8 September 2006
On September 4, the Voice of Americas (VOA) English to Africa Service launches Inquiry, a 30-minute weekly discussion show that focuses on everyday life.
Inquiry is a lively interactive show designed to provide a forum to discuss the many day-to-day interests of VOAs African audience, said English to Africa Service Chief Sonya Laurence Green. Ghanaian-born host Akwei Thompson will examine everything from where to find the best African cuisine, to African comedy and storytelling, to the impact of cell phones on modern life.
Inquiry will air each Monday at 1730 UTC and will also be available on-demand at www.voaafrica.com.
VOAs English to Africa news service broadcasts targeted programming 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to Anglophone Africa through shortwave, the Internet, and a growing list of more than 40 affiliates, including several 24-hour FM stations in Africa.
8 September 2006
Visitors to the ENPS stand at the IBC conference in Amsterdam will see the latest developments of ENPS version 5.0. Attendees of the ENPS Client Conference will also get a preview of the next generation of Associated Press broadcast technology from ENPS Product Manager Bill Burke and APs Director of Global Video, Mike Palmer.
Among the latest enhancements to ENPS 5.0 is the My ENPS feature, which has been improved to allow users a top-level view of their most critical material. My ENPS now stores dynamic searches of any agency or local content and monitors media folders for new video, still, or graphic content. Journalists using ENPS as part of a group can now see remote running orders and assignment information from remote sights. The new tabbed list window lets users go back and forth between the My ENPS window and the list window.
Additionally, the new script media pane provides an area in which all media (video, audio, stills) can be previewed in line with the text that describes the media. This allows the journalist to see all the visual elements that make up their story at a glance.
Other new features include the new always on briefing bar and the detachable ActiveX window. This new feature allows users to run up to three plug-ins in the window and tab between them. This means that users can, for example, have a web browser, graphics plug-in and a non-linear editor plug-in open simultaneously. The widow can be sized to full screen or displayed on a second monitor.
A good example of this functionality which will be on display at the ENPS stand is the new integration of Apple Computers Final Cut Pro non-linear editor with ENPS. Using a third party plug-in made by Gallery, editors using Final Cut Pro can now see ENPS scripts and rundowns within Final Cut Pro, and with the ActiveX component, producers can review the published Quicktime material in ENPS. The published Quicktime material can also be previewed in the new script media pane.
Visit ENPS on Stand 7.430 at IBC 2006 in the Amsterdam RAI
8 September 2006
GlobeCast has been chosen by the new French international news channel, FRANCE 24, to carry out its broadcast by satellite throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
GlobeCasts satellite platforms, based in key orbital positions, will provide FRANCE 24 with access to several million television households throughout the world.
When it launches, FRANCE 24 will cover these regions with two channels, one entirely in French and the second carrying primarily English-language programming. Programs in Arabic will be added in mid-2007 and in Spanish in 2008.
GlobeCast will supply FRANCE 24 with an end-to-end solution, which will include the reception of programming in Paris, multiplexing, uplink and capacity services on the following platforms:
– ASTRA at 19.2° East (Europe)
– EUROBIRD at 28.5° East (United Kingdom and Ireland)
– NSS7 at 22° West (Africa)
– ArabSat-Badr at 26° East (Middle East)
– Nilesat at 7° West (Middle East)
FRANCE 24 chose GlobeCast for its renowned expertise in the delivery of television channels throughout the world, as well as its presence on five continents. Working independently vis-à-vis satellite operators, GlobeCast is network agnostic and not limited to providing capacity from a single satellite fleet. This permitted GlobeCast to bundle capacities in this first launch phase from five unique satellite operators into a multi-continental delivery platform for FRANCE 24.
FRANCE 24 is scheduled to launch between 25 November and 5 December 2006. The channel represents a 50/50 partnership between the public television group France Televisions and the French commercial channel TF1.
8 September 2006
Asia’s leading satellite operator Asia Satellite Telecommunications Company Limited (AsiaSat) announced that the Arabsat/ASBU Bouquet has commenced broadcasting on AsiaSat 2, joining other Middle Eastern programming for free to air distribution to serve the vast Arab community in Asia and Australasia.
This Arabic-language Bouquet consists of a group of television and radio services from the ASBU (Arab States Broadcasting Union) members including ten television channels from Abu Dhabi TV Europe, Jamahiriya Satellite Channel, Oman TV, Palestinian TV, Qatar TV, Saudi Arabian TV 1, Sharjah TV, Sudan TV, Syria Satellite Channel, Yemen TV and 13 radio channels. These channels, originally broadcasting on AsiaSat 3S, will be dual illuminating on both AsiaSat 2 and AsiaSat 3S satellites till 1st October when they become exclusively available on AsiaSat 2.
This broadcast arrangement is part of the ASBUs global satellite distribution project, in partnership with GlobeCast and Arabsat, initiated for the ASBU members for global programme distribution. AsiaSat 2 carries an established Middle Eastern community of programming from the Arab States. Moving the Arabsat/ASBU Bouquet to AsiaSat 2 is therefore the natural choice for continuing and expanding the broadcast services of our member channels in Asia and Australasia. We appreciate the value of joining Asias most popular multicultural and multilingual broadcast platform, bringing our member channels to wider Arab audiences across the region, said Abdelrahim Suleiman, ASBU Technical Director.
Eng. Khalid Balkhyour, Arabsat President and CEO, welcomed the move of the Bouquet to AsiaSat 2, We are committed to actively support the development and success of the Arabsat/ASBU Bouquet and are glad to see the move to an even stronger neighbourhood of Arabic and foreign
programming on AsiaSat 2. AsiaSat 2 is home to Asias Middle Eastern content that now offers viewers a comprehensive platform of Arabic programming. We are very pleased that we have further expanded the Middle
Eastern neighbourhood on AsiaSat 2, enabling Arabic viewers under our vast coverage to access multiple channels on a powerful satellite, said Peter Jackson, Chief Executive Officer of AsiaSat.
The Arabsat/ASBU Bouquet is available on AsiaSat 2 in C-band with the following reception parameters:
Transponder: 5A
Frequency: 3820 MHz
Polarisation: Vertical
Modulation: QPSK
Symbol Rate: 27.5 Msym/sec
FEC: 3/4
8 September 2006
On 7 September, the Iraqi government ordered Arabic satellite network Al-Arabiya to shut down its Baghdad operations for one month, state television reported. The network said Iraqi police arrived at its offices later on Thursday to enforce the order which apparently was issued by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s cabinet.
In July, al-Maliki warned television stations against broadcasting footage that could undermine the country’s stability. A statement by the prime minister’s office cited news reports that ‘capitalise on the footage of victims of terrorist attacks.’ The statement said television stations should uphold the code of media ethics or else the government will take legal action against them.
The other pan-Arab satellite network, Al-Jazeera, had its office in the capital closed two years ago.
8 September 2006
SW Radio Africa – the Independent Voice of Zimbabwe – is once again being jammed by government authorities. Station Manager Gerry Jackson says recently all medium wave transmissions were jammed and the station returned to shortwave – but after a few weeks this has also been jammed. It would appear that the news bulletin is being specifically targeted.
Jackson says this is clearly because a programme of organised, peaceful resistance has begun in Zimbabwe and is also ahead of the advertised protests by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, scheduled to begin on 13 September.
Jackson deplores the fact that government believes it can hold on to power by blocking access to freedom of information and expression.
