6 December 2010
Journalists across the Democratic Republic of Congo are learning about the HIV/AIDS epidemic in a series of eight workshops organized by the Voice of America.
We are very happy with the VOA initiative and its contribution to the fight against HIV/AIDS, said Dr. Aime Mboyo, coordinator of the national HIV/AIDS program in DRC.
The workshops, organized by Ferdinand Ferella of VOAs French-to-Africa Service, include a mix of information about the HIV/AIDS epidemic in DRC, along with practical information about covering health issues such as HIV/AIDS. The VOA workshops are supported by the U.S. Department of State through its embassy in Kinshasa.
Dr. Mboyo said, We are already seeing the first results. Participants in the Kinshasa and Lubumbashi workshops have decided to set up a network to stay in touch and exchange information. The role of the media is crucial, particularly community radio because 70 percent of the population lives in rural areas, she said.
The workshops also drew praise from participants, such as Zacharie Lunda of Radio Parec in Mulongo. I live in a remote town in Katanga, Lunda said, I was very touched to be invited to the Lubumbashi workshop, just the idea that someone out there cares for me.
The workshops began in Kinshasa, in late November, and more are scheduled for Goma, Dec. 7-8, Bukavu, Dec. 10-11, and Kisangani, Dec. 14-15. Early next year, VOA will also organize programs in Mbuji-Mayi, Kananga and Matadi.
The U.N. estimates between 400,000 and 500,000 in DRC are living with HIV/AIDS. There was a1.3 percent prevalence among adults at the end of 2007, and recent studies suggest the prevalence may be increasing. More than 40,000 children are born with HIV/AIDS each year.
19 November 2010
Vizrt, a leading provider of content production tools for the digital media industry, announced today that it has entered into a terms sheet with Swiss company LiberoVision AG, a leader in the field of virtual sports enhancements.
According to the proposed terms sheet, Vizrt Ltd. shall purchase all of the issued and outstanding share capital of LiberoVision in three installments: 60% upon signing of the definitive agreement, 20% upon approval of the financial statements of LiberoVision for the year 2011 and 20% upon approval of the financial statements of LiberoVision for the year 2012. The consideration for the first 60% of the issued share capital of LiberoVision shall be CHF 6 million (approx. USD 6.12 million) and may be increased by an additional 1 CHF million (approx. USD 1.02 million) should the EBIT for the year 2010 of LiberoVision exceed CHF 1 million.
The consideration for each of the additional 20% of the issued share capital of LiberoVision shall be calculated as 20% of ten times the EBIT for the applicable fiscal year.
All installments shall consist of 80% cash and 20% Vizrt Ltd. shares. As part of the transaction the founders of LiberoVision are committed to continue their employment with LiberoVision for a period of at least two years.
The transaction is subject to a financial and legal due diligence to Vizrt’s satisfaction and the parties reaching a definitive agreement.
Martin Burkhalter, Chief Executive Officer of Vizrt said: “LiberoVision brings to Vizrt best of class additional capabilities to enhance sports broadcasts. Their products allow for live on-air review and analysis of events on the field, also from points of view not captured by cameras, a large and growing market. In creating a seemingly 3D environment for normal 2D broadcasts, this type of analysis provides yet another compelling way to tell a story, a key driver behind all our BG products. Efficiency, another key component, is provided in that LiberoVision’s technology does not require any additional in-stadium infrastructure.” “It is this ability to provide broadcasters with great additional functionality that makes such a strong case to content owners. It has always been our strategy to help clients increase the economic value of their digital assets and LiberoVision fits seamlessly with this strategy. Integration of both systems will allow us to take the combined offering to our existing customers and attract new ones.”
Dr. Stephan Würmlin Stadler, CEO for LiberoVision AG, stated, “Many of our clients who are already using Vizrt systems have indicated they would like to see the two systems more closely integrated. Combining our companies therefore seemed to most logical way forward.” “We bring to the table a technology that differs greatly from other providers in that other systems produce results that clearly look like virtual animations, like avatars. With our virtual instant replay technology, on the other hand, you know that the player is Lionel Messi, it feels like you are there on the field. That realism is due to LiberoVision’s patented image processing technology that transforms the camera feeds into 3D representations. Although certain great and complex technologies can achieve this in a way that is pixel perfect, it takes two days to do so. In our markets, no one is interested in two days. We can do it instantly.
“We see great opportunities in joining forces with Vizrt, as it will allow both organsiations to expand their product offering to a large and growing customer base. We at LiberoVision are very excited to pursue these opportunities as part of the Vizrt organisation, which has proven to be commercially very successful and, like us, is very driven by innovation, quality and customer requirements.”
LiberoVision currently offers two product lines. Libero Highlight provides realistic 3D replays that are indistinguishable from images produced by on-site television cameras. It enables the broadcaster to move the viewer’s perspective to areas not covered by the in-stadium cameras, such as over-the-shoulder of the quarterback.
Libero Offside was developed for instant offside analysis during soccer games. It is a dedicated application aimed at resolving offsides disputes during soccer games.
18 November 2010
Radio Azadi, RFE’s Afghan station, has launched an interactive SMS service that is connecting the station more directly with its audience, especially villagers in remote, inaccessible regions who are often cut off from news and information.
Thanks to a recent partnership between RFE and mobile service provider Etisalat, mobile phone users in Afghanistan can now subscribe to free SMS news updates and emergency alerts from Radio Azadi.
“The exciting thing is that it’s not just Radio Azadi sending news to subscribers,” says RFE Associate Director of Broadcasting Akbar Ayazi. “It’s our subscribers sending news back to us. Since the project launched less than a month ago, we’ve already received more than 5,000 text messages from people all around the country — this ‘citizen journalism’ is unique in Afghanistan.”
One recent text message to Radio Azadi, for example, came from Samandar Khpalwak of the Ghani Khel district of Nangarhar province, who complained that a local teacher’s training institute lacks a building. Another cell phone user from the Narkh district of Logar province texted that the followers of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar’s Islamic Party are extracting money from locals by blocking roads and making violent threats.
Each morning and evening, Etisalat customers who subscribe to the free service receive news headlines from Radio Azadi in either Dari or Pashto. They also get SMS messages on their phones with breaking news and emergency alerts.
In addition to texts, Ayazi says subscribers will soon be able to send Radio Azadi photos and videos from their mobile devices. He says the station has launched a new weekly program in which many of the SMS messages it receives are read on the air.
Despite being one of the poorest countries in the world, Afghanistan has an estimated 57 percent penetration rate for mobile phone use — 17 million subscribers out of a population of 29 million.
About Radio Azadi
In the eight years since RFE launched Radio Azadi as part of an effort to help build a peaceful and democratic Afghanistan, the station has become the most popular media outlet in the country (Source: Intermedia). For more on Afghanistan, check out RFE’s new “Gandhara” blog.
10 November 2010
The Association for International Broadcasting (AIB) announced the winners of its annual global media excellence awards at a gala event in London on 9 November 2010.
The AIB Awards are unique in broadcasting because of their independence from commercial interests – an independent panel of judges consisting of respected professionals from the broadcasting and wider industries selected the winners among a record number of entries submitted from all over the world.
Categories covered by the AIBs include separate awards for radio and television, cross-media productions, as well as awards for innovation in marketing, use of technology, and for the first time this year a People’s Choice award where the public determined the winner in the category ‘Best coverage of Climate Change’ via online voting.
Simon Spanswick, AIB CEO said: Very noticeable this year were the vast improvements in entries to the cross-media category we saw a range of submissions that ably demonstrated the potential for story-telling across multiple platforms, whether serving a highly web-literate audience or an audience in an area where mobile rather than web is the most effective way to reach people.”
Hosted by Vanessa Mock, EU Correspondent, Feature Story News, the event was attended by 180 senior executives, producers and journalists from media organisations around the world.
The winners of the 2010 AIBs are:
Clearest coverage of a single news event television
Winner: Al Jazeera English (Qatar) for Gaza Flotilla coverage
—“well-rounded, with journalists on the ground everywhere, ensuring that all sides of the stories were presented, combined with background footage, excellently chosen guests and high quality analysis”—
Highly commended
France 24 (France) for The Battle of Bangkok
—“high risk and high impact coverage, told from behind the lines on both sides”—
Al Jazeera English (Qatar) for Thai Protests coverage
—“excellent live coverage of a developing story”—
Clearest coverage of a single news event radio
Winner: BBC World Service (UK) for Connexion Haiti
—“a lifeline to the survivors of the Haitian earthquake exactly the sort of thing that international broadcasters can do so well when disaster strikes”—
Best creative feature – television
Winner: VRT (Belgium) for Volt
—“a wonderfully subversive consumer affairs programme that is an example to broadcasters throughout the world of the TV medium holding companies to account”—
Highly commended
Voice of America (USA) for Bai Jie Speaks English
—“a great concept, nicely realised with a good portion of humour”—
WDR (Germany) for Pizza in Auschwitz
—“this fly-on-the-wall documentary is a must-see that leaves you deeply impressed”—
Best creative feature – radio
Winner: Tinderbox Production (UK) for Flexible Friend or Foe
—“the story of the credit card excellent editing, amazing creativity and a highly relevant story”—
Highly commended
BBC World Service (UK) for The Day that Lehman Died
—“an absolutely gripping programme, with creative re-enactments to illustrate a complex tale”—
Radio Netherlands Worldwide (Netherlands) for Down’s but Not Out
—“the story of a young Down’s sufferer wanting to lead a normal life is treated with sensitivity and warmth worth listening to more than once”—
Most innovative technology – sponsored by Bloomberg TV
Winner: Sony Professional and HBS (UK) for The World’s First 3D World Cup
—“the winner for sheer innovation very, very cool one of the technology highlights of the year”—
Highly commended
CNN International (UK) for CNN International/YouTube Debate on Climate Change
—“cost-effective and ingenious use of existing technology to create excellent audience interactivity on a truly global basis”—
Ruwido Austria (Austria) for Invitro Remote Control
—“a clever twist on a household product with real relevance to the iPhone generation, well thought out and beautifully designed”—
Best cross-media/online production – sponsored by Eurosport
Winner: Arte France (France) for Prison Valley
—” this advanced form of web documentary and truly multimedia production shows the way ahead for content producers aiming to capture the attention of audiences across platforms”—
Highly commended
Radio Free Asia (USA) for Travelling Down the Mekong
—“the multilingual efforts alone make this production stand out”—
BBC World Service Trust (UK) for BBC Janala
—“highly creative, with excellent use of mobile, to make language teaching more accessible”—
Most creative marketing strategy
Winner : Shree FM (Sri Lanka) for Badumalla
—“the cleverly devised and executed campaign worked on two levels as a way to promote the station across the country and increase audience numbers, and as a corporate social responsibility campaign “—
Best children’s factual programme or series – sponsored by 1GOAL
Winner: BBC (UK) for Horrible Histories
—“thoroughly engaging and educational a format that will work in territories worldwide looks great on the screen with inventive use of graphics and first-rate story-telling”—
Highly commended
KI.KA Der Kinderkanal von ARD und ZDF (Germany) for Next stop – happiness
—“this philosophical programme stretches the viewer’s imagination great viewing”—
BBC (UK) for Newsround
—“thoroughly accessible for kids of different ages, well paced with clever visual support and good variety of subjects”—
Best investigative documentary – television
Winner : Clover Films (UK) for The Dancing Boys of Afghanistan
—“fascinating and disturbing, with remarkable access to the subject a risky investigation requiring immense self-control on the part of the production team”—
Highly commended
Al Jazeera English (Qatar) for Dirty Little Secrets
—“an excellently executed investigation into claims that the US used biological weapons against civilians in the Korean war”—
VRT (Belgium) for Blood Antiques
—“the dark world of Afghan ‘blood antiques’ and Belgian antique dealers expertly uncovered, using good dramatisation and interviews—
Prospero Productions (Australia) for Every Family’s Nightmare
—“remarkable access to a family being torn apart by Australia’s criminal justice system, with sensitively handled interviews”—
Best investigative documentary – radio
Winner : Czech Radio (Czech Republic) for A Boy and the Stars
— “why does the name of Jewish boy Petr Ginz who perished in Auschwitz and his fascination with space travel still live on in people’s consciousness? great use of the sound stage in this sensitive production”—
Highly commended
RFE/RL (Czech Republic) for Plight of Afghan, Tajik Prisoners
—“delves into the issue and stirs up interest in the highest levels of Afghan government to end the bureaucratic limbo “—
People’s Choice “Best Coverage of Climate Change” – sponsored by ADB
Winner decided by online voting: Phoenix Satellite Television (HongKong) for Earth Rescue Operation
—“clearly a hit with viewers, winning the AIB’s inaugural People’s Choice award in a closely fought contest the programme examines the major problems of pollution, carbon dioxide emissions and increasing demand for resources while looking optimistically at new technological solutions and man’s ingenuity in solving problems”—
Best current affairs documentary – television
Winner : Channel 4 Television (UK) for Afghanistan: Behind Enemy Lines
—“compelling, providing a unique perspective the whole team was prepared to take a risk to deliver outstanding television”—
Highly commended
Société Radio-Canada (Canada) for The Ultimate Forgiveness
—“a compelling story, movingly told with beautiful images”—
BBC Three (UK) for Women, Weddings, War and Me
—“shocking pictures, strong emotions in an excellent film”—
Best current affairs documentary – radio
Winner : BBC World Service (UK) for Dying to Give Birth
—“drew the listener in from its opening seconds – once listening to the programme, it was impossible to stop”—
Highly commended
Radio Taiwan International (Taiwan) for Breaking into Death Row
—“dealt with a very challenging subject in a way that probably could not be bettered”—
Ruth Evans Productions (UK) for A Dollar a Day
—” great context and a thoroughly well-told story”—
Best historical documentary – television
Winner : WDR (Germany) for Picture of the Napalm Girl
—“disturbing to watch but giving remarkable insight into the Vietnam War, the photographer and his subject”—
Highly commended
Phoenix Satellite Television (HongKong) for Journey to North Korea
—“excellent pace and great content were complemented by sophisticated editing and sound”—
Best specialist genre – television
Winner : The Doha Debates (Qatar) for The Doha Debates
—“an outstanding contribution to TV in the Middle East and around the world”—
Highly commended
SBS TV (Australia) for Italian Food Safari
—“beautiful and lovingly produced essentially a cookery show but with a cultural perspective and great visual appeal”—
Russian Travel Guide (Russian Federation) for Finding Seal Pups
—“beautifully photographed, with insightful context”
International personality of the year – television
Winner: Stephen Sackur BBC News (UK)
—“knowledgeable and well-prepared and not afraid to hold his interviewees to account”—
International personality of the year – radio
Winner : Alain Lefèvre Société Radio-Canada (Canada)
—“his genuine passion for the things he talks about comes across so clearly”—
Full details of the 2010 International Media Excellence Awards can be found at theaibs.tv
The judges
for the AIBs have a vast range of experience in different aspects of broadcasting and are drawn from all over the world. In 2010 the judges were: Malika Alouane, Director of Channels Programming, JCC and Baraem TV, Qatar; Salim Amin, Chairman, A24 Media, Kenya; Samuel Attah-Mensah, MD, OmniMedia Ltd. (CitiFM), Ghana; Zeinab Badawi, Journalist/Presenter, BBC World News, UK; Paul Bristow, VP Strategy, Advanced Digital Broadcast, Switzerland; Jay Chauhan, VP Technology, NDTV, India; Linden Clark, Manager, RNZI, New Zealand; Julian Clover, Editorial Director, Broadband TV News, UK; Bryan Coombes, Director Business Development, Babcock International Group, UK; Natasha Elkington, Reporter and Online Editor, Thomson Reuters, UK; Adelheid Feilcke-Tiemann, Director International Relations, Deutsche Welle, Germany; Jeff Gedmin, President, RFE/RL, Czech Republic; Jill Grinda, Worldwide Distribution Director, euronews, France; Ma Guoli, CEO, Infront Sports and Media, Peoples Republic of China; Amir Jahangir, CEO, Mishal, Pakistan; Abubakar Jijiwa, Director General, Voice of Nigeria, Nigeria; Francois Laborie, CCO, Vizrt, Norway; Stanislas Leridon, Internet and New Media, France 24, France; Brian Martinez, International Managing Director, Bloomberg Television EMEA, UK; Marcus Metzner, Head Marketing & Communications, S4M, Germany; Charles-Antoine Moulin, Editorial Director, Eurosport 2, France; Naveen Naqvi, Journalist/Producer/Anchor, Pakistan; Mark Rhodes, President, Intermedia, USA; Lior Rival, VP Sales and Marketing, RRsat Global Communications Network, Israel; Vatche Sarkisian, Director of Research and Program Review, Middle East Broadcasting Networks, USA; Bhavneet Singh, MD & Executive VP,MTV Networks International; Debra Soon, MD TV, Channel NewsAsia, MediaCorp, Singapore; Simon Spanswick, CEO, AIB, UK; Victoria Vorontsova, Head of Spanish Channel, RT Channel, Russia
About the AIB
Established in 1993, the AIB is the international industry association and global knowledge network for the international broadcasting industry cross-media, cross-border, cross-cultural. With a reach of over 25,000 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. AIB publishes the comprehensive Global Broadcasting Sourcebook and the international media magazine, The Channel. AIB hosts the annual AIB International Media Excellence Awards the “AIBs”. For more information, visit www.aib.org.uk
