Inside Digital TV articles from July 2002

Inside Digital TV archives from July 2002

DTT Kite Mark: MHEG Mandatory?(Brief Article)
July 10, 2002... ITC Says Multiplex Operators Should Specify Receiver Requirements Manufacturers of UK DTT receivers are in the future likely to have to include MHEG-5 capability if they are to be "approved" by the BBC, although they are unlikely to be...

Liberate Technologies Revises Profitability Date.(Brief Article)
July 10, 2002... Mark Holmes senior editor It now appears Liberate Technologies may not reach profitability until the end of 2003. The set-top box software maker has had a difficult quarter due to the capital expenditure challenges facing cable players...

New I-Ad Solution Promises Reduced Costs.(interactive software from Caiman Technologies, Di3)(Brief Article)
July 10, 2002... Barry Flynn Editor A new solution aimed at allowing advertisers to create interactive TV commercials for multiple platforms has been created by a partnership between interactive TV application specialists Caiman Technologies and Di3 (a...

Casema CEO Backs Cable Consolidation.(Henk de Goede)(Brief Article)
July 10, 2002... Mark Holmes senior editor Casema CEO, Henk de Goede believes consolidation is a "necessity" in the Dutch cable market in order for the operators to bring more sophisticated content to customers. de Goede exclusively told Inside Digital TV:...

TV Cabo Coy About Interactive Progress.(issues report on its interactive digital cable platform, TV Cabo Interactiva)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
July 10, 2002... Chris Dziadul Contributing Editor Portugal's TV Cabo has issued a short progress report on its pioneering interactive digital cable platform TV Cabo Interactiva after one year of operation. Although it includes detailed information on the...

Portugal Continues To Show Digital Promise.(Brief Article)(Editorial)(Statistical Data Included)
July 10, 2002... Chris Dziadul Contributing Editor The roll-out of digital services in Portugal has so far been no less impressive than in other parts of Western Europe, and given current trends they are likely to be received by all its 1.135 million cable...

Two Way TV Cuts Tech Deal With NTL.(Brief Article)(Editorial)
July 10, 2002... Barry Flynn Editor & Mark Holmes Senior Editor Following a similar deal with UK cable MSO Telewest, Two Way TV's Ark technologies are now to be integrated into NTL's network-wide Liberate 1.2 upgrade, which will allow the cable operator to...

Can Telenor Strengthen Swedish Cable Position?(Brief Article)
July 10, 2002... Mark Holmes Senior Editor Telia, the Swedish incumbent telco, may have to sell off its cable TV operation, Com hem, as part of the deal to help clinch its merger with Finnish incumbent telco Sonera. The potential sale would be nothing new...

The Amazing ITC Maze: Deciphering DTT Bids.(criteria for licensing)(Brief Article)
July 10, 2002... Barry Flynn dissects the ITC's press release on the winning UK DTT bid The statutory criteria according to which the ITC is required to judge the bidders' applications are pretty tightly defined: While there is a general injunction that...

Briefly.(industry news)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
July 10, 2002... * UK digital receiver manufacturer Pace Micro Technology's preliminary set of financial results for the year ended June 1, 2002, show that its profits before tax, amortisation of goodwill and exceptional items fell to GBP13.1 million [20.5...

UKTV Offers Its Own EPG.(Brief Article)
July 24, 2002... Barry Flynn Editor Flextech/BBC Worldwide joint venture UKTV has launched its own EPG on the Sky Digital platform, covering its network of seven channels. David Dorans, general manager and director of new media at UKTV, said the...

Kofler Breathes New Life Into Premiere.(Georg, Kofler, Premiere World)(Brief Article)
July 24, 2002... Mark Holmes Senior Editor The prospects for beleaguered German pay-TV operator Premiere World may be on the up. Premiere CEO Georg Kofler has made an impressive start in getting to grips with cutting costs, negotiating programming rights...

Pompadur Named Stream CEO.(Martin Pompadur)(Brief Article)
July 24, 2002... Mark Holmes Senior Editor Martin Pompadur, News Corp executive vice president has become CEO of Italian number two satellite pay-TV operator, Stream. Significantly, Telecom Italia CEO Enrico Bondi has become chairman, hinting that...

Microsoft Unveils PCTV.(Windows XP Media Center Edition)(Brief Article)
July 24, 2002... Barry Flynn Editor Microsoft has announced that its new TV software for PCs, previewed in January under the code-name "Freestyle" - will now only be available bundled with special PCs containing a built-in TV tuner. Previously, the...

TF1 Extends Pay-TV Influence In France.(Societe Nationale Television Francaise 1, La Television Par Satellite)(Brief Article)
July 24, 2002... Mark Holmes Senior Editor French broadcasting giant TF1 now has a 66 per cent stake in French satellite pay-TV player TPS. TF1 and fellow shareholder M6 have acquired the 25 per cent stake of fellow shareholder Suez. M6 now has a 34 per...

SMS Eclipses Sky Remote.(use of remote controls to vote on television programs)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
July 24, 2002... Barry Flynn Editor It looks as though this summer the Sky Digital remote control will account for a lower proportion of the voting for evictions from the Big Brother household than a year ago, according to statistics released recently by...

Norway Lags Behind Other Nordic Countries In DTT.(digital terrestrial television)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
July 24, 2002... Chris Dziadul Contributing Editor Norway boasts a dynamic non-terrestrial television sector and has been no laggard in the transition from analogue to digital broadcasting. Indeed, according to Strategy Analytics total digital TV...

Pace Hopes To Reverse Profit Warning Trend.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
July 24, 2002... Mark Holmes Senior Editor Pace Micro Technology is hoping that its most recent profit warning, its fifth in the past 12 months, will be its last for the foreseeable future. The STB manufacturer has consistently revised its forecasts...

DT Looks To Push Cable Assets Sale.(Deutsche Telekom)(Brief Article)
July 24, 2002... Chris Dziadul Contributing Editor The resignation of Deutsche Telekom's chief executive Ron Sommer has fuelled speculation that the telco may finally be about to dispose of its remaining cable assets. Sommer, who had been in his post...

Controlling The Remote Via Remote Control.(digital media content protection)(Brief Article)(Column)
July 24, 2002... Barry Flynn ponders new measures aimed at controlling consumption of digital media content. I've just returned from a week in New York, where one of the main topics of conversation turned out to be copyright protection of digital content....

Briefly.(includes multiple records)
July 24, 2002... * Japan's telecommunications minister has said that it will cost the nation around Y180 billion (1.53 billion euros), over twice the amount previously estimated, to prevent possible interference between analogue TV signals and new digital...