per cent of Sky Deutschland. In addition, as announced on October 6th 2014, the requisite majority of independent shareholders have voted in favour of the acquisitions. In a statement, BSkyB said that […]

October 14, 2014

TopTV still at risk

South Africa’s TopTV went for the local version of Chapter 11 almost a year ago, but new owners Star Times Group says South Africa’s slow approach to its new owners is now putting the comlete venture at risk. TopTV has changed its name to StarSat, and Star Times’ chairman Xinxing Pang says that despite the […]

October 14, 2014By Chris Forrester

Sky Sports wins ICC cricket rights

Sky Sports has secured the rights to show international cricket’s biggest events including the ICC Cricket World Cup, ICC World Twenty20 and ICC Champions Trophy. The agreement means Sky Sports viewers can access exclusive live coverage of 14 ICC competitions, offering over 250 days of live cricket between 2015 and 2023. STAR has been awarded […]

October 13, 2014By Nik Roseveare

DirecTV, AT&T merger timetable emerges

The general consensus in the US seems to be that the proposed merger between DBS pay-TV operator and giant telco AT&T will get Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval. The FCC has now closed its period for the general public and interested parties to make their comments heard. The FCC will reply to those comments on […]

October 10, 2014

Spain: Multi-play packages lead pay-TV growth

The combination of five different services in a package (mobile and fixed telephony, mobile and fixed Internet access and pay-TV) is increasingly boosting the take-up of pay-TV services. In the first quarter of the year, the convergent packages with 5 different services

October 9, 2014From David Del Valle in Madrid

EE to offer TV service

UK digital communications company EE is to become a quad-play operator with the launch of EE TV, which it describes as the UK’s most advanced TV service. According to the company, EE TV puts mobile at the heart of the TV experience, and works seamlessly with home TVs, tablets and smartphones, allowing customers to access […]

October 8, 2014By Colin Mann

Pay-TV revenues to fall for half of Europe’s top operators

BSkyB’s proposed acquisition of 21st Century Fox’s stakes in Sky Deutschland and Sky Italia will create a pay-TV operation that will rival Liberty Global in subscriber terms. However, with limited pay-TV subscriber expansion possible for their existing assets, both companies will not want to stop there, according to a report from Digital TV Research. BSkyB […]

October 8, 2014

BBC: High quality news important to pay-TV

A survey of pay-TV subscribers shows that international news is still in huge demand and remains an integral part of the European pay TV market. BBC World News has conducted a study of 1,500 pay-TV subscribers with access to the channel from five countries across the continent. The standout finding is how important news is […]

October 8, 2014

Orange adds 25 HD+ channels for FTTH

Orange France will strengthen its HD+ offering in 2015 by adding 25 new FTA and pay-TV channels to the 12 already carried. The offer specifically targets FTTH where Orange claims 500,000 customers and a leading position overall with three million households passed. The group also plans to launch its own SVoD platform by the end […]

October 7, 2014From Pascale Paoli-Lebailly in Paris

Wananchi raises $130m expansion funds

African triple-play operator Wananchi Group, owner of the Zuku Fiber, Zuku pay-TV and Simbanet business services brands, has raised $130 million to fund its growth and expansion in East and Southern Africa. “The new capital investment will be used to consolidate the group’s market leadership in East Africa and to extend our services across East […]

October 7, 2014By Colin Mann