HEADLINE NEWS
White Is Total Sports Asia's New Vice President of Sales
Total Sports Asia, the international sports agency based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, has appointed James White as vice president of sales, with responsibility for strengthening regional sponsorship sales and business development. White, who was previously with rival agency IMG for 10 years, has worked in both Indonesia and Singapore on sports including golf, badminton, rugby, soccer and basketball. Sportcal, 28th Feb 2008
DID YOU KNOW?
* Fishing is the biggest participant sports in the world.
* The very first Olympic race, held in 776 BC, was won by Corubus, a chef.
* The first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens, Greece in 1896. There were 311 male but no female competitors.
* About 42,000 tennis balls are used in the plus-minus 650 matches in the Wimbledon Championship.
SPORTS SHORTS
* The company that brokered the US$1 billion broadcasting deal for the Indian Premier League (IPL) anticipate the new competition will have a "big impact" on the sport. DLA Piper's technology, media and commercial group facilitated the deal for the Sony Entertainment Television-World Sports Group consortium for the exclusive television rights. DLA's Nick Fitzpatrick, who was assisted by solicitors Patrick Mitchell and John Cloke, said: "This is a truly fascinating project and one with which we are proud to be involved. The IPL will have a big impact on world cricket and helping Sony Entertainment Television on this deal was particularly satisfying." Sports Media, 28th Feb, 2008
* China Central Television agreed partnerships with social networking site MySpace China and online-video site Tudou.com to run an interactive website for the Beijing Olympics. The CCTV Olympic Website will offer streaming video broadcasts of events, which can be viewed only in China, and Web profiles through which users can contact Olympic athletes. The site will go live on August 8 – the first day of the games – and be available through CCTV.com. Wang Wenbin, general manager of CCTV.com, said: “We want to make full use of the interactive characteristics of the Internet”. The theme of the website is 'My Olympics'. Sports Business, 28th Feb 2008
* News Corp-owned Indian pay-TV giant Star TV will add three Mandarin-language channels to the US-based GekTV IPTV platform on March 15. The three channels are Star Chinese Channel, Channel V Taiwan and Star Chinese Movies 2. The channels will launch on Tai Seng Entertainment-backed GekTV's Mandarin package. C21Media.net, 28th Feb 2008
* The Disney Channel is set to launch its first original, made-for-mobile series, a Singaporean version of successful international shortform format As the Bell Rings. The series will be available exclusively on Disney Mobile Xtra on StarHub mobile phones from March 7. As part of its mobile launch, all Singaporean mobile phone users will be able to sample the first episode of As the Bell Rings for free by texting a special code. After that, new episodes of the 10-14-skewing series will be made available to StarHub's Disney Mobile Xtra subscribers each week. C21Media.net, 28th Feb 2008
* The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) has announced free coverage of its events via itTV now available on www.ittf.com. Live and archived material is now available on demand under the itTV menu button on the website. The development coincided with the start of the Evergrande World Table Tennis Championships in Guangzhou, China. Live action from the ongoing Championships and other ITTF-related programmes are available to offer a 24-hours-per-day service. During the current season, itTV will also provide matches from the ITTF Pro Tour. Table tennis already enjoys plenty of television exposure in China, but the sport is looking to increase its fan base in other territories around the world. Sports Media, 28th Feb 2008
* The Eredivisie, Dutch soccer’s top-tier league, said today that the launch of its own television channel remains a ‘serious option’ after announcing that it would unveil the results of its broadcast tender from next season onwards on March 10. Broadcasters in the Netherlands have been locked in talks with the league after two rounds of bidding failed to produce acceptable offers for the rights, and the league could yet opt to launch its own channel. Should the league opt to launch its own channel, then it will be eager to avoid the pitfalls encountered by Sport7, a sports channel which emerged in 1996 and secured the rights to the league only to collapse after just five months in existence. Sportcal, 28th Feb 2008
* Online broadcaster MediaZone has struck a deal with Globo TV Sports to distribute an extensive package of Brazilian football programming to the U.S., covering Internet and mobile. The deal will see the live transmission of the 82 games from Globo TV Sports’ Brazilian Magic Football 2008 package and 46 editions of the weekly program FootBrazil. This latest offering from Globo TV Sports is now available on MediaZone at www.mediazone.com/brasil. MediaZone specializes in professionally produced sports, international and entertainment video programming. The company has established exclusive partnerships with media brands such as AOL and NBC Sports, and is the official online broadcast partner for major events such as Wimbledon, Rugby World Cup 2007 and the Indy Racing League. Worldscreen, Sportcal,, 28th Feb 2008
* The Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced that the Ivory Coast will host the finals of a new national team tournament featuring players that are playing for clubs on the continent. Designed to sit alongside the African Cup of Nations, the inaugural African Championship of Nations will take place in 2009 from February 22 through to March 8. The decision to launch the new competition for players solely participating in their country's local league is aimed at raising the standard of the game on the continent. Expat players will not be eligible to play in the African Championship of Nations, which will be staged once every two years, alternating with the African Cup of Nations. Ivory Coast secured the Championship ahead of Egypt and Sudan, with the preliminary stages of the inaugural set to feature 30 countries. Sports Media, 28th Feb 2008
* UK-based iD Distribution has sold 100 hours of high-definition factual entertainment and documentary programming from VOOM HD’s catalogue since October 2007. The company deals in factual and light entertainment, reality, lifestyle, documentaries and current affairs HD programming. iD said it has had particular sales success with arts and lifestyle-themed series, with new programmes from VOOM HD Networks’ Gallery HD and Ultra HD channels, among others, sold into several territories. iD Distribution has previously sold over 1000 hours of VOOM HD programming internationally. iD Distribution deals in Russia, France, United Kingdom, Italy, Scandinavia, Australia, New Zealand, The Philippines and South Africa. VOOM HD channels are distributed through satellite and cable operators. Rapid TV News, 28th Feb 2008
* Ten-time world champion Oscar De La Hoya wants to end his boxing career with a bang, scripting three fights in a farewell campaign this year. First up for De La Hoya is former IBF super featherweight champion Steve Forbes on May 3rd in Los Angeles. He plans to follow that with a September title rematch against Floyd Mayweather Jr. before a final fight in December. "This is my last year," De La Hoya, who has held titles in six weight classes, said. "I have a plan in my boxing career. I've studied fighters. I've studied the game of boxing. I want to retire at a perfect time, at the perfect age. And my body is asking me to retire." Yahoo! Sports, 29th Feb 2008
MORE NEWS
Asia/Rights: WICB, Ten Sports in New Cricket Distribution Deal
Taj TV’s Ten Sports has reached an agreement with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) to distribute television coverage of all cricket played in the West Indies between 2008 and 2012. Under the new deal, Ten Sports will air the cricket events on its channels in the Indian sub-continent, the Middle East and South East Asia and will distribute the events worldwide, with the exception of the U.K. and Ireland, where Sky Sports has the rights, and in the Caribbean. The tours included in the agreement feature visits by India in 2009 and 2012, by Pakistan in 2011, England's tour to the West Indies in 2009, Australia's tour in 2012 and South Africa's tour in 2010.
In total, Ten Sports will broadcast 25 test matches, 50 one-day games and nine 20-20 games between 2008 and 2012 (a total of 184 days), including the upcoming 2008 tour by Australia to the West Indies, which was part of a previous agreement between the companies. Ten Sports currently holds the Middle East and Asian broadcast rights to five of the ten International Cricket Council (ICC) full-member boards and is now involved in the worldwide distribution of rights from Sri Lanka, Pakistan and the West Indies. Worldscreen, Sportcal, 28th Feb 2008
China/ New Media: China to Reduce Telecom Fees
China's efforts to reduce telecommunication fees are paying off, and may ease consumers' complaints that the prices charged by the monopoly giants are too high. Despite a background of rising inflation in 2007, the telecommunication fees fell by 13.6% year-on-year, the Ministry of Information Industry (MII) announced on at the 2008 annual meeting of telecommunication services.
The level of telecommunication fees will be further lowered by 53% in five years, said Jiang Yaoping, MII deputy Minister, without disclosing further details. Earlier this month, the ministry and National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) jointly announced a price cut on mobile roaming service charges by between 54% and 73% depending on locality, after they held a public hearing on the issue.
The number of the country's telecommunication users has reached more than 900 million, including 366 million fixed lines and 547 million mobile users, said Jiang. telecomasia.net, 29th Feb 2008
Mid-East/General: IOC Pleads with Kuwait to End Government Interference
The International Olympic Committee has urged the Kuwait Olympic Committee to do its utmost to prevent government interference in Kuwaiti sport, warning that, in theory at least, the committee is risking suspension unless the situation improves. The Arab Times newspaper had reported that Kuwait could face exclusion from the Beijing Olympics. In its second warning, the IOC requested a firm commitment from Kuwaiti authorities by March 31 that the situation will be addressed, failing which the matter will be reported to the IOC executive board in April in Beijing.
KOC president Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah is known to be unhappy about the sports ministry’s meddling in the affairs of the Olympic body. In a letter sent in November 2007 to KOC, the IOC already expressed its ‘deepest concern regarding the situation of the Kuwait Olympic Committee and of the Olympic and sports movement in Kuwait.’ Meanwhile, Fifa has threatened to cancel the membership of Kuwait Football Association unless government interference is stopped by March 14. Kuwait elected 15 members to its board of directors, despite Fifa stipulating there should be 14.
Sheikh Ahmad is also president of the Asian Handball Federation and has been at the centre of a recent dispute over the Asian qualifying tournament for the Beijing Olympics. The Court of Arbitration for Sport is set to resolve the dispute after the AHF disagreed with the International Handball Federation over replaying the qualifiers. Kuwait and Kazakhstan initially secured the continent's Olympic berths for their respective men's and women's teams at the original Asian qualifying tournament organised by the AHF. But the IHF ruled that the tournament, held in Japan last September, should be replayed, after identifying 38 questionable refereeing decisions in a game in which Kuwait surprisingly beat South Korea 28-20. Sportcal, 28th Feb 2008
Global/General: Perform Launches First Multi-Platform Daily
Global digital sport and entertainment company Perform has launched the world's first multi-platform daily sports bulletin. OmniSport.tv , which will be available in multiple formats for daily distribution across scheduled TV channels, broadband TV services, mobile TV, video-on-demand (VOD) and MP4, will be "optimised to suit the specific requirements of each medium," according to the company. For television, the bulletin will be 26 minutes long with a full graphics package and English commentary, while the mobile TV package will be 20 minutes in length. The Internet and mobile VOD services will include up to 10 clips of one or two minutes per day. A five-minute version will also be available in video and audio-only formats for MP4 players and personal digital assistants (PDAs).
OmniSport.tv will feature daily news, interviews and action from major international sports, focusing on football, tennis, golf, motorsport and Olympic sports. Perform is the new name for Premium TV and Inform Group, which merged in September 2007, bringing together Premium TV's technical background and Inform's portfolio of digital rights. The merged company has offices in the UK, Singapore, Australia and Italy. Sports Media, Sport Business, Sportcal, 28th Feb 2008
Elsewhere/General: ASO Fails to Blink as Teams Opt for Paris-Nice without UCI
Cycling’s top professional road cycling teams have voted to take part in the early-season Paris-Nice race at the end of next week, in a new blow to the UCI, the sport’s world governing body, which had called for a boycott of the race in its long-running power struggle with race organiser ASO. The UCI issued a statement earlier this week deploring a decision of the FFC, the French cycling federation, to agree to ASO’s demand to organise Paris-Nice ‘under the exclusive jurisdiction of French law,’ warning that the move was 'utterly irregular and will have far-reaching consequences for all parties involved.' But AIGCP, the teams’ international association, said in a statement that it had reached the decision to compete in defiance of the UCI ‘purely in the interests of the riders and the team sponsors.’
The move fuels fears that the Tour de France, the sport’s flagship race which is also organised by ASO, could take place without the UCI’s sanction. It represents another apparent step towards a complete breakaway by ASO and its races from the authority and influence of the international governing body.
With the FFC’s help, ASO has appointed the AFLD, France’s national anti-doping agency, to take charge of doping control at the race, apparently negating a major plank of the UCI’s threat earlier this week to withdraw its services from the race. The UCI had warned that a range of the UCI’s facilities and services such as race commissaires, dope testing and the award of classification and points could be withdrawn from the race. The UCI believed that ASO and the teams would blink first in the stand-off, when faced with the consequences of a race without the UCI's sanction.
ASO is understood to be in talks to strengthen its position by taking a 50-per-cent stake in the Vuelta a Espana, another of the sport’s three annual ‘Grand Tours.’ The dispute has its origins in the launch of the UCI ProTour in 2005, which brought together the existing UCI World Cup events and other major one-day and stage races under one umbrella. It was conceived to increase cycling’s marketability to broadcasters and sponsors by ensuring that leading teams and riders compete against each other on a regular basis.
However, the ProTour has since the start had an uneasy relationship with the organisers of the sport’s powerful Grand Tours – the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a Espana – which are wary of losing their independence. This year's Paris-Nice is scheduled for March 9 to 16. Sportcal, 28th Feb 2008
Thursday, 28th February 2008
HEADLINE NEWS
Badminton World Federation Drops Action Against President
The Badminton World Federation has decided not to proceed with plans to oust Dr Kang Young-joong, its current president, after a compromise was reached on his involvement with the World Badminton Foundation, an organisation set up to aid the development of the sport. BWF leaders have called off an extraordinary general meeting, in Kuala Lumpur this Friday, where they were to recommend that Kang, who hails from South Korea, be relieved of his post.
However, they faced opposition from continental bodies, notably Badminton Europe, and were able to resolve their differences with the president at a meeting in Ho Chi Min City in Vietnam over the weekend. The BWF Council had cited Kang’s actions as head of the foundation as grounds for his removal, but observers said the move was related to a power struggle between the president and Datuk Punch Gunalan, the deputy president and chief operating officer from Malaysia.
Kang has been at odds with Punch Gunalan, who last August supported a motion against the president, accusing him of failing to respect the majority in decision-making. Kang responded by criticising the running of the BWF, citing a lack of democracy and transparency, claiming that it could threaten badminton’s future as an Olympic sport. Badminton Europe opposed the action against Kang, seeing no clash between the roles of the BWF and the World Badminton Foundation, and claimed to have support from the Asian and African badminton confederations. Sportcal.com, 27th Feb 2008
INFO BOX
Top Spanish Clubs Most Popular in Europe
Barcelona and Real Madrid are Europe’s two most popular football clubs according to a new survey from SPORT+MARKT. SPORT+MARKT surveyed around 9,600 football fans in 16 European markets with an average of 600 respondents per country, and found that Barcelona had the most fans with 50.3 million, followed by Real Madrid with 45.9 million. Manchester United (32.8 million) and Arsenal (22.9 million) make up third and fourth places.
Spanish clubs are supported by an estimated 103.5 million while an estimated 99.2 million people across Europe follow English clubs. English clubs have a larger domestic fan base, but Spanish clubs pull in far more supporters from outside the country
Hartmut Zastrow, Executive Director, SPORT+MARKT said the survey results showed the following: “Along with Chelsea FC, FC Barcelona is the big winner amongst the top European clubs. Despite still having an unusually high fan potential, the main loser over the past five seasons, with 11 per cent less supporters, is Real Madrid.”
“The fact that Chelsea FC has increased its fan base by over five times, clearly shows what a fast-moving market football is. One can achieve a lot in a short amount of time.”
“Europe still offers massive potential for clubs. In Europe alone, clubs could increase their total revenue by four or five times in the next twenty years. In particular, this allows for new media framework to be created. The teams are no longer restricted to national television.Furthermore, in the big leagues, TV money has been all but exhausted. With new media, the clubs can, however, uncover new target groups.”
“There is a booming market of over 225 million football fans right on clubs’ doorsteps. It seems more promising to concentrate business here than in East Asia, where English, Spanish and Italian leagues and top clubs already have prominence.” Sportsbusiness, 28th Feb 2008
The Top 20 Most Popular European Clubs
Barcelona CF
Real Madrid
Manchester United
Arsenal London
AC Milan
FC Bayern Munich
Chelsea FC
Liverpool FC
Juventus Turin
Zenit St. Petersburg
FC Spartak Moscow
Inter Milan
Olympique Lyonnais
Olympique Marseille
ZSKA Moscow
Wis_a Kraków
Ajax Amsterdam
Galatasaray Istanbul
AS Roma
Werder Bremen
SPORTS SHORTS
* Korean broadcasters will stop transmitting analogue TV signals by December 31, 2012. A special committee on broadcasting and communication at the National Assembly approved a bill that confirmed the deadline. After the date, TV will only be transmitted via digital signals. The Ministry of Information and Communication and the Korean Broadcasting Commission first proposed the analogue transition in 2006. ATV, 28th Feb 2008
* Malaysia's integrated media investment group, Media Prima, is negotiating to buy a stake in a Chinese language radio station in China. MP also plans to expand into radio and TV in Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam or Cambodia, according to sources. Meanwhile for TV3, there are plans to list on the Ghana Stock Exchange, possibly this year. The company owns TV stations including TV3, 8TV, NTV7 and TV9, radio stations Fly FM and Hot FM, the New Straits Times newspaper and outdoor billboard companies Big Tree and UPD in Malaysia. Marketing Malaysia, 25th Feb 2008
* China Telecom said that its extraordinary general meeting has approved the proposed scheme to absorb 20 wholly-owned subsidiaries of the company this month. The transformation of subsidiaries into branches by China Telecom is part of the preparation for telecom industry reshuffle and company transformation, noted Chen Yunhong, analyst with Guojin Securities. China Telecom is transforming itself from a mere internet service provider to a comprehensive information provider, which needs a highly effective corporate structure to implement integrated company strategies such as brand buildup and information application. telecomasia.net, 28th Feb 2008
* Vodafone is in talks to buy a 30pc stake in Bangladesh's second-largest mobile phone network, AKTEL, for around $300m (£152m). The discussions, which are at an early stage, underline Vodafone's determination to tap into Asia's fast-growing mobile markets to offset slowing growth in Europe. Vodafone has been given initial reassurances from the Bangladeshi telecoms regulator that it would be allowed to buy the 30pc stake from AK Khan, a privately owned textiles-to-telecoms company. The remaining 70pc of AKTEL is owned by Telekom Malaysia International. Vodafone recently played down speculation that it was seeking to acquire a stake in the Malaysian company. The talks to buy out AK Khan are thought to be one of a number of options Vodafone is considering to move into Bangladesh, the fifth-largest mobile market in Asia. Telegraph.co.uk, 27th Feb 2008
* Chinese sports fans may spend the next five months tracking medical bulletins after Yao Ming suffered a stress fracture in his left foot that might keep him out of the Beijing Olympics. The Houston Rockets said yesterday the 7-foot-6 Yao will miss the rest of the National Basketball Association season because of the injury. He'll be sidelined for about four months before beginning his rehabilitation in the weeks leading up to the Aug. 8 opening ceremony in Beijing. Yao's loss would deprive the Olympics host of one of its most recognizable sports stars internationally and most popular domestically. It would also harm China's chances of winning its first basketball medal and, according to the player, represent the biggest setback of his career. Bloomberg.com, 27th Feb 2008
* Cricket fans in the UK will be able to enjoy cricket action after Setanta Sports secured the exclusive rights to the Indian Premier League (IPL) in a five-year deal. Its exclusively live coverage of the new Twenty20 competition will start with all 59 games of the inaugural IPL season that takes place across India from April 18 to June 1. Indian cricketing stars such as Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly will all feature alongside Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Muttiah Muralitharan, Jacques Kallis and Adam Gilchrist. Sports Media, World Screen, 26th Feb 2008
* Meanwhile, South Africa broadcaster SuperSport has secured rights to the inaugural Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket competition. The 44-day event, which is being contested by Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mohali and Mumbai, will begin on April 18 and feature 59 matches, all of which will be televised live on SuperSport. The SS2, SS6, SS7, SS10 and CSN channels will air the tournament, with the first match between Bangalore and Kolkata taking place on Friday, April 18. Sports Media, 27th Feb 2008
* The BBC is ready to challenge ITV and BSkyB for the right to broadcast Champions League football. Sports broadcaster Setanta is also expected to bid, but Virgin Media is thought unlikely to participate. Bids are due on March 12 and broadcasters predict that UEFA, European football’s governing body and the owner of the rights, will receive about £125 million (E168m) a year for the next three-year package, which begins in 2009. There may be several rounds of bidding and a final deadline has not been announced. ATV, Sports Media 28th Feb 2008
* The Australian Football League (AFL) could generate revenues of around A$1 billion (US$920 million) in broadcast fees when the competition is expanded to include 18 teams. The AFL has announced that two more teams will be added to the 16-team tournament within the next five years, and rights revenues could rise by at least 20% as a result. Influential media buyer Harold Mitchell told the newspaper that the AFL would benefit from an increasing appetite for content on new media platforms as well as the bigger competition. Sports Media, 20th Feb 2008
* A move away from collective to individual broadcast rights negotiations in the Barclays Premier League could be harmful for the future competitiveness of the competition. The Premier League’s current live TV rights deals will run until 2010, and with clubs now starting to take control by having their own TV channels, the prospect of a Spanish model of individual rather than collective negotiating could be a hot topic in a couple of years’ time. According to Dr Jeanette Findlay, a leading football academic at the Football Governance Research Centre in the UK, any such change would radically alter the face of English football. Sports Media, 20th Feb 2008
* Arsenal announced yet another strong set of financial figures on Friday and the positive news boosted the club's share price. Arsenal announced a pre-tax profit of £20 million for the six months ending November 2007. Broadcasting income, spiked by new and improved deals struck by the Premier League for overseas coverage, were up £6.5 million to £24.3 million while matchday income was up more than £3 million year-on-year, coming in at £41.4 million. Football Insider, 26th Feb 2008
* MP & Silva has been appointed to coordinate, market and commercialise the end-of-season Asia-Pacific tour by top Italian soccer club Juventus. MPS has exclusive rights for the tour, including all commercial rights. The itinerary for the tour has yet to be confirmed, but it will run from May 19 to 31. MPS says that it has begun discussions with Asian soccer federations, clubs, sponsors and companies about staging matches in different countries in the Asia-Pacific region. Juventus’ last visit was in 2005, when they played in Tokyo and Hong Kong. Sportcal, 27th Feb 2008
* MotorSport Vision (MSV) has signed a 10-year agreement with the Motorcycle Circuit Racing Control Board to be responsible for the organisation and promotion of the British Superbike Championship with immediate effect. MSV will take over the commercial rights from Dorna UK, a division of the company responsible for the MotoGP World Championship, while the operation will be run from MSV's Brands Hatch base. Sports Media, Sportsbusiness, 21st Feb 2008
* The Premier League delayed a meeting with football's world governing body, FIFA, over its controversial proposals to play a round of matches abroad. Premier League chief executive Richard Scudmore had planned to go Zurich this week to champion the merits of the '39th game' vision. But in a statement the Premier League said: “We will conduct further internal studies and consultation before seeking the advice of Fifa." FIFA said it was happy with the Premier League's decision to conduct further internal studies before meeting. Despite much opposition to the plan, the Premier League said: “We sincerely believe that the Premier League has much to offer the development of the game internationally as witnessed by the many federations and leagues that currently seek our involvement and advice. There never has been a rush to conclude these matters and we are more than willing to take time to develop our proposals further before seeking approval, without which it is not our intention to proceed". Sportsbusiness, 27th Feb 2008
* Plans to play a 39th round of Barclays Premier League games abroad would be popular in destination countries, according to a survey by Lightspeed Research. The report revealed that 21% of Italians said they didn't currently follow the Premier League, but the plans would encourage a change, while 13% in North America said the same. That compared to 19% in China, 10% in Japan and 15% in Australia. David Day, CEO Europe of Lightspeed Research said: "Our research indicates that were the Football Association to go ahead with this move, they have the potential to achieve their goal of tapping into a lucrative overseas fan base." Football Insider, 21st Feb 2008
MORE NEWS
Elsewhere/ General: Mobile TV Must Be Free
Consumer research firm Parks Associates and entertainment technology think tank Entertainment Technology Center (ETC) have released a new study suggesting that content owners should offer more free content on mobile devices in order to aggressively promote movies and programming on traditional media. They say free content is essential to prime the pump for future premium offerings.
Parks notes that less than 10 per cent of Internet users are willing to purchase a digital movie download at current price points. The white paper exhorts Hollywood to use Apple’s tactics of offering bargain content in order to sell higher margin products for its own benefit – in this case, to drive consumers to new theatrical releases, TV programming, and eventually made-for-mobile programming, or 'mobisodes'.
"Many content owners have tried re-purposing TV and movie content on mobile and have largely been disappointed by the revenues on those platforms," said David Wertheimer, Executive Director of ETC. "While we believe wholeheartedly in 'Anytime/Anywhere' availability of content, we also know that these devices, when content is created specifically for them, can create opportunities for marketing and selling content elsewhere, especially now, while consumer habits are just taking shape." ATV, 28th Feb 2008
Wednesday, 27th February 2008
SPORTS SHORTS
* ESPN STAR Sports has inked a new seven-year contract for the Australian Open tennis up to 2014 covering cable & satellite, IPTV, DTH and terrestrial rights. As part of the deal, ESPN STAR Sports and Tennis Australia have also agreed to a ground-breaking collaboration for new media platforms such as mobile telephony and internet. The new contract gives ESPN STAR Sports rights for the entire territory including China for 2008, while beginning 2009 the rights will cover 23 countries across South Asia, South East Asia and North Asia with the exception of China. Sportsbusiness.com, 26th Feb 2008
* Disney has moved to increase its presence in the digital media market with the launch of its first subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service on PCCW-owned pay-TV platform Now TV in Hong Kong. The agreement is Disney's second broadband service launched in the region. Last month Disney Channel Taiwan began streaming full-length Mandarin-dubbed and Chinese-subtitled episodes online. C21media.net, 26th Feb 2008
* Vietnam's largest telecommunications company plans to invest $1 billion to upgrade the country's broadband internet network and keep pace with economic growth. Vietnam Post and Telecommunication Group will expand and improve the network over the next two years, said Bui Quoc Viet, spokesman for the state-owned firm. The improved network will provide faster connections for Vietnam's nearly 19 million internet users, he said. Roughly one-fifth of the country's 85 million people use the internet. The Vietnamese government wants to expand the country's broadband network into previously unserved regions of the country and link public high schools and government offices to the network. telecomasia.net, 27th Feb 2008
* Indian satcaster Sahara One has launched a new channel called Firangi, which will air scripted content from around the world dubbed into Hindi. Firangi – a slang term for 'foreigner' – is aimed at 20- to 40-year-olds living in northern and western India. Sahara One plans to extend the new offering's output to include sitcoms, adventure series and movies soon. C21media.net, 26th Feb 2008
* Zhu Ling, Editor-in-Chief of China Daily, and Wang Jianzhou, Chairman of China Mobile together launched China's first English-Chinese mobile paper at a ceremony and press conference held in Beijing Tuesday. Jointly produced by China Daily and China Mobile, China Daily Mobile News sends English-Chinese news to users' cell phones as multimedia messages through wireless technology. ChinaDaily.com, 26th Feb 2008
* LG Telecom, South Korea's smallest mobile service operator listed on the junior Kosdaq market, plans to move to the main stock exchange. According to a Reuters report, a move to the main bourse usually helps a company draw interest from funds and investors who choose not to buy Kosdaq shares due to price volatility and limited trading volume. LG Telecom, which competes with bigger rivals SK Telecom and KTF, has 18% of the South Korean market, where nine out of ten have a mobile phone, the Reuters report said. telecomasia.net, 27th Feb 2008
* Dubai has joined Denmark, Spain and France in offering to stage the 2014 men's basketball world championship. FIBA, the international basketball federation, launched the bidding process earlier this month and will select a host in April next year. Bidders must submit letters of interest to FIBA by April 30 and and will take part in a two-day workshop at the federation's Geneva headquarters on June 26 and 27. Japan hosted the last tournament in 2006 and Turkey will stage the 2010 edition. Sportcal.com, 26th Feb 2008
* The International Table Tennis Federation will stream online coverage of this year’s world team table tennis championships in Guangzhou, China. The tournament will be aired on the itTV section of the federation’s website, www.ittf.com. Fans can also access on-demand coverage of recent table tennis world events. ITTF president Adham Sharara said his federation was ahead of others in terms of online broadcasting, adding: ‘We try to find ways to show our sport in all continents.’ ItTV will also provide online coverage of this year’s ITTF Pro Tour. Sportcal.com, 26th Feb 2008
* Web search company Google Inc has agreed to build an undersea cable with five telecoms operators that will link the United States to Japan, and provide the capacity to sustain a surge in Internet traffic between the continents. Google and the five telecoms companies said in joint statement that the 10,000 km (6,200 mile) undersea fiber optic cable, connecting the United States to Japan, will cost $300 million. Google's partners in the consortium, dubbed Unity, comprises Bharti Airtel, Global Transit, KDDI Corp, Pacnet, and Singapore Telecommunications. The cable will provide much-needed capacity to sustain unprecedented growth in data and Internet traffic between Asia and the United States. The consortium said it has picked NEC Corporation and Tyco Telecommunications to construct and install the system, which is expected to be ready for service in the first quarter of 2010. Reuters, 27th Feb 2008
MORE NEWS
Asia/New Media: Educational Programs Lift Online Television in Asia
Companies selling interactive television over the Internet, soaring demand in Asia for high-quality education for children, as well as demand from people looking to change careers, offers a potentially lucrative market and the chance to lure customers away from cable television and the computer.
South Korea, where children spend hours studying in a gruelling battle to enter the top schools that can guarantee a job at the big conglomerates, is at the vanguard of educational television over the Internet in Asia. Tuition is expensive, with spending on after-school tutoring estimated to be the equivalent of 2.6 percent of the country's gross domestic product.
Educational programs lift online television in Asia. Private tutors, who are highly sought after, can earn a salary similar to a banker's pay. South Korean companies, like KT, which plan this year to upgrade their Internet-powered television services to full Internet protocol television, known as IPTV, are spearheading the move. KT says online education for children ranks among the most successful programs on its "MegaTV" system, which also offers after-school tutoring and adult education courses.
"The response is strong for kids' programs in which they learn by playing games and solving puzzles using a remote control," said Yang Jae Geon, KT's director of media. Young Choi, an analyst at Mirae Asset Securities in Seoul, said educational programs generated about 20 percent of IPTV revenue.
Young said he expected IPTV use in South Korea to rise to five million subscribers by the end of 2009 from an estimated three million at the end of 2008. The overall market for IPTV could reach more than 55 million worldwide by the end of 2011, from an estimated 10 million last year, according to the research firm Ovum. PTV, with its immediacy, interactive features and easily navigable menus, bypasses the process of having to start up a computer and surf the Internet.
Across Asia, quality education is in constant demand and short supply. Students often fight for places at the best schools, workers pin their hopes on English skills to lift their careers and parents look for new ways to teach their youngsters. “Game content and educational programs have big potential because both target a very important group of people - that's the young generation," said Rocky Li, marketing director at BesTV, the IPTV unit of Shanghai Media Group.
Most IPTV companies have focused on popular television shows and sports events for growth. In Europe, operators like BT in Britain gained market share by offering customers free access to digital terrestrial television. PCCW of Hong Kong has the exclusive right to broadcast popular English Premier League soccer.
In China, where history and geography programs are already offered, education is set to become the fastest-growing part of BesTV's business, Lee said, referring to the IPTV unit of Shanghai Media Group. "In traditional TV, it's difficult to find these programs," Lee said, because of inconvenient times and limited slots. He expects overall IPTV users in China to reach two million by the end of 2008 from 600,000 now.
IPTV companies are also trying to add popular video games, from simple board games and racing to multiplayer online games, to attract computer users away from their computers. International Herald Tribune, 26th Feb 2008
* ESPN STAR Sports has inked a new seven-year contract for the Australian Open tennis up to 2014 covering cable & satellite, IPTV, DTH and terrestrial rights. As part of the deal, ESPN STAR Sports and Tennis Australia have also agreed to a ground-breaking collaboration for new media platforms such as mobile telephony and internet. The new contract gives ESPN STAR Sports rights for the entire territory including China for 2008, while beginning 2009 the rights will cover 23 countries across South Asia, South East Asia and North Asia with the exception of China. Sportsbusiness.com, 26th Feb 2008
* Disney has moved to increase its presence in the digital media market with the launch of its first subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service on PCCW-owned pay-TV platform Now TV in Hong Kong. The agreement is Disney's second broadband service launched in the region. Last month Disney Channel Taiwan began streaming full-length Mandarin-dubbed and Chinese-subtitled episodes online. C21media.net, 26th Feb 2008
* Vietnam's largest telecommunications company plans to invest $1 billion to upgrade the country's broadband internet network and keep pace with economic growth. Vietnam Post and Telecommunication Group will expand and improve the network over the next two years, said Bui Quoc Viet, spokesman for the state-owned firm. The improved network will provide faster connections for Vietnam's nearly 19 million internet users, he said. Roughly one-fifth of the country's 85 million people use the internet. The Vietnamese government wants to expand the country's broadband network into previously unserved regions of the country and link public high schools and government offices to the network. telecomasia.net, 27th Feb 2008
* Indian satcaster Sahara One has launched a new channel called Firangi, which will air scripted content from around the world dubbed into Hindi. Firangi – a slang term for 'foreigner' – is aimed at 20- to 40-year-olds living in northern and western India. Sahara One plans to extend the new offering's output to include sitcoms, adventure series and movies soon. C21media.net, 26th Feb 2008
* Zhu Ling, Editor-in-Chief of China Daily, and Wang Jianzhou, Chairman of China Mobile together launched China's first English-Chinese mobile paper at a ceremony and press conference held in Beijing Tuesday. Jointly produced by China Daily and China Mobile, China Daily Mobile News sends English-Chinese news to users' cell phones as multimedia messages through wireless technology. ChinaDaily.com, 26th Feb 2008
* LG Telecom, South Korea's smallest mobile service operator listed on the junior Kosdaq market, plans to move to the main stock exchange. According to a Reuters report, a move to the main bourse usually helps a company draw interest from funds and investors who choose not to buy Kosdaq shares due to price volatility and limited trading volume. LG Telecom, which competes with bigger rivals SK Telecom and KTF, has 18% of the South Korean market, where nine out of ten have a mobile phone, the Reuters report said. telecomasia.net, 27th Feb 2008
* Dubai has joined Denmark, Spain and France in offering to stage the 2014 men's basketball world championship. FIBA, the international basketball federation, launched the bidding process earlier this month and will select a host in April next year. Bidders must submit letters of interest to FIBA by April 30 and and will take part in a two-day workshop at the federation's Geneva headquarters on June 26 and 27. Japan hosted the last tournament in 2006 and Turkey will stage the 2010 edition. Sportcal.com, 26th Feb 2008
* The International Table Tennis Federation will stream online coverage of this year’s world team table tennis championships in Guangzhou, China. The tournament will be aired on the itTV section of the federation’s website, www.ittf.com. Fans can also access on-demand coverage of recent table tennis world events. ITTF president Adham Sharara said his federation was ahead of others in terms of online broadcasting, adding: ‘We try to find ways to show our sport in all continents.’ ItTV will also provide online coverage of this year’s ITTF Pro Tour. Sportcal.com, 26th Feb 2008
* Web search company Google Inc has agreed to build an undersea cable with five telecoms operators that will link the United States to Japan, and provide the capacity to sustain a surge in Internet traffic between the continents. Google and the five telecoms companies said in joint statement that the 10,000 km (6,200 mile) undersea fiber optic cable, connecting the United States to Japan, will cost $300 million. Google's partners in the consortium, dubbed Unity, comprises Bharti Airtel, Global Transit, KDDI Corp, Pacnet, and Singapore Telecommunications. The cable will provide much-needed capacity to sustain unprecedented growth in data and Internet traffic between Asia and the United States. The consortium said it has picked NEC Corporation and Tyco Telecommunications to construct and install the system, which is expected to be ready for service in the first quarter of 2010. Reuters, 27th Feb 2008
MORE NEWS
Asia/New Media: Educational Programs Lift Online Television in Asia
Companies selling interactive television over the Internet, soaring demand in Asia for high-quality education for children, as well as demand from people looking to change careers, offers a potentially lucrative market and the chance to lure customers away from cable television and the computer.
South Korea, where children spend hours studying in a gruelling battle to enter the top schools that can guarantee a job at the big conglomerates, is at the vanguard of educational television over the Internet in Asia. Tuition is expensive, with spending on after-school tutoring estimated to be the equivalent of 2.6 percent of the country's gross domestic product.
Educational programs lift online television in Asia. Private tutors, who are highly sought after, can earn a salary similar to a banker's pay. South Korean companies, like KT, which plan this year to upgrade their Internet-powered television services to full Internet protocol television, known as IPTV, are spearheading the move. KT says online education for children ranks among the most successful programs on its "MegaTV" system, which also offers after-school tutoring and adult education courses.
"The response is strong for kids' programs in which they learn by playing games and solving puzzles using a remote control," said Yang Jae Geon, KT's director of media. Young Choi, an analyst at Mirae Asset Securities in Seoul, said educational programs generated about 20 percent of IPTV revenue.
Young said he expected IPTV use in South Korea to rise to five million subscribers by the end of 2009 from an estimated three million at the end of 2008. The overall market for IPTV could reach more than 55 million worldwide by the end of 2011, from an estimated 10 million last year, according to the research firm Ovum. PTV, with its immediacy, interactive features and easily navigable menus, bypasses the process of having to start up a computer and surf the Internet.
Across Asia, quality education is in constant demand and short supply. Students often fight for places at the best schools, workers pin their hopes on English skills to lift their careers and parents look for new ways to teach their youngsters. “Game content and educational programs have big potential because both target a very important group of people - that's the young generation," said Rocky Li, marketing director at BesTV, the IPTV unit of Shanghai Media Group.
Most IPTV companies have focused on popular television shows and sports events for growth. In Europe, operators like BT in Britain gained market share by offering customers free access to digital terrestrial television. PCCW of Hong Kong has the exclusive right to broadcast popular English Premier League soccer.
In China, where history and geography programs are already offered, education is set to become the fastest-growing part of BesTV's business, Lee said, referring to the IPTV unit of Shanghai Media Group. "In traditional TV, it's difficult to find these programs," Lee said, because of inconvenient times and limited slots. He expects overall IPTV users in China to reach two million by the end of 2008 from 600,000 now.
IPTV companies are also trying to add popular video games, from simple board games and racing to multiplayer online games, to attract computer users away from their computers. International Herald Tribune, 26th Feb 2008
Tuesday, 26th February 2008
SPORTS SHORTS
* AVP, Inc. a lifestyle sports entertainment company focused on professional beach volleyball, announced today famed footwear company Crocs, Inc. will be the official tour title sponsor and exclusive footwear sponsor of the newly formed Crocs Tour Australia through 2012. Yahoo!Finance, Centraldaily.com, 25th Feb 2008
* The Board of Control for Cricket in India has rejected plans for a one-day international series in Pakistan next month. The Pakistan Cricket Board had hoped to welcome the Indians for three matches in Lahore between March 12 and 18. However, the PCB said yesterday that BCCI president Sharad Pawar had contacted his Pakistan counterpart Nasim Ashraf and ‘explained that the tour was not possible due to the hectic schedule of the Indian cricket team.’ India are currently involved in a triangular one-day international competition in Australia, which also involves the hosts and Sri Lanka, and are due to start a home test series against South Africa in late-March. The PCB hopes that India will consent to play a one-day series in Pakistan before the Asia Cup in June or the ICC Champions Trophy in September and October. Sportcal.com, 25th Feb 2008
* Fifa has expressed satisfaction with the state of progress following an inspection of six of the ten stadiums being redeveloped or built to host matches during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Concerns have been expressed about the pace of the construction work, which has been affected by labour strikes, but Ron DelMont, the head of the Fifa inspection team, offered comfort to the organisers, saying: ‘I can assure you we are arguably ahead of previous Fifa World Cup organisers at this comparative stage.’ Sportcal.com, 25th Feb 2008
* Sky Italia has acquired all TV rights for the Olympic Games in Vancouver (2010) and London (2012). According to the International Olympic Committee, Sky Italia acquired all the rights for the two events including free-to-air, pay-TV, pay-per-view and near-video-on-demand (NVOD) rights for all the available distribution platforms: terrestrial, cable & satellite, IPTV, internet and mobile. Sky Italia has guaranteed the redistribution on free TV of the two Olympics events in order to give them maximum visibility. The value of the deal has not been disclosed to the press. The Bejing 2008 Olympics Games will be broadcast in Italy by the public broadcaster RAI. RapidTV, Sportcal.com, 25th Feb 2008
* Nike agreed a seven-and-a half-season contract, worth €320 million deal to sponsor the French national football team from 2011. Under the deal, Nike will pay the French Football Federation an average of €42.66 million per season. On top of this, Nike will kick in €2.5 million worth of sporting equipment per complete season. “On the whole, the new contract will bring the Federation four times and half times the resources over the current contract”, said the FFF. Nike beat off competition from Adidas and Airness of France for the FFF contract. Adidas has sponsored the French national team since 1972. Its current deal ends in 2011. Sportsbusiness, 25th Feb 2008
MORE NEWS
Myanmar/Olympics: Now Myanmar Activists Call for Olympic TV Viewing Boycott
Political activists in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, have called for television viewers to boycott television coverage of this summer’s Olympic Games in Beijing in protest at China’s support for the ruling military junta in the country. The activists called in a statement: ‘for citizens around the world to pressure the government of China to withdraw its unilateral support of the Burmese military junta and to boycott the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
‘China is a major trade partner, major arms supplier and major defender of the junta in the international arena. ‘The military junta in Burma is still in power to this day, despite strong and continuous resistance by the people of Burma, because of China's support.’ The activists, who represent a group called the 88 Generation Student group, also called for a boycott of Olympic merchandise.
The boycott call is the latest in a series of political issues to be linked with the games by human rights and other activists. Other issues include China’s involvement in a humanitarian crisis in Darfur, Sudan, controversy over the independent status of Taiwan and accusations of interference in press freedom. Sportcal.com, 25th Feb 2008
Monday, 25th February 2008
SPORTS SHORTS
* The Australian government said Sunday it will formally support the country's bid to host the 2018 World Cup, with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd leading the tilt for the sport's premier event. Australia's premier promised to put the bid on the agenda for next month's Council of Australian Governments meeting of federal, state and territory leaders. The 2010 World Cup will be held in South Africa and Brazil will host the 2014 event. Interactiveinvestor, 25th Feb 2008
MORE NEWS
Japan/New Media: Japan launches internet satellite
Japan's space agency launched an experimental communications satellite Saturday designed to enable super high-speed data transmission at home and in Southeast Asia. The domestically developed H-2A rocket carrying the satellite, "Kizuna," was launched from the southern island of Tanegashima, according to a live internet broadcast by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, known as JAXA.
The agency said it hoped to enable data transmission of up to 1.2 Gbps at a low cost across Japan and in 19 different places in Southeast Asia. JAXA developed Kizuna with another government agency, the National Institute of Information and Communication Technology, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. The cost of the satellite's development, launch and operation is estimated at $480 million, JAXA spokeswoman Asaka Hagiwara said.
Japan has yet to join the lucrative international satellite market, and Kizuna, which should be in operation for five years, is not intended for commercial use. Its large H-2A rocket is one of the most advanced and reliable in the world. telecomasia.net, cbsnews.com, CNN, 25th Feb 2008
Elsewhere/General: GlobeCast extends partnership with IEC in Sports
GlobeCast has inked an exclusive deal to provide sports marketing agency IEC in Sports with contribution and distribution services till December 2009, bringing the partnership to 10 years.Under the agreement, over 3,000 hours of live programming from more than 250 sporting events are expected to be distributed worldwide annually via GlobeCast’s content delivery network. Facilities including downlink, uplink, capacity, encoding and encryption as well as station facilities are also included.
GlobeCast is also responsible for the European and Asian distribution of IEC’s four weekly television productions including World of Athletics, World of Tennis, FINA Aquatics World and Road to Beijing. The 26-minute magazine shows are distributed via satellite from GlobeCast’s London Technical Operations Centre where the signals are encrypted and uplinked to satellites covering Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas.
As the official TV agent for sports governing bodies including the world swimming association (FINA), International Volleyball Federation (FIVB), International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) and Badminton World Federation (BWF), IEC supplies feeds to broadcasters including NBC, TV Globo, CCTV, Fuji TV, PCCW, Al-Jazeera and Eurosport. Asia Television, 25th Feb 2008
Thursday, 21st February 2008
INFO BOX
Sport is the Content of Choice Online
In the same way that sport content was a major driver of pay-TV adoption, sports will be the single biggest driver of consumption for online video. Screen Digest forecast the number of online sports videos (OSV) streams/downloads served in the domestic US market will increase from 5.2bn last year to 10.8 billion by 2012. In the UK the number of streams/downloads will more than double from 398 million in 2007 to 1.2 billion in five years time.
Most significantly, OSV accounted for 35 per cent of all online TV streams/downloads consumed in the US in 2007. In the UK, OSV constituted a 46 per cent share of all online TV consumed in 2007.
Screen Digest forecast that US revenues from domestic OSV consumption will increase from $762 million in 2007 to $2.3 billion in 2012. In the UK, OSV revenues will treble from £23.5 million to £82.9 million. Yet it will be advertising, not subscriptions that will generate the lions share of the revenue from OSV. In the UK advertising will account for 61 per cent of revenue by 2012, up from for 46.5 per cent five years earlier. That will be twice the value of subscriptions. By comparison in the US, advertising and subscriptions will contribute almost equal revenue by 2012 at 41 per cent and 39 per cent respectively. ATV, SportsBusiness, 21st Feb 2008
SPORTS SHORTS
* China Mobile signed up a record number of users in a single month in January, as the world's top cellular carrier built on its dominance in the world's largest wireless market. China Mobile, which has steadily devoured market share from its sole, smaller rival, China Unicom , for years, signed up 7.044 million subscribers last month, outpacing Unicom's relatively paltry 1 million-plus, the report added. China Mobile now serves 376.38 million users, more than the population of the US, the report said. telecomasia.net, 21st Feb 2008
* China's leading telecom operator China Mobile said that it will join hands with UK-based Vodafone and the US-based Verizon Wireless in testing LTE (long term evolution) technology. LTE, also called 3.9G, is the mainstream technology of the evolution from 3G to 4G. The three telecom operators will launch tests focusing on the LTE FDD technology and the TD-LTE technology. The TD-LTE technology is the direction of evolution from China's homegrown 3G standard TD- SCDMA to the beyond 3G standard. telecomasia.net, 20th Feb 2008
* CineMaya Media Group, Inc. the leading South Asian media and entertainment company in North America, today announced, after opening its offices in each of the two largest cities in India, Mumbai and Delhi, in 2007, the company is now planning to open a third India office in Hyderabad, the capital city of the state of Andhra Pradesh. CineMaya Media Group reports business in India continues to increase, and there is a growing need for greater operations to service the southern region of India. The Hyderabad office will serve as the nerve center for business development and advertising sales for all company divisions for Andhra Pradesh, and cover all of South India. Yahoo, 21st Feb 2008
* Four minority domestic investors in Sony Entertainment India, have taken the company to court over demands on them for capital to finance SET's commitments to the upcoming Indian Premier League tournament. SET India, which operates channels like Sony, MAX, SAB TV and AXN, recently asked shareholders to infuse fresh equity of $40 million, a bid which was turned down. The four investors, Shemaroo Entertainment Managing Director Raman Maroo, actor Jackie Shroff, World Media Group Director Sudesh Iyer and MobiApps Holding’s Jayesh Parekh instead demanded that their stake be sold through an initial public offer, which the parent company has refused. The SET India-World Sports consortium won the TV rights for the Indian Premier League, the twenty20 cricket tournament for $1.026 billion, which includes $108 million for compulsory promotional spends, over ten years. SportsBusiness, 20th Feb 2008
Sport is the Content of Choice Online
In the same way that sport content was a major driver of pay-TV adoption, sports will be the single biggest driver of consumption for online video. Screen Digest forecast the number of online sports videos (OSV) streams/downloads served in the domestic US market will increase from 5.2bn last year to 10.8 billion by 2012. In the UK the number of streams/downloads will more than double from 398 million in 2007 to 1.2 billion in five years time.
Most significantly, OSV accounted for 35 per cent of all online TV streams/downloads consumed in the US in 2007. In the UK, OSV constituted a 46 per cent share of all online TV consumed in 2007.
Screen Digest forecast that US revenues from domestic OSV consumption will increase from $762 million in 2007 to $2.3 billion in 2012. In the UK, OSV revenues will treble from £23.5 million to £82.9 million. Yet it will be advertising, not subscriptions that will generate the lions share of the revenue from OSV. In the UK advertising will account for 61 per cent of revenue by 2012, up from for 46.5 per cent five years earlier. That will be twice the value of subscriptions. By comparison in the US, advertising and subscriptions will contribute almost equal revenue by 2012 at 41 per cent and 39 per cent respectively. ATV, SportsBusiness, 21st Feb 2008
SPORTS SHORTS
* China Mobile signed up a record number of users in a single month in January, as the world's top cellular carrier built on its dominance in the world's largest wireless market. China Mobile, which has steadily devoured market share from its sole, smaller rival, China Unicom , for years, signed up 7.044 million subscribers last month, outpacing Unicom's relatively paltry 1 million-plus, the report added. China Mobile now serves 376.38 million users, more than the population of the US, the report said. telecomasia.net, 21st Feb 2008
* China's leading telecom operator China Mobile said that it will join hands with UK-based Vodafone and the US-based Verizon Wireless in testing LTE (long term evolution) technology. LTE, also called 3.9G, is the mainstream technology of the evolution from 3G to 4G. The three telecom operators will launch tests focusing on the LTE FDD technology and the TD-LTE technology. The TD-LTE technology is the direction of evolution from China's homegrown 3G standard TD- SCDMA to the beyond 3G standard. telecomasia.net, 20th Feb 2008
* CineMaya Media Group, Inc. the leading South Asian media and entertainment company in North America, today announced, after opening its offices in each of the two largest cities in India, Mumbai and Delhi, in 2007, the company is now planning to open a third India office in Hyderabad, the capital city of the state of Andhra Pradesh. CineMaya Media Group reports business in India continues to increase, and there is a growing need for greater operations to service the southern region of India. The Hyderabad office will serve as the nerve center for business development and advertising sales for all company divisions for Andhra Pradesh, and cover all of South India. Yahoo, 21st Feb 2008
* Four minority domestic investors in Sony Entertainment India, have taken the company to court over demands on them for capital to finance SET's commitments to the upcoming Indian Premier League tournament. SET India, which operates channels like Sony, MAX, SAB TV and AXN, recently asked shareholders to infuse fresh equity of $40 million, a bid which was turned down. The four investors, Shemaroo Entertainment Managing Director Raman Maroo, actor Jackie Shroff, World Media Group Director Sudesh Iyer and MobiApps Holding’s Jayesh Parekh instead demanded that their stake be sold through an initial public offer, which the parent company has refused. The SET India-World Sports consortium won the TV rights for the Indian Premier League, the twenty20 cricket tournament for $1.026 billion, which includes $108 million for compulsory promotional spends, over ten years. SportsBusiness, 20th Feb 2008
Wednesday, 20th February 2008
INFO BOX
France 07 'Was Most Successful Rugby World Cup Ever'
Last year’s Rugby World Cup, hosted mainly by France, was the most successful in the 20-year history of the competition, the International Rugby Board, the sport’s world governing body, has claimed.
The IRB, which is engaged in a long-running campaign to persuade the International Olympic Committee to add rugby to the Olympic programme, said that the competition had ‘smashed all previous attendance, broadcast and economic impact figures, reinforcing its stature as one of the world’s largest sporting events.’
Total attendances reached 2.24 million, exceeding 2 million for the first time, with average crowds of 47,000 across the 48 matches in France, Scotland and Wales. The 42 matches held in France scored a 97-per-cent attendance rate.
Meanwhile, the tournament’s travel and hospitality programme exceeded 100,000 sales, more than for the 1999 and 2003 tournaments combined. A total of 119 international broadcasters televised the tournament across 202 territories, with the organisers claiming a ‘potential cumulative reach’ of over 4.2 billion, an 800-million improvement on the 2003 tournament.
The IRB claimed that television coverage doubled in Spain, Italy, Portugal and across Asia, while enhanced levels of coverage in Russia, India, Canada and USA highlighted rugby’s ‘growing global appeal.’
Bernard Lapasset, chairman of the IRB, said: ‘It is also significant to note that RWC 2007 matches were the top six viewed programmes of any description in France during 2007, while over 20 million viewers in France tuned in to watch the France versus England semi-final at Stade de France, bettering the figure achieved for the soccer World Cup final involving France at the same stadium in 1998. ‘Coverage of the England versus South Africa final attracted the highest viewing figures for a single programme in the UK in 2007 with nearly 17 million tuning in to see whether England could retain the Webb Ellis Cup.’
Matches from the Rugby World Cup also topped the year's programming in South Africa and New Zealand. Sportcal.com, 19th Feb 2008
SPORTS SHORTS
* Soccer United Marketing agreed one-year deals with six sponsors for the Pan-Pacific Championship. Japanese agency Dentsu brought onboard Yamazaki-Nabisco Co., Johnson & Johnson of Japan, Japan Airlines and Kinki Nippon Tourist Co. Soccer United Marketing added deals with the Hawaii Tourism Authority and Onkyo Corp. The inaugural Pan-Pacific Championship is designed to determine the top club from the Asian and North American soccer federations and features MLS Cup champions the Houston Dynamo, Japan's J League champions, Gamba Osaka, Los Angeles Galaxy and Syndey FC, of Australia's Hyundai A-league. Sportsbusiness, 19th Feb 2008
* New Zealand commercial broadcaster TV3 is set to secure the TV rights to the 2011 Rugby World Cup according to local press reports. International Rugby Board Chief Executive Mike Miller confirmed that Rugby World Cup Ltd is in talks with TV3. He said "they haven't put an offer on the table yet, but when they do we will discuss how compelling it is and whether we go to the market place". As New Zealand's broadcaster for last year's World Cup in France, TV3 has first option on the upcoming tournament. Sportsbusiness, Sportcal, 19th Feb 2008
* England’s women cricketers have become the first in the world to be awarded central contracts after they retained the ‘Ashes’ by defeating Australia yesterday. Ten deals worth between £40,000 ($78,450) and £50,000 will be offered by the England and Wales Cricket Board, allowing the team to focus on the Women’s World Cup in Australia in March 2009 without the distraction of other jobs. They could also feature in a Twenty20 competition planned to run alongside the men’s Twenty20 World Cup in England later that year. On Monday, England completed a six-wicket victory over Australia at Bowral in the only test match of their overseas tour. Sportcal.com, 19th Feb 2008
* The International Triathlon Union has launched its official website for this summer’s Olympic Games in Beijing, featuring Olympic news, information on athletes nominated to take part by their national federations, course details and a breakdown of the qualifying process. The site, which can be found at www.triathlon.org/olympics, also includes videos, interviews, photo galleries and race reviews from the 2000 and 2004 Olympic triathlon events in Sydney and Athens, and all three Beijing test events in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Sportcal.com, 19th Feb 2008
MORE NEWS
Asia/New Media: Asia-Pacific will outpace Europe in IPTV
The global IPTV industry is rapidly expanding with the rising penetration of broadband in households all over the world, says "Global IPTV: Market Analysis and Forecast to 2011", a comprehensive market research report by RNCOS, a market research company.
The report has found that the global IPTV market is currently dominated by Europe but it is expected that Asia will emerge as a stronger competitor to Europe in coming years. The number of broadband subscribers will take long jump in the Asia-Pacific region and it is expected to grow at Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 91 per cent during 2006-2011. RNCOS report has thoroughly studied the reasons that are promoting the IPTV market in the Asia-Pacific region with special focus on the implications of regulations, penetration of personal computers and quality of broadband service.
The report has also discovered that only six countries from the Asia-Pacific region, namely South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore and Macao, came in the world’s top 20 countries, which had good broadband penetration in 2005, as measured by the International Telecommunication Union. But India and China, two fastest developing economies, will also be included in these six countries as the number of broadband subscription is rising in these countries, including rural areas. In fact, the rural areas of both the countries are offering enormous growth opportunities for the expansion of broadband. However, the Philippines is also expected to join the league soon. ATV, 20th Feb 2008
India/Cricket-IPL: India’s Cricketing Money-spinner
The world’s top cricketers are about to find out exactly what they are worth as India’s new cricket league prepares to hold its first player auction on Wednesday. The Indian Premier League, a new tournament based on the shortened “Twenty20” format of the game, will auction more than 80 domestic and international players to eight new teams based in the country’s major cities.
The launch of the IPL by India’s supreme cricketing body, the Board of Control for Cricket in India, marks the final commercialisation of the gentleman’s game, putting it in a similar mould to football’s English Premiership or American baseball. The 44-day IPL starts in April and will feature 59 matches. Unlike Test and one-day formats, Twenty20 takes just a few hours to play. This, together with its cheerleaders and big-hitting action, renders it tailor-made for prime-time television.
It is already proving a huge money-spinner for the BCCI. The body last month sold the team franchises to companies controlled by people such as billionaire Mukesh Ambani and Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan for a total of about $724m (€490m, £371m). It also sold the TV and promotional rights for the tournament to Sony and Singapore-based World Sports Group for a total of $1.1bn, 80 per cent of which will be redistributed among the eight teams.
The BCCI and the teams will also earn money from sponsorships, merchandising, tickets, stadium hospitality and prize money. The players, meanwhile, stand to gain from the auction and brand endorsements. Up for sale are expected to be greats such as Australia’s Shane Warne and Adam Gilchrist, while Indian champions, such as Sachin Tendulkar and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, will play for their home team. Each team is allowed to spend upto $5m on eight contracted players. FT.com, indiantimes.com, 19th Feb 2008
France 07 'Was Most Successful Rugby World Cup Ever'
Last year’s Rugby World Cup, hosted mainly by France, was the most successful in the 20-year history of the competition, the International Rugby Board, the sport’s world governing body, has claimed.
The IRB, which is engaged in a long-running campaign to persuade the International Olympic Committee to add rugby to the Olympic programme, said that the competition had ‘smashed all previous attendance, broadcast and economic impact figures, reinforcing its stature as one of the world’s largest sporting events.’
Total attendances reached 2.24 million, exceeding 2 million for the first time, with average crowds of 47,000 across the 48 matches in France, Scotland and Wales. The 42 matches held in France scored a 97-per-cent attendance rate.
Meanwhile, the tournament’s travel and hospitality programme exceeded 100,000 sales, more than for the 1999 and 2003 tournaments combined. A total of 119 international broadcasters televised the tournament across 202 territories, with the organisers claiming a ‘potential cumulative reach’ of over 4.2 billion, an 800-million improvement on the 2003 tournament.
The IRB claimed that television coverage doubled in Spain, Italy, Portugal and across Asia, while enhanced levels of coverage in Russia, India, Canada and USA highlighted rugby’s ‘growing global appeal.’
Bernard Lapasset, chairman of the IRB, said: ‘It is also significant to note that RWC 2007 matches were the top six viewed programmes of any description in France during 2007, while over 20 million viewers in France tuned in to watch the France versus England semi-final at Stade de France, bettering the figure achieved for the soccer World Cup final involving France at the same stadium in 1998. ‘Coverage of the England versus South Africa final attracted the highest viewing figures for a single programme in the UK in 2007 with nearly 17 million tuning in to see whether England could retain the Webb Ellis Cup.’
Matches from the Rugby World Cup also topped the year's programming in South Africa and New Zealand. Sportcal.com, 19th Feb 2008
SPORTS SHORTS
* Soccer United Marketing agreed one-year deals with six sponsors for the Pan-Pacific Championship. Japanese agency Dentsu brought onboard Yamazaki-Nabisco Co., Johnson & Johnson of Japan, Japan Airlines and Kinki Nippon Tourist Co. Soccer United Marketing added deals with the Hawaii Tourism Authority and Onkyo Corp. The inaugural Pan-Pacific Championship is designed to determine the top club from the Asian and North American soccer federations and features MLS Cup champions the Houston Dynamo, Japan's J League champions, Gamba Osaka, Los Angeles Galaxy and Syndey FC, of Australia's Hyundai A-league. Sportsbusiness, 19th Feb 2008
* New Zealand commercial broadcaster TV3 is set to secure the TV rights to the 2011 Rugby World Cup according to local press reports. International Rugby Board Chief Executive Mike Miller confirmed that Rugby World Cup Ltd is in talks with TV3. He said "they haven't put an offer on the table yet, but when they do we will discuss how compelling it is and whether we go to the market place". As New Zealand's broadcaster for last year's World Cup in France, TV3 has first option on the upcoming tournament. Sportsbusiness, Sportcal, 19th Feb 2008
* England’s women cricketers have become the first in the world to be awarded central contracts after they retained the ‘Ashes’ by defeating Australia yesterday. Ten deals worth between £40,000 ($78,450) and £50,000 will be offered by the England and Wales Cricket Board, allowing the team to focus on the Women’s World Cup in Australia in March 2009 without the distraction of other jobs. They could also feature in a Twenty20 competition planned to run alongside the men’s Twenty20 World Cup in England later that year. On Monday, England completed a six-wicket victory over Australia at Bowral in the only test match of their overseas tour. Sportcal.com, 19th Feb 2008
* The International Triathlon Union has launched its official website for this summer’s Olympic Games in Beijing, featuring Olympic news, information on athletes nominated to take part by their national federations, course details and a breakdown of the qualifying process. The site, which can be found at www.triathlon.org/olympics, also includes videos, interviews, photo galleries and race reviews from the 2000 and 2004 Olympic triathlon events in Sydney and Athens, and all three Beijing test events in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Sportcal.com, 19th Feb 2008
MORE NEWS
Asia/New Media: Asia-Pacific will outpace Europe in IPTV
The global IPTV industry is rapidly expanding with the rising penetration of broadband in households all over the world, says "Global IPTV: Market Analysis and Forecast to 2011", a comprehensive market research report by RNCOS, a market research company.
The report has found that the global IPTV market is currently dominated by Europe but it is expected that Asia will emerge as a stronger competitor to Europe in coming years. The number of broadband subscribers will take long jump in the Asia-Pacific region and it is expected to grow at Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 91 per cent during 2006-2011. RNCOS report has thoroughly studied the reasons that are promoting the IPTV market in the Asia-Pacific region with special focus on the implications of regulations, penetration of personal computers and quality of broadband service.
The report has also discovered that only six countries from the Asia-Pacific region, namely South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore and Macao, came in the world’s top 20 countries, which had good broadband penetration in 2005, as measured by the International Telecommunication Union. But India and China, two fastest developing economies, will also be included in these six countries as the number of broadband subscription is rising in these countries, including rural areas. In fact, the rural areas of both the countries are offering enormous growth opportunities for the expansion of broadband. However, the Philippines is also expected to join the league soon. ATV, 20th Feb 2008
India/Cricket-IPL: India’s Cricketing Money-spinner
The world’s top cricketers are about to find out exactly what they are worth as India’s new cricket league prepares to hold its first player auction on Wednesday. The Indian Premier League, a new tournament based on the shortened “Twenty20” format of the game, will auction more than 80 domestic and international players to eight new teams based in the country’s major cities.
The launch of the IPL by India’s supreme cricketing body, the Board of Control for Cricket in India, marks the final commercialisation of the gentleman’s game, putting it in a similar mould to football’s English Premiership or American baseball. The 44-day IPL starts in April and will feature 59 matches. Unlike Test and one-day formats, Twenty20 takes just a few hours to play. This, together with its cheerleaders and big-hitting action, renders it tailor-made for prime-time television.
It is already proving a huge money-spinner for the BCCI. The body last month sold the team franchises to companies controlled by people such as billionaire Mukesh Ambani and Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan for a total of about $724m (€490m, £371m). It also sold the TV and promotional rights for the tournament to Sony and Singapore-based World Sports Group for a total of $1.1bn, 80 per cent of which will be redistributed among the eight teams.
The BCCI and the teams will also earn money from sponsorships, merchandising, tickets, stadium hospitality and prize money. The players, meanwhile, stand to gain from the auction and brand endorsements. Up for sale are expected to be greats such as Australia’s Shane Warne and Adam Gilchrist, while Indian champions, such as Sachin Tendulkar and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, will play for their home team. Each team is allowed to spend upto $5m on eight contracted players. FT.com, indiantimes.com, 19th Feb 2008
Tuesday, 19th February 2008
INFO BOX
13m+ US Households Not Ready for Digital
More than 13 million households with television sets that can only receive analogue broadcasts are currently unprepared for the transition to all digital broadcasting that is scheduled for February 18, 2009, according to the Nielsen Company. Another 6 million households have at least one television set that would no longer work after that date. Neilsen also reported that 10.1 per cent of all households would have no access to television signals if the transition occurred today. ATV, 19th Feb 2008
SPORTS SHORTS
* Bernama TV, Malaysia's and the regions news network delivering up to the minute news from all over Malaysia, Asia, and around the globe is set to meet its viewers by the first quarter of this year. It said the company is proposed to become Malaysias and the regions news network, delivering up-to-the-minute news from all over Malaysia, Asia and around the globe. "The news channel is proposed to be branded as Bernama TV (BRTV) to carry out 24-hours, seven days week news coverage," SRHB said. YahooNews, 18th Feb 2008
* Zee Network has written to the Information & Broadcasting ministry, stating that the Trai (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) regulation for mobile TV is discriminatory. Zee has demanded that any broadcasting company should be allowed to provide mobile TV services. Zee says that cross holding caps are not appropriate in these scenarios, and has warned that the regulation, if left untouched, would lead to engineering monopolistic control by some players. ATV, 19th Feb 2008
* The Olympics will be broadcast in Chinese and Korean for the first time ever in the US by US network NBC. Olympic broadcaster NBC and Multicultural Radio Broadcastings Inc. will co-produce the new language coverage, which will focus on team events such as football, baseball and basketball, as well as offering daily highlights in Korean, Mandarin and Cantonese. Sportsbusiness.com, 18th Feb 2008
* Uefa said today that it has awarded rights for the Champions League and Uefa Cup, the top-tier and second-tier European clubs competitions, to Al Jazeera in the Middle East and North Africa. The Doha-based Al Jazeera acquired the rights for the 2009-10 to 2011-12 seasons, taking over the Champions League rights from ART which holds them in the region at present. Al Jazeera already held Uefa Cup rights under the present contract. The broadcaster also acquired internet and mobile rights for the competitions. Sportcal.com, 18th Feb 2008
* Singapore’s bid team for the 2010 Youth Olympics has denied that its partnership with Visa, the international credit card firm, represents a conflict of interest and a breach of International Olympic Committee bidding rules. Visa is one of the IOC’s top-tier TOP sponsors and the firm sent out a press release on Friday declaring its support for Singapore’s bid. IOC bidding rules state that IOC sponsors are not allowed to simultaneously back a bid city because of a possible conflict of interest. It is understood that the IOC's concern is that its sponsors have privileged access to IOC members and could use this to lobby on a bid city's behalf. The IOC told Sportcal.com on Friday that it would 'look into the situation.' However, Singapore claims that Visa is not sponsoring its bid, only 'supporting' it, and therefore that it is not in breach of the rules. Sportcal.com, 18th Feb 2008
* FiteSelektor, Dubai's first Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) tournament makes its debut in Dubai next month and anticipates a turnout of 3,500 people. With the introduction of SMS voting, and Quatro Fite for the first time ever in the history of MMA, FiteSelektor is beyond doubt an innovation in martial arts. The tournament is scheduled to be held on Thursday, March 13, 2008 at the Dubai International and Convention Centre. With a total of eight fighters for FiteSelektor at the tournament and with no pre-arrangement of fighting bouts, the audience will decide the fights by text messaging. The fighter and opponent will be selected using the SMS votes for three fights and the final fight will be arranged through a process of elimination. Launching in Dubai, the tournament will then travel to other parts of Middle East and South Asia. The winner of the tournament will be awarded $75,000 in prize money. Ameinfo.com, 19th Feb 2008
MORE NEWS
Thailand/ New Media: Thailand Seeks to Issue 3G Licenses in May
Thailand's telecommunications regulator is expected to issue long-awaited licenses for the 3G mobile services to private operators in May, a Reuters report said. It was in a process of drafting qualification criteria for licenses by an advisor which should take about three months, National Telecommunication Commission chairman Choochart Promphrasid told Reuters. "In April, the draft should be launched, then we will hold a public hearing for one month. After that, the 3G licences should be issued in May," Choochart, quoted by the Reuters report, said.
Issuing 3G licenses, which would enable operators to tap new revenues by beefing up voices services with music, video, pictures and data, have been delayed for several years because the process has been strewn with political obstacles, the Reuters report said. Licensing is also a key step in reforming the sector because operators will pay license fees instead of paying a portion of their revenues to two state-owned firms for the right to operate networks they build and paid for, as they do now, the report said.
The two state companies are TOT and CAT Telecom. The top three mobile operators are AIS, DTAC and True Move, the report further said. telecomasia.net, 19th Feb 2008
Elsewhere/ General: F1's Advertising and Hospitality Business Faces Struggle
Formula 1 motor racing’s advertising and corporate hospitality business is $3 million in the red, according to the latest accounts. The figures, seen by the UK’s Daily Telegraph newspaper, show that CVC, the private equity firm which took control of the sport in 2006, paid $22.5 million in interest on loans of $334 million that were taken out to buy the 70 per cent interest from banks and promoter Bernie Ecclestone.
The deficit in advertising and hospitality is an indication of why Formula 1 is eager to reach out to new markets in Asia and the Middle East. This year’s grands prix in France and Canada do not yet have sponsors, raising questions about their future in the sport.
The accounts for CVC’s Beta Holdings, which include 11 of the 18 races held after May 31, 2006, when the European Commission cleared the sale, show turnover of $91 million and costs of $87 million. CVC paid $1.7 million for companies owning Formula 1’s commercial operations and has placed them under holding company Alpha Prema. Ecclestone and investment banks JP Morgan and Lehman Brothers still have stakes in the business. Sportcal.com, 18th Feb 2008
Elsewhere/ Rights: Competition Hots Up for Africa Cup of Nations Rights in France
Eurosport, the pan-European sports broadcaster, is facing competition from rival broadcasters in France as it bids to renew its rights to broadcast the Africa Cup of Nations in 2010. The broadcaster has already signalled its desire to renew the rights after announcing encouraging viewing figures for the recent 2008 edition, but could face competition from Canal Plus, the pay-television operator, M6, the commercial network, and France Télévisions, the public-service broadcaster.
Eurosport, which paid less than €10 million ($14.6 million) for the rights to the 2008 tournament, is continuing negotiations with Sportfive, the international sports marketing agency, regarding 2010, according to Le Parisien, the French newspaper. France Télévisions broadcast the final of the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, along with Eurosport, and has a selection of channels at its disposal to exploit the rights.
Eurosport broadcast the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations across Europe, and also in the Asia-Pacific region. Sportcal.com, 18th Feb 2008
Elsewhere/ General: 2018 Bid Influences FA Thinking on Premier League's Global Plans
Concerns over the potential impact on England’s bid for soccer’s 2018 World Cup are among the considerations that have prompted the Football Association, the sport’s national ruling body, to express ‘serious reservations’ about the controversial proposal to stage top-tier Premier League games overseas in the future.
Last Thursday, Sepp Blatter, the president of Fifa, soccer’s international federation, warned that England’s bid would not get a favourable reception if the Premier League pushed ahead with plans for an annual ‘international round’ of fixtures from 2011 onwards. In a statement on Friday evening, the FA said that it did ‘not want the Premier League proposal to affect England’s 2018 World Cup bid in any way. At this time, due to the FA’s strong international relations, we do not believe it has.’
There has been heavy criticism of the Premier League’s proposal from continental and national associations, which are committed to protecting their own competitions, as well as the media and fan groups in England, who believe it is motivated by money, and John Madejski, the chairman of Reading, believes it is now ‘in tatters.’
Having acknowledged the widespread disapproval, the FA has decided to make its position clear and its new chairman Lord Triesman said: ‘I am determined that our international and domestic relations must be sustained at the highest level, and I will not countenance any damage to those relations.’
The FA, which would have to approve the plan for it to have chance of coming to fruition, said that it had been ‘made clear to Fifa that the FA has some serious reservations about the proposal.’ It added: ‘We have a responsibility to the whole of English football and we have to consider any wider consequences and implications that this proposal may create. As a national association we also recognise the authority of Fifa and its executive committee.’ The FA has still not seen any details of the Premier League plan but the issue will be discussed at its board meeting on Thursday. Sportcal.com, 18th Feb 2008
13m+ US Households Not Ready for Digital
More than 13 million households with television sets that can only receive analogue broadcasts are currently unprepared for the transition to all digital broadcasting that is scheduled for February 18, 2009, according to the Nielsen Company. Another 6 million households have at least one television set that would no longer work after that date. Neilsen also reported that 10.1 per cent of all households would have no access to television signals if the transition occurred today. ATV, 19th Feb 2008
SPORTS SHORTS
* Bernama TV, Malaysia's and the regions news network delivering up to the minute news from all over Malaysia, Asia, and around the globe is set to meet its viewers by the first quarter of this year. It said the company is proposed to become Malaysias and the regions news network, delivering up-to-the-minute news from all over Malaysia, Asia and around the globe. "The news channel is proposed to be branded as Bernama TV (BRTV) to carry out 24-hours, seven days week news coverage," SRHB said. YahooNews, 18th Feb 2008
* Zee Network has written to the Information & Broadcasting ministry, stating that the Trai (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) regulation for mobile TV is discriminatory. Zee has demanded that any broadcasting company should be allowed to provide mobile TV services. Zee says that cross holding caps are not appropriate in these scenarios, and has warned that the regulation, if left untouched, would lead to engineering monopolistic control by some players. ATV, 19th Feb 2008
* The Olympics will be broadcast in Chinese and Korean for the first time ever in the US by US network NBC. Olympic broadcaster NBC and Multicultural Radio Broadcastings Inc. will co-produce the new language coverage, which will focus on team events such as football, baseball and basketball, as well as offering daily highlights in Korean, Mandarin and Cantonese. Sportsbusiness.com, 18th Feb 2008
* Uefa said today that it has awarded rights for the Champions League and Uefa Cup, the top-tier and second-tier European clubs competitions, to Al Jazeera in the Middle East and North Africa. The Doha-based Al Jazeera acquired the rights for the 2009-10 to 2011-12 seasons, taking over the Champions League rights from ART which holds them in the region at present. Al Jazeera already held Uefa Cup rights under the present contract. The broadcaster also acquired internet and mobile rights for the competitions. Sportcal.com, 18th Feb 2008
* Singapore’s bid team for the 2010 Youth Olympics has denied that its partnership with Visa, the international credit card firm, represents a conflict of interest and a breach of International Olympic Committee bidding rules. Visa is one of the IOC’s top-tier TOP sponsors and the firm sent out a press release on Friday declaring its support for Singapore’s bid. IOC bidding rules state that IOC sponsors are not allowed to simultaneously back a bid city because of a possible conflict of interest. It is understood that the IOC's concern is that its sponsors have privileged access to IOC members and could use this to lobby on a bid city's behalf. The IOC told Sportcal.com on Friday that it would 'look into the situation.' However, Singapore claims that Visa is not sponsoring its bid, only 'supporting' it, and therefore that it is not in breach of the rules. Sportcal.com, 18th Feb 2008
* FiteSelektor, Dubai's first Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) tournament makes its debut in Dubai next month and anticipates a turnout of 3,500 people. With the introduction of SMS voting, and Quatro Fite for the first time ever in the history of MMA, FiteSelektor is beyond doubt an innovation in martial arts. The tournament is scheduled to be held on Thursday, March 13, 2008 at the Dubai International and Convention Centre. With a total of eight fighters for FiteSelektor at the tournament and with no pre-arrangement of fighting bouts, the audience will decide the fights by text messaging. The fighter and opponent will be selected using the SMS votes for three fights and the final fight will be arranged through a process of elimination. Launching in Dubai, the tournament will then travel to other parts of Middle East and South Asia. The winner of the tournament will be awarded $75,000 in prize money. Ameinfo.com, 19th Feb 2008
MORE NEWS
Thailand/ New Media: Thailand Seeks to Issue 3G Licenses in May
Thailand's telecommunications regulator is expected to issue long-awaited licenses for the 3G mobile services to private operators in May, a Reuters report said. It was in a process of drafting qualification criteria for licenses by an advisor which should take about three months, National Telecommunication Commission chairman Choochart Promphrasid told Reuters. "In April, the draft should be launched, then we will hold a public hearing for one month. After that, the 3G licences should be issued in May," Choochart, quoted by the Reuters report, said.
Issuing 3G licenses, which would enable operators to tap new revenues by beefing up voices services with music, video, pictures and data, have been delayed for several years because the process has been strewn with political obstacles, the Reuters report said. Licensing is also a key step in reforming the sector because operators will pay license fees instead of paying a portion of their revenues to two state-owned firms for the right to operate networks they build and paid for, as they do now, the report said.
The two state companies are TOT and CAT Telecom. The top three mobile operators are AIS, DTAC and True Move, the report further said. telecomasia.net, 19th Feb 2008
Elsewhere/ General: F1's Advertising and Hospitality Business Faces Struggle
Formula 1 motor racing’s advertising and corporate hospitality business is $3 million in the red, according to the latest accounts. The figures, seen by the UK’s Daily Telegraph newspaper, show that CVC, the private equity firm which took control of the sport in 2006, paid $22.5 million in interest on loans of $334 million that were taken out to buy the 70 per cent interest from banks and promoter Bernie Ecclestone.
The deficit in advertising and hospitality is an indication of why Formula 1 is eager to reach out to new markets in Asia and the Middle East. This year’s grands prix in France and Canada do not yet have sponsors, raising questions about their future in the sport.
The accounts for CVC’s Beta Holdings, which include 11 of the 18 races held after May 31, 2006, when the European Commission cleared the sale, show turnover of $91 million and costs of $87 million. CVC paid $1.7 million for companies owning Formula 1’s commercial operations and has placed them under holding company Alpha Prema. Ecclestone and investment banks JP Morgan and Lehman Brothers still have stakes in the business. Sportcal.com, 18th Feb 2008
Elsewhere/ Rights: Competition Hots Up for Africa Cup of Nations Rights in France
Eurosport, the pan-European sports broadcaster, is facing competition from rival broadcasters in France as it bids to renew its rights to broadcast the Africa Cup of Nations in 2010. The broadcaster has already signalled its desire to renew the rights after announcing encouraging viewing figures for the recent 2008 edition, but could face competition from Canal Plus, the pay-television operator, M6, the commercial network, and France Télévisions, the public-service broadcaster.
Eurosport, which paid less than €10 million ($14.6 million) for the rights to the 2008 tournament, is continuing negotiations with Sportfive, the international sports marketing agency, regarding 2010, according to Le Parisien, the French newspaper. France Télévisions broadcast the final of the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, along with Eurosport, and has a selection of channels at its disposal to exploit the rights.
Eurosport broadcast the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations across Europe, and also in the Asia-Pacific region. Sportcal.com, 18th Feb 2008
Elsewhere/ General: 2018 Bid Influences FA Thinking on Premier League's Global Plans
Concerns over the potential impact on England’s bid for soccer’s 2018 World Cup are among the considerations that have prompted the Football Association, the sport’s national ruling body, to express ‘serious reservations’ about the controversial proposal to stage top-tier Premier League games overseas in the future.
Last Thursday, Sepp Blatter, the president of Fifa, soccer’s international federation, warned that England’s bid would not get a favourable reception if the Premier League pushed ahead with plans for an annual ‘international round’ of fixtures from 2011 onwards. In a statement on Friday evening, the FA said that it did ‘not want the Premier League proposal to affect England’s 2018 World Cup bid in any way. At this time, due to the FA’s strong international relations, we do not believe it has.’
There has been heavy criticism of the Premier League’s proposal from continental and national associations, which are committed to protecting their own competitions, as well as the media and fan groups in England, who believe it is motivated by money, and John Madejski, the chairman of Reading, believes it is now ‘in tatters.’
Having acknowledged the widespread disapproval, the FA has decided to make its position clear and its new chairman Lord Triesman said: ‘I am determined that our international and domestic relations must be sustained at the highest level, and I will not countenance any damage to those relations.’
The FA, which would have to approve the plan for it to have chance of coming to fruition, said that it had been ‘made clear to Fifa that the FA has some serious reservations about the proposal.’ It added: ‘We have a responsibility to the whole of English football and we have to consider any wider consequences and implications that this proposal may create. As a national association we also recognise the authority of Fifa and its executive committee.’ The FA has still not seen any details of the Premier League plan but the issue will be discussed at its board meeting on Thursday. Sportcal.com, 18th Feb 2008