20 October 2003
Broadcasters from the Asia-Pacific region and Europe will step up the exchange of information on digital terrestrial broadcasting, to help cross the digital divide. The decision came at the 40th General Assembly of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union, the ABU, in Istanbul.
The assembly unanimously adopted a resolution that the ABU and the EBU should work together to exchange technical information on DTT, and promote the exchange of programme content produced in digital formats, as well as information to promote and assist in the production of such content.
ABU President Katsuji Ebisawa described the migration from analogue to digital television as “an irreversible global trend” that, once in place in a proper context would bring many benefits.
18 October 2003
On October 26, 2003, US-based AIB member the National Association of Shortwave Broadcasters (NASB) will begin a 23-week series of special joint broadcasts produced by the organisation’s member and associate member stations. This is the first time in the NASB’s history that is has produced joint broadcasts by its members. And equally important, this series of broadcasts will be transmitted in the DRM (Digital Radio Mondiale) mode, as well as in traditional analogue form.
The broadcasts, titled “Voice of the NASB,” will be transmitted in the DRM mode each Sunday at 1330-1400 UTC on 9785 kHz, beamed primarily to Europe from the facilities of AIB member VT Merlin Communications in Rampisham, England. Each programme will also be broadcast on UTC Sunday at 0330-0400 on 7385 kHz, primarily to North America via WRMI in Miami, Florida. The broadcasts will run from October 26, 2003 through March 28, 2004. A special NASB QSL card will be issued for reception reports on these transmissions, both digital and analogue. Reports should be sent to the Voice of the NASB, P.O. Box 526852, Miami, Florida 33152 USA.
NASB, founded in 1990, has been a member of DRM since 1999 — one year after the DRM Consortium was launched. DRM officially inaugurated regular digital broadcasts on June 16, 2003. Since then, over 25 stations in various countries have broadcast programs in DRM. NASB has helped promote DRM to its members and around the world, helping coordinate DRM demonstrations at trade shows, shortwave exhibitions and the World Radiocommunication Conference 2003 in Geneva. NASB stations operate shortwave transmitters throughout the United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and Saipan. NASB broadcasters cover every continent with more than 5000 programme hours per week, according to a BBC study.
Jeff White, NASB President, commented: “We are very pleased to be a member of DRM, and very pleased to be in the forefront of digital shortwave broadcasting. While we believe that it is important to continue broadcasting in analogue form — especially to certain parts of the world — it is impossible not to see the tremendous advantages that DRM offers shortwave broadcasters and listeners. DRM-capable receivers are already on the marketplace, and the number of models is rapidly increasing, while the prices are rapidly decreasing. And with dozens of organisations already broadcasting in DRM, listeners will have more and more variety of programming to tune into.”
17 October 2003
RealNetworks, Inc., has launched BBC News on RealOne – a desktop news service that offers a unique package of high quality live and on-demand video designed for the needs of broadband users around the world.
The BBC News on RealOne service has been specifically designed for the desktop, and is available only through the RealOne Player, to subscribers of the RealOne SuperPass service or the stand-alone BBC News on RealOne service.
While UK users can receive BBC News on broadband free of charge through the main broadband ISPs, this new service is designed to satisfy international demand, without placing a burden on the UK license fee payer.
The service, fully funded and commissioned by BBC Worldwide from BBC News, is produced around the clock by a team of specialist broadband journalists, selecting global news stories of interest to international audiences. They draw on BBC News’ worldwide network of correspondents in more than 40 international bureaux.
17 October 2003
Rupert Murdoch, aged 72, has been running international media group The News Corporation for 50 years (starting out as single-newspaper company News Ltd). At the groups annual meeting in Adelaide he forecast another year of record profits,
News Corp (which includes Fox News, Fox Sports, Sky and Star TV) saw its operating income increase by 36% in the past year, and Mr Murdoch predicts average earnings growth of 20 per cent in the coming years. He expects pay-television Sky Italia, in which News Corp holds 80%, to break even in 18 months and then achieve very steep growth.
Asked whether his son James would be appointed CEO at the UKs BSkyB, in which News Corp has a 35.4% stake, and of which Rupert Murdoch is chairman, Mr Murdoch said he was confident the best candidate will be appointed.
Although advertising bookings for all media in the United States for the next 12 months are just sensational, News Corps US television stations are actually contributing very little.
Does Rupert Murdoch have any plans for retirement? I will be carried out, he quipped.
15 October 2003
Demonstrating the ever-increasing opportunities that the Internet provides, Europe’s largest Internet provider T-Online has secured deals for top Hollywood and German films that will allow it to show movies over the Internet.
T-Online, a division of Deutsche Telekom, gains access to the library and new movies of Hollywoods Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and to German blockbusters from Constantin Film. “This landmark agreement speaks to the promising future of video-on-demand worldwide,” Jim Griffiths, President of MGM Worldwide Television Distribution, said in a statement.
T-Online’s rival Tiscali has been offering weekly movie webcasts for the past year. But T-Online’s broadband project T-Online Vision on TV, to be launched by the end of the year, will connect a regular TV set through a set-top box to the Internet so that the movies can be watched on a regular screen.
International broadcasters must ensure that they find equal facilities for their products
15 October 2003
In a move that will eventually impact on international broadcasting, Microsoft and Vodafone are joining forces to extend Web services standards to mobile devices. This should make it easier for providers of web broadcasting to penetrate the huge and lucrative mobile network services market.
The initiative is targeted primarily at developers. Microsoft-Vodafone aim to increase the number of developers, to widen their markets, and to make development easier. This is an opportunity for broadcasters to find ways of extending their platforms to encompass mobile phone services worldwide.
