31/05/02

Last day of the month and several updates done to the World Cup soccer info above. This event starts tonight so be on the look out for feeds and coverage on various channels and let me know where you see it. The list is getting a bit big so I will shift it to its own page soon. Theres a unusual channel running on Pas 8 Taiwanese mux that screens wrestling around the clock including the more well known WWF content. Its called Z Channel and could become quite popular if it stays there. I have done some checking and on Sunday nights Taiwan time they supposedly show major WWF events so look for that if the channel is still there FTA.WWF Smackdown was seen last night at 10 pm hk

Sorry the pics from B1, 12483 V won't go up until tommorow once I have had the chance to convert them. There may be some World Cup feed pics to go up also and the page is needing a trim.

Z channel link http://www.zchannel.com.tw/

Z channel program link http://www.zchannel.com.tw/ver3/v3program.html (try using one of the webtranslator sites)

Super TV link http://www.supertv.com.tw/index.asp

From my Emails & ICQ

From Glenn Gibson

To all the wrestling fans out there.(I'm not but I know a few of you are).

A new C-band channel has been added to the Taiwanese Mux today on Pas 8. (3860H, sr28000,fec 5/6, apid 911, vpid 910). The channel is called Z Channel and it seems to be mostly made up of both Chinese/Japanese shows but mainly a lot of Japanese Wrestling. Today there was quite a few bouts with men and also women. (The women are actually tougher than the guys!). Anyway if you can put up with the constant "I'm horny - Call me now" type adds in between bouts, I suggest you should check it out.

Their website is http://www.zchannel.com.tw/ . I'm sure there must be a program guide in there somewhere but I haven't searched for it yet. ;o)

Cheers
Glenn

From Rambod

Univision is $$$$$ is now encrypted.
Panamsat 2, 169E "Feeds" 4165V Sr 27687 Fec 7/8...For some reason i cant get
them. Maybe Sr change.
Fifa election on Pas 2 Adhoc 1. Also on Dubia sports.
Iran vs Q8 on asiasat 2. IRIB3. Tehran time 11:00 pm.

From the Dish

Intelsat 701 180E 4086 L New SR for the mux is : 12041.
Intelsat 701 180E 10975 H "Loft Story" has started , Mediaguard, SID 2004, PIDs 163/92.

PAS 2 169E 3901 H "Univision is now encrypted".
PAS 2 169E 12480 H "Ihug" has left .( Can anyone confirm this??? or do I have to set up the 90cm on the weekend and try and find Pas 2?)
PAS 2 169E 12474 H "Occasional feeds"?, Sr 6620, Fec 3/4. (this Australia beam?? or have they changed it? can someone check it for feeds?) as this was reported by the same person that report the above

Agila 2 146E 3733 H "Net 25" has left , moved to PAS 8.

Palapa C2 113E 4080 H "Quick Channel has again replaced RAI International 1" Fta on ,,PIDs 512/650.
Palapa C2 113E 4053 H "Bali TV" has started, Fta, Sr 5632, Fec 3/4, PIDs 308/256. (Those settings look like feed settings? can anyone confirm this is there? and if so provide a screenshot?)

ST 1 88E 3632 V The MMBN mux is encrypted in Nagravision, in addition to Viaccess.

LMI 1 75E 12618 V New PIDs for the test card on : 102/103.

PAS 10 68.5E 3797 V "The God Channel" has started, Fta, Sr 3003, Fec 2/3,PIDs 4194/4195.

Intelsat 804 64E 3669 R "TV Africa West and TV Africa South" are now encrypted.

NEWS

Set-top piracy court battle renewed

From http://media.guardian.co.uk/broadcast/story/0,7493,724663,00.html

NDS, the Rupert Murdoch-owned company accused of helping hackers pirate set-top box access cards, will today renew its court battle with Canal Plus over a £700m damages claim.

The News International subsidiary has asked a San Francisco court to throw out claims by Canal Plus, a division of Vivendi Universal, that it illegally supplied codes to crack the cards to DR7.com, a website used by software pirates.

In its court filing NDS launched a scathing attack on the legitimacy of the Canal Plus claim, saying the company "designed its complaint to lay the blame for its financial woes publicly on NDS".

"While examining the truth of those allegations and the dubious connection between them and Canal Plus's ineptitude must wait another day, the time is now ripe to test the legal adequacy of Canal Plus's claims," it said.

The court hearing, which could ultimately see News International pay out up to £2.4bn in damages under US law, is the latest round in a saga that led from laboratories in Israel to hackers in California to car boot sales and markets across Europe.

It has also implicated the upper echelons of News International management, including Mr Murdoch's sons, Lachlan and James, who sit on the NDS board, and was cited as a factor in the downfall of ITV Digital.

Canal Plus claims it has evidence that NDS hackers in Israel deliberately cracked the code to the cards before arranging for Chris Tarnovsky, a west coast NDS employee, to post the codes on DR7.com.

A second witness, Giles Kaehlin, claims Mr Tarnovsky did so on instructions from his NDS superiors, according to court documents.

The former ITV Digital chief executive, Stuart Prebble, blamed some of its ills on a huge piracy problem, which he said lost it an estimated £100m.

ITV Digital's access cards used the Canal Plus technology and were soon widely pirated, allowing viewers to watch movies, sport and other channels without paying. SkyDigital, which uses the NDS system, has no such problems with piracy.

Last month Canal Plus began the process of replacing its 12m cards across Europe but said it was concerned that, unless the case succeeds, the new cards could also fall victim to hacking.

Hallmark Readies Australia Relaunch

From Enews Sky report

The Hallmark Channel will re-launch in Australia effective June 1,
when it will unveil a major celebrity driven program
initiative featuring event nights, theme weeks and new
program start times. The re-launch is designed to provide
the Hallmark Channel with a distinct Australian identity
and a more viewer friendly schedule.

Ten Sports to take soccer to cinema theatres

From indiantelevision.com

Ten Sports is taking the novel route to increasing awareness about the channel in the interiors of the country.

The channel that has secured exclusive rights to telecast the soccer World Cup matches live in India will show certain matches live in select theatres across the country. Says Ten Sports Mumbai marketing head Mohit Mehra, the exercise will supplement the current awareness campaign that has been unleashed in most territories the channel considers its key markets. These include Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Cochin, Coimbatore, Mumbai and Delhi. Apart from hoardings in most citiies, Ten Sports has launched road shows in these cities to create hype around the channel, hoping to cash in on the soccer fever in the country.

It has pressed into service vans decorated with the Ten Sports logo and fitted with television screens which display small demos about the channel and promote the World Cup, since 15 May. The idea, says Mehra, is to hook the cable operator through the common viewer into creating a demand for the product.

Ten Sports has also bought spots on cable television in some areas as well as on AIR FM and private radio stations in Bangalore, Mehra says. The channel has signed on advertisers that include Akai, Coca Cola, Hyundai, Kodak, Onida and Prudential ICICI Mutual Fund. "

World Cup telecast fracas

From http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow.asp?art_id=11509961

MUMBAI: The World Cup could be your’s for a steal. With the failure of talks between two of the city’s biggest multi-service providers and Ten Sports (which has the TV rights for the soccer fiesta starting from Friday), cable industry sources say widespread stealing of signals will ensure that the viewer does not miss out on Beckham’s benders and Ronaldo’s dream runs.

Several operators said on Thursday that they would illegally hook up with genuine feeds just before the opening ceremony and shut off after the matches are over each day. Regional head of Ten Sports Alok Govil, however, says it has taken “enough precaution’’ to stub out mischief.

Among the city’s three leading multiservice providers (MSOs), two—Hathway and InCable—seem resolved not to sign the contract under the channel’s current demands.

However, most Siticable operators have signed. Two smaller players, Rajesh Cable and Seven Star, also have signed up. Seven Star’s pockets of influence are Santa Cruz, Juhu, and Vile Parle up to Goregaon. Rajesh has some grip on Ghatkopar.

Siticable dominates Ghatkopar, Powai, Matunga, Dharavi, Sion, Mulund and and Dadar. InCable is spread all over, as is Hathway, with its strong presence in south Mumbai, Malad, Chembur and Thane.

While Ten Sports is believed to have climbed down from its initial demand of Rs 15 per consumer per month to Rs 10, it is asking MSOs to declare the same subscriber base as they do with ESPN/Star Sports.

Hinduja’s InCable, for instance, has been asked to declare 2 lakh connections, while Hathway, of which WinCable is a part, has been asked to declare close to 1.5 lakh homes, says an insider. But InCable is not willing to declare more than 50,000-60,000 subscribers at the moment, he said.

?The ball is in their court.We cannot go back to the consumer again and again asking for more,’’ says Rajiv Vyas, president of InCableNet. Operators feel Ten Sports will climb down at the last moment for the sake of reach and advertisers.

However, the channel says that if MSOs don’t bend, it may go directly to the operators. “We have tried our level best. Mumbai has 2.5 million connections.We are not even getting 15 per cent of that,’’ says Mr Govil.

The channel is unlikely to sell rights to Doordarshan. B4U has bought delayed rights for the opening and closing ceremonies, the semis and the final.

Firms asked to give pricing of FTA channels

From http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow.asp?art_id=11514547

NEW DELHI: The government has asked broadcasters and cable representatives to come out with a pricing structure for subscribers, regarding free-to-air (FTA) channels.

Broadcasters plan to suggest a price of Rs 50 per month per household for FTA channels. However, Multiple Service Operators (MSOs) said this should be Rs 100 a month. This is part of putting conditional access system (CAS) in place.

While the CAS debate continues, some broadcasters are looking at direct to home (DTH) television service as a complementary service to CAS. Many players are negotiating with the government to relax DTH regulations for smooth implementation of this business.

Zee Telefilms did not rule out foray into DTH. ‘‘We are very closely looking at DTH service,’’ said a senior company official. Star has already expressed interest to enter into the DTH platform.

Even though a DTH project entails an investment of around $400 million, broadcasters are considering it to get a direct access to the end-consumer, bypassing cable operators.

Industry watchers said government should not lose grip in mandating CAS, but maintained that DTH policy should be relaxed to create a competitive environment with CAS.

Broadcasters said government’s intention behind CAS was good, but it didn’t solve the problem of under-declaration of subscribers (not giving the exact numbers) from cable operators. This under-declaration happen in metros due to alleged political and underworld influence, they added.

?‘It is difficult to monitor CAS since signals can be stolen from analog boxes easily, reaching end-consumers through an alternative pipe,’’ alleged one broadcaster. While CAS service may begin with analog boxes, DTH need digital boxes.

Sources said the equity regulation is making DTH a non-starter. The government has put in a restriction that no broadcasting or cable network company shall own more than 20 per cent equity as a DTH licensee.

Hollywood Movies Playing On Your Cable TV Soon

From http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=10056

Mumbai: In a major breakthrough, movies from major Hollywood studios will be available for cable TV viewing for the first time in the country.

Indo Overseas Films, who are importers of English movies in India, have joined hands with Mumbai-based Live Satellite Media to form Diskovery Movie Club to distribute English films to cable operators across the country for screening on their networks.

The company has procured 7-year cable TV rights to 900 English movies and plans to increase it to 2,000 by December-end.

?We have cable TV rights to movies from MGM, Warner Brothers and Universal, besides other independent producers. Cable operators can now officially show them on their networks,” said Ashish Choudhary, one of the promoters of Live Satellite Media.

Major Hollywood studios like 20th Century Fox and Paramount, however, are yet to part with cable TV rights.

Cable operators have been showing pirated videos, though there has been a drastic reduction in such instances after the seven big Hollywood studios got together to combat piracy.

?The major studios are reluctant to part with their cable TV rights. We have 150 movie rights for cable TV from independent producers. But no major titles are available for purchase,” said Ultra managing director Sushil Agarwal.

Diskovery Movie Club will get a royalty for supplying official software in terms of VCDs/VHS tapes to run on their local cable channel. The royalty charges have different slabs, depending on the size of the cable network.

For operators who have up to 2,000 points, the fee will be Rs 8 per subscriber a month. The charge for those who have connectivity between 2,000 to 5,000, the fee is Rs 7 per point, while those who have above 5,000 points will have to pay Rs 6 per subscriber.

The minimum charge for cable networks having less than 200 points has been fixed at Rs 2,000 per month.

The company is targeting 1,000 headends across the country in the first year of operations. “We will be offering two movies a day. There will be adult movie content, too,” said Mr Choudhary.

The software includes fast action movies, thrillers, comedies and children’s classics. DMC also offers to cable operators popular serials, adventure shows, wildlife videos, cookery shows, documentaries, exercise videos and cartoons. It has acquired rights to animation classics from Paris-based BKN International. The cable operators will be allowed to run local ads on their channel as a source of revenue.

30/05/02

Some interesting activity on B1 for those in NZ that noticed it yesterday, B1, 12483 V and 12734 V both muxes were FTA and those mystery S03 etc labled freqs are no longer a mystery. See the from the dish section for the details. What was interesting for me was to see Australian pay tv channel Fox8 and Tv1. Gee what a lot of adverts! No wonder people try and hack it. Anyway it all encrypted again 3pm NZ but you can see the pictures down below. These services are there to link to Telstras cable headend in Christchurch.

From my Emails & ICQ

From "Siam Global"

Subject: mcm

MAY WE ADD TO YOUR ADVICE FOR MR JONED ON THE SITE TODAY ?

WE CANNOT RECEIVE KU BAND FROM (ANY) PAS SATS IN BANGKOK EVEN ON 12 FT DISH SO DOUBT HE COULD FROM MALAYSIA. CHEAP KU/C COROTORS WITH L/R &V/H MADE IN TAIWAN ARE AVAILABLE NOWADAYS, SO HE COULD GET ONE OF THESE FOR AROUND $150 WITH THE 2 LNB'S REQUIRED BUT HIS RECEIVER WILL NEED SKEW CONTROL.TO OPERATE IT . HE WILL HAVE NO PROBLEM RECEIVING MCM IN MALAYSIA. (IN FACT THE KU LNB IS MORE EXPENSIVE THAN THE COROTOR !) SIAMGLOBAL BKK

From Bassett

Could some bright bastard out there tell me why I can no longer watch Now
TV,, Asiasat 3s 3760 H 26000 7/8.. Yesterday it played away no trouble,
today, stuff all.. I can get it to load , on differant receivers. Loads on
Nokia in about 20 secounds, But will it lock and play.. Will it buggery,
Theres bags of signal, Last week I had it playing on a 2 mitre solid dish ,,

I don,t really want to watch it, It just pisses me off that I can't. And
Don't tell be that you live 5 Ks from the GPO and your getting it on a 90cm

That I don't need to hear..

From Ren

B1, 12734V Screenshots

The Living Channel, Sky Movie Max, Hallmark

E!, Sundance, Sky Movies

The Rugby Channel, Worldcup Soccer Channel

(Craigs comment, Good work excellent Nokia screenshots, tommorow I hope to have time to put up the shots I did off 12483V)

From Peter Berrett

He notes the French tennis Open is on I701 RFO and Tele Nouvelle Caledonie

From Elena

Hi Craig,

well, just been looking through ur website... great!
in the secction of world cup, I got some info that might interest u

4026V, 22000, 3/4

169's both MUCH TV and Era News channels will be covering all 64 live soccer matches(unless they dissapear)

http://worldcup.eracom.com/tvtime-01.asp the schedule, it's in chinese... as well as the commentadors speaking in mandarin... oh it's in taiwanese time as well. sadly i can't watch it... i got the info from a popular taiwanese TVRO site.

From the Dish

PAS 8 166E 3860 H "Z" ? Sr 28000 Fec 5/6
PAS 8 166E 3740 H "MTV China" is now encrypted.
PAS 8 166E 12410 H "Venus-Eye" New SID is : 101.

Optus B1 12483 V Sr 22500 Fec 3/4, all Irdeto and Encrypted

"S03" vpid 512 apid 650 pcr 135 sid 3 pmt 258 "Tv3" 544x576 192k J/S
"S04" vpid 513 apid 651 pcr 139 sid 4 pmt 259 "Tv4" 544x576 192k J/S
"S05" vpid 514 apid 652 pcr 140 sid 5 pmt 260 "Prime" 544x576 192k J/S
"s17" vpid 517 apid 655 pcr 143 sid 17 pmt 264 "Australian Tv1" 544x576 192k J/S
"s65" vpid 518 apid 656 txt 576 pcr 144 sid 65 pmt 267 "Tvnz Tv1" 720x576 192k J/S
"s70" vpid 519 apid 657 txt 577 pcr 145 sid 70 pmt 268 "Tvnz Tv2" 720x576 192k J/S
"s71" vpid 515 apid 653 pcr 141 sid 71 pmt 261 "Fox8" 544x576 192k J/S
"s72" vpid 516 apid 654 pcr 142 sid 72 pmt 262 "Saturn Choose" 544x576 192k J/S
"code" apid 654 pcr 142 sid 81 pmt 271 "audio" unknown

Optus B1 12734 V Sr 22500 Fec 3/4, all Irdeto and Encrypted

"s11" vpid 513 apid 651 pcr 129 sid 11 pmt 256 "The Living Channel" 544x576 192k J/S
"s12" vpid 514 apid 652 pcr 131 sid 12 pmt 258 "Sky Movie Max" 544x576 192k J/S
"s14" vpid 515 apid 653 pcr 131 sid 14 pmt 259 "Hallmark" 544x586 192k J/S
"s15" vpid 516 apid 654 pcr 132 sid 15 pmt 259 "E!" 544x576 192k J/S
"s16" vpid 518 apid 655 pcr 134 sid 16 pmt 260 "Sundance" 544x576 192k J/S
"s23" vpid 512 apid 650 pcr 128 sid 23 pmt 264 "Sky Movies" 544x576 192k J/S
"s25" vpid 517 apid 655 pcr 133 sid 25 pmt 268 "Rugby Channel" 544x576 192k J/S
"s97" vpid 519 apid 657 pcr 135 sid 97 pmt 272 "WC Soccer Channel" 544x576 192k J/S
"t80" 655 pcr 133 sid 80 pmt 271 "radio" unknown

ST 1 88E 3632 VAll channels in the MMBN mux are now encrypted in Viaccess 1,except BBC World, CTV and FTV Entertainment.

For those Greek TV Fans without Tarbs http://www.lyngsat.com/livetv/Greece.shtml

NEWS

BBC forces viewers to record its new sitcom

From http://www.telegraph.co.uk

The BBC was accused yesterday of Orwellian tactics after digital video machines in thousands of homes were switched on remotely to record Caroline Aherne's new sitcom Dossa and Joe. The move was described as the equivalent of junk mail.

Many of the 50,000 households that own TiVo machines awoke on Friday to discover that the 30-minute programme had been downloaded on to their recorders without having asked for it.

It is the first time a broadcaster has used the new technology to try to boost audiences for a show.

TiVo's selling point is its ability to "remember" to tape viewers' favourite programmes and similar shows, based on a list of preferences. However the BBC sent Dossa and Joe to all the machines regardless of preference.

Almost 1,000 messages have been posted on a web forum for TiVo users, many complaining that such "foul-mouthed rubbish" had been imposed on them.

Some were unhappy that they missed the start of the Ten O'Clock News last Thursday because the machine was still recording Dossa and Joe on BBC2. Others accused the BBC of breaching the 9pm watershed because children could watch the programme the next day.

TiVo is one of a new generation of digital video machines that record programmes on hard disk rather than tape. The BBC was able to send the episode because the machines are linked by telephone to a central database.

The BBC has high hopes for Dossa and Joe, about a retired Australian couple and starring the former Neighbours actress Anne Charleston. But the comedy, Aherne's first series since The Royle Family, has attracted fewer than 1.5 million viewers.

Granville Williams, of the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, said: "This is an unwanted and unrequested intrusion into people's lives.

"Consumers were told that TiVo would give them greater control, yet exactly the opposite has happened here. Someone has decided, 'This is what you want to watch.' "

(Craigs comment, is this the digital tv equivalent of email spamming?)

Europe Online SkyBooster DSL Satellite Surfing Up to 768 Kbps Now Available Across Europe

From satnewsdaily

Europe Online Investments S.A. has announced that its EOL SkyBooster DSL-like satellite surfing service, with speeds of up to 768 Kbps, is now available Europe wide for 3.9 cents per minute. The EOL SkyBooster service is compatible, with the newly released Europe Online version 1.6 Multimedia Software (see accompanying Press Release) for use with all DVB-PCI cards manufactured and distributed by Hauppauge, TechnoTrend and Technisat.

With the new EOL SkyBooster service, users can profit from the advantages of DSL-like surfing via satellite. Heavy web pages load within an instant and multimedia applications (Flash, Video) run seamlessly and smoothly. “SkyBooster is the ideal "satellite" alternative for DSL-like surfing, exclusively for EOL users, particularly in areas without terrestrial DSL coverage,” declared Candace Johnson, Europe Online Investments’ President.

.urope Online’s special introductory offer includes 10 hours of surfing at up to 768 Kbps for only 24,90 Euros per month. Heavy surfers can go for the 20 hours at 39.90 Euros per month option. Surfing after their monthly allowance costs only 3.9 Cents a minute. The EOL SkyBooster also comes with an automatic time-out so that users do not need to worry about keeping time and saving money while they are satellite surfing.”

?The entire offer with fast surfing, fast downloading offline, great music with MTV live, wonderful films with EOL's video on demand, interactive games, free-to-air digital television and an Elert email notification creates a digital, interactive broadband world par excellence,” concluded Candace Johnson.

Strategy Analytics: Asia-Pacific Set-Top Box Sales Reach $1.1bn

From satnewsdaily.com

Sales of digital TV set-top boxes will soar by 54% to $1.1bn this year in the Asia-Pacific region, according to the latest research from Strategy Analytics. The report also predicts that China will become the largest market in 2005, overtaking the current leader, Japan.

These findings are presented in research published recently by Strategy Analytics within its strategic advisory service, Broadband Device Strategies.

This year's market is being driven by demand for new satellite services in Japan and South Korea. Two million digital satellite set-top boxes will be sold in Japan this year, and a further 400,000 in South Korea.

Because of the fragmentation of the regional cable TV industry, satellite set-top boxes continue to dominate the market, accounting for 85% of sales in 2001. However, the report predicts that this will change as the cable market matures. By 2008, cable is expected to be the dominant platform, accounting for 58% of annual shipments.

"China remains the unknown factor," says Peter King, Director of the Strategy Analytics Broadband Device Strategies service. "If aggressive plans to upgrade China's 100 million cable homes are implemented, the Asia-Pacific market will undergo a fundamental shift over the coming years."

The report offers a cautious outlook for digital terrestrial television (DTTV). Standards and rollout plans have still to be finalized in many markets, and about the feasibility of developing successful DTTV business models.

Strategy Analytics, Inc., a global research and consulting firm, provides timely insights and strategic business solutions, to technology companies operating at the convergence of information, communications and entertainment.

Ten Sports announces new CATV distribution agreements taking C&S penetration to 18 million TV homes

From indiantelevision.com

The major bugbear for new sports broadcaster the Bukhatir-promoted Ten Sports has been the lack of penetration in cable and satellite TV homes in India. That seems to be slowly becoming less of a sore point going by the announcement made this evening by Taj Television (the parent company of Ten Sports) chief executive Chris McDonald.

McDonald said in a press release issued late this evening that large MSOs such as RPG Netcom in Kolkata, Asianet in Kerala and Hathway in Bangalore and Chennai, have all begun airing Ten Sports as of today "With these systems signing on, the national networks of Hathway, Win Cable and Siticable are showing Ten Sports except for a few isolated pockets, which are expected to sign up in the next 24 hours," the press release stated.

McDonald added that the distribution tieups with these MSOs means that Ten Sports penetration across India now stands at 18 million homes, and is expected to go up further in the next two days, as the 2002 FIFA World Cup fever increases in intensity.

(Craigs comment, it's been interesting following this new startup 10 Sports channel in just a couple of months they have gone from 0 to 18 million viewers, I wonder how they will go once the World Cup finishes)

B4U, DD ink deal on FIFA World Cup telecast

From indiantelevision.com

B4U Networks and Doordarshan thrashed out an agreement today that clears the way for the deferred telecast on DD of four matches and a daily highlights capsule.

B4U's chief distribution officer Debashish Dey said this evening the contract had been signed and delivered. Queried as to the placement cost rate that had been thrashed out, Dey would only say that it was much, much lower that the Rs 250,000 per half hour that DD had reportedly sought.

The telecast schedule is as follows:

Opening ceremony and opening match - 31 May, 11:30 pm onwards .

First Semi-Final - 25 June, 11 pm onwards.
Second Semi-Final - 26 June, 11 pm.
Final and closing ceremony - 30 June, 11 pm.

One-hour daily capsules - 11 pm.
On Fridays the daily capsule will be telecast after the weekend feature film.

Queried as to what B4U hoped to get out of the deal, Dey said: This is a very big brand equity exercise for B4U.

Broadcasters Want Basic Tier Charge For Free Channels Capped At Rs 45

From http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=9972

Mumbai: Broadcasters have suggested to the government that the basic tier package of free-to-air channels should cost the subscriber not more than Rs 25 to Rs 45 a month.

The multi-system operators (MSOs), on the other hand, want a much higher price of Rs 150, citing the investments required to run operations. The meeting, which was chaired by joint secretary of information and broadcasting Mr Rakesh Mohan on Tuesday, had representatives from broadcasters and cable operators to get feedback on how the conditional access system can be implemented.

Said INCablenet president Rajiv Vyas, “The government wanted to take inputs on pricing for the basic tier from all the stakeholders of the value chain, based on the break-up of costs. We indicated a break-even cost of Rs 150.”

A higher price for basic tier, broadcasters felt, would thwart the basic purpose of keeping prices for cable TV viewing more affordable. Besides the basic service, consumers would have to bear the expense of the pay channels they wanted to watch. “The whole exercise is to make consumers pay less. The purpose of CAS will get defeated if the basic tier alone is so costly,” a representative who attended the meeting said.

As per the current data, there are 38 million cable TV homes. Broadcasters are paid for just 5-6 million homes. The average price for the service is Rs 100 in the country. “If we do a calculation taking these factors into consideration, the price for the basic tier should be much lower than what is currently prevailing,” the representative added.

Analysts said it is in the interests of pay-TV broadcasters to suggest a low basic tier package of free-to-air channels. A lower basic subscription rate would obviously provide room for viewers to subscribe to a greater number of pay channels. Star India chief executive officer Peter Mukerjea said consumers were paying for artifically high prices because of under-declaration of subscriber base by cable operators. “We have told the ministry that we would reduce the price for the Star bouquet in return for actual declaration of subscribers by cable operators,” he added.

Mr Mohan said a second meeting would take place after a week.

29/05/02

Testing continues on B1, 12706V Sky has moved National Geographic and Discovery channel there. 18 "services" are listed on this transponder but not with proper names WCTL-1-8 Discovery and Nat geo are named corectly and have an EPG. The Living channel and Worldcup soccer channels have been added.

Has anyone found a feed of the French Open Tennis?

From my Emails & ICQ

From Mohammad joned

Subject: Polarity Problem

I live in Kuala Lumpur, I can do scanning digital tv channel which used the H/V polarity easily. Unfortunately, I fail to obtain digital satellite tv channel those used L/R polarity. Craig, what can I do in order to solve this problem?

Feel keen to watch channel MCM via satellite INTELSAT604 at 66 east.

(Craigs comment, first try Pas 8 12366H Sr 27500 Fec 3/4 see if you can pick that up it has MCM Asia FTA, now to the problem you can insert a Dialetric plate into the feed you use to get circular polarization, its not a great option the best option is a proper circular feed or else replace your feed with one that does H+V+RHC+LHC this can be an expensive option)

From Bill Richards 28/05/02

0952 UTC

Pas2 4045V "Reuters Singapore Feed" Sr 4285, Fec 3/4, Vpid 4194 Apid 4195 SID1

Regards
Bill

From the Dish

PAS 2 169E 4165 V All test cards are now encrypted.
PAS 2 169E 12490 V "Ocassional Feeds" Sr 4224, Fec 1/2, NE Asian beam.
PAS 2 169E 12363 V "Occasional feeds" , Sr 6620, Fec 3/4, NE Asian beam.

PAS 8 166E 3860 H "TTV, CTV and CTS" have started Fta, APIDs 410/411-430/431.
PAS 8 166E 3860 H "Super TV" has left .
PAS 8 166E 12366 H "TV 5 Asie has replaced Les Amis de TV" Fta on, PIDs 257/258.A Les Amis de TV test card has started on SID 4, PIDs 1025/1026, clear.

Optus B1 160E 12544 V "The Living Channel" Vpid 512 Apid 650 Sid 1022 PMT 260 NDS Encrypted
Optus B1 160E 12608 V "WorldCup Channel" Vpid 512 Apid 650 Sid 1039 PMT 262 NDS Encrypted

Palapa C2 113E 4080 H "RAI International 1" has started Fta , PIDs 512/650.
Palapa C2 113E 4080 H "FTV" has left again, replaced by a test card.

Asiasat 2 100.5E 3773 H "Reuters TV" is now mainly Fta.
Asiasat 2 100.5E 3799 H "APTN Asia" is Fta again.

Thaicom 3 78.5E 3520 H "Al-Manar TV" has started , Fta, SID 36, PIDs 523/651.

LMI 1 75E 12618 V "TBC test card" has started Fta, Sr 6624, Fec 7/8,PIDs 101/102, north beam.

NEWS

Rural Net tenders spelt out

From http://www.stuff.co.nz/inl/index/0,1008,1216974a28,FF.html

Commerce Minister Paul Swain told the country's major telcos that if they wanted a slice of the regional high-speed Net tenders the government is about to let, they must form relationships with local community groups in the regions targeted.

He spelt out the tender process for regional broadband tenders at a packed meeting of telecommunications companies and community groups in Wellington, addressed also by Deputy Prime Minister Jim Anderton.

Mr Swain says that vendor consortiums may have to be formed to meet the requirements of the tenders, and is adamant that successful bids will involve partnerships with local communities.

"That is absolutely fundamental and critical to this issue," he says.

The government expects to meet its target of high-speed Internet supporting regional broadband to majority of regional users by the end of 2003 with virtually all the rest getting services by November 2004.

Mr Swain says there will be between 10 and 20 regional tenders to potential providers.

The "tens of millions of dollars", which speculation points to being $30-$40 million, announced on budget day for regional broadband, will involve tenders for regional groupings of schools, and would aim to give them broadband speeds of around 512 kilobits per second.

The cost would be met by the Economic Development Ministry and the Education Ministry and would be sufficient to fund services likely to extend to between 75 and 85 per cent of rural communities.

The first tender will be a request for information which will place a high priority on the bidder's plans to reach out beyond schools to business, government, and individual customers in each region.

Mr Swain says the government is aiming for "whole-of-community" delivery and the winners in a tendering process that will involve requests for proposals, probably in August or September, would be likely to provide coverage that would bring broadband to all but about 10 per cent of the country.

To cover the remaining 10 per cent, local communities, through trusts and other vehicles, would have to come up with funding, he says.

Consultancy Amos Aked Swift has been appointed project manager for the initiative.

Indian Govt looking at basic tier price of Rs 90 post-CAS

From indiantelevision.com

The Indian government would ideally like to keep the price of the basic tier of free-to-air (FTA) channels, once the conditional access system (CAS) is implemented, below Rs. 100. This is in contrast to the figures that have been touted in the industry that ranges between Rs 125 and Rs 150.

"Ideally we are looking at pricing the basic tier of FTA channels at around Rs 90," a senior information and broadcasting ministry official told indiantelevision.com.

However, the government official also added that if, after a meeting with cable operators, slated to take place soon, the operators say they would be comfortable with Rs 100 we'd "come to a compromise as the government is quite flexible about the whole idea. "

The official also added that "the government is not looking at controlling channels - specially the FTA channels. "

Explaining the rationale behind the clause in the Cable TV (Networks) Regulation Amendment Bill, 2002 passed by Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament), which empowers the government to decide on the FTA package, the official explained that if a certain area in a city is dominated by for example South Indians, then having Punjabi or Bengali channels as part of the FTA basic tier in the area would not be feasible.

Still, media analysts insist that certain clauses in the Bill, yet to be okayed by the Rajya Sabha (Upper House), are aimed at giving government a control over what Indian cable and satellite subscribers can watch or not.

‘Cable industry told to come up with an equitable pricing mechanism for FTA basic tier

From indiantelevision.com

Information and broadcasting minister Sushma Swaraj set the ball rolling again today on the conditional access issue following her trip to Cannes.

Swaraj convened a meeting in the morning chaired by Rakesh Mohan, joint secretary I&B, which had a representation from broadcasters as well as the cable industry.

According to a senior government official, The government has instructed the cable industry to come up with an equitable pricing formula for the basic tier of free to air channels within a week.

One significant feature of the meeting was the heavy representation of the Star India team at the proceedings. CEO Peter Mukerjea, COO Sameer Nair, distribution head Tony D'Silva and CFO Shankar Narayanan were in attendance.

Industry sources say that the Star team later went into a separate meeting with Mohan. There was no independent confirmation of this though.

Conditional access not practical yet’

From http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow.asp?art_id=11204093

HONG KONG: In its first comprehensive statement on the divergent views over the introduction of conditional access in the country, leading broadcaster STAR has said it is not theoretically against the concept but maintains its introduction at the moment was fraught with practical impossibilities and could slow down the rapidly-growing television business.

Seated in the eighth floor conference room of Harbour Front, STAR’s Hong Kong headquarters overlooking the scenic Victoria Harbour, the Asian Broadcasting Network’s James Murdoch was tense on the sensitive conditional-access issue; but when pressed, he minced no words on his company’s stand.

Till last-mile cable operators continued to under-declare their real subscriber-base, conditional access would remain an impractical solution, he said.

On the Cable Network (Amendment) Bill passed by the Lok Sabha making CAS mandatory, Mr Murdoch said the I&B Ministry had been “visionary” but questioned the necessity of any legislation on the subject. “Let the market decide,” he said.

?It is a good concept, but not a well-thought-out plan,” said STAR’s COO Bruce Churchill. Denying any dissonance between STAR’s international stance in favour of conditional access and its opposition to the mandatory introduction of CAS in India, Mr Murdoch said his company was not against conditional access.

In fact, STAR’s sister-concern NDS was the leading provider of de-encryption and software technology for CAS’ set-top boxes. However, the debate in India had not yet accounted for the practical realities — the piracy factor and who and how would the technology upgradation be funded.

?It’s not just about placing set-top boxes. Head-ends in the cable network have to be upgraded, billing systems worked out and smart cards provided. Who pays for all this technology?” he questioned. The roll-out involving the import and supply of as many as 38 million set-top boxes had also not been seriously considered, he added.

?What sense does it make for STAR to invest in the technological upgradation of the last-mile if the cable operator decides to defect to an alternative platform the next day?” added Mr Churchill. If ultimately the consumer pays for all this, CAS turns out to be a much more expensive proposition, insist STAR’s executives.

B4U, DD all set to ink deal on FIFA World Cup telecast

From indiantelevision.com

With just three days left for the kick-off the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Japan and Korea, indications are that B4U Networks and Doordarshan are on the verge of signing a deal which will allow for the deferred telecast on DD of four matches and a daily highlights capsule.

The sticking point thus far on the negotiations has reportedly been that DD was quoting Rs 250,000 per half hour as placement cost, a figure B4U was attempting to mark down. According to industry sources, the two sides likely to sign the papers tomorrow.

The developments came even as Ten (Taj Entertainment Network) Sports, which holds the rights for India, finally made it official today that it had sold the terrestrial telecast rights to LMB Holdings (promoter of B4U Networks).

Pavithran said that after making its presence felt in all the main southern language channels (Tamil, Telugu, Kannada), Balaji was next looking to enter Malayalam language programming on the Sun Network's Surya channel.

The terrestrial rights allow for transmission of four games only. These are the opening game, two semifinals and the finals on a six-hour delayed telecast. They also include a daily highlights package, also on a six-hour delayed basis, an Ten Sports release said. There was no mention however, of the telecast of the opening and closing ceremonies, which was earlier mentioned as being part of the package.

As for Ten Sports, even as the clock counts down to the 31 May kick-off, there is still no clear indication of how many people will finally get to watch the sporting world's (not for India though) biggest mega event.

Financial daily Economic Times' website reported that in Delhi both the Star-controlled Wincable and the Hindujas’ InCableNet, which together reach 65 per cent of cable & satellite homes in the capital, have signed up with Ten Sports while the Zee-controlled MSO Siticable had not. In Mumbai however, where the Star-controlled Hathway Cable and Datacom and InCableNet cover nearly 75 per cent of the city there is no word as yet of any deal. In the other three metros of Kolkata, Chennai and Bangalore (all of which have one MSO dominating) there is reportedly still no accord in place either. In Kolkata it is RPG Netcom, in Bangalore Hathway and in Chennai Sumangali Cable Vision that rule the roost.

It is difficult to tell whether this is an article of faith or not considering how close at hand the tournament is, but the feeling in the industry seems to be that come 31 May, some agreement will be reached.

No Shining Star On The DTH Horizon Yet

http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=9896

New Delhi: Although the government is talking of relaxing direct-to-home (DTH) television norms only if it’s a service for the masses, participating companies are likely to find it tough to meet the government condition, particularly in terms of a higher reach.

Being perceived as an elitist service in India with an estimated reach of approximately 3 million cable homes when it is launched, the government has indicated that it may explore granting concessions to participating companies only if there’s an assurance that the viewership base for DTH is around 15 million DTH homes. But a senior Star official told eFE that it’s tough for DTH to have a reach of 15 million homes. According to him, if the DTH viewership base reaches around 10 million to 12 million homes in the next 10 years or so, it would be considered successful. This is clearly against the government expectation of 15 million DTH homes in the immediate future.

Star’s views on this are significant because it is among the few broadcasters to have shown interest in launching a DTH service. The first DTH application has come from Space Television and Star has admitted that it is close to Space Television, without specifying how. On whether Star is planning to pick up a stake in Space Television, chairman and CEO James Murdoch refused to comment.

However, on the other condition put up by the government—lower monthly tariff for DTH subscribers—Star may make an effort. A Star official said that the monthly subscriber charges for DTH may be brought down to the level of current cable TV pricing. So, as against monthly charges of Rs 1,000, Star is now talking in the range of Rs 400-500.

The government wants the price of the receiver and the DTH dish to be reduced drastically also. On that, Star has no concrete plans yet. As per estimates, the DTH dish and receiver are priced at around Rs 8,000, excluding the installation charges. Broadcasters are required to assure the government with data that the price of these receivers and dishes would come down considerably, before it grants concessions.

Space Television, the only DTH applicant, has asked for concessions in the area of revenue-sharing with the government and reduction of custom duty on set-top boxes. This is in contrast to the earlier scenario when potential players in DTH were demanding removal of the 20 per cent sectoral cap for broadcasters and permission for higher foreign direct investment.

As per the DTH norms, the applicant company is required to pay an entry fee of Rs 10 crore in the beginning. In addition, 10 per cent per year of the revenue collected by the platform owner is payable to the government as annual fee. The licencee is also required to execute a bank guarantee of Rs 40 crore valid for the duration of the 10-year licence. Also, the total foreign investment in the DTH platform cannot exceed 49 per cent, in which the share of FDI would be limited to 20 per cent. As of now, reducing the monthly charges for DTH service is the only area which seems feasible to a potential player such as Star. In a scenario where the government wants DTH to be a service for the masses to grant concessions, things may have to wait for a while.

CAS: Is it for the viewer or cable operator?

From http://www.business-standard.com/today/corp20.asp?Menu=2

A bill to make it mandatory to access pay channels through an addressable system has some parties swearing by the viewers’ benefits, while some beg to differ.

Consumer rights groups are concerned that the conditional access system (CAS) may lead to the viewers paying more for less number of channels, while the cable operators vouch for it selling it as a ‘viewer-friendly’ move.

Once the Cable Television Network (Regulation) Amendment Bill, passed by Lok Sabha recently, becomes an Act, viewers will require a set-top-box (STB) to watch any pay channel.

Consumer groups are worried that the proposed legislation gives ‘sweeping powers’ to the government to decide the number of free-to-air channels as also where they should be shown.

In the present scenario, a consumer gets over 80 channels, including pay channels, and pays a fixed monthly charge to the cable operator ranging from Rs 100 to Rs 250.

Once the STBs are installed, many niche channels will be affected, at least initially, as their revenues will come down, says Nawal Ahuja of Exchange for Media, a media research and solution provider organisation.

This does not mean the big channels offering bouquets are safe. The revenues of the big channels depend on advertising. The advertisers depend on the reach of the channel to decide on giving advertisements.

?This reach determines the TRP ratings, which in turn depend largely on the cable TV operators’ declarations on each channel’s viewership,” says Ahuja.

That is where for a long time the cable operators and broadcasters had tussles on, with the latter accusing the former of ‘underdeclaration’ of viewership.

&#ter CAS, we will not have the broadcasters’ bluff on underdeclaration, and won’t be treated like thieves,” says Vikki Choudhry, managing director of Home Cable, the largest independent cable operators in New Delhi.

?Therefore, we are very happy with the CAS, as it allows the viewers to select the channels they want to watch,” he adds.

But Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) says it may result in ‘exploitation of consumers in terms of prices of services charged by cable operators due to monopolies on ground’.

A parliamentary committee, examining the Convergence Bill, should look into the matter so that the consumer truely benefits, says the IBF.

Meanwhile, consumer bodies say TV viewers will end up paying more, in addition to the initial investment on STBs, which is expected to cost between Rs 2,000 and Rs 5,000.

Added to it, they will be burdened to update the system hardware, each time technology advances, like in case direct-to-home (DTH) TV is introduced, when he will be asked to buy dish antennas, says Ahuja.

With DTH being debated strongly, STBs will just be a stop-gap, at least for the upmarket consumers.

Government sources say the cost of STBs could be borne by either the broadcasters or cable guys. But that does not seem like a good idea.

Dear MR X

Mindful of our commitment to provide you with top quality sports coverage we have experienced increased costs over the last 12 months. Regretfully we must now pass on a portion of these costs over the last 12 months. Regretfully we must now pass on a portion of these costs to you in order to maintain the high standard of service you enjoy and expect from Sky.

So, as of your July statement there will be an increase in the weekly charg for the Sky Sport package of $1.15 per week. The new monthly charge for the services you receive will be $51.60 (previously $46.61).

In order to keep the price increase to a minimum from July 1st MGM will become part of a new multichannel Movie package to which we have added Turner Classic Movies (TCM). This new 4 channel movie package has over 200 movies every month from Blockbuster premieres on Sky Movies and Sky MovieMax to Classic's on MGM and TCM. And because you already subscribe to the sports package you can add the movies package for only $16.63 per month ( a saving of $2.00 per month on the usual movie package price).

Now, grab a comfortable chair, because over the coming months SKY has the very best in sport and entertainment from New Zealand and around the world coming directly to you.

Rugby fans are in for a huge season with Sky bringing you exclusively live coverage of the Tri-Nations, The Bledisloe Cup and Air New Zealand NPC. Rugby League supporters can follow the Warriors right down to the wire on SKY1 , plus there's all the top Golf and exciting Tennis and Cricket action and so much more on all Sky's channels.

As always at SKY wee are dedicated to providing the very best in television now and in the future, and we hope you continue to enjoy all our great entertainment.

Yours Sincerrely

Veni Morisa

Billing Services Manager

P.S as you pay by Direct Debit your monthly debit will automatically reflect the increase without need for you to do anything.

(Craigs comment, Someone get me a shovel for this Crap Sky just dumped on its customers. Words fail me have I got this right they are taking MGM from the service I get and increasing the price by $5 a month! The person in my household you has paid for the service signed a contract for 12 months of this package which included MGM at $46.61. I don't think its legal at all for them to change the rules, no doubt you will hear more on this tommorow. How about this line "plus there's all the top Golf and exciting Tennis and Cricket action and so much more on all Sky's channels". Hilarious cricket action ?? its mid winter! they didn't show NZ tour of Sharjah, Or NZ tour to Pakistan, and they won't show NZ in the West-Indies either, this is false advertising. You will hear more about this tommorow)