Inside Digital TV articles from March 2005

Inside Digital TV archives from March 2005

NDS CFO Details Global IDTV Strategy.(Internet protocol television )
March 2, 2005... NDS Group CFO Alexander Gersh believes telcos could find it hard to be successful in the TV business, particularly in markets where there is strong cable and satellite penetration. Gersh, who was giving his first major interview since replacing...

Top Up TV's Challenges, Goals For 2005.
March 2, 2005... Ever since it launched services, the merits of Top Up TV have been the subject of much debate. The service, which offers an additional 10 channels for GBP7.99 (11.60 euros) a month on top of the Freeview channels, launched last year. Top Up TV...

TF1 Confident Regarding 2005 Ad-Revenue Growth.(Societe Nationale Television Francaise )(Brief Article)
March 2, 2005... French broadcasting giant TF1 expects advertising revenues to remain strong in 2005 despite a slow start to the year. The company, which runs the TF1 channel and a number of theme channels, saw its total revenues reach 2.86 billion euros, a...

How Microsoft Plans To Be A 'First-Class Player' In The Digital Media 'Ecosystem'.(Erik Huggers)(Interview)
March 2, 2005... Microsoft wants to be a major player in digital media. It is already teaming up with players such as TiVo and MTV Networks in the US, as the company aims to play a major role in the video space, whether through portable media centres or via the...

TV Piracy: A Very Real Threat.
March 2, 2005... According to a new report by UK consultancy Envisional, TV piracy is fast becoming a major issue, being compared with Napster and the music industry. Such is the technology that a new episode of a popular series aired in the US can be ready to...

Mixed Dynamics - A Look At Germany's 2005 DTV Market.(digital television )
March 2, 2005... By Dr. Bertold Heil Comparing German digital television (DTV) markets at the beginning of 2004 to the beginning of 2005 indicates the applicability of the rule that nothing is as constant as change. In potential high-growth markets like...

Fremantle Subs Ready For 'The X-Factor' Music.
March 2, 2005... "The X Factor" is a show during which music hopefuls perform in front of celebrity judges, much like "American Idol" in the United States. FremantleMedia Licensing Worldwide (FLW), which had one of the interactive successes of 2004 with "The X...

IPTV Business Model Analysis PCCW Exec Warns Telcos About VoD.(Internet protocol television, video-on-demand, Pacific Century CyberWorks Ltd., Paul Berriman)(Interview)
March 16, 2005... Offering Video-on-Demand (VoD) services may not be the way to go for telcos in the IPTV space, according to Paul Berriman, head of strategic market development at PCCW, a leading telco in Hong Kong. PCCW is one of the most advanced telcos in...

Market Focus: Portugal Will Sonaecom Emerge As Pay-TV Threat To TV Cabo?
March 16, 2005... New digital pay-TV services and a possible TV-over-DSL offering are likely to be the highlights in the Portuguese pay-TV market this year. TV Cabo, which is the main pay-TV operator in Portugal, announced it had more than 1.5 million pay-TV...

Research Update: DSL Ready To Smash The 100-Million Barrier.(digital subscriber lines)(Brief Article)
March 16, 2005... There now are almost 100 million DSL lines worldwide, according to the latest findings from UK research company Point Topic. In 2004, more than 35 million DSL lines were added. With TV-over-DSL becoming a reality in many markets worldwide, the...

Country Study: Austria MHP Apps Will Define DTT Success.(Multimedia Home Platform)(Digital Terrestrial Television)
March 16, 2005... Multimedia Home Platform (MHP) applications and portability are likely to be key selling points for DTT in Austria, especially as the platform will be unable to compete against basic cable and satellite pay-TV packages on content alone....

SBS CEO Seeks Polish, Turkish Opportunities.
March 16, 2005... SBS Broadcasting could be targeting potential acquisitions in Poland and Turkey as it looks to boost its position in central and eastern Europe still further. The company recently announced it had increased it's stake in Romanian TV company...

Executive Q&A: CEO Says Digital Content Key For Poland's Canal+ Cyfrowy.(Interview)
March 16, 2005... Canal+ Cyfrowy is a mjor pay-TV operator in Poland, one of Europe's fastest growing markets for pay-TV. It operates the Cyfra+ digital DTH platform and, in 2004, it added around 70,000 subscribers, which represented an 11-percent increase and a...

Company To Watch: IP TV Compression Startup Takes On The Competition.
March 16, 2005... With just $15 million in venture capital in hand so far - including a $7 million mezzanine round in December 2004 when it unveiled its first product - two-year-old Modulus Video is about to take on the mighty Microsoft and the venerable...

Company Profile: Thomson Tackles PVRs, HDTV, DTT And More.
March 30, 2005... Set-top box (STB) manufacturer Thomson is on a roll. BSkyB, the leading satellite pay-TV operator in Europe, recently disclosed that Thomson would be supplying its High-Definition Television (HDTV) STBs when it launches its HD service in...

UK Trade Group Urges More IDTV Focus.
March 30, 2005... Intellect, the trade association for the UK IT, telecoms and electronics industries, continues its attack on the BBC and believes consumers are not getting the right information in terms of digital purchasing decisions. With the majority of...

DTT Update: Bavaria Prepares For Analogue Switch-Off.(Digital terrestrial television)
March 30, 2005... Digital terrestrial television (DTT) services are set to be launched in Nuremburg and Munich in Bavaria at the end of May. There will be 24 channels available to users -- a mix of public and private broadcast channels as well as two...

Technology Focus: ICTV CEO Expects IPTV Revenues To Match Cable Soon.
March 30, 2005... ICTV CEO Michael McGrail believes company could be generating the same levels of revenues from IPTV as it does from cable in as few as two years. The company provides an enabling infrastructure for the delivery of new television services to...

Executive Q&A: Chunghwa Chairman Predicts Explosive IPTV Growth.(Tan Ho-Chen, Chunghwa Telecom)(Interview)
March 30, 2005... Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) not only is the leading telco in Taiwan and a key player throughout the communications landscape, it is one of the largest telcos in Asia, providing telephony and broadband. It is also one of the most progressive...

COMCOR Ready For Russian Network Expansion.(COMCOR-TV)
March 30, 2005... COMCOR-TV, the Russian pay-TV operator, could break the 100,000- subscriber barrier this year. While pay-TV is still in its infancy in Russia, the demand for services is likely to grow. COMCOR-TV provides services over modern interactive...

Satellite Technology Case Study: Otrum Ready To Tackle Hotel Industry.(Fredd Causevic)(Interview)
March 30, 2005... Satellite technology is likely to play a key role in enabling hotel chains to provide better television services to consumers. Otrum, a leading supplier of interactive TV solutions to such hotel chains as Holiday Inn, Radisson, Hilton etc,...