7 April 2014
In another landmark development for the BBC’s presence in Burma (also known as Myanmar), BBC Burmese has launched its TV news bulletin on the national TV channel, Myanmar National Television (MNTV). BBC Burmese service’s 10-minute programme brings the BBC’s coverage of regional and international news to viewers of MNTV, live, at 20.45 Burmese Time (14.15 GMT) Monday to Friday. The programme will also be streamed live on the website bbcburmese.com.
The launch of the new BBC Burmese TV news programming is part of the continued move of the BBC’s international news services towards digital platforms. BBC Burmese Editor, Tin Htar Swe, says: “We have enjoyed mass listenership in Burma, where the BBC’s balanced, trustworthy radio programming has been in demand for decades. Thanks to this milestone partnership with MNTV, viewers across the country will now have access to BBC news on prime time TV. We are looking forward to this exciting new collaboration which will benefit those who want to keep abreast of the regional and world developments.”
Nan Mouk Laung Saing, President of MNTV and Managing Director of Shwe Than Lwin Media Co, Ltd, adds: “We are delighted to form a partnership with the BBC. As a private media company, we are particularly proud to collaborate with the BBC and we look forward to a long-term partnership. Shwe Than Lwin Media’s core objective is to entertain and inform Myanmar people, and the broadcast of BBC international TV news in Burmese language on MNTV channel will benefit our audience greatly.”
The launch of the BBC Burmese TV news bulletins on MNTV follows the recent expansion of the BBC presence on Myanmar’s media scene which saw the inclusion of selected BBC radio programming to the schedules of some of the country’s nationwide FM networks. In another first for Burma, BBC Burmese audio news bulletins were made available to the country’s mobile-phone users.
The BBC Burmese radio programming is broadcast on shortwave and on PAS10 and Palapa satellite television channels and streamed online via bbcburmese.com. In addition to providing the latest news and current affairs, BBC Burmese offers its audiences a variety of programmes on education, sport, health, technology as well as weekly debates on topical issues.
BBC Burmese is part of BBC World Service. (Source: Press release)
7 April 2014
The Broadcasting Board of Governors has condemned a decision by Russian authorities to cut off all remaining radio transmissions by US international media in Russia.
In a one sentence letter dated March 21, Dmitriy Kiselev, the director of the Russian information agency Rossiya Segodnya (Russia Today), stated that “we are not going to cooperate” with the BBG’s request to continue a longstanding contract for broadcasting on Russian soil. From the end of March, this decision removes the last vestige of Voice of America [VOA] programming including news in Russian and English language lessons from a local frequency in Moscow (810 AM). This frequency also carried selected programmes from Radio France International.
“Moscow has chosen to do the wrong thing and restrict free speech,” said BBG chairman Jeff Shell. “This is a fundamental value shared by many countries around the world. The BBG will continue to reach audiences in Russia through digital platforms and via satellite transmissions.” Distribution of VOA and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty [RFE/RL] programming in Russia reached a high point in 2005, when VOA Russian programming was distributed on a nationwide television network and both VOA and RFE/RL had extensive partnerships with domestic Russian radio stations. But starting in that year, the Russian government turned greater attention to these stations and
asked them all to reapply for their licences. And beginning in 2006, by denying the licences of the stations that reapplied and intimidating the others, Russian authorities systematically eliminated domestic radio distribution of BBG supported
programmes and almost all television distribution. In 2012, Russian authorities forced RFE/RL off its last remaining domestic radio outlet, an AM frequency in Moscow.
“We urge Mr Kiselev and other Russian authorities to open Russian airwaves to more of our programmes and those of other international broadcasters,” Shell added. “We’re asking for an even playing field: As Moscow’s media crackdown deepens, Russian media including Russia Today television, which is under Mr Kiselev’s authority enjoy
open access to the airwaves in the United States and around the world. The Russian people deserve the same freedom to access information.”
Kiselev was appointed in December 2013 to lead Russia Today. At the same time the Voice of Russia and the RIA Novosti news agency were merged into Russia Today.
Russians are increasingly turning to the internet and social media for their news. VOA’s digital strategy incorporates content across platforms. In addition to live interactives with domestic television channels, such as Russian Business Channel, VOA’s webTV
show, “Podelis”, allows users to connect and engage with the content in real time using social media. “Podelis”, which means “share” in Russian, provides a unique opportunity to engage in discussions about current events, Russian politics and US-Russia
relations. VOA’s social media following in Russia has grown significantly and visits to VOA’s website have doubled every year since 2008.
There is an abridged version of a report into the way Russians consume news in the MIPTV supplement to the AIB’s international media magazine, The Channel.
3 April 2014
“News Team” is a 20-part series directed by Josh Silberman, the award-winning producer from Deadliest Catch, Fear Factor and Dancing with the Stars. Silberman and his crew followed RT correspondents around the clock as they reported on breaking stories, from fighting in Syria to protests in Ukraine.
“News Team”, which offers an unprecedented glimpse into the work of field journalists, was produced by an international team headed up by Josh Silberman. Silberman said that he developed an interest in doing a TV show about correspondents “because it doesn’t get any more real, unpredictable or exciting than news, especially in a warzone.” He added that rather than being a series about television or news, “it’s a TV show about people. People who risk their lives to tell the world about what is happening outside of their living rooms.”
Shot in the documentary reality series format, “News Team” follows the stories of seven RT reporters as they travel from Siberia to Syria and from Germany to Ukraine throughout January and February of 2014: Russians Maria Finoshina, Egor Piskunov and Alexey Yaroshevsky; American Margaret Howell; South Africans Thabang Motsei and Paula Slier; and Peter Oliver, an Englishman. Silberman explained his choice of the Russian network for this project, saying that “RT has unique access due to its political and geographic standing. It is also well known for giving young enthusiastic journalists a shot they might not get elsewhere. These were the stories we were excited to tell.”
RT will screen News Team on April 5, 2014 at MIPDOC, the top documentary screening event and conference, and present it at MIPTV, one of the world’s largest TV markets and the leading television content development event, on April 7-10. The show will debut globally on RT International on April 9th.
News Team promo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFm4-nF5IhQ
Josh Silberman was named the 2011 Producer of the Year by the Producers’ Guild of America (PGA). Prior to executive-producing on News Team, he has worked on more than dozen critically acclaimed and highly popular competition and docu-reality series including Deadliest Catch, Fear Factor, Elite Tactical Unit, Flying Wild Alaska, Dancing with the Stars, Deal or No Deal, Ice Road Truckers and Alaska Wing Men.
RT is a global international news network that broadcasts 24/7 in English, Arabic and Spanish from its studios in Moscow and Washington, DC, and is available to 644 million viewers worldwide. RT is the first TV news channel in history to cross the billion views mark on YouTube. RT is the winner of the Monte Carlo TV Festival Awards for best 24-hr broadcast, and the only Russian TV channel to garner two nominations for the prestigious International Emmy Award in the News category. (Source: Press release)
3 April 2014
Intelsat S.A., the world’s leading provider of satellite services, today announced that it has signed a new multi-year agreement with RRsat Ltd., a leading provider of digital content management and global content distribution services to the broadcasting industry, under which RRsat will utilize Intelsat capacity to facilitate and further enhance RRsat’s penetration in the North American direct-to-home (DTH) market.
RRsat will use the power of the Galaxy 19 video neighborhood. Located at 97°W, Galaxy 19 serves as the premier U.S. neighborhood for free-to-air multicultural programming, distributing content originating from 66 countries around the world in over 40 different languages. The satellite offers a Ku-band DTH platform that services customers in the United States, reaching millions of homes.
“In today’s multicultural society, our customers’ audiences are demanding more diverse and unique programming, regardless of their location,” said Lior Rival, RRsat’s Chief Commercial Officer. “As we continue to enhance our presence in the United States, Intelsat’s Galaxy 19 video neighborhood is a natural choice for RRsat as it will enable us to deliver on that demand and further expand our customer base.”
“RRsat’s renewal and expansion of its relationship with Intelsat reinforces the strength and reach of the Galaxy 19 neighborhood,” said Jean-Philippe Gillet, Intelsat’s Vice President, Europe, Middle East & Africa Sales. “Our coverage and high penetration within North America enables customers, such as RRsat to further expand their network and audience.”
Intelsat will be exhibiting at the NABSHOW 2014, the world’s largest electronic media show covering filmed entertainment and the development, management and delivery of content across all mediums on April 7-10, 2014. You can visit Intelsat at the Las Vegas Convention Center in the South Upper Hall, Booth SU 3110.
Resources:
31 March 2014
Regional broadcaster Channel NewsAsia launches an all-new SMS news alert service in Malaysia. Offered in collaboration with mobile telecommunication service provider, U Mobile, the SMS alert allows subscribers to receive timely and accurate news content from Channel NewsAsia.
This new initiative with U Mobile seeks to become a key platform for Malaysians to be updated on regional and breaking news, and to actively engage viewers of Channel NewsAsia in Malaysia.
Subscribers can receive three categories of news – World, Business and Asia Pacific – in compact 152-character text messages. A much touted feature is a shortened link which directs subscribers to the full news article on Channel NewsAsia’s website. This is a new element that is not known to be currently offered by other SMS news alert providers in Malaysia.
Mr Woon Chuk Chan, Vice President of Channel NewsAsia’s Distribution and Marketing says, “We are delighted to have a vibrant partner in U Mobile for this SMS news alert service. We now live in a dynamic Asia, where the political and economic landscape is fast evolving. Channel NewsAsia has been providing quick, accurate and in-depth reports for the past 15 years in the region, and this new service is a must-have add-on for the modern business and decision makers who are constantly on-the-go.”
Commenting on the collaboration, Ms. Jasmine Lee, U Mobile’s Director of Marketing says, “Enriching interactive content for mobile platforms is the way to go to better engage today’s consumers, in-line with the exponential increase of smartphone penetration and adoption in Malaysia. Our partnership with Channel NewsAsia will provide our customers the latest news updates within the region from a different perspective, which will add value to their mobile experience with U Mobile, aside from the high quality mobile services priced at market-best rates.”
First-time subscribers can enjoy a free first month trial. Users can dial *118*4*1# to find out more about the service, or log on to the following websites for more details: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/mobilenews/sms
https://www.facebook.com/ChannelNewsAsia
Channel NewsAsia has been providing an English SMS news alert service in Singapore for over a decade since 2003. It also launched a Mandarin SMS news alert service just three months ago in December 2013. (Source: Press release)
