3 June 2008
Danforth Austin, Director of the Voice of America, called for enhanced legal protections for journalists around the world to complement increased training for international broadcasters.
Austin, who heads the United States’ flagship international broadcaster, said, “there is no longer any technical distinction between a domestic broadcast and a worldwide one.”
Austin’s remarks came at a Global Media Forum here sponsored by Deutsche Welle (German Wave), the German international broadcasting organization. He noted that while technology has offered many more people the ability to communicate across borders, governments also have a growing responsibility to foster the spread of information and empower citizens.
A veteran editor and media executive, Austin said training opportunities for journalists in developing countries need to be expanded. But, he added, “It is simply not enough to train journalists on how to best serve the public. They also need a legal environment that provides a degree of protection for journalists, that allows truth as a defense in civil or criminal defamation prosecutions, which all too often employ courts to do what censors could notput journalists behind bars or out of business.”
“This body of media law should also provide for access to information. That includes open meeting laws, freedom of information statutes, and transparency in the workings of government.”
The growing use of digital media, said Austin, has forced a fundamental change in the way international broadcasters must operate. “The days of short-wave radio broadcasts produced offshore and beamed to information-deprived masses yearning to breathe free are waning.” But the same inexpensive software and hardware that enables citizens to reach across borders, he warned, also “empower those who want to censor content. There’s no need, for example, to invest in expensive jamming equipment if a simple software program launching a denial of service attack will do.”
Austin also warned that governments must respect the dividing line between honest, thorough reporting and attempts to covertly influence public opinion. Most international broadcasters, he said, “recognize that credibility with an audience is the most powerful tool they have, that reporting news accurately and fairly in order to help people reach their own decisions is an end, not a means.”
“If we draw the line between honest, fair reporting and analysis and ‘influence operations’ that are disguised as journalism, we show the world what it means to be responsible. We also give the people of the world, who often know propaganda when they see it, a clear choice of whom to believe, and whom to ignore or reject.”
22 May 2008
RRsat Global Communications Network Ltd. (NASDAQ: RRST), a rapidly growing provider of comprehensive content management and global distribution services to the television and radio broadcasting industries, announced today that it has been chosen to distribute AXN SCI-FI, the science fiction channel from Sony Pictures Television International (SPTI) into Russia, over its premier RRsat Global Network.
The new agreement will leverage extensive capabilities of the RRsat Global Network including RRsats fiber optic from the United Kingdom and encrypted satellite distribution services over the ABS-1 Satellite. As part of the agreement, RRsat will also provide value added services such as encryption.
We are proud to expand our relationship with SPTI, taking the channel to new regions by leveraging the advanced capabilities RRsats premier Global Network offers its customers. This agreement further demonstrates the added value RRsats customers gain from our total end-to-end solution, from broadcasting through distribution, while expanding the channels boundaries to reach to new countries, regions and continents, said David Rivel, CEO and Founder of RRsat.
About RRsat Global Communications Network Ltd.
RRsat Global Communications Network Ltd. (NASDAQ: RRST) provides global, comprehensive, content management and distribution services to the rapidly expanding television and radio broadcasting industries. Through its proprietary “RRsat Global Network,” composed of satellite and terrestrial fiber optic transmission capacity and the public Internet, RRsat is able to offer high-quality and flexible global distribution services for content providers. RRsat’s comprehensive content management services include producing and playing out TV content as well as providing satellite newsgathering services (SNG). RRsat concurrently provide these services to more than 425 television and radio channels, covering more than 150 countries.
22 May 2008
Rede Record Internacional extends its relationship with GlobeCast and satellite service provider SatLink to reach out to audiences in Asia
Content management and delivery company GlobeCast has signed a deal with Brazilian television giant Rede Record Internacional TV to launch its exclusive channels across the Asian Continent via SatLinks AsiaSat 2 MCPC (Multiple Channels per Carrier) platform.
Since 2006 GlobeCast, a subsidiary of France Telecom, has provided Rede Record Internacional TV with distribution across Europe on the Astra 1L satellite. The companies have now extended Rede Records reach in Asia by working with SatLink Communications Ltd., the fastest growing teleport in 2007 according to The World Teleport Association.
The international signal will be downlinked by SatLink, for turnaround to its AsiaSat 2 MCPC platform. AsiaSat 2, located at 100.5 degrees East, provides unprecedented regional penetration, covering a total of 53 countries and regions in Asia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Africa.
Rede Record Internacional, which is available in the United States, Canada, Europe and Africa, produces a wide range of programming aimed at Brazilian expatriates and those interested in Brazilian culture. As demand for global channels continues to grow across Asia, the deal will make Rede Record Internacionals programmes available to audiences throughout the regions major markets including China, Japan and India.
14 May 2008
Privacy Policy
This privacy statement covers the site www.aib.org.uk which is administered by the Association for International Broadcasting (AIB).
Because the AIB wants to demonstrate its commitment to its users privacy, it has agreed to disclose its information practices.
1. What personally identifiable information the AIB collects;
2. What personally identifiable information third parties collect through the Web site;
3. What organisation collects the information;
4. How the AIB uses the information;
5. With whom the AIB may share user information;
6. What choices are available to users regarding collection, use and distribution of the information;
7. What types of security procedures are in place to protect the loss, misuse or alteration of information under the AIBs control;
8. How users can correct any inaccuracies in the information;
9. How users can contact us with questions regarding this privacy policy.
If users have questions or concerns regarding this statement, they should contact the AIB Web Site Department by email – webmaster@aib.org.uk.
Information Collection and Use
Information Collection
The AIB is the sole owner of the information collected on www.aib.org.uk. The AIB collects information from our users at several different points on our Web site.
Order
We request information from the user on our order form. A user must provide contact information (such as name, email, and delivery address) and financial information (such as credit card number, expiry date). This information is used for billing purposes and to fulfil customers orders. If we have trouble processing an order, the information is used to contact the user.
Information Use
We use the following information in order to process your order from our e-commerce site:
Full Name, including title, Address, Telephone or Fax numbers, Email Address.
More details of this can be found in our third party section, below.
Member’s Area
Membership of our “Member’s Area” is optional, and membership is not essential to make a purchase.
Customers who choose to join our Member’s Area are subject to the same Privacy Policy as non-members. We may ask for additional information from users who sign up for the Member’s Area, including an additional delivery address. We will not share this information with third parties, except for the purposes of fulfilling an order.
We send update emails to our Members from time to time, to keep them up to date with information about the AIB, about international broadcasting, the AIBs current promotions and site news. Members can opt-out of these emails at the time of registration, or by replying to the original email with the word “unsubscribe” in the subject line, or by emailing webmaster@aib.org.uk.
Cookies
A cookie is a piece of data stored on the users computer tied to information about the user. Usage of a cookie is in no way linked to any personally identifiable information while on our site. We use both session ID cookies and persistent cookies. For the session ID cookie, once users close the browser, the cookie simply terminates. A persistent cookie is a small text file stored on the users hard drive for an extended period of time. Persistent cookies can be removed by following Internet browser help file directions.
By setting a cookie on our site, the site can ‘remember’ who you are, if you are a “Member” of our “Member’s Area”. Persistent cookies enable the site to “remember” what you have in your trolley. No personal information is recorded in these cookies – only the contents of your trolley.
We have no third-party cookies on our website, nor do we share the information recorded in them with anyone else.
Third Party Advertising
The AIB does not have any third party advertising on its site.
Log Files
Like most standard Web site servers we use log files. This includes internet protocol (IP) addresses, browser type, internet service provider (ISP), referring/exit pages, platform type, date/time stamp, and number of clicks to analyse trends, administer the site, track user movement in the aggregate, and gather broad demographic information for aggregate use. IP addresses, etc. are not linked to personally identifiable information. We use a tracking utility called Analog that uses log files to analyse user movement.
Communications from the Site
Special Offers and Updates
We send all new members a welcoming email to verify password and username. Established members will occasionally receive information on products, services, special deals, and a newsletter. Out of respect for the privacy of our users we present the option to not receive these types of communications. Please see the Choice and Opt-out sections.
Newsletter
If a user wishes to subscribe to the AIBeNews service, we ask for contact information such as name and email address. Out of respect for our users privacy we provide a way to opt-out of these communications. Please see the Choice and Opt-out sections.
Service Announcements
On rare occasions it may be necessary to send out a strictly service-related announcement. For instance, if our service is temporarily suspended for maintenance we might send users an email. Generally, users may not opt-out of these communications, though they can deactivate their account. However, these communications are not promotional in nature.
Customer Service
We communicate with users on a regular basis to provide requested services and in regards to issues relating to their account. We reply via email or phone, in accordance with the users wishes.
Sharing
Legal Disclaimer
Although we make every effort to preserve user privacy, we may need to disclose personal information when required by law wherein we have a good-faith belief that such action is necessary to comply with a current judicial proceeding, a court order or legal process served on our Web site.
Aggregate Information (non-personally identifiable)
We may share aggregated demographic information with our partners and advertisers. For example, we may pass details to our suppliers of the number of users looking at/purchasing their products, or the number of click-throughs from their own sites. This is not linked to any personally identifiable information.
We do not share Personal Information with Third Parties, except for the purposes of Credit/Debit card authorisation, and Delivery.
Third Party Intermediaries
For the purpose of credit/debit card authorisation we will pass your name and address to our Bank.
For the purpose of delivering any physical goods that you may order we will pass your name and address to our carriers.
These companies do not retain, share, store or use personally identifiable information for any secondary purposes.
Choice/Opt-out
Our users are given the opportunity to opt-out of having their information used for purposes not directly related to our site at the point where we ask for information. For example, our order form has an opt-out mechanism so users who buy a product from us, but dont want any marketing material, can keep their email address off of our lists.
Users who no longer wish to receive our newsletter and promotional communications may opt-out of receiving these communications by replying to unsubscribe in the subject line in the email or email us at webmaster@aib.org.uk
Users of our site are always notified when their information is being collected by any outside parties. We do this so our users can make an informed choice as to whether or not they should proceed with services that require an outside party.
Links
This Web site contains links to other sites. Please be aware that the AIB is not responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites. We encourage our users to be aware when they leave our site and to read the privacy statements of each and every Web site that collects personally identifiable information. This privacy statement applies solely to information collected by this Web site.
Security
This Web site takes every precaution to protect our users information. When users submit sensitive information via the Web site, their information is protected both online and off-line.
When our registration/order form asks users to enter sensitive information (such as credit card number), that information is encrypted and is protected with the best encryption software in the industry – SSL. This uses 128 bit encryption, the highest currently commercially available.
While on a secure page, such as our order form, the lock icon on the bottom of Web browsers such as Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer becomes locked, as opposed to un-locked, or open, when users are just surfing.
While we use SSL encryption to protect sensitive information online, we also do everything in our power to protect user-information off-line. All of our users information, not just the sensitive information mentioned above, is restricted in our offices. Only employees who need the information to perform a specific job (for example, our Web Sales or Dispatch teams) are granted access to personally identifiable information. The servers that store personally identifiable information are in a secure environment, in a locked facility.
If users have any questions about the security at our Web site, users can send an email to webmaster@aib.org.uk.
Supplementation of Information
In order for this Web site to properly fulfil its obligation to users it is necessary for us to supplement the information we receive with information from 3rd party sources.
Address Verification
We may use specialist software to verify a users address to gain authorisation for sales charged to their credit/debit card.
Correcting/Updating/Deleting/Deactivating Personal Information
If a users personally identifiable information changes (such as postcode, phone, email or postal address), or if a user no longer desires our service, we provide a way to correct, update or delete/deactivate users personally identifiable information. This can be done by emailing our Customer Support at webmaster@aib.org.uk, or by contacting us by telephone or postal mail at the contact information listed at the bottom of this page.
Notification of Changes
If we decide to change our privacy policy, we will post those changes to this privacy statement and other places we deem appropriate so our users are always aware of what information we collect, how we use it, and under what circumstances, if any, we disclose it. We will use information in accordance with the privacy policy under which the information was collected.
If, however, we are going to use users personally identifiable information in a manner different from that stated at the time of collection we will notify users via email. Users will have a choice as to whether or not we use their information in this different manner. However, if users have opted out of all communication with the site, or deleted/deactivated their account, then they will not be contacted, nor will their personal information be used in this new manner. In addition, if we make any material changes in our privacy practices that do not affect user information already stored in our database, we will post a prominent notice on our Web site notifying users of the change. In some cases where we post a notice we will also email users, who have opted to receive communications from us, notifying them of the changes in our privacy practices.
Contact Information
If users have any questions or suggestions regarding our privacy policy, please contact us at:
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7993 2557
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7993 0843
Email: webmaster@aib.org.uk
Postal Address: PO Box 141, Cranbrook, TN17 9AJ, United Kingdom
