Latest SATELLITE NEWS/TV LISTING SECTION

[mike566]

KidsCo launches in Austria with Liwest

Published: September 21, 2010 Europe/London

The international children’s channel KidsCo has announced its launch in Austria on Liwest, the country’s second largest cable television operator. It will be available to Austrian viewers in German from September 2010.

KidsCo will broadcast its range of “family friendly programming” including Pecola, Sabrina: The animated Series, Dino Squad, Fat Dog Mendoza and Super Mario Bros. Additionally, the channel will air KidsCo original programming Boo & Me and Jass Time! across Liwest’s extended basic package.

Paul Robinson, MD of KidsCo, welcomed the news in a statement: “With the worst of the recession over KidsCo’s focus is coming back to Western Europe. We are really excited about launching in Austria and exposing KidsCo programming to more subscribers. We are pleased with our existing expansion in Western Europe and will continue to keep this area as a focus through 2011. Our aim is to deliver programming that both educates and entertains kids and we are delighted that Liwest shares this vision.”

[mike566]

More Iranians turn toward opposition satellite channel

Support for the main opposition satellite channel is growing in Iran, with the Iranian people making all kinds of efforts to install satellite dishes in their homes and avoid being caught by the regime’s suppressive forces. The growing trend of viewership for Simay-e Azadi Iran National TV, the largest opposition satellite channel in Iran, has forced the regime to react by complaining about people’s colourful efforts to conceal their satellite dishes.

The state-run news agency Mehr published a large number of pictures showing homes with satellite dishes, and said, “While there are some who are not intimidated and publicly display their satellite dishes, some people conceal it by throwing a piece of fabric on it, which is nonetheless still obvious.” The regime has made large-scale suppressive efforts to confiscate satellite dishes through the years, but has failed to succeed.

[mike566]

Neovia to handle FilmFlex payments

Neovia Financial has announced its Payment Network has been chosen by FilmFlex to process the online payments on its recently launched broadband VOD service.

FilmFlex, owned by Sony and Disney, is using the Netbanx gateway to process payments on its new packaged streaming service.

“Alternative payment options are exactly the right tool for this market” said Dan Starr, Chief Marketing Officer for Neovia . “Following our contract wins with SeeSaw and Perform, this win further demonstrates that the Neovia Payment Network is the best choice for secure, flexible online payment processing in the micro-content and streaming media market.”

Neovia could be seen as a possible provider of financial services to YouView, where it will compete against MGt’s recently launched PayWizard.

Project Canvas has already indicated that it will not mandate a single provider for operators wanting to run pay-TV services over the hybrid platform.

[mike566]

Cable Europe says sector stimulating fibre investment

Cable Europe has said the European Commission’s broadband strategy recognises the need to spur telcos into making fibre investments has been stimulated by the market presence of the cable sector.

“There is a growing *– and encouraging – awareness about the importance of a mix of technologies driving connectivity,” said Caroline Van Weede, managing director of the trade body. “We’re calling on Europe to ensure that public funding mechanisms tightly focus on areas where private investments are not commercially viable, such as sparsely populated areas. If the Commission is to work with bodies such as the EIB it is even more important that stakeholders providing ultra fast broadband are considered equal – and consulted. Placing public funds in areas where services exist does not make sense.”

A package of measures to encourage the delivery and take up if ultra-fast broadband was announced yesterday (Monday), by Neelie Kroes, vice president of the European Commission for the Digital Agenda.

In addition to its communication on how to encourage public and private investment in broadband, the Commission has put forward a proposal that provides regulated access to Next Generation Access networks that it believes provides a balance between investment and competition. A Radio Spectrum Policy Programme has also been proposed to ensure the availability of spectrum for wireless broadband.

[mike566]

Croatian cableco introduces Balkan package

Croatia’s leading cable operator B.net has introduced a new ‘Balkan package’ offering channels from Serbia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Slovenia.

The package contains TV Svet Plus, Top Music, OTV Valentino, TV BN Sat, Hayat TV Sat, Vizion Plus, Alsat TV, RTV Atlas, MKTV Sat and Pop TV and is available to B.net’s digital subscribers.

B.net was formed by the merger of DCM and Adriatic Kabel and claims to reach 250,000 households across Croatia, including such large population centres as Osijek, Rijeka, Split and the capital, Zagreb.

[mike566]

Sky secures Masters rights from 2011

Sky has agreed a deal with the Augusta National Golf Club to join the BBC as an official UK broadcast partner for the Masters from next year.

Under the agreement, Sky Sports will show coverage of all four days of the 2011 tournament at the Augusta National in standard and high definition.

During the week of April 4 to 10, Sky will air live coverage of the Par 3 Contest on the Wednesday and the four tournament rounds from Thursday to Sunday.

The BBC has covered the last 24 Masters from Augusta in a relationship stretching back decades, but its latest three-year rights contract expired in April.

It had been feared that the corporation could lose the tournament rights to Sky, but the satcaster has simply joined as an additional broadcast partner.

Billy Payne, chairman of Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament, said: "Since our first telecast of the Masters in 1956, we have carefully maintained a tradition of high-quality programming within an appropriate broadcast window. This addition will be consistent with those efforts and exciting for the millions of golf fans who enjoy viewing the Masters each April.

"We consider ourselves fortunate to have two committed television partners who are able to reach both new and established audiences throughout the United Kingdom. This agreement was successful in both preserving a long-term partnership and adding a new dimension to our coverage in the UK."

Sky will also air the Masters on its new Sky 3D channel, which launches on October 1 with coverage of the Ryder Cup tournament.

"3D coverage of the Masters will give a unique view of the Masters and really capture the contours of the stunning Augusta National course," said Sky Sports managing director Barney Francis.

"We are also delighted that coverage from the host broadcasters at Augusta National will start one hour earlier than ever before.

"Sky Sports has enjoyed a great partnership with golf for nearly two decades. We follow a hundred different tournaments each year, from five different continents, and are excited that The Masters is now at the heart of this calendar."

The Masters coverage will also be available on Sky Player and via Sky Mobile TV to Sky Sports subscribers.

[mike566]

Updated: Twitter fixes security flaw
The main Twitter website was h*cked this afternoon via a security flaw.

Users who moved their cursor over blacked-out text automatically Tweeted or Retweeted the same message. Some accounts automatically posted a message in oversized text, making their page and those of their followers unreadable.

In a blog post, Graham Cluely of security firm Sophos reported that the flaw allowed messages and pop-up windows from third-parties to open in users' browsers. These pages potentially contain spam or malicious code.

Cluely said: "The Twitter website is being widely exploited by users who have stumbled across a flaw which allows messages to pop up and third- websites to open in your browser just by moving your mouse over a link.

"Hopefully Twitter will shut down this loophole as soon as possible - disallowing users to post the onMouseOver JavaScript code, and protecting users whose browsing may be at risk."

Cluely noted that the Twitter page belonging to Sarah Brown, the wife of former Prime Minister Gordon, had attempted to direct her one million followers to a "hardcore ****** site based in Japan".

In a post on its Safety page, Twitter confirmed that it has now fixed the security flaw.

"We've identified and are patching a XSS attack; as always, please message @safety if you have info regarding such an exploit," the social networking website said.

Del Harvey, the leader of Twitter's Trust and Safety team, added: "The XSS attack should now be fully patched and no longer exploitable. Thanks, those reporting it."

[mike566]

BBC defends Pope UK visit coverage

The BBC has defended its coverage of Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the UK last week after receiving hundreds of complaints.

According to PA, figures released by the corporation indicate that 169 viewers complained that the coverage was too favourable to the Catholic leader, while 197 felt that it was too critical.

An additional 384 complainants felt that the BBC gave too much airtime to the Pope's visit, but 122 people contacted the corporation to praise it for the coverage.

A BBC spokeswoman said that the complaints "reflect some of the public's opposing views" on the Pope's historic visit to the UK.

"In the context of the millions of viewers who enjoyed our live events coverage of the five major ceremonies, the live news coverage on the BBC News Channel, the news bulletins, and the various documentaries, the complaints reflect some of the public's opposing views about the visit," she said.

"The Pope's visit was of historic significance for millions of Catholics and to the wider population of the UK and it has provoked a range of public reactions.

"BBC News coverage of any subject is always approached in an impartial and accurate way, reflecting the different sides of any debate."

[mike566]

BBC renews Masters coverage deal

The BBC has renewed its deal with the Augusta National Golf Club to broadcast live coverage of the Masters tournament on terrestrial television.

From April 7 to 10 next year, the corporation will air all action from the final two rounds of the event live on TV, backed up by coverage on Radio 5 Live and the BBC Sport website.

"The BBC is very proud we have broadcast the Masters every year since 1986 and we are delighted that this new deal enables us to continue this relationship," said BBC Sport director Barbara Slater.

"It means terrestrial audiences can continue to enjoy live coverage of the concluding rounds of this hugely prestigious tournament on BBC TV, alongside our comprehensive coverage on radio and online."

In April, Phil Mickelson won the famed Green Jacket for the third time after finishing three shots clear of Lee Westwood.

The BBC has covered the last 24 Masters events from Augusta in a relationship stretching back decades, but its latest three-year rights contract expired after the 2010 tournament.

It had been feared that the corporation could lose the tournament rights to Sky, but the satcaster has instead joined as an additional broadcast partner.

Sky will carry live coverage of all four rounds of the tournament, as well as Wednesday's Par 3 contest in SD, HD and 3D on its pay-TV platform.

"We consider ourselves fortunate to have two committed television partners who are able to reach both new and established audiences throughout the United Kingdom," said Billy Payne, chairman of Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament.

"This agreement was successful in both preserving a long-term partnership and adding a new dimension to our coverage in the UK."

[mike566]

Sky sorry for Anytime technical issues

Sky has apologised for the major technical problems over the weekend that caused the Anytime video on-demand service to crash thousands of Sky+ HD boxes.

On Saturday afternoon, members on Digital ***'s Sky+ HD forum started reporting instances of their receivers freezing or going to stand-by when trying to access the Anytime menu.

Members reported the problems on a wide variety of different model set top boxes and the issues happened repeatedly when trying to access Anytime over the weekend and into yesterday.

In a statement, Sky said that a "technical issue" had caused some HD boxes to freeze or go into stand-by while accessing the Anytime service.

After investigating the problem, the satellite broadcaster believes that it has now "identified the root cause" of the failure, meaning users no longer need to manually disable Anytime to continue using their Sky+ HD box.

Despite being confident of resolving all the technical issues today, Sky has taken the precaution of not introducing any new content to the on-demand service until everything is fixed.

"While our final checks are continuing, we're taking the precaution of not adding new programmes to Anytime for Sky+ HD customers," said the firm.

"This is a purely temporary measure and we hope to be able to reinstate the full service as soon as possible. We're sorry for any inconvenience caused in the meantime."

Sky said that the technical problems only affected Sky+ HD boxes rather than standard definition receivers.

Anyone with a HD box that has frozen is advised to press and hold the standby button on the Sky remote control or Sky box until the green power light turns red.

After waiting 15 seconds, users need to press the Sky button and the power light should turn from red to amber to eventually green as the box restarts.