T S I C H A N N E L N E W S - Number 31/2003 3 August 20

[Sadoun]

T S I C H A N N E L N E W S - Number 31/2003 3 August 2003 -
A weekly roundup of global TV news sponsored by TELE-satellite International
Editor: Branislav Pekic

* Issue 02-03/2004 of Tele Satellite International magazine is out now * More details at http://sadoun.com/Sat/Products/Acces...-Satellite.htm


E U R O P E



REVENUES UP AT SBS
SBS Broadcasting's net revenues were up 14 per cent in the second quarter, to €154.9 million, and operating income was up 125 per cent to €23.6 million. The European broadcaster however experienced a 9 per cent fall in net income, to €16.2 million. The company said much of the improvement in net revenue came from the television division, where revenues were up 14 per cent to €17.9 million. Those gains are attributed to improved audience shares at a number of SBS's stations. Revenues rose 39 per cent to €6.6 million at Kanal 5; 11 per cent, to €5.6 million at its Dutch operations; 28 per cent, to €5.1 million in Hungary, and 18 per cent, to €2.3 million, at VT4.


AUSTRIA


ORF GETS CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
ORF, Austria's state-owned television and radio broadcaster, has secured free-to-air rights to the UEFA Champions League football tournament for the next three years. The company had initially denied any interest in the rights due to what it considered to be a high asking price, but has now signed a deal thought to be worth $3.4 million per season. German broadcaster Sat1 paid approximately $34.3 million a season for local Champions League rights. ORF will commence coverage on September 16, while Austrian pay-TV rights reside with Premiere.


BENELUX


CANAL+ BENELUX ON SALE
Vivendi Universal is reported to be considering two or three offers for its pay-TV operations in Benelux. But the bids are said to be considerably less than the conglomerate had hoped for and could see the break-up of the group into three separate operations. Telecoms group Telnet in association with a number of cable network operators from the north of Belgium have apparently put together a bid worth €75 million, a figure which compares with the €300 million that Vivendi had hoped to raise from a disposal. Another bid consortium is headed by Deficom, a venture capital firm that previously owned a stake in Canal Plus Poland. Its backers include cable operators from the Walloon south of Belgium and electricity utility Socofe. According to local press reports, the Dutch cable group UPC is also said to be eyeing the Netherlands operations. In a late development, UPC declined to comment on reports that it has signed a deal to acquire Vivendi Universal's Canal Plus Netherlands operations. A source close to the deal earlier confirmed Belgian press reports that a deal to sell Canal Plus Benelux has been signed. The source said the French speaking Belgian part of Canal Plus would be acquired by risk capital company Deficom and Walloon cable operators, while the Flemish speaking part would be bought by telephone operator Telenet and the Dutch part by United Pan-Europe Communications (UPC).


FRANCE


TF1 REPORTS FIRST HALF RESULTS
French commercial network TF1 posted net income for the first half of the year of €138 million, up 23% from a year earlier, according to provisional figures on July 28. The channel's net advertising revenue in the first half inched up 2.2% to €835 million. The company said its guidance for the full year remains unchanged, with ad revenue forecast to grow 1%-3%. Revenue from new businesses rose 7.2% as TF1 raised its stake in satellite broadcasting platform Television Par Satellite to 66% from 50%.

M6 POSTS BETTER RESULTS THAN IN 2002
Media group M6 has posted strong results for the first quarter of 2003 and in comparison to the same quarter last year, the group reported a 25.4% increase in profits, with an overall income of €130 million. M6's TV operations also saw a 24.1% rise, as profits shot up from €66 million for the first quarter of 2002 to €81.9 million for the first quarter of 2003. With €116.8 million ploughed into original content, M6's investment in programming received a 6.5% boost during this semester. Most significant for the network is its growing share of the country's youth market. M6 confirmed an average audience share of 18.4% for the under-50 demographic, placing M6 second among all French networks.

CANAL PLUS FILES SUIT AGAINST TF1?
Canal Plus on July 30 declined to confirm reports that it has filed a suit accusing rival French broadcaster TF1 of uncompetitive practices. According to French press reports, Canal Plus and its i-tele news channel filed the suit on July 28 with France's competition authorities. A Canal Plus spokesman said he had no comment. I-tele competes with TF1's news channel LCI. According to the reports, Canal Plus accuses TF1 of abusing its dominant market position to protect LCI from competition by i-tele.


GERMANY


SUPER RTL SIGNS OUTPUT DEAL WITH NICKELODEON
Leading German kids channel Super RTL has signed a multimillion-euro package deal with Nickelodeon for more than 300 half-hours of programming, including new episodes of "SpongeBob SquarePants" and "Jimmy Neutron." The six-year deal, which Super RTL programming boss Susanne Schosser valued at "several million euros," also gives the German broadcaster an option to pick up rights for future Nickelodeon animation series. In addition to "SpongeBob" and "Neutron," the Nickelodeon deal also includes such library product as "Hey Arnold!" and "The Angry Beavers."

DSF BUYS HOCKEY WORLD CUP
All-sports channel DSF has acquired the broadcast rights to the 2004 and 2005 Hockey World Cup from Swiss rights group Infront Sports & Media. The deal gives DSF free TV rights to all tournament games involving the German national team as well as the rights to the finals and semi-finals. Previous Hockey World Cups have been broadcast solely on German pay-TV platform Premiere. The 2004 event runs April 24-May 9 in Prague, the Czech Republic. The 2005 Hockey World Cup will be held in Austria.

PROSIEBEN EXPECTS NO SURPRISES
ProSiebenSat1 Media's Chief Executive Officer Urs Rohner said the German television broadcaster's earnings in the second quarter didn't present any ``negative surprises.'' ``The second quarter went well,'' Rohner said on July 30 in an interview with Bloomberg Television. Rohner expects the ad market decline this year to be around 5 per cent. ProSiebenSat1 generates more than 90 per cent of its revenue from advertising. Rohner also said that there won't be ``an active sale process'' in the next 12 months for KirchMedia's 53 per cent stake in ProSiebenSat1, Germany's biggest TV broadcaster.

DSF POSITIVE OVER SALES
German all-sports network DSF upped its year-end sales forecast on July 30, citing the recent acquisitions of football and ice hockey rights. DSF chief executive Rainer Huether said the Munich-based broadcaster now expects to book revenue of between €80-90 million, compared with the company's earlier prediction of €70 million. Huether said the more optimistic outlook was largely due to DSF's recent deal to acquire certain broadcast rights to Germany's Bundesliga. Huether said advertisers have been jumping on board in the wake of the agreement, with telecommunications group Deutsche Telekom the top sponsor of the channel's football broadcasts. Huether argued that DSF's Bundesliga ad rates are the most competitive on the market. A 30-second spot on the all-sports channel during Sunday Bundesliga matches costs €18,600. By comparison, public broadcaster ARD charges up to €59,700 per 30-second ad for its Bundesliga broadcasts.

SABAN HAS PLAN B FOR KIRCH MEDIA
A meeting has been held this week between representatives of billionaire entrepreneur Haim Saban and the management and creditors of bankrupt German television giant KirchMedia to discuss a Saban takeover of Kirch-controlled commercial broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1. After Saban's first attempt to buy up ProSieben collapsed in June, Kirch's banks said they would implement the so-called "Plan B". That meant bankrolling ProSieben for the next 1-2 years until market conditions improve and the network could be sold off. But it has emerged that Kirch's creditors are looking to cut their losses and may be open to a Saban deal if the price is right. Sources close to the negotiations said the basic outline of a deal has already been worked out based on Saban's earlier takeover bid.


ITALY


CHAMPIONS LEAGUE LIVE ON SKY ITALIA
UEFA has announced a set of final deals which concludes the UEFA Champions League TV sales in all major European markets for the period between 2003 and 2006. Sky Italia has won the Pay-TV rights in Italy and will have the first and second choice of games on Tuesdays, as well as the second choice on Wednesdays, when RTI Mediaset has first pick. Sky Italia will show all remaining matches live together with a highlights programme on both Tuesday and Wednesday evenings. Sky Italia was formed from the merger of Stream and Tele+, and UEFA said that this deal would cover the 2003/04 and 2004/05 seasons under conditions imposed by the European Community competition authorities on the merged entity.

SKY ITALIA ON AIR
News Corp's pay-TV platform Sky Italia went on air on July 31, bringing a third player into a market dominated by public broadcaster RAI and Mediaset. With only 400,000 viewers currently able to pick up its channels, Sky Italia - now the sole digital satellite platform in the country - plans to bring in over 3.5 million subscribers in the next year, rising to 10 million in the long term. The basic package will contain 50 channels, including the country's first 24-hour news service Tg24. Subscribers can supplement this line-up with sports and film stations from a total 120-strong bouquet. The number of satellite subscribers in Italy is estimated at between 2.3 and 2.5 million, but there are 21.4 million TV households in the country and multichannel penetration of TV homes stands at 14%. The short-term target is to reach 3.5 million subscribers within one year.


THE NETHERLANDS


UPC GETS CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RIGHTS
Netherlands-based company UPC has closed a three-year deal with UEFA for the exclusive pay-TV rights of UEFA Champions League football. UPC will broadcast the games in The Netherlands as of the start of the new football season 2003-2004 via its Digital TV service. The company said that it will use these rights for a new approach to the broadcast of football. Whereas Holland’s national public broadcaster NOS will air one match per match night, UPC’s service will show all eight games simultaneously, and will then repeat each match one or more times. Dutch viewers will be able to watch all the matches live and in full for the first time via eight channels. Viewers will have the possibility to choose the live match of their favourite football team, zap between the games and choose which of the other games they would like to watch later. UPC is also in talks with other cable companies to extend the availability of programmes to viewers of other platforms in The Netherlands.


PORTUGAL


FREE TO AIR CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
UEFA has announced a set of final deals which concludes the UEFA Champions League TV sales in all major European markets for the period between 2003 and 2006. The agreements were negotiated by UEFA's marketing partner, TEAM. In Portugal, RTP has been awarded the free-to-air rights, and Sport TV has won the pay-TV rights. RTP will broadcast the first-choice live game each week and will also transmit a highlights programme on Wednesday evenings. Sport TV - Portugal's only dedicated sports channel - will screen all the matches live.


RUSSIA


VGTRK TO SET UP NEWS CHANNEL
As Kommersant has learned, a round-the-clock Russian news channel with the participation of state structures is supposed to appear on the television market in the fall. VGTRK [All-Russia State Television and Radio Company] will be one of the participants in this project. Most likely, some of the programmes will be taken from the EuroNews channel (the rights to distribute the EuroNews Russian version belong to VGTRK - Kommersant), which also operates on the 24-hour format. According to unconfirmed reports, the news channel may appear as part of the Kosmos TV and NTV-Plus satellite channel package, and for open access - on one of the terrestrial frequencies.

TV CHANNELS TO DIVIDE UP WARNER BROS PACKAGE
Warner Bros. has closed a TV licensing deal with three Russian broadcasters worth $65 million all told, likely a record for that territory. Pact involves the Hollywood studio's Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings franchises as well as a handful of upcoming fall series and some library titles. The complex arrangement brings together three Russian networks -- lead participant NTV plus RTR and CTC, which will share the costs of the multiyear package and split windows on some of the product. Deal first came to light in January but took months to piece together. NTV is licensing Ocean's Eleven, Blade 2 and Collateral Damage as well as reruns of pics like Eraser and The Fugitive. In addition, the broadcaster has picked up rights to upcoming primetime series like OC, Cold Case, Fearless, Tarzan and Two and a Half Men. Net will have follow-up rights to Lord of the Rings. RTR has secured first broadcast rights to Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings, while CTC has inked for second-run rights to both. The deal is understood to be worth about $65 million.


SPAIN


SOGECABLE AND MEDIA PARK CLOSE CHANNELS
Pay-TV giant Sogecable has reached an agreement with production house Media Park to eliminate the eight channels Media Park supplied to satellite platform Via Digital before it merged with Sogecable earlier this month. The reports said Sogecable will pay the producer €65 million for removing the channels from the lineup of the newly created Digital Plus, formed from Sogecable's digital platform Canal Satelite Digital and Telefonica's rival platform Via Digital.


UNITED KINGDOM


CARLTON AND GRANADA TO LAUNCH JOINT NEWS DIVISION
Carlton and Granada are considering setting up a dedicated ITV news division should their proposed merger be approved by the competition authorities. An ITV news division would be home for the broadcaster's regional news operations around England, as well as the ITV News Channel. It could also potentially become the home for ITN, should a merged Carlton and Granada take full control of ITV's national and international news provider, as permitted under the Communications Act. An ITV news department would sit alongside two other operating divisions - for production and broadcasting - within the merged company. The creation of three new divisions, including one for ITV news, will lead to savings of £12 million on content spending and a £12 million reduction in "back of house broadcasting and commissioning", according to the Financial Times. Merging the two companies' corporate operations would save an estimated £12 million and creating a single ad sales houses would deliver a further £20 million.

RATNER TO TEAM UP WITH DESMOND FOR PAY-TV CHANNELS
Gerald Ratner is planning to team up with Richard Desmond's media empire to sell jewellery from his new Internet venture on one of Desmond's pay-TV channels. Ratner, who plans to launch GeraldOnline in September, hopes to be on air by spring next year.

LIVE TV RELAUNCHED
Live TV, which first brought viewers such creations as News Bunny, has been relaunched via the Sky Digital platform. Formerly run by Kelvin MacKenzie, the station existed for four years on cable television networks until it closed in 1999. Offerings on the relaunched channel include Bunny Bulletin - News Bunny's own programme. The revived Live TV is a joint venture involving former directors of the channel who bought the rights to library footage, and telecoms company Eckoh Technologies.

FREEVIEW VIEWERS ON THE INCREASE
The number of homes connected to digital terrestrial TV service Freeview has almost doubled since October. Some 1.51 million homes received digital terrestrial at the start of July, compared with 763,000 nine months earlier, according to figures from the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising. Digital viewers are forsaking cable TV - only 2.16 million homes were connected at the start of this month, down from a high of 2.52 million at the start of the year. In contrast, the number of digital satellite subscribers numbers is increasing, with 6.47 million homes signed up at the beginning of July. Digital viewing now accounts for 40% of homes in the UK, up from 36.2% this time last year.

BSKYB BUYS BOXING RIGHTS
BSkyB has extended its contract with UK-based boxing promoter Frank Warren to broadcast bouts featuring his fighters until June 2005. The deal was struck with Warren's Sports Network and will include bouts involving British super middleweight fighter Joe Calzaghe.





N O R T H A M E R I C A


CANADA


MTV2 SEEKS TO CLARIFY LICENSE
The local version of music video channel MTV2, a partnership between Canadian broadcaster Craig Broadcast Systems Inc. and Viacom Inc., is negotiating again with Canada's TV watchdog over how to define a "pop music" video channel. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission has given industry players until August 29 to comment on an application by Calgary-based Craig to amend the license of MTV2, a digital music video channel. Craig last year clashed with the CRTC when the regulator ruled that MTV2 should stop competing directly with another Canadian music video channel, MuchMusic, by going beyond its original niche "pop genre" when choosing music video content.

BELL EXPRESSVU ACCUSES ROGERS COMMUNICATIONS
Direct-broadcast satellite service Bell ExpressVu said on July 29 it had asked the country's broadcast watchdog to halt "anticompetitive behaviour" by Rogers Communications in Toronto, the country's hottest TV market. In an application to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, Bell ExpressVu listed attempts by Rogers to limit competition in Toronto's multiple-dwelling-unit market, which includes apartment buildings and condominium developments. Bell ExpressVu, a division of phone giant BCE Inc. and Rogers, Canada's largest cablecaster, are battling for dominance in Ontario as they seek to provide one-stop high-speed Internet access, TV and phone services to existing and new subscribers.
Internet - http://www.bell.ca

CBC NORTH GETS SATELLITE DISTRIBUTION
CBC North’s Northbeat and CBC Igalaaq is now available on ExpressVu direct-to-home satellite service in addition to the service over the air, on cable television and over the Internet. In June, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage confirmed in its report to Parliament the unique contribution to Canadian culture made by northern broadcasters. It specifically recommended that the Canadian Radio-television and Telcommunications Commission require direct-to-home satellite service providers be made to carry the CBC North Television service.

BELL EXPRESSVU ADDS SUBSCRIBERS
Bell ExpressVu added 18,000 subscribers in its most recent quarter, a 14% increase year on year. At the halfway point in the DTH outfit's financial year it had 1.4 million subscribers. First half revenues from satellite TV were C$368 million compared with C$306 million at the same point last year.

DIGITAL TV SURVEY PUBLISHED
The take-up of digital TV is slowing down in Canada, a new survey indicates. A report issued on July 31 by Decima Publishing disclosed that the number of digital TV viewers rose 3%, or about 102,000 subscribers, in the period from November/December 2002-February/March 2003, bringing the total number of subscribers to just more than 3.5 million. In contrast, the Decima survey notes that the digital TV market grew 5%, or about 169,000 subscribers, in the previous period and 6%, or approximately 174,000, in the period from November/December 2001-February/March 2002. Bell ExpressVu, the satellite TV service market leader, saw its subscriber base rise 1%, or 30,041 subscribers, from November/December 2002-February-March 2003, compared with 7%, or 127,929 new subscribers, in the same period a year earlier.

ITALIAN TV CHANNELS FIGHT FOR VIEWERS
Two TV channels are battling for the hearts and minds of the Canadian-Italian public. Telelatino (TLN), who has for nearly twenty years delivered Italian programming from RAI, the Italian public broadcaster, to Italian Canadians, says it reaches 3.5 million viewers across the county. Now RAI wants a channel of its own in Canada and has said it will no longer give its programming to TLN as of August 31. With the August 11 deadline for public comments to the CRTC on the Rogers-sponsored bid for a 24-hour RAI channel in Canada approaching, the tussle between the broadcasters is coming to a head. TLN argues that contrary to RAI's argument that the new channel will increase viewership, only about 10,000 to 20,000 Canadians will have access to the new channel.


UNITED STATES


MGM PULLS OUT OF RACE FOR VIVENDI
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the Hollywood film studio, on July 29 dropped out of the auction for the entertainment business of Vivendi Universal, saying the price was too high. The withdrawal of MGM, the studio behind the James Bond franchise, leaves four bidders. The remaining contenders are General Electric, parent of the NBC network, John Malone's Liberty Media and an investment group led by Edgar Bronfman Jr, who once ran the Universal business. Viacom is the other bidder, although it is understood to be interested in only part of the division. MGM chief executive Alex Yemenidjian said in a statement that the Vivendi entertainment assets are "attractive" but the "current price expectation would not be consistent with our valuation of the assets". MGM had made an offer of $11.5 billion, the only all-cash bid on the table. The Vivendi assets include the Universal movie and television studios, the SciFi and USA cable channels and Universal theme parks. MGM recently increased its bid by $300 million but reports suggested that Vivendi met company executives on July 28 and said they would not accept a bid below $14 billion.

RTVE SIGNS MORE CARRIAGE DEALS
Spanish broadcaster RTVE has signed a carriage deal with US cable operator Cablevision, securing wider stateside distribution for its news and documentary diginets. TVE Internacional and TVE Grandes Documentales will be added to Cablevision's Hispanic line-up this month. This deal sees Cablevision accelerate its development of a dedicated Hispanic package. Earlier, the operator announced another carriage agreement with Argentine channel producer-distributor Pramer for Spanish-language cuisine channel El Gourmet and arts net Canal (á). The Cablevision bouquet now includes TVE Internacional, Grandes Documentales, CNN Español, Momentum, Infinito, CNC Columbia, Latin TV and MTV Español, In recent months, RTVE networks have also joined the Comcast and Time Warner cable platforms in the US.

ECHOSTAR TO CHARGE EXTRA FEE FOR DVR
Satellite broadcaster EchoStar Communications will start charging customers an extra fee for using digital video recording, or DVR, capabilities. The price increase was relayed to retailers on July 30 and will go into effect later this summer when the company rolls out its new set-top box, the 510. EchoStar spokesman Marc Lumpkin said the fee will only apply to customers who use the new model. Those who use DVR functions on older models, the 501, 508 or 721, will be exempt from the fee. By charging for DVR function, EchoStar will be coming in line with TiVo Inc. and Hughes Electronics' DirecTV. TiVo currently charges some customers $12.95 a month for a subscription and DirecTV charges all but its most premium customers $4.99 a month for DVR service.





L A T I N A M E R I C A


MEXICO


TV AZTECA REPORTS PROFIT GAINS
Mexican broadcaster TV Azteca has posted a second quarter net profit of $53 million, better than the $40 million projected by some analysts, and more than 1,000 per cent higher than the $5 million posted last year. The company's EBITDA rose 5 per cent to $84 million. Net revenues for the company were down 4 per cent.

BILL GATES BECOMES TELEVISA SHAREHOLDER
U.S. software billionaire Bill Gates disclosed on July 30 that he holds 7% of Grupo Televisa de CV Mexico's No. 1 media group. The co-founder of Microsoft Corp. held 6.3 million of Televisa's Global Depositary Shares as of July 16, according to a passive investment filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. It said 4.9 million shares, or 5.3% of Grupo Televisa, were held by his investment fund, Cascade Investment, while the rest were held by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a charitable trust named after him and his wife. The SEC filing did not say when the shares were purchased or at what prices.





A S I A



CNBC ARABIYA GOES ON AIR
CNBC Arabiya has launched this week, beaming economic news about the Middle East out of Dubai. An affiliate of CNBC-owned by Middle East Business News (MEBN), the 24-hour satellite service will concentrate on business in the region. The launch comes after US deputy secretary of defence Paul Wolfowitz caused controversy last weekend by accusing networks Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya of inciting violence against US soldiers in Iraq.

MGM NETWORKS TO EXPAND IN ASIA
MGM Networks, a unit of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, announced on July 31 that it has entered into a strategic alliance with CNBC Asia Pacific to launch and market the MGM channel to subscribers across key markets in Asia. MGM Networks and CNBC Asia Pacific will target the launch of the Channel for later this year. The Channel will be broadcast in English, and will carry Mandarin language subtitling. MGM and CNBC Asia Pacific are currently exploring several distribution opportunities in the region. Capping significant growth over the last 24 months, which has seen MGM Networks expanding its global presence fourfold to nearly 100 countries around the world, this alliance will further broaden the presence of the MGM Networks in the Asia Pacific region. MGM Networks' current reach today in the region includes MGM branded channels in South Korea, India and New Zealand, as well as its joint venture interests in the Star Channel in Japan and Movie Networks in Australia. With the launch of this MGM Channel in alliance with CNBC Asia Pacific, MGM Networks will have in deployment an array of satellite footprints across the globe that will allow technical receipt of MGM Networks channels in all significant international cable and satellite markets, including those within Europe, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East and the Asia Pacific region.
Internet - http://www.mgm.com
http://www.cnbcasia.com


CHINA - HONG KONG


HONG KONG TO GET 3 NEW PAY-TV OPERATORS
Three new pay-TV operators are expected to hit Hong Kong by year end, and they are likely to take away market share from Hong Kong's dominant operator i-Cable and its two existing smaller rivals. Analysts say of the six, only two are expected to survive the price competition and limited subscriber market. Newcomer City Telecom plans to offer a package of 10 to 12 channels next month, at a cost of less than HK$100 a month. That's nearly one-third the price that dominant player i-Cable is charging right now. In November, Galaxy Satellite Broadcasting, a joint venture between Television Broadcasts (TVB) and Intelsat, will begin broadcasting, offering 24 channels. Hong Kong's dominant telco PCCW is gearing up to re-enter the market sometime in the next quarter. Analysts expect Galaxy to give i-Cable the biggest run for its money. Market watchers are expecting parent TVB's earnings to be hit by its US$136 million investment into Galaxy. But TVB is confident of breaking even in three to four years.

CCTV TO ENTER PAY-TV MARKET
State-owned Central China Television is set to enter the pay-TV market with the launch channels in September. Although CCTV has yet to confirm how many channels will launch initially, it is expected six could be in place by year-end, with 30 available by the end of 2005. The launch is part of a series of media reforms designed to encourage improve production values and increased revenues form program libraries. Viewers will be ask to pay RMB1,000 ($120) for the necessary set-top box equipment.


INDIA


ESPN STAR SPORTS GETS CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
ESPN STAR Sports has bagged exclusive pay-TV rights to UEFA Champions League for three years till 2006. This will involve 125 matches and give ESPN STAR Sports 298 hours of live programming. ESS will air a total of four live matches per week including the finals across most of Asia (Taiwan and Phillipines will see two live matches a week). The multi-year deal will include pay-per-view and video-on-demand rights and terrestrial rights for China. The 2003/2004 UEFA Champions League season which begins on September 17, 2003, on ESPN and STAR Sports, will reach over 128 million households on ESPN and over 57 million households on STAR Sports. In India, ESPN telecast 149 hours of live coverage while STAR Sports covered 167 hours.

ZEE TV TO START DTH SERVICE
A Zee-backed company has become the first entity to receive the government's green signal to start direct-to-home (DTH) television broadcast. DTH involves the installation of a dish antenna of 60 to 90 cm radius and a set-top box at the subscriber's end to receive television signals transmitted from satellite. Zee's immediate response to the government decision is that it will roll out DTH from 1 September, also the date set by the government to kick off the phased introduction of the conditional access system (CAS) in the four metros. It said it would start both on that day, if it received all clearances. Zee/Siticable's total investment in its CAS and DTH projects will be around 4bn rupees [$87 million]. Information available with the ministry on the cost of DTH services to the subscriber varies widely. The ministry has a projection from STAR - which puts the price of the equipment (dish and box) at 7,000 to 10,000 rupees and subscription fees at 700 to 800 rupees per month. Jawahar Goel of Zee/Siticable said his DTH would cost 3,500 rupees for the equipment and subscription fees in slabs beginning from 150 rupees per month.

SET TOP DUTY REDUCTION EXTENDED
The government on July 30 extended import duty reduction on set-top boxes till September 30 even as it constituted a panel comprising broadcasters, cable network companies and cable operators to examine the ground preparation for the rollout of the conditional access system (CAS) for cable television. Customs, countervailing and special additional duties had earlier been reduced for set-top boxes till July 31. As per the new duty structure, the basic Customs duty on the boxes stands reduced to 5 per cent from 25 per cent, and the countervailing duty and the special additional duty reduced to nil from 16 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively. The panel, expected to meet in the first week of August in Mumbai, will look into issues such as availability of set-top boxes, the monitoring process for their installation, and awareness about CAS. The government also urged broadcasters to soon announce lower prices for pay channels. The Centre is also likely to step in to resolve the deadlock over the price of free-to-air channels. Cable operators want it to be raised to Rs 180 from Rs 72.


IRAN


PROVINCIAL NETWORK STARTS SATELLITE BROADCASTS
Satellite broadcasting of the West Azarbayjan centre's provincial network began on July 29 from the Voice and Vision's West Azarbayjan centre to the Intelsat 902 satellite. As a result of the installation in the province of the Voice and Vision's satellite broadcasting system, more than 250,000 residents of the Bukan and Takab regions will benefit from the programmes of the West Azarbayjan centre's provincial TV network.


JAPAN


BROADCASTERS SIGN OLYMPIC TV DEAL
A consortium of Japanese broadcasters including Japan Broadcasting Corp (NHK) signed a $155 million deal on July 28 to officially acquire the right to air the 2004 Athens Olympic Games in Japan. The two parties had already agreed on the fee for the Athens games in 1996 under an arrangement to make the total amount for the right to broadcast five Olympic games from 2000 to 2008 in Japan $545.5 million. According to the agreement, Japan Consortium will transmit the Games to Japan's six largest independent television stations, but also to the members of the National Association of Broadcasters.

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE ON SKY PERFECTV
Japan's SKY PerfecTV! has sealed a deal with UEFA for broadcast rights to the Champion League games. The satellite platform will air matches on its Perfect Choice and JSkySports 3 channels, beginning August 1. The platform will broadcast all 125 Champions League matches.

BROADCASTERS SEEK TO ANTICIPATE DTT BROADCASTS
Japan Broadcasting Corp. (NHK), private TV broadcasters and the telecom ministry on July 29 adopted a policy of bringing forward the start of terrestrial digital TV broadcasts in the nation's non-metropolitan districts from late 2006. As for the three metropolitan areas surrounding Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya, they had agreed to start full broadcasts in December this year. In districts other than those three areas, the broadcasters and ministry agreed to start, in fiscal 2004 in principle, the process of adjusting the antenna mechanisms of existing TV sets in households to avert interference of broadcast signals, which would otherwise occur after the start of digital broadcasts. The agreements came at a plenary session in Tokyo the same day of a meeting of representatives from the private-sector TV broadcasters, NHK and the Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications. The agreements are designed to expedite early dissemination of terrestrial digital broadcast services in Japan.


MALAYSIA


CHANNEL NINE PREPARES LAUNCH
Channel Nine, Malaysia's third private terrestrial station, is set to launch in early September with test transmissions commencing in August. The Medanmas-owned channel will offer an assortment of entertainment programming strands, skewed towards European and North American sports, in order to attract what it calls an "urban lifestyle" adult audience. Channel Nine will also offer what it calls a "balanced" mix of Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and English-language content, which will also be sourced from Japan, South Korea and Latin America.


SOUTH KOREA


HUMAX SECURES SKYLIFE CONTRACT
Humax, a South Korea-based electronics manufacturer, has secured a Won14.4b ($12 million) order from pay-TV platform SkyLife broadcasting for high-end set-top boxes. The first shipment will be made in October, with Humax highlighting the sustainable revenues the deal will bring.


THAILAND


UBC TO LAUNCH NEW ENTERTAINMENT CHANNEL
United Broadcasting Corp., a Thailand-based pay-TV operator, is set to launch a new entertainment channel in order to attract lower middle-class viewers. UBC InsidE will air in August in place of the UBC 25 movie channel, which has been withdrawn due to the plethora of movie channels already available. Local content will account for 60% of InsidE output. UBC had 437,845 subscribers at March 31 and expects 500,000 by year-end.





A F R I C A



EURONEWS ON AFRICAN DTH PLATFORM
EuroNews is now available on the African platform CANALSATELLITE HORIZONS. On July 23rd, EuroNews was launched (in French, English and Portuguese) within the “Grand Prestige” offer of the CANALSATELLITE HORIZONS platform, operated by Media Overseas and covering 25 sub-Saharan countries via KU band from Mauritania to Cameroon. Only one year after its launch, CANALSATELLITE HORIZONS today offers 40 TV channels and radio channels. The “Grand Prestige” offer adds almost 27,000 subscribers to the 67,000 EuroNews subscribers already using the Le Sat platform. EuroNews is broadcast in both French and English on Le Sat.


SOUTH AFRICA


SPORTS TV RIGHTS POSITION PAPER PUBLISHED
Sports lovers with no access to pay TV will no longer have to cross their fingers in the hope of watching Bafana Bafana or the Springboks on SABC or e.tv. According to a position paper and regulations on sports broadcasting rights released by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) on July 25, free-to-air channels will now broadcast "national sporting events". This means that all South Africa's matches at the upcoming Rugby World Cup for example, will be broadcast on e.tv and the SABC. However, pay channel SuperSport says this is "unfortunate" and believes that the various sports federations will suffer financially as a result. According to acting Icasa chairperson Lumko Mtide, all "interested parties, stakeholders and the public" were invited to respond to a 2002 discussion paper into Section 30 (7) of the Broadcasting Act which says that subscription services (pay channels) cannot have exclusive rights for the broadcast of national sporting events. The new regulations stipulate that the "onus is on subscription broadcasters to sub-licence (broadcasting) rights to listed national sporting events to free-to-air broadcasters", but free-to-air channels can acquire rights from their custodians to broadcast exclusively. Some "national sports events" on the regulation list include: Summer Olympics; All Africa Games; With regard to the Fifa World Cup, African Cup of Nations, the IRB World Cup and the ICC World Cup: all South African team matches; opening match; two quarterfinals; third and fourth position play-offs if South Africa is involved; one semi-final; final match; and opening/closing ceremonies; and The finals of the Absa Cup, the Currie Cup, SAA Super 8, Coca-Cola Cup, CAF Champions League (if a South African team is involved); CAF Cup-Winners' Cup (if South African team is involved); Super 12 (if South African team is involved) and the Standard Bank Cup.


UGANDA


UGANDA TO GET NATIONAL BROADCASTING AGENCY
State-owned Uganda Television [UTV] and Radio Uganda are to be restructured into a national broadcasting agency soon. The minister of state for information, Office of the President, Nsaba Buturo, said on July 28.





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