1 April 2008
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty President Jeffrey Gedmin has expressed concern about the ability of independent journalists in Belarus to do their jobs following government raids on the offices of independent broadcasters and the detentions of more than two dozen Belarusian broadcasters.
“It goes without saying that the arbitrary arrests of these journalists and the raiding of their offices fundamentally violates the concept of a free press,” said Gedmin. “The Belarusian people deserve to be well-informed; by harassing those who seek to disseminate factual information and ideas, this is not possible. I hope the Belarusian authorities reconsider their antagonism toward independent broadcasters.”
The primary targets for the Belarusian Security Service (known as the KGB) were Polish-funded Radio Racja, EU-backed European Radio and the television broadcaster Belsat. The crackdown on international broadcasters comes two days after Belarusian riot police beat and detained dozens of opposition activists in the capital, Minsk, during a rally marking the nation’s 90th anniversary of a declaration of independence from Russia.
RFE/RL’s Belarus Service broadcasts eight hours of programming a day to Belarus, produced in Prague and the service’s Minsk Bureau and transmitted to listeners via shortwave, medium wave and satellite broadcasts. Belarusian Service programming is also available via the Internet, at the service’s website http://www.svaboda.org and at http://www.rferl.org.
1 April 2008
Israel-based RRsat Global Communications Network has announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the satellite business of Bezeq, the Israel Telecommunications Corporation, Israel’s leading telecommunications service provider, for approximately US$15million in cash. The acquisition is expected to close in the third quarter of 2008 and is subject to various approvals, including regulatory approvals and other closing conditions.
RRsat will acquire the property and assets of Bezeqs Emek Ha’ela Teleport in Israel, which includes approximately 26.5 acres, as well as Bezeq’s BezeqSat and 711 business units. The BezeqSat unit is Bezeq’s distribution centre and provides services to TV and radio channels such as BBC, CNN and many others. The 711 unit provides global satellite communication services, and serves as a primary distribution centre for Inmarsat, a global provider of satellite services. As part of the transaction, RRsat will assume Bezeqs existing satellite business and customer contracts, which accounted for revenues of approximately US$7million in 2007.
“We are extremely pleased to have signed this agreement to acquire the satellite and content distribution business from Israel’s largest telecommunications service provider,” commented David Rivel, Founder and CEO of RRsat. “The landmark Emek Haela teleport has operated as one of the premier communications facilities in Israel for more than 30 years and is currently one of the most interconnected fibre network hubs in the country. The facility was designed to support video, radio and data content, and will allow us to significantly increase the capacity and redundancy of our infrastructure. In addition to the immediate contribution to our revenues following the closing, this acquisition will serve as a platform to strengthen our service offerings to our existing customers as well as cross-sell our services to BezeqSat’s customers.
Mr. Rivel concluded, “We believe the proposed acquisition will enhance our position as a major content management and global distribution company, and further expand the footprint of our proprietary RRsat Global Network. We also intend to continue to explore additional complementary acquisitions that will grow our customer base and expand our service offerings.”
1 April 2008
Voice of America (VoA) has expanded Swahili broadcasts to Kenya to include an additional half-hour each day.
“Providing reliable news and information to the people of Kenya is critical, particularly during this time,” said VoA Africa Division Chief Gwen Dillard. “This shows once again how VoA can provide a valuable service to audiences,” she added.
The expanded radio coverage will offer news from a network of stringers in
the region, interviews with a range of newsmakers including ruling and
opposition party representatives, political analysts, economists, local
residents, as well as U.S. officials, UN, EU and AU mediators and other
African leaders.
The service will also begin a new series called In Focus taking an in-depth look at issues such as land distribution, the constitution, ethnic tensions, national reconciliation and the future of democracy in Kenya.
The new programme is broadcast at 0930-1000 UTC, 12:30 p.m. local time
Monday-Friday, and at 1700-1730 UTC, 8:00 p.m. on weekends. Swahili
broadcasts will now run for a total of two hours each weekday and one hour
on Saturdays and Sundays.
1 April 2008
US international radio broadcasts to Tibet have increased by four hours daily.
“The violent crackdown by Chinese authorities in Tibet compels us to
increase our broadcasts,” said James K. Glassman, Chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors which oversees US international broadcasting including the Voice of America (VoA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA). “Our audience clearly will
benefit from these trustworthy sources of news and information, which differ
sharply from Chinese government sanctioned broadcasts.”
At present RFA broadcasts eight hours daily to Tibet via shortwave radio.
VoA broadcasts four hours daily, also via short wave. Each will expand radio
programs by two additional hours daily. VoA is also doubling its weekly
Tibetan-language television programming from one to two hours via the
AsiaSat 3 satellite.
“RFA’s Tibetan service is working around the clock to bring authoritative,
breaking news to the Tibetan people. These additional hours will greatly
enhance our capacity to deliver this news, including live updates, to people
on the ground,” RFA President Libby Liu said.
Tibet’s media is tightly controlled and most Tibetans are deeply suspicious
of Chinese domestic media coverage. BBG audience research, while limited to
Tibetan refugees in Nepal, indicates that VOA and RFA are among the most
well known foreign broadcasters and an important source of information in a
society where word of mouth is the top way to share news.
“We know from experience that Tibetans will tune to VOA at pivotal times
such as these,” said Danforth Austin, Director of the Voice of America. “For
example, a VOA special TV program about the Dalai Lama receiving a gold
medal from the U.S. Congress was recorded and widely distributed in Tibetan
regions inside China.”
25 March 2008
WorldSpace Satellite Radio has announced it has received approval from Switzerland’s Office Federal de la Communication (OFCOM) to operate terrestrial repeaters that will work in conjunction with its existing satellite network to provide Swiss consumers with a subscription-based satellite radio service.
WorldSpace will use the 12.5 MHz of L-band spectrum (1479.5 to 1492 MHz) harmonised for satellite radio in Europe and for which WorldSpace has priority rights throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The Company plans to offer a mobile service as early as 2009 on the continent, beginning with Italy; and in Bahrain and United Arab Emirates (UAE) – places where WorldSpace has already received authorization to launch its satellite/terrestrial hybrid radio service.
The Company’s European strategy is to roll out its service on a sequential country-by-country basis, beginning with Italy, where aftermarket radios are expected to be available to consumers in early 2009 and OEM (factory installed) radios in several Fiat models by late 2009. In addition to Italy and now Switzerland, the Company expects to secure four more licenses in 2008, from the other major European markets.
“We are very pleased at the efficiency with which the OFCOM has granted us this approval,” said Noah A. Samara, Chairman and CEO of WorldSpace. “As we begin planning the content line-up for our Italian launch and subsequent European markets we hope to secure shortly, including the UK, Germany, Spain and France, we hope to be able to parlay our unique variety of news, sports, music and entertainment programming into a line-up that is equally attractive to Switzerland’s diverse cultures.”
Although not large, the Swiss market is attractive for satellite radio, given the demographics that fit its early adopter profile. For example, it has a population that exceeds 7.5 million, with a per capita GDP of approximately US$39,800 – a figure that is larger than that of each of the ‘big five’ European countries targeted for service by WORLDSPACE. The three main ethnicities and official languages of Switzerland are: German (65%), French (20%) and Italian (10%). It is home to the international banking community, various United Nations departments and multiple international business conglomerations and thus home to a large expatriate population. There are approximately four million cars in the country with new car sales expected to rise to about 320,000 in 2010.
