Kazakhstan TV and Radio joins AIB
Kazakhstan Republican TV and Radio has joined the association as a gold member. This marks an important step in highlighting the increasing role of Central Asia and of Kazakhstan in global broadcasting and the involvement of the AIB in this region.
‘We are delighted to welcome Kazakhstan Republican TV and Radio as AIB’ s first member in Central Asia,' said Simon Spanswick, chief executive of the AIB. 'We look forward to working with the whole team in Astana as the broadcaster develops and modernises its operations throughout the country. It is great that this major Central Asian broadcaster is the first to get involved with AIB as we greatly expand our work across Asia.’
‘We are glad to join the Association for International Broadcasters that bridges key players on the global media market. As a part of the AIB community we look forward to benefiting from our membership and contributing to the development of the broadcasting media worldwide’, said Nurzhan Mukhamedzhanova (right), chairman of Kazakhstan Republican Television and Radio Corporation.

The AIBs 2013 - still time to enter
The AIB's annual search for the best factual broadcasting continues until 5 July - entries are arriving from broadcasters all over the world. Is your work among them?
If you produce outstanding factual TV, radio or online content, you should be showcasing it in our ninth year of our international media excellence awards. With categories from live journalism to investigative documentary, children's factual to live sports coverage, the AIBs are a celebration of success in all these genres. We are also on the hunt for the best on air talent on TV and radio.
Full details on how to enter are in our call for entries book - see it online in digital page-turning edition here or download a PDF edition here.
There's more information about this year's awards at theaibs.tv. Remember - the closing date for entries is 5 July 2013.

PROGRAMMING, PRODUCTION AND MARKETING
TVC News launches on UK sat platform
TVC News, the first genuine 24-hour pan-African TV news channel from the stables of the Continental Broadcasting Service Ltd, Lagos, Nigeria, launched its signals on Monday, 17 June 2013, on the UK’s BSkyB platform (EPG 572). The pan-African news channel aims to challenge stereotypes and correct factual inaccuracies and misperceptions about Africa and its peoples.
Nigel Parsons, Chief Executive Officer TVC News said: “Without shying away from reporting the conflicts or the corruption, the famines or the wars, the mission of TVC News is also to tell the many positive stories coming out ofAfrica.” He added: “Stories – good or bad – will be told ‘Through African Eyes’.”
Read more here.

Germany's Super RTL to cut workforce
Super RTL, a free-to-air family channel, is cutting its workforce by around 15%, according to the channel's CEO Claude Schmit speaking to Handelsblatt. The cuts come in advance of Disney Channel launching as a free-to-air channel in Germany at the start of 2014.

Iranian football TV; Russia's young digital channel; India too?
Tehran's Perspolis Football Club is to launch its own TV channel, initially broadcasting for two hours daily. Quoted by INSA news agency, Perspolis Chairman Mohammad Ruyanian said: "Today, I am happy to announce that international Perspolis Channel has been launched and its programmes will be broadcast soon." He added that Reza Rashidpur, a presenter for Iranian broadcasting organisation IRIB, had been appointed as the managing director of the channel. The channel is carried on HotBird.
Meanwhile in Russia, Channel One TV's director-general says it is developing a new digital media project aimed at young, active audiences.
"One of the main goals of the project will be to use all current media technologies to establish an output and feedback link with younger audiences who like using new technology," said director-general Konstantin Ernst. He went on to say that streaming was no longer sufficient for an audience that needs to have a direct impact on the content. "This will be television for people who have been formed by the internet," Ernst remarked.
The group developing the project is led by Aleksey Efimov, previously director-general of MTV Russia.
And in India, Prasar Bharti is reported to be thinking about developing a digital division that will harness the output of All India Radio and Doordarshan for digital consumers. A working party has been set up - when it will receive approval for the new initiative is not yet known.

China wants more factual
At every recent MIPTV and MIPCOM, and now at NATPE, it's been a constant theme - China wants content. The market for factual programming is expanding fast, with hundreds of hours annually needed from production companies and broadcasters who have nature, science, travel and similar genres. Anything, in fact, that's uncontroversial and non-political. The message came through in Budapest once more that China's national and regional broadcasters are hungry for content. It's a relatively untapped market, with cash available.
AIB has contacts at major broadcasters across the People's Republic, available for its members to use. Contact us about how to benefit from the AIB's network.

AIBs 2013 open for entry - join our annual international search for the best in factual TV, radio and online.

Full information on all the categories plus details of past winners at theaibs.tv

AIB recommends...
Great interview with Kevin Klose, acting President at RFE/RL, on Open Democracy. An open and frank discussion about the problems the Prague-based international broadcaster has faced over the past year. Read it at http://www.opendemocracy.net/od-russia/zygmunt-dzieciolowski-kevin-klose/radio-jittery

There has been considerable coverage of the closure of ERT, Greece's public broadcaster, in the media globally. One of the most interesting pieces AIB has seen is written by an American in Greece, Michael Nevradakis. He provides a timeline of events and delivers information that hasn't been widely discussed in a piece for the Daily Kos. Read it here: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/06/17/1216716/-Chronicling-the-Greek-Government-s-Shutdown-of-ERT

DISTRIBUTION, TECHNOLOGY, BUSINESS
Samsung has announced the availability of Eurosport on Samsung Smart TV, the first regional sports broadcasting service available on the platform. Leading pan-European sports channels Eurosport and Eurosport 2 broadcast live streams of internationally renowned sporting events such as the Tour de France, the Africa Cup of Nations and Grand Slam tennis, among many others, equating to over 5,000 hours of live sport every year.
Eurosport on Samsung Smart TV

“We are delighted to welcome Eurosport onto Samsung Smart TV further demonstrating our commitment to broadening our key content partnerships to deliver a rich and varied experience for our customers. We are proud that live sport is now part of our portfolio across Europe,” said Lee Epting, Vice President of Media Solution Centre Europe for Samsung Electronics Europe.
“Eurosport has been delivering innovative programming for many years; ensuring sports fans get the best live sports experience possible. We are very proud to be able to bring our services onto Samsung Smart TV and look forward to introducing viewers to a more dynamic and engaging viewing experience," said Arnaud Maillard, Eurosport's Director of Internet & New Media.

BBC World News heads south
BBC World News is available to Xfinity TV customers across key markets in the southern United States. The BBC’s global news channel has been added to Comcast’s Digital Preferred XFINITY TV package in key metropolitan markets, including Atlanta, Savannah, Charleston, Jackson, Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga and Memphis.
Jim Egan, Chief Executive Officer, BBC Global News Ltd, says: "With correspondents in more countries than any other news broadcaster, our journalists live and report the story first-hand from all corners of the world for our audiences here in the US and globally. We are delighted to be launching on XFINITY TV in the South and to bring our distinctive, comprehensive, unbiased and trusted news and analysis to new audiences."

Behind the scenes at RT
If you'd like to see behind the scenes at RT's new Moscow headquarters, you can. During a visit by President Putin, RT cameramen were on hand to see him tour the new 2,600 square metre facility, much of it in a former tea factory to the east of Moscow city centre. Go to http://freevideo.rt.com/ and look for Putin tours new RT media complex.

BBC global news hits the quarter billion
The BBC's international news services are reaching their largest ever audience - 256m people every week. This new figure - from 2012-13 - marks a 7% growth on the previous year.
BBC World Service Radio, in English and other audiences, have a record weekly audience of 192m people.

Intelsat gains in Asia
Intelsat has announced agreements with leading media customers in the Asia-Pacific region. Hong Kong-based TVBI Company Limited, the worldwide operating arm of Television Broadcasts Limited, one of the world’s largest producers and distributors of Chinese-language programming, has renewed a multi-year agreement on Intelsat 19. TVBI will use the capacity to deliver its premier content to customers in the Asia-Pacific region.
In addition, KDDI, a Japan-based global telecommunications company, has signed an agreement with Intelsat to deliver managed media services via the IntelsatOne network.
“These agreements exemplify the aggressive growth in media distribution services across Asia-Pacific,” said Intelsat RVP of Asia-Pacific Sales Terry Bleakley. “Major programmers in the region continue to turn to Intelsat’s premier video neighbourhoods for the flexible delivery of unique content on multiple platforms, reinforcing our critical role in the global infrastructure.”

PEOPLE
Radio New Zealand has appointed Paul Thompson as the next Chief Executive and Editor-in-Chief of the national public service broadcaster.
Paul Thompson is currently the Group Executive Editor of Fairfax Media in New Zealand and a former award winning editor of the Christchurch Press and the Nelson Mail.
Paul Thompson says he feels privileged to be chosen to lead such a respected and influential organisation. “Radio New Zealand plays a pivotal role in New Zealand life and I’m immensely looking forward to the challenge”. Thompson succeeds Peter Cavanagh who is stepping down at the end of the year.

The European Audiovisual Observatory, part of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, will have a new Director from 1 July. Dr Susanne Nikoltchev, currently Head of the Observatory’s Department for Legal Information, was elected to the post of Executive Director by the Observatory’s Executive Council in its annual meeting in Sofia. Nikoltchev, an international media lawyer specialised in audiovisual legislation and member of the bars in Germany and Washington D.C., has headed the Observatory’s Legal Department since 1998.

Klaus Bergmann, Director of International Relations at Deutsche Welle, was elected Chairman of the AIB's Executive Committee on 17 June. Bergmann will lead the work of the Executive Committee and help AIB develop its medium to long-term strategy. Other members of the Executive Committee are Mark Bunting (BBC Global News), Abubakar Jijiwa (Voice of Nigeria), John Maguire (AEF), Alexei Nikolov (RT) and Lindsey Oliver (Bloomberg),

The latest edition of the AIB's international media magazine, The Channel, is now available. It's been mailed to thousands of subscribers around the world and was recently at Mobile World Congress for delegates to take away.
This current edition focuses on Africa which, as readers will discover, is very much open for business. Find out about developments in new channels, new satellite initiatives, mobile for the region and much more.

The only truly international media magazine covering TV, radio and online media, The Channel is in its 19th year of publication. It's respected globally and read by decision-makers and media leaders. You can subscribe to the magazine for a modest sum that covers international postage costs. Visit http://www.aib.org.uk/the-channel/.
See past editions of the magazine at http://www.aib.org.uk/the-channel/the-channel-past-editions/.