Consent Management Platform for FAST and AVoD services on free-to-air TV platforms

10 September 2024

Consent Management Platform for FAST and AVoD services on free-to-air TV platforms

Synapse TV announced their approved status as the latest Consent Management Platform to join IAB Europe’s Transparency and Consent Framework (TCF).

As a result, the Synapse CMP may be used to collect consent on any FAST TV services on Freeview, Freely and other free-to-air platforms. TCF compliance now allows viewers to enjoy their favourite content while ensuring their privacy preferences are maintained. The CMP is compatible with most connected TVs to hit the market over the last decade. This includes but is not limited to TVs branded Freeview (modern HbbTV and legacy MHEG), Samsung TV+, LG, Roku, Freely, etc.

The TCF, which was launched in April 2018, is a cross-industry voluntary standard that relies on standardisation to facilitate compliance with certain provisions of the ePrivacy Directive and the GDPR. It is developed by IAB Europe in collaboration with organisations and professionals in the online industry. It is intended to enable publishers, technology partners and content owners to work together and provide users with a standardised experience when they make privacy choices.

Together with its content partner Global Distribution Services Synapse TV are delivering over a hundred FAST and linear TV channels to Freeview and Freely including Al Jazeera, France24, NHK World, Channelbox, ROK, Filmstream and many others.

“Our priority has always been to deliver a seamless and enjoyable viewing experience for all CTV users whilst respecting their privacy rights”, said Chris Wass, director of Synapse TV. “The addition of a TCF compliant CMP targeting free-to-air UK TV platforms ensures this respect whilst also maximising the programmatic opportunity for our customers.”

“The CMP is user-friendly and aligns with industry standards to provide a secure and transparent experience. Together with Synapse TV we will continue to adapt to any future regulatory changes to ensure that ourservices remains safe and compliant”, said Tanya Kronfli, director of Global Distribution Services, Synapse TV’s content partner.

ABC signs MOU with Radio Republik Indonesia (RRI)

28 August 2024

ABC signs MOU with Radio Republik Indonesia (RRI)

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) has been signed between the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and Indonesia’s public radio broadcaster Radio Republik Indonesia (RRI).

RRI President Director Hendrasmo and ABC International Head Claire M. Gorman signed the new agreement at the ABC offices in Sydney. A delegation of senior leadership from RRI and ABC International were in attendance to welcome the partnership.

The establishment of the MOU identifies the shared commitments of the ABC and RRI as public broadcasters in serving their national audiences with informative, educational and entertaining content and services.

The key tenets of the agreement endorse the strengthening of the relationship between the ABC and RRI through content sharing across programming, training of teams and personnel, media capacity building and the exchange of technical information.

ABC International Head Claire M. Gorman said: “We are proud to be partnering with RRI in this next chapter with future opportunities for collaborative endeavours through content and information exchange. This MOU expresses our mutual commitments as public broadcasters and the shared understanding of how we can best fulfil our obligations to our audiences across the region.”

President Director of RRI Hendrasmo said: “In this era of disruption, the key word is collaboration. We want to strengthen our institution, both in terms of content and human resources. This is one of the reasons why we are collaborating with the ABC. Moreover, developing human resources is our current priority, as we aim to remain strong and resilient in facing the era of change that is causing the media to experience difficult times.”

New ABC Radio Australia series Politok asks the big questions about politics in the Pacific

22 August 2024

New ABC Radio Australia series Politok asks the big questions about politics in the Pacific

Join Papua New Guinean journalist and presenter Scott Waide with ABC Radio Australia’s new series Politok, as he unpacks the major political issues and stories from across the Pacific region.

Politok is the latest series to join the line-up of Pacific-focused programming across ABC Radio Australia, with weekly episodes breaking down the biggest topics impacting politics in the Pacific.

Hosted by Scott Waide, Politok investigates the key political issues by speaking with regional leaders, public servants, aid workers, journalists and citizens with analysis delivered by academics and industry experts.

As the former-Deputy Regional Head of News at Papua New Guinea television station EMTV, Scott has worked extensively across news reporting, researching, and digital storytelling in the Pacific for over 25 years.

Scott said he is excited to be bringing Politok to ABC Radio Australia audiences. “Discussions around politics and how it affects the lives of ordinary people are essential for awareness and good governance in the Pacific. I have always held the view that political discussions should never be confined just to the circles of politicians. It should be shaped by the opinions and the mood of the public. The media is an integral part of that discourse as it provides the platform for education and awareness as a conduit and intermediary.”

ABC Radio Australia Manager Justine Kelly said: “We are thrilled to have Scott presenting Politok. His extensive expertise and experience in reporting and storytelling will provide listeners with unique insights into the biggest political issues impacting the Pacific. Featuring an impressive lineup of guests, Scott will unpack those tough-to-answer questions by speaking with key figures, experts and community members from across the region.”

“It’s fantastic having Scott in-country in Papua New Guinea delivering the series, and alongside the dedicated work of Series Producer Jordan Fennell and Producer Kuntamari Crofts, the team have created an outstanding new show on ABC Radio Australia.”

With a different focus across each episode, over the next ten weeks Politok will discuss fly-in fly-out aid culture, whistleblowers and transparency, women’s representation in politics, protest music, and the prevalence of votes of no confidence in the Pacific.

SERIES DETAILS:

Politok is on air on ABC Radio Australia every Tuesday at 9:00am AEST and PNG, 10:00am SIT and 11:00am FJT and repeated on Thursday afternoons at 2:35pm AEST and PNG time, 3:35pm SIT and 4:35pm FJT.

WAYS TO LISTEN:

There are multiple ways to listen to ABC Radio Australia – live via internet streaming or in your area through 24-hour FM stations, or catch up with full episodes on ABC Pacific online.

American RFE/RL Reporter Alsu Kurmasheva Released from Russian Custody

1 August 2024

American RFE/RL Reporter Alsu Kurmasheva Released from Russian Custody

After more than nine months in prison, American RFE/RL journalist Alsu Kurmasheva has been released as part of a large-scale prisoner exchange between the United States and Russia. The deal included Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was detained by the Kremlin for 16 months.

RFE/RL President & CEO Stephen Capus said: “We welcome news of Alsu’s release and are grateful to the American government and all who worked tirelessly to end her unjust treatment by Russia.

Alsu was targetted because she was an American journalist who was simply trying to take care of a family member inside Russia. She did nothing wrong and certainly did not deserve the unjust treatment and forced separation from her loving family members and colleagues.

Alsu’s release makes us even more determined to secure the freedom of three other RFE/RL journalists, cruelly imprisoned in Belarus and Russian-occupied Crimea. We will not rest until all our unjustly detained journalists are home safe. Journalism is not a crime.

Welcome home, Alsu.”

Pavel Butorin, Alsu’s husband and Director of RFE/RL’s Current Time television, said: “Today, my daughters and I are witnessing a historic act of resolve and compassion by the U.S. government and its allies, demonstrating that the free world values human life and family above all else, even when it means exchanging real criminals and spies to save wrongfully detained Americans.

After over a year of separation and more than nine months of brutal detention, Alsu will finally be free. Thanks to the unwavering efforts of the U.S. government and our tireless advocacy work, she will soon reunite with her family.

For more than nine months, Alsu was denied basic human dignity. She was locked up in horrific prison conditions, denied phone calls with her children or U.S. consular visits, and deprived of proper medical care. She was convicted in a secret trial for a crime she did not commit, held in jail solely because she is an American and an American journalist.”

Alsu Kurmasheva is a journalist with RFE/RL’s Tatar-Bashkir Service who was detained in Kazan, Russia, on October 18, 2023. Alsu holds U.S. and Russian citizenship and lives in Prague, Czech Republic, with her husband and two daughters.

Alsu travelled to Russia on May 20, 2023, to care for her elderly, ailing mother. She was temporarily detained while waiting for her return flight on June 2, 2023. Authorities at Kazan airport confiscated her US and Russian passports, preventing her from leaving the country. She was subsequently fined 10,000 rubles (US$103) for failure to register her US passport with Russian authorities.

Before she could pay this fine, she was detained again on October 18, 2023, for failing to declare herself a “foreign agent.” On December 11, 2023, Russian authorities launched a third investigation against Alsu for “spreading false information” about Russia’s military.

Following a rapid and secret trial, Kurmasheva was convicted of “spreading false information” about Russia’s military on July 19, 2024, and sentenced to six and a half years in prison.

Image: RFE/RL

RNZ fires-up new transmitter to cover the Pacific

1 August 2024

RNZ fires-up new transmitter to cover the Pacific

RNZ went live on 1 August with its new RNZ Pacific shortwave transmitter.

The commissioning of the transmitter was officiated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Rt Hon Winston Peters, at RNZ House in Wellington.

In a NZ$4.4-million-dollar project, RNZ has installed a new Swiss-made Ampegon shortwave transmitter, capable of both digital and analogue signal, to replace its old transmitter.

Chief Executive and Editor-in-Chief Paul Thompson said it’s a significant infrastructure upgrade and secures the future of the RNZ shortwave service into the wider Pacific.

RNZ Pacific broadcasts into the wider Pacific on shortwave 24 hours a day, broadcasting in English and Pacific languages, in collaboration with 22 broadcasting partners across the region.

“The attraction of the shortwave service is that it delivers our unique voice and content to all parts of the Pacific via a signal which can carry over great distances, and achieve good audiences,” said Thompson.

“RNZ Pacific is an essential source of information, especially so during the cyclone season or during a crisis such as the Tonga eruptions,” he said.

RNZ’s Transmission Engineer Specialist Steve White said the project to replace the 34-year-old transmitter at the Rangitaiki broadcast site near Taupō had gone smoothly – being on budget and achieved without disruption to service. “We have appreciated the close working relationship with Ampegon for the new transmitter installation,” he said.

RNZ Pacific Manager Moera Tuilaepa-Taylor said for the past 75 years RNZ had been broadcasting into the Pacific via the shortwave service. “This marks the next chapter in our proud legacy of sharing all of our unique stories across the Pacific,” she said.

RNZ’s Charter includes the provision of an international service to the South Pacific in both English and Pacific languages. As part of Budget 2022, the Government announced NZ$4.4m dollars capital funding for a new transmitter.

RNZ Pacific broadcasts into the wider Pacific on shortwave 24 hours a day, collaborating with 22 broadcasting partners across the region. Its current primary transmitter is nearing end of life, and its other transmitter has in effect already been retired.

Image: RNZ

Channelbox brings Punjabi movie and comedy channels to UK’s Freeview

31 July 2024

Channelbox brings Punjabi movie and comedy channels to UK’s Freeview

Pitaara Movies and Pitaara Comedy have officially made their debut on Freeview UK via Channelbox on Freeview channel 271, marking a significant milestone in their broadcasting journey.

Pitaara Movies is world’s first Punjabi movies channel dedicatedly promoting Punjabi cinema & the entertainment industry. Pitaara has got something to offer for every section of the audience. Not just movies, Pitaara is a complete package of entertainment with music, and celebrity chit-chat shows featuring all the who’s who of the Punjabi entertainment industry. Pitaara has the biggest catalogue of Punjabi films making it the go-to channel for the lovers of Punjabi cinema.

Pitaara Comedy complements this with its humorous and engaging programming, promising laughter and enjoyment.

“We are thrilled to offer a complete package of entertainment and a vibrant showcase of the Punjabi entertainment industry’s finest. This expansion underscores our commitment to delivering diverse and compelling content to audiences across the UK”, said Tanya Kronfli, Channelbox’s Head of Business Development.

“We are excited to announce the launch of Pitaara Movies and Pitaara Comedy on Freeview UK via Channelbox. This expansion allows us to share our vibrant cultural and comedic programming with a broader audience. It represents a significant milestone in our dedication to providing high-quality content that celebrates Punjabi cinema, entertainment, music, and laughter,” said Mr. Mahesh Sharma, Vice President of Strategic Partnerships and Alliances at Pitaara.

Channelbox is a multi-channel platform available on Freeview channel 271 and via mobile applications. Channelbox supports FAST and linear channels and offers over 70 TV channels to the Freeview audience.