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Haye comeback fight FTA on Dave

Dave, the UKTV-owned channel, has agreed a deal to air David Haye’s comeback fight against Australia’s Mark de Mori from London’s O2 Arena on January 16th. The deal also includes a half-hour preview show the night before the fight exploring why Haye is returning to the ring after a three-and-a-half-year absence. “We are increasingly stretching […]

January 7, 2016

Ooyala: Pay-TV fighting for its future

Ooyala’s State of the Broadcast Industry Whitepaper reports that 2015 was the year that premium OTT video content moved decisively to centre stage. The shift from traditional TV continues and shift-deniers have been pushed to the curb. Broadcasters and operators have accepted OTT as a fait accompli, and the repercussions are affecting all areas of […]

January 6, 2016

Sony unveils 4K HDR TV line

At CES 2016 Sony Electronics has unveiled its newest line-up of Ultra HD televisions, the XBR-X930D/XBR-X940D and the XBR-X850D series, built to support the highest standard in picture quality with HDR (High Dynamic Range) compatibility and unique backlighting technologies in an ultra-thin design. HDR reproduces a greater dynamic range of luminosity or brightness levels, bringing […]

January 6, 2016

NOS leads in Portugal’s football rights free-for-all

Broadcast rights for football have become the main battle ground for Portuguese telecom operators in recent weeks. The last month of 2015 saw a frenzy of activity, with NOS snatching contracts with 10 football teams, more than half of Portugal’s Primera Liga.  They include the country’s most popular football club Benfica, for which a 10-year […]

January 5, 2016From Branislav Pekic in Rome

Prediction 2016: ‘Amazon standalone video service’

BTIG, the global financial services firm, has published its top 16 predictions and events to watch for in media and tech stocks in 2016: 1.    Media Companies Forced to Shorten Sports Rights Amortisation Accounting In 2016, BTIG expects accelerating declines in multichannel video subscribers due to cord-cutting/shaving/nevering, combined with a continued secular decline in TV advertising […]

January 4, 2016

ITV wins British horseracing rights

Following in the slipstream of losing out on Formula 1 terrestrial FTA rights to Channel 4, UK pubcaster ITV has wrested the exclusive free-to-air deal for British horseracing from Channel 4 starting January 1st 2017 after winning the tender process for a new four-year term. Observers had questioned Channel 4’s ability to maintain its continued […]

January 4, 2016By Colin Mann

NZ court rules on Dotcom extradition

A New Zealand court has ruled that Kim Dotcom, founder of closed-down file-sharing site Megaupload, can be extradited to the United States to face online piracy charges. After a nine-week hearing, Judge Nevin Dawson found there was “overwhelming” evidence to support extradition. The decision comes almost four years after NZ police raided Dotcom’s mansion at […]

December 23, 2015By Colin Mann

Dutch content pirates face jail

Following the successful 2013 raid of five homes in The Netherlands cities of Apeldoorn, Enschede, Vlagtwedde and The Hague, content pirates arrested during these raids have been sentenced at the Zutphen courthouse. Two defendants received 100 hours of community service, two months of conditional imprisonment and two years’ probation. This followed an extensive collaborative effort […]

December 22, 2015By Colin Mann

BT offers 4K Netflix

BT TV is claiming a UK first following the announcement that it is to offer Netflix in Ultra HD.  BT TV customers will be able to view some of the world’s biggest TV shows via the new Ultra HD YouView+ set-top box and adding Netflix’s Ultra HD plan for £8.99 (€12.33) a month. BT TV […]

December 21, 2015

Channel 4 wins UK F1 race

Channel 4 will be the UK terrestrial home of the FIA Formula One World Championship from 2016-2018 in a new deal agreed with Formula One World Championship Limited. ITV had been rumoured to be in pole position to take over the deal from the BBC as it sought to reduce costs. Writing in a BBC […]

December 21, 2015By Colin Mann