The Digital Watermarking Alliance (DWA) has released key findings from a commissioned survey on piracy deterrence. The study, conducted by Interpret, aimed to determine whether the inclusion of Digital Serial Numbers (DSNs) in online content would deter illegal file sharing. The results showed that DSNs would deter illegal downloading among 33 per cent of the 994-person sample and deter illegal [...]
Harmonic has announced that its SUPRALink 1550 nm dense wave division multiplexing (DWDM) transport solution has been selected by the province of Salzburg, Austria, for an upgrade to its HFC cable infrastructure. The new deployment, the first of its kind in the region, will be implemented by Normann Engineering . Salzburg is in the process of segmenting the HFC network [...]
From Colin Mann in Cologne The two largest independent German cable operators, Tele Columbus and PrimaCom, revealed at ANGA Cable that they have selected NDS's secure, integrated DVR solution XTV to launch a high definition (HD) DVR service across their cable networks, marking the first such deployment in Germany NDS XTV will enable Tele Columbus and PrimaCom to deliver a [...]
From Colin Mann in Cologne On-demand TV server systems provider Edgeware and broadband cable networks specialist Teleste have inked a partnership and global reseller agreement under which Teleste will resell Edgeware’s video server products. Edgeware’s Orbit and Web TV Server products are pre-integrated with Teleste’s MyCast hybrid IPTV/DVB middleware. The pair suggest that with the combination of the Teleste Luminato [...]
The remaining parts of ITV’s business that bear the Granada name are to be rebranded in a move that will see the 79-year-old name disappear from its commercial activities. ITV confirmed it would rebrand its US production arm, which is currently called Granada America, under the new title of ITV Studios Inc with immediate effect. The company has also begun [...]
Sky Deutschland has confirmed it will launch its new digital bouquets in Germany and Austria on July 4th. The number of HD channels available will triple from two to six. Sky Welt will be the new basic package, offering 20 channels including Sky Krimi, Fox, Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Jetix Disney Channel, and TNT Serie for E16.90 per month. Sky [...]
Unions on both sides of the Atlantic are joining forces with media companies to lobby for tougher action against piracy, as rising unemployment levels focus their attention on the threat to members' jobs and incomes from copyright breaches. Representatives from media unions, including the the Federation of Entertainment Unions and the Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematograph and Theatre Union (Bectu), joined rights [...]
By 2013, the average household will have 2.5 times as many digital media devices (computing, gaming, digital consumer electronics, portable and mobile wireless devices) in use as in 2008, according to In-Stat. Accompanying this adoption will be a rise in the number of these devices that are network-enabled, leveraging various wired mediums and wireless technologies, like coax, phone wiring, powerline, [...]
Driven by the broadband access boom, global shipments of consumer-electronics devices capable of supporting Internet video are set to rise by nearly a factor of five from 2009 to 2013, according to iSuppli Corp. By 2013, 376.5 million entertainment-oriented consumer electronics platforms with the capability to support Internet video will be shipped, up from 80.5 million in 2008. These platforms [...]
In a bizarre juxtaposition of brand names, Virgin Media's Richard Branson is said to be mulling a bid for Private Media, owner of the Playboy brand. A number of PE firms have reportedly balked at Playboy Enterprises' $300 million asking price, but Richard Branson's name has been increasingly mentioned as a prospective buyer. The company currently has a market cap [...]
