9 June 2003
A spokesman for TV Marti, the US government-funded television channel beaming to Cuba, confirmed on 21st May that for the first time the United States broadcast a clandestine television signal to Cuba by way of the commercial network DirecTV-Latin America. The signal was broadcast on 20 May for four hours, coinciding with the 101st anniversary of Cuba’s independence.
“Of course” we broadcast to Cuba by way of DirecTV-Latin America, said the spokeswoman for TV Marti, the station that broadcasts US programmes to the island, and whose signal is considered by the Cuban Government as a violation of the country’s sovereignty.
DirecTV-Latin America confirmed the broadcast but said that it was only “testing” the TV Marti signal. The spokeswoman also explained that “the station knows nothing about any DirecTV equipment in Cuba. Neither DirecTV-Latin America nor DirectTV in the United States have business dealings with Cuba.”
Estimates indicate that in Havana there are approximately 20,000 satellite antennae or dishes, which illegally receive signals from DirecTV and Dishnet, the leading satellite television networks in the United States.
9 June 2003
Following a period of extensive field trials, IMP Electronics formally launched their new Hummingbird monitors at the Production Show in London at the end of May.
The new Hummingbird range of Sunlight-Viewable LCD monitors include the most advanced optical and reflective techniques currently available to provide a unique range of LCD monitors that retain high brightness, colour and contrast characteristics, even in direct sunlight conditions.
The Hummingbird range includes 6.4″ 10.4″ and 15″ panels with 18″ and 21″ versions already in development. Hummingbirds accept all the standard video and data formats, making them easy to use with all types of existing video equipment.
Hummingbirds come in a variety of finishes and fixings, including a self contained version in a rugged case that includes about 6 hours of battery power.
Gill Ashby, Managing Director of IMP said, “The amount of interest we received at the show exceeded even our ‘best case’ expectations and we have some excellent leads to follow-up. Once our visitors realised exactly how we modify the basic panels, they could easily see why IMP Hummingbirds set a new standard for sunlight viewable LCDs.”
9 June 2003
EuroNews, the pan-European news channel, and Helsinki Television (HTV) – the leading Finnish cable operator with access to over 50% of homes in the Helsinki area – have concluded an agreement for the retransmission of the channel’s multilingual service in HTV’s digital offer.
Philippe Cayla, President of EuroNews said: “We have had strong links with this country since the launch of the channel in 1993. Over the last year EuroNews increased its cable and satellite distribution by 28% compared to 2001, and we are convinced that HTV’s digital offer is a good opportunity for EuroNews to take its place as a multilingual bouquet of programmes targeting various linguistic groups.”
Sirpa Hovi, Channel Manager of HTV said: “We are delighted to have added EuroNews to our channel line-up for the first time. The seven audio options are of special value to our viewers and have created particular interest amongst the subscribers of “Rossija” (Russian language package) and “Centro” (French, German, Italian and Spanish channels). Subscribers to these packages are now able to enjoy high quality news and current affairs programming in their native language or in a language they are studying or otherwise interested in.”
9 June 2003
The international TV service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, ABC Asia Pacific Television has been launched on cable in Hong Kong as part of the premium package of the region’s largest cable operator, Hong Kong Cable Television Limited.
9 June 2003
The Japanese Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Post and Telecommunications says in a draft report that the country’s broadband market will grow five-fold over the coming five years. That puts the number of broadband users up to 60 million in 2007 – up from around 20 million currently – and make the market worth some Yen10.2 trillion.
9 June 2003
A weekly 15-minute programme in English from Radio Guangdong is being broadcast by AIB-member World Radio Network.
The radio station is based in Guangzhou, the capital of the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, which borders Hong Kong and Macao. It is one of Chinas the leading media groups with eight radio channels broadcasting to a potential audience of 100 million people, two newspapers, one of Chinas top advertising company and Pacific Audio & Visual Company, one of the countrys leading audio-visual companies.
