My Nfusion is up on DN and Bev
|
Bronze Member Username: AdavePost Number: 74 Registered: Jun-06 | my all channel are up with nfusion including international too. My Nfusion rock |
|
Gold Member Username: NydasPost Number: 5957 Registered: Jun-06 | Very good. |
|
Bronze Member Username: ChilliPost Number: 36 Registered: Jan-07 | what is nfusion |
|
Gold Member Username: Dude123Post Number: 1561 Registered: Jul-06 | nfusion is a box that is connected to your modem and internet for fast fix...some people refuse to get it because they think its a warning towards their privacy..... |
|
Silver Member Username: Saqeeb9000Post Number: 759 Registered: Oct-07 | so one what do u think? |
|
Bronze Member Username: BoboshanSomewhere, Out There Post Number: 41 Registered: Jul-06 | Can these nfusions be updated the 'traditional' way as well? Just wondering in case the IKS fixes stop working. |
|
Silver Member Username: Saqeeb9000Post Number: 764 Registered: Oct-07 | [link removed] but that's the thing about nfusion... they came few months ago and they are ahead of everyone else... u don't even need to download files..and u don't have to worry about any thing.... i am seriously thinking about buying the reciever after this b.s look how many time bev and dn was down on nfusion during the recent ecms... none.... |
|
Gold Member Username: Cartier1Post Number: 1517 Registered: Feb-07 | SADA the problem is poeple are afraid to use their intenet . this way they will know the ip adress and know who use it . it may be problem . |
|
Bronze Member Username: MrsoftyPost Number: 19 Registered: Nov-07 | hmmn [link removed] for fta box auctions |
|
Silver Member Username: Saqeeb9000Post Number: 765 Registered: Oct-07 | yeh i know what u mean...but i also found download on [link removed] for that reciever..so my question is can we use it without connected to internet..? can we still download files?.. so far it's doing best... |
|
Gold Member Username: Cartier1Post Number: 1522 Registered: Feb-07 | dave patell can you tell us how nfusion works . where you get your bin from ? if there is any . or the internet do that for you ? give us some idea about the set up thanx. the most imporatnt if any body knocked on your door becuz u are using it through the internet  |
|
Bronze Member Username: ExtremexPost Number: 60 Registered: Nov-07 | You can download bin and install them from your computer like any other STB. However with all the ECM's lately it is only running on IKS. Basically they see no point in releasing new bins every week when its up and running on IKS |
|
Bronze Member Username: RazzorwyrePost Number: 73 Registered: Dec-07 | I would think it is as safe as any P2P type as long as its not ran but DN or Bev. Then your IP is safe until a court order sent to your ISP. I am very interested in this box as well any more detail would be appreciated. |
|
Gold Member Username: Cartier1Post Number: 1524 Registered: Feb-07 | razzor what you talking about ? p2p is not all legal. like kazaa p2p it;s not legal . how many poeple they get caught and pay dearly the price . and u are talking about court order . how the hell i know that they request my ip or get even an order from the court? and when the order is sent to isp then they got to give them the user. |
|
Bronze Member Username: RazzorwyrePost Number: 74 Registered: Dec-07 | lol true P2P is not legal. But how many ppl do it annually and never get caught. What I am saying is it is no different, but to get a IP it has to go through the courts usually. Most ISPs will not release IP address to companies without being forced to. It really isnt any different than logging into these sites. Out of the blue all fta sites could have their records turned over. So even just logging into here could be risky. I dont think dn/bev would go that far to stop a small percentage of ppl. but who knows |
|
Gold Member Username: Dude123Post Number: 1562 Registered: Jul-06 | its a tough call boyz...I would still wait for atleast a couple more months to see how this box is and its reputation in the market....thats just me though...people think differently and have different ideas. |
|
Bronze Member Username: BushdamanPost Number: 44 Registered: Nov-07 | yes but as you see that percentage is going up. its really ruining the iks recievers. btw how does anyone know its not just a setup by the providers????? ip addresses can be traced easily with the right programs (am not going to give that one away)ive traced down several people that use the same internet provider i do. im sure the providers can do the same. im not in anyway going iks and i suggest no one else do it either |
|
New member Username: L_k_livesPost Number: 1 Registered: Dec-07 | Latest DN ECM is not a tough one at all. Expect bins as early as this afternoon. |
|
Gold Member Username: NydasPost Number: 5958 Registered: Jun-06 | LK New member Username: L_k_lives Post Number: 1 Registered: Dec-07 Another Identity theft. |
|
Bronze Member Username: RazzorwyrePost Number: 75 Registered: Dec-07 | Good point John. Could be a sting. |
|
Silver Member Username: Pulp_fictionPost Number: 696 Registered: Nov-07 | Latest DN ECM is not a tough one at all. Expect bins as early as this afternoon. Total horse crap.... so easy then u figure it out... c/p 12/14 00:0100 99 SEC 00:0101 8A PUSH CC 00:0102 9B SEI 00:0103 B6 0D LDA $0D 00:0105 88 PUSH A 00:0106 A4 F7 AND #$F7 00:0108 B7 0D STA $0D 00:010A A6 02 LDA #$02 00:010C B7 48 STA $48 00:010E A6 02 LDA #$02 00:0110 CD 38 40 JSR $3840 00:0113 A6 00 LDA #$00 00:0115 C7 0B 92 STA $0B92 00:0118 A6 0B LDA #$0B 00:011A C7 0B 93 STA $0B93 00:011D A6 A2 LDA #$A2 00:011F C7 0B 94 STA $0B94 00:0122 AE 03 LDX #$03 00:0124 AD 09 BSR $012F 00:0126 5A DEC X 00:0127 2A FB BPL $0124 00:0129 84 POP A 00:012A B7 0D STA $0D 00:012C 86 POP CC 00:012D 98 CLC 00:012E 87 XRTS 00:012F 89 PUSH X 00:0130 AE 0F LDX #$0F 00:0132 31 D6 0B 92 LDA [$0B92.p],X 00:0136 A4 7F AND #$7F 00:0138 31 D7 0B 92 STA [$0B92.p],X 00:013C AD 57 BSR $0195 00:013E A6 04 LDA #$04 00:0140 CD 38 40 JSR $3840 00:0143 AD 5F BSR $01A4 00:0145 AD 4E BSR $0195 00:0147 AE 0F LDX #$0F 00:0149 31 D6 0B 92 LDA [$0B92.p],X 00:014D AA 80 ORA #$80 00:014F 31 D7 0B 92 STA [$0B92.p],X 00:0153 31 C6 0B 92 LDA [$0B92.p] 00:0157 AA 01 ORA #$01 00:0159 31 C7 0B 92 STA [$0B92.p] 00:015D A6 07 LDA #$07 00:015F CD 38 40 JSR $3840 00:0162 AD 40 BSR $01A4 00:0164 AD 2F BSR $0195 00:0166 AE 0F LDX #$0F 00:0168 31 D6 0B 92 LDA [$0B92.p],X 00:016C A4 7F AND #$7F 00:016E 31 D7 0B 92 STA [$0B92.p],X 00:0172 13 16 BCLR1 $16 00:0174 A6 49 LDA #$49 00:0176 B7 16 STA $16 00:0178 3F 15 CLR $15 00:017A 3A 15 DEC $15 00:017C 12 16 BSET1 $16 00:017E A6 3E LDA #$3E 00:0180 CD 38 40 JSR $3840 ; Time Map3E 00:0183 13 16 BCLR1 $16 00:0185 AD 0E BSR $0195 00:0187 AD 3E BSR $01C7 00:0189 B6 14 LDA $14 00:018B A4 FC AND #$FC 00:018D 31 C7 0B 92 STA [$0B92.p] 00:0191 AD 22 BSR $01B5 00:0193 85 POP X 00:0194 81 RTS 00:0195 A6 02 LDA #$02 00:0197 B7 48 STA $48 00:0199 C6 0B 93 LDA $0B93 00:019C B7 44 STA $44 00:019E C6 0B 94 LDA $0B94 00:01A1 B7 45 STA $45 00:01A3 81 RTS 00:01A4 C6 0B 94 LDA $0B94 00:01A7 AB 10 ADD #$10 00:01A9 C7 0B 94 STA $0B94 00:01AC C6 0B 93 LDA $0B93 00:01AF A9 00 ADC #$00 00:01B1 C7 0B 93 STA $0B93 00:01B4 81 RTS 00:01B5 C6 0B 94 LDA $0B94 00:01B8 A0 18 SUB #$18 00:01BA C7 0B 94 STA $0B94 00:01BD 24 07 BCC $01C6 00:01BF C6 0B 93 LDA $0B93 00:01C2 4A DEC A 00:01C3 C7 0B 93 STA $0B93 00:01C6 81 RTS 00:01C7 A6 02 LDA #$02 00:01C9 B7 48 STA $48 00:01CB A6 0B LDA #$0B 00:01CD CD 38 40 JSR $3840 00:01D0 81 RTS I've never seen an implementation of SHA-1 doing what 3e does, but I've only seen a few variations of it. Map 3e itself is easy to guess at what it does by looking at the other maps that take 3 big numbers as inputs. The hard part is timing it. It does use the output to update the HW input and as input for the next iteration of 3e. If all you needed was the time, it could easily be solved by dumb brute forcing it in seconds. Trying to dumb brute force it with the current implementation isn't feasible as it takes too long to figure out (hours, maybe even days in some cases). If you had a rough idea of the time, you would be able to do smart brute forcing. The conditions the MECM sets up meet the requirements of Montgomery so it's very likely the implementation to deal with. Even knowing that, it probably won't be easy to time. |
|
Silver Member Username: Pulp_fictionPost Number: 697 Registered: Nov-07 | with anything there is a risk involved... CS and IKS are no different... BUT there are a lot of private servers set up and being used by many linux and dvbcard users both in NA and Euro market... All ip's are held server side so unless the sever is hacked or ??? it just as safe as any other method out there now |
|
Bronze Member Username: Thrill_nydaAKA PULP FICTION Post Number: 18 Registered: Dec-07 | I also agree |
|
New member Username: L_k_livesGold Member Post Number: 5 Registered: Dec-07 | Pulpfiction has it right, it is a nasty looking ecm at first glance. Talking with a few coders on IRC,they say they have all they need and probably have it back up by Sunday AM, outside chance tonight. |
|
Silver Member Username: Oleg1474Florida Usa Post Number: 612 Registered: Aug-06 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Working BEVSoftware(Temp../ Bin Files /) Hello everyone, we now have new working software bin files for the viewsat receivers. make sure you go to the receiver you own for the newest bin files These New Software Bin Files Are For BEV Bell ExpressVu if you are NOT pointed at that satellite you do not need to use this software, dish users. Viewsat Receivers: Updated Software Bin Files As Of: 12/15/07 Viewsat Pro 071214A Bev Fix Viewsat Ultra 071214U-1a bev fix Viewsat Extreme 071214X-1a Bev Fix Viewsat Plat/lite 071214P-1a Bev fix Viewsat PVR7000 071214A Bev Fix... Thank you!! Oleg PHD. |
|
Silver Member Username: Pulp_fictionPost Number: 703 Registered: Nov-07 | all they need and probably have it back up by Sunday AM, CRAP and reason is map3e is not publicly known People saying it's going to take a brute force attack which could take DAYS. |
|
Bronze Member Username: Spike52Post Number: 39 Registered: Aug-06 | LK good to see you, Pats, Jets looking nasty up here weather wise but expect Pats to cover line. Merry Xmas fron the Conways. |
|
Silver Member Username: Pathfinder191Post Number: 259 Registered: Mar-06 | Jerry Conway, This is not the same LK. Look at his Post Number. He/she is an imposter |
|
Silver Member Username: Pulp_fictionPost Number: 707 Registered: Nov-07 | Look at his Post Number thats not the only clue... the impostor although he may be a warp and twisted loooser... has a personality.... ...old lady LK was a SHARK on two legs... |
|
Silver Member Username: AanaaPost Number: 204 Registered: Mar-05 | do we have new bin for pansat 2700 A |
|
Bronze Member Username: RazzorwyrePost Number: 78 Registered: Dec-07 | whether thats the real LK or not, that sounds about like what a few other well repted sites have said from talking with a few coders. Me personally I havent a clue. |
|
New member Username: L_k_livesGold Member Post Number: 6 Registered: Dec-07 | Hey Pulp old friend, while it`s true I was seen by some as prickly, I have had the chance to be "Born Again" shall we say. I have been given a second chance and I do not intend to blow it. From now on I will be the kinder gentler LK. The new post count I think is a good fresh start for me,so I am now a bronze member,humility is a good thing. Anyway, I would like to wager that DN will be wide open on a cardless fix by Sunday night. Conway, Go Jets and be careful in the snow, stay off the roads for lands sakes. |
|
Silver Member Username: One_eye_jackPost Number: 117 Registered: Nov-07 |  ...............NFusion Nova ...............$209.65 http://transatelectronics.com/store/nfusion-nova-w-netgear-lan-adapters-14-mbs_P325 |
|
Silver Member Username: JoeturnPost Number: 132 Registered: Apr-06 | smells like denmark |
|
Silver Member Username: JoeturnPost Number: 133 Registered: Apr-06 | taste like denmark Whois 216.109.125.130 = [ cache.search.vip.dcn.yahoo.com ] (Asked whois.arin.net:43 about +216.109.125.130) OrgName: HotJobs.com Ltd. OrgID: HOTJOB-6 Address: 701 First Ave City: Sunnyvale StateProv: CA PostalCode: 94089 Country: US NetRange: 216.109.112.0 - 216.109.127.255 CIDR: 216.109.112.0/20 NetName: HOTJOBS NetHandle: NET-216-109-112-0-1 Parent: NET-216-0-0-0-0 NetType: Direct Assignment NameServer: NS1.YAHOO.COM NameServer: NS2.YAHOO.COM NameServer: NS3.YAHOO.COM NameServer: NS4.YAHOO.COM NameServer: NS5.YAHOO.COM Comment: Yahoo! RegDate: 2000-09-28 Updated: 2002-12-11 RTechHandle: JA256-ARIN RTechName: Arnold Jeffrey RTechPhone: 1-212-699-5334 RTechEmail: jba@hotj.net OrgAbuseHandle: NETWO857-ARIN OrgAbuseName: Network Abuse OrgAbusePhone: 1-408-349-3300 OrgAbuseEmail: network-abuse@cc.yahoo-inc.com OrgTechHandle: NA258-ARIN OrgTechName: Netblock Admin OrgTechPhone: 1-408-349-3300 OrgTechEmail: netblockadmin@yahoo-inc.com ARIN WHOIS database last updated 2007-12-14 19: 10 Enter ? for additional hints on searching ARIN's WHOIS database. sure glad I didn't step in it  |
|
Silver Member Username: JoeturnPost Number: 134 Registered: Apr-06 | Who other than Uncle Ruport owns YAHOO?? Beginning to feel a lot like denmark |
|
Silver Member Username: JoeturnPost Number: 135 Registered: Apr-06 | Every day I know Page one: Every day I know Help - Help for Webmasters « back to results for "murdoch owns transat electronics" Below is a cache of tively" at £160,000 per transponder, per year, which suggests that if applied at what most people hope will be a maximum tariff, then Astra alone will have to stump up £9m per annum for their 56 transponders at 28.2 deg E. The fee to cover all of Astra's European transmissions would be in the region of £24m/annum (€34m). Eutelsat's bill would beeven larger even though the bulk of their signals are not tar- geted at the UK.The (all-party) Trade & Industry Select Committee, in itssubmission to government, summed up the Bill's intentions. "We believe that the Radiocommunications Agency has an obligation to consider all users of spectrum, whether licensed or not, in fulfilling its spectrum management and planning responsibilities." But the Committee did not shirk from say- ing how the tax might be viewed, adding: "Charging for RSA is an attempt to extract payments from operators using spec- trum for which licence payments cannot be levied, against the threat that the Agency will ignore them when carrying out its responsibilities. Under such circumstances it is diffi- cult to disagree with the witness who likened the RSA con- cept to a protection racket."Europe's satellite operators had been lobbying heavily infavour of modifying the RSA proposals, and had pinned their hopes on amendments to the Bill being made by oppo- sition parties. Those amendments evaporated into thin air on the day. The amendments were designed to limit the fees being sought, and had been intended to put into the Bill the government's earlier comments that "In particular, the Government accepts that RSA should not be applied, and that fees should not exceed cost recovery, in the absence of a spectrum management need."Strategy • Forecasts • Convergence • Report Updates • Business News • Conference Reports • Industry IntelligenceYves Elsen is leaving two-way satellite broadband supplier SatLynx. Elsen has been president and CEO at SatLynx since the company's spin-off from SES Astra in June last year, following a long career at Astra. He leaves on August 31st, and talking exclusively to Satcoms Insider, says he is leaving to embark on a new stage: "It wasn't an easy decision, any change is difficult and I wanted to do something in a new sector. An opportunity presented itself which I grabbed."Elsen says SatLynx is in good shapefor his -- at least -- temporary successor, Robert Bednarek, who will take on the additional role (he is also EVP for busi- ness development at Astra) of actingCEO until a replacement is found. Bednarek is having a busy time, as he has also just been appointed a director at Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. Elsen says SatLynx's products are now moving rapidly forward. "Sales are good and strong across all sectors. The sharehold- ers are fully present and give us the skill-set we want. Alcatel's contribution [in the shape of new products] will be seen before the end of the year. We already have the largest DVB-RCS plat- form in Europe so this gives us a huge momentum for the future. I'd say we are now well beyond 20,000 connected users on our systems." SatLynx loses ElsenContinued page 4➢Continued page 2➢UK sat "protection racket" gets gov't approvalBy Chris ForresterSky Italia takes shape2➢Huge losses onfailed channels3➢Not so clever Einstein3 ➢Discovery: "Growing,growing, growing..."5 ➢Briefs8➢BULGARIA:waiting in line9➢Opinion12➢In this issueVolume 5, Issue 14July 8, 2003T H E S A T E L L I T E I N D U S T R Y N E W S L E T T E RIncorporatingDI G I T A LTE L E V I S I O NTI M E SEditorChris Forresterchrisforrester@compuserve.comTel: 44 20 8948 8561PublisherRoger Stanyard58 St John's StreetWinchesterHampshire SO23 OHFUnited KingdomAdmin: +44 (0)1962 877850Fax: +44 (0)1962 624094Communications BusinessIntelligence© 2003 Copyright DTTConsulting Ltd"No part of this publication maybe electronically archived,stored, copied, duplicated,photocopied or distributed inany way, shape or form,including electronically, withoutprior written permission of thepublishers."Satcoms InsiderSatcoms Insider is the bi-weeklynewsletter from DTT ConsultingLtd covering the satelliteindustry. Its value added contentcomplements the Internet viaSatellite 2001 and Middle EastSatellite Communications andKa-band Multimedia Satellitesreports published by DTTConsulting Ltd.DTT Consulting is owned byRoger Stanyard, former owner,editor and publisher ofInterspace newsletter.Stanyard has almost 20 yearsexperience as a business analyst2Rupert Murdoch's Sky Italia is counting down the ay to its launch in a few days. Basic tier PrimoSky will have around 50 channels and cost viewers €22 a month.'Cinema Sky', the platform's premier tier will have nine channels at start up and add€10 to the sub, as will the sports tier ('Sport Sky'). All three elements (Primo+Cinema+Sport) will earn a €2 'dis-count' or €40. However, Italy's premierleague soccer-mad fans will have to stump up another €15, taking an all-up subscrip-tion to €55. • Sky Italia will have a 24-hour Italian language news channel (SkyTG24) mod-elled on Murdoch's Sky News and Fox News services. SkyTG24 will launch in September as part of a 100+ line up of digital channels. SkyTG24 will be avail- able to all viewers and be part of the 50 channel PrimoSky basic tier. Sky Italia has struck a major programming supply agreement with Rome-based Fact Based Communications (FBC). FBC's "strate- gic alliance" with Sky has FBC supplying 9 shows daily, plus weekly features. The Alan Friedman Show, a 90-minute week- ly talk show will air on Friday evenings, as well as daily business news program- ming plus sport and other entertainment features."Even though some might say progresshas been slower than expected, in many regards we are further ahead than expected. The applications are everywhere in the mar- ket," says Elsen. "E-government, for exam- ple in Spain, and France's La Poste series of cyber-terminals. Look at the what's happen- ing in Sweden with its farmers who, helped by EU funding, are using broadband. By bringing broadband into the countryside, into the regions, with very real applications. This is proving a very tangible success. The market comes to us, and it is no longer just tech-talk, but real applications. This is thekey to our success today and in the future." Elsen said he expected to see equipment prices start softening helped by these economies of scale. "Prices are already mov- ing down, and Alcatel's involvement will only speed this process," he added.The challenges SatLynx still faces can beeasily seen from the promises made this time last year, when statements were made that talked of sales of 50,000 "residential termi- nals" sold in 2003, and to have 500,000- 800,000 residential terminals in use by 2005, and 12,000-14,000 corporate (SME/SoHo) users by 2005. Sky Italia takes shapeSky Italia Primo/Basic line-upFactualKidsEntertainmentMusicSportNewsHistory ChFox KidsHappy ChMTVEurosport News Sky TG24BiographyCartoon NetDuel TVMatch MusicESPN ClassicFox NewsNational Geo BoomerangRAISAT ExtraRock TVNuvolariCFN-CNBCA1RAISAT Ragazzi RAISAT Premium Deejay TVSNAI SatBloombergDiscovery Ch Italia Teen TV JimmyVideo ItaliaSky NewsDiscovery Cult Network Music ChoiceCNNIScienceItaliaDiscoveryCNBC EuropeCivilisationDiscovery Travel/AdvPlanetAliceLeonardoRAISAT Gam/RossaMT ChannelMarcopoloData: Sky ItaliaSatLynx loses ElsenFrom page 13Huge losses on failed channelsPay-television is an important and growing market already worth more than 20 billion in Western Europe, and it will more than double this figure by 2008. If T-commerce rev- enues are included the figure will triple by 2008 to over 75 billion, according to a recent report. However, there is also a growing cost associated with channels that fail.Pay-TV channels are failing because they have notproduced professional business plans. The study (Pay-TV Business Planning, published by International Marketing Reports, www.im-reports.com $745) states that dozens of Pay-TV channels have failed because the business models have not been properly researched and implemented. Report author David Brown says that in the past six years there have been more than 150 failed channels across Europe that have cost investors more than $3 billion. Most of the lost money could have been saved had a proper business plan been formulated, says Brown. "Obviously economic conditions in this industry are tough at the moment, but in many cases, channel opera- tors are not giving themselves a chance because theircosts are too high for the business models that they are following."Some channel failures in Britain recorded losses ofover £30 million, says the report. But even on the basis of an average loss of £10 million to £15 million (new venture Attheraces, for example, lost £11.1m in the 12 months to 31 December 2002) this means that £300m to £450m has been poured down the drain. Taking European as a whole the wastage adds up to Euros 2.25 billion to Euros 3.5bn.The report highlights and analysis the structure of apotential broadcaster's business plan, along with the various revenue options open to niche broadcasters, as well as giving guidance to sensibly forecasting what the different income strands might be. Detailed costs on getting a signal to view- ers are also tabled.Not so clever EinsteinThe Einstein Group plc, the outfit behind the now defunct Einstein TV channel, was suspended from London's Alternative Investment Market (AIM) on July 1. The com- pany should have filed its accounts to last December by June 30. On May 16, and speaking at the company's AGM, Einstein's chairman John Sanderson told shareholders "I confirm also that the accounts for 2002 are largely complet- ed and we expect to complete the audit within the statutory period, which, in this case, is 30th June 2003." Since May 2003 Einstein's share price has halved from 0.7p to below 0.4p. Sanderson told investors that Einstein would be work-ing with Zone Vision (international TV Channel manage- ment company) to roll out the Einstein TV Channel round the world and "we can now confirm that they have impending deals with Turkey, Pakistan and India," said Sanderson.CEO Steve Timmins, responding to a shareholders ques-tion, said "Although the audit is not completed, we expect the turnover for 2002 to be just under £1.5m, which is ahead of 2001 on a like for like basis -- we expect 2003 turnover to be in excess of this. We have 10 members of staff." However, Timmins admitted that the previous year's figures were qualified by the company's auditors. "[Our] auditors were unable to gather sufficient information to satisfy themselves with respect to the sufficiency of working capital for the 12 months following the date the accounts were approved."SOME UK CHANNEL CLOSURES 1997 TO 2003Channel Year closedGo Racing 2003Carlton Cinema 2003Go Racing 2003Play UK 2002Shop! 2002Tara 2002Taste/Carlton Food2001Granada Breeze 2001Wellbeing 2001Money Channel 2001Simply Money 2001Rapture 2001Einstein 2001u>directfilms 2001Whereits.at 2000.tv 2000Automotive Channel 2000Carlton World 1999Carlton Select 1999Carlton Kids 1998ITV Sport 1998TCC 1998Knowledge 1998Sky Scottish 1998NBC Europe 1998Channel One 1998Sky 2 1997Granada Talk TV 1997Weather Channel 1997CMT 1997[Source: ems]The cost of failure• 30 channel closures in the UK over the past six years.• Approximately 150 closures in Europe over the same period• Each channel closure represents at a conservative estimate, atloss of £10m to £15m• Wasted investment in the UK over past 6 years approx £300mto £450m• For Europe approx: £1.5bn to £2.25bn• On an annual basis this is: UK: £50m to £75m, Europe: £250mto £375m4In a statement to the Trade & Industry Select Committee,the Government said it agrees that "cost recovery" is a rea- sonable approach where there is no spectrum management need for fees to be higher. "However, where there is spectrum congestion, setting fees above cost recovery will be benefi- cial." Insiders close to the discussions ay they understand that the Radiocommunications Agency has no intention of levying the maximum tariffs. The UK government said it had listened to objections toits proposed tax from the ITU, which argued that given the ITU supervised the allocation of frequencies and coordinat- ed their usage, the ITU's clearance procedures meant RSA is unnecessary; and that this justifies a different approach to setting fees. "These arguments are misconceived," says the UK government. "ITU procedures do not guarantee a right of access to spectrum to provide service in another country. Their purpose is to avoid interference between countries and to ensure new international services do not interfere with existing services. Subject to that, national administrations have the sovereign right to regulate radiocommunications in their territories and to issue spectrum licences. RSA will complement ITU procedures by providing assurance that the holder's service will be taken into account in UK spectrum planning within defined parameters. Indeed, some countries, such as Australia, already license and charge for spectrum access by satellite downlinks."The government went on to says: "RSA is driven by adesire to promote spectrum efficiency and a level playing field, not to maximise revenue. The Communications Bill contains strict safeguards to ensure that RSA fees will be no higher than necessary for spectrum management purposes and will not be based on revenue -raising considerations."Last week, on June 26, in the House of Lords, oppositionpeer Lord Avebury, who is in favour of amending the RSA to minimise its impact on satellite operators, stated: "The satel- lite operators say that they are already using the spectrum as efficiently as it is possible to do and that there is no scope for efficiency savings to be made upon the introduction of RSA. Therefore the additional cost burden that RSA is bound to generate will necessarily have to be passed on to the users of the satellite platform and, ultimately, to the consumers of the services."He continued: "As was pointed out in Committee, theoperators also say that RSA may compromise the take-up of digital television and, as a result, the Government's switchover target. I am bound to accept that the advice from the operators of the satellite services is of some significance in this regard. If the technical advice they are giving asserts that the adoption of these technologies will be delayed, they are in the best position to know and, with respect, I think that their opinion ought to prevail over that of the Government's advisers."Lord Avebury asked the government's representatives tothink again, adding: "The application of RSA will constitute a significant and damaging disincentive to innovation and the development of new broadband satellite services. It may also reduce competitiveness in the broadband market by making the further development of broadband interactive satellite services prohibitively expensive."Meanwhile, legal battles loom. The Satellite Action PlanRegulatory Group (SAPREG), says it is awaiting to hear from the European Commission regarding the legality of the UK Government's RSA proposals. It is questionable whether RSA will meet the criteria of "justification" and "propor- tionality" enacted by the European Court of Justice in its jurisprudence on cross-border services within the EU and whether, consequently, it fully complies with Internal Market rules (notably Article 49 of the EU Treaty on the freedom to provide services). More specifically, the European Directive "TV WithoutFrontiers" governing television broadcasting activities within the EU, states that "Member States shall ensure freedom of reception and shall not restrict retransmissions on their terri- tory of television broadcasts from other Member States for rea- sons which fall within the fields coordinated by this Directive." (Article 2a.1) The use of radio frequency spectrum to uplink TV programmes on satellite is one of these fields.The proposals cover those signals that have already beencoordinated by the ITU. Satellite operators can choose whether or not to register their frequencies, in other words protecting their frequencies or orbital positions (hence the "protection racket" phrase). This, says the RA, will ensure that the license-holder/fee-payer is protected by OFCOMUK sat "protection racket" gets gov't approvalFrom page 1RSA -- What does it cover?SES Astra says it has been strongly opposed to the introduction of RSA for a number of reasons, but it's not only SES that has issues with the proposed tax. The whole European satellite indus- try has been against its introduction and has been represented by the European Space Operator's Association (ESOA) and the Satellite Action Plan Regulatory Group (SAP REG). Interestingly, Intellect, the UK organisation representing over 1,000 companies in the IT, telecomms and electronic industries have also expressed opposition to the introduction of RSA.The Radiocommunications Agency (RA) has stated that itwishes to open up the 11Ghz frequency for fixed wireless links. This space is of course used by the satellite industry. The RA says there is untapped demand here. However, Astra suggest that in Europe the ERC (European Radiocommunications Committee) decision of October 2000 expressly precludes the use of the 11Ghz band for customer access. It may only be used for high capacity trunk links. The UK is a signatory to this ERC decision.In practice, the use of the 4GHz, 6Ghz and 15Ghz bands forfixed links has already shown a marked decline from 4.7K in 1997 to 1.3K in 2002, a drop of 72%. This is because the telco's/operators have been moving over to fiber networks as this method of carriage has fallen sharply in cost over the years and this trend is expected to continue. Therefore, says Astra, the number of fixed links is predicted to decline and the case for opening up the 11Ghz band for such links (high capacity trunk usage) is specious. Uplinkers in the UK already pay highly for the right to uplinkwithout interference, including the TV broadcasters. The value of the licenses granted to the broadcasters is dependent upon con- sumers being able to receive their channels without interference in the corresponding downlink bands.Continued page 7➢5Discovery: "Growing, growing, growing..."In our last issue we looked at Discovery's plans for high- definition television. But there's much more to this multi- tiered company. Chris Forrester takes a detailed look at Discovery CommunicationsLast week Discovery bought Estilo, a lifestyle channel operat- ing in Spain as part of the Canal Satelite Digital/Sogecable plat- form. Discovery reportedly paid $18m for the network. Estilo becomes the latest addition to what is already a broadcasting behemoth. Its 14 main channels reach a massive 950 million subscribers worldwide (measured in revenue generating units) via 425 million homes in 155 countries and 33 distinct lan- guages. The data is never less than fascinating, and we could easily fill a page with a comprehensive databank of Discovery's notable achievements, not least the 35m students who each year benefit from Discovery's channel-to-the-classroom, and similar charitable efforts in Africa and developing regions.Indeed, it would not be wrong to say that Discovery,although operating entirely as a firm for-profit company, is the nearest thing America has to a public broadcaster, other than the praiseworthy but unwatched PBS stations. Its 'mis- sion to explain' (or "explore their world and satisfy their curiosity" as the official Mission Statement puts it) is not that distant from most public broadcasters, in particular Britain's BBC. Consequently, it is no surprise that the links between the BBC and Discovery are many and varied. They have joint-venture channels (Animal Planet and People+Arts) and distribute BBC America, the BBC's flag- ship channel in the USA.Discovery was founded in 1985, although the big idea hadformed in John Hendricks' head when he was just a 30-year-old university administrator in 1982. While first bright idea was to launch a factual channel, his second good idea was not just to seek carriage on the USA's cable systems, but to get them direct- ly involved in his enterprise. He says in his early days he spoke to 211 assorted venture capitalists before New York-based mer- chant bankers Allen & Co stumped up $3m in first-stage fund- ing to get the ball rolling. The early days were challenging, withminiscule distribution (156,000 homes on Day One, building to 5m by the end of its first years). Discovery's main backers are John Malone's Liberty Media (50%), Atlanta-based Cox Communications (24.9%) and investment house Advance/Newhouse (publishers of Vanity Fair, New Yorker and Vogue) taking up the bulk of the balance. Hendricks holds some 3%. Liberty Media, arguably oneof the savviest players in global media, achieved its 50% sharefollowing a $75m investment by CEO John Malone in 1985. Liberty, in its May SEC filing (Form 10-Q) stated that its 50% holding in Discovery is being carried in Liberty's books at a value of $2.8bn. Liberty say: "During the three months ended March 31, 2003, Discovery reported increases in both affili-ate revenue and advertising revenue." Liberty states: "During Q1/2003, DCI continued its strong execution in a mixed global environment. In particular, US advertising sales showed strong performance compared to the challenging marketplace of a year earlier. Total operating cash flow increased 41%, driv- en by an increase in gross advertising revenue of 24% and an increase in gross affiliate revenue of 10%. Total revenue and operating expenses increased 18% and 13%, respectively." Discovery's international division also moving forward dur-ing Q1/2003. Revenue increased by 15% due to increases in both affiliate and advertising revenue. Operating expenses rose 9% and operating cash flow increased by 67% to $15 million.As for 2003 generally, Discovery's overall guidance is toexpect revenues to improve "in the low teens", while operat- ing cashflow improves 15%-20%, and operating income by a similar amount. As far as its international activities are con- cerned, Discovery says improvements will be more modest -- business has not been helped by the challenges of its Latin American channels -- with revenues improving "by low to mid single digit percent" and operating cashflow growing by "high teens". In terms of hard cash, this translates into $370m of operating cashflow for 2002 and they are talking of more than $400m for fiscal year 2003, and more thanDiscovery revenues1997 $860m1998 n/a1999 $1.1bn2000 $1.4bn2001 $1.5bn2002 $1.7bn2003 $2.0bn EstData: Discovery CommunicationsThe ChannelsDiscovery ChannelFounded 1985TLC The Learning ChannelAnimal Planetj-v with BBCTravel ChannelAcquired from LandmarkDiscovery HealthDiscovery KidsDiscovery Timesj-v with New York TimesDiscovery ScienceDiscovery WingsDiscovery Home & LeisureDiscovery en EspanolDiscovery CivilisationDiscovery Travel & AdventureDiscovery HD TheatreLaunched June 17People & Artsj-v with BBCBBC AmericaDistribution deal to 35m homesDiscovery iMediaInteractive divisionDiscovery Consumer ProductsLicensing and merchandisingDiscovery StoreRetailDiscovery Sat-RadioOn XM and SiriusDiscovery-on-DemandVOD divisionData: Discovery CommsDiscovery's international distributionDiscovery Ch146mTLC8mAnimal Planet116mKids21mHealth15mTravel & Adventure61mPeople+Arts14mHome & Leisure9mCivilisation11mSci-Trek11mWings8mData: Discovery Comms.Continued page 6➢6$2bn in overall revenues for 2003.Despite these impressive figures, Hendricks stressed toSatcoms Insider his board has no current intention of taking the business public. "One of the advantages of being a pri- vate company is that we do not have to worry about quar- terly earnings statements. I doubt whether we would have been able to expand as rapidly as we have throughout the 1990's had we been a public company. So our preference is to stay private, reinvesting our earnings into the company." A Discovery insider summed up the company's philosophy: "The 5 year plan is aggressive and bullish. We're growing, growing, growing... We see the world's major media players a little like a six-sided gaming dice. We want to occupy one of those faces alongside News Corp. and Viacom. Key to Discovery's impressive growth has been perhaps itsrelationship with the UK's BBC. Initially the relationship was one of distinct arm's length, where the BBC simply licensed much of its documentary archive to Discovery. The BBC was not alone. Other factual film-makers also made good money from Discovery, not least Anglia TV and itshighly-regarded 'Survival' strands of programming. But in May 1998 Discovery's relationship with the BBC was elevat- ed to a much higher plane. It struck a bargain that gave it an exclusive 'open door' to the BBC's archives, paying fair prices for the content but also heralding new joint-venture chan- nels (Animal Planet, People+Arts, BBC America) plus a new programming co-production agreement that has led to the widely popular "Walking with....." series of computer-gen- erated documentaries, and the acclaimed "Blue Planet". The 'Blue Planet' ocean-based wildlife series won praiseand awards from all quarters, but has proven to be something of a curse for Discovery. "We sort of have a 'before Blue Planet' and 'after Blue Planet' problem," said the insider. "The series was so good that almost everything else in our 75,000 hours- worth of archive programming looks boring in compari- son..." This is good news for high-calibre production outfits like the BBC. Back in 1998 the Discovery j-v was the most valuable ever signed by the BBC. Discovery paid the BBC $175m to produce new programmes for the channel, plus another $360m to go toward creating new channels. The deal was renewed earlier this year, and there's no reason to see it end. Both parties seem delighted by the relationship which on the day it launched put the BBC's share in Animal Planet as worth around $600m. It must be worth more today.Besides high-definition, Hendricks also has another firmprediction. "We are going to see a transition into a video-on- demand led world. We have to ask ourselves will there come a time when the market demands ever more channels or will [viewers] demand a menu of programming services. I suspect ten years from now markets around the world viewers will have enhanced TV, better picture quality and more network choices. But they'll also be beginning to have a menu of choices, where if they're interested in history they will come to Discovery on Demand and be able to access a history or science library with programming they can enjoy right at that moment. We think these are very powerful consumerThe financialsDiscovery Communications Inc.Summary Financial Information ($m)REVENUE:Q1 03Q1 02Discovery Networks US299247Discovery Networks International9078International Ventures1314Consumer Products & Other2522TOTAL REVENUE427361OPERATING EXPENSE:Discovery Networks U.S.188151Discovery Networks International7569International Ventures1620Consumer Products & Other4850TOTAL OPERATING EXPENSE327290OPERATING CASH FLOW (DEFICIT):Discovery Networks U.S.11196Discovery Networks International15 9International Ventures (3)(6)Consumer Products & Other* (23)(28)TOTAL OPERATING CASH FLOW10071OPERATING INCOME 3727OUTSTANDING DEBT2,4312,269Data: Liberty Media, May 2003The Top BrassJohn S HendricksFounder, chairman & CEO Judith McHalePresident & COO Dawn McHallPresident, Discovery Networks Int'lPeter WeilSVP & GM, Animal Planet Int'lTom KeavenySVP, Discovery Latin America/IberiaMaurice PaleauVP, production & development, DNITanya FieldVP, new media, DNIThe costs of an hourJohn Hendricks "When we launched in 1985 we could barely afford an average programming budget of $7,000 per hour. In many markets around the world today if you really look at the economics of running a channel the budgets would be similar, perhaps in the range $7,000-$10,000 an hour. Discovery's self-syndicated system of operating which gives us all of our international units contributing to the [overall cost of a programme] which in the US means we can recover $400,000 per hour on a production, add in another $400,000 from our international division, and that's $800,000 per hour of production value that we can put on screen. But one of our much smaller markets might only be contributing $5,000- $10,000 of that, yet getting the higher value on screen." The vision thing"We try to remain very, very adaptable. In the US the broadcastingindustry has been handicapped because they have not thought oftheir businesses as being content providers. In the period 1975-1985 they missed an enormous opportunity to create cable chan-nels, but they stayed on the sidelines because they misdefined thebusiness they were in. They saw themselves only as broadcasters.Had they realised they were content providers then they wouldhave been much more adaptable. We remain adaptable and this isa key characteristic for us. We will exploit every platform thatcomes along over the foreseeable future."John HendricksContinued page 7➢7trends that you really cannot stand in the way of. Consumers world-wide will migrate to much higher picture clarity, clos- er to reality and real-life experiences, and they will migrate to more choice so that when they have a precious hour to watch TV they'll watch what they want to watch."This month Discovery will be fully present with a mini-bouquet of channels on the newly merged Sky Italia plat- form. Judith McHale, Discovery's president & COO, said the strategy in Italy, Germany "and globally, is to work close- ly with the native players in each market, having strategic alliances where that makes sense. Our business is global, and when we put together a programme idea we are frequently able to spread the cost of that show over many outlets. With this sort of distribution infrastructure we are able to buy pro- grammes and launch new services much more easily. It is eas- ier for us. Think how difficult it is for a new, start-up chan- nel, going into a market and having to produce program- ming for a new subscriber base, as well as having to build up programming people, sales and marketing and advertising people, it isn't easy. Our global presence is one of the reasons for our success. We are able to go in early and build our busi- ness as that platform is building. The economics are tough for our competitors." Dawn McHall adds that the programming mix amongstDiscovery's channels ideally sees around 50%-60% of globally shared programming, a further 15%-20% of locally produced material and finally another 15%-20% of locally acquired content. "This gives a nice mix across the board, and includes our high-profile specials. We always have to remember that while a European viewer might find fascinating a program- ming on life in Taiwan, that same Taiwanese subscriber wants to see a show featuring African animals while people viewing in Latin America are interested in a show on Europe. This curiosity extends around the world and for us to feature just local material, on local topics for a specific market would be wrong or do justice to what the audience is seeking."There are around 14 key brands within Discovery's port-folio, and while McHale admits they are always on the look- out for new niches, the line-up is more or less complete. "At the moment we are very much focussed on these brands, and we are investing in them to ensure they can be the very best." Discovery admits that the one genre that has worked less well is nature programmes, "We have to figure out a different way to tell their natural history stories. We have seen millions of feet of footage of oceans and marine life and it is always interesting, but then along comes The Blue Planet and none of us had ever seen ocean life captured so magnificently. We have to push this envelope and look for new and exciting ways to tell stories that may otherwise have been saturated."This need to find fresh ways of keeping viewers happy isbehind the decision to relaunch Animal Planet this autumn, complete with a three wild -- and sometimes wacky -- on-air presenters grouped together as 'Men on the Edge' in prime- time. Viewers will note a hardening of the usual 'soft and furry' content as Animal Planet's intrepid wildlife adventur- ers: 'Crocodile Hunter' Steve Irwin, Jeff Corwin and Mark O'Shea grapple with high-adrenalin adventures. Also freshly signed is primatologist Dr Jane Goodall who will create spe- cials for the channel.DISCOVERY'S EUROPEAN DISTRIBUTIONDiscovery Europe channels Satellite Provider Platform/ChannelEurobird, Astra 28.5 E Discovery Animal PlanetHotbird 1-5 13 E Nova Animal PlanetHotbird 1-5 13 E Polsat Animal PlanetAstra 19.2 E UPC Direct-Wizja Animal PlanetEurobird, Astra 28.5 E Sky Digital Animal Planet +1Thor 2/3 and Intelsat 1 W Canal Digital Animal Planet Europe Astra 19.2 E UPC Direct-Wizja Animal PlanetEurope Astra 19.2 E Canal Sat Digital Discovery ChannelEurobird, Astra 28.5 E Discovery Discovery ChannelThor 2/3 and Intelsat 1 W Canal Digital Discovery Channel DanmarkHotbird 1-5 13 E Polsat Discovery Channel EuropeHispasat 30W TV Cabo Discovery Channel EuropeHispasat 30W TV Cabo Discovery Channel EuropeHotbird 1-5 13 E Nova Discovery Channel GreeceHotbird 1-5 13 E Stream Discovery Channel ItalyHotbird 1-5 13 E Tele+ Digitale Discovery Channel ItalyHotbird 1-5 13 E Cyfra+ Discovery Channel PolandThor 2/3 and Intelsat 1 W Canal Digital Discovery Civilisation Eurobird, Astra 28.5 E Discovery Discovery CivilisationHotbird 1-5 13 E Polsat Discovery CivilisationAstra 19.2 E UPC Direct-Wizja Discovery CzechAstra 19.2 E Premiere World Discovery GermanyEurobird, Astra 28.5 E Discovery Discovery HealthEurobird, Astra 28.5 E Discovery Discovery Home & LeisureEurobird, Astra 28.5 E Sky Digital Disc Home & Leisure UK+1Eurobird, Astra 28.5 E Discovery Discovery KidsAstra 19.2 E UPC Direct-Wizja Discovery PolandThor 2/3 and Intelsat 1 W Canal Digital Discovery Sci-Trek Eurobird, Astra 28.5 E Discovery Discovery Sci-TrekHotbird 1-5 13 E Polsat Discovery Sci-TrekEurobird, Astra 28.5 E Discovery Discovery TravelThor 2/3 and Intelsat 1 W Canal Digital Discovery Travel & AdventureHotbird 1-5 13 E Polsat Discovery Travel & AdventureEurobird, Astra 28.5 E Discovery Discovery Wings[Source: ems]from unwanted or unauthorized transmissions. One exam- ple, from Astra, outlined the problems faced with their trans- missions from 19.2 deg East which cover such specifics as pay-television beaming into France (via Canal Plus) as well as dozens of analogue ect.ect..ect... you get the BIG PICTURE if not do your own search |
|
Silver Member Username: Way2smartHttp://www.dssworld.co...DssWorld Mod... Post Number: 329 Registered: Oct-06 | how long did this take 2long dont bother reading it |
|
Silver Member Username: JoeturnPost Number: 136 Registered: Apr-06 | Well you talked me into it zeeshan some poeple are too lazy and some try to cover it up ,but its bigger than a matchbox!! This is where the goody starts anyway page one was just Sir James getting them laws passed!! Page TWO at special request: Plus) as well as dozens of analogue German channels beaming to the whole of Europe (and with as many as 400,000 expatriate German viewers in the UK). "Which of these do we pro- tect?" asked an Astra insider, "or do we cover them all."Eutelsat's spokeswoman said they were concerned aboutthe legislation and would be examining the details ahead of making any comment. A senior insider at Modern Times Group's London-based ViaSat operation also expressed con- cern and said if the tariff was applied at the higher rate would force them to look closely at expansion in the UK. UK sat "protection racket" gets gov't approvalFrom page 48BriefsCPT to be broken up?Thomson Multimedia is considering selling off its smart card company Canal Plus Technologies to Nagra Kudelski. Reportedly, Thomson -- which paid 190m for CPT last year -- is having serious discussions over CPT's future and one option is to sell the MediaGuard smart card division to Swiss-based Kudelski. Francois Carayol, in position as CPT's CEO since 1999 was replaced ten days ago by Jean- Charles Hourcade.Last year when the Thomson/CPT deal closed Thomsonissued a statement saying they would be immediately enter- ing into partnership and other strategic discussions with other leading technology companies. Kudelski last week confirmed they are still seeking opportunities in their sec- tor.Eutelsat forecast 8% growthEutelsat's CEO Giuliano Berretta says he expects the satel- lite operator to deliver growth of almost 8% in its financial year (to June 30). He said Eutelsat is anticipating revenues of around 710m ($843m). Berretta also says that Eutelsat is interested in some of the Loral assets that are for sales, in particular he said Telstar 5 would make a good buy but not at the current price being offered. He said anyone offer- ing satellites for sale at much more than book value these days "is dreaming".Loral breathes again - settles with AlcatelAlcatel Space and Loral Space & Communications have fully settled their contract disputes. Loral will pay Alcatel $5 million now and an additional $8 million within one year. As part of the settlement, Alcatel will transfer its minority interest in CyberStar to Loral, and Loral will trans- fer to Alcatel its minority interests in Europe*Star (47%) and SkyBridge that Loral had previously written off. Acquiring Loral's share in Europe*Star will increase Alcatel's stake to 95%. The Europe*Star transfer is subject to German antitrust review, which Alcatel expects to com- plete this summer. Alcatel confirms it plans to cancel its arbitration and lawsuits against Loral.With litigation cancelled it means that pre-agreed incen-tive payments can now be made. Alcatel says it has agreed with Intelsat and Loral that Intelsat will now pay Alcatel directly, rather than through Loral, for Alcatel's share of orbital incentives on the Intelsat IX and VII satellite pro- grammes. Alcatel expects these direct payments to reach in the range of $60 million over the next few years. Loral said last week it had "collected $55m from Intelsat representing an acceleration of agreed-upon milestone performance pay- ments".The payments were vital to keeping Loral afloat. In addi-tion Loral is trying to sell at least 4 and possible 6 satellites in order to raise a reported $800m to cushion the compa- ny's future.Astra in 4 out of 5 Euro Digi-homesAlmost 80% of all digital satellite homes in Europe receive services carried by Astra, according to the latest European Satellite Monitors survey. However, the survey also shows that satellite growth is slowing. 34.4m European (analogue and digital) homes receive Astra services directly via DTH satellite. At the beginning of 2003, some 91.8m cable and satellite homes in 30 European countries were served byAstra's main orbital positions at 19.2 East and 28.2 East. According to Astra, the number of satellite homes in France increased by just 100,000 homes to total 3.2m homes connected. In Germany and Italy Astra claim satel- lite homes increased by 0.4 million each to reach respec- tively 13.6m and 1.4m homes. Astra's reception in Poland went down to 1.6 million as a consequence of the merger of the two digital platforms.• SES investor quits. Suez SA, a major investor in SES,sold a large parcel of shares last week. Suez sold 16.1m shares worth 87m at 5.40 a share. SES' shares traded during the week at around 5.50 each."You pays your money...."The annual European Media and Marketing Survey 2003 (EMS) was issued last week (although using data gathered Jan-Dec 2002) and the rival news broadcasters issued their usual flood of press releases each somehow or other man- aging to find success for their particular channel. EMS measures viewing of pan-European TV channels in the top 20% of households by income in 16 European countries. EuroNews claims their result shows that CNN continues to suffer audience erosion. EuroNews did do well, with a daily reach of 3.9% (1,553,000 viewers) and a weekly reach of 15% (6,036,000 viewers). EuroNews' daily and weekly reach exceeds that of CNN's in the five major markets com- bined (UK, France, Spain, Germany, Italy). EuroNews' daily reach is 1,105,000 versus CNN's 1,066,000. EuroNews' weekly reach stands at 4,523,000, just ahead of CNNI's 4,424,000. EuroNews' audience is also around twice as large as that of BBC World (407,000 in daily and 2,021,000 in weekly reach), CNBC (356,000 in daily and 1,662,000 in weekly reach) and Bloomberg (544,000 in daily and 1,611,000 in weekly reach). EuroNews claims "significant progress" in key countries such as the UK where daily reach has grown by 33% since its launch on Sky Digital in mid-2001. BBC World has no formal distribution in the UK.However, in the highly competitive UK news market whereEnglish language-only news offerings predominate, CNNI fares better and pushes EuroNews into second place amongst international channels. Sky News leads the UK news pack with 71.4% reach, with CNNI with 56.1% reach. In the survey EuroNews claims increases in daily reach by 60% in Denmark, 27% in Finland, 19% in Ireland and 4% in Portugal. CNNI says the EMS study showed CNNI achiev- ing its highest-ever monthly reach of 34.1% (34.1% (Euronews 22.7%, BBC World 18.1%, CNBC 13%); a weekly reach of 17% (Euronews 15%, BBC World 7.8%, CNBC 5.6%) and a daily reach of 4.3% (Euronews 3.9%, BBC World 1.6%, CNBC 1.2%).The battle amongst business news channels is also meas-ured by EMS. Bloomberg Television now claims to be the leading financial news channel in Europe with a daily audi- ence figure 34% higher than its closest rival CNBC. Of course, Bloomberg transmits seven different versions across Europe, while CNBC is an English-only single service.• Turner Broadcasting is to close CNX, its 'lifestyle' chan-nel, for a revamp. CNX launched on October 2002. A new channel, Toonami, will grow out of the existing afternoon programming block on CNX. CNX struggled to find an audi- ence in what a staffer described as a "crowded and com- petitive marketplace".9BULGARIA: waiting in lineby Roger StanyardBulgaria is looking to join the European Union in 2007 and is in the 2nd round of nations that are likely to join the European Union from 2007. It has not modernized its econ- omy and is perceived as one of the more backward countries in the region. The size of its population has fallen by 5% since 1997. Up until 1997 it was perceived as a country wracked by political instability, all too often dominated by former communists. Whilst the current regime is keen on continued economic and political reform and EU member- ship, the country remains corrupt, poor and with high levels of unemployment.In general, though, the country has largely implementedthe economic reforms to meet EU membership. The real problem is that political reform, including control of corrup- tion, has not met EU requirements.Within the framework of Comecon, Bulgaria specialisedin electronics (it used to be Comecon's computer manufac- turing specialist) and there is a legacy of a skilled workforce conversant with the English language. This has resulted in a small but significant R&D and design sector in satellite com- munications as well as a domestic software industry. It also left a legacy of very high (by regional standards) fixed line telephony penetration.The country did not pass its first broadcasting act in thepost-communist era until 1996 and even then implementa- tion was seriously delayed. The country's broadcasting regu- lator is called the Council for Electronic Media ( companies and which also has an ISP operator, and BMV. It is charged with deploying a nationwide VSAT network for data communications up to 45 MBit/s. We understand that an order was placed in 2000 for HNS VSAT equipment for both one-way and two-way transmissions. It is expected to use the network to offer (amongst other applications), Internet access, LAN-to-LAN communications, Intranet platforms, multimedia and TV and radio services.Transat-GilatGilat announced in June 2003 what looks to be by far the biggest VSAT order emerging from Central and Eastern Europe in recent years. This is for a hub and 511 terminals for Transat ( under construction, July 2003) to be delivered in the 3rd quarter of 2003. Transat is a subsidiary of Petrol Bulgaria. The network, using Skystar 360E equipment, is intended to connect petrol stations (450), 17 corporate branches and 30 bank branches. This was the first order for a large, completely new, VSAT network originating from CEE and placed with Gilat for some time (certainly there were no such orders placed in 2003 prior to the announcement. The Satlynx JV between SES, Alcatel and Gilat had been responsible for Gilat sales in Europe but this is no longer the case. Gilat told us, though, it had received expansion orders from customers in the region in the first half of 2003. Our understanding is that Petrol Bulgaria is con- trolled by the Russian oil company LUKoil. Transat appears to be a new venture with ambitions to provide communications on a regional basis. We do not know where the hub is being located. Gilat could not reveal this to us because of customer confidentiality clauses. Transat, though, is headquartered in Sofia and a posting on the GSatx web site (www.gstax.com) almost certainly suggests that the hub is being located in Bulgaria. The posting was a request for 1-5 MHz of satellite capacity for a 500 plus site VSAT network "with hub and network in Bulgaria".Who gives a Puck?An few weeks ago we chastised some senior executives from UK cable. This week we pick on the France Telecom- owned mobile phone operator Orange, and its new CEO Solomon ("Call me Sol") Trujillo. Trujillo's credentials are impressive. An American, he holds directorships at Pepsi, media group Gannet and Bank of America. He also has a demonstrable knack, at least if his performance at his June 24 Orange relaunch is any guide, to bore his audi- ence to death. More than one journal- ist was seen to be asleep at his all- important presentation, which proved to this journalist that 'less is more'.It could be that Mr Trujillo's long con-nection with telephone companies is partly to blame: he started his business career Mountain Bell Telephone, and then CEO at US West in 1995 and chairman in 1999. He quit US West in June 2000. He joined Orange's board in 2001, becoming CEO in March 2002. He also holds a directorship at Alcatel. I am sure many of us still have asneaky regard for Orange. Under the charismatic leadership of Hans Snook the company was never dull. Mr Snook, whose tabloid headlines guar- anteed his high profile, along with his 'less is more' devotion to Feng Shui, and love affair with fast motorbikes and stunning women, somehow or other made Orange the company to watch. Everything about the business was remarkable, from its advertising, to its branding and to Snook's 'make it so' attitude.Orange, launched in the UK in 1994,and quickly made its mark as 'cool', soon won a spectacular slice of market share. Snook and his team, despite being 4th to market, took 24% of thebooming market within 6 years of launch, and then it's fair to say paid bil- lions in the 3G stampede for licenses. More recently Orange has certainly lost the plot, not helped by its 'Hard-nosed businessman' campaign and the current unfathomable advertising effort.Orange's press conference on June24 was nothing short of remarkable, but for all the wrong reasons. Orange spent an obscene amount of cash on a media blitz that seemed to go down like a lead balloon. One wit said later that it must almost have matched that paid by Orange for its 3G licence. The event was timed to start at 9.30am at London's Lincoln Inn Fields, a place mid-way between the City and West End. Lincoln's Inn Fields is London's largest town square (12 acres) and although laid out by Inigo Jones in the 17th Century, is now a favoured sleep- ing spot for down and outs.Quite what the early-morning sleep-ers must have though of Orange's "strategy day" antics in the square is not recorded. Of the half-dozen oil painters filling their easels with images of the Orange scene. Of the pair of volley-ball teams working up a sweat for some reason or other. Of the hired actors and actresses taking a faux-picnic alongside that peculiarly British invention, the ice-cream van. Perhaps Orange should have explained the link between these bits of street theatre, or perhaps it had been explained to the analysts but not to the hacks. Perhaps it has something to do with Orange's current and past pair of failed media campaignsWe were directed by an army of min-ders sited around the giant square to Orange's spectacular marquee, air conditioned to within a degree or twoof absolute zero and a giant movie-set of a stage with 5 huge screens. Eventually, but not quite out a sea offoaming dry ice, came Trujillo. His first couple of minutes on stage were interesting. He had a nice manner and started to talk, and talk, and talk. But nothing of interest came from his mouth. Which is when the audience started losing its attention span. One chap alongside me was snoring, or was he just another bit of Orange 'theatre'? I was afraid to nudge him back to real- ity. Besides, at least the deep-sleeper was getting some benefit from the mammoth presentation. Sol told us about a (evidently)Canadian ice-hockey star, one Wayne Gretzky, who -- miracle of miracles -- is always in the right place at the right time: "It is about going to where the puck will be and that is where we, Orange, intend to be..." Sol told those of us who were still awake. I made a mental note which placed all of Orange's subscribers crowded in and around the goal, with the puck coming towards us but the assembled masses being too comatose to worry about it. Perhaps it was the air-conditioning that had put me in this state of near- frigid state, numbing my mind. Somewhere buried in the presenta-tion came a few pearls: Orange would grow. Orange would enter into strate- gic alliances with other telcos (TIM, Telefonica and T-Mobile). Orange would be free of debt.... and might look to expand in Eastern Europe. And we heard from Sanjiv Ahuja, newly- appointed COO, who is going to "trans- form Orange into a truly integrated company..." I hope they are right. But for any press officers reading this always remember 'less is more' and leave out the volley ball players, the artists in residence and the ice-cream van, for press events. They'll only be laughed at, as Orange was laughed at.OpinionTo subscribe to Satcoms Insider, please complete and return the form below, or pay online at www.spotbeam.com. The annual subscription rate is normally £595 (US$995), but as a special introductory offer your first year's subscription is reduced by 10%Name:........................................................................ ..................................................................Position:..... ................................................................................ ..................................................Company: ................................................................................ .....................................................Address: ................................................................................ ................................................................................ ................................................................................ ..........................................Postcode (Zip): .................................................................Country:....... .........................................Telephone: .............................................................................Fax :................................................E-mail: ................................................................................ .........................................................• I would like to subscribe to Satcoms Insider and take advantage of thte 10% introductory offer.❏ I enclose a payment of _________ made out to DTT Consulting Ltd. OR❏ Pleaseinvoice me. Mark as appropriateReturn this form to DTTConsulting Ltd, 58 St John'sStreet, Winchester, HampshireSO23 0HF, UK. Alternatively faxto +44 (0) 1962 624 094, ore-mail the details tointerspace@enterprise.netS U B S C R I P T I O N F O R MSubscribe today and take advantageof a special introductory offer. Wheres my $5mil Unk |
Main Forums
Today's Posts- Home Audio Forum
- Home Video Forum
- Home Theater Forum
- Car Audio Forum
- Accessories Forum
- All Forum Topics