Friday 18 December 2015

Nashik Cable TV Federation appeals to Bombay HC for extension Phase III

The Nashik Zilla Cable Operator Association (NZCOA) has filed an application in the Bombay High Court seeking an extension of digital addressable system (DAS) Phase III deadline. The deadline for DAS Phase III is 31 December and the government has ruled out extending the deadline. 

DreamWorks Studios, Participant Media, Reliance Entertainment andEntertainment One form Amblin Partners New Venture

Steven Spielberg, Principal Partner, DreamWorks Studios, Jeff Skoll, Chairman, Participant Media, Anil Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Group and Darren Throop, President and Chief Executive Officer, Entertainment One (eOne) announced on 16 December the formation of Amblin Partners, a new film, television and digital content creation company.

Discovery Channel presents Running Wild with Bear Grylls Featuring U.S. President Barack Obama

Discovery Channel presents RUNNING WILD WITH BEAR GRYLLS AND PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA, a special programme featuring U.S. President Barack Obama trekking through the Alaskan wilderness with survival expert    Bear Grylls while on a visit to observe the effects of climate change on the area.

CASBAA’s Medeiros backs HONG KONG Copyright Bill

Speaking at a press conference on the Copyright Amendment Bill sponsored by the Hong Kong Copyright Alliance, CASBAA Chief Policy Officer John Medeiros has expressed support for immediate passage of the Bill, but without the three Committee Stage Amendments, describing them as “unacceptable”, suggesting they would create huge loopholes in copyright protection.

MEASAT Appoints Prashant Butani as Senior Sales Director – South Asia

MEASAT Satellite Systems Sdn. Bhd. announced the appointment of Prashant Butani as Senior Sales Director – South Asia.

MIB to hold ‘Open House Meeting’ for broadcasters on 21 December

The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) has informed all broadcasting companies that it would hold an ‘Open House Meeting’ on 21 December from 11:00 am to 12 noon in the chamber of Neeti Sarkar, Director (BC), Room No. 664, ‘A’ Wing, Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi. 

Thursday 17 December 2015

MIB grants 15 new provisional MSO licences, but no permanent ones

The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) has granted new provisional licences to 15 multi-system operators (MSOs). 

Disney signs 50-odd brand associations for Star Wars

Disney's Consumer Products business in India has signed approximately 50 brands for associations with the latest Hollywood big-budget film Star Wars — the Force Awakens, slated to release in India on 25 December.

Life OK appoints Rakesh Jain as head of fiction group

Life OK, Hindi general entertainment channel has appointed Rakesh Jain as head of fiction group. 

TDSAT dismisses Media Pro’s petitions seeking payments from cable ops

The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) has dismissed 14 petitions by Media Pro Enterprise India, Mumbai against cable operators as “there is no material on record even to show what were the dues, if any, of the respondents on the date their respective agreements came to end.”

Nick HD+ set to launch on Tata Sky

Nickelodeon, Viacom18’s kids entertainment franchise, has launched its HD channel Nick HD+ on Tata Sky direct to home (DTH) platform in India. Nick HD+ will be available on channel no. 611. 

KSS, United Mediaworks merge to form joint venture KSSUMW Digital

Digital movie distribution firms K Sera Sera (KSS Ltd) and United Mediaworks Ltd have decided to merge their operations to form a joint venture called KSSUMW Digital to become the third largest player of the country.

Colors acquires rights to air Box Cricket League

Colors, along with Balaji Telefilms and Marinating Films, will put together the new season of the Box Cricket League (BCL). The sports reality show which had its previous season showcased on the MSM network, will have a line-up of over 200 top celebrities and will be telecast on Colors and Colors HD from February 28 2016, every Sunday at 4.30 pm, with a repeat telecast on Rishtey.

I&B Ministry sticks to December 31 deadline for Phase III

Ministry of Information and Broadcasting held a meeting of the Task Force on 11th Dec 2015 in Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi in the run up to the cut-off date of 31st Dec 2015 for Phase III of cable TV Digitisation. In the morning of the same day, a meeting was held with the Multi System Operators (MSOs) also which was attended by over 120 MSOs from all over the country. 

Tuesday 15 December 2015

Mysuru subscribers feel cheated by the cable service providers

Cable Television services in Mysuru, Karnataka have complained that cable television service providers refused to issue a receipt for the monthly subscription fee they collect. Also many popular channels were taken off from the packages on their whims.

COAI blames delay in clearances for poor services for call drop

Telecom industry blamed delay in getting clearances from the authorities for installation of mobile towers and increasing data usage by subscribers for the call drop problem. 

ASCI upholds complaints against 54 out of 84 ads in September 2015

The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) upheld complaints against 54 out of 84 advertisements in September 2015.

Imagine Communications Joins Newly Formed Alliance for IP Media Solutions

Imagine Communications, empowering the media and entertainment industry through transformative innovation, announced its membership in the Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS), an independent media and entertainment trade association formed to foster the adoption of standards to facilitate the broadcast and media industry’s transition from SDI to IP. A founding member of AIMS, Imagine Communications is a leading proponent of the advancement of the industry to an agile and cost-efficient technology foundation that promotes the development, standardization and adoption of open protocols for media over IP.

Discovery Kids partners with Rapid Metro Gurgaon to launch ‘Discovery Kids Joy Express’

The favourite channel for kids in India, Discovery Kids continues to deliver on its promise of SMART FUN through the launch of DISCOVERY KIDS JOY EXPRESS.  Discovery Kids has partnered with Rapid Metro Gurgaon Limited to create a unique touch point for kids to have fun while they learn on-board DISCOVERY KIDS JOY EXPRESS. 

Thursday 10 December 2015

Sunny Digital MSO operations launched in Hyderabad

City-based Sunny Digital Home Entertainment Pvt Ltd a DAS registered MSO from Hyderabad announced the launch of its operations on 7 December. The company plans to private advanced technology triple play services for its viewers in South India. It will offer Multi screen, multi-service & app-based access to a world of content and services as seen in developed markets.

TRAI issues Draft Model & Standard Interconnection Agreements in DAS areas

On 9 December, The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has finally decided to propose a standard interconnection agreement (SIA) that could be followed as a draft model. Earlier, the sector regulator had said that it would be best left for market forces to sort out interconnection agreements between the MSOs and the LCOs. This has been done after disputes related to interconnection between MSOs and LCOs were on the rise and digitization has not succeeded the way it was expected even after four years of implementation. After The Bombay HC asked TRAI to intervene and resolve the issues, TRAI has held several meetings with MSOs and LCOs and only after that decided to draft a standard interconnect agreement. 

Aadhaar leak: EPFO discontinues services provided through Common Service Centre

Following fear of Aadhaar data leak, the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) on May 2 said it has discontinued services provided t...