Screen Digest back issues from October 2007:
Worldview.(Insight)
Oct 01, 2007 ... Mobile television is on the move in Europe, nowhere more so than in France, which has become the first country to go along with the European Commission's initiative to make the DVB-H standard mandatory throughout the continent (310a2). France is well poised to move into the mobile era with ...
France ready for mobile TV success: top service quality provides strong base for market expansion.(Focus)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wireless media][Television] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * France has more than 80 TV channels available on mobile * Orange is the market leader with more than half a million subscribers * All mobile operators have provided unicast mobile TV services ...
Broadband in Latin America: lack of regulation impedes competition and growth.(Focus)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wired media] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * Low penetration of PCs and under-developed regulatory environments are factors obstructing growth * Brazil had 5.45m broadband connections in 2006, Mexico 2.97m and Argentina 1.53m * Local loop unbundling ...
Vending kiosks boost US DVD rental: emergence of alternative channel further diversifies rental outlets.(Focus)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Video] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * There were around 2,300 DVD rental kiosks operational in the US at end 2006 * The footprint of market leader Redbox is expected to have tripled during 2007 * The average charge for a kiosk transaction is $2.48, ...
Film earning power shifts from US: world markets account for the lion's share of top-title revenues.(Focus)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Film][Cinema] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * International markets accounted for the highest proportion of total earnings in 2003 * Only two independent distributors have distributed titles in the top 10 * US market provides 41 per cent of revenues ...
Prospects for iPhone in Europe: apple partners European mobile network operators for launch.(Focus)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wireless media][Audio][On-line] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * The Apple iPhone will go on sale in France Germany and the UK on 9 November 2007 * It will be offered exclusively through one mobile network operator in each market * Launch of the ...
US networks lock up key sports: free-to-air TV and basic cable share most major sports rights.(Focus)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Television][Wired media] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * The big four American sports are shared between free TV and basic cable * Unlike Europe, no pay TV operator covers key events exclusively * Licence periods--for up to 11 years--are far longer ...
Next-Gen console games contend: strong format competition during crucial Christmas period.(Focus)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Games] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * Second half of 2007 set to be the most competitive since 2001 * Microsoft's Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii will compete strongly in the US, driven by very strong software line-ups * Sony's PlayStaion 3 is ...
European TV exports on the rise: but French producers' five-year growth is disappointing.(Focus)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Television] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * As broadcasters cut budgets, international sales are increasingly important for producers * Sales of French programmes have not reached the peak achieved in 2003 * UK sales figures are boosted by strong ...
Rain and taxes boost German DVD: however, rental and retail tie ratios remain low.(Focus)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Video] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * VAT increase sustained prices and poor weather boosted summer sales * Despite a large installed base of DVD players, Germans spend much less per household on DVD software than Nordic or British consumers * Early ...
Record global cinema box office: continuing shift in balance of world cinema business.(Profile)
Oct 01, 2007 ... KEY FINDINGS IN THIS REPORT * Global box office revenue tops $25bn worldwide for the first time * North America accounts for just 40 per cent of worldwide revenues * Central/Eastern Europe is the fastest growing theatrical box office region * ...
Sky plans to have a Picnic with digital terrestrial.(GENERAL)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Television] Satellite operator BSkyB is pushing ahead with plans for its pay DTT service in the UK, despite the fact that Ofcom has yet to give approval for the move. The service, now dubbed Picnic, will broadcast three Sky-branded channels and two third-party channels. The line-up will ...
Wal-Mart spurns low-cost HD DVD player.(GENERAL)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Video] US retail giant Wal-Mart has no plans to stock the $199 Venturer HD DVD player (see 2007/278a1) this Christmas, despite the fact that the player will offer the cheapest way of buying into the hi-def video market. The company, which sells other hardware from the Canadian ...
European film bodies agree d-cinema principles.(GENERAL)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Cinema][E-cinema] Official film bodies from two of Europe's leading box office markets have signed a joint agreement regarding the future of digital cinema roll-out. The FFA in Germany and the CNC in France are also calling on other European territories to join them in certifying certain ...
ITV and Channel Four join BBC's HD move.(GENERAL)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Television] Britain's three major broadcasters are planning to launch free-to-air high definition (HD) channels early next year. The plans were revealed in the same week regulator Ofcom and the BBC trust made favourable assessments of the BBC's HD roadmap. So far, pay TV platform BSkyB ...
Broadcast mobile TV in UK gets second chance.(REGULATION)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wireless media][Television] After BT Movio recently pulled out from the mobile TV market by closing its DAB-IP platform, UK regulator Ofcom will release spectrum suitable for other mobile TV technologies in two upcoming spectrum auctions. * The lower UHF band (Band IV and V) is ...
The L-Band (1452 MHz-1492 Mhz), expected to be auctioned by Ofcom early 2008.(REGULATION)
Oct 01, 2007 ... * The L-Band (1452 MHz-1492 Mhz), expected to be auctioned by Ofcom early 2008, is also suitable for mobile TV broadcast technologies such as DVB-H, MediaFlo and T-DMB. Unlike the UHF band, L-Band is not used by any service and can be exploited immediately. [??] The failures of ...
Germany applies new policy on copying fees.(REGULATION)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Video] Germany's upper house of parliament, the Bundesrat, has approved amendments to the system of levies on hardware and blank media. Rather than being fixed by government according to the number of hardware units and the runtime of the blank media concerned--as was the case ...
France backs mobile TV standard DVB-H.(REGULATION)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wireless media][Television] French government has adopted two decrees regarding technical specifications for mobile broadcast TV. According to those decrees, broadcast mobile TV services must use the DVB-H or DVB-SH standards. Local media regulator CSA is preparing the call for ...
Final approval for burning with CSS.(REGULATION)(Content Scrambling System)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Video] DVD Copy Control Association (DVD CCA) has approved the use of Content Scrambling System (CSS) encryption for DVD burning solutions in the home. This means that consumers will be able to burn content they have downloaded to their PC onto DVD. Burned discs will be playable in most ...
China film changing but ethos remains same.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Film] China Film, the pre-eminent film body in China, is to float on the Chinese stock market. Given the government's unwillingness to fully open up the market to outside investment, it remains to be seen how this would impact on a prospective offering. The agency responsible for film, ...
Echostar buys Sling to compete in retail.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Television][Satellite] Echostar Communications Corporation is to pay $380m in cash and options to acquire Sling Media in a deal expected to be complete by end 2007. Sling Media--the company responsible for the Slingbox, a consumer electronics device that repackages and streams a TV signal ...
Consolidation in cable infrastructure supply.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wired media] Global communications technology provider Arris has reached a definitive agreement to purchase communication network solutions company C-Cor with a mixture of cash and Arris stock worth approximately $730m. Between them the companies have 250 customers and have reported ...
ITV maps ambitious growth strategy.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Television][On-line] UK commercial TV group ITV will boost programme investment to double its income from TV production by 2012 and grow its nascent online business to 150m [pounds sterling] as part of a wide-ranging strategic overhaul. Four key targets for ITV are * increase ...
Intel gets physical support with Havok.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Games] Chip manufacturer strengthens its gaming credentials with the acquisition of leading in-game physics middleware company Havok for $110m. Intel states it will continue to offer physics products with support for multiple platforms and that Havok will be run as an independent company ....
iTunes links with Starbucks in US.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Audio][Wireless media][On-line] iTunes, the third largest music retailer in the US, will be developing a presence on the high street. The move, in partnership with Starbucks, is to launch this month (October) in New York and Seattle before rolling out nationwide. Under the plan, users of ...
Universal expands Russian link with Paramount.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Video] Russian arm of Universal Pictures International Entertainment (UPIE) has agreed a marketing and distribution deal with Paramount Home Entertainment International (PHEI) to handle the latter's DVD releases in Russia. The deal, effective 2 October 2007, will include all releases from ...
Second largest US rental chain closes 520 stores.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Video] Movie Gallery, the second largest rental chain in the US, is to shut 520 of its 4,500 stores on the basis that they are 'underperforming and unprofitable'. The closures will affect both Movie Gallery (MG) stores and the Hollywood Video (HV) branded outlets it acquired in 2005 (see ...
Private equity raises stake in Oz cinema sector.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Cinema] The leading cinema chain in Australia and New Zealand has been acquired by private equity firm Pacific Equity Partners in a deal worth more than A$440m ($382m). As well as 49 Hoyts cinemas, the deal also includes control of cinema advertising group Val Morgan, which programmes ...
Sony enters Indian film industry.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Film] Sony Pictures has raised the stakes for studio involvement in the Indian film industry with a joint production and distribution deal with International Indian film company Eros International. The two entities will share production costs for up to eight movies in their first year, ...
Nokia buys into mobile mapping and ads.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wireless media] * Mobile manufacturer Nokia has inked a definitive agreement to acquire global leading map provider Navteq, for an aggregate price of approximately 5.7bn [euro]. This is the largest acquisition in Nokia's history. Navteq's comprehensive map database, point of interest, 3D ...
Virgin sells off entertainment retail businesses.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [On-line][Audio] Online music store Virgin Digital has reported that it is shutting down. The service stopped taking new customers from 21 September 2007 and seven days later ceased selling tracks on an a la carte basis for non-subscribers. Those currently signed to the 'Club' rental ...
Sony signs up another indie distributor.(BUSINESS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Video] Disc replicator Sony DADC has signed a sales a distribution deal with UK subsidiary of independent US home entertainment distributor Liberation Entertainment. The deal--which took effect on 1 October--replaces Liberation's previous agreement with UK DVD publisher Pinnacle Vision ....
Summer scores new box office records.(MARKETS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Cinema] Summer blockbusters have helped secure new records for both UK and US cinemas in 2007. * In the US, the summer season concluded with a new all-time box office record, according to data from the Hollywood Reporter. Revenues for the period 4 May-3 September (Labour Day) ...
Unreleased movie shifts 2.5m copies on DVD.(MARKETS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Film][Video] UK newspaper The Mail on Sunday (MoS) premiered the previously unreleased British film Riddle as a covermount, free with the paper, distributing over 2.5m copies of the film on 23 September 2007. The paper previously pushed the boundaries of the cover-mount strategy by ...
Nintendo dominates Japanese games market.(GENERAL)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Games] Retail data from Japanese games market tracker Famitsu for the period from the start of 2007 to mid-September reveals the extent of Nintendo's domination of the software market. The resurgent publisher and hardware manufacturer boasts a robust market-leading position in the games ...
Amazon launches online music store.(PRODUCTS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [On-line][Audio] Amazon.com, the online retail giant, has launched a public beta version of the Amazon MP3 store. The store is available only to users with a credit card with a US billing address and offers over 2m songs from over 20,000 labels. Of the major labels, however, only EMI Music ...
AOL and MTV Networks expand online portfolios.(PRODUCTS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [On-line][Television] AOL Europe is launching a new portal for Italian users, AOL.it. The site will offer e-mail and instant messaging in addition to local sports and entertainment news. Over the next 18 months AOL plans to launch local portals in 14 additional countries, expecting to ...
Joost signs Paramount films to stream in Europe.(PRODUCTS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [On-line][Film] Online TV platform Joost has begun offering a selection of movies from Paramount Pictures in Europe. The service, currently in closed beta testing, will allow users to stream the movies free, supported by advertising. Library titles from the studio are available in the UK, ...
Nine new Blu-ray recorder models for Japan.(PRODUCTS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Video] Key Japanese electronics manufacturers Sony, Sharp and Panasonic are to launch nine new Blu-ray (BD) recorders in Japan. *Sony is to launch four models in November ranging in price from [yen]140,000 ($1,225) to [yen]300,000 ($5,600) for the top of the range model, which ...
Virgin competes with new flagship in UK market.(PRODUCTS)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Television] Virgin Media launched Virgin One, its new UK flagship channel on 1 October 2007. The channel, a general entertainment format targeted mainly to young males, will be distributed on Freeview as well as cable and satellite. It is widely seen as a substitute for Sky One, no longer ...
Microsoft and Toshiba unite to push interactivity.(TECHNOLOGY)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Vidio][Wireless media] Toshiba and Microsoft are to launch the Advanced Interactivity Consortium (AIC), an open forum for the promotion of superior interactivity and interoperability not only on HD DVD, but also on digital platforms for delivery to DVD hardware, PCs, televisions, mobile ...
UK cinemas extend Bluetooth capability.(TECHNOLOGY)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wireless media] Bluepod Media has developed hardware with a Bluetooth range of up to 100 metres to take mobile marketing in a different direction for cinemas. Earlier this summer, Vue Cinemas agreed a deal to install Bluepod's Bluetooth system on poster sites in all its cinemas (see ...
Nokia launches mobile content brand Ovi.(TECHNOLOGY)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wireless media][Games] Finnish mobile handset manufacturer Nokia will launch a range of new mobile services in fourth quarter 2007 under the brand name Ovi. These include a new music store offering full-track downloads; re-launch of the N-Gage gaming platform across a range of devices ...
The N-Gage platform will ultimately run on all Series 60 (smartphone) devices but is limited to a handful of handsets at launch. NGage games are C++ based, which allows for better performance than J2ME, the current programming language used for the majority of mobile games.(TECHNOLOGY)
Oct 01, 2007 ... The N-Gage platform will ultimately run on all Series 60 (smartphone) devices but is limited to a handful of handsets at launch. NGage games are C++ based, which allows for better performance than J2ME, the current programming language used for the majority of mobile games. Nokia will also ...
Apple launches TV downloads in Europe.(TECHNOLOGY)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [On-line][Television] Consumer electronics company Apple has launched television downloads through the iTunes Store (iTS) in the UK. In terms of video content the store now offers television shows and music videos but movies are not yet available. On offer are 28 different archive US shows ...
Disney signs TV downloads to Channel 4 Finland.(TECHNOLOGY)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Television] Disney-ABC International Television Group has licensed upcoming episodes from four US television series--Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy, Lost and Desperate Housewives--to Channel 4 Finland (Nelonen) for download to PC. From this month (October), Finnish consumers can access titles ...
Google ad solutions rolled out for mobile.(ADVERTISING)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wireless media] Online search and advertising company Google has opened the mobile extension of its AdSense and AdWords advertising services in 13 countries (including the US, UK, India, China and France). Registered advertisers can now integrate pay-per-click text ads on mobile pages ...
Mobile operator launches UK ad-based MVNO.(ADVERTISING)
Oct 01, 2007 ... [Wireless media] Blyk, the Finnish mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), launched on 24 September 2007 in the UK. Strictly aimed at the 16-24 age bracket, Blyk offers its subscribers up to 217 monthly free texts and 43 monthly voice minutes at any time and to any network. To benefit from ...
Mergers, takeovers and investments.(Business)
Oct 01, 2007 ... <Pre> Mergers, takeovers and investments Avail Media IP video management firm Avail Media USA; +1/703 318 1683has acquired video-on-demand www.availmedia.com aggregator ViewNow for an ...
Content deals.(Business)(Table)
Oct 01, 2007 ... <Pre> Content deals Airborne Entertainment Mobile content provider has formed a Canada; +44/514 289 9111partnership with Iris Distribution to www.airborne-e.com offer mobile content from ...
Technology deals.(Business)(Table)
Oct 01, 2007 ... <Pre> Technology deals AccessITLeading technology facilitator has USA; +1/973 290 0080signed up Atlas Cinemas for its www.accessitx.com digital cinema roll out programme. ...
Events diary.(Calendar)
Oct 01, 2007 ... Markets & exhibitions Showeast Orlando, 15-18 October; Nielsen; t +1/646 654 7691; e derric. mast@nielsen.com; www.cinemaexpo. com/filmexpo/showeast/index.jsp IP07 London, 16-17 October; Imago Communications; t +44/20 8247 4000; f +44/20 8247 4001; e ...
Mobile means staying on the move.(PERSPECTIVE)
Oct 01, 2007 ... This year is undeniably one of the richest for the mobile media industry. One technological breakthrough after the next, one rumour after another (usually involving Google and/or Apple at some point), the personal, always-on and ubiquitous devices are on track to revolutionise the way we ...
Talkin' 'bout my g-g-generation.(PERSPECTIVE)
Oct 01, 2007 ... This issue carries a number of reports of new products and services designed to appeal to young people. In British television, for instance, ITV2 is to boost it appeal to the 16-34 demographic, competing with BBC3, as is UKTV's G2 channel, about to be rebranded as Dave. (The nine per cent ...