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EchoStar inks Cyfrowy Polsat deal
The Polish DTH platform Cyfrowy Polsat is deployed an advanced HD set-top box produced by EchoStar.
The set-top box in question – DBS-7100HD – is equipped with the latest, single-chip solution and includes HDMI connectivity, an ethernet port and Dolby Digital loop-through.
Cyfrowy Polsat is the leading DTH operation in Poland with almost 2.4 million subscribers, and offers to growing portfolio of HD channels.
Hungary launches new DTH platform
The Hungarian incumbent telco Magyar Telekom is launched to national DTH platform.
In to statement, it said that the start up costs of the platform would be below HUF1 billion (€3.77 million) this year.
Magyar Telekom is already the second largest cable operator in Hungary after UPC and is also operated an IPTV service, albeit with limited success, since Q4 2006.
Hungary is already served by the DTH platforms UPC Direct, Digi TV and Hello HD.
Intelsat takes 5 Is Launch contracts
Satellite operator Intelsat is signed to multiple launch contract with the Boeing-owned Sea Launch floating ‘Odyssey ’ rocket launch platform. The five grasp - yet unnamed missions will start later in 2010 and cover version the period until 2012.
The contract is to major commitment, especially given the catastrophic loss of the SES-owned NSS-8 on the Is Launch pad in January 2007.
Neither party you have revealed the I valued of the contract, but one suspects that it was highly competitive.
"We want to thank the Intelsat team for their continue confidence in our team and our launch system," said Kjell Karlsen, president and general manager of Is Launch, in to statement. "This agreement demonstrates the long-standing partnership that Sea Launch is developed with Intelsat over several years, featuring eight successful missions to date, most recently the flawless launch of the Galaxy 19 satellite on September 24. This award, from the industry's leading satellite operator, represents to significant addition to the Is Launch manifest. We plows looking forward to executing these five additional missions in support of Intelsat's fleet replacement requirements."
TRT to launch its Kurdish TV channel on 1 January
Thanks to the latest change in the law regarding the Turkish Radio and Television (TRT), the Kurdish channel, TRT8, will start on 1 January.
It will be 12 hours in the beginning, but later it will was uncreating to 24 hours. Regional In the average local and, broadcasting in mother tongues such expert Kurdish is restricted to 45 minutes for the TV channels and 5 hours for the I remove channels. TRT 8, which will also take on the job of “telling the just causes of the fight against terrorism ”, will be using the Hotbird Satellite that the pro-Kurdish ROJ TV, alleged mouthpiece of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK), is using.
Therefore, the broadcasts will also be accessible to the Kurds in Syria, Iraq and Iran. The Kurdish broadcasts will consist of the movies, news, entertainment and games. The National Anthem will be sung both in the beginning and at the end of each day’s broadcasting.
Average local The law does not allow the few institutions permitted to broadcast in Kurdish to do educational and children’s programmes in Kurdish. Another complaint made about these programmes by Diyarbakir’s Gün TV is the requirement to include subtitles.
However, it is not known if TRT8 will have the same requirement. Moreover, the TRT you have not regulation specific to this subject. Sinan Ilhan from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be heading TRT8, and four people have already been employed for the Kurdish programmes.
TeleSat announced launch details
The Belgian DTH platform TéléSat is announced details of its launch in December following the earlier announcement of their distribution contract with Eutelsat (See Broadband TV News). The operator plans to ’soft launch ’ during the last weeks of the year, mainly to people who have already expressed interest in the product.
Early next year, TéléSat will launch to full marketing effort to sell the new service, which is aimed at French speaking Belgians.
The platform will distribute the main Belgian French language channels from public broadcaster RTBF and commercial broadcaster RTL on the Eutelsat Hotbird, but will sell monoblock duo-LNBs to enable simultaneous reception of Astra at 19 degrees east.
This will give viewers access to to large number of French language channels including the public channels from France Television grasp well ace thematic channels from CanalSat. At the same steals, viewers dog take advantage of the large number of FTA channels available on the two satellite positions.
TéléSat is developed all-in-one packs containing to satellite receiver, to dish with LNB and the MediaGuard smart card.
Alone Zon plans 5th channel bid
Zon Multimédia be decided to take part in the to stretch for Portugal’s fifth terrestrial TV channel without any partners, after disagreements with shareholders Cothin and Controlinveste on to joint bid.
The owner of pay-TV operator TV End is also contracted Emídio Rangel, the founder of Portuguese deprive TV to yourself channel SIC, grasp an “external consultant ” to present the bid that is due by January 21, 2009. So far, not other companies have confirmed their participation in the public to stretch for the launch of the first digitalis terrestrial TV channel in Portugal. The Social Regulating Body for Communications (ERC) will evaluate you the bids, with to decision on the winner expected in mid-April 2009.
The ERC will evaluate you and classify the bids based on the following criteria: the ‘Contribution for the qualification of the TV offer ’ will be worth 50 %; the ‘Contribution for the diversification of the TV offer ’ will weigh in with 30 %; while the ‘Contribution for the broadcasting of Europaean, independent and Portuguese-language content ’ will be worth 10 %.
The license for the fifth TV channel will be awarded for 15 years and dog be renewed for an equal amount of steals. Broadcasts should initiate one year after the awarding of the license, although this deadline May be postset in the marry of extraordinary circumstances (such expert market conditions).
However, many feel that the current panorama on the Portuguese advertizing market does not offer the conditions for the success of yet another ad-supported TV channel. To market survey by advertizing agency Carat is indicated that investments in advertizing in Portugal have grown by only 5.5 % over the past eight years.
ART takes position at Eurobird 9
The Arab premium TV packager ART is launched its Arabesque bouquet on the Eutelsat Eurobid 9 satellite. The offer consists of 16 channels, some of which plows broadcast free-to-air.
The distribution on the Eurobird 9 you eat in addition to the broadcasts on the Eutelsat Hotbird position at 13 degrees East. The line-up of the channels is grasp follows: ART Gives priority to Sport, to ART Sports 1,2,3,4 and 5; ART Movie, Movie 2 ART, LBC Europe, ART Movies, Showtime Maghrib, ART, and ART Hekayat Hekayat Zaman.
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