Keep up with the daily developments that effect free TV in the UK. This list is updated often - you can follow
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Podcasts
First, here are some podcasts to listen to - click the link for direct play.
Media Talk podcast: Nick Grimshaw and the missing million Media Talk podcast: Nick Grimshaw and the missing million Media Talk podcast: Radioplayer and Simon Cowell Recommended reading
And here are the daily recommendations for developments with Freeview, Freesat, Freesat from Sky, Digital radio, free HD and online viewing. Summaries are done by
Clipped-Your articles and documents summarizedThursday 16 February 2012, AM
Market Report: ITV a turn-off after doubts over its sporting summer - Sharewatch - Busines…Armchair sports fans have a bumper summer to look forward to, and investors in ITV have been licking their lips in anticipation. The broadcaster or so the theory goes is expected to get a boost from both Euro 2012 and the Olympic Games thanks to companies upping their spending on advertising. Yet not everyone believes it will be that simple. - independent.co.uk
Wednesday 15 February 2012, PM
In TV we trust - In-Depth Analysis - Marketing WeekThe box is the most trusted media channel when it comes to news content, but change is coming with the rise of smart TV, says a report. Consumers remain attached and engaged with television news bulletins, according to new research commissioned by Marketing Week. Indeed, 80 of consumers get news from TV, 57 consider it the most reliable news medium and 46 turn to their televisions first for breaking news, according to a study of 1,000 consumers by Lightspeed. - marketingweek.co.uk
Vision TV Network launches on Freeview HDAll Freeview HD devices that are linked to a broadband connection are able to take advantage of the new service, which is now available at channel 110 on the free-to-air platform's electronic programme guide. Earlier this week, Freeview announced sales of its HD TVs and set-top boxes hit 1.3 million units in the final quarter of last year, taking the customer base to 4.4 million. - cable.co.uk
RAJAR helps compare broadcast and internet stats - James Cridland - james.cridland.net
Wednesday 15 February 2012, AM
Media giants locked in TV war to trap you into contracts charging hundreds of pounds a yea…Sky, Virgin Media and BT are slashing prices and unveiling tempting offers but you need to look out for sneaky charges and tricky terms and conditions before you sign up. These firms are desperate for you to take their TV, broadband and phone deals because they know its complicated and disruptive to change once youve signed up. For example, Virgin is offering free TV, phone and internet for three months, and then 20 a month for the next 15 months, including free weekend calls. - thisismoney.co.uk
Tuesday 14 February 2012, PM
Smart TV is the future - Media network - Guardian ProfessionalIf you typed in a URL, please make sure you have typed it in correctly. In particular, make sure that the URL you typed is all in lower case. Search Browse Browse our A-Z directories to find a subject or contributor Contact us If you require further assistance, please contact our user help staff at the following address userhelpguardian.co.uk - guardian.co.uk
BBC plots strategy for handling major news during London 2012 - Media - guardian.co.ukBreaking point this summer will be one of the busiest ever for the BBC and its news operation. Concerns have been raised by senior executives about how BBC News will cope, and what channels will broadcast a significant story if it breaks during the Olympics, which begins on 27 July. At a meeting of senior BBC executives in January there was a discussion on the matter, resulting in a strategy paper that covers various potential scenarios. - guardian.co.uk
Thousands ditch pay TV to save money ahead of digital deadline -
National…They said many consumers were considering if they could afford the yearly pricetag of 300 to 950 for TV services when there were high-quality alternatives available for free. Figures obtained by the Irish Independent show that more than 44,000 homes have moved to free TV services in the last two years. Industry sources indicate that this has accelerated since RTE announced it would move to the Saorview digital-only service this October. - independent.ie
Monday 13 February 2012, PM
UK's ITV denies warning Apple away from iTV name - The VergeITV has denied that there is any truth in reports that it has approached Apple to warn it off using the ITV name. - theverge.com
ITV warns Apple not to brand smart television 'iTV' - TelegraphThe poll which Best Buy claims was about a theoretical device described a 42-inch flat screen television priced at 1,499 951, which would feature iPhone style apps and could be controlled using an iPhone or iPad. If and when Apple does manage to produce a game-changing smart television, technology and media analysts predict the technology giant will start to move into content. Apple has shaken up the music industry with iTunes, where it sells music on a track by track basis, but will arguably need a constant stream of television programmes and films to replicate that model with television. - telegraph.co.uk
DTG :: News :: Freeview HD sales top 4 million -
Sunday 12 February 2012, PM
Google TV 'big announcements' coming on Monday - The VergeWe'll be on the lookout for whatever Google has to show, but regardless it certainly looks like Google's making good on its promise to keep working on Google TV. - theverge.com
Apple's iTV Cannot be Called iTV - ForbesApple is still trying to deal with the Chinese company that owns the iPad brand in that country the last I saw that Chinese company was holding out for 38 million in damages plus an apology. The Beatles management company werent too worried when Apple just made computers, but the move into the music world with iPods and iTunes certainly caused more than just a mild spat over who really owned the brand Apple in the music space. There is an interesting way out of all of this of course. - forbes.com
Saturday 11 February 2012, AM
BBC - BBC Internet Blog: What's On BBC Red Button 11th - 19th FebruaryNow in its 13th year, the Folk Awards celebrate the UK's vibrant folk scene and its achievements over the past 12 months, including awards for Best album, group, musician, live act and Folk singer of the year. There are also lifetime achievement presentations plus the announcement of the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk award winner. On weekends the tone becomes more conversational when Red Button viewers can watch a topical interview in 'Five Minutes with...' or a round-up of the week's weird and wonderful videos in OddBox. - bbc.co.uk
BBC to issue global apology for documentaries that broke rules - TV Radio - Media - The In…The programmes included positive coverage of Malaysia's controversial palm oil industry. Eight of the breaches were in respect of FBC programmes made about Malaysia. The trust also identified other breaches of rules on sponsorship in programmes shown by BBC World News, which is a commercial entity and carries advertising. - independent.co.uk
Friday 10 February 2012, PM
Jeremy Hunt's local TV plan doesn't make sense - Media - guardian.co.ukAbout 20 local TV stations round the country will be run in urban areas such as Manchester. Local TV has become a bit more sophisticated on the continent and Berlin TV now features news, travel programmes and a chat show. It is this kind of local TV which Jeremy Hunt, the culture secretary, says he wants to bring into British homes. - guardian.co.uk
Googles home entertainment foray: Why the Motorola deal may work - ZDNetGoogle is reportedly developing a home-entertainment system under its own brand that will have integrated hardware and software. Fortunately for Google that master plan also rhymes nicely with Motorola. The Wall Street Journal reports that this home entertainment system from Google will offer streaming music. - zdnet.com
George Howarth: Government Can Ensure a Diverse UK Broadcast Sector Through Level Playing …The recent visit of Chancellor George Osborne to China was a timely reminder of one area in which our struggling economy must excel if we are to remain competitive in the 21st century. I believe we must sell both our advanced products and our creative expertise such as broadcasting to Asia as its appetite for them grows. Government statistics published in December 2011 show that 1.5 million people are employed in the creative industries 5.1 of the UK's employment. - huffingtonpost.co.uk
Friday 10 February 2012, AM
France 24 gets Freeview window in the UK - News - Rapid TV NewsSome 5.2 million boxes have already been sold across the UK. With this new agreement, France 24 will reach 5.2 million additional households in the country with an estimated 12 million viewers by the end of this year. In the UK, the channels English version is also available in on the Sky platform and on Freesat. - rapidtvnews.com
Thursday 09 February 2012, PM
Ariel - A decade of CBeebies and CBBCWith Bristol, there's a huge specialist genre, which has been there for a long time, and what builds up around it is suppliers, indies, post-production specialists, digital suppliers and specialist partners. CBBC and CBeebies are also currently enjoying their biggest audience reach and share, and are among the corporation's five editorial priorities. Given the channels' viewers are 'digital natives' born in the internet age, and early adopters, it's likely they will be among the first to figure how to use any new devices. - bbc.co.uk
Thursday 09 February 2012, AM
Director-general admits BBC has too few older women on TV - TV Radio - Media - The Indepen… -
Wednesday 08 February 2012, PM
BBC Trust - Trust's service review of BBC Parliament and the BBC News ChannelPlease visit the BBC Trust homepage to find the information you want. you may have typed the web address incorrectly - please check the spelling, or that there are no spaces or capital letters. Alternatively, please try the other links and search box on this page. - bbc.co.uk
BBC News channel must maintain quality, says trust - Media - guardian.co.ukThe BBC News channel could be required to drop its second presenter outside of major breaking stories. The BBC News channel's audience had gone up in the last five years, according to the trust it was watched at least once a week by nearly 20 of the population in 2010-11 and people were watching for longer. The channel's weekly reach, although growing, was just 1.4 in 2010/11. - guardian.co.uk
Wednesday 08 February 2012, AM
Revealed: How parents control children’s access to adult media - ParentPortA new online survey conducted by the website ParentPort reveals that, of those parents surveyed whose children watch films at home, 40 had allowed their children to watch a film classified above their age. The survey of 1,800 respondents from the UKs two largest online parenting communities Mumsnet and Netmums - reveals the challenges and pressures parents face when it comes to keeping the media their children see age-appropriate. Of those parents surveyed whose children play video games, a quarter 25 had allowed their children to play games classified above their age. - parentport.org.uk
Thomson encoders and the BBCFollowing its own technical assessment, Ofcom published a report on Sept. 5, 2011, supporting the launch of a fifth service. The Ofcom document also notes Thomson Video Networks' timely delivery of past and present developments, and the company's track record of meeting schedule commitments. The EM3000 combines compression efficiency and advanced preprocessing to deliver clearer pictures with increased depth and clarity, broadcasting high-quality HD content at bit rates as low as 4 Mb/s. - screenafrica.com
Radio s industrial revolution - James CridlandI took part in a session hosted by Tim Davie, no less about radios future available online here and instead of an ambitious slideshow, I told two stories. This is what I said In 1989, I did a week of work experience at my local commercial radio station called Pennine Radio. They read one news bulletin an hour edited tape recorded audio from London on 8-track cartridges typed on old clunky noisy typewriters watched Oracle and Ceefax and smoked like chimneys. - james.cridland.net
LG, Unity Technologies team up to bring video games to Smart TVs - VentureBeatUnity Technologies and electronics manufacturing giant LG are teaming up to bring video games to Smart TVs in 2012. The deal is similar to one LG recently made with cloud gaming service Gaikai and is all part of the companys plan to market its line of products as all-in-one multimedia systems. Unity Technologies is the creator of the Unity development platform, which allows users to create and distribute interactive 3D and 2D content to mobile phones, app stores, tablets, set-top boxes, connected TVs and more. - venturebeat.com
Tuesday 07 February 2012, PM
YouView will launch this Spring, says TalkTalk • reghardwareYouView was to have gone live in the Summer of 2011, but arguments over the service's technical specs and the location of content providers within its electronic programme guide forced the launch to be put back to 2012. - reghardware.com
DTG :: News :: Lords agree Local Digital Television Programme Services Order 2012The motion, moved by government spokeswoman for culture, media and sport Baroness Rawlings, would ensure there was greater emphasis and plurality placed on the importance of local television channels. An impact assessment based on Ofcom research identified that 80 of people rate local news as important, she added. Baroness Rawlings explained that the two instruments before the committee were to be considered collectively with a third instrument to secure electronic programme guide prominence for local TV to be considered at a later date. - dtg.org.uk
Tuesday 07 February 2012, AM
TalkTalk loses another 50,000 customers - Technology - guardian.co.ukTalkTalk has reported a fifth consecutive quarter of customer defections. The broadband and TV provider has lost 170,000 customers since November 2010, bringing its total down to 4.079 million, as BT and Sky continued to attract the lion's share of new broadband customers and poach business from rivals. However, TalkTalk's share price raced up 9 to 130p in morning trading on Tuesday, as investors cheered a raised profit forecast from chief executive Dido Harding. - guardian.co.uk
Catch-up won t be the sole TV source
- Metro.co.ukA TV revolution is about to take place Theres nothing on telly these days. As on-demand shows become more popular and the devices on which we watch shows evolve, will the humble television be playing catch-up Will there be a time when there actually is nothing on TV - metro.co.uk
What is Ultraviolet? - TV DVD - Which? TechnologyUltraviolet is a new system for organising movies and TV content purchased either digitally or physically. Media supported by this service is hosted on the cloud, and provides its owners with a central library than can be accessed from most devices that can access the internet. The site itself doesn't offer any film content, but pulls together the viewers media purchased from retailers. - which.co.uk
Monday 06 February 2012, PM
informitv - 4K resolution displays bring really high definitionAfter high-definition, the next step in television displays will be 4K resolution. Some manufacturers are already showing screens around four times the resolution of high definition, with around four thousand pixels across, generally referred to as 4K. Some might suggest such high resolution is unnecessary in the home, but it may be technologically inevitable, whether the broadcast industry is ready or not. - informitv.com
Sunday 05 February 2012, PM
informitv - BT Vision plans to leave MediaroomBT Vision is apparently preparing to drop the Microsoft Mediaroom platform and put in place a browser-based replacement running on Linux. The migration away from Mediaroom would be an embarrassment for Microsoft, which developed a special variant to cater for the BT Vision hybrid broadcast and broadband service. BT is a partner in the planned YouView platform, which also specifies a Linux operating system. - informitv.com
Accenture advertises on BBC Sport - how?So it could be that this always happens, and Ive simply missed it. I do know that the BBC has to credit the Barclays Premiership, and similar naming deals. To me, that looks like an ad for Accenture on the BBCs own captions. - mediauk.com
TV credits should be bigger and slower - TV Radio - Media - The IndependentEnd credits on TV shows need to be more prominent, says a report from the actors' union, Equity. More than 10,000 people took part in a survey after viewers' complaints over fast-rolling and shrunken credits. - independent.co.uk
Saturday 04 February 2012, AM
BBC News - BT to offer 300 Mbps fibre optic broadband on demand in 2013According to Ofcom the current UK broadband average is 7.6 Mbps. The company made the announcement following successful trials of so-called fibre to the premise FTTP in St Agnes. Costly connections Optical fibre links to street cabinets are widespread, but the connection from cabinet to premises is in most cases copper cable, limiting the speed of the connection. - bbc.co.uk
BBC - BBC Internet Blog: What's On BBC Red Button 4th - 12th FebruaryMusic producers, promoters, publishers, record label execs, managers, agents, musicians, remixers, DJs, and BBC talent worked together with two hundred bands and musicians. Watch funny clips, out-takes, star interviews, pop music, backstage previews and episodes from Children's BBC. On weekends the tone becomes more conversational when Red Button viewers can watch a topical interview in 'Five Minutes with...' or a round-up of the week's weird and wonderful videos in OddBox. - bbc.co.uk
Friday 03 February 2012, PM
BBC - Research and Development: Prototyping Weeknotes #94 (30 Jan ~ 3 Feb 2012)94, of course, is the atomic number of Plutonium, but also the identifier of U.S. Customs and Border Protection's form for which first question has had me pondering the meaning of moral turpitude for the past ten years or so. Recent user testing suggested some user experience changes, and they have also been integrating some LIMO annotation-based functionality. This week Vicky has been finalising some user testing plans and working on a longer blogpost for this site, and Libby has been getting the N-Screen code in good order for Open Source release. - bbc.co.uk
DTG :: News :: EBU to offer white label HbbTV appsParticipating EBU members will receive three 'white label' interactive applications to customise generic content for entertainment, news or sport. The EBU said that the event would see members agreeing on common approaches to issues relating to the deployment of successful hybrid TV services, such as colour-coded buttons and a common market for hybrid television applications. DTG Staff 03.02.2012 Links open in a new window. - dtg.org.uk
BBC - Research and Development: Private PeacefulThe video below provides a brief introduction to what binaural is and how it works, there are also some FAQs about binaural and surround sound here. What follows is a brief overview of the results of the binaural experiment we conducted over Christmas. We used measurements of three peoples' heads in our listening room using the process described in the video above. Each person was measured with two different sets of headphones, hence the creation of 6 different versions of the service. - bbc.co.uk
Football bosses claim victory in satellite TV row - TV Radio - Media - The IndependentFootball industry bosses today said they would tackle publicans using foreign satellite systems to broadcast Premier League action without permission after a new court ruling in a long-running row over the screening of live games in bars. The judge said a lower court should assess what profits some pubs had made and what losses the Premier League and broadcasters, including British Sky Broadcasting, had suffered. - independent.co.uk
It s time to get serious about the radio user experience - James CridlandIt's time to get serious about the radio user experience Posted on Friday, February 3rd, 2012 at 902 am. Its great that DAB Digital Radio is now installed in more new cars than ever before. Thats a whole lot of additional choice for drivers who consume 20 of Britains radio while on the road. - james.cridland.net
Friday 03 February 2012, AM
BT Vision throws Microsoft Mediaroom under a bus for Linux • The RegisterWe can see the BT offering becoming far lighter in terms of software licence costs here almost none, in what looks like a preparation for a much broader installation for an OTT war. Raking through what you've watched, when you've watched it The answer is to introduce a brand new recommendation system which will offer different VoD options to each subscriber based on past viewing habits. This will be based on software from The Filter, another UK company that has music legend, Peter Gabriel, among others, as an investor and adviser. - theregister.co.uk
Thursday 02 February 2012, PM
DAB radios break 200m hours of radio - News - BroadcastIt takes just 2 minutes and offers full, instant access to the Broadcast website along with a copy of the magazine delivered every week. - broadcastnow.co.uk
Ariel - Local radio attracts 7.3m listenersThe figure represents a drop of 133,000 over the year - but an increase of 45,000 listeners from Q3 2011 - and average listening hours grew to 9.65 from 9.22 last year and 9.49 last quarter. Radio Manchester also had the biggest quarterly rise, adding 70,000 since Q3 - a 39 increase. Radio Merseyside editor Mick Ord said the boost to his station's performance was partly due to collaborations with charities, including the Alzheimer's Society and a local cancer hospital. - bbc.co.uk
myTV 2GO – Hauppauge’s Compact Mobile TV Streaming Solution delivers Freeview TV on yo…Completely Wireless myTV 2GOis designed for mobile use. By following the quick and simple instructions, you are ready to enjoy live TV and follow all your favourite TV show, news or sports at all times. Hauppauge'smyTV 2GOfeatures up to 3.5 hours battery life and comes equipped with the latest state-of-the-art chip technology to offer quick channel changes, crystal-clear images and high reception quality even in remote locations. - hexus.net
BBC News - First Minister Carwyn Jones meets Lord Patten for talks on BBC Wales and S4CCuts to BBC Wales are disproportionate, he said ahead of a meeting with Lord Patten. BBC Wales has outlined plans to save 10.7m over five years. Meanwhile, the responsibility for the bulk of S4C's funding is being transferred from the UK government to the TV licence fee. - bbc.co.uk
Thursday 02 February 2012, AM
Ariel - Radio 4 goes “from strength to strength”2 February 2012 Last updated at 0904 BBC Radio picked up an extra 435,000 listeners over the last year, according to the latest Rajar figures. Statistics for the last quarter Q4 2011 show that 46.7 million people tuned into radio overall, with BBC Radio drawing a weekly audience of 34.9m, while commercial radio's reach dropped by 0.7 year-on-year to 32.8m. In terms of share and reach, the total audience for BBC network radio has increased slightly over the last 12 months, with Radio 4 boasting a 5 audience growth to achieve 10.83m weekly listeners, just under its record high of 10.85m. - bbc.co.uk
Time for C4 to do the Shuffle - Comment - Broadcast2 February, 2012 By Kate Bulkley Service should benefit viewers and boost revenue, says Kate Bulkley. It takes just 2 minutes and offers full, instant access to the Broadcast website along with a copy of the magazine delivered every week. - broadcastnow.co.uk
Wednesday 01 February 2012, AM
ITV2 and 3 coming to the islands - Guernsey News from ITV Channel Television - channelonli…ITV 2 and 3 will be available on Freeview to Channel Islanders from the end of next month. As part of the transition some channels will be moved to new frequencies, which means digital tvs and boxes may have to be retuned. For extra advice on retuning, Digital UK can be contacted via their website digitaluk.co.uk/retuning or their advice line 08456 50 50 50. - channelonline.tv
Is the BSkyB Falling on Netflix? (NFLX)BSkyB -- the U.K. satellite television giant controlled by News Corp. Nasdaq NWS -- revealed that it will be throwing its hat into the premium streaming ring. A group of leading broadcasters and Internet service providers are hoping to launch YouView later this year. - fool.com
Tuesday 31 January 2012, PM
Tech Weekly podcast: Connected TV - Technology - guardian.co.ukJust how ready is Facebook to float on the US public stock market, and what implications will this have for the site's longevity Gareth Klose is a former YouView developer and digital technologist who works on apps for our TVs. What's the difference between the TV in the corner and the computer screen, now that the former is increasingly incorporating the interactive features of the latter - guardian.co.uk
Sky launches fibre broadband and internet TV - January - 2012 - Which? News31 January 2012 Sky will launch a up to 40Mbps fibre broadband service later this year Sky has announced it will launch a fibre broadband service in April 2012 as well as a new online TV service allowing customers to watch its content online. Sky adds superfast broadband Sky will be adding to the increasing number of superfast fibre broadband options available to customers in the UK this April. Its Broadband Unlimited Fibre package will cost customers 20 a month but you'll also need to take Sky line rental which costs an additional 12.25 a month. - which.co.uk
BBC - Research and Development: Implementing startOffsetTime for HTML5Current implementations of HTML5 media elements on browsers like Firefox and Chrome expose the media timer via the timeupdate event so you can attach an event handler and use that to synchronise external timed metadata. The origin of this timeline, in all existing implementations, is time zero. This is fine for discrete fixed size or on-demand media as such media have a definite origin and duration, i.e. they start at zero time and all subsequent times are relative to that start time. - bbc.co.uk
Question Time, QI and Mock the Week criticised by BBC diversity report - Media - guardian.…The panel shows were singled out, along with BBC2's QI, for failing to put enough female faces on screen. It was part of a trend in the media identified by viewers of mocking older people and characters in comedy and drama. To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email editormediaguardian.co.uk or phone 020 3353 3857. - guardian.co.uk
Tuesday 31 January 2012, AM
Television misrepresents young people and older women - Media - guardian.co.ukPhotograph Rex Features Broadcasters have been accused of negatively stereotyping young people and failing to put enough older women on screen, according to a BBC-commissioned report. The survey of viewers and industry experts found that more than 40 of young people were dissatisfied with the way they were portrayed on screen. Older viewers also thought they tended to be stereotyped on television, but of more concern was the lack of middle-aged and older women on the small screen. - guardian.co.uk
BBC - Research and Development: Prototyping weeknotes #93Earlier in the P2P-Next project we tackled synchronisation of interactive elements with on-demand video. More recently we've been focusing on the problem of synchronising timed metadata with live audio or video streams. This is already possible using proprietary technologies and we wanted to explore if it could be done using open standards and technologies, in particular HTML5. - bbc.co.uk
Sky to launch new internet TV serviceSky today announced plans to launch a new service allowing customers to watch some of its most popular content over the internet. Taking advantage of the rapid growth in broadband-connected devices, and building on Skys experience in multi-platform TV, the new service will be an additional choice for people who dont currently subscribe to a pay TV service. Launching in the first half of 2012, the new service will provide instant and simple access to a range of Sky content, including hundreds of films from Sky Movies. - corporate.sky.com
DAB coverage to improve for London 2 mux : Radio TodayThe owners of the second digital radio multiplex for Greater London have announced plans to change transmission provider from June this year and extend coverage. Switchdigital as agreed a 12-year deal with French company VDL, which will see the service through its second licence period. The contract will mark VDLs first move into the UK digital radio transmission market. - radiotoday.co.uk
BSkyB to take on Netflix and YouView with internet TV service - Media - guardian.co.ukThe service will launch in the first half of this year, around the time when YouView is due to hit the market, and will give customers the chance to pay for downloading films without a contract or satellite dish. Sky is facing increased competition in the home entertainment sector following the successful UK launch of Netflix, which allows consumers to pay to download films, and rental and download rival LoveFilm. The service will be aimed at the 13m UK households who do not subscribe to pay-TV. - guardian.co.uk
BT Vision and Miramax Sign On Demand Movie Deal - MarketWatchTo find what you're looking for, try one of these options MarketWatch Front Page A starting place for all your financial news and information needs. - marketwatch.com
Monday 30 January 2012, PM
Service Review BBC Radio 5 live and BBC Radio 5 live Sports
Extra - bbc.co.uk
Sky Anytime+ goes from strength to strength with more content and increased reachSky Anytime available to more than 5 million homes at no extra cost by Easter 2012. Sky has today announced a series of enhancements to its video on demand service, Sky Anytime, which will expand the choice of programmes available for customers and make it available to millions of homes for the first time. The move follows strong growth for Sky Anytime, which is already in more than a million Sky homes and has seen weekly usage increase by 80 in the three months to 31 December 2011. - corporate.sky.com
Ariel - 5live to make fresh commitment to news30 January 2012 Last updated at 1118 Radio 5live's accessible mix of news and sport is appreciated by its 6.7m listeners, but the station could do more to demonstrate 'journalistic ambition and originality' in all its news programmes, says the BBC Trust. A review of the service published today amends the 5live remit to clarify its commitment to serious news. Audiences praised the 'breadth, depth, wit and intelligence of its news output', the mix of heavier and lighter news items, and the ability of presenters to make news stories accessible without trivializing, the review found. - bbc.co.uk
ITV Picks Its Oyster Card For Online Programme Payments
…Crozier was only putting a January date on the contracting of a payment provider. The broadcaster hired Robin Pembrooke as online director, has improved its website and has seen ITV Player video views, together with advertising, grow healthily. Martin Goswami is aboard as director of pay and distribution. - paidcontent.co.uk
BBC - Media Centre - BBC enters new partnership to bring BBC iPlayer to SkyMaking BBC iPlayer available on all platforms is key to our commitment to universal access and this agreement takes us one step further towards that goal. - bbc.co.uk
Monday 30 January 2012, AM
Challenges ahead for BSkyB - Advanced TelevisionBSkyB unveils its Q2 numbers on January 31st, and most observers see continued progress for the broadcaster, although with net TV subscriber additions being somewhat less than this same time last year. Investment banker Morgan Stanley forecasts net TV subs growing by 69,000 140,000 this time last year. Nevertheless, Morgan Stanley expects about 150,000 net HD additions, which is up on the 103,000 of Q1 to September 31st but well down on the 343,000 achieved this time last year. - advanced-television.com
Stephen Glover: Patten paves the way for a return to Reithian values at the BBC - Stephen …Did last week's events indicate a change of direction at the BBC Mr Thompson had presumably discussed his departure with Lord Patten. Whether he wanted to leave the BBC as soon as this autumn may be doubted, and it seems certain he resented the manner in which the chairman publicly announced his departure. - independent.co.uk
Sunday 29 January 2012, PM
Next BBC director general must be an astute politician who can manage geeks - Media - The …It would not be hard for him to leave the BBC in better shape than he found it, given that both he and Michael Grade turned up in the aftermath of the Hutton crisis. Give a viewer an iPad and the iPlayer to watch television in bed, and hey presto, there will be no need to pay a licence fee. Actually come to think of it, there would be no reason to watch BBC television at all, when there are so many other computational entertainments on offer like playing Bejeweled. - guardian.co.uk
Sunday 29 January 2012, AM
Storm clouds gather on Skys horizon - Business Analysis Features - Business - The Independ…This is not a good time to be BSkyB, the satellite broadcaster that has transformed television since it was formed the best part of quarter of a century ago. This week investors will pore over the group's interim results, looking for clues as to how BSkyB will attempt to surmount the unprecedented obstacles the pay TV-to-internet service provider now faces. James Murdoch survived as chairman after the group announced a package of share buybacks and dividend hikes worth around 1bn. - independent.co.uk
Saturday 28 January 2012, PM
Doctor Who writer Russell T Davies laments decline of children's TV - Media - The Observer…His latest project, Aliens Vs Wizards, is being talked about as one of the biggest new dramas for children to come out of Britain. Torchwood also seemed to be at an end, with no new orders. Davies arranged to meet his close collaborator on Doctor Who, the writer Phil Ford, for dinner in a Los Angeles restaurant to talk about new ventures. - guardian.co.uk
BBC News - ITV 2 and 3 added to Channel Islands FreeviewResidents will need to retune their receiver equipment in order to receive the programmes. On the same day, some channels across Jersey and Alderney will change frequencies in preparation for 4G broadband access in the islands. - bbc.co.uk
BBC could hire first female director general - Media - guardian.co.ukA leading female candidate is the BBCs director of news, Helen Boaden. Officially the BBC is saying there is no vacancy yet as Thompson has not confirmed a departure date, but potential candidates are understood to be seeking to raise their profiles in preparation for having a tilt at the most important job in British broadcasting and already two women have joined the leading pack of contenders. Boaden has a number of backers in the industry including the former BBC2 controller Jane Root. - guardian.co.uk
Netflix hails successful UK launch - Media - guardian.co.ukNetflix UK was launched on 9 January and has exceeded expectations. Overall Netflix expects to make a global loss of between 9m and 27m in the first quarter. Nevertheless investors were buoyed by Netflix's performance in the fourth quarter when it added 610,000 net US subscribers the company had stunned the market shedding 800,000 in the three months to the end of September after a huge price hike and outperformed financial expectations. - guardian.co.uk
Channel 4 pencils in June launch for catchup service Project Shuffle - Media - guardian.co…The new channel, referred to internally as Project Shuffle, will allow viewers who missed the first live broadcast of Channel 4's most popular shows multiple opportunities to catch up with them over the next seven nights. The launch date for the new channel has not yet been confirmed but it is understood June is currently the most likely target, although it is thought that Channel 4 would like to have it on air earlier. Two media industry sources said they understand that Channel 4 has lined up a Freeview slot for the channel and it is thought a deal with BSkyB has also been reached. - guardian.co.uk
BBC - BBC Internet Blog: What's On BBC Red Button 28th January - 5th FebruaryWatch funny clips, out-takes, star interviews, pop music, backstage previews and episodes from Children's BBC. On weekends the tone becomes more conversational when Red Button viewers can watch a topical interview in 'Five Minutes with...' or a round-up of the week's weird and wonderful videos in OddBox. CBeebies Red Button is available now on the CBeebies channel, and via page 5900 on other channels. - bbc.co.uk
ITV moves back micropayment launch date - News - Broadcast26 January, 2012 By Jake Kanter ITVs much-anticipated micropayments system now looks set to launch as late as this summer. It takes just 2 minutes and offers full, instant access to the Broadcast website along with a copy of the magazine delivered every week. - broadcastnow.co.uk
BBC boss may step down after London Olympics - TV Radio - Media - The IndependentBBC director general Mark Thompson is to step down from his post after the Olympics this year, it was reported last night. - independent.co.uk
DTG :: News :: BBC News app launches on large Android tabletsThe BBC News app for Android smartphones launched in May last year and has since been downloaded more than three million times globally. Smaller 7.1-inch tablets will continue to receive the standard app. A later release of the app will offer the News Channel live and could include homescreen widgets, according to Milner. - dtg.org.uk
Saturday 28 January 2012, AM
BBC News - BBC making sensible plans for director general's exitIt follows newspaper speculation that he will leave the corporation towards the end of 2012, or the beginning of 2013. Mark Thompson was appointed director general of the BBC in May 2004. He is responsible for its services across television, radio and websites and for a global workforce of 20,000. - bbc.co.uk
Friday 27 January 2012, PM
Avaaz - Stop Murdoch's BBC robberyPosted25January2012 The BBC is being forced to hand over tens of millions of pounds every year to line Murdochs pockets. Murdochs cronies in government are determined to save this scheme -- but together we can stop this outrage. These unbelievable regulations cost our public broadcasters up to 100 million a year. - avaaz.org
Group test: What's the best media centre PC? - PC Advisor - pcadvisor.co.uk
Ratings 2011: the year PVR came of age - In-depth - Broadcast26 January, 2012 By Stephen Price We may be watching in different ways, but 2011 viewing figures show TV ratings remain robust. Stephen Price reports on the broadcasters fortunes and the impact of recording. It takes just 2 minutes and offers full, instant access to the Broadcast website along with a copy of the magazine delivered every week. - broadcastnow.co.uk
Current sells EPG slot - News - BroadcastIt takes just 2 minutes and offers full, instant access to the Broadcast website along with a copy of the magazine delivered every week. - broadcastnow.co.uk
DPP creates landmark file format agreement - News - BroadcastIt takes just 2 minutes and offers full, instant access to the Broadcast website along with a copy of the magazine delivered every week. - broadcastnow.co.uk
Ofcom - DRAFT Local Digital Television Programme Service (L-DTPS) licence application form… -
Thursday 26 January 2012, PM
Saorsat to launch in February - Broadband TV NewsDocuments released by RTNL, the networks division of the public broadcaster, said tests have been underway since December 2011. Saorsat will be carried on Eutelsats Ka-Sat at 9 degrees East. It is anticipated that suitable receivers will be available within the next few weeks. - broadbandtvnews.com
Fetch TV enters administration - Broadband TV NewsIP Vision, the company behind the Fetch TV receivers and movies on demand service, has entered administration with the possible loss of up to 20 jobs. Purchasers will be able to take full advantage of the Companys many strengths in these respective areas which include a fully-operational end-to-end hybrid TV platform and a multi-device, premium video on demand service with broad reach in conjunction with major TV manufacturers and approximately 30 content partners. The statement added that advanced discussions were underway with interested parties. The Fetch TV video on demand service will continue for the time being. - broadbandtvnews.com
Thursday 26 January 2012, AM
Ofcom chief seeks common media standards - FT.comPrinted from http//www.ft.com/cms/s/0/08d2fa0e-47a1-11e1-b646-00144feabdc0.html Print a single copy of this article for personal use. - ft.com
Broadcasters may win higher EPG slots for more public service content - Media - guardian.c…Photograph David Sillitoe for the Guardian The government's forthcoming communications green paper will suggest broadcasters could be rewarded with a higher slot on digital TV electronic programme guides if they commit to transmitting more public service programmes such as news and children's shows. The government is planning to extend superfast broadband to 90 of the UK by 2015. To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email editormediaguardian.co.uk or phone 020 3353 3857. - guardian.co.uk
BBC News - Who will win video streaming 'war'?Read more Can Netflix compete with 'offline' TV - news.bbc.co.uk
Wednesday 25 January 2012, PM
BBC News - Can Netflix compete with 'offline' TV?On first glance, this seems a lofty claim - a web service known for its watch again services competing with an established company with over 10 million subscribers, the network spending billions of pounds to commission and buy content from the major studios. Thus far, the true success of streaming TV has been limited because a large number of people are still most comfortable watching television on TV sets. Last year, some movies from Sony disappeared from the Netflix site because, it was reported, a pre-agreed cap on the number of subscribers was exceeded. - news.bbc.co.uk
Channel 4 to report first annual loss in more than a decade - Media - guardian.co.ukPhotograph Clara Molden/PA Channel 4 will report its first annual loss in more than a decade this year, after reporting a bumper 40m profit in 2010. Earlier on Wednesday Abraham announced a 12.5 year-on-year increase in Channel 4's budget for UK originated programming for 2012 to 450m, which it said is a record high. The broadcaster has only ever run up a couple of annual losses in its 30-year history since launching in 1982 but Channel 4 said the dip into the red is planned. - guardian.co.uk
David Holdsworth's email to BBC staff - Media - guardian.co.ukIt is also gratifying to see that so many listeners and viewers value public service broadcasting at a local level and wrote to the trust to say so. We will want to look at ways of maintaining local editions but also to use this opportunity to generally raise the profile of regional current affairs in the way it sits in the rest of the BBC news family. Many of you have already offered opinions on the proposals. - guardian.co.uk
Mark Thompson's email to staff on the BBC's Delivering Quality First plans - Media - guard…The chairman's speech and the findings are embargoed until 2.20pm but I wanted to let you know the main themes now. I'm pleased to say that at this stage the trust has endorsed the great majority of our proposals. They agree that we were right to focus our resources around protecting the five editorial priorities and maintaining investment in those parts of the BBC that bring the greatest value to the greatest number of people peak programming on our flagship television and radio channels. - guardian.co.uk
BBC Trust chairman's speech to the Oxford Media Convention – full text - Media - guardia…This conference will not be the last in 2012 to debate the future of the creative industries indeed politics, technology, economics and consumer behaviour make this topic ever more interesting. So conferences like this are likely to become a sort of creative industry themselves. The BBC has an interest, of course, in the policy debates around the Communications Review. - guardian.co.uk
BBC local radio cuts rejected - News - BroadcastIt takes just 2 minutes and offers full, instant access to the Broadcast website along with a copy of the magazine delivered every week. - broadcastnow.co.uk
Tuesday 24 January 2012, PM
Ofcom - BBC Proposals for coverage of the London 2012 Olympic GamesMany of the events will be shown on the BBC's channels, which are qualifying services for the purposes of section 98 of the Act. In order to provide comprehensive coverage, the BBC plans to make all other Olympic events available through additional streams. These additional streams would be made available on the BBC's website, and, in whole or part, through satellite, cable and digital terrestrial broadcasts. - stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk
TV viewing 'peaks at four hours a day' - Media - guardian.co.ukA family in Bolton gathered around a television set in 1951. Viewers were also exposed to an average of 47 TV ads a day in 2011, up an average of one a day from 2010. Viewers watched an average of 18 hours and 11 minutes of commercial TV a week last year, up 22 minutes on 2010. - guardian.co.uk
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