29/07/04

Grant from Satmax ( www.satmax.ws ) arrived last night at my place with my new 2.4M!

Might have it assembled and up next week if the backyard has dried out. We had 50 mm of rain last night the spot where the dish is going is a bit of a bog at the moment. I dug some drains around it this afternoon. It might be ok by the weekend.

4080 H on Palapa C2 by request has had a power increase

To those making submissions on the NZ satellite discussion paper that July 30th is last day for submissions. http://www.med.govt.nz/rsm/spp/satellite/discussion/index.html

Jon's Asia weekly hasn't arrived yet

From my Emails & ICQ

From Steve Johnson (Sth Auckland NZ)

Palapa C2, 4080H
Intensity - 60% & Quality - 52% on Innovia IDS3088. Using paraclipse Hydro
1.8m solid, ADL orthomode & Gardiner 17K extended C Band LNB. Promax P4,
spec an indicates between 6.5 & 9.5E -4 BER directly off the dish.

Steve Johnson
Sth Auckland, NZ

From Ocean

Palapa c2 4080H

Palapa C2 4080H 28150 near Adelaide
Intensity 85%, Quality 84% on similar Powtek Receiver/3m/15K cheapie LNBF
4080H reads -16dBm at IF.
3926H reads -30dBm at IF for Bali TV at Intensity 76%, Quality 39%
- 4080H is a BIG signal

From Mark Fahey

Yemen Television AS3

The Arab mux on AS3 has added a channel "Yemen TV" - at the moment it is
running Syria's video and audio - I guess we will see Yemen arrive here soon.

Also on the same mux Oatar radio has gone.

Asiasat 3
3880 H
27500
3/4

Cheers,
Mark

From Vk4bkp

The test patterns have returned to Pas8 12526H 28066 3/4.

From Steve Hume

An email to Kabelvision

I have noticed a signal on the satellite PalapaC2 over the last few
weeks. I was told that it was Kablevision testing a transponder for
satellite transmission.

My question is firstly, is this true? And secondly, will it remain on
C-Band on PalapaC2? And thirdly, is it possible for me to subscribe?

I live in the top east of Australia, and have a lagge C-Bnad dish that I
recieve you signal at a good level. To the south of me a few hundred Km,
the test signal drops off to very little.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, and await your reply.

Thank You,
Steve Hume
************************************************************************

Reply

Dear Mr.Hume,

Thank you for sending us an email inquiring on our satellite tv.

Yes, we are testing a transponder for satellite transmission and
remaining on extended C-Band and on Palapa C2.

Although Australia is technically within our coverage; we have an
agreement with our content providers that our service is merely sold in
Indonesia, we regret not be able to proceed your interest on being a
subscriber of our satellite tv.

Once again, thanks for your interest in our satellite tv

Yours sincerely,
CService

From the Dish

PAS 8 166E 12360 V "SET News" has left again, replaced by occasional feeds.

Telstar 18 Has arrived at 138 East.

Apstar 1A 134E 4054 H "Southern TV" has started regular transmissions on , Fta, SR 4420,FEC 3/4, PIDs 160/80.
Apstar 1A 134E All channels in the CCTV mux on 4160 H are encrypted again, except CCTV Kids.

Apstar 1A 134E 4034 H "Guangdong 2-3" have started on , Fta, APIDs 89 and 90.
Apstar 1A 134E 4034 H "Guangdong 1" has replaced Satellite Radio Guangdong on APID 81, fta.

Insat 3A 93.5E 3894 V "Lashkara" has left .

NEWS

Ad remover stirs networks

From http://news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,10274693%255E15321,00.html

THE $2.3 billion dollar commercial television industry is preparing to defend its advertising revenue from new technology that will enable consumers to automatically avoid commercials.

Inventor Peter Vogel launched the ICE technology in Sydney yesterday in a bid to raise $6 million from private investors to fund the roll-out of ICE-enabled digital set-top boxes. The first TVs with the technology will be operating in November.

Mr Vogel's company, Faulconbridge, aims to have ICE activated on 3 per cent of Australia's 17 million television sets - about 500,000 TVs - within three years.

For the cost of a $500 set-top box that can digitally record programs, and a $3 per week ICE subscription fee, consumers will be able to avoid ads, automate the recording of shows, series or program genres for viewing later and automatically channel surf during ad breaks.

The technology can also be used to prevent children from watching programs that are deemed unsuitable, reduce the volume during ad breaks and remove ads when recorded programs are played back.

Harvey Norman finance director John Skippen said the retailer would "jump at the chance" to carry the technology.

According to Media buyers, ad skipping will increase pressure on the networks to justify the high cost of television ads if fewer people are watching them.

The commercial networks have been reluctant to react to the launch of ICE, preferring to paint ad skipping technology as a non-event.

Spokespeople for the Seven and Ten networks said ad skipping had had a minimal impact in the US, where it is in 4 per cent of US homes. However, this figure is tipped to rise to 20 per cent in two years.

A report from media agency Optimum Media Direction says in homes with digital video recorders up to 75 per cent of ads are skipped.

Ten head of research Doug Peiffer refuted this, saying studies had shown people got information from ads and generally didn't mind watching them.

One emerging issue with the ICE launch is whether ICE will infringe the networks' copyright by using their program listings to inform its system.

"We own copyright in our guides and haven't licensed him or any other set-top box manufacturer to use our information for this purpose," Seven's spokesman said.

Most digital video recorders in markets such as the US and the UK operate on electronic-based program guides that contain triggers identifying programs and ads.

The networks did not provide a similar electronic program guide in Australia and digital video recorders currently on the market could not avoid ads using that method, a spokesperson from Digital Broadcasting Australia said.

Foxtel plans to introduce a digital video recorder next year based on the UK Skybox model that allows fast-forwarding of ads, but does not black out or skip them completely.

Mr Vogel said the ICE system did not rely on signals transmitted by the networks.

It transmits an independent radio signal to ICE-enabled digital set-top boxes identifying what goes to air in real time, including ads, individual programs, regular series, news bulletins and program genres, such as football games.

Human operators monitor the signal to ensure all ads, news flashes and programs that run over time are correctly identified.

"We're not using the networks' signal at all," Mr Vogel said. "We completely create our own third-party [electronic program guide]."

Mr Vogel said ICE would not infringe copyright and only automated existing viewer habits.

"We compile our own listings from various sources in a way that doesn't infringe (the networks') copyright."

Mr Vogel has said several companies are interested in incorporating the technology in their set-top boxes but has not announced any manufacturing deals.

CanWest Mediaworks lists at $1.65

From http://www.nzherald.co.nz/

CanWest MediaWorks listed on the sharemarket at $1.65 today - a 7.8 per cent premium to the issue price of $1.53.

Canadian media giant CanWest Global Communications Corp floated off 30 per cent of its New Zealand television and radio assets including the flagship TV3 channel through the issue of 68 million shares at $1.53 each, raising $104 million.

CanWest MediaWorks will acquire the parent group's six national New Zealand radio brands -- More FM, The Edge, The Rock, Channel Z, Radio Pacific, Solid Gold -- as well as 22 regional radio station, plus free-to-air channels TV3 and C4.

CanWest, Canada's largest media company, issued the minimum number of shares under the offer and did not take up the option to issue another 13.6 million shares, despite the offer being around three times oversubscribed.

The only listed media stock of note is pay television operator Sky Network Television, majority owned by Independent Newspapers.

CanWest MediaWorks will have a market capitalisation of around $347 million.

Just 1.5 million shares were issued to public pool.

Directors and employees of MediaWorks have collectively been allotted about 650,000 shares.

MediaWorks chairman Tom Strike said he was delighted to welcome about 4000 new investors onto the share register.

"We are gratified by the strong endorsement of the company they have shown through their participation in this offer," he said.

The net proceeds of the offer and $200 million of cash borrowed under a bank five-year revolving term credit facility were used together with the issue of the 158,666,667 shares to purchase the radio and television businesses of CanWest RadioWorks Ltd and CanWest TVWorks Ltd.

RadioWorks' (the radio stations) revenue is forecast to rise to $101m in 2004 from $92.3m in 2003 and then to $104m in 2005. Its ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) is seen rising to $32.3m this year from $25.9m in 2003 and then to $33m in 2005.

TVWorks' revenue will rise to $126m in 2004 from $120m and then to $130.4m in 2005. Its ebitda is forecast to rise to $28.3m from $13.2m in 2003 and then to $30.5m in 2005.

The group ebida profit is picked at $60m this year from $39.1m last year and is forecast at $61m in 2005.

Murray Rutherford of Goldman Sachs JB Were, which organised the float said the stock had been the focus on the market.

"It's opened very strongly which is what we'd expect. I think the economic environment that we're enjoying at the moment will be very good for this company and that's been recognised."

DD appoints marketing agency for DTH service

From http://www.indiantelevision.com/headlines/y2k4/july/july188.htm

NEW DELHI: Pubcaster Doordarshan, proposing to launch its free KU-band direct-to-home television service on 15 August, expects to seed the market with over 10,000 boxes before the launch date. Some boxes would be sold, while a bulk would be distributed free. It has also appointed a marketing agency towards the purpose.

Pointing out that the launch of DD Direct -- as the DTH service has been christened -- would be a "soft" one, bereft of hype associated with such initiatives in the broadcast industry, Prasar Bharati CEO KS Sarma told indiantelevision.com today, "We expect to have distributed 10,000 boxes -- needed to access the DTH service -- by mid-August and the vendor for the boxes has intimated us that the effort would be to sell additional boxes."

According to Sarma, DD has also appointed a marketing agency to have the set-top boxes for the DTH service to be sold through outlets in various cities. "If the promise of the vendor comes through, then about 20,000 boxes would be sold over the period." The price of the boxes has been kept nominal, Sarma added.

The launch of the DD Direct, to be beamed through NSS6 satellite, had been a matter of speculation for sometime in the government and industry circles for various reasons. One being whether the present Congress-led government would finally go ahead with the launch of the DTH service.

Though Prasar Bharati, which manages DD and sibling All-India Radio, had made an offer to private sector TV channels to come on board the DTH platform, the response had been lukewarm. Most of the Hindi-language entertainment channels have preferred to keep away. But on the other hand, some popular South Indian language channels, including two from the Sun TV family, have agreed to be part of DD Direct, which also has Star's free-to-air Star Utsav.

Sarma said that DD Direct would be launched with 17 channels, including private channels, but admitted that no Sony channels are part of the bouquet.

DD had decided last year to launch a KU-band DTH service as part of its expansion. A feasibility study undertaken indicated that it would be a costlier affair to expand terrestrially and so the DTH mode was opted for especially keeping in mind border areas and north-eastern parts of the country where both terrestrial and cable TV signals are either fuzzy or do not exist at all.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) in October last okayed pubcaster Doordarshan's forays into DTH television service and gave a nod to government assistance amounting to Rs 1,650 million in the first phase.

The assistance was to be disbursed over a period of three years starting from the current financial year. The one-time cost of installation of hardware would be approximately Rs 6,000, which is also expected to come down to Rs 3,000.

The CCEA had also approved, in principle, a proposal that after three years, DD can "go pay" with its DTH service to generate additional revenue for keeping up the service. By "going pay" means that subscribers would have to pay a monthly subscription for the service as they would pay for any other DTH service in the country.

DD initially plans to distribute 10,000 TV sets and dish antennas free-of-cost to public institutes like village panchayats, some educational institutions and NGOs.

At the moment, there is only one DTH service in India, Dish TV, which is promoted by Subhash Chandra's companies. The Tata-Star combine are awaiting a clearance from the information and broadcasting ministry for its proposed DTH service.

28/07/04

Things very quiet today.

From my Emails & ICQ

From Jsat

India V Sri Lanka Cricket
Insat 2E analog 4089v
also on 4070v 5000 3/4

From Splog

TVB SNG 2 feed seen on Pas 2 KU!!
12393 V sr 4285 Fec 3/4
Strong and Australian beam!

(Craigs comment, unusual he reported getting this but he still couldn't get 12401V Arirang..)

From the Dish

PAS 10 68.5E Telly Track on 4099 V and 12641 H are Fta.

Sky Pacific To Begin Testing

(Item via Bob Cooper)

Having completed the technical installation of equipment last Saturday, July 24th, Fiji Television management are pleased to be able to announce that testing of the satellite uplink service will begin the week of August 9th when technical specialists return to the country for that purpose and to continue the training of Fiji Television people who will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of Sky Pacific.

“Our testing plan might have begun earlier,” said Ken Clark, CEO of Fiji TV, “but one of the lead technical people was recalled to England to commission an uplink facility which is to be used for the Olympics coverage to be broadcast from Greece. The earliest time we can have him return to Fiji is the second week in August.”

In the meantime, arrangements are being made with Intelsat for the use of their transponder on Intelsat 701 for this purpose.

“While the uplink facilities and internal broadcast equipment are being tested, it is also the right time to test the quality of the signals being delivered on the ground in Fiji”, said Mr. Clark “So we will also expect to do that then as well.”

Testing would be expected, as per the original plan, to be carried out during the month of August and the business of delivery of Sky Pacific would begin in earnest in September.

In addition, of course, it is essential that we train the many new employees who will be responsible for accurate, professional delivery if the new and exciting service.

Details on exact content and pricing follow within a few weeks.

For follow up contact
Ken Clark
Chief Executive Officer
Ph 679 3305 100 Fax 679 3308 470

Broadband soon for Bombala

From http://bombala.yourguide.com.au/detail.asp?class=news&subclass=local&category=general%20news&story_id=324342&y=2004&m=7

"PEOPLE living in Eden-Monaro will soon have the choice of moving to broadband Internet-at an affordable price thanks to the Australian Government's $107.8 million Higher Bandwidth Incentive Scheme (HiBIS)," Federal Member for Eden-Monaro, Gary Nairn, said this week.

Three companies have been registered to provide broadband services under HiBIS to eligible residents and small businesses in regional, rural and remote areas of Australia. A further two companies, including Telstra, have been approved and will be registered shortly.

RBBS was the first company to be registered under HiBIS and is providing two-way satellite broadband across Australia in line with city prices and in areas where other technology options are not available.

Telstra has been approved to provide ADSL services under HiBIS and is expected to register other service technologies soon.

"I'm also delighted to announce that as a result of local community efforts together with support from HiBIS, Telstra will be enabling the exchange in Bombala, Bungendore, Mossy Point, Thredbo Village, and Braidwood in the near future," Mr Nairn said.

For more information on eligibility and contact details for registered HiBIS providers, follow the HiBIS link on www.telinfo.gov.au or phone 1800 883 488.

India to launch astronomy satellite

From http://www.spacedaily.com/2004/040726104857.59jrk61b.html

India is aiming to develop and launch a satellite for astronomical studies by 2007, a government statement said Monday.

The satellite named "ASTROSAT" will be a "national observatory in space" and will be available for astronomical observations, said the statement, issued after a cabinet meeting here.

The project is estimated to cost about 1.77 billion rupees (38 million dollars), it said

US-Funded Alhurra Television Wins Over Viewers In Iraq

From http://www.spacedaily.com/news/satellite-biz-04zzzze.html

Of those people who watch Alhurra, 64 percent found the news to be 'very' or 'somewhat' reliable. The results are based on face-to-face interviews with adults (over the age of 15) in Iraq between May 19 and June 14, 2004, four months after Alhurra first aired.

A new survey of Iraq conducted by Oxford Research International shows that 61 percent of Iraqi adults had watched the new US-funded Arabic language TV channel Alhurra (Arabic for "The Free One") in the previous week. Since it launched on February 14, 2004, Alhurra has quickly established itself as an important resource for Iraqis to get their news - 19 percent of those surveyed cited Alhurra as one of their top three sources of information.

Of those people who watch Alhurra, 64 percent found the news to be 'very' or 'somewhat' reliable. The results are based on face-to-face interviews with adults (over the age of 15) in Iraq between May 19 and June 14, 2004, four months after Alhurra first aired.

Alhurra is the latest and most technologically advanced television organization to enter the crowded Middle East satellite television market. The satellite channel is a 24-hour news and information network broadcast entirely in Arabic. It can be seen in 22 countries throughout the region via Arabsat and Nilesat, the same satellite systems used by all major Arabic channels.

In April 2004, a second channel was added called Alhurra Iraq specifically for Iraqi audiences. The new channel was available by satellite during the time of the survey.

It has subsequently started broadcasting with a clear signal in Baghdad on Channel 12 and in Basra on Channel 3. Additional terrestrial channels are expected in the near future.

Along with in-depth news from Alhurra, Alhurra Iraq provides nightly newscasts and talk shows specifically dealing with the issues facing contemporary Iraq.

"We always knew that it was critical that we reach out to Iraq. As the country begins rebuilding its government, it's important to provide the citizens with objective, accurate and balanced reporting of the news within their country and around the world," stated Norman J. Pattiz, Chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governor's Middle East Committee.

"Even though we had early indications of Alhurra's success, the fact that 61 percent of Iraqis are watching the network after being on the air for several months is extremely encouraging. There was never a question that people would watch Alhurra, but no one could have predicted this many, this quickly."

The Oxford survey covered all of Iraq with a total sample of 2,912 adults. Oxford Research International provides a unique research facility in the transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe, the CIS, Central Asia, China, South East Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

The firm was founded in 1995 by a group of analysts who received their training at the doctoral level at the University of Oxford.

An earlier telephone survey of satellite television viewers in major cities of the Middle East conducted in April by the French research firm Ipsos-Stat showed that a range of 18 percent to 44 percent of adults (15+) who live in houses with telephone and satellite dishes in seven Middle Eastern countries had watched Alhurra in the previous week.

The surveys were conducted in Lebanon (Beirut), Syria (Damascus, & Aleppo), United Arab Emirates (Abu Dhabi and Dubai), Egypt (Cairo and Alexandria), Kuwait (Kuwait City), Jordan (Amman, Irbid and Zarka) and Saudi Arabia (Riyadh and Jeddah) in early April.

Past week viewing in Lebanon was 40 percent; Syria 29 percent; UAE 19 percent; Egypt 18 percent; Kuwait 44 percent; Jordan 37 percent and Saudi Arabia 19 percent.

Of those who said they had watched Alhurra, 53 percent of Alhurra viewers consider its news 'very' or 'somewhat' reliable. Reliability figures were 70 percent for Saudi Arabia; 54 percent for Lebanon; 40 percent for Egypt; 44 percent for Jordan; 61 percent for Kuwait; 65 percent for UAE and 37 percent for Syria.

Alhurra and Alhurra Iraq are operated by a non-profit corporation called "The Middle East Television Network" (MTN). MTN is financed by the American people through the US Congress.

MTN receives this funding through the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), an independent federal agency that oversees all US international broadcasting. The BBG serves as a firewall to protect the professional independence and integrity of the broadcasters.

(Craigs comment, available via Intelsat as well)

Sun TV, Surya TV to be part of DD's DTH bouquet

From http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2004/07/28/stories/2004072800320900.htm

IN a significant boost to Doordarshan's proposed direct-to-home service, Sun Network has agreed to let two of its channels, including its flagship Tamil channel Sun TV, be part of DD's bouquet. Malayalam general entertainment channel Surya TV will be the other Sun Network channel to feature on the DTH platform.

Confirming the news, the Doordarshan's Deputy Director-General, Mr K. Kunhikrishnan, said the deal was finalised last week during his meeting with Mr Kalanidhi Maran, who runs the Sun Network.

The broadcaster has also been able to rope in Tamil general entertainment channel Raj TV and Malayalam channel Kairali.

DD's free-to-air DTH service, which is likely to be launched shortly, will initially offer 30 channels to its subscribers, 17 of which will be from its own stable. It is learnt that DD is also in talks with other private channels.

When DD announced a couple of weeks back that it had begun test transmission of its DTH service, industry observers had pointed out that it would do well to rope in driver channels such as Sun TV. The channel commands an over 50 per cent viewership share in the Tamil Nadu market and leads the rest by a huge margin.

DD-Direct to hit homes on Aug 15

From http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/792680.cms

NEW DELHI: Come August 15 and the average TV viewer in the country can really declare independence — from cablewallahs and subscription channels.

A ‘soft launch’ of DD-Direct, the direct-to-home services of the national broadcaster with a bouquet of 17 channels is expected to be launched less than a month from now.

While DD-Direct would compete with Zee-affiliate ASC Enterprises’ Dish TV, will there be space for a third player? Star’s DTH proposal — Space TV — may just have to cool its heels for a while.

Though the government’s DTH policy does not restrict the number of DTH players, global experience has proved that just two players can survive. Take for instance DirecTV and EchoStar in the US. Though Dish TV entered the DTH arena to serve the rural market, it has tiptoed into urban markets too. Reliable sources told ET that there is a similar Phase II plan for DD-Direct as well.

This means that sharing of content would be imperative. In India, there is no regulator for the broadcasting sector as yet.

The Trai, which is going into issues of interconnection and vertical monopolies, is expected to give its recommendations on “must provide” clauses for services like DTH. ASC Enterprises is still struggling to get private pay channels on board, while Star is awaiting its license before participating on other platforms.

Meanwhile, DD is getting into the act. Prasar Bharati CEO KS Sarma says, “The DD-Direct platform would initially comprise 17 DD channels. We are negotiating with private broadcasters to get their FTA channels on board.”

Apparently, 12 such channels have volunteered to clamber onto DD-Direct. This includes Star Utsav, Jain TV, Care TV, Raj TV (Telugu, Tamil), Sun TV (Tamil), Alpha (Bangla), MH1 (Punjabi), Kairali and Surya (Malayalam).

DD, which was expecting a better response, is holding out for more channels like ETV, SabTV, Sahara and the like. Though DD waived the carriage fee for two years (bringing the fee down from Rs 2 crore to Rs 72 lakh — for technology costs alone), the response continues to be lukewarm.

This has forced the public broadcaster to do a rethink on allowing news channels aboard. Aaj Tak and Headlines Today have since agreed to join the Direct platform. Eventually, DD hopes to have 41 channels on DD-Direct.

A difficult proposition if a strong player like Star jumps into the ring, unless there are clear norms in place.

Zee-Turner on cheap rural drive

From http://www.telegraphindia.com/1040728/asp/nation/story_3551759.asp

New Delhi: American media mogul Ted Turner and his Indian partner, Zee owner Subhash Chandra, are hoping to tap the potential for growth in villages and semi-urban areas with several fresh initiatives, reports our special correspondent.

To help reach the rural audience, Zee-Turner is offering cable operators the option of providing viewers with popular channels at a competitive price of just Rs 18,000 a year. Now, the operators have to pay a minimum of Rs 16,500 a month.

The operators can choose any channel from the Zee basket — Zee TV, Zee English, Zee MGM, Zee Cinema, Zee Music, and the regional Alpha channels.

“We endeavour to take our content offering to the grassroots level and be available in every cable and satellite household, whether in urban, semi-urban or rural India. To this effect, we have also expanded our dealer network to 400,” Zee-Turner’s Siddharth Jain said.

Of the 43 million cable and satellite homes in India, 15 million are in the rural sector, according to the company’s figures.

Andhra Pradesh has come under special focus in this initiative. The state has 7.3 million cable and satellite households, the largest number in the country. Fifty-six per cent of these homes are in rural areas.

Beaming to the world

From http://www.business-standard.com/

Mata Amritanadamayi Devi, popularly known as Amma, is all set to start her own television channel. The channel to be called Amrita is likely to be commissioned on September 27 this year on the occasion of Amma’s 51st birthday.

A company, Amrita Enterprises Pvt Ltd has been floated to run the channel. It is promoted by a group of Amma’s devotees, quite a few of them being NRIs. The total investment in the channel is likely to be around Rs 50 crore.

“It’s not going to be a religious channel,” says S M C Pillai, CEO, Amrita. “It’ll be a 24-hour commercial channel with programmes based on Indian traditions and values. Besides serials, yoga, travel shows, Amma’s teachings, the channel will also have around five hours of news programming.” Most of the programming would be done in-house.

The language of the programmes will be Malayalam though officials of Amrita Enterprises say that there are plans to have programmes in Hindi and English as well. News will be outsourced from wire agencies, which will later be supplemented by inputs from the channel’s own bureaus.

Pillai says that most of the clearances have been received from the Central government. The Thiruvanathapuram-based channel will have three studios and an earth station. Work on these is near completion. The company has leased a transponder on the Intelsat satellite.

For distribution of the channel, Amrita Enterprises officials say that talks with local cable operators in south India have been finalised.

In north India, Siti Cable is most likely to distribute the channel. For distribution in Europe and US, where Amma has a sizeable following, talks with cable operators will begin soon.

Pillai says that he is confident that the channel will break even within a year of starting operations. However he’s not willing to divulge details of his marketing strategy. All he says is that like other channels his team will target all advertisers.

Like a true spiritual soldier he says: “The point is not to make money. All we want to do is spread Amma’s message. If the channel loses money Amma’s disciples will pump in more.”

27/07/04

Live satellite chat tonight 9pm NZ and 8.30pm Syd in the chatroom.

I notice in the latest Skywatch magazine (Sky NZ) TVSN no longer listed. Have they quietly dumped it???

B1 12483V is back on, nothing loading there though

NSS6 ANT signal is source feed for Foxtel.

From my Emails & ICQ

From Rick Dalton

Hi Craig, The boomerang boxes are also known as Star Pro.
For a while a website existed with software to alter box to user friendly parameters. This is the software i seek.
Password is 599885

(Craigs comment, can any reader help out? these boxes ex TPG Boomerang Pas8 could be used as a basic 99 channel FTA box once the software was changed.)

From Anon

Tennis Feed
Pas 2 3958V Sr 6620

From Vk4bkp

I701 PBS

Hi Craig, new message on test card on one channel only I701 12693H 28066
3/4. One channel showing a test card is FTA all others scrambled,
encryption unknown.

Message says "coming soon - local scrambling test on channels 2 to 15"

From the Dish

PAS 8 166E 12360 V "SET News" has started on , Fta, PIDs 141/142.

NSS 6 95E 11543 V "The Free-XTV info card" is back on , fta, PIDs 5021/5034.

Insat 3A 93.5E "Cine World" has left 3913 V, moved to Insat 2E

Insat 2E 83E 3683 V "Cine World" has started on , Conax, SR 2950, FEC 3/4, PIDs 258/259, wide beam.

PAS 10 68.5E 3808 V "KTN" has left , replaced by an info card.

NEWS

MP backs Telstra's stake in Foxtel

From http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=13276

Communications Minister Helen Coonan has rejected calls by the competition watchdog for Telstra to sell its stake in pay TV provider Foxtel.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's (ACCC) chairman Graeme Samuel last week reignited calls for Telstra to sell its 50 per cent shareholding in Foxtel because of its dominance in the pay TV and telephone markets.

But Senator Coonan said the government had not been presented with a strong enough case to make Telstra sell its holding in Foxtel.

"The government is not convinced that case has been made out by anyone yet," she told ABC TV.

"And I think you'd have to be very careful before you committed to anything like a divestiture of Foxtel when you really don't know what it will cost and what its outcome will be."

A Telstra spokesman welcomed Senator Coonan's comments and noted that the ACCC had no powers to make Telstra sell its stake in Foxtel.

"The government recognises that its (the ACCC's call) is an absurd policy," he said.

"The government recognises it's flawed."

Telstra owns 50 per cent of Foxtel, with Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation and Kerry Packer's Publishing and Broadcasting Limited each holding a 25 per cent share.

Mr Samuel argues that as the owner of Australia's biggest telecommunications network and pay TV distribution company, Telstra could stifle competition.

But if Telstra were made to sell its stake in Foxtel, there would be room for another infrastructure competitor to enter the market.

Telstra is also under pressure in the broadband industry, because it owns the cables and other telcos have to pay a fee to Telstra to access bandwidth.

Optus' director of corporate and regulatory affairs, Paul Fletcher, called on the ACCC and the government to address Telstra's monopoly in broadband infrastructure.

Mr Fletcher told a telecommunications conference in Sydney that the monopoly was fine when broadband was relatively new in Australia, because it enabled competitors to get a foothold into the industry.

But he said the industry was now sufficiently established to end Telstra's monopoly on broadband infrastructure.

Asia-Pacific Pay-TV Rev to Exceed $22B by 2008

From http://www.reed-electronics.com/electronicnews/article/CA438780

Telcos and broadband players will see strong opportunity in the Asia-Pacific region in the next few years as the pay-TV subscription revenue in Asia-Pacific increases to $22.1 billion by 2008, a Yankee Group report found this week.

Cable TV service will account for 70.5 percent of total subscription revenue compared to 27.3 percent by satellite direct-to-home (DTH) and 2.2 percent by other emerging services in the Asia-Pacific by 2008, the firm said.

"Telecom carriers and broadband Internet providers are poised to extend their presence into the Asia-Pacific pay-TV arena," Agatha Poon, a Yankee senior analyst, said in a statement. "By spending millions of dollars on infrastructure and technology, telcos and broadband Internet providers have the potential to upset the current balance of the cable and satellite pay-TV market. Content will be the key to drive demand for premium pay-TV subscription beyond the basic package that constitutes the bulk of the subscriber base today."

With a market size of $11.7 billion in 2003, a majority of revenue still comes from the basic cable TV service segment, the firm said. Cable's dominance in part is attributed to increasingly positive government support and, in some cases, intervention in individual Asia-Pacific economies, Yankee said, noting that the legalization of private cable operation in Taiwan has led to phenomenal growth in the country's cable TV sector.

While much activity now centers on the delivery of digital cable TV services, the firm believes traditional cable operators will face increasing competitive pressure from DTH and broadband providers in several Asia-Pacific economies including Hong Kong, Korea, Japan, Taiwan and Australia. As innovative technologies and service flexibility separate winners from losers at the operational level, Asian governments should strengthen their role in pushing market uptake through further deregulation and liberalization, Yankee concluded.

THAILAND: MCOT proposes TV 'window to the East'

From http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=13084

The premier English-language channel on MCOT Television will situate itself as the news broadcaster of the East

The Mass Communication Organisation of Thailand (MCOT) will broaden its role in the broadcasting industry not only at home but also abroad, after listing on the Stock Exchange of Thailand in September, with its first-ever English-language channel, MCOT Television.

The around-the-clock channel, to cost more than a billion baht, would be the ``window to the East'' with worldwide coverage, according to director-general Mingkwan Sangsuwan.

The channel will also serve the government's policy of tightening trade ties with other countries by creating better understanding of Thailand.

Even with big players such as NHK, CNN and BBC dominating the market, Mr Mingkwan said the channel would secure a place of its own by clearly positioning itself as the channel of the East.

Programmes on the channel will partly be produced by Panorama Co, MCOT's 90%-controlled subsidiary, with a focus on documentaries.

New production companies will be added in the future through acquisitions. More staff will also be trained after the state enterprise is transformed into MCOT Plc. ``Being a private company will help us move forward with our expansion plans even faster. Over the next two years, I believe MCOT will still post a significant growth rate, driven by new businesses and better performances of existing ones, especially radio,'' said Mr Mingkwan whose term has two more years to go.

The MCOT currently operates television Channel 9, and also owns the concessions for Channel 3, and UBC pay-TV, as well as 62 radio stations.

In the nine months to June this year, its net profit rose 81.8% to 1.01 billion baht on total sales of 1.97 billion baht.

The cabinet recently approved MCOT's corporatisation plan amid criticism that it could be in violation of the 1997 Constitution, which calls for the establishment of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to oversee media reform.

Mr Mingkwan insisted the corporatisation plan followed the legal process, as did a public hearing.

The MCOT board also approved a 50% increase in staff salaries, reportedly to meet the standards of a private company.

The MCOT currently has three billion baht in paid-up capital, comprising 600 million shares with a par value of five baht each. The Finance Ministry will still hold a 75% stake after the listing.

The initial public offering would float 25% of all shares, with foreign investors restricted to holding no more than 15% of total shares and individual holdings capped at 5%. A source said the IPO would raise about four billion baht.

India TV Signs Distribution Agreement with Dish TV

From Press Release

New Delhi, Delhi, India, Monday, July 26, 2004 -- (Business Wire India)

India TV, the 24-hour news channel promoted by well-known television presenter Rajat Sharma, has signed a distribution agreement with Dish TV. This tie-up will benefit India TV by providing it with a wider reach across India.

Dish TV is a part of the Essel Group and is India's first Direct To Home entertainment (DTH) service that broadcasts an array of programmes from a high-powered satellite straight to homes. It also gives its 1.5 lakh subscribers and consumers a wide choice of programming in India. Under the terms of the agreement, Dish TV will receive exclusive rights to distribute the channel on its DTH platform. .

Speaking about the strategic tie-up, Rajat Sharma, Chairman, India TV said, “We are pleased to have signed this agreement with Dish TV. Dish TV's growing subscription base and its sophisticated Direct To Home technology will further enhance the penetration of India TV in India.”

Speaking on the occasion Mr Arun Poddar, Head-Distribution, India TV said, “With the continued development and improvement of the cable and satellite infrastructure in India and throughout the adjoining region, expanding our reach has become an important part of our overall strategy. India TV has made this alliance with Dish TV so as to reach viewers who were earlier unable to watch the channel.”

About Dish TV

Launched on October 2, 2003, Dish TV, India's first and only Direct-To-Home (DTH) entertainment Service, has redefined the future of the Indian home entertainment industry by introducing the global platform of DTH.

Dish TV brings the latest and the best in world-class entertainment distribution technology to the Indian subscriber's home. It not only broadcasts the viewer's choice of programmes, from a high-powered satellite digitally to his home using Ku band transponders, but also gives the viewer absolute control of what he watches and what he pays for.

Continuing with its commitment towards increased consumer satisfaction, Dish TV now offers more than 100 digital channels. The content mix is devised keeping in mind the diverse needs of all genres. These channels would be bundled together in attractive and economic packages.

Dish TV also serves as a blessing in disguise for the Indian sub-continent which is blessed with monsoons as it can maintain the strength of the signal during the monsoons, which is possible with the technological superiority of the platform.

About Independent News service (INS)

INDIA TV is the latest offering from INS. INS was established in June 1997 and is promoted by Rajat Sharma and Ritu Dhawan. INS was created with the purpose of producing news and current affairs programming. The company has concentrated on developing and establishing a strong news network supported by cutting edge technology. INS has to its credit programs such as Aap ki Adaalat, Aaj Ki Baat, Awaaz, Aaj Subah and a host of election bulletins and special interviews.

Media contact details
Abhishek Mahapatra,
IPAN,
+91 (11) 2332 6200,
abhishek@ipan.com

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