7 June 2019
Following the raid on the ABC, the Corporation’s chair Ita Buttrose issued this statement:
On behalf of the ABC, I have registered with the Federal Government my grave concern over this week’s raid by the federal police on the national broadcaster.
An untrammelled media is important to the public discourse and to democracy. It is the way in which Australian citizens are kept informed about the world and its impact on their daily lives.
Observance of this basic tenet of the community’s right to know has driven my involvement in public life and my career in journalism for almost five decades.
The raid is unprecedented – both to the ABC and to me.
In a frank conversation with the Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts, Paul Fletcher, yesterday, I said the raid, in its very public form and in the sweeping nature of the information sought, was clearly designed to intimidate.
It is impossible to ignore the seismic nature of this week’s events: raids on two separate media outfits on consecutive days is a blunt signal of adverse consequences for news organisations who make life uncomfortable for policy makers and regulators by shining lights in dark corners and holding the powerful to account.
I also asked for assurances that the ABC not be subject to future raids of this sort. Mr Fletcher declined to provide such assurances, while noting the “substantial concern” registered by the Corporation.
There has been much reference in recent days to the need to observe the rule of law.
While there are legitimate matters of national security that the ABC will always respect, the ABC Act and Charter are explicit about the importance of an independent public broadcaster to Australian culture and democracy.
Public interest is best served by the ABC doing its job, asking difficult questions and dealing with genuine whistle-blowers who risk their livelihoods and reputations to bring matters of grave import to the surface. Neither the journalists nor their sources should be treated as criminals.
In my view, legitimate journalistic endeavours that expose flawed decision-making or matters that policy makers and public servants would simply prefer were secret, should not automatically and conveniently be classed as issues of national security.
The onus must always be on the public’s right to know. If that is not reflected sufficiently in current law, then it must be corrected.
As ABC Chair, I will fight any attempts to muzzle the national broadcaster or interfere with its obligations to the Australian public. Independence is not exercised by degrees. It is absolute.
7 June 2019
Meet with SatADSL to receive exclusive insight into how its Cloud-based Service Delivery Platform will be launched into Asia to reveal accessible, value-added services for operators
SatADSL, a provider of professional VSAT services via satellite, will attend CommunicAsia 2019 to discuss how its innovative satellite networking solutions, including the Cloud-based Service Delivery Platform (C-SDP), will be extended to cover Asia for the very first time.
As a first-of-its-kind solution, C-SDP provides teleport operators with a unique way to outsource their satellite services, reducing the cost of ubiquitous connectivity. This addresses challenges such as low Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) in rural areas. Providing a complete OSS/BSS, carrier-grade, fully redundant platform, the C-SDP enables, via the cloud, satellite services over any frequency band, bringing significant advantages such as fast time-to-market, flexible operation and future-proof services.
At CommunicAsia 2019, hear more details about how these value-added services will be enabled and how SatADSL intends to extend the reach of its C-SDP further into the region.
A one-to-one briefing can be arranged with one of the following SatADSL representatives:
Michel Dothey – Co-Founder & CCO
Caroline De Vos – Co-Founder & COO
Thierry Eltges – Co-Founder & CEO
Fulvio Sansone – Founding Partner and CTO
Various times are available between Tuesday, 18 June and Thursday, 20 June.
Please contact Caroline De Vos to arrange a meeting, at caroline.devos@satadsl.net.
CommunicAsia
Marina Bay Sands Singapore, Singapore
31 May 2019
The 12th annual Global Media Forum took place in Bonn on 27-28 May, organised by Germany’s international broadcaster DW.
Bringing together more 2,000 delegates from all parts of the world, the lively conference examined everything from AI to the future of local journalism under the title Shifting Powers.
Pointing to one potential future, a robot was in conversation with DW executive
Guido Baumhauer (pictured left) while the relationship between media and politics was examined by a panel including
Lord Michael Dobbs, the British politician who wrote the original House of Cards novel (photo above).
With lively conversation and debate, and the unique opportunity to meet journalists and media executives from some of the most hard-to-reach places on the planet, DW’s Director-General Peter Limbourg says that the Global Media Forum is being positioned to become the media equivalent of the Munich Security Conference. A bold ambition – and it’s one that’s quite likely to be achieved.
29 May 2019
London 29 May 2019
Viewsat, one of the fastest-growing operators within the global broadcast and transmission services industry, today announced that it is joining the Association for International Broadcasting (AIB).
As a truly global player, Viewsat is showing its support for the international broadcasting media by becoming an active member of this unique business community.
“Becoming a Member of the AIB comes at an exciting time for Viewsat, as we recently announced expansion in two business areas: fully managed playout and delivery to any platform anywhere. We want to play a more active role in the broadcast community and the AIB membership gives us precisely that,” commented Sandra Squire, Viewsat Business Development Director.
Viewsat’s Chief Executive Officer, Awaes Jaswal, added “As we continue to expand our reach and services across the globe, Viewsat is pleased to show our support for the vital industry we are part of by becoming an active member of the AIB. At a time of great market change, organisations like the AIB are important for bringing businesses together to share experiences and create collaborations.”
“We are pleased to welcome Viewsat, as a Member of the Association for International Broadcasting,” said Simon Spanswick, AIB chief executive. “As part of the AIB ‘family’ Viewsat will benefit from the expertise and knowledge that the Association has developed over the past quarter century and will bring new service opportunities to their fellow members.”
About Viewsat
Viewsat was founded in 2006 with one aim in mind: “To empower broadcasters of all sizes across the globe by delivering television and radio content without compromise.”
Viewsat delivers excellence to clients through its managed playout and broadcast satellite services. With satellite platforms and fibre networks, which are augmented through strategic partnerships, its facilities provide access for downlink, uplink or turnaround services to customers across the world.
Viewsat has established a comprehensive global communication delivery network to enable programming to be backhauled and distributed to almost every corner of the globe, it currently has over 170 services on air, including satellite broadcasting services across its satellite network, OTT services, and managed playout & pop up channel services
About the AIB
The Association for International Broadcasting – AIB – is a non-profit, non-government, industry association founded in 1993 to represent, promote and assist its members. It currently has a membership of over 60 companies in around 30 countries, including major broadcasters serving audiences of hundreds of millions of people each week.
With a reach of over 27,000 communicators and media professionals, AIB is a unique centre of information about international broadcasting, covering TV, radio, online and mobile. AIB researches regular market intelligence briefings for its members and provides client-specific consultancy and project support. Members receive an extensive package of services throughout the year.
Specialist AIB Member Working Groups provide support in areas such as cyber security, sustainability and audience research.
The Association’s annual awards for factual content – the AIBs – reward the best productions across video, audio and online. Now in their 15th year, the AIBs attract entries from broadcasters and production companies in around 40 countries.
24 May 2019
A court in Egypt has ordered the release from prison of Al Jazeera journalist Mahmoud Hussein. He has been held for almost two and a half years.
The court ordered his release on Tuesday 21 May, with a different court hearing an appeal by the prosecution on Thursday 23 May. This second court upheld the earlier decision to release him.
According to a report by Al Jazeera, Hussein’s lawyer Taher Abul Nasr said his release “is expected to take place within days”.
Az-Zahra Hussein, his daughter, said in a Facebook post her father will be released “with precautionary measures”, and will soon be transferred to a police station from the prison.
Gamal Eid, the executive director of the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, said under Egyptian law Hussein must be freed within 24 hours.
“This is a final court ruling but the problem is that security forces tend to delay releases when they do not like those freed,” said Eid, adding in some previous cases the execution of the release order took several months.
The journalist has been in custody since 2016 without formal charges, trial or conviction.
Hussein was accused of “incitement against state institutions and broadcasting false news with the aim of spreading chaos”, allegations he and Al Jazeera Media Network deny.
14 May 2019
Ruptly’s innovative live platform, Ruptly Live, has received a top prize in the Best Use of Live category (re-ordered sentence) at the Digiday Awards Europe.
Dmitry Keshishev, Chief Digital Officer, said: “this award is testament to our commitment to developing accessible ways of sourcing and delivering live content in a way that resonates with a real demand for innovation among media publishers.”
Ruptly Live is a live distribution platform designed for broadcasters and publishers, as well as individual bloggers, empowering them to broadcast ground-breaking moments directly as they are taking place. Users of Ruptly Live are able to stream up to 9 simultaneous live events, including those covered in 360 degrees, from Ruptly’s platform direct to social media in just three clicks.
The platform enables access to world events on an array of topics, from breaking news to entertainment and sports, with a possibility to feature simultaneous translations to multiple languages. Ruptly’s Live coverage, distributed through the platform, received Gold distinction in Live News Coverage by The Shorty Awards and is recognised by the The Drum Online Media Awards as a finalist of the Breaking News Story of the Year.
The award ceremony took place in London, on 9th May. Other finalists for Best Use of Live were Hearst UK & The Laughing Cow (Good Housekeeping), Singular.Live (The Kick Off) and TheNewsMarket (PwC’s 21st Annual Global CEO Survey).
