9 October 2012
Eurosport has secured a three-year deal to become the exclusive European media partner of the new ATP POWER HORSE CUP from 2013 to 2015.
Eurosport will broadcast extensive LIVE HD coverage on Eurosport and Eurosport 2 channels across 59 countries. The deal includes digital rights for all matches and Eurosport will also become the host broadcaster of the tournament. It will be the first time Eurosport is host broadcaster for an ATP event.
Formerly known as the POWER HORSE World Team Cup, the Düsseldorf outdoor clay court tournament is adopting a new format from 2013 by joining the ATP World Tour 250 series.
Held the week before the French Open the tournament is an appropriate addition to Eurosport’s tennis portfolio which includes LIVE coverage of the Roland Garros Grand Slam in Paris.
This exclusive partnership was signed with tournament director Dietloff von Arnim, who said: “We are delighted to continue with the strong tradition of ATP tournaments in Düsseldorf and welcome the arrival of an ATP 250 tournament at Rochusclub. With this new tournament status comes a new name and we are very pleased to retain POWER HORSE as our title sponsor. We are happy and proud to have Eurosport as our host broadcaster for a minimum of the next three years. Our new partnership promises excellent coverage for all tennis fans and sponsors, not only in Germany, but also in all European territories.”
Géraldine Filiol, Eurosport Deputy Managing Director in charge of acquisitions, said: “We are delighted to become the European media partner of the POWER HORSE CUP, especially at such an important moment in the life of the tournament. We will help the new ATP 250 tournament develop by providing extensive coverage to all fans in Europe on our channels Eurosport and Eurosport 2 as well as on internet and mobile through the Eurosport Player”.
ABOUT EUROSPORT GROUP
The Eurosport Group is Europe’s leading sports entertainment group. Eurosport, the n°1 pan-European TV channel, broadcasts in 20 languages and reaches 130 million homes across 59 countries. Eurosport HD is the high definition simulcast of Eurosport. Eurosport 2 broadcasts to 61 million households in 18 languages across 47 countries. Eurosport 2 HD was launched in August 2009. Eurosport Asia-Pacific reaches 17 countries in the region and launched an HD channel in September 2011. Eurosportnews is the sports news channel transmitted worldwide. Eurosport.com, Europe’s n°1 online sports destination, has up to 23 million unique users per month (comScore) across an international network of sports websites in 11 languages, including Yahoo! co-branded sites in Germany, Spain, Italy and the UK. The Eurosport.com free mobile applications are available in 10 languages. Eurosport Player, Eurosport’s web TV service, provides LIVE and on-demand sports to fans’ PCs in 52 countries and the Player mobile application is available in up to 34 countries. Eurosport Events is the group’s expert division in the management and promotion of international sporting events.
8 October 2012
The International News Safety Institute is to launch INSI Asia Pacific with a regional office based in Singapore to focus on one of the the most dangerous regions in the world for journalists and media workers.
This is an initiative of Australian and New Zealand journalists and media workers through their unions Media Safety and Solidarity Appeal together with the global unions for media workers, UNI Global Union and the International Federation of Journalists Asia Pacific.
Journalists and media personnel working in the Asia-Pacific region confront targeted attacks, threats and intimidation, work-related injury and the dangers of reporting in areas of conflict.
India, Pakistan, the Philippines and Afghanistan are often ranked in the top ten deadliest countries in the world for journalists with Nepal and Sri Lanka ranking amongst the worst countries for impunity. Next month will mark the third anniversary of the Maguindanao Massacre in the Philippines, when 32 journalists were among the 58 killed in 2009.
Already, more than 20 journalists have been killed in the Asia-Pacific region since January 2012.
The International News Safety Institute (INSI) was established 10 years ago by the IFJ and the International Press Institute with major news organisations to create a global safety network for journalists and other news gatherers. INSI operates on the premise that creating a culture of safety in journalism enhances the capacity of media to contribute to building prosperous and confident democracies.
To address these challenges in the Asia-Pacific, a regional INSI office will be established in Singapore to boost and coordinate efforts to improve safety and security for journalists and media personnel working throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
The office will serve a number of important functions including a single point of contact and rapid response to threats and attacks on journalists, standardised safety-related training materials and trainings and the on-going monitoring and reporting of conditions throughout the region.
“We are delighted to work with IFJ Asia-Pacific and UNI Global Union on this initiative,” said INSI Director Rodney Pinder. “This will enable us to develop safety measures in areas of great danger and provide practical help where it is most needed.”
For further information contact Rodney Pinder +44 7734709267
8 October 2012
Bloomberg Television, in partnership with The Trade & Development Bank of Mongolia (TDB), today announced the official launch of Bloomberg TV Mongolia. The launch of Bloomberg TV Mongolia signifies the introduction of the first international broadcast news organization in Mongolia, one of the fastest-growing stock markets and investing environments in Asia today.
Over the last year, Bloomberg has trained over 30 local journalists who are now working at BTV Mongolia, and built a state-of-the-art high definition television studio in the heart of downtown Ulan Bator. Bloomberg TV Mongolia will deliver international, market-moving business and financial news to the local community, and insightful coverage of Mongolia to the rest of the world, providing a unique edge for viewers.
“We are honored to be a part of this exciting launch, and to be able to offer our experience and expertise in broadcast journalism to an important region,” said Parry Ravindranathan, Head of Bloomberg Television for Asia-Pacific. “Our partnership with The Trade & Development Bank of Mongolia is part of our momentum in establishing strategic long-term partnerships in Asia which we believe will enhance market transparency in local markets.”
“With the economic growth of Mongolia, decision makers and business leaders here have an increasing need for market-moving, accurate and international business and financial news. Likewise, global audiences are becoming ever more intrigued by what is happening in Mongolia,” said Orkhon Onon, First Deputy CEO of TDB. “Bloomberg TV Mongolia will be a valuable and indispensable education source for the business community. As Mongolia’s first bank, TDB has a long-term interest in educating the local population about important business and economic news.”
With Executive Producer Todd Baer at the helm, Bloomberg TV Mongolia launches on October 8 with its flagship evening newscast ‘Money Flow,’ followed by its prime-time interview program ‘Talk to Bloomberg TV Mongolia.’ The weekly program includes five hours of locally produced content, combined with simultaneous and taped translated Bloomberg content. Weekend programming schedule includes 12 hours of taped translated Bloomberg programs, supplemented by Bloomberg TV’s pan-Asian feed. Bloomberg TV Mongolia will be available on all of Mongolia’s major cable providers.
About Bloomberg Television
Bloomberg Television, an award-winning, multi-platform 24-hour business and financial news network, provides continuous coverage of the people, companies and ideas that move global markets. Broadcasting from centers in New York, London, Singapore and Hong Kong and powered with an unparalleled news gathering team of 2,300 news professionals in 146 bureaus across 72 countries worldwide, Bloomberg Television delivers real-time business news to over 310 million households globally. In addition to major cable and satellite providers, Bloomberg.com and Bloomberg Mobile, the network is available on the Bloomberg Professional service, used by the most influential individuals, corporations, financial institutions, investors and the world’s central banks, commercial banks, government agencies, legal professionals and news organizations. With Asia being one of the most active growth regions in the world, Bloomberg Television is delivering more local content, and fast, accurate, unbiased, market-moving news from market makers in Asia. For more information on Bloomberg Television, please visit www.bloomberg.com/tv and follow us on Twitter (@BloombergTV) and Facebook.
5 October 2012
Based on a new partnership agreement between the BBC’s service for Francophone Africa, BBC Afrique, and a French radio network, Africa No.1 Paris, BBC Afrique programming is now rebroadcast by Africa No.1 Paris. BBC Afrique and Africa No.1 Paris have also announced the launch , from Saturday, 6 October, of a joint weekly current-affairs debate programme, Le Débat BBC Afrique-Africa No.1.
BBC Afrique content on radio and online on bbcafrique.com is produced in London and Dakar as well as in the BBC’s bureaux in Abidjan, Bujumbura, Kigali and Kinshasa, delivering the BBC’s regional and global news coverage to Francophone audiences in Africa and around the world.
Africa No.1 Paris is broadcast in France on 107.5 in Paris, 87.6 in Mantes la Jolie, and 92.3 in Melun. Based on the partnership agreement with the BBC, the network’s France-based stations now rebroadcast the BBC Afrique daily news and current-affairs programmes, BBC Matin, BBC Midi, BBC Infos, BBC Soir and L’Invité as well as La Page des Sports. On Saturdays, Africa No.1 audiences can also tune in to BBC Afrique’s weekly programme, L’interview.
CEO of Africa No.1 Paris, Dominique Guihot, says: “With the growing importance of African news – not just in the Francophone world – Africa No.1 Paris has sought to strengthen its operations on the African continent. With BBC Afrique, we get access to the BBC’s global news reporting and analysis, expanding the scope of our news coverage far beyond the Francophone sphere.”
The new weekly debate programme Le Débat BBC Afrique-Africa No.1 at 10.00 GMT every Saturday, will connect the BBC Afrique presenter, Lilianne Nyatcha in Dakar and Africa No. 1’s Francis Laloupo in Paris, engaging audiences in a debate on the key issue of the week. Each programme will feature a high-profile African personality to discuss key issues on the week’s news agenda, be it politics, economy, culture or sports. Le Débat BBC Afrique-Africa No.1 will be broadcast by both BBC Afrique and Africa No.1.
BBC Afrique Editor, Ibrahima Diane, comments: “In addition to giving BBC Afrique programmes excellent exposure to African diaspora audiences in France, this new partnership also offers us exciting editorial opportunities. We hope very much that our new weekly debate programme, Le Débat BBC Afrique-Africa No.1, will further reinforce the connection between African diaspora communities and our audiences in Francophone Africa. It will be an important and exciting addition to our weekly schedule.”
BBC Africa Editor, Solomon Mugera, adds: “As we are witnessing a major expansion of African diaspora, it’s really important for the BBC to maintain connection with its audiences, wherever they are. It’s really great that, thanks to partnership with Africa No.1, BBC Afrique can reach listeners in France who want to be kept up to date with the BBC’s global and African news.”
Le Débat BBC Afrique-Africa No.1 also will be available for listening online, via bbcafrique.com and africa1.com. The BBC and Africa No.1 Paris have also announced their plans to extend their editorial partnership to more co-productions, focusing on sport and culture.
4 October 2012
Iranian jamming of U.S. government-sponsored news and information programs disrupted broadcasts from Morocco to Eastern Europe to Indonesia, the Broadcasting Board of Governors has found.
Satellite operator Eutelsat confirmed that the intermittent jamming was coming from inside Iran. This most recent episode of interference with broadcasts began on Oct. 3 and is in clear violation of international agreements.
In addition to Voice of America’s (VOA) Persian Service and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s (RFE/RL) Radio Farda, both of which offer programs for Iranian audiences, the jamming also has affected dozens of satellite broadcasts of BBG radio and TV programs.
One of the BBG’s Internet anti-censorship vendors is reporting that traffic from Iran using its software and servers has increased substantially since the jamming began. This suggests that Iranian listeners and viewers are shifting to the Internet to receive news and information.
Jamming is prohibited under rules of the International Telecommunications Union. The recent jamming affected not only U.S.-supported programming, but also the British Broadcasting Corporation.
International Broadcasting Bureau Director Richard M. Lobo called the most recent interference “an outrage (and) a deplorable violation of well-established international agreements” in a statement issued when the incident started.
The jamming coincided with reports of street demonstrations and mass arrests of Iranians protesting falling currency exchange rates. Both VOA and RFE/RL report that in some instances, interference starts just before newscasts, and ends just afterwards.
Three satellite transponders operated by Eutelsat and those most popular among Iranian viewers have been affected: HotBird 13B, Eutelsat 25A and Eutelsat 7A. Viewers said the signals reappear intermittently.
The interference has diminished or altogether blocked other U.S.-supported programs on the Eutelsat satellites, including Georgian, Armenian, Bosnian, Korean and many other language broadcasts.
VOA and RFE/RL programs continue to be broadcast on diverse media platforms, including digital audio and video streams on other satellite paths and on the Internet.
In February, the ITU called upon the world’s nations to take “necessary actions” to stop intentional interference with satellite transmissions. Earlier, the BBG and other international broadcasters called for action against jamming.
