2009 April

April 30, 2009

Dialogue Communications opens Cape Town office

by David Allen
Dialogue Communications opens Cape Town office

UK-based mobile payment service Dialogue Communications has opened a new office in South Africa, continuing its international growth strategy. The Cape Town office will focus on bringing comprehensive SMS and WAP billing solutions to the South African market. “We are thrilled to be able to introduce WAP billing in South Africa by offering ...

BBC and Channel Four may opt out of equality laws

by David Allen

There has been a lot said recently about equality in the work place, yet it seems that although the likes of BBC and Channel Four are quick to talk about the equality issues that are affecting workers in all sectors of industry, this may not be the case when it comes to their own employees. In fact, while the ...

New users desert Twitter

by David Allen

The micro blogging site Twitter has gained some popularity over the last few months, mainly due to the amount of celebrities that are keen on tweeting, no matter where they are or what they are doing. Yet for the ordinary user Twitter seems to lose its shine within the first month. According to research carried out by Nielsen Online, ...

Phorm launches website to put record straight

by David Allen

It may be under fire at the moment, but the targeted advertising firm Phorm is planning a fight back by launching a website to explain how the system monitors users' internet activities and then offers targeted advertising related to the users' surfing. The website, stopphoulplay.com, has been set up by Phorm to counter the small amount of people and ...

Discovery Quest to launch on Freeview

by David Allen

The satellite channel, Discovery, is in its twentieth year, and like many of the long standing broadcasters it is producing a variety of public service broadcasting programmes that appeal to a wide range of viewers. Now Quest is to become the first of the Discovery channels to be broadcast on the free to air channel Freeview next month. This is ...

PS3 users get discount keypad

by David Allen

Up until now, for PS3 users who wanted to up their game by getting a fancy keypad for their PS3, the cost would have been around £25, as they would have needed to buy the Sony branded product, but things are looking to change with the introduction of new products from Blaze. The online messaging pad from Blaze provides ...

BSkyB releases results today

by David Allen

There are currently 9.32 households subscribing to Sky TV and around one million of these have chosen to take up the high definition service Sky+ HD. Around 1.4 million customers of Sky subscribe to all three services -TV, broadband and phone, while around 5.1 million customer use the Sky+ set top box. For Sky this means that the average ...

Horne and Corden most successful new show

by David Allen

The BBC has said that the Horne & Corden show that did not go down well with the critics is the most successful first comedy series on BBC Three, with average viewing figures of around 900,000 per episode. BBC Three has been regarded as the BBC Youth digital channel, with a target audience of sixteen to thirty four year ...

Orange passes 2.5 million TV customers

by David Allen

Costs are one of the main issues for broadcasters these days, and for Orange TV the costs involved acquiring film rights and sports events for its recently launched range of premium channels has had an effect on the parent company’s profits. Subscribers have increased across the board, with 2.2 million customer for pay TV in France, 316,000 for the ...

TalkTalk broadband deal ends today

by David Allen

TalkTalk, the broadband arm of the Carphone Warehouse, has been running a new package that offers new customers three months worth of broadband completely free. The only problem for anyone considering that this might be the broadband deal they have been waiting for is that the deal runs out on the 1st May. So with around twenty four hours ...

April 29, 2009

Push for one micro-USB charger

by Alan Harten
Push for one micro-USB charger

Cell phone usage is continuing to get simpler as cell phones become more closely integrated into society and manufacturers continue to push for global compatibility. Recently initiatives have been taken by two groups to make cell phones simpler for views and more user friendly. At the Global System for Mobile Communications (GMSA) a significant ...

Babelgum announces Film Festival winners

by David Allen
Babelgum announces Film Festival winners

Mobile and web TV service Babelgum this week announced the winners of the Babelgum Online Film Festival 2009. Honorary judge Spike Lee chose five winners from 651 entries in the categories of Genius, Animation, Short Film, Documentary, and Mini Masterpiece. A cash prizes of €20,000 was given to the winner in each category. Four other ...

Broadband is getting narrower

by David Allen

When the public hears politicians talk about broadband-for-all and super fast broadband networks, they have no reason not to believe that this is going to happen, yet industry experts feel that the broadband network could be getting slower in the not too distant future. According to a study carried out by Nemertes Research, demand for broadband services will overtake ...

EC starts Phorm legal case

by David Allen

As expected, the European Commission has started legal proceeding against the UK government over the targeted advertising system run by Phorm. This comes after the EC received complaints about the secret trials carried out by Phorm on customers of BT without their consent. BT, Phorm and the UK government all said that they were happy with the system as it ...

Government and Phorm in contact over legal issues

by David Allen

The Home Office has been accused of working with the targeted advertising firm Phorm over whether its advertising solution was legal. The Home Office totally denies that it has colluded with Phorm, but according to the Lib Dem Home Affairs spokesperson, Baroness Sue Miller, copies of emails have come to light showing that the Home Office offered advice ...

Virgin Media gets to the point

by David Allen

Broadband and entertainment firm Virgin Media has added the creative agency Spike to its roster of brand and advertising agents, to help get Virgin out there and in front of potential new customers. Spike will be working with Virgin Media’s lease agency Saint, as well as the in house creative team, on projects that will include digital campaigns, as ...

Freeview gets a new marketing man

by David Allen

The free to view digital TV provider Freeview has appointed a new director of marketing communications. Tim Hunt will replace Rob Farmer who has left Freeview to take up a similar position at ITV. His main job, initially, will be to focus on the continued success of the Freeview+ set top box, which has sold around 1.4 million units ...

Sky launches on-demand adverts

by David Allen

Satellite broadcaster Sky is at last looking to offer on-demand advertising, accessed through the green button on the remote control. This service will go live during June and will allow Sky’s customers to watch extended advertising that can range from a short two minute advert, up to a two hour long feature. These extended adverts may be advertising products ...

Living snaps up Wurzer

by David Allen

The satellite channel Living has snapped up the head of development at Target TV as the new commissioning editor for the channel. Sophie Wurzer replaces Sophie Morgan who left Living to take up a post at rival Reef Television. She has many year experience in the industry working on both satellite and terrestrial TV programming. During her three years ...

Borders to sponsor Sky Arts 1

by David Allen

Sky Arts 1 and Sky Arts 1 HD have signed a sponsorship deal with the magazine, book and entertainment retailer, which will introduce the tag “Let’s Escape” and a logo that is a butterfly made from the page of a book. The indents will be made by the firm Proletariat, which is part of the Media Circus Group. These ...

Be Broadband offer ends on the 30th April

by David Allen

The latest offer from internet service provider, Be Broadband, runs out tomorrow. This offer will give new customers signing up on a twelve month contract three months completely free of charge. Customer saving could be as much as £64.50 over the term of the contract for those who have signed up to the Be Pro service. There are significant ...

April 28, 2009

Set-top box market to peak in 2012

by David Allen
The market for pay-TV set-top boxes (STBs) will peak within the next three years, according to market analysts. Annual unit sales will grow from 104 million in 2008 to a projected peak of127 million in 2012, said UK-based research firm Screen Digest. By 2012 the market will be worth an estimated 10 billion euros. Sales will begin to tail off from 2013, Screen ...

Livestation adds Al Arabiya to channel list

by David Allen
Internet TV broadcaster Livestation has added Dubai-based 24-hour news station, Al Arabiya, to its channel list. Al Arabiya joins an already heavyweight line up of Arabic news channels on Livestation, which include Al Jazeera, BBC, France 24, Russia Today, and Euronews. Matteo Berlucchi, Livestation CEO, said adding Al Arabiya as an official partner channel is part of an ongoing effort to widen ...

Broadcast live from any mobile phone with ipadio

by David Allen
Broadcast live from any mobile phone with ipadio

A new mobile app, launched yesterday, allows people to broadcast audio to the Internet from anywhere in the world. Ipadio, available for any handset, means that anyone with a mobile phone can become a citizen radio journalist. Broadcasts made using ipadio are automatically recorded to mp3. The recording can be geolocated on ...

BT claims to offer cheapest mobile and home broadband

by David Allen

Not having its own mobile broadband network has left BT in a position where it has not been able to offer mobile broadband to customers. However over the past couple of years, despite the initial worries, consumers have taken to mobile broadband in their millions. Not to be left behind, BT has come up with a plan that offers ...

Mobile broadband spectrum talks may have failed

by David Allen

The Digital Britain plan formulated by the communications minister Lord Carter appears to have fallen at the first post. In order for the rollout of a national minimum broadband to succeed, the mobile phone operators Vodafone and O2 were required to give up the 900 MHz spectrum, which they have used since the 1980s. However, the two mobile providers have ...

Virgin Media takes customers back to school

by David Allen

Apparently, computer users are confused when it comes to broadband. The technology and terminology are just as confusing as speed and security issues, according to a study of three thousand internet users. In order to combat this issue, Virgin Media thinks it has the answer and is planning trials of free 'Broadband Schools'. These trials will take place initially ...

Free Wi-Fi for first class Virgin passengers

by David Allen

Travellers on Virgin Trains will soon be able to access the internet through the on-board Wi-Fi service. At the moment it will only be available on the 52 Pendolino trains that use the West Coast mainline, but the 21 Super Voyager trains will also be getting Wi-Fi, although not straight away. This service will be free to all ...

Government’s £2 billion snooping plan

by David Allen

The government’s plan to create a massive database which would store emails and information on website visits, looks as if it may not be going ahead. However, this does not mean that the Communications Data Bill is going away, but the method of storage is changing. The data will be stored by ISPs and telecoms companies for up to a ...

Virgin1 goes 24 Hrs on Freeview

by David Allen

Freeview viewers will soon be able to watch the Virgin Media entertainment channel, Virgin1, twenty four hours a day, starting on the 20th May. Currently Freeview viewers can only see Virgin1 for twelve hours per day. It will remain on the same channel, which is channel twenty, although the change means that the channel will be moving from multiplex D ...

Sci-Fi to get new line up for launch

by David Allen

The Sci-Fi channel becomes Syfy in July, in a move that changes the genre of the channel from purely sci-fi to a more fantasy channel, which is more or less the position that it is in at the moment, with programmes like Eli Stone and Medium. With these changes taking place, the sci-fi channel has also lined up some ...

Sky offers free line rental with Sky+ HD

by David Allen

New customers signing up for Sky+ HD will be able to claim an extra bonus of free line rental that could save them up to £150. This offer, which is due to end on the 14th May, means that when a new customer orders Sky+ HD they will be offered free line rental worth around £12.50 per month. The ...

Tax on BSkyB & Virgin Media could raise £70m

by David Allen

Placing a tax on satellite provider Sky and cable provider Virgin Media of just one per cent would raise around £70 million per year, which could be used to part fund the struggling public service broadcasting. The industry is looking at a shortfall of between £145 million and £235 million in the funding required for the UK public service ...

April 27, 2009

Samsung Unveils their own Google Android Phone

by Franz Bicar
Move over HTC, you are not the only Android phone on the block. Samsung Electronics has just announced their very own Google Android mobile phone. Samsung became the first major mobile phone maker to launch a phone using Google's open source mobile OS. The Samsung phone, named the I7500, features a 3.2-inch touchscreen, a 5-megapixel camera and 8GB of internal memory. ...

Sharp Losses Record Sales for this Year

by Franz Bicar
sharp-hdtv

It's the beginning of the week and I really don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but in these times, it's hard to hear good ones. Sharp, one of the world's leading manufacturers of LCD television panels and computers reported a big drop in sales and a net ...

UK’s Cheapest Broadband Launched By BT

by Jan Harris
At just £15.65 a month, BT claims that its latest home and mobile broadband packages are the cheapest currently available in the UK. BT Total Broadband is offering up-to-8Mb wireless broadband at home, and free 1GB monthly usage on our mobile broadband, for £308.08 over 18 months. John Petter, managing director of BT’s Consumer division, said: "This is an absolutely fantastic deal, ...

Velocix powers Televeo’s service in Spain

by Janet Harris
Cambridge-based Velocix has secured a deal to provide its digital delivery services to Televeo, which aims to become the leading provider of 'Spanish Television over the Internet'. Using the H.264 codec and Velocix’s global network, Televeo will provide high quality video content from National Geographic, Fox and other leading publishers. Velocix enables high quality streamed video to be played uninterrupted from start ...

Yes minister there is a plan for Scotland

by David Allen

The issue with providing broadband services in Scotland was discussed when the communications minister Lord Carter visited the region at the end of last week. This was an opportunity for the industry and consumers to find out more about the plans to provide the minimum broadband service of 2 Mbps to all areas, including the most rural areas where ...

Google Street View not invading privacy

by David Allen

After a shaky launch with many people fearing that their privacy would be at risk, Google’s Street View has been given the thumbs up by the Information Commissioners Office (ICO), which claims that it is not practical to turn the technology clock back. This ruling follows complaints from members of the public and the privacy organisation Privacy International, hat ...

Zango closes down

by David Allen

The targeted advertising company Zango has been forced to close down. This follows the firm being fined $3 million back in 2006 because of questions over the way it was conducted business. There have been many warnings as well as controversial issues regarding Zango. These include the fact that the application had been downloaded by computer users who were ...

Government should commit to 100 Mbps

by David Allen

There are calls for the government to make a proper commitment to the provision of super fast broadband that can offer a 100 Mbps fibre to the home (FTTH) service, by i3 Group (formerly known as H2O networks), which provides this service through the sewers. Elfred Thomas, the CEO of i3 Group, has been saying that the country could ...

BSkyB goes for green offices

by David Allen

BSkyB is continuing with plans to cut its carbon footprint and present a green company for the future. It is currently in the process of building a new studio complex in west London that has been designed to use around third less energy than the previous facilities, which is a marked improvement on the use of energy and ...

Ex BSkyB boss could take on ITV job

by David Allen

It was not that long ago when the CEO of BSkyB, Tony Ball joked that the management of broadcasting rival ITV were not able to run a bath. Now it seems that he is one of the front runners for the top job at ITV following the departure of Michael Grade last week. If he did take the job, running ...

Sky One to make Ian Wright football series

by David Allen

The former Arsenal and England footballer is hoping that his new TV series to be aired in the autumn called 'Banged to Wrights' will see a young offender given the chance to become a professional footballer. The six, one hour programmes, which will be shown on Sky One, have been made by Popkorn TV. Ian Wright will be holding ...

Ofcom may look at Project Canvas

by David Allen

It was not long ago when the media regulator had a big hand in closing down 'Project Kangaroo', a collaboration between all of the terrestrial broadcasters. Kangaroo has been succeeded by 'Project Canvas' which is a collaboration between the BBC, ITV and BT. This project would have appeared to address the concerns of the competition commission by just including two ...

Tiscali tries again to find a buyer

by David Allen

The sale of Tiscali is back on the agenda once again. In fact the sale of the UK division has been on the cards for some time only to be pulled back when things went wrong. However, it looks as if time is running out for Tiscali and it really need to do something positive. Selling the UK division ...

April 24, 2009

Samsung profit down 72%

by David Allen
The world's second largest handset maker, Samsung Electronics, today posted a first quarter profit of 619.20 billion won (£316 million), down 72% on year as consumer demand was squeezed by the global recession. The result improves on the fourth quarter of 2008, when Samsung posted its first ever quarterly loss. This fall in profit came despite Samsung's handset division outperforming Nokia, LG, ...

Paltalk hits #1 on Download.com

by David Allen
Paltalk's webchat software this week hit the number one spot for the most downloaded chat program on CNET's download.com. Nearly 75,000 copies of the PaltalkScene software were downloaded in the week ending 19 April, compared to 40,000 downloads of Windows Live Messenger. "Paltalk’s rise in popularity on Download.com reflects the increasing popularity of video chat into the mainstream," said Judy Shapiro, Paltalk’s ...

Acer confirms Android handset for 2009

by David Allen
Acer confirms Android handset for 2009

An Android-based Acer smartphone is in the pipeline to be released sometime in 2009, the company confirmed this week. Aymar de Lencquesaing, head of mobile at Taiwan-based OC maker said an handset powered by Google's open source OS is 'likely' to be unveiled sometime this year. "We have not made any formal announcement ...

Sky One goes Ballroom High

by David Allen

The success of celebrity ballroom dancing shows has proved that there must be an interest in this subject and Sky One is about to test the market with a new show that will bring together professional ballroom dancers and teenagers. Ballroom High will be fronted by champion dance duo, Anton Du Beke and Erin Boag, who will take twelve ...

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