15 November 2006
World Teleport Association (WTA) announced today its rankings of the Top Teleport Operators of 2006 in three categories: the Global Top Twenty including satellite and fiber carriers that operate teleports; the Independent Top Twenty consisting of ground segment operators only; and the Fast Twenty, which ranks all companies based on year-over-year revenue growth. The rankings are based on information submitted by companies as well as the published accounts of publicly-held corporations. The rankings include only companies that own and operate teleports and that generate at least 60% of revenues from satellite applications, unless those companies provided a breakout of satellite-related revenues to WTA, in which case its ranking is based on the reported satellite-related revenue.
The 2006 rankings represent a doubling in the number of companies covered, based on significant growth in the companies submitting data for the rankings. The complete rankings are available on WTA’s Web site by going to www.worldteleport.org and clicking on the Top Operators link on the home page.
The Global Top Twenty
The Global Top Twenty ranks companies based on revenues from all satellite-related sources and includes independents, satellite carriers, fiber carriers, and technology providers. The total revenues of the Global Top Twenty exceed US$7.8 billion, with individual companies ranging from over $2 billion to under $100 million. In order from largest to smallest, the Global Top Twenty of 2006 are: 1. Intelsat (Bermuda); 2. SES Global (Luxembourg); 3. Eutelsat (France); 4. GlobeCast (France); 5. Telesat Canada (Canada); 6. Stratos Global (USA); 7. JSAT Corporation (Japan); 8. Shin Satellite (Thailand); 9. Space Communications Corp. (Japan); 10. Loral Skynet (USA); 11. Arqiva Satellite Media Solutions (UK); 12. Arabsat (Saudi Arabia); 13. Globecomm Systems (USA); 14. Hispasat (Spain); 15. Asiasat (China); 16. Caprock Communications (USA); 17. ND SatCom AG (Germany); 18. Telenor Satellite Broadcasting (Norway); 19. Vyvx (USA); 20. Ascent Media Network Services (USA).
The Independent Top Twenty
The Independent Top Twenty ranks companies based on revenue from all satellite-related sources, but excludes companies whose primary business is satellite fleet operations. The total revenues of the Independent Top Twenty exceed $1.6 billion, with individual companies ranging from nearly a half billion dollars to under $20 million. In order from largest to smallest, the Independent Top Twenty of 2006 are: 1. GlobeCast, France; Stratos Global, USA; 3. Arqiva Satellite Satellite Media Solutions, UK; 4. Globecomm Systems, USA; 5. Caprock Communications, USA; 6. ND SatCom AG, Germany; 7. Vyvx, USA; 8. Ascent Media Network Services, USA; 9. RR Sat Global Communications, Israel; 10. Uplit/Petrocom, USA; 11. Globalsat, USA; 12. TIBA, Argentina; 13. Samacom, UAE; 14. Essel Shyam Communications, India; 15. Skyport International, USA; 16. ATCi, USA; 17. Datasat Communications, USA; 18. Emerging Markets Communications, USA; 19. TeleCommunication Systems, USA; 20. NewCom International, USA.
The Fast Twenty
The Fast Twenty ranks all teleport-operating companies based on year-over-year revenue growth in their most recent fiscal years. (For individual growth rates, see the WTA Web site.) Revenues of the Fast Twenty are nearly $4.8 billion. This year, the Fast Twenty includes the world’s two top satellite carriers – Intelsat and SES Global – whose acquisition-driven growth vaulted them into the top tier. Revenue growth averaged 70% among the Fast Twenty and ranged from a phenomenal 380% for Skyport International of Houston, Texas, USA to under 20%. From the fastest of the fast, the five first of the Fast Twenty of 2006 are: 1. Skyport International, USA; 2. NewCom International, USA; 3. Arqiva Satellite Media Solutions, UK; 4. Protel, USA; 5. Intelsat, Bermuda.
15 November 2006
New Zealands public television broadcaster and largest free-to-air broadcaster has replaced its studio production tape-based playout systems with a multichannel Omneon Spectrum media server system with 4 TB of shared storage. The Omneon installation allows TVNZ to replicate its earlier playout functionality while implementing file transfers of content from the facilitys edit suites.
For 20 years our operation relied on Sony Betacart machines playing out
analog Beta SP tapes into studios for live-to-air production and for ‘as
live’ record-to-tape production, but as we transitioned to a digital
operation, it was clearly time for a modern nonlinear solution, said Paul
Hedges, studio resources manager at TVNZ. Our new Omneon Spectrum servers ability to accept digital content improves quality, and the nonlinear workflow speeds up production time, minimizes error, and eliminates the issue of lost tapes.
The scope of the project at TVNZ included replacement of the original
playout functionality of the Betacarts, and the Auckland-based broadcaster took the opportunity to design and implement new ingest, production, and playout workflows enabled by the Omneon Spectrum server system.
The Omneon server system allows TVNZ staff to continue familiar playout
operations while working with digital content ingested via an Omneon
MediaController interface. The MediaController panel and software provide robust ingest functionality, giving users single-button control in driving a VTR and an input port on the Omneon server system to execute
frame-accurate dubs from VTR systems, crash records from tape or live
feeds, or scheduled records from satellite.
In the near future, digital content prepared by the production team will be transferred from Avid edit systems onto the Omneon server system for
playout. Two Hi Tech active CartBox controllers, which mimic the operation
of the familiar Betacart operators control panel, allow the studio team to cue and roll clips from the server, playing those clips out on specific
channels or assigning clips to programmed shots.
An exceptionally cost-effective and flexible media server designed for the
professional television industry, the Omneon Spectrum media server provides
a reliable and scalable infrastructure for broadcast playout and storage
applications. The server system is built on an open architecture that
allows it to support a broad variety of third-party applications for
control and transmission, as well as media management, archiving, and
collaborative production.
15 November 2006
Al Jazeera English, the first English language international news and current affairs channel headquartered in the Middle East, launches tomorrow Wednesday November 15th at 12.00 GMT to over 80 million cable and satellite households worldwide. Broadcast across the globe, Al Jazeera English will far exceed its original launch target of 40 million cable and satellite homes. It will be distributed across all continents throughout the world and in addition to cable and satellite will be available on broadband IPTV, ADSL, terrestrial and mobile phone platforms.
Major distributors of the channel include:
Canal Sat and TPS France
Kabel Deutschland Germany
Kabel BW Germany
HK Broadband Hong Kong
YES TV Israel
Sky Italia Italy
Astro Malaysia
Canal Digitaal The Netherlands
ORCUS New Zealand
Canal Digital Nordic Region
Cyfra+ and Cyfrowy Polsat Poland
Digital Satellite
(Sky Guide 514) United Kingdom
Globecast United States
Wadah Khanfar, the Director General of the Al Jazeera Network stated, Our launch figure is over double the original target we set for ourselves and is unprecedented in the broadcasting industry – no other international news channel has launched with such a high number of homes across the world. We will continue to build on this figure after launch and will be looking to expand our reach significantly. This is another reflection of the strength of the Al Jazeera brand.
Commercial Director of Al Jazeera English Language Channel, Lindsey Oliver said, I am absolutely delighted that our efforts have paid off and that Al Jazeera English will be launching with over 80 million cable and satellite households. We particularly appreciate the support that has been shown far and wide with distributors signing up to carry Al Jazeera English on the reputation of the Al Jazeera brand, our stated goals, our on air and off air teams, and without having seen the channel on air.
In addition to cable, ADSL, mobile platforms and satellite, Al Jazeera English will be available as a live stream to the one billion users of the Internet worldwide. Al Jazeeras English language website, aljazeera.net/english will be re-launched with the launch of the English language channel at 12.00 GMT tomorrow, to reflect the channels look and feel and editorial content. It will provide live streams of the channel together with RSS feeds, e-mail newsletters and interactive discussion boards. RealNetworks will provide Internet users with a free live stream of the channel. Users will also be able to access a high bandwidth stream via subscription from Real, and a high bandwidth pay-as-you-go service will also be available.
15 November 2006
Harris Corporation announced that Lok Sabha TV, a 24-hour television channel operated by the Indian Parliament, is on air with the Harris® NEXIO NewsNet newsroom system. The NewsNet newsroom system is installed in the Parliament House in New Delhi, India.
Lok Sabha TV covers a variety of parliamentary proceedings and broadcasts the live footage as a television channel. The NewsNet newsroom system installation includes NEXIO servers in a mirrored configuration; Velocity
non-linear editors; an X75 multiple-path converter/synchronizer; an
IconMaster SD/HD-configurable master control system; an IconStation system for on-air branding; a variety of 6800+ and NEO® processing modules; and Videotek® test and measurement equipment. The hardware is controlled by Harris® H-Class ADC Playout Automation.
Key factors in the selection of Harris equipment included reliability and upgradeability to accommodate the expanding needs of Lok Sabha TV as it
broadcasts the important proceedings of the Indian Parliament to homes
across the Indian sub-continent. BECIL (Broadcast Engineering Consultants
India Limited), the project management consultant for the Lok Sabha TV
setup, selected the technology and supervised the implementation. Systems
integrator Ideal Systems Asia Pacific Ltd. was responsible for configuring,
supplying, installing and commissioning the facility.
“We are pleased to have played a fundamental role in such a cutting-edge
broadcast project that was designed to bring the Indian Parliament closer to
the people,” said Tim Thorsteinson, president of the Harris Broadcast
Communications Division.
15 November 2006
Given the recent consolidation in the television and radio business intelligence environment, Mediaguide, a leading radio verification service, and Teletrax, the global television intelligence company, announced a commitment to jointly serve the needs of advertisers, their agencies and media buyers, broadcasters, and other content owners in tracking the use of their audio and video across more than 4,000 radio and television stations worldwide. Teletrax is a subsidiary of Medialink Worldwide Incorporated and a joint venture between Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands and Medialink.
,p>In todays fragmented media landscape, many clients require cross-media solutions, said Andy Nobbs, president of Teletrax. We believe that Teletrax and Mediaguide provide best-of-breed media solutions in an extraordinarily complementary way. Teletrax now covers more than 180 U.S. television markets, all major terrestrial, cable and satellite networks, and the major broadcasters of more than 50 nations across the globe.
Mediaguide currently provides advertising intelligence on more than 2,600 radio stations nationwide, stated Steve Lubin, chief executive officer of Mediaguide. We are excited to jointly offer the media industry an unprecedented breadth of broadcast information.
While each company will continue to provide its unique services to its respective client base, the commitment announced today provides for a coordinated client experience. The commitment announced today will enable both Teletrax and Mediaguide to better reach clients seeking a cross-media solution through referrals to each others industry-leading service.
Using cutting-edge technologies, both companies provide world-class content management solutions to key sectors of the media industry. The patent-pending Mediaguide audio fingerprinting solution is used by performers, publishers and the recording, advertising, radio, and television industries. The proprietary, award-winning Teletrax video watermarking system is used by companies, including ABC Television Network, Fox Broadcasting Company, NBC News Channel, Reuters Television, and ITN Networks.
Paul Wright, vice president business development, Mediaguide, and Dennis OHara, U.S. East Coast Sales Manager, Teletrax, are responsible for coordinating cross-media client requests, inquiries and pricing. For more information, please contact Paul Wright at (610) 560-4119 or Dennis OHara at (212) 812-7176.
13 November 2006
Al Jazeera English, the 24-hour English-language news and current affairs channel announced today their team of news presenters based at their Doha headquarters ahead of their worldwide launch on 15th November 2006.
Al Jazeera Englishs Director of News and Programmes, Steve Clark has assembled a team of experienced presenters from diverse backgrounds: Mariam Nemazee formerly of Russia Today, So Rahman from Granada TV, Kamahl Santamaria formerly of Sky News Australia and Sami Zeidan previously of CNBC.*
They join the following presenters who were previously announced to the press: Jane Dutton who most recently worked as presenter/reporter on The Business of Development for CNBC Europe/US, David Foster who joined from Sky News, Shiulie Ghosh formerly of ITV News, Darren Jordon who was one of the main presenters at the BBC and Lauren Taylor former Economics Correspondent of ITV News.
