SES: ASTRA 2G SATELLITE ROARS INTO ORBIT

Martin Halliwell, Chief Technology Officer of SES stated, quotWe would like to congratulate Airbus Defence and Space and ILS for the successful ASTRA 2G mission, a launch that marks the 24th SES satellite to be launched by ILS Proton, and the ninth Eurostar satellite in the SES fleet. The ASTRA 2G satellite completes our significant replacement investments at a strategic orbital neighbourhood over Europe and provides 10 incremental transponders for expansion while cementing our unique co-positioning satellite back-up-scheme. Detailing the programme, Halliwell added, quotThe spacecraft furthermore includes the capability to connect West Africa to Europe via Ka-band. In combination with ASTRA 2E and ASTRA 2F which were launched in September 2012 and 2013 respectively, ASTRA 2G is the culmination of our fleet renewal programme at the 28.2/28.5 degrees orbital arc. The new state-of-the-art SES satellites provide more focused and higher power to our broadcast customers, while the Ka-band on board supports the delivery of next-generation satellite broadband services as well as intercontinental connectivity between Africa and Europe. - www.ses.com

www.ses.com

Court allows Aereo to auction TV streaming technology assets

Dec 26 - A bankruptcy court has allowed defunct video streaming company Aereo Inc to auction its TV streaming technology assets, according to court papers published on Friday. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan ruled on Wednesday that Aereo could sell its assets, after the company reached an agreement with broadcasters over the sale process. - www.reuters.com

www.reuters.com

MediaGuardian quiz of the year 2014

What is former Radio 5 Live controller Adrian van Klaveren's new job at the BBC Head of values, BBC Controller digital strategy, future media, BBC Director of strategic governance, BBC Head of strategic change, BBC News 21. Which of these BBC programme launches did Tony Hall NOT go to - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Media: ABC Entertainment, Monty Penguin, Snow Wolf

downloads.bbc.co.uk

Change in Audio Formats

Why is BBC Radio changing the audio format of its radio streams We think most internet radios will still be able to receive our live radio streams. - iplayerhelp.external.bbc.co.uk

iplayerhelp.external.bbc.co.uk

Latest news from the licensing industry

Set to fully launch on January 7th 2015, Tiny Pop will be available on Freeview channel 126 across the whole UK. This extends SPT Networks' reach of children's programming on Freeview to two channels, with POP - aimed at older kids - already available on channel 125. Announcing the launch, Kate Marsh, SPT's EVP, Networks, Western Europe, said quotThis extended distribution on Freeview marks our commitment to continue to invest in our UK networks business. With the extension of Tiny Pop, SPT's reach on Freeview now spans five channels, and the introduction of this well-loved and established channel enables us to deliver a quality and fun alternative for families in Freeview homes. - www.licensing.biz

www.licensing.biz

Landmark 20 millionth digital radio set sold

The Christmas digital radio industry advertising campaign features Formula One host and ex-Gadget Show presenter Suzi Perry, running on over 100 commercial radio and BBC national and local radio stations, with the message that digital radio is the perfect gift and the endline quotIf you love radio, give digitalquot. Digital Radio UK CEO Ford Ennals says quotDAB is an overnight success story 20 years in the making. The sale of the 20 millionth digital radio, together with the expansion of DAB coverage and digital radio stations is a real milestone. There has never been a better time to buy or give a digital radio. - radiotoday.co.uk

radiotoday.co.uk

SES: ASTRA 2G READY FOR DECEMBER 28 PROTON LAUNCH

LUXEMBOURG, December 22, 2014 - SES S.A. is pleased to announce that the ASTRA 2G satellite is ready for its scheduled launch on board an ILS Proton booster from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on December 28 at 033749 Baikonur Time. ASTRA 2G will be the twenty-fourth SES satellite to be launched by ILS Proton, and the ninth Eurostar satellite in the SES fleet. - www.ses.com

www.ses.com

BBC iPlayer tops list of corporation downloads

The BBC iPlayer app is by far the corporation's most popular download, with 30m transactions since its 2012 launch, while CBeebies Playtime is the most popular programme-related app with 3.4m. The iPlayer app was recently tweaked to extend the catch-up window for TV and radio programming from seven to 30 days making it even more attractive to users. In second place in a list of the BBC's 10 most popular apps published on Monday is BBC News, the corporation's oldest app launched in 2010, with 15m downloads. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Feedback: Controller of Radio 4: 19 Dec 14

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#19 - Sony’s PR Disaster, Serial breaks records - The Media Podcast with Olly Mann

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ISSUU - Broadcasting by Lyonsdown

Business Reporter Broadcasting TV wars Let battle commence BT vs Sky - issuu.com

issuu.com

Sky should continue to be forced to make sport available to other platforms

Media regulator Ofcom has said Sky should continue to be forced to make its sports channels available to other platforms but said it was quotLess clearquot that the same obligation should be extended to its rival BT. Ofcom said Sky's dominance of live Premier League football, where it has more than 75 of the rights and 80 of the market revenues, meant other pay-TV retailers would be harmed if it limited distribution of Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports 2. quotGiven Sky's continued strong market position, Ofcom is seeking views on its assessment that if there was limited distribution by Sky of its key sports content, competition between pay-TV retailers may be harmed. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

The great DAB digital radio station reshuffle: what's changing?

A516digital provides an overview of the developments and a guide of what's changing for listenersBauer Media, owners of stations including Absolute Radio, Kiss and Magic are shuffling their DAB stations around London's Magic is going nationwide on DAB, while Absolute Radio 90s moves to local DAB in parts of the UK. There's also changes to the distribution of Absolute Classic Rock, Kerrang, The Hits Radio, plus the roll-out of the Kiss Fresh and Kisstory stations in selected areas on local DAB. Rival Global Radio is currently in the process of developing its DAB profile its Smooth Radio network has recently moved to local DAB only, making way for Smooth Extra, launching late December. - www.a516digital.com

www.a516digital.com

Radio 4 announces partnership with TED Talks

Gwyneth Williams, the controller of Radio 4 BBC. Radio 4 has maintained its average listening age at 55 despite an ageing population. quotShe's a brilliant modern writer, of course Radio 4 is going to run her new short story collection. It's fiction and I think we are in a pre-election period. We at Radio 4 will carry on doing the very best that has been thought and said in the world and bring it to air. - www.independent.co.uk

www.independent.co.uk

DTG :: News :: DTG Testing reveals challenges facing DTT receivers in White Space networks

Richard Carlton, associate director of DTG Testing, said quotThe DTG is proud to support Ofcom and the industry through the unique facilities and expert knowledge of DTG Testing, and the work of the Dynamic Spectrum Access Forum. DTG Testing's research is part of an ongoing pilot scheme to test different aspects of dynamic spectrum access, with a further Ofcom report due in early 2015. - dtg.org.uk

dtg.org.uk

Government should have no role in running of BBC World Service, says John Birt

John Birt, the former director general of the BBC, has said the government should no longer have any say in the running of the World Service after its funding was taken over by the BBC. Birt said it was a quotNonsensequot that the Foreign Office still had a role in the running of the global broadcaster and said it should be quotTaken out of the equationquot. quotOne of the biggest changes in the BBC's history took place without any public debate, a piece of skulduggery in the middle of the night,quot he told a conference on the future of BBC current affairs at London's City University on Thursday. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

BBC iPlayer Radio for Tablet - Android Apps on Google Play

App will run on v2.3.3 and above. The app will scale for any screen size but is optimum at small to medium screens. - play.google.com

play.google.com

BBC current affairs not doing enough to explain difficult issues, says John Birt

Birt, who brought his quotMission to explainquot approach to current affairs from LWT when he joined the BBC as deputy director general and director of news in 1987, said the BBC's on-air current affairs presence had been progressively dismantled. In order to restore its effectiveness, he called on James Harding, director of BBC news and current affairs, to be willing to quotTake on battles with other people in the BBCquot. However, Birt said the major part of Harding's BBC News division, the day-to-day news operation, was quotIn really good shape as good as it's ever beenquot. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

BBC News boss denies Panorama will be hived off into separate production unit

Longer investigations were not particularly suited for outsourcing, he said, adding the weekly show was an essential part quotOf BBC news and current affairs and not part of an independent separate ,quot he said in a wide-ranging speech at a conference on the future of the BBC at London's City University on Thursday. Harding said the scale of the job cuts had made quotMany people in the BBC news department unhappyquot but that efficiencies were necessary ahead of a year which will bring a general election and licence fee negotiations. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

'Electromagnetic smog' unlikely to harm humans

The researchers found no magnetic field effects in the various reactions studied. Further potential mechanisms of action will need to be studied before drawing firm conclusions on the risk presented by mobile phones, power lines and other sources of weak magnetic fields. - www.nhs.uk

www.nhs.uk

Premier Christian Radio to be 'evicted' from digital radio

quotMr Miliband told Premier todayquotI know the importance of Premier Radio. Peter Kerridge, CEO of Premier Christian Radio, said quotDespite months of negotiations with Arqiva, we have been unable to secure the renewal of our Digital One licence. But we still hope and pray for a last minute reprieve from eviction from the national network. - media.info

media.info

ITV suffers 2014 ratings woes

ITV is on course to suffer the most marked ratings declines of all the major broadcasters in 2014 as the World Cup failed to prevent its audience dropping 8%. - www.broadcastnow.co.uk

www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Media: BT's EE talks; journalism and PR; Ofcom's review into C4; London weeklies launch

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North Yorkshire DAB multiplex officially launched

Ed Vaizey, Minister for Culture and the Digital Economy said quotI welcome today's big switch-on in York and wish BBC Radio York, Stray FM and Minster FM great success on DAB. The future of radio is digital and this is part of a major expansion of DAB digital radio coverage across the UK.quot. Ford Ennals, CEO Digital Radio UK said quotThis is a big day for radio and for North Yorkshire. From today over 600,000 listeners will be able to receive their favourite local stations on DAB for the first time. - radiotoday.co.uk

radiotoday.co.uk

Senior Treasury official Sharon White to step into top Ofcom job

quotSharon brings with her an outstanding combination of intellect, political acumen and experience leading complex public organisations,quot said Ofcom's Chairman, Dame Patricia Hodgson. quotThe Ofcom Board is confident that Sharon will provide the leadership and vision to ensure Ofcom continues to promote a thriving communications sector in the UK that operates in the public interest. - www.independent.co.uk

www.independent.co.uk

Sharon White appointed as chief executive of Ofcom

Ofcom has appointed Sharon White, a senior Treasury official overseeing the UK's spending cuts, as its new chief executive. Waiting in White's inbox will be the inquiry into the auction process for Premier League broadcasting rights and a market-impact assessment into the proposed closure of BBC3. Well-regarded for her economic nous, White's impressive CV covers 25 years in the public sector and government, including spells in the British embassy in Washington DC, at the World Bank and as director general in the Department for International Development. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Coba: ITV receives 87m PSB benefit | News | Broadcast

ITV’s public service broadcaster status is worth at least £87m, according to a Commercial Broadcasters Association (Coba) report published to coincide with the launch of Ofcom’s PSB review. The Costs and Benefits of the C3 Licences report analysed the benefits received by the broadcaster compared to the costs of maintaining its public service broadcaster remit. It found that ITV’s prevalence in the EPG on slot three, coupled with its privileged access to spectrum was worth £161m.- www.broadcastnow.co.uk

www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Media Monkey looks ahead to what's in store for the industry in 2015

May Far more gripping than the poll itself on 7 May is the on-screen stand-off in Channel 4's election-night broadcast between Channel 4 News anchor Jon Snow, 67, and upstart new signing Jeremy Paxman, 64 - a tussle Autumnwatch fans compare to stags rutting. One such story prompts extraordinary scenes as Humphrys descends, mike in hand, to the BBC newsroom in pursuit of the man making the decision, news supremo James Harding. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

From Mary Berry to Xbox Studios, the big winners and losers of 2014

The two programmes won a Radio Academy special award, with LBC's Tom Swarbrick also claiming a Radio Academy gold as national journalist of the year. Yes, that's national radio - in February, after years of being London's Biggest Conversation, the station went UK-wide on DAB under new branding as Leading Britain's Conversation. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Muxco's North Wales multiplex officially launched

Four radio stations - BBC Radio Cymru, BBC Radio Wales, Capital and Smooth will be available on DAB in addition to analogue, whilst two additional stations, Nation Radio and Nation Hits, will be available for the first time in the area only on DAB digital radio. Ed Vaizey, Minister for Culture and the Digital Economy said quotI welcome today's big switch-on in North West Wales and wish BBC Radio Cymru, BBC Radio Wales, Capital, Smooth, Nation Radio and Nation Hits great success on DAB. The future of radio is digital and this is part of a major expansion of DAB digital radio coverage across the UK.quot. - radiotoday.co.uk

radiotoday.co.uk

RTE's ending of long wave transmission

Reception of RTEacute One on long wave such as BBC Radio 4 provides simple-to-tune long-range coverage free from co-channel interference experienced on medium wave using simple portable equipment like a transistor radio or car radio. RTEacute should reflect on the benefits of continuing the transmission on long wave by running it in parallel with DAB and FM transmissions. - www.irishtimes.com

www.irishtimes.com

Sky considers withdrawal of Now TV from YouView

A Sky spokesman said quotWe are committed to giving YouView customers the full Now TV experience and have been working with YouView management to achieve this. A spokesman for YouView insisted its partnership with Sky was quotOngoing and both parties are committed to the relationshipquot. - www.telegraph.co.uk

www.telegraph.co.uk

Twitter reaction to BBC3's online plans: Brooker and Herring weigh in

Twitter seized on two strands of today's proposals - the twin pillars of quotMake me laughquot and quotMake me thinkquot around which the new BBC3's content will be based. The imminent devise of Snog Marry Avoid wasn't about to change anyone's minds, either the best thing about BBC3 or the worst. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Snog, marry, axe: BBC3's factual entertainment shows to go in move to online

A BBC Trust report earlier this year warned that younger viewers and the black, Asian and minority ethnic audience were tuning out of BBC TV faster than other sections of the population. quotBy proposing to move BBC3 online we can avoid reducing drama spend to what I think are unacceptable levels on BBC1.quotBut Hall said the digital opportunities afforded by the new-look BBC3 could be a quotPathfinder for the whole BBC, searching out new ways to engage the audience and learn through this process to set a new strategic direction for the BBCquot.The BBC refused to give any indication how much money would be spent on marketing the new online-only service. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Media: BBC plans for the future of BBC3, Press regulation panel

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Global to launch Heart Extra and more digital stations

The first new service, Smooth Extra, launches on December 27th and is a replacement for Smooth Radio which is available on most local multiplexes in the UK. Ashley Tabor, founder executive president of Global, said quotNow is a really exciting time as DAB digital radio gathers pace. Global is committing significant investment in the D1 digital platform the only national commercial DAB multiplex with near true national coverage. We're launching new digital only stations, all of which are brand extensions, and thus extending some of our most loved brands nationally on digital radio. He continued quotWe're also continuing to invest heavily in local DAB coverage, adding coverage for our core brands, Heart, Capital and Smooth. We want all our listeners to be able to enjoy their local stations on DAB as well as our national ones. - radiotoday.co.uk

radiotoday.co.uk

Yentob leads the BBC fightback: we're being smeared for exposing Fake Sheikh

In an interview with The Independent, the BBC's creative director also denied accusations of ingrained left-wing bias at the BBC, most recently made in the wake of coverage of George Osborne's Autumn Statement, citing this week's decision by veteran BBC producer Paul Lambert to join Ukip. At a vital moment for the BBC, when its future funding model is under threat, Mr Yentob said he was convinced that quotThe licence fee is the best way to fund the BBCquot and that the organisation would prove its worth. - www.independent.co.uk

www.independent.co.uk

Bad science reporting blamed on exaggerations in university press releases

quotAlthough it is common to blame media outlets and their journalists for news perceived as exaggerated, sensationalised, or alarmist, our principle findings were that most of the inflation detected in our study did not occur de novo in the media but was already present in the text of the press release produced by academics and their establishments,quot the researchers write in the BMJ. To their surprise, the researchers also found that an exaggerated press release did not have a greater chance of media coverage and they failed to find that caveats in a press release - which were rare and included in only about one in 10 releases - decreased the chances of a study being covered by a news outlet. quotSome exaggeration will creep in and we're not going to blame the press offices for doing their job. A lot of academics don't engage with a press release,quot he said. - www.independent.co.uk

www.independent.co.uk

We must resist political pressure

8 December 2014 Last updated at 1507 James Harding has hit back at Conservative party criticism of BBC News coverage of the Autumn Statement, insisting that reporting had been balanced and that the BBC had to hold the Chancellor to account. Like any news organisation, the BBC makes mistakes, he admitted 'No doubt, in the hurly burly of the election campaign in the coming months, we will make some. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

Longer BBC regional evening TV news for election

9 December 2014 Last updated at 0116 The BBC's late evening TV news bulletins in the English regions are to be extended in the run-up to the general election in May next year. BBC director of news James Harding said the change will allow the campaign to be followed quotEver more closelyquot. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

Hunt for new views must be 'perpetual'

The publication, which included an update from the BBC, welcomed the decision by BBC News to give responsibility to a news editor and deputy for featuring a wide range of voices across coverage of major and long-running stories. Regular 'big story' meetings, chaired by the director of news, and talks by BBC experts are also helping news producers to challenge assumptions on various stories, pointed out the BBC. On Europe, the trust noted the corporation's 'unmediated coverage' of EU proceedings on BBC Parliament and Democracy Live and the 'invaluable resource' offered by the Europe section of the BBC News website. - www.bbc.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

The TV is dead, long live television

You don't have to be ancient to remember when possession of the remote control was the source of great family resentment when you were forced to watch University Challenge as a child because the only alternative was your homework, and your sister was monopolising the landline when Christmas involved a great deal of planning and negotiation to ensure you didn't miss the Top of the Pops Christmas Special or get stuck watching the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures while your dad shushed you constantly. Freed by a tablet or smartphone I'd have been able to watch loads of tutorials on early 90s make-up, and my dad could have discussed physics with people who were actually interested. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

Number of UK homes with TV falls for first time

quotThe way consumers interact with their TV, phone and broadband is changing as fast as technology is evolving,quot said Ed Richards, the chief executive of Ofcom. quotOfcom has a major programme of work to assess how to support the needs of SMEs,quot the regulator said. - www.theguardian.com

www.theguardian.com

#18 EXTRA - Women in Film and Television Awards 2014 - The Media Podcast with Helen Zaltzman

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BBC News boss hits back at government criticism

James Harding has argued that BBC News will be “undeterred” in holding politicians to account following government anger over its autumn statement coverage. The corporation’s director of news and current affairs used a blog to address right-wing press headlines and criticism from chancellor George Osborne, who labelled coverage of spending cuts “hyperbolic” last week.. - www.broadcastnow.co.uk

www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Gideon Spanier: Why Britain's telecom companies are expanding into media operations

Offering a bundle of services - triple play or quad play - is not new for the telecoms industry and it has had mixed results in the past. The challenge for BT and Vodafone, with their much larger subscriber bases, is can quad play become a mass phenomenon Enders cites industry figures that show Britons do not have a history of taking all four services from one provider - unlike in, say, Germany and Spain. - www.independent.co.uk

www.independent.co.uk

Feedback: Home Front: 7 Dec 14

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http://readwrite.com/2014/11/27/tv-streaming-set-top-box-stick-dongle-chromecast-holiday-gift-guide-2014

- readwrite.com

readwrite.com