29 January 2007
GlobeCast WorldTV the leading aggregator and distributor of international television and radio programming in America has announced the launch of ARTN, the first 24-hour Armenian and Russian language television network in the United States.
The new channel will be distributed directly to consumers throughout the United States as part of GlobeCast WorldTVs European bouquet which also includes channels from 14 European countries including Italy, Poland and Romania. Produced live from ARTNs Los Angeles studio, the free-to-air service will offer the rapidly expanding Russian and Armenian communities in the United States a wide variety of cultural and entertainment programs including travel, fashion, food, childrens programs, game shows and an every day broadcast of soap operas.
Due to Russias recent economic resurgence, there has been an increased global demand for Russian-speaking channels. However, in addition to Russian and Armenian, ARTN reaches a host of communities originating from neighbouring Eastern European countries, such as Belarus and the Ukraine.
GlobeCast WorldTV is the leading source of international programming via satellite in the United States, now offering in excess of 200 global TV and radio channels, in more than 35 languages to 42 countries worldwide. ARTN is available free of charge to GlobeCast WorldTV subscribers.
25 January 2007
Viacom Germany is the new name for MTV Networks in Europe’s German-speaking territories. The name change reflects the increasingly diverse on-air brands operated by the company, which now includes VH1, Nick, Comedy Central and VIVA.
Contact details for the company remain the same – they can be found on page 56 of the current edition of the
AIB Directory of Global Broadcasting, available to purchase by clicking
here.
23 January 2007
Vizrt Ltd.,provider of real-time 2D and 3D broadcast graphics solutions, has begun supplying the BBC with a USD 0.5 million graphics system as the first part of a four-year nationwide framework agreement signed between the two parties in 2006.
The first live implementation is BBC World and News 24. From the beginning of this week both stations use Vizrt to produce on-screen graphics and captions.
BBC London is also piloting Vizrt software on behalf of regional stations and will be conducting a soft launch later this month. The roll-out continues during 2007. The framework agreement is designed to facilitate purchasing from a tested and approved supplier and although created primarily for News departments throughout the country, any department or region can take advantage of it.
Vizrt’s software suite provides a complete graphics solution including caption generation, content management and newsroom integration, template graphics, 3D tickers, virtual studio sets, weather forecasts, virtual sports graphics, SMS interactivity and large-scale displays. All Vizrt’s graphics products are powered by a single core renderer, the Viz|Engine, and include highly-customised user interfaces for the designer, operator, journalist and engineer.
As part of the framework agreement, Vizrt UK is also assisting with training and support to help BBC staff adapt to the new software.
23 January 2007
Harris Corporation, an international communications and information technology company, will provide its premier traffic application, OSi-Traffic, to CN8, The Comcast Network. CN8, the nations largest and most diverse multiregional cable network reaching more than nine million cable homes in 20 television markets, chose OSi-Traffic for its real-time network and zone capabilities.
Harris® OSi-Traffic gives us real-time, cutting-edge tools and responses with minimal wait time, said Ellen Aulson, director of Special Operations at CN8. This, combined with the softwares ability to handle our zone and network requirements, was the primary reason we chose OSi.
CN8s ability to manage its mission-critical operations will be enhanced by OSi-Traffics real-time traffic, accounting and yield management tools. The multizone, multinetwork functionalities of OSi-Traffic application facilitate CN8s delivery of customized programming to its different zones. The scheduling component of OSi-Traffic ensures that broadcast schedules need only to be entered one time and will immediately filter to all zones. The system provides each zone with the ability to override the network log at anytime to accommodate local spot insertion. This will enable CN8 to further streamline its operations, eliminate redundant data-entry of information and increase revenue by maximizing station inventory.
CN8 joins a growing number of cable providers that have selected Harris® OSi Sales, Traffic and Research Solutions for the systems agility in catering to a wide variety of media operations. Designed for multi-environment solutions, OSi-Traffic ensures that clients have a cost-effective business environment that provides efficiencies of scale and growth.
With OSi-Traffic, clients receive an innovative solution that gives them a high level of functionality customized to their individual needs, said Tim Thorsteinson, president of the Harris Broadcast Communications Division.
22 January 2007
Grahame Lucas (51) has been appointed Head of DW-RADIO’s South Asia programmes. He is responsible for the German international broadcaster’s radio programmes in Hindi, Urdu and Bengali, as well as regional English-language programming for Asia. “This region is a definite focus for Deutsche Welle. By putting responsibility into one pair of hands we are strengthening our commitment in this target area, which is developing very rapidly, said DW director general Erik Bettermann.
Lucas took up his new post at the beginning of 2007. t, ist seit 1983 beim deutschen Auslandsrundfunk. Leaving his London roots behind, Lucas joined the German public broadcaster in 1983 and is now a German citizen.
He has worked in the central newsroom, in the English for North America service, did a tour of duty as political correspondent in Bonn, and headed news and current affairs in the English programme of DW-RADIO. Since 2001 he has been deputy director programmes.
