23 July 2009
Pharos, a leading content management and workflow provider, has opened a new US office and appointed Glen Sakata as General Manager – Americas to help capitalise on strong demand for Pharos solutions.
Sakata has over 20 years industry experience in sales, marketing, and general management with technology leaders including Louth Automation, Cisco Systems and Harmonic.
Over the last decade new types of entertainment and content delivery have forced broadcasters to rethink their traditional workflows and processes, comments Sakata, Innovative and forward looking developers like Pharos understand the bigger picture and can show a proven track record helping some of the worlds leading broadcasters to improve productivity and significantly reduce costs.
Sakata will be based close to the Silicon Valley and will liaise with the US headquarters of several established Pharos international clients such as CNN, HBO, Turner, Technicolor and Viacom.
Glens experience with the best in automation and content distribution alongside his extensive network of contacts in North America will greatly accelerate awareness of Pharos Mediator in the US market says Russell Grute, Marketing Director at Pharos. This long term investment will allow Pharos to take advantage of opportunities we have identified in the USA. Many of our core customers are already beginning to look further than technology and are now investing in our productivity solutions for broadcast and new media process management.
The new US office is part of a long term strategy to make Pharos an internationally recognised brand name, and establish a leadership position in the market for content workflow management. In 2008, Pharos opened offices in Singapore leading to successful implementations of Mediator at HBO Asia and Globecast Asia.
Pharos solutions help multi-channel broadcasters and service providers quickly adopt and benefit from file based multi-platform distribution. With Pharos, organisations can simplify workflow processes, unify operational teams and better utilise the technology infrastructure across the entire broadcast value chain. Millions of media assets across hundreds of television channels are powered 24/7 by Pharos’ software architecture, integration expertise and comprehensive support services.
16 July 2009
AIBs 2009
The 2009 AIBs are open for entry until 31
July – has your entry reached us yet?
In the five years since they were inaugurated,
the AIBs have become a major celebration of success in TV, radio and
cross-platform broadcasting.
Entries are submitted by broadcasters
throughout the world: this year’s entries have been submitted by the UK’s
Channel Four and BBC, Pakistan’s GEO TV, RTHK in Hong Kong and Russia Today in
Moscow among many, many others.
With an international jury to provide a
totally independent review of the work submitted, the AIBs retain a level of
impartiality that few other Awards can match.
Download the entry booklet
here!
16 July 2009
GlobeCast and Russia Today have concluded a deal to distribute the channel in Asia to a variety of distribution networks and platforms, beginning with India. Millions of homes and thousands of hotel rooms throughout India will now receive this top channel.
To bring the channel into India, GlobeCast oversaw all regulatory requirements for Russia Todays launch, including securing of the downlink license and landing rights. GlobeCasts expertise and strong presence in India enabled it to secure the license within a shorter timeframe, in a challenging broadcast climate.
Russia Today is now available on cable and DTH platforms in India including WWIL, Dish Hits, InCable, 7Star, Big TV and SunDirect platforms representing a potential viewership of 7 million homes. GlobeCast is also bringing the channel to over 15,000 rooms in more than 100 high-end hotel networks in India. A total of 300 hotels will eventually receive this content according to the deal.
In a separate deal, GlobeCast has reached an agreement with Hong Kongs Cable TV, expanding Russia Todays reach to viewers in the city-state.
As Russia Todays chosen distribution partner, GlobeCast is in talks with various other large networks to carry the channel to the widest possible audience, including obtaining regulatory licences in other parts of Asia, which will allow for expansion into new markets in the region for Russia Today.
Russia Today is Russias free-to-air 100% English-language channel, broadcasting news and current affairs programming. GlobeCast is pleased to be working with this major broadcaster as part of its expansion into rights management and distribution. GlobeCast focuses on international content as an increasingly vibrant part of the television industry, and leverages the relationships with broadcasters around the world to bring them to new audiences.
16 July 2009
The following press release was issued by the Al Jazeera press office on 15 July:
Al Jazeera is astonished to learn of the Palestinian Authority’s decision to suspend the networks operations in the West Bank and the PAs intention to take legal action against Al Jazeeras Arabic channel. The Palestinian Authority has stated its decisions are in response to Aljazeera reporting the accusations made by Secretary-general of the Fatah movement Mr. Farouk Kaddoumi against the Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and his advisor Mohammed Dahlan. Mr. Kaddoumi accused both leaders of being aware of an Israeli plan to kill the late president Yasser Arafat.
Al Jazeera believes that it has maintained strict professional journalistic standards and acted in accordance with its Code of Ethics in its coverage, and that the Palestinian Authority’s reaction reflects a repression of the freedom of media and a refusal to tolerate the opinions of others. Al Jazeera is surprised that it has been targeted by this decision while many other Arab and international media organizations also broadcast the Kaddoumis allegations. None of them have been reproached. Al Jazeera declares its ongoing commitment to covering events related to Palestine with the highest degree of professionalism and responsibility.
16 July 2009
From the GSMA Mobile Business Briefing:
Chinese vendors are reportedly the big winners in China Mobile’s third-round 3G network expansion tender worth CNY8.6 billion (US$1.26 billion).
According to Reuters, ZTE has won 34 percent of the deal for the latest supply of TD-SCDMA kit, whilst Huawei grabbed 22 percent and Datang won 21 percent. China Mobile kicked off the third round TD-SCDMA network mobile equipment bidding on 16 March. The world’s largest mobile operator said it would buy equipment for its 39,000 base stations in 200 Chinese cities, expanding its network coverage to 70 percent of the country. The remainder was reportedly dispensed to five companies, including New Postcom, FiberHome, Nokia Siemens Networks, Ericsson, and Potevio with shares of 5 to 6 percent each.
The tender is part of a rollout of 3G networks in the country that is valued at US$58.5 billion through 2011 by China Mobile and smaller rivals China Telecom and China Unicom
Meanwhile, Dow Jones Newswires reports that China Mobile will invest CNY70 billion (US$10.25 billion) in building and upgrading its networks and promoting the use of its 3G services in the country’s vast rural areas over the next three years, citing an agreement between the company and China’s Ministry of Agriculture. The move will see it add at least 10,000 so-called ‘natural’ villages to its network coverage every year in the next three years, with at least 98 percent of the country’s more than 5 million natural villages covered by the time the plan is complete.
16 July 2009
Germany’s international broadcaster Deutsche Welle has appointed Adrienne Woltersdorf as its new Chinese service head.
Woltersdorf, currently “Tageszeitung (taz) correspondent in the US, will take up her post on 1 Dezember 2009. She will be in charge of DW’s Chinese programme offering for internet and radio.
DW has several million hits on its Chinese web site per month, despite various restrictions through the Chinese authorities.
