Transvision deploys Tektronix’s Video Quality Monitoring solution

Indonesia’s pay-TV operator, Transvision, has struck a deal with Tektronix, US-based broadcast video solutions provider, to install Sentry Video Quality Monitor solution which helps Transvision to monitor, analyse and record content flawlessly.

The solution helps to detect if content is compliant to compression techniques and transmissions. Sentry’s advanced quality of experience (QoE) capability analyses the MPEG packets and checks for structural errors causing picture and audio defects.

Sentry’s perceptual video quality (PVQ) capability uses advanced evaluation algorithms based on eMOS (effective mean opinion scores) to allow Transvision to be aware of the picture quality for all 148 channels of programming and can detect QoE issues such as frozen video, tiling/macro-blocking, audio disruptions and other defects due to compression issues.

“Managing information monitoring on over a hundred channels is challenging for traditional content monitoring solutions,” said Agung DM Sahidi, (Operation Director) at Transvision. “The Tektronix Sentry solution provides excellent monitoring and management features to meet these challenges, thus helping us meet the goal of bringing the best video experiences to our subscribers.”

SCTV is directed to stop analogue signals in Hanoi

Hanoi Department of Information and Communications has directed Saigon Tourist Cable Television (SCTV), cable television provider in Vietnam, to stop its analogue signals on Hanoi’s telecom network by August 1 in certain districts in the capital city, Hanoi – as SCTV is offering analogue services without approval and for breaching its contract with Broadcasting and Television Service Company (BTS).

As per the contract signed with BTS in 2011, SCTC had to offer its paid digital TV services in Hoang Mai, Ha Dong and Thanh Oai districts. Later, in March 2014, SCTV expanded its services to eight other districts. And according to reports, SCTV is offering analogue services in eight districts.

Also, the company’s contracts in Hoang Mai, Ha Dong and Thanh Oai districts include both analogue and digital cable TV services, which violates its contract with BTS and its granted permit. SCTV is also likely to be charged with an administrative fine.

World Cup breaks TV viewing records around the world

As the group stages in Brazil have come to an end, TV broadcasters are reflecting on an outstanding set of results from the first two weeks of the FIFA World Cup 2014.

The group matches have set new TV records in a number of markets, from Belgium to the US. Sales of television advertising and subscriptions have also benefitted.

For the first time, there is also evidence of “second screen” applications growing in popularity. 12.2 million tweets were sent during Brazil’s win over Croatia and several thousand viewers are watching the games on broadcasters’ streaming services. But the real story around ‘social media’ has been the growth in public viewing, reinforcing the role of mass audience television as the original “social” media.

The audited global figures will not be known for some time but broadcasters are already optimistic that the viewing numbers for the final on 13 July may approach or even surpass the 909 million who watched the Spain v Netherlands final in 2010.

A total of 11.5 million Dutch viewers (88.4%) watched their national team’s victory over Chili: 10.2 million at home and 1.3 million in public places.

A record number of 42.9 million Brazilians tuned in to see their team’s win over Croatia. 81.3% of Croatians watched the game (1.5 million).

Brazil-Croatia was also the most watched opening match in at least 12 years in the UK, with 11.2 million UK viewers (records going back to 2002).

The match Belgium – South Korea was the most watched football game in the history of Belgian television, reaching 3 million Flemish fans (82.8% of TV viewers) and 2.1 million of French-speaking Belgians (82.1%).

Viewing records were reported also in the UK: a peak of 20 million (71% share) watched England v Uruguay, the highest peak audience on any channel since the 2012 London Olympics.

27.3 million (84.2%) viewers in Germany tuned in to watch Germany defeat the US.

15.3 million Italians (82%) watched the game between England and Italy.

Greek viewership peaked at 81.3% audience share for Greece’s win over Ivory Coast.

68.5% of Spanish viewers (11.2 million) caught the game in which their national team was defeated by Holland.

The French victory over Honduras scored 56.3% audience share in France or 15.9 million viewers, amongst whom 1 million saw the game on digital platforms

Even in countries such as Sweden, where the national team didn’t qualify, the World Cup gathered up to 2.64 Mio viewers (48% audience share) for the game of Brazil against Mexico, also with impressive figures online, TV4 reporting up to 130 077 streams on their platform for the game of Spain against Chile.

The US’s first game drew more than 11 million viewers – the highest-rated football match ever shown on ESPN – and nearly 5 million on a Spanish-language network.

Even an 8 am broadcast of Australia’s match against Chile didn’t discourage 2.3 million Australians from watching the game.

France: DTT goes down, while IPTV remains stable

Digital terrestrial reception is still dominant in France, but the number of people using DTT is slowly going down, according to media authority CSA.

The CSA has just published the figures over 2013.

At the end of 2013, 57.9% of viewers were watching DTT (-1.8%) and for 33.3% of viewers DTT was the only means of reception (down 0.5%).

49.1% of viewers are watching via IPTV or cable (+0.3%). Satellite DTH reception was slightly up (+0.2). 82.8% of viewers now have an HD set.

In terms of reception equipment, 97.6% of viewers have a TV set, down 0.5%. More people are now using their computer to watch TV (78.8% of viewers, +1.1%), tablets (28.7%, +7.2%) or smartphones (55.9%, +4%).

LG Uplus rolls out VoD, IPTV services on LTE platform

South Korean telecommunications operator, LG Uplus, has launched a Video-on-Demand (VoD) movie streaming service, UflixMovie; a mobile IPTV service, Uplus HDTVNew; and a personal broadcasting platform, Uplus tvG, on its advanced Long Term Evolution (LTE) network platform – to aggressively tap and lead the video LTE era.

LG’s UflixMovie will provide access to over 12,000 video contents of films, dramas and overseas TV series at the flat cost of KRW 7,000 (USD 6.86) per month. And the company plans to expand content to 13,000 within this year and subscribers of other carriers are also provided access to this service.

In its mobile IPTV service, Uplus HDTV, LG has embedded the ‘Time Machine’ functionality that enables users to save programs that they are watching in real time for two hours and the ‘Slow Motion’ function which allows users to watch important scenes at 0.5 time speed. With Uplus tvG, users can broadcast in real time through the broadband LTE network.

LG Uplus is offering a broadband LTE-A plan at the cost of KRW 89,900 (USD 88.1) per month for subscribers to avail the various video services.

Local TV in decline in Germany

The number of commercial local and regional TV channels has considerably decreased in Germany last year.

In total, there have been only 232 such services throughout Germany at the beginning of 2014 while one year ago the figure amounted to 264 channels. The development is reported by the media authorities in their yearbook 2013/2014published today.

The exceptions are larger broadcasters serving not just specific regions, but whole federal states which maintained their variety with a total of 19 channels.

Jürgen Brautmeier, head of the media authorities’ commission, called for stronger efforts to improve the situation on the local front: “Local television is an important factor of local variety, therefore public funds are required. Only then, it can survive the competition in the digital world.”

Sony buys True Movies Group

Sony Pictures Television (SPT) is to purchase CSC Media Group, the company behind 16 UK channel brands including Chart Show TV, Tiny Pop and True Movies.

SPT has reached agreement with private equity firm Veronis Suhler Stevenson, majority shareholders in the CSC Media Group, with SPT acquiring 100 percent of the company.

“The acquisition of CSC further demonstrates our commitment to the UK market and our intent to continue to grow our tremendously successful global portfolio of networks,” said Andy Kaplan, president of worldwide networks for Sony Pictures Television. “These new channels perfectly complement our current offerings, allowing us to provide viewers with a variety of entertainment choices and advertisers with greater reach and cross-channel opportunities.”

Chart Show TV has been around as a brand since 1986 when it launched on Channel 4. It became a 24/7 TV channel in 2002.

CSC’s other music channels are The Vault, Scuzz, Starz TV, BuzMuzik, Flava, Bliss and Chartshow Dance.

Remy Minute, CEO of CSC Media Group, said: ”CSC has grown from a small bouquet channel operator to become one of the leading multi-channel ad-supported TV networks in the UK. This combination with SPT allows us to accelerate our growth trajectory, both internationally and domestically.”

Morgan Callagy, Partner at Veronis Suhler Stevenson, stated: “Over the past seven years, we have presided over meaningful growth in the CSC business during a time of significant changes in the UK television industry. We are pleased to see that this unique business will now be in an ideal home for the next phase of its growth.”

SPT made its debut in the UK market in 2011 with Sony Entertainment Television. Prior to the acquisition, which will need regulatory approval, Sony had nine channel brands including two on terrestrial platform Freeview.

Google announces Android TV partners

Google is partnering with TP Vision (Philips), Sharp, Sony, Razer and Asus to to build Android TV into TV sets, set-top boxes and game consoles.

The company announced its news, as expected, at its annual developer conference in San Francisco.

A variety of devices, from smartphones to tablets to video game controllers, can be used to control Android TV.

Android TV can interface with both live and streaming TV. While watching live channels, viewers can use Android TV to access an EPG or scroll through channels. If they wish to access streaming apps instead, a Home button will take them back to a more traditional Android interface, where they can open a streaming programme or launch a search.

Android TV lets users broadcast content to their TV, as well as search a grid of popular content, apps, and games. Voice search and Google Knowledge Graph are also enabled for Android TV, which means people can just talk to the TV set and do a voice search for instant results.

Apps designed specifically for Android TV will arrive in the fall, alongside the latest version of the Android OS

In related news, Google also announced the addition of a new feature for Chromecast called Backdrop which can run feeds of photos, news, weather, or art while people are not using the device. The company said Chromecast is a huge success, being in the top five of electronic devices sold on Amazon.

One billion digital TV homes by year-end

There will be more than 1 billion digital TV households across 138 countries by end-2014, up by 130 million on 2013 and by 461 million from the 590 million recorded in 2010, according to a new report from Digital TV Research. The Digital TV World Household Databook estimates that digital cable TV has become the most popular platform, with 374 million subscribers expected by end-2014. Digital cable overtook analog cable in 2013 and analog terrestrial in 2014. The number of homes paying for IPTV will more than triple between 2010 and 2014.

Source: Digital TV Research

Global digital TV penetration will reach two-thirds of TV households by end-2014; up from 40.5% at end-2010. Digital TV penetration will range from 97.1% in North America down to 51.5% in Latin America.

Thirteen countries will have 100% digital TV penetration by end-2014, with a further 25 over 90%. However, penetration will be lower than 50% of TV households in 45 countries, with El Salvador the lowest (13%). Digital TV penetration will more than double in 68 countries between 2010 and end-2014.

Of the 461 million digital TV households to be added between 2010 and 2014, 292 million (nearly two-thirds of total additions) will be in the Asia Pacific region, bringing its total to 517 million.

Top 10 countries by digital TV households at end-2014 (million)

China    289.25
USA      114.63
India     96.44
Japan     42.18
Brazil    36.34
Germany   30.04
Russia    29.65
France    27.01
UK        26.33
Italy     24.93

Source: Digital TV Research

China became the largest digital TV household nation in 2010; more than doubling to 289 million digital TV homes (27.5% of the world’s total) by end-2014. The USA will retain second place, with third-placed India adding 59 million digital homes to take its total to 96 million by end-2014. Brazil will nearly quadruple its total to reach 36 million by end-2014. The top five countries account for 55% of the world’s digital TV households.

The number of pay TV households (analog and digital) will reach 886 million by end-2014, up from 715 million in 2010. The top five countries will account for nearly two-thirds of the total. China will add 63 million pay TV subs between 2010 and 2014, with India bringing in an extra 31 million and Brazil 10 million. Pay TV subscriptions will more than quadruple in 13 countries between 2010 and 2014. However, the number of pay TV subscribers will fall in six countries.

Global pay TV penetration will increase from 49.1% in 2010 to 57.1% in 2014. By end-2014, penetration will be as low as 19% in the Middle East and North Africa but as high as 85% in North America. Pay TV penetration will exceed 70% of TV households in 32 countries by end-2014, but 55 countries will be below 30% of TV households. Pay TV penetration will fall in 11 countries (including the US) between 2010 and 2014.

Bonnier buys Telenor stake in C More

Bonnier is back in full control of the Nordic pay-TV provider C More. It’s acquired the 35% in the company owned by Telenor.

“By taking over as sole owner, we are now creating full freedom of action for our work of identifying the best possible structure and direction for C More going forward, and for coming up with an optimal way of exploiting and developing C More’s very strong rights portfolio to best effect. That will be the task for our new CEO, Manfred Aronsson,” says Casten Almqvist, Chairman, C More, and Head of Business Area Broadcasting at Bonnier.

The Swedish media giant also runs the TV4 commercial channel.

Manfred Aronsson, who previously served as CEO at MTG Sweden and Kanal 5, was appointed as C More’s new CEO last week. He will start work on August 18, succeeding Johan Kleberg, who will become the new CEO at Adlibrisgruppen.

The suite of pay-TV channels has been variously branded as Canal+ and C More, while the network traces its roots back to the FilmNet moniker of the early 1990s.

Bonnier acquired C More via the TV4 Group in 2008 and Telenor has held a 35 percent share of the company since 2009.

It is the second divesture for Telenor Broadcast in recent weeks, following the sale of technology arm Conax.

Tablets become main device for catch-up TV

Tablets have become mainstream consumer devices in the UK with more than half of 16-44s now having access to them.

Newly released data from Kantar Media’s syndicated study,futurePROOF, shows that 45% of all UK adults now have a tablet compared to 32% a year ago, and 36% at the end of 2013. The highest penetration is among 35-44s where 58% of adults now have at least one tablet in their home. Presence of children is the strongest driver of this, with 69% of parents of school age children having a tablet at home.

In terms of device operating systems within the home, 37% of users now have an Android based tablet, up 10 percentage points in six months, and 15% own Kindle Fire or Fire HD tablets. Apple remains the market leader with 56% of tablet users having an iPad, although this is down from 63% in the last six months. The shift towards Android devices is linked with their relative affordability compared with Apple’s iPad.

The increasing ubiquity of tablets is also changing their role. More than four out of ten users now live in a home with more than one tablet (up six percentage points in the last six months). Consequently, tablets are moving from being a shared device to an increasingly personal one, opening up new content and advertising opportunities for targeting and engaging specific users much more effectively.

As consumers become more comfortable with tablets, they are gaining a clearly defined role in households with multiple devices. Tablets are more likely than smartphones to be used for watching or catching up on TV programmes or film, YouTube, or gaming; anything where a larger, better screen will enhance the experience.

Tablets are also playing a growing role in the purchase process with 53% of tablet users researching information on a product or service using their device, up from 44% six months ago.

Fewer users are taking their tablets out of their homes with just 8% using their tablet out-of-home every day, and 44% never taking their tablet out the front door, up from 36% six months ago. Rather than indicating that people have stopped taking tablets out with them, this reflects the different usage patterns of new tablet owners, who are driving the rapid growth.

“Tablets have rapidly become part of our digital lives, with Christmas sales and cheaper, Android powered devices all contributing to make tablets a ‘need to have’ rather than just a ‘nice to have’,” said Trevor Vagg, Director, Kantar Media Custom.

“The arrival of cheaper Android based tablets such as Tesco’s Hudl and the Kindle Fire has turned what was a premium device into something that’s much more ubiquitous but also increasingly as personal as the smartphone we use when we are on the go. These shifts open new doors for advertisers in terms of targeted messaging opportunities.”

HbbTV already supported by 93% of connected TVs

Approximately 93% of the connected televisions for sale support HbbTV and HbbTV services are being deployed by broadcasters throughout Europe, according to the EBU.

Audience research shows that users appreciate HbbTV, not just to access on-demand video, but also to find out more about a specific programme or even to browse through the extended EPG-like data.

In Spain RTVE now reaches more than 700.000 homes with their 90.000 hours of HbbTV offerings, which were soft-launched only eight months ago.

In Germany, in which HbbTV services have been available already since 2009, the ZDF HbbTV platform now generates over 2.5 million views per day. Ten million HbbTV enabled televisions have already been sold in that country.

The Dutch HbbTV Forum recently published a free report with an overview of HbbTV services in Europe. It is available for download here.

The success of HbbTV shows that the EBU needs to continue to invest in standardisation efforts that allow broadcasters to run their own cost efficient services and stay in direct contact with their audience in the future.

Currently the EBU is focusing on HbbTV v2, which is being developed in close cooperation with the industry. It will enable the use of new popular browser technology (HTML5), an improved streaming format (DASH) and pairing with second screens. These extensions will guarantee the growing popularity of the standard in the future. HbbTV 2.0 is expected to be finalised later this year, and to appear in products soon after.

Telekom Austria buys key cable operator

Telekom Austria has acquired a 100% stake in the cable operator blizoo Macedonia from Sweden’s EQT for an unknown fee.

Blizoo Macedonia is one of the leading cable operators in the country, with 63,000 subscribers, of whom 47,000 receive broadband services.

Its revenues in 2013 amounted to around €10 million.

Telekom Austria, which will finance the acquisition by existing cash flow, sees the developments as a significant step in its convergence strategy.

Once the transaction, which is subject to merger control clearance, is approved, it will allow Vip operator and blizoo to offer bundled fixed and mobile services in Macedonia and complement the Group’s existing convergent footprint in Austria, Bulgaria and Croatia.

According to Hannes Ametsreiter, CEO of Telekom Austria Group and A1, “The takeover of blizoo Macedonia allows us to offer the full scale of communications services in the fourth country within our group and is a step forward in the execution of our successful convergence strategy.”

Nikola Ljushev, CEO of Vip operator, added: “This move opens a broad range of exciting opportunities to Vip operator, the second largest mobile operator in the Republic of Macedonia, by bringing together complementary assets and capabilities for future success. We are very pleased that after years of strong performance in the mobile-only segment, we are stepping forward into fix-mobile convergence, that will ultimately bring even greater benefits to Vip’s and blizoo’s customers.”

Kiril Trendafilov, CEO blizoo Macedonia, continued: “It is great that we are becoming part of Telekom Austria Group as we know this will make us stronger and will ensure sustainable value growth for our shareholders. We are looking forward to sharing experiences and working together with Telekom Austria Group, in particular with Vip operator, in order to provide advanced products and services to our customers.”

EQT still remains in control of blizoo, the leading cable operator in Bulgaria.

The Macedonian deal is expected to close in the third quarter.

Marked increase in NTV-Plus subs

The Russian DTH platform NTV-Plus has seen a staggering increase in subscriber numbers after changing its pricing strategy.

Quoting Alexey Zhuravlev, the company’s director of marketing, Comnews reports that it had 800,000 customers as of the beginning of this month, compared to 560,000 at the end of September 2013.

It was at that time that NTV-Plus launched an offer providing viewers with 90 channels or R29 (€0.62) a month, which was cheaper than the cheapest package available from Tricolor TV, its main competitor.

Zhuravlev added that NTV-Plus now wants to double its new customer additions from 30,000 to 60,000 a month.

To this effect, it has launched an advertising targeting a younger demographic, with its audience profile at the moment being aged 40+.

NTV-Plus is the longest-established DTH platform in the CEE region, having made its debut in 1996.

Until recently a high-end service, its subscriber barely changed for years while those of its competitors grew rapidly.

Accedo develops Australia’s first HbbTV catch-up TV application: SBS ON DEMAND

Sydney, Australia, 23 June 2014 – Accedo, the global market leader in TV application solutions, today confirmed the successful launch of the Special Broadcasting Service’s (SBS) catch-up TV application, SBS ON DEMAND, for new HbbTV-enabled devices in Australia.

Accedo has assisted SBS to become the first of the local free-to-air broadcasters to launch their own full-featured catch-up TV service using the new HbbTV standard – SBS ON DEMAND will from today be available to the public in beta (pre-release test version).

The SBS ON DEMAND application enables viewers to gain access to SBS TV shows and movies using an HbbTV enabled connected TV, by clicking the “red button” that appears while watching SBS’s free-to-air channels.

Marshall Heald, SBS Chief Digital Officer, said: “Today’s launch of the SBS ON DEMAND application for HbbTV-enabled TVs is yet another example of SBS continuing to lead the way in offering viewers access to their favourite shows across the very latest devices and technology. We’re releasing the app in beta to elicit feedback from audiences to help us make further enhancements and improvements to the product during the 2014 FIFA World Cup and ahead of the Tour de France next month.  Early-adopters of this new technology will be able to provide us with valuable feedback to maximise the SBS ON DEMAND experience”.

“Accedo has been a strong partner for many years, and they continue to provide valuable services to SBS in our quest to provide our audiences with access to SBS’s unique content, where and when they want it”.

Matt Kossatz, VP Australia and New Zealand, Accedo, said: “SBS is an extremely forward-looking media organisation, which shares our passion and enthusiasm. We’re extremely excited to be behind the successful design, development and deployment of Australia’s first HbbTV catch-up TV application. We are especially pleased to once again help SBS pave the way in this space and we look forward to continuing to work closely with them to roll out more SBS content and features in the coming months.”

Accedo has previously helped SBS successfully launch their SBS ON DEMAND service across several connected device platforms – including Samsung, LG, Sony, TCL, Panasonic and Hisense Smart TV devices – as well as on Android phone and tablet devices, and most recently on Sony PlayStation 4.

For more information about the new SBS ON DEMAND application for HbbTV-enabled televisions, please visit: http://www.sbs.com.au/aboutus/news-media-releases/view/id/902/h/SBS-ON-DEMAND-Launches-in-beta-on-HbbTV-enabled-Televisions

ENDS


About SBS

With a background as Australia’s multicultural broadcaster, SBS holds a unique place in the Australian media landscape. As described in the SBS Charter, SBS’s principal function is to provide multilingual, multicultural and Indigenous radio, television and digital media services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians, reflecting Australia’s diverse society. SBS carries out this function through an ever-increasing number of distribution platforms including free-to-air television channels, subscription television, analogue and digital radio, online, and via mobile devices and apps. SBS inspires all Australians to explore, appreciate and celebrate our diverse world, and in doing so contributes to a cohesive society.

For more information visit www.sbs.com.au
Twitter: @SBS Facebook: Facebook.com/SBSAustralia

About Accedo

Accedo is the market leading enabler of TV application solutions. Accedo provides applications, tools and services to media companies, consumer electronics and TV operators globally, to help them deliver the next-generation TV experience. Accedo’s cloud-based platform solutions enable customers to cost-efficiently roll out and manage application offerings and stores for multiple devices and markets.

Accedo is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden with branch offices in London, Madrid, New York, Palo Alto, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Sydney, Santiago de Chile, and Cologne.

Accedo’s local clients in Australia and New Zealand include FOXTEL, Telstra, SBS, ABC, Telecom New Zealand, TVNZ, Mediaworks, Fairfax Digital, Yahoo!7, Samsung Electronics and others.
For more info, please see www.accedo.tv,
Twitter: www.twitter.com/accedotv, Facebook: www.facebook.com/accedo.smarttv.

Media Contact

Helen Weedon
Communications Manager
Accedo
+44 (1570) 434632
helen.weedon@accedo.tv

Towercom sale on the horizon

The Slovak terrestrial and satellite transmission company Towercom is understood to be for sale.

Quoting a source familiar with the situation, Trend.sk and Parabola report that there are several interested parties and it is currently waiting for official bids.

TMT Finance last month identified Alinda Capital Partners, Ceske Radiokomunikace (CRa) and Infracapital patricia as having an interest in Towercom and that talks were at an advanced stage.

Although Towercom’s interests are currently focused on Slovakia, it used to own the Czech/Slovak DTH platform Skylink befire selling it to the Luxembourg-based M7 Group in 2011.

New Zealand’s Sky TV unveils SVoD service in 2014-end

New Zealand’s pay television network, Sky Network Television, will introduce a Subscription Video-on-Demand (SVoD) service by the end of this year. SVoD service is likely to be priced for AUD 10.81 to 20.81 (USD 10 to 20) per month, pricing would vary according to the other VoD services from overseas operators such as Quickflix, Ezyflix and Netflix.

Sky Network TV  is eying to captivate over 10% more customers, initially; it claims to have over 857,111 subscribers at the end of December, 2013, with 51% market penetration. The company is working out how much content to offer and is in talks with suppliers, said John Fellet, CEO of Sky Network TV. “Instead of building linear channels, (the content) all goes into a pool,” added Fellet. “

The Sky model still works but when we talk to non-customers, clearly this has demand which we want to fill,” Fellet stated. “In order to keep growing we think we need to keep reviewing different business models,” he said, adding the company would “not be able to go from 50 per cent to 75 per cent penetration” with the existing pay-TV model.

DISH eliminates wire clutter with Wireless Joey

Wireless Joey now available to DISH customers

• Customers can move TVs anywhere in and around the home
• First in pay-TV industry to use the latest 802.11ac wireless technology

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — DISH’s Wireless Joey™ system, available today, gives consumers the ability to watch TV virtually anywhere in and around the home without the need for wiring. The small client connects wirelessly to the Hopper® Whole-Home HD DVR using a dedicated 802.11ac access point. DISH Network L.L.C. is a wholly owned subsidiary of DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ: DISH).

“Wireless Joey expands installation options where coaxial or Ethernet wiring is either difficult or undesirable, eliminating unsightly wire runs,” said Vivek Khemka, DISH Senior Vice President of Product Management. “You’re no longer forced to position your TV on the same wall or near a room’s coax outlet. Whether you’re in a new house, an older home or on a backyard patio enjoying a family cookout, Wireless Joey delivers television where you want it.”

Wireless Joey provides an identical experience to a wired Joey, with full Hopper functionality including the PrimeTime Anytime® and AutoHop™ features, and the ability to view, record, pause, rewind and fast forward TV content.

First HD video implementation with 802.11ac wireless technology

The Wireless Joey system is the first in the pay-TV industry to apply blazing fast 802.11ac wireless technology, delivering stronger signal propagation and data transfer speeds up to three times faster than pay-TV competitors’ wireless video offerings (802.11n and older).

“Signal degradation causes a poor video experience when using older wireless networking protocols,” said Khemka. “We chose 802.11ac to create a fast, reliable wireless network that delivers HD video in homes of varying size and construction.”

Installation includes a Wireless Joey client and a Wireless Joey 802.11ac access point. Connecting directly to the Hopper, the access point creates a dedicated Wi-Fi network that serves up to three Wireless Joey clients. By setting up a dedicated Wi-Fi network separate from a home’s existing wireless network, DISH ensures its solution maintains Hopper’s high video quality and even works in homes without Internet access.

Technical specifications

Wireless Joey is powered by a 900MHz 2000 DMIPS BCM7418 processor. Wireless performance for both Wireless Joey and Access Point is driven by a Broadcom BCM4360 802.11ac chip operating at the 5Ghz band. The system features 3×3 MIMO with beam forming internal antennas and auto frequency selection.

DISH customers can add Wireless Joeys to their Hopper system for $7 per month per device, plus a one-time $50 fee for the wireless access point, which can serve up to three Wireless Joey clients

Thaicom strengthens broadcasting capability with Newtec

Thai satellite operator, Thaicom, has enhanced Thaicom 6 satellite’s broadcasting platform capability by installing technology from European technology firm for satellite communications, Newtec.

Over 30 M6100 broadcast satellite modulators, Automated Equalink and Clean Channel Technology are being installed which enables Thaicom 6 to deliver more than 200 channels for its hot-bird broadcasting service. Automated Equalink’s and Clean Channel’s technology combination allows optimal bandwidth utilization, resulting in even higher efficiency and a significant improvement in performance by 1.2dB.

“We are delighted about the advances in technology made by Newtec, which will bring quality services to Thaicom’s customers and viewers throughout our service footprints in Asia and Africa,” said Dr Sakon Kittivatcharapong, Senior Vice President Ground System Operations at Thaicom.

Zee, Turner end distribution deal in India, Taj Television takes over

A joint distribution venture by Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) and Turner International India has been scraped as the India’s regulator, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is not allowing the aggregation of channels of multiple broadcasters in one bouquet. While, the Taj Television India, a subsidiary of ZEEL, will now distribute over 47 television channels of ZEEL, Zee Media Corporation and Turner International India across the country.

“With digitization having been completed in Phase I and Phase II cities in India, we now look forward to its implementation in the rest of the country. Taj Television would aim to create a harmonious relationship within the ecosystem and create value for all stakeholders. With a leading portfolio of television channels, both in the national and regional space and with a powerful portfolio of sports programming, we are excited about the future of pay revenues in the country,” said Atul Das, president, Taj Television.

The company will now distribute Zee TV, Zee Cinema, and pictures, Ten Sports, Zee Cafe, Zee Studio, Zing, Zindagi and a repertoire of regional language channels including Zee Marathi, Zee Bangla, Zee Telugu, Zee Kannada and Zee Tamizh, besides the HD channels like Zee TV HD, Zee Cinema HD, Zee Studio HD and Ten HD from ZEEL. Zee Media Corp’s two national and eight regional channels and Turner’s HBO, Cartoon Network, Pogo, CNN and Warner Brothers will be distributed.

Pay TV operators key to future of STBs

Pay TV Operators are at the top of the set-top box food chain, with hardware OEMs and semiconductor vendors both functioning in a supporting role, according to ABI Research.

The largest operators are responsible for the functional definition and direction, and have significant ownership over at least the logical layers of the implementation. Multi-source supply agreements, in which operators purchase functionally equivalent units from multiple vendors, are the norm today. Therefore, operators have multiple bids whenever they need to purchase new units.

“The current large-scale pay TV operators we are seeing, including Comcast-Time Warner, AT&T-DirecTV, and Liberty Global’s acquisition of Virgin Media and Ziggo, will in the long-term better align set-top box requirements across larger markets,” noted ABI Research practice director Sam Rosen.

“Hybrid set-top boxes, which leverage cable or satellite as well as IP capabilities, have largely become the norm in mature markets – but will be more important from a service delivery perspective especially as the result of the AT&T-DirecTV merger.” ADB Global and Netgem, two European OEMs collectively responsible for only 3% of the market, are two vendors who have led truly multi-network boxes.

RDK, a joint venture of Comcast, Time Warner and Liberty Global, is developing a shared source operating system for set-top boxes. “Similar to the impact of Android in the smartphone market, RDK will improve compatibility between different hardware boxes and even down to the set-top box chipset level,” continued Rosen.

“While today’s set-top box market is highly fragmented, these common platforms will enable efficiencies leading both consolidation through further mergers and acquisitions, but will also force some natural consolidation.”

Dutch digital TV subscribers grow to 6.72 million in Q1 2014

HOUTEN, The Netherlands — The number of digital TV connections in the Netherlands grew by 0.9 percent during the first quarter of 2014 to 6.72 million on 31 March 2014. According to Telecompaper’s latest quarterly Dutch Television Market report, digital TV was used by 86.8 percent of TV subscribers in the Netherlands, including 3.71 million cable subscribers who also have analogue TV connections. The total TV market grew to 7.74 million connections at the end of March 2014.

Cable still accounted for over half (55.2%) of digital TV subscribers in Q1, despite losing market share due to the growing adoption of IPTV services over DSL and fibre networks. DSL was the second most common way to receive TV, followed by satellite. Fibre passed terrestrial during the first quarter to become the fourth largest digital TV technology in the Netherlands.

Ziggo was the largest TV provider at the end of the first quarter of 2014, both in the total TV market and the digital TV market. KPN, UPC and CanalDigitaal followed in the rankings.

“The digital TV market is expected to grow by around 5 percent during 2014 to almost 7 million connections at year-end,” said Telecompaper analyst and report author Kamiel Albrecht. “While growth is slowing somewhat at the cable operators, the DSL and fibre providers continue to increase their TV customer numbers.”

Telecompaper estimates that the retail revenues* for the consumer TV market totaled EUR 402 million in the first quarter of 2014, slightly higher than in Q4 2013. The revenues are expected to continue to grow at 0.2 percent CAGR until 2018.

* The reported retail revenues include revenues from basic TV subscriptions (digital/analogue), pay-TV services and video-on-demand service. These exclude revenues from installation fees and set-top box sales.

Due to continuous improvements in our calculations, the numbers in this press release cannot directly be compared with numbers from earlier press releases sent out by Telecompaper on previous studies of the Dutch television market.

The “Dutch TV Market Q1 2014″ report is a research product from Telecompaper. Price for 10 users is EUR 595.00. Single-user price for the report is EUR 395.00.

K-Vision partners Cubiware, Ali to offer CubiTV-enabled STBs

Indonesia’s pay-DTH platform which is owned by Kompas Gramedia Group, K-Vision, has signed a licensing agreement with Poland-based software provider for digital TV devices and systems, Cubiware, and Taiwan-based chipset supplier, Ali Corporation.

Under the contract, Cubiware’s CubiTV middleware is deployed on DVB-S standard definition STBs and hybrid high definition DVB-S/OTT STBs powered by ALi’s chipset platforms..

“We are delighted to enhance our competitive advantage by offering a range of customised features that are made possible by the CubiTV solution and strengthened by Ali hardware,” said Harya S Pratama, Executive Director of K-Vision.

K-Vision has rolled out STBs in the second quarter of 2014. CubiTV’s interface enables customers to navigate TV functionalities, it includes graphic rendering engine that delivers menus, programme guides with animation, transitions and effects. STB versions of CubiTV can be deployed on both modern and legacy devices.

Pakistan's WorldCall selects Verimatrix Cardless DVB Security

WorldCall Telecom Limited Selects Verimatrix Cardless DVB Security Solutions for Enhanced Revenue Protection

• Leading Pakistani Cable Operator Chooses VCAS for DVB to Provide Robust Revenue Security and Support Future Network Expansion

SINGAPORE — CommunicAsia — Verimatrix, the specialist in securing and enhancing revenue for multi-network, multi-screen digital TV services around the globe, today announced that WorldCall Telecom Limited, an Oman Telecommunications (Omantel) company and a unique telecom and multimedia service provider in Pakistan, has deployed the Verimatrix Video Content Authority System (VCAS™) for DVB to secure its digital cable (DVB-C) network and to support the transition to broadcast-hybrid service delivery.

VCAS for DVB replaces WorldCall’s current security system, which was reliant on costly and cumbersome smartcards. VCAS for DVB secures WorldCall’s linear content library and associated revenue for broadcast services over its DVB-C network, including WorldCall Cable TV services, which offer a diverse mix of drama, thriller, action, romance, news and documentaries over 300+ channels. The service is managed via redundant head-ends in Karachi and Lahore and six regional headends in other cities of Pakistan. It is delivered using SandMartin BVA3006 high definition (HD) set top boxes (STBs).

“We chose VCAS because it integrates seamlessly with our existing resources and because of the many advantages of cardless security,” said Furqan Ahman Mubarik, senior manager, Engineering and Planning, WorldCall Telecom Limited. “Verimatrix is highly regarded as the leader in cardless security, and we are confident that using the VCAS multi-network architecture will allow us to cost-effectively expand our service offering to include hybrid and OTT services in the future — without requiring a significant increase in CAPEX.”

The cardless VCAS system supports future network expansion, including the addition of more advanced and flexible services, such as over-the-top (OTT) video delivery. The multi-network VCAS platform enables operators to combine standards-based and proven DVB technology for broadcast (one-way) networks, while supporting future extension to IP centric network topologies from a single security authority.

“It’s no secret that cardless security solutions offer many benefits, including operational simplicity, reduced CAPEX and logistical advantages,” said Steve Oetegenn, president, Verimatrix. “We are delighted to be working with WorldCall to help them realize these significant benefits while also providing a stable and scalable foundation for future growth.”

Verimatrix will illustrate the key role of multi-network revenue security at CommunicAsia 2014, 17-20 June 2014 at the Marina Bay Sands (booth #1M2-07). In addition, the company with host the latest installment of its popular Multi-Network Solutions in the Real World Forum during CommunicAsia on 18 June at 8:30 a.m. at 1-Altitude 1 Raffles Places in Stellar Room, Level 62.

CTH in pact with Irdeto and Inview for OTT

Cable Thai Holdings (CTH), a Multi-System Operator (MSO) in Thailand, has signed an agreement with media protection and revenue assurance solutions provider, Irdeto; and software provider in digital TV space, Inview Technology – to modernise its cable service network to Over-The-Top (OTT) and hybrid broadcast version.

Irdeto’s Cloaked CA security and Inview’s Liberator middleware solutions will be integrated to CTH services; and the OTT/Hybrid project would be implemented in this year. Cloaked CA security offers studio-grade content and media protection on existing cable set-top boxes (STBs) as well as OTT and Hybrid STBs. Irdeto has already secured several CTH STBs.

Liberator middleware delivers a feature-rich user experience supporting a wide range of OTT services. It also enables the channels to promote content and generate new revenue streams from advertising and other services.

“CTH is prospering and we expect continued growth as we expand and evolve our offerings. We needed strong, experienced OTT partners to help us provide the most compelling pay TV services to our customers. We have complete confidence that 2014 will be a successful year for CTH,” said Akradej Supamahitorn, CTO at CTH.

K-Vision deploys Conax’s content protection solution

Indonesia’s recently launched pay-DTH platform which is owned by Kompas Gramedia Group, K-Vision, has signed a technology deal with Norway-based TV encryption, conditional access and content security provider, Conax.

Conax will deploy Contego Plus solution to provide advanced content protection; which will enable K-Vision to monetize Fifa World Cup broadcasting rights and to deploy new services.

“The flexibility of the advanced, proven content security back-end and advisory role provided by Conax will enable K-Vision to easily grow with new business models and content package distribution technologies to further develop our business with lucrative product differentiation and advanced marketing strategies,” said Harya Pratama, Executive Director at K-Vision.

K-Vision is planning to include hybrid networks and new business models, such as multiscreen services as its business grows. K-Vision is gearing up to offer 65 international channel in SD and HD and several local channels, in addition to sports channels.

NSR: 300 UltraHD DTH channels by 2023

By 2023, nearly 300 ultraHD (or 4K) TV channels will be broadcast globally by DTH operators, predicts NSR.

UltraHD will be present in every region worldwide within the next decade. This exceptional growth will occur following the introduction of the first UltraHD channels into DTH subscriber homes by late 2015.

Utilising this technology as a key differentiator against terrestrial and IPTV competitors, DTH platforms will continue to expand ultraHD offerings. NSR’s DTH7 finds that leasing revenues for ultraHD content will reach $125 million by 2023, and during the period of 2013-2023, cumulative leasing revenues from Ultra HD will approach nearly $500 million, despite today having no leasing revenue attributable to Ultra HD.

“Over 3.1 million ultraHD TV sets were shipped in 2013, despite a lack of Ultra HD channels being broadcast yet, with the exception of a handful of demo channels, as well as some limited content via IPTV and YouTube,” explained Alan Crisp, NSR analyst and report co-author. “This shows the pent-up demand for Ultra HD, and helps support the “chicken-and-egg” phenomenon that occurs with any new technological standard.”

While the majority of these channels will be broadcast in established regions such as North America and Western Europe, East Asia is also proving to be a frontrunner. By 2023 it is expected that several dozen Ultra HD channels will be broadcast in East Asia, and even today the excitement surrounding this new technology is palpable in countries such as Japan, South Korea, and China.

“Despite the perception that Ultra HD is solely a ‘developed market’ phenomenon, we anticipate that developing regions such as greater China and South Asia will also contribute demand for Ultra HD content,” explained Blaine Curcio, NSR Analyst and report co-author.

“With this global proliferation, content providers will find greater economies of scale in producing Ultra HD content. In fact, all signs point to Ultra HD picking up significant steam moving forward, on a truly global scale. Further, we believe that Ultra HD, unlike 3D TV, will be able to sustain momentum and consumer interest moving forward, and will ultimately win out as the new ‘latest and greatest’ technological choice for consumers.”

Pay TV operators key to future of STBs

Pay TV Operators are at the top of the set-top box food chain, with hardware OEMs and semiconductor vendors both functioning in a supporting role, according to ABI Research.

The largest operators are responsible for the functional definition and direction, and have significant ownership over at least the logical layers of the implementation. Multi-source supply agreements, in which operators purchase functionally equivalent units from multiple vendors, are the norm today. Therefore, operators have multiple bids whenever they need to purchase new units.

“The current large-scale pay TV operators we are seeing, including Comcast-Time Warner, AT&T-DirecTV, and Liberty Global’s acquisition of Virgin Media and Ziggo, will in the long-term better align set-top box requirements across larger markets,” noted ABI Research practice director Sam Rosen.

“Hybrid set-top boxes, which leverage cable or satellite as well as IP capabilities, have largely become the norm in mature markets – but will be more important from a service delivery perspective especially as the result of the AT&T-DirecTV merger.” ADB Global and Netgem, two European OEMs collectively responsible for only 3% of the market, are two vendors who have led truly multi-network boxes.

RDK, a joint venture of Comcast, Time Warner and Liberty Global, is developing a shared source operating system for set-top boxes. “Similar to the impact of Android in the smartphone market, RDK will improve compatibility between different hardware boxes and even down to the set-top box chipset level,” continued Rosen.

“While today’s set-top box market is highly fragmented, these common platforms will enable efficiencies leading both consolidation through further mergers and acquisitions, but will also force some natural consolidation.”