16 June 2005
As part of its strategy to expand the geographic reach of its programming, China Central Television (CCTV) has signed a multi-year expansion agreement with PanAmSat for the distribution of its premium programming to Western Africa.
“As PanAmSat has expanded its global services, we have been able to utilise the greater power and coverage for the efficient and economical distribution of our global programming,” said He Zong Jiu, vice-president, CCTV.
PanAmSat currently provides full-time programme distribution services for CCTV via the Company’s PAS-1R Atlantic Ocean Region satellite, PAS-8 Pacific Ocean Region satellite, PAS-9 Atlantic Ocean Region satellite and PAS-10 Indian Ocean Region satellites. PanAmSat also provides CCTV with capacity on its Galaxy 3C satellite for direct-to-home (DTH) services in the United States.
This new agreement is for capacity on the Ku-band payload of the PAS-1R satellite. CCTV has been a PanAmSat customer since the launch of the company’s PAS-2 satellite in 1994.
16 June 2005
On 7 June, two journalists working for the German public broadcasters Amharic programme had their work permits withdrawn. The reason given by the government in Addis Abeba was imprecise reporting.
Deutsche Welles director of programmes, Joachim Lenz, stated that he saw this act as a clear infringement of the freedom of speech and the press, and as such not acceptable. He talked about massive intimidation of our colleagues in contradiction to all democratic rules.
16 June 2005
SysMedia, specialist in subtitling solutions and content management and production systems for teletext and interactive TV, has been awarded the contract to supply TVNZ New Zealands public service broadcaster with PLASMA Magenta, SysMedias multi-platform production solution for teletext and interactive TV. The sale was handled by SysMedias New Zealand distributor, Magna Systems, who is also involved in the project management and installation.
Colin Prior, Business Development Director at SysMedia explained, We are delighted that TVNZ have again selected SysMedia as a supplier of key technology (they installed our WinCAPS subtitling solution recently which went live in January of this year). With a significant teletext audience throughout New Zealand, the PLASMA Magenta system will provide TVNZ with a flexible and extensible platform for many years.
10 June 2005
OMNIBUS SYSTEMS is enhancing its support services to meet the needs of a growing customer base for the company’s broadcast automation and content management technologies. Service teams in key regions of North America, Europe, and Asia are being expanded through new hires and office openings, and the company is launching a new interactive online service designed to support clients worldwide.
In addition to an increase in technical support staff at the company’s European support headquarters in the U.K., OmniBus’ North American and Asian support operations have expanded with the addition of new project engineers, technical support staff, and regional offices in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, and Singapore.
Just appointed to lead the North American support team is Brian Chavez, who transitions from the role of sales manager to take the position of director in customer support and operations. With 18 years’ experience in the broadcast industry, Chavez has an extensive background in customer support, project management, sales, and finance with Novus Development, Encoda Systems, Geocast Network Systems, and several major market television and radio stations. Brian will also retain responsibility for maintaining key account relationships.
Beyond office and staff expansion, OmniBus has invested in new support
technologies with the launch of a completely redesigned Web site that delivers new services to broadcasting and cable customers and offers advanced interactive features designed to broaden the company’s customer support services. Available to
all customers who participate in the Omni Care warranty program, the site
enables OmniBus customers anywhere in the world to log and update calls,
review the progress made in resolving issues, talk to one another about
OmniBus technology, and have access to an extensive knowledge base across
an Internet connection, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
The site features quick and easy access to software and hardware
datasheets, reference guides, and other technical information pertaining to all released OmniBus products. New and enhanced features include direct
access to all folders within OmniBus’ FTP area, a support forum, a “Notice
Board” with the very latest technical announcements, and the facility for
multiple email addresses that will notify customers of software releases or information updates.
“OmniBus is committed to providing truly unrivalled support services to
broadcasting and cable operations around the world through the right
combination of personnel and the latest technologies,” said Mike Oldham, CEO of OmniBus. “We’re confident that these new efforts will make it even easier for our customers to access valuable product information and the depth of expertise available 24/7 through our very experienced technical support staff.”
OmniBus also offers an extensive consultancy program that addresses
training requirements, changes in workflow practices, skills development, and technology recommendations. A dedicated team of support staff and engineers are on permanent call to answer questions and resolve any issues that may arise at OmniBus installations.
OmniBus customers can access the support website via the password-protected area of the main OmniBus website (www.omnibus.tv) or directly via http://support.omnibus.co.uk.
10 June 2005
Teletrax, the first and only global digital video monitoring and media asset management service, has increased its coverage to 1,000 television channels worldwide, it was announced today at Broadcast magazines conference on content management held at the Waldorf Hilton in London. Teletrax is a subsidiary of Medialink Worldwide Incorporated, a global leader in providing media services to corporations and organizations seeking to communicate their news to the public.
With Teletrax, content owners such as motion picture studios, TV networks, syndicators, news organizations, and advertisers can unlock greater value from their video assets. Content tracked by Teletrax includes news segments, TV show promotions, commercials, and entertainment programming. In the United States alone, several units of NBC Universal and The Walt Disney Company have already adopted Teletrax for the management of media assets and television rights.
This expansion in global coverage further solidifies Teletraxs reputation as the industry standard for the monitoring and reporting of all content that is broadcast on terrestrial, cable and satellite television around the world, said Andy Nobbs, managing director of Teletrax and conference speaker in a panel discussion about media asset protection. Teletraxs unmatched delivery of broadcast intelligence captured from 1,000 channels in 50 countries worldwide is vital to significant video content owners in the entertainment, news, and advertising industries.
Launched in 2002 as a service developed by a joint venture between Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands and Medialink, Teletraxs patented technology embeds an imperceptible and indelible digital watermark into video whenever it is edited, transmitted, broadcast or duplicated.
A global network of decoders or detectors, then captures all occurrences of the embedded video being transmitted via satellite, cable or terrestrially and generates tracking reports for the content owners. Reports of individual broadcast airings are delivered online in near real-time to each clients custom-designed portal or in data file transfers. Each clients broadcast activity is updated dynamically, 24 hours a day, enabling clients to respond immediately to reported results such as changes in end-user preferences or detections of unauthorized use.
Teletrax now maintains a proprietary network of detectors that monitor the television broadcasts of 1,000 channels worldwide. Its U.S. footprint includes more than 800 television stations and cable channels in more than the top 100 markets in the United States, representing more than 85% of all U.S. television households. Its international network monitors nearly 200 channels being broadcast from 50 nations and is comprised of 12 monitoring stations in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, South and Central America, and Canada.
A growing list of leading news, entertainment and media organizations that have contracted with Teletrax to track broadcast video content includes: The NBC Agency, BBC, Buena Vista Television, ABC Television Network, Tribune Entertainment, NBC Universal Television Distribution, NBC News Channel, Reuters Television, Medialink and Australian-based Media Review International. A number of other entertainment, news and media companies are also currently testing the Teletrax service.
2 June 2005
The AIB will be attending Broadcast Asia 2005, taking place in Singapore 13-17 June.
Represented by Anver Anderson, Director of Business, the AIB has stand number 1E4-03.
Visitors to the event will be able to collect material about the AIB, including the latest edition of the Association’s quarterly magazine, The Channel together with information from many of the AIB’s global members.
