Advanced Television

Business

InterDigital acquires Technicolor patent licensing business

InterDigital, a mobile technology research and development company, has completed the acquisition of the patent licensing business of Technicolor, a global technology player in the media and entertainment sector. The final transaction includes the acquisition by InterDigital of approximately 18,000 patents and applications, across a broad range of technologies, including approximately 3,000 worldwide video coding […]

July 31, 2018

Personnel changes at AsiaSat

July 30th saw news that Barrie Woolston has resigned from Hong Kong-based AsiaSat where he was CCO. Woolston is being replaced by Ina Lui, who has been promoted to the new role of SVP/Commercial, Business Development and Strategy. Lui will take on an expanded role at AsiaSat, including marketing. Prior to joining AsiaSat, she was […]

July 31, 2018By Chris Forrester

Liberty Global sells Austrian Operations to T-Mobile

Liberty Global has completed the previously announced sale of UPC Austria to T-Mobile Austria for an enterprise value of €1.9 billion, equal to nearly 11x UPC Austria’s estimated 2017 adjusted segment operating cash flow. In a statement, Liberty Global said: “The proceeds, after taking into account the repayment of debt that we attribute to UPC […]

July 31, 2018

iKO appoints Treadway

iKO Media Group, a global end-to-end service provider for broadcasters and content owners, has announced David Treadway as Chairman of the Board effective immediately. Treadway is an experienced Director in international businesses in the broadcast & media, communications and technology sectors with strategic skills and extensive experience in managing growth. Treadway brings with him over […]

July 31, 2018

Fox, Disney stockholders approve deal

Separate special meetings of stockholders of Twenty-First Century Fox and The Walt Disney Company have approved all proposals related to Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox. The proposals included the adoption by 21st Century Fox stockholders of the merger agreement with Disney and the distribution merger agreement for the spin-off of new ‘Fox’. Disney stockholders […]

July 30, 2018

Ofcom pauses local TV licensing

Following a consultation issued in April 2018, UK broadcast regulator Ofcom has decided not to advertise or re-advertise licences local TV services for 13 locations, in order to help protect the economic sustainability of the sector as a whole. When Ofcom established its framework for licensing local TV in 2012, it said that it would […]

July 30, 2018By Colin Mann

Viacom acquires AwesomenessTV

Viacom has agreed a deal to acquire AwesomenessTV, a youth-oriented digital media company. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, however, Viacom is paying reportedly well below the $650 million (€556.2m) valuation of the company – with suggestions the sale price is closer to $350 million. AwesomenessTV will be integrated into Viacom’s portfolio of brands […]

July 30, 2018

Mediaset H1 profit down 42%

Milan-based Mediaset has reported a 42.5 per cent annual drop in profit during the first half of 2018, to €42.8 million. Net revenues were stable at €1.84 billion, of which €1.34 billion were achieved in Italy (€1.33 billion in H1 2017) and €507.9 million in Spain (€508.5 million in H1 2017). Revenues in both countries […]

July 30, 2018From Branislav Pekic in Rome

SES: Confidence returns

A 12.13 per cent share price rise for satellite operator SES in a single day (to €17.28 on July 27th) is the perfect verdict on a set of results that went down extremely well with the market.  It was also recognition that new CEO Steve Collar has put behind him the terrible 2017 period of […]

July 30, 2018

Buccieri appointed president of A+E Networks

Hearst and The Walt Disney Company have announced that Paul Buccieri has been named president of A+E Networks Group after having served as president, A+E Studios and A+E Networks Portfolio Group, since 2016. The announcement was made by Steven R. Swartz, president and CEO of Hearst, and Ben Sherwood, co-chair of Disney Media Networks and […]

July 30, 2018