17 December 2012
RT, the global international news network, has switched all of its English-language news broadcasting to High Definition format effective December 16, 2012. The switch to HD was enabled by RT’s move of its studios and headquarters offices to a brand new facility in Moscow.
RT’s relocation on the eve of its seven-year anniversary is the result of the extraordinary growth experienced by the network since its inception. The HD broadcasting launch marks another important achievement by RT, as such delivery is not yet offered by many other major international news channels.
“We are incredibly proud of everything we have accomplished in just seven short years,” says Margarita Simonyan, RT’s editor in chief. “The switch to HD is just the next step as we continue to grow and expand. The upgraded capabilities of our new, technologically sophisticated facility allow us to stay ahead of the competition.”
When RT first launched its 24-7 news broadcast in December of 2005, it employed some 300 journalists and was comprised of just one TV channel, airing in English. Today the network boasts the staff of more than 2000 professionals, and its five channels broadcast in English, Arabic and Spanish, reaching 550 million people in more than 100 countries around the globe. In 2012, RT became the first Russian TV channel ever to garner a second nomination for the prestigious International Emmy award.
RT is the 2nd most watched foreign news channel in key cities in the US, according to a Nielsen study* and was the third most watched news channel overall in the UK in 3Q2012 according to BARB**. With more than 830 million views to date, RT’s YouTube channel is the largest provider of news video footage on the platform, according to a 2012 Pew Research Center study and the network’s online video agency boasts more than 13,000 subscribers, including top TV channels and agencies from 185 countries.
*Based on weekly viewership
**BARB Quarterly Reach Report- Quarter 3 2012 (BARB weeks 2293-2305) Individuals 4+ + (http://www.barb.co.uk/report/quarterly-channel-reach-open/download/2012-Q3-QTVS.pdf)
13 December 2012
The visit by a media delegation from Myanmar to Germany, organized by DW Akademie, is part of Deutsche Welle’s ongoing support of media development in the country. The project is supported by the Federal Foreign Office.
Following decades of censorship, Myanmar is in the process of liberalizing its media institutions. Deutsche Welle is assisting this transformation via its international center for media development, DW Akademie. It is currently hosting a high-ranking delegation from Myanmar, including Ye Htut, deputy minister of the Myanmar Ministry of Information, seven representatives from the state-run Myanmar Radio and Television (MRTV) and the Director of the country’ first semi-private TV-station MRTV 4.
Aside from Deutsche Welle’s headquarters in Bonn and TV studios in Berlin, the schedule includes visits to the Federal Foreign Office, the Federal Press Office, the German Federation of Journalists (DJV), the ARD network of public service broadcasters and regional broadcasters Berlin-Brandenburg Broadcasting (RBB) and Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR).
At the various stops, the visitors are taking part in discussions and lectures on the role of the media in society and politics. Experts from the field are contributing their insights into the challenges of media restructuring and how established theories can be applied to Myanmar today. Many have drawn from their experiences with the change in the German media landscape following the reunification of East and West Germany. The key question is whether the German public service broadcasting system could serve as a model for Myanmar.
Years of cooperation
DW Akademie started providing training projects for media organizations in Myanmar in 2007. In 2009, it became involved in the establishment of the Myanmar Media Development Center (MMDC) – set up by MRTV-4. The process, which took three years, was also supported by the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) and Germany’s Friedrich Ebert Foundation.
The MMDC opened in July 2012, with DW Akademie providing preliminary training for prospective TV professionals, followed by training for media producers in how to be trainers themselves. The graduates of the train-the-trainer workshop are to become teachers at the MMDC.
“A functional democracy needs a vital media landscape,” commented Gerda Meuer, Managing Director of DW Akademie. “This is why supporting the media transformation in Myanmar is the right thing to do. It’s very pleasing to see that our continuing work there is bearing fruit.”
DW Akademie is continuing its involvement at the MMDC, with more courses and workshops planned for 2013. It will also coordinate future international support for the basic and advanced training of media professionals in Myanmar and for the establishment of vocational institutes. A DW Akademie staff member has been stationed in Myanmar to work together with local partners. These efforts represent part of a sweeping plan for media development in the country.
Since February 2012, Deutsche Welle’s English-language TV channel DW has been available in Myanmar via direct-to-home provider Skynet – a nationwide network that offers telephone and Internet services in addition to television.
DW programming is also available on a number of other platforms in Myanmar, including the Forever Group’s pay TV network, which makes DW along with other international channels available to Myanmar audiences. Myawady TV (MWD), Myanmar’s second-largest TV station, as well as the popular state-run MRTV broadcast select DW programs and magazines such as Journal, Tomorrow Today and In Good Shape.
13 December 2012
WRN Broadcast, the international broadcast services company, has today announced the appointment of Dave Travis as Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Travis, who was formally Head of Operations & Technology Services, has been appointed as technology chief following the company’s continual growth in broadcast operations – which this year included the opening of it’s broadcast data centre.
Over the past three years since joining WRN Broadcast, Travis has been responsible for overseeing the company’s broadcast solutions and technology partnerships. His contribution has seen WRN Broadcast increase it’s offering to become one of the most comprehensive broadcast managed services company in the industry. This has meant working with some of the best known television broadcasters and content owners in the world; ranging from Viacom Media Networks to East Africa’s Zuku platform alongside the company’s longstanding clients, which include NHK World and VOA, as well as Jazz FM and Absolute Radio here in the UK.
Dave Travis, CTO, WRN Broadcast, comments: “WRN Broadcast has an immensely strong offering across TV, Radio, IP and Broadcast Support and it’s been great playing a part in developing those areas. We have a first-class team of people here providing broadcast solutions that are innovative and cost effective enabling us to realise our client’s business objectives. My appointment as CTO will be a challenging and rewarding role which will allow me to help drive the company forward with the rest of the executive management team.”
Travis was Director of Engineering at TSI Broadcast before WRN Broadcast acquired it in 2009. Prior to that he had worked at Viacom, including MTV Networks and was part of the team responsible for building Showtime, Arabia’s multi-channel playout facility in Dubai Media City.
David Treadway, CEO, WRN Broadcast, says: “Dave’s expertise in broadcast technology has helped us realise one of our core ambitions – to make WRN Broadcast the most complete broadcast managed services company – enabling us to better serve our broadcast clients, regardless of the area of the media they work in. I wish to welcome Dave to the Executive Board as CTO at this exciting time in our history, as we continue to drive forward making sure we can take advantage of the opportunities in the ever-evolving media and broadcast sectors.”
About WRN Broadcast (www.wrnbroadcast.com)
WRN Broadcast is an international broadcast services company enabling broadcasters and media owners to deliver content to audiences worldwide.
Founded in 1992, WRN Broadcast has become one of the leading broadcast services companies, working across digital content platforms to provide broadcast clients with worldwide coverage. The company specialises in end-to-end solutions for ingest, content management, playout, encoding, multiplexing and worldwide fibre and satellite distribution. It has a state-of-the-art Media Centre offering clients the latest in broadcast technologies.
The company manages playout and distribution services for over 250 clients worldwide including some of the most recognised broadcast brands such as Top Up TV, Jazz FM and Wananchi (Zuku platform).
WRN Broadcast is committed to providing a complete, professional service to all of its clients, accompanied by its investment in the latest technologies available.
12 December 2012
AIB has published its latest industry briefing for the media internationally. With news about HD developments, distribution in Asia and programming, plus the latest people news, this industry briefing is a useful publicly-available resource for the media industry worldwide.
AIB members receive more detailed briefings about media markets, trends and developments worldwide in confidential, member-only market intelligence briefings. Contact AIB for more information about the benefits of membership.
7 December 2012
AIB has circulated to its members the latest confidential market intelligence briefing compiled by the organisation.
These regular briefings help inform members’ strategies and provides considerable amounts of background information about trends and developments in broadcasting and electronic media in territories and markets around the world.
All members receive these briefings as part of their membership benefits. To discuss how AIB could help your organisation if it is not currently an AIB member, talk to us.
5 December 2012
The Arab Satellite Communications Organization (Arabsat) participates in this year’s Arab Radio and Television Festival in Cairo(8th – 12th December, The Media Production City, Cairo).
Eng / Khalid bin Ahmed Balkhyour, President & CEO of Arabsat, stated that during this event Arabsat will also present its new satellite services that were recently launched to provide more satellite capacities to serve HDTV broadcast and meet the expected demand for this service.
He pointed out that Arabsat has an integrated satellite fleet that provides all TV broadcasting and satellite communications services with a full back up in orbit, and added that Arabsat investments in building and operating this fleet of new satellites have exceeded 1.6 billion U.S. dollars, funded primarily from Arabsat revenue. Arabsat is currently ranked seventh in the world among the largest satellite operators worldwide.
Arabsat recently signed a contract for manufacturing and launching its sixth generation satellites, which will be launched in the coming years to ensure the diversity of all Arabsat services delivered and the development needed to meet all its customers’ requirements .
