29th Dec to Dec 31st Away

28/12/02

Last update of the year, and just a small one to end the year on. But first I would like to thank all those involved in using the mailing list and who are reading my site and providing updates, screenshots, visiting the chatroom etc. There would be no website if it wasn't for your contributions. A special thanks to Jamie who generously hosts us on his server at no cost!

and now for the annual Apsattv.com 2003 Predictions!.

See last years here http://www.apsattv.com/articles/2002predictions.html

Apsattv.com Annual predictions for 2003 are Here

27/12/02

Yes the sites back after a short break, not a lot to report at this time of the year though. Good to see a lot of support for ImpacTV's plans if you feedback about them good or bad send me an email for my Emails section.

ImpacTV would like to thank you for all the emails you have sent and welcome more feedback email address is

impactv@xtra.co.nz

Installers and dealers please put as much contact info in the Email as possible. If you're an installer please include which regions you cover.

From my Emails & ICQ

From the Dish

Nothing to report

NEWS

TVSN upbeat on $3bn issue

From http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/12/26/1040511131589.html

Direct sales group TVSN remains upbeat about its earnings growth in 2003 after raising $3 million through a share issue.

"The results for the six months to 31 December 2002 will be released in mid February 2003 and will illustrate the progress that is being made in profitably growing the business," chief executive Rob Hunt said. "We expect this growth to continue in 2003."

Mr Hunt said the $3 million share issue had attracted interest from Foster Stockbroking and Cameron Stockbrokers. Mr Hunt also subscribed for $1 million of shares.

The ordinary shares were issued at 22c each, with one option for every four shares issued. The options have an exercise price of 22c each and a term of 18 months.

"For TVSN this is the final chapter of a very successful year," Mr Hunt said. "The purpose of this capital raising was to retire aged trade debt and to enable the company to take advantage of early settlement discounts offered by suppliers.

"The board is confident in the prospects of the business and, more broadly, the future of direct retailing in Australia."

TVSN runs infomercials, home shopping and wholesale retail operations. In August, the TVSN Channel launched on the digital satellite platform of SKY Television in New Zealand, reaching an additional 330,000 subscription customers.

TVSN revealed last month that initial trading had exceeded its expectations.

Earlier this year, TVSN merged with the Danoz Group of Companies.

TVSN's shares closed 4.5c lower at 18c on Tuesday.

BBC World celebrates World cup with cricket week

From Indiant4elevision.com

MUMBAI: It is not just sports channels that are looking to derive mileage from next year's cricket World Cup. BBC World has announced a series of programmes under the band Cricket Week between 3 and 9 February at 10 pm.

Captains Call on 3 February sees former bastman Sanjay Manjrekar speak to the Indian, Pakistani and Sri Lankan captains about their chances of winning in unfamiliar conditions. Young Turks the next day profiles hotshots from the three countries. India Calling on 5 February will showcase the passion and fervour with which Indians follow the game. Africa Calling on 6 February scrutinises how the continent is gearing up to host one of its biggest sporting events ever.

On 7 February, Question time India Cricket Special airs while 8 February, there will be a Fact To Face Cricket Special. On 9 February, there will be a Business India Report on the business of cricket.

The channel will also have Cricket Results Boards from 8 February to 23 March. This will keep fans up to speed on the team standings, scores, news and results. Beyond the Boundary will air on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at 10 pm from 10 January to 2 February. This showcases India's proudest cricketing moments along with all time great perfomances.

(Craigs comment, Times listed are Indian time perhaps via BBC Worlds Indian service on Pas 10. The programming should also be on the usual BBC World Channel.)

25-26/12/02

Christmas Break

24/12/02

First up next site update is on the 27th

Well what a fantastic turnout in the chatroom last night! over 30 people in their at one stage. What Chaos! but great fun and what a great announcement (see below for more details). A great Christmas present to end the year with. 2003 should be the year KU band gets humming with new services. For those wondering where this news popped up from, as I have been assisting ImpacTV for the past 2 years. They chose to release this information in my chatroom last night at my request. The info they have released in my chatroom and on my site today IS NOT their official launch Press Release. Its advanced information in preparation for more detailed announcements in the new year. Your Emails on this exciting development are welcome.

ImpacTV's Email is posted below the info, currently the www.impactv.co.nz website is down it should be repaired and back up in a few days

The main details for those that couldn't make it

ImpacTV (Auckland NZ, Also Asia)
Will be Launching a 40 channel package of pay services.

1st Quarter 2003 (Tests possible late Feb)
Broadcast will cover NZ and Australia on 65cm-88cm size dishes using KU band

Satellite and Channel / programming to be Announced Later

New platform will include up to 10! New FTA Channels to promote growth of KU satellite services in the Australasia region.

ImpacTV new services Announcement Details

Further to the announcement last evening in Apsattv’s Chat room that ImpacTV Ltd a New Zealand registered satellite Pay Television Distribution Company plans to launch new multichannel Free to Air and Pay TV services to New Zealand during the first quarter of 2003.

ImpacTV has been active in satellite and cable TV since 1995 and has over this time built up very strong allegiances with Industry Satellite operators, channel providers and International programmers.

ImpacTV will provide its multichannel service on a footprint that covers both New Zealand and Australia. Reception will be on 76 to 88cm antennas within the primary footprint. The conditional access system will be Irdeto 2 with all the Free To Air broadcasts complying with DVB standards for Satellite broadcasts.

The platform will consist of up to forty separate broadcast channels using two full transponders. One transponder will be uplinked from Auckland New Zealand and will provide locally commissioned channels and channels, which are easily sourced from New Zealand.

The second uplink will be from Asia and will feature channels, which are not readily available to Australia and New Zealand. A third uplink will provide a direct link to the US at a later date. Thus providing niche American FTA and Pay channels to the platform.

It is hoped that the ImpacTV satellite platform will entice independent programmers and channel compilers that want to reach populations numbering eighteen million. It is also hoped that since ImpacTV will make available up to ten channels for free to air or pay television to independent channel providers at a very low cost so that the platform will provide a very diverse channel line up which will have great appeal to its target audiences.

Further announcements will be made as the project progresses to its launch date.

ImpacTV Ltd
impactv@xtra.co.nz

From my Emails & ICQ

From Schippy

Star Gold is Currently FTA

Channel Name 'CH-9-06E4'

Asiasat 3 3780V 28100 3/4

From the Dish

Pas 2 169E 4040 V "FOX mux moved here" same Sr and Fec as before

Palapa C2 113E 3926 H "Bali TV" has left (unconfirmed).

PAS 10 68.5E 4125 V Occasional ESPN feeds , SR 7441, FEC 7/8.

NEWS

CNN, JCTV to launch exclusive CNNj in Japan


From indiantelevision.com

TOKYO : Japanese television viewers will be able to see their own exclusive CNN channel with the launch of CNNj in March 2003. CNN and Japan Cable television (JCTV) have teamed up to provide this unique new service tailored specifically for Japanese viewers, with hours of CNN programming never previously seen by international audiences.

An official release states that CNNj combines content from three of CNN's award-winning networks: CNN/US, CNNfn and CNN International. This new channel, made possible because of JCTV's longstanding partnership with CNN for nearly 20 years, also comprises increased Japanese languaging of news and feature programmes.

President, CNN International Networks Chris Cramer said, "Thanks to the strong support of our long-time partner, JCTV we have been able to take this important initiative in Japan, the largest market for CNN in Asia. By making this strategic investment to create a unique CNN channel we are proving our commitment to cater to the specific viewing preferences of Japanese audiences."

JCTV continues to be the exclusive distribution partner of CNN in Japan and will increase its hours of Japanese translation by seven hours a week, to a total of 126 hours per week. During times of major breaking news JCTV will further increase its bilingual service to translate the breaking news as it happens.

The release states that CNNj is CNN International's seventh regionalised feed and offers a new schedule exclusively created for Japanese audiences based on audience feedback and market research.

The new channel will be a combination of popular US news programmes including American Morning with Paula Zahn and Connie Chung plus international and regional news, business and feature programming.

JCTV and CNN have had a strong business partnership since CNN became available in Japan in 1982, the first country outside the U.S to distribute CNN. CNN is currently available via Sky PerfecTV!, Sky PerfecTV!2 and cable to four million households and 100,000 hotel rooms, the release says.

JCTV is an affiliate of Asahi Shimbun and TV Asahi. In 1971 it stared as the first English language cable TV station in Japan.

All Channels Will Go Free To Air: Sushma

From http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=24448

New Delhi: All pay television channels are likely to gradually turn into free-to-air broadcasters once conditional access system (CAS) is implemented, according to Information & Broadcasting Minister Sushma Swaraj. And, when pay channels become free-to-air, there won’t be any need for CAS any longer, the minister told eFE. Significantly, this is for the first time that the minister is on record on the transition of channels, from pay to free-to-air regime.

On whether there were any plans to make the Indian TV broadcasting market either subscription-based or advertising-based, Ms Swaraj said so far there was no such move. There are some countries, which follow one-source revenue model, though.

The fact that Star India recently cut its cable subscription rates for its bouquet of channels, is an indicator that gradually pay channels will opt for only ad-based revenue model, the minister said. Although Star’s rate cuts had riders attached (rates will be cut proportionate to the increase in subscriber number declaration), it sent out a signal to the industry.

Ultimately, broadcasters will want credibility, viewership and revenues, which will be possible only if pay channels turn free-to-air under CAS, the minister said. Under CAS, viewers will have access to pay channels only through set-top box, and will be able to watch the channels of their choice and pay for only them. For free-to-air channels, however, viewers don’t need set-top box. Also, a monthly fee will be fixed by the government, most likely at a sub-Rs 100 level, for around 25 to 30 free-to-air channels.

As CAS is likely to restrict pay channels’ entry into cable homes, it might make sense for broadcasters to opt for only ad revenues. So far, the ratio between ad revenues and subscription revenues in the industry is at around 80:20. Overall, revenues in the Indian television industry stand at around Rs 5,000 crore.

But, as a recent research points out, even if all channels go free-to-air, there will still be a limitation on how many one can watch. For, under CAS, there will be a cap on the number of free-to-air channels.

(Craigs comment, more FTA Indians? but don't get to excited a new generation of satellites are up there with KU spot beams fixed on India many may have to shift off Cband to to copyright issues and satellite footprint coverage area issues)

Prasar Bharati for KU band transmission in NE India

From indiantelevision.com

NEW DELHI: The Prasar Bharati Corp, overseeing the functioning of India's pubcasters Doordarshan and All India Radio, has sought the government's approval to start KU-band transmission for remote areas, starting with the north-eastern part of the country.

If this proposal is given the go-ahead, DD may well be the first one to start a DTH service in the country; though with a difference: the service will not be as costly as normal DTH services are round the globe.

According to officials in India's information and broadcasting ministry, Prasar Bharati wants to start Ku-band transmission in N-E India to bring on to the television map remote areas of the country where normal terrestrial or cable TV services are unable to penetrate.

The officials pointed out that Prasar Bharati-government talks are on to see the feasibility of such a project as a major part of the funding is likely to come from the government.

Meanwhile, Prasar Bharati has started C-band cable transmissions in certain parts of N-E India in a bid to take DD and other private satellite channels to places where its terrestrial services are not available as also to counter cross-border propaganda by some neighbouring countries. Certain states and cities in N-E India are open to TV propaganda material from countries like China, Myanmar and Bhutan.

But the official was quick to point out that such a KU-band service should not be construed as a full-fledged DTH service.

At one time, Prasar Bharati was also in talks with the partly government owned Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd and state-controlled Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd, running telecom networks in Delhi and Mumbai, to jointly put together a proper DTH platform. But the talks did not make much headway owing to the huge investment that is needed for a DTH service and related infrastructure to man it.

DD to telecast live 16 World Cup matches

http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/holnus/07231806.htm

New Delhi, Dec. 23. (PTI): Sixteen matches including those involving India at the February-March cricket World Cup will be telecast live on Doordarshan's National Channel.

Following a three-way agreement signed between the worldwide rights holder Global Cricket Corporation, Prasar Bharati and Nimbus Communications Limited, Doordarshan will telecast all the matches involving India in the pool and super six stage (maximum nine).

Besides, the channel will telecast live the tournament opener between South Africa and West Indies, on February 9, Pakistan vs England tie on February 22, two super six stage matches as also both the semifinals and the final.

The channel will telecast everyday a one-hour higlights package throughout the 43-day tournament, according to a media release issued by Nimbus here today.

BIS yet to provide tech specs for DTH

From indiantelevision.com

NEW DELHI: It's a classic case of so near, yet so far.

The debate over open architecture set top boxes continues even as broadcasters twiddle their thumbs. KU-band direct-to-home (DTH) television service in India is likely take some more time before taking off. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), which has been mandated to come up with technical specifications for the set-top-boxes (STBs) for DTH, may complete its work only by the end of February 2003.

A senior official of India's information and broadcasting ministry told indiantelevision.com today that BIS generally takes about 60 days for such issues under a procedure and the final process is yet to start.

"The BIS was asked by the government earlier this year to look into the various technical aspects of STBs for DTH, including the fact whether an open architecture is possible or not. We think that BIS will take 60 days to finalise the issue and the specifications may be conveyed to the government only towards the end of February," the official pointed out.

Though government officials in the ministry are of the opinion that open architecture STBs is a possibility, some people in the BIS feel to the contrary. A senior BIS official told indiantelevision.com reluctantly, quite content to be vague, that the issue of open architecture is a contentious one and needs to be looked into thoroughly.

Certain circles feel that the BIS probably wants to say that for DTH there cannot be an open architecture, but still is unable to articulate it properly.

From the time the DTH guidelines were announced by the government in November 2000, policymakers and broadcasters, interested in starting a DTH service in India, have been at loggerheads over the open architecture issue. Government's stand has been that such a thing is possible; whereas broadcasters' have held the view that nowhere in the world does open architecture prevail for DTH.

When confronted with this information, the ministry official, however, admitted that "BIS has also not indicated to us that open architecture is not possible."

The official further pointed out: "BIS may have some reservation on the issue, but during our talks it has indicated in a limited way that it may be made possible through technology."

As BIS finally gets down to grapple with the situation, a small hitch has cropped up in the meanwhile which, the ministry official said, may have also contributed to the delay. Until now BIS, which is again part of the Indian government, had been playing the advisory role in various technical aspects relating to broadcasting free of cost. But now the board of the BIS feels that such services should be paid for. "So, we have asked the BIS that it should go ahead with finalising the specifications regarding DTH boxes and the issue of payment for the advisory service can be settled also as part of an intra-governmental affair," the official explained.

In two years' time since the DTH guidelines had been announced, only two companies have applied for a DTH licence. This includes Star's affiliate Space TV and Subhash Chandra's ASC Enterprises Ltd.

23/12/02

Live chat is tonight rather than Tuesday, please all show up for the final chat of the year. A special announcement about FTA satellite will be made, hopefully my guest will show up. Starts usual time 9pm NZ and 8.30pm Syd time onwards announcement will wait untill a reasonable amount of people are in and there should be a follow up item about it tommorow on here.

The Sky installer came and I now have a 2nd Sky decoder run into my bedroom that should mean I no longer have to steal the main decoder from the lounge when I want to watch the cricket. The guy did a very good job and was quite interested in the other services I could recieve. He also agreed the $200 for 2nd decoder was a scam fee and that the figure didn't compute but like he said there is no competition so Sky gets away with it. He said he could of plugged into my existing dish (the one i use for Tv1/2 feeds etc on b1 with Nokia) he said either way he still had to charge $200. So I got him to wire it to the other Sky dish on the roof. I got the latest Motrolla decoder which is much better than the Zeniths and pace units. I also got a full set of leads Scart to scart, Scart to rca, RF and Svideo leads as well!

Satfacts section has been updated

From my Emails & ICQ

From Nick Sat

Hello Craig,

In response to Peter's question on 17-12-02 regarding reception of Mac TV up on the N coast of NT,I tuned into it here in Brisbane using a 2.3mt solid dish at 4.45pm on Sun.22-12-02 signal approx 60% on Hyundai and Nokia. Palapa C2 113*E,3916H, SR 2900, 3/4, Vpid 33, Apid 34. I have not tried a Humax at this stage. I hope this info. helps Peter.

Best wishes to you and all your readers,

Merry Christmas and all the best for the New Year,

Nick.

From the Dish

Intelsat 701 180E 10975 H "Star Academy" has left , replaced by an info card.

Palapa C2 113E 4080 H "Kantor Berita Radio" has replaced MTV on Sky 101.6 FM on , Fta,APID 662.
Palapa C2 113E 11132 V "CTV has replaced TTV" Fta, PIDs 74/75.
Palapa C2 113E 11152 V New PIDs for MAC TV on : 33/34.

Koreasat 2 113E 12370 H "Quizup Interactive TV" has started , Fta, PIDs 1060/1020.
Koreasat 2 113E 12706 H "Dizzo TV" has started on , Fta, SR 3000, FEC 3/4, PIDs 4194/4195.
Koreasat 2 113E 12370 H "MCN Drama has replaced KCN", Fta, PIDs 1860/1820.It's MCN Movie on PIDs 502/550.

AAP 1 108.2E 12471 H The SkyLife mux has left again.

NEWS

Austar unveils new local backer

From http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2002/12/22/1040510964889.html

In a boost to the pay TV industry, the loss-making regional operator Austar United Communications has moved to cut itself free of its troubled US parent company, UnitedGlobalCom.

Austar yesterday introduced a new Australian investor to buy out holders of junk bonds issued by UnitedGlobalCom (UGC), a US cable television operator.

A successful deal would be a further fillip for Australia's pay TV industry after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission approved a Foxtel/Optus programming deal last month.

The Sydney-based development capitalist Castle Harlan Australian Mezzanine Partners (CHAMP) plans to pay out bond holders in an upstream company owned by UGC, Austar's 80.7 per cent shareholder, in return for some of the Austar equity. In all, CHAMP could invest up to $130 million in Austar, according to CHAMP's chairman Bill Ferris, and finish with an effective interest of 40 per cent or more in the regional pay TV operator.

"The ACCC's deliberations create a chance for the sector to be profitable and have the strong penetration rate it enjoys elsewhere in the world," Mr Ferris said.

CHAMP is best known for its private equity funding role in management buyouts of some old-economy companies, including former ANI engineering subsidiary Bradken. Asked if Austar was one of the riskier deals CHAMP had been involved in, Mr Ferris said: "It's up there with the best of them. Nothing ventured, nothing gained."

In a complex deal, CHAMP has offered the bond holders in UGC's subsidiary United Australia Pacific $US34.5 million ($A61 million) by sponsoring a Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganisation filed in the New York Bankruptcy Court over the weekend.

While the offer to bond-holder creditors is a mere 7 per cent of the face value of the bonds (that is, almost $US500 million), Mr Ferris said they had recommended the plan. Under the court's timetable, it will take until the end of February to finalise the deal.

To satisfy the ACCC that Austar is looking after the minority shareholders, they will be offered 17 cents a share in a "follow-on" offer in which UGC may also buy shares. This is effectively the same figure being offered to the bond holders, who indirectly control Austar shares as security for the bonds, and the same as the last traded price on the Australian Stock Exchange.

CHAMP and UGC will also jointly underwrite a $63.5 million rights issue if the follow-on offer is not taken up (that is, if Austar is not privatised), with the proceeds earmarked as working capital. Mr Ferris said Austar could be floated again in the future to enable CHAMP to exit, but "we will worry about that down the track".

"If the company's successful, you never have to worry about how you get out," Mr Ferris said. "If it's unsuccessful, somebody usually works it out for you."

Austar has 408,000 pay television subscribers of a total of about 1.5 million in Australia, 25,000 mobile telephony subscribers and 55,000 Internet customers.

Austar's chief executive John Porter was reluctant to say when Austar would turn a profit, but, based on recent trends, the company was "pretty close".

Last month, Austar, which restructured its lending arrangements earlier this year after breaching lending covenants, disclosed a third-quarter operating loss of $21.1 million, a 58 per cent rise on the previous quarter. But Austar saw an improvement in quarterly earnings before tax, depreciation and amortisation to $6.4 million, although drought and price rises had reduced subscriber numbers.

Austar reaches endgame

From http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,5725345%255E643,00.html

AUSTRALIA'S second-biggest pay-TV company, rural and regional operator Austar, will be taken back into private ownership under a restructuring that will pay investors just 17c a share – a crushing 96 per cent below the float price three years ago.

Sydney private equity firm Castle Harlan Australian Mezzanine Partners (CHAMP) – half-owned by Wall Street investment giant Castle Harlan – revealed at the weekend it had pounced on the collapse of Austar parent United Australia Pacific.

CHAMP is offering UAP bondholders $US34.5 million ($62.7 million) – about 7c in the dollar – to relinquish their loans to the company, currently in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection proceedings in the US.

If the complicated offer is accepted, the private equity group would share control of an 80.7 per cent stake in Austar with UnitedGlobalCom, a company controlled by billionaire US cable mogul John Malone.

CHAMP director David Jones told The Australian yesterday that the private equity group would have the biggest single shareholding in Austar "but that may be less than 50 per cent".

"That's why we're putting in place an arrangement with UGC where we will jointly appoint the same number of directors to the Austar board."

Under Australian law, however, they will be forced to make an offer for the balance of Austar shares, which are held by investors who have bought into the company since its float in July 1999.

Under the terms of the bond restructuring, Austar shareholders will be offered 17c a share – in line with the last closing price of the stock on the Australian Stock Exchange on Friday.

That is a bitter blow for many Austar shareholders who bought into the company at $4.70 a share when it listed after a heavily oversubscribed float in July 1999.

The float raised $463 million for the company after costs, and the shares quickly climbed to a peak of $9.65 in March 2000, the height of the tech boom. At its zenith, the loss-making company was worth about $4.6 billion – the same as Brambles or Lend Lease today. On Friday Austar was worth just $121 million.

The offer is expected in March 2003. If it was not fully taken up, CHAMP and UGC said, they would back a rights issue to raise $63.5 million in working capital for the group.

As well as a loss of confidence caused by the US bonds collapse, Austar has been burdened by the costs of digitalising its regional network and the uncertainty surrounding the program-sharing deal between Optus and Foxtel.

Austar has about 400,000 subscribers spread across Hobart, Darwin and country Australia. Foxtel, which serves the cities, has about 800,000, with Optus in third place with 250,000.

But Austar is carrying debts of $400 million and has only just become cash-flow positive, reporting earnings before interest tax, depreciation and amortisation of $6.4 million for the nine months to June 30.

Yesterday Austar was putting a brave face on the news of the effective takeover.

Chief executive officer John Porter, who will remain in the role after the deal is complete, said he was "delighted" to have CHAMP on board.

"We welcome the support of our business by both UGC and a new group of highly motivated and astute investors," he said. Mr Jones says the major problems for Austar are behind it now and the company will benefit from local input.

CHAMP manages or advises more than $800 million in private equity in Australia, where it specialises in leveraged and management buyouts.


iPSTAR in 2003: Reaching for the Stars Will Deploy 18 Gateways in Asia-Pacific after its First year Service

Thai satellite company Shin Satellite pcl (ShinSat) said it would deploy 18 gateways for its iPSTAR-1 broadband Internet satellite to be launched in late 2003.

The gateways will be located in 14 Asian countries, including Thailand, said ShinSat. These countries include Vietnam, Myanmar, India, China, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Cambodia. ShinSat also announced that its first generation iPSTAR satellite-based broadband services, using the new iPSTAR ground system technology with existing satellites, marked the first year of service deployment in Thailand, Malaysia, Myanmar, India and a number of other Asian countries.

ShinSat claims that iPSTAR technology is considered the world's most efficient and cost effective because of its low cost, high bandwidth user terminal, and bandwidth improvement over other current technologies. iPSTAR-1 will have a massive bandwidth capacity of 45 Gbps, almost equivalent to all satellites serving Asia today. ShinSat said iPSTAR-1 will offer lower costs for both user terminals and bandwidth, and a larger bandwidth capacity allowing it to serve mass broadband markets with competitive products.

ShinSat Executive Chairman Dr. Dumrong Kasemset said the company is now the world's pioneer in creating a truly integrated solution for satellite broadband. “These allow us to create technical and commercial synergy from the integration of gateways, terminals, satellite bandwidth and applications, which is a tremendous step forward for our industry in commercializing new advanced technology and providing end-to-end service to benefit customers. Moreover, iPSTAR is the only broadband satellite program in such advanced stage of development in technology, financing, and commercialization. We see great potentials in satellite-based broadband services made possible by iPSTAR technology and satellite.”

iPSTAR-1 is expected to be the main source of company's revenues and will become the fourth ShinSat bird in orbit. ShinSat claims to have already booked over a quarter of iPSTAR's capacity with partners in Malaysia, China and India. Just recently, ShinSat secured US$390.2 million in loans from U.S. and European creditors to finance iPSTAR. The U.S. Export-Import Bank will guarantee a US$184.5 million, eight-year loan while Coface (Compagnie Francaise d'Assurance pour le Commerce Extrieur), the French export-credit guarantee company, will stand behind a US$80.7 million loan, also for eight-years. Eight commercial syndicated lenders led by Citibank and BNP Paribas S.A. will guarantee the remaining US$125 million four-year loan.

The Eximbank loan will pay for the cost of satellite construction by Space Systems/Loral (SS/L). SS/L is an affiliate of Loral Space & Communications, the world's second largest manufacturer of commercial satellites and related technologies. The funds from Coface follow ShinSat's selection of France's Arianespace to launch iPSTAR. In April, ShinSat announced that Coface had agreed to cover up to 85 percent of the US$90 million launch service fee for its iPSTAR-1. Analysts said the interest rates on the loans rates are almost similar to those offered by commercial banks to governments.

iPSTAR-1 will have a capacity of 40 gigabytes per second to gateways in the Asia-Pacific covering China, Japan, India and Australia. It will provide telecommunications and multimedia services to households, business and public organizations. Individual households will have access to a wide variety of pay TV and VOD services, IP voice telephony and high-speed Internet connections. ShinSat earlier said iPSTAR-1 would focus on business and high-end Internet customers. It said the satellite would benefit clients who want fast Internet access and who live in remote areas. An installation package will cost US$700-900 with a monthly service charge ranging from US$30-60.

Govt Mulls Opening Ku Band For Broadcast

From http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=24391

New Delhi: After lifting the ban on Ku band for direct-to-home (DTH) television, the government is examining the proposal to allow Ku band uplinking for all TV broadcasting, according to information and broadcasting minister Sushma Swaraj. This is in response to representations made by a group of teleport owners and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the minister said.

So far, broadcasters, other than for DTH, can uplink only through C-band in India. This is in direct conflict with the government policy of promoting India as an uplinking hub. Ever since India liberalised its uplinking norms, allowing companies with up to 49 per cent of foreign equity to set up teleports, companies have been queuing up for the same. These companies are eyeing lucrative business, through leasing out of their teleports to interested parties. But, because many of the satellite companies such as Eutelsat offer only Ku band facility, uplinking through only C band is seen as a major hindrance in the teleport business.

As Ku band broadcasting was considered a security threat, which is the main reason for imposing the ban on it for several years, the government is consulting other ministries such as Home Affairs, before taking a decision on the issue.

Already, 16 teleports have come up in India ever since the uplinking policy was liberalised in 2000.

But even as ban on Ku band was lifted to allow DTH broadcasting two years ago, the prohibition on the band continues for uplinking of TV channels (other than for DTH).

According to the uplinking guidelines, teleport licensees can uplink to both Indian and foreign satellites. However, the norms clearly state that uplinking will be allowed only through C-band.

The eligibility criteria for a broadcaster setting up earth station for uplinking its own TV channel are different. Any TV channel, irrespective of its ownership, equity structure or management control aimed at Indian viewership can uplink from the country.

Sahara to air news channels in 2 mths

From http://www.business-standard.com/today/story.asp?Menu=2&story=4425

Sahara Television, a part of the Subroto Roy-promoted Sahara group, is set to roll out the first of its 30-odd news channels within the next two months.

The company has already finalised a phased launch of its channels over the next few months but its flagship national news channel and a regional channel catering to the Uttar Pradesh region will be launched first.

This will be followed by the immediate launch of the channels catering to the national capital region (NCR), Mumbai and the channels dedicated to Rajasthan, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.

The national news channels will have the brand name Sahara Samay, while the regional channels will also include the regional name along with the main brand.

*ll the proposed news channels as well as the general entertainment channel of Sahara TV will be free-to-air but we would leverage on the vast untapped regional advertising market which will be the mainstay of our business model,” said Prriya Raj, vice-president, Sahara Television.

?We would be leveraging our vast network of over 1600 V-SATs deployed all over the country to be the best in the business of providing news and information with a strong flavour of local news. This V-SAT network could probably be the biggest for any broadcasting company in Asia,” Raj added.

The company has already deployed more than 1300 V-SATs all over the country and the rest are set to be deployed shortly.

The company has already started conducting trial runs for its two channels to and the rollout is expected to be after all preliminary glitches are ironed out.

The company has already tapped cable operators and provided them with the necessary reception equipment required to access the digital news channels that would be beamed from Asiasat 3S satellite.

The equipment which is essentially set top boxes have been provided to the operators through various financial schemes.

Sahara Television had announced its plan to launch its news channel way back in 2000 has reworked its plans over the past couple of years owing to the drastic changes that the media and broadcasting industry underwent.

T S I C H A N N E L N E W S - Number 51/2002 22 December 2002 -

A weekly roundup of global TV news sponsored by TELE-satellite International
Editor: Branislav Pekic

Edited Apsattv.com Edition

A S I A

ASTRO TO ADD THREE NEW CHANNELS

Subscribers to satellite broadcaster Astro can look forward to three new
24-hour channels showcasing Asian productions from January 1. Prima
(available on Channel 8), which is part of the Astro Favourites package,
offers drama series from the region in addition to eight films and, with
the exception of Indonesian titles, all other productions screened on Astro
Prima will carry Bahasa Malaysia subtitles. Besides plans to introduce the
increasingly popular telenovellas from the Spanish-speaking world, Astro
Prima will also screen a variety of classic Malay favourites - sitcoms,
lifestyle and religious documentaries, travelogues, TV magazines, musicals
or variety shows and local English news. Fans of Chinese dramas will be
interested in Shuang Xing, or the "Twin Stars" channels (37 and 38) that
will showcase the best serials from Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong China
and Singapore. These two channels will broadcast an average of four new
titles offering about 100 viewing hours (or 100 episodes) a month. All
non-Mandarin titles on the Shuang Xing channels will carry Mandarin
subtitles, and where available, with the dual language track facility that
gives viewers the option of either viewing the serial in its original
language or switching to a Mandarin-dubbed version. However, these two
channels will come under Astro's Dynasty Package, with subscribers offered
a Chinese New Year rate of RM15 from now until February 28, 2003, following
which it will be RM20.

AFGHANISTAN

CABLE BAN PROVOKES PROTESTS

The Supreme Court in a decree has ordered the authorities of Nangarhar
Province to immediately stop cable TV network, which shows Indian films in
addition to news and entertainment programmes. The Supreme Court decree
says: "The programmes and channels containing dances and nudity are
prohibited in Kabul. Similarly they should be banned in Nangarhar Province
too. Indian and other films containing dances are run in Nangarhar, which
is a key province of the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan. People
of Nangarhar should also abstain from such things since they are against
Islam and jihad. Nangarhar Radio and Television should broadcast such
programmes, which should not harm people's ethics and should be according
to the culture and traditions of the people" The decree also says that:
"The cable should immediately be banned in Nangarhar Province". A cable
network named "Afghan Cable Centre" in Jalalabad City was providing foreign
channels to the residents of the city. The head of that cable network Eng
Mohammad Homayun has declared that they charged 1,000 Pakistani rupees for
initial membership and their members had to pay 200 Pakistani rupees for
the monthly line rental. The cable network provided 20 entertainment, news
and film channels and had over 600 subscribers.

AUSTRALIA

PAY-TV PROBLEMS DISCUSSED

The Australian Broadcasting Authority (ABA) on December 20 released a
discussion paper on pay-TV content rules, with a focus on the industry's
issues with the regulations. The pay-TV sector has lodged a series of
complaints that it is unable to comply with the rules, set down in 1999,
which require operators to spend at least 10 per cent of their total
programming budgets on new Australian drama. Pay-TV operators are more than
$8 million behind the required amount of expenditure despite increasing
their locally produced film and television drama. Authority chairman David
Flint said the review would look at the impact of content regulations on
the operators and any problems they encountered in meeting them. The
authority said since the content regulations were brought in, more than
$45.7 million had been injected into the domestic production industry.
Submissions to the discussion paper must be with the ABA by February 7.

CANWEST TO RECEIVE DIVIDEND FROM NETWORK TEN

CanWest Global Communications announced on December 20 that its Australian
TV operation, Network TEN, has declared an interim dividend from earnings
during the period from September 1, 2002 to December 20, 2002. The
distribution to CanWest, to be paid December 27, 2002, will be
approximately Cdn. $30 million. CanWest, owner of the Global Television
Network, and now Canada's largest publisher of daily newspapers, owns,
operates and/or holds substantial interests in newspapers, conventional
television, out-of-home advertising, specialty cable channels, radio
networks and Internet portals in Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Ireland
and the United Kingdom.

CHINA HONG KONG

NEWS CORP SIGNS TV DEAL WITH HUNAN BROADCASTING

Rupert Murdoch's The News Corporation is to sign a cooperative agreement
with a state-owned Chinese provincial broadcaster to make television
programs, according to state press reports. The deal between The News
Corporation's Star Group and the Hunan Broadcasting Corp has been signed in
Beijing and the two companies would jointly produce and exchange
programming and develop other areas of cooperation.

ONE BILLION TV VIEWERS IN CHINA

China has 1.1 billion TV viewers according to a new survey carried of by
public broadcaster Chinese Central Television (CCTV). The survey revealed
that 96 per cent of all Chinese homes have colour television sets. Overall
in China there are 343 million colour sets and 195 million black and white.
Most urban viewers can choose up to 24 channels.

INDIA

REALITY TV SIGNS CARRIAGE DEAL

Zone Vision's docusoap and factual channel Reality TV is to launch in
India, after a carriage deal with channel distribution conglomerate
Zee-Turner. This new deal increases the channel’s reach by 10 million
subscribers, making a current total of 27 million subscribers across five
continents. Launching across the massive territory in February, the deal
could pave the way for the roll-out of Zone Vision channels across Asia.

HARMONIC HELPS SUN TV DOUBLE CHANNEL CAPACITY

Indian-based broadcaster Sun TV has deployed Harmonic's industry leading
MPEG-2 video encoders and statistical multiplexers for an extensive headend
upgrade. Harmonic's DVB compliant systems enabled Sun TV's satellite
network to carry twice as many digital channels with bandwidth available
for future channel expansion. Sun TV uses its own satellite transponder to
distribute channels from its headend facility in Chennai to regional cable
headends throughout Southern India. As a result, an estimated 1.5 million
cable subscribers are able to receive Sun TV programming. Sun TV is the
flagship company of Sun Network. It was the first regional channel from
India to be distributed globally for the Tamil speaking population.
Internet - www.sunnetwork.org
www.harmonicinc.com

CARTOON AND TCM TO LAUNCH ON CABLE

Local viewers will have the chance to see cartoons and classic movies from
the Cartoon Network and TCM (Turner Classic Movies), both from the Turner
Broadcasting System, Inc., on cable starting on January 1 next year. CSTV
Inc., which has been broadcasting AOL Time Warner's news channel CNN here,
will be the local distributor. Launched in the Asia-Pacific region in 1994,
the Cartoon Network has provided a range of animated entertainment,
including the world's largest cartoon library with Warner Bros., MGM and
Hanna-Barbera titles. TCM is the classic film network that celebrates some
of the finest moments in Hollywood's Golden Age.
http://www.aoltimewarner.com

GOVERNMENT CONSIDERS REGULATORY AGENCY

In a bid to regulate the content doled out by various television channels,
the Information and Broadcasting Ministry (I&B) is considering setting up
an independent Broadcasting Regulatory Authority (BRA). This proposal was
put forward by the I&B Minister, Ms Sushma Swaraj, at a meeting of the
Consultative Committee of Members of Parliament attached to the I&B
Ministry. The members of the committee supported the setting up of a
regulatory authority. They felt that this was necessary to address the
concerns of public order and decency, preservation of cultural diversity,
prevention of excessive depiction of sex and violence, national security,
integrity and sovereignty of the country and protection of children from
undesirable programmes and advertisements.

CABLE OPERATORS TO BOYCOTT ZEE-TURNER CHANNELS

Cable operators in Tamil Nadu have decided to boycott transmission of all
channels in Zee-Turner bouquet in the next two weeks. This follows an
announcement by these channels of a tariff hike in urban and semi-urban
markets, from 1 January 2003. Tamil Nadu Cable Operators General Welfare
Association, which has 20,000 members, accounts for 90 per cent of the
cable operators in the State. Zee-Turner combine had hiked price by Rs8 to
Rs42 per subscriber. The bouquet includes Zee, Zee News, Zee Cinema, Zee
English, Zee MGM, Cartoon Network, CNN, Nickelodeon and Alpha channels.

DOORDARSHAN PLANS TO LAUNCH DTT IN JANUARY

Doordarshan (DD) is planning a market roll-out of DTT in metro markets
around January. Viewers will have to shell out anything from Rs 6,000-7,000
for a DTT set-top box, but will only receive 5 DD channels. Although DD had
earlier planned to include private channels in DTT, now it is planning to
go on its own.

JAPAN

TV ASAHI TAKES OVER TELETEXT BROADCASTER

Asahi National Broadcasting Co (TV Asahi) said on December 12 it will
convert Asahi Lettervision, a teletext broadcasting company, into a wholly
owned subsidiary by the end of this year. TV Asahi currently holds a 35 per
cent equity stake in Asahi Lettervision and will buy the remainder of
issued shares from other stockholders, such as Asahi Shimbun Publishing Co
and Toei Co. The move is intended to streamline operations within the TV
Asahi group to prepare for a complete shift in Japan's terrestrial
broadcasting from analogue to digital in 2011.

NEW ZEALAND

GOVERNMENT DENIES SALE OF TVNZ TRANSMISSION ARM

The Government gave an assurance on December 19 it would not sell the
transmission arm of TVNZ when it is split from the company. Broadcasting
Minister Steve Maharey announced that TVNZ would become a crown company and
Transmission Holdings would be turned into a separate state-owned
enterprise under legislation now before Parliament. To do that it will have
the change the legislation, because as it was originally drafted the two
arms would be separate but report to a single parent board. The Government
said the main reason was to ensure transparency and accountability, but
critics of the change have suggested it might be setting up the
transmission arm for a sale. Mr Maharey said today that was not the case.

22/12/02

No update Sundays

21/12/02

Hamara TV is starting , Yes this Indian service mentioned a few months ago will be via Optus B3, Adhoc channel in the Globecast mux.The service will be running 15 minutes per day Monday to Saturday and 45 minutes on Sunday.

The Broadcast time is Monday to Saturday is 9:30 PM to 9:45 PM..And Sundays 7 PM to 7:45 PM

Telcast are after installers for HRT Croatia on Optus B3 Globecast platform, they will have to provide the full kit, including a set-top box suitable for Globecast B3 platform with Irdeto.

They are also able to provide the smartcard only for those people who already have a satellite installed or who would like to be third party sellers of their product...

The number to call is 1300 13 10 12.

Website is www.telcast.com.au

From my Emails & ICQ

Nothing to report

From the Dish

Intelsat 701 180E 10975 H "Canal + Jaune" has started , Mediaguard, PIDs 164/96.

Apstar 2R 76.5E 3848 H "TVB Xing He Channel" is encrypted again.

Palapa C2 113E All channels in the Trueworld mux on 11132 V are now in clear.CCTV 1 has left this mux. TTV has replaced HotSat TV on PIDs 74/75.

AAP 1 108.2E A SkyLife mux has started on 12471 H, clear, SR 27500, FEC 3/4,
PIDs 1808/1809-1984/1985, NE Asian beam, line-up: Ghem TV, EBS Plus 1,Real Estate TV Network, Movie Plus, PBC TV, Dong Ah TV, Food Channel, Home CGV, KTV, Arirang TV Korea, Star Sports and Disney Channel Asia.

Thaicom 3 78.5E 3551 H "ATV (Turkey)" has started, Fta, PIDs 1281/1282.

PAS 10 68.5E 3808 V "Ten Sports Middle East" has started, Irdeto 2, PIDs 50/52.

NEWS

The Republic of Korea Selects Alcatel Space as a Successful Bidder to Build Koreasat 5 Satellite

From Press Release

Paris, December 19, 2002 Alcatel Space announced today that it has won the international request for proposals issued by KT Corporation (formerly Korea Telecom) and the Korean Agency for Defense Development (ADD) to build South Korea's Koreasat 5 civil and military communications satellite. Alcatel Space will supply both the multimission satellite and its ground control system.

Based on the new-generation Spacebus 4000 platform, Koreasat 5 will feature a state-of-the-art broadband payload, including new technologies developed within the scope of the Syracuse III program.

Announcing this selection, Alcatel Space's Chairman and CEO Pascale Sourisse said, "I am extremely proud that Alcatel Space has been chosen by KT Corporation and the Agency for Defense Development for the Koreasat 5 program. This contract also marks another success for our export sales & marketing teams. In addition, it confirms Alcatel Space's leading role as a supplier of both civil and military spaceborne communications systems."

About Alcatel Space

Alcatel Space is worldwide number 3 and European leader in satellites. With civil and military application know-how, Alcatel Space develops satellite solutions for telecommunications, navigation, radar and optical observation, meteorology, and sciences. The company is also the leading European prime contractor of earth observation, meteorology and navigation segments, and for operating space systems. A 100% subsidiary of Alcatel, Alcatel Space had a turnover of 1.4 billion euros in 2001. For further information: http://www.alcatel.com/space.

About Alcatel

Alcatel (Paris: CGEP.PA and NYSE: ALA) designs, develops and builds innovative, competitive communications networks used by operators, service providers and companies to provide all content (voice, data or multimedia) to all customers throughout the world. Using the complete portfolio of solutions ranging from optical infrastructures to fixed and mobile networks and broadband access, Alcatel customers can devote themselves to optimizing their service offers and sources of revenue. With a turnover of 25 billion euros in 2001, Alcatel is present in more than 130 countries.

Contact press@alcatel.com

2 Sahara news channels on course for Feb launch

From indiantelevision.com

The Subroto Roy-promoted diversified Sahara group has targeted the launch of the first two of its proposed 30-odd region-specific news channels - a national and one for Uttar Pradesh - for February 2003.

Subsequently, between February and June 2003, some of the other proposed news channels too are slated to be launched in a phased manner . This is Sahara's bid to tap the "vast non-urban advertising market."

The news channels will be launched under the brand name Sahara Samay and each channel will carry the tag of the region it is targeting.

"The work on the first two channels is progressing very well and is at an advanced stage. So much so that dry runs and other trials started recently," Sumit Roy, deputy director in Sahara and head of the group's media & entertainment business told indiantelevision.com in an exclusive interview.

While steadfastly refusing to divulge any financial details or the investments made in the news channels project, Roy also brushed aside accusations that this project has got mired in delays and controversies.

"The delays are all perceived delays. We made a definitive announcement only earlier this year and are launching the news channels in 2003. If you say a few months is a big delay for a project of this big scale, then we don't have much to say. Because not everything was in our hands and despite the best efforts from our side, other factors contributed to what the media is perceiving as delays," Roy explained.

Still, it is true that Sahara's earlier plan to launch just one news channel underwent several changes since 2000 when Subroto Roy first held a press conference in Delhi to announce the group's big plans in the broadcasting sector.

Points out Sumit Roy, "This is a dynamic market and our plans did undergo some change, thanks to the vision of our managing worker (Subroto Roy). I'd say, it is better to be slightly late rather than put up a bad show in a hurry."

According to him, after the first two launches, the other region-specific channels which have been lined up for debut include Sahara Samay Mumbai (which will also include part of Gujarat), Sahara Samay meant for the National Capital Region (NCR-comprising Delhi and surrounding areas) and the ones meant for Rajasthan, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.

Roy also points out that the process of seeding the market with set-top boxes, which would be needed by cable operators to access the digital news channels that would be beamed from Asiasat 3S satellite, has started.

"For the news channel meant for Uttar Pradesh we'll be having some 1000-odd STBs, while for the national news channel about 5,000 boxes will be distributed in the first phase," Roy said, adding, " We are not giving the boxes free, but various schemes are being worked out so that the STBs don't add to the existing financial burden of the cable operators."

Dwelling on the positioning and branding of the news channels, Roy said that the USP of the news channels would be content and high-speed newsgathering, courtesy the vast V-SATS network, probably the "biggest network of news bureaus in the country", coupled with state-of-the-art technology.

"Our aim is very clear that we will give news of local flavour (depending on the various regions of the country) at international standards, standards which will compare with the likes of CNN and BBC," Roy said.

On the tech front, the group plans to utilise six Silicon Graphics (SGI) Onyx2 high-performance visualisation systems with SGI InfiniteReality3 graphics engines and Graphics-to-Video-Output and SGI XT-DIVO digital video options. Translated, this implies that the combined Onyx2 and Vizrt solutions will enable Sahara to deliver visually exciting broadcast graphics and virtual set technology for news, weather and sports.

According to Roy, all the proposed news channels, as also the existing general entertainment channel Sahara TV, will be digital, but free-to-air so as to remain part of the basic tier of service in a post-conditional access regime.

Speaking on the media speculation that the arrival of Vinod Dua has curtailed the powers of the other channel heads, Roy, who has worked with the Sahara group for 16 years now, said, "I don't think that there is any conflict of interest with Vinod Dua's arrival or association with the news project. Dua has had a long association with the group and he is acting as an advisor to the news channel project. I would say there is great team spirit amongst all."

Arup Ghosh, former anchor at Prannoy Roy's NDTV, who left in September 2000 to start Network One, will head Sahara Samay, the national news channel. Rajiv Bajaj (president of the Hinduja Group's IN TV till February 2002) will be in charge of Sahara Samay Mumbai, veteran Doordarshan journalist Prabhat Dabral is going to head the news channels meant for the Hindi heartland, while Shireen, another star anchor at NDTV till 2000 will be heading the NCR channel.

NSS 703 57E 3980 R "Gemini TV" is now encrypted.