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Glasgow University Student Television - news archive

This is an archive of news about Glasgow University Student Television. Some links may no longer work, due to the transient nature of the internet.

Mega marketing blitz for 9X's 'Mahabhaarat'
From Biz Asia. Posted June 23 2008, 2.53pm
9X is leaving no stone unturned to market its much talked about mythlogical show 'Mahabhaarat', which stars in under fortnight. The Ekta Kapoor produced drama fully titled 'Kahaani Hamaaray Mahabhaarat Ki' with a communication on the launch date of the series, which has the biggest Indian stars in the greatest drama ever. Indian stars in the greatest drama ever. Hoardings, which reveal two of the most important characters and the launch date of 7th July 2008, Monday to Thursday at 21:00, have gone up in Mumbai and are being rolled out across key markets nationwide. The outdoor campaign, created by the in-house INX Studio, has been designed to convey the spectacular scale and grandeur of the epic series, which has been one of the most keenly awaited shows for a long time. The campaign uses the powerful logo of 'Kahaani Hamaaray Mahabhaarat Ki' along with dramatic images of Bheem and Duryodhan, whom it reveals in character for the first time, with costumes especially created by ace fashion designer Manish Malhotra. The all-important characters of Bheeshma, played by Ronit Roy, and Ganga, played by Sakshi Tanwar, will be revealed next. Anthony Pettifer, Group Director, Brand and Communications, INX Network, said, "Kahaani Hamaaray Mahabhaarat Ki is the biggest and most keenly awaited epic drama on Indian television. One of the key objectives of our in-house INX Studio - which has created the outdoor and print campaign as well as the logo - is to convey to viewers that our Mahabhaarat has been created with the highest production values and on a grandeur and scale never seen before. It positions this timeless epic as a production that will appeal to today's generation. The mood and look of the off-air campaign is completely consistent with our on-air promos, also produced in-house. The combined effect of the on- and off-air campaign is already creating enormous awareness for the series. I am delighted that the campaign has been so well received by viewers and the industry so far." The UK launch of 'Kahaani Hamaaray Mahabhaarat Ki' has been put on hold. The channel will be unveiling full plans for its UK beam shortly, which will coincide with the line-up of a new schedule in August. Hoardings in Mumbai Related links: 9X releases first-look of 'Mahabharat' logo STAR axing 'Kahani Ghar Ghar Kii' by August? (more)

ITV net video use grows nearly 400%
From Digital Spy. Posted June 20 2008, 11.27am
The rate of videos views on ITV's main website has increased four-fold since August, says the broadcaster. (more)

Global indigenous TV network convenes inaugural meeting
From Media Network Weblog. Posted June 18 2008, 4.54pm
A global network of indigenous television broadcasters will convene its first interim council meeting in Ireland in August. The development of an international alliance was a major outcome of the World Indigenous Television Broadcasting Conference – WITBC ’08 – hosted by New Zealand’s national indigenous broadcaster, Maori Television, in Auckland in March this year. The three-day [...] (more)

Portugal invests €500,000 to improve Cape Verde TV coverage
From Media Network Weblog. Posted June 13 2008, 2.44pm
Portugal has supplied broadcasting equipment worth €500,000 to Cape Verde to expand the television coverage of the archipelago’s state broadcaster, officials said this week. A new TV repeater serving the capital, Praia, and Maio island was inaugurated by Praia minister Sara Lopes and Portuguese Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Augusto Santos Silva, also with responsibility for [...] (more)

Epic Sky One drama tells Augustus story
From Digital Spy. Posted June 4 2008, 8.07pm
Sky One is to air a six-part drama series telling the story of the life of Emperor Augustus. (more)

ZEE set to revitalise Indian Cricket League
From Biz Asia. Posted May 21 2008, 10.02pm
In order to counter the heat generated by the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) launched by BCCI, the rebel cricket body — Indian Cricket League (ICL) — is all set to take its tournament outside the country. Not only will the Subhash Chandra-owned Twenty20 tournament go to West Asia in September, its prize money will also go up. ICL will also launch a high-voltage multi-media campaign beginning August-September other than considering roping in film stars to not only own cricket teams, but to play the Twenty20 matches. The bottom line is that the Essel Group is gearing up to take on the Indian Premier League which has kept television viewers glued to Sony's SET Max channel. Says a senior ZEE executive: "The ICL is now very big on the agenda for the group. Several steps are being taken to increase the interest of both the viewers and the advertisers when the tournament starts in September-October this year. Don't forget, we saw the big potential in the Twenty20 format much before anyone else did." To lend freshness to the game, the ICL executives are looking at several international cricketing venues in the Gulf. The belief is that the company may finally zero in on Dubai or Sharjah as Taj Television, the holding company of Ten Sports that shows the matches, is based in Dubai. ZEE owns a 50 per cent stake in Ten Sports. However, in the face of competition from IPL, establishing ICL as a vibrant television property will be an uphill task for the Essel Group. "IPL is a successful television property with consistent ratings of about 4-5, similar to any popular show on a general entertainment channel. The initial tournaments of ICL got ratings of 1-2. To attract the viewers to another Twenty20 tournament will be a tough challenge for the ICL team," says a senior media planner. Winning against IPL will be a challenge on other counts as well. For a start, IPL is an official tournament with the backing of the International Cricket Council (ICC) while ICL is a rebel league comprising either retired international cricketers or not so known cricket players from both within and outside the country. Also, the ICL matches aired on ZEE Sports and later on Ten Sports as well, managed to attract viewers for 6-12 minutes on an average. The average time spent on Set Max (for IPL) has been over 40 minutes. Himanshu Modi, business head, ICL, however, is unfazed. In an emailed response to Business Standard earlier, he said: "It is important for everyone involved or following the league to understand that in terms of product life cycle we are in the introductory stage. Like any other sporting product, the ICL will need time to build its support base…" IPL has become a phenomenal television success, agree advertising experts. "If any one has to even match its intensity in future, they will have to put in something 'extra'," a senior executive in an advertising agency concludes. International venues and celebrities may work wonders for the sub-continent expats, but for the viewers back home, much more may be required," a senior executive in a Gurgaon-based advertising agency concludes. Related links: Hyderabad to host ZEE's ICL World Series IPL outperforms Shah Rukh show on STAR Plus ZEE Network thanks BCCI for ICL success Confirmed: ZEE Music to show ICL cricket Buzz surrounding BCCI's T20 IPL cricket ZEE's Indian Cricket League teams confirmed ZEE Network to form own Indian cricket league (more)

STAR axing 'Kahani Ghar Ghar Kii' by August?
From Biz Asia. Posted May 21 2008, 9.42pm
Speculation is rife that STAR Plus is axing one of its most dependable shows, come August. (more)

Guyana: TV station suspended for four months for rebroadcasting threats against president
From Media Network Weblog. Posted April 14 2008, 5.20pm
The privately-owned Guyana TV station CNS-TV6 has been suspended for four months for rebroadcasting a caller’s threat to kill President Bharrat Jagdeo. The suspension took effect on 12 April and will last until 10 August. The suspension was imposed by President Jagdeo himself in his capacity as information minister. The threat was made on 21 February [...] (more)

Sport on TV: Hysteria in the wisteria, summer solace in Alliss
From The Independent. Posted April 13 2008, 12.00am
It's the surest indication that summer is finally here. The shadows lengthen on the closely cropped sward amid the vibrant azaleas – thousands of miles away in Augusta. The sight of those idyllic fairways is enough to make anyone turn away in disgust from their own unkempt lawns and wallow in a late-night dreamland, where mowers drive themselves and sprinklers dance while servants bring you cocktails on the terrace. (more)

Now..Akshay Kumar to present on TV too
From Biz Asia. Posted April 5 2008, 12.42pm
Akshay Kumar has joined his industry friends Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan by becoming the latest star to host a TV show. It looks like the Punjabi actor has been lured into a record deal for a show along the lines of 'Fear Factor'. According to a source at Times Of India, "Akshay will be paid Rs 1.5 crore per episode, which is more than what SRK is getting for Kya Aap Paanchvi Paas Se Tez Hain?" Incidentally Sallu has been booked for Rs 89 crore for 104 episodes. So far, we’ve been hearing about his big film deals, now there’s confirmation that he may yet overtake the Khan in price. The new series of the programme will air on the soon-to-launch Hindi entertainment channel from Viacom 18. Incidentally Akshay Kumar stars in Studio 18's upcoming mega release 'Singh is Kinng', which opens up at cinemas in August. The first season was aired on Sony Entertainment Television Asia. It was shot in the exotic locales of Kuala Lampur and Malaysia and hosted by Mukul Dev. Related links: Confirmed: Salman to front show for Sony TV Salman Khan to host gameshow for Sony TV Shah Rukh Khan show to air on STAR Vijay too Shah Rukh to host another show on STAR Plus (more)

August launch date for Kangaroo VOD
From Digital Spy. Posted March 28 2008, 10.29am
Project Kangaroo, the VOD venture from the BBC, Channel 4 and ITV, will reportedly launch in August. (more)

ZEE TV to axe 'Har Ghar Kuch Kehhta Hai'
From Biz Asia. Posted March 18 2008, 2.46pm
ZEE TV is pulling another one of its least performing shows 'Har Ghar Kuch Kehta Hai' to ensure it continues to lead the way in the Hindi GEC fight in India. The troubled drama, which launched with much fanfare in August last year is being axed next month to make way for another family affair - details of, which will be announced shortly. Pearl Shahi, ZEE's creative head confirms to TellyChakkar that the show is going off-air. She says, "Yes, the show is going off-air as it is not doing well. The show is not getting the expected TRPs. We will be introducing a new show as its replacement. We do not want to lose out on GRPs of our channel. We had given notice to the producer Sheel Kumar a month ago." ZEE TV has recently witnessed a surge in ratings in India, which it doesn’t want jeopardised with any type of weak property. Earlier this month it was confirmed, ZEE TV will also be axing 'Ardhangini' due to its faltering ratings. Related link: ZEE TV axes 'Ardhangini' (more)

Public Meetings Set up by Scottish Broadcasting Commission
From allmediascotland - Spike. Posted March 13 2008, 8.50pm
Members of the general public are being invited to contribute their views on the future of Scottish broadcasting at a series of meetings being hosted by the Scottish Broadcasting Commission. The Commission, set up in August to look at television production in Scotland and its potential, wants... (more)

Aping of ad helps to drum up chocolate brand interest
From Financial Times. Posted December 12 2007, 2.00am
Almost as soon as the "Gorilla" television commercial for Dairy Milk chocolate first aired on August 31, the questions began. Did it feature a real or fake gorilla... (more)

Dutch radio listening figures for August/September
From Media Network Weblog. Posted October 18 2007, 3.33pm
The Dutch radio listening figures for August/September 2007 were published today by research bureau Intomart GfK. The effects of recent changes in distribution platforms is beginning to show in the listening figures. Arrow Classic Rock has increased its market share to 2.7% since its move to FM. Radio 10 Gold has dropped to 4.1%, but [...] (more)

BBC holds on to The Masters
From Digital Spy. Posted October 15 2007, 9.06am
The BBC extends its deal with Augusta National Golf Club through 2010. (more)

Kaplinsky changes channel to replace Young on Five News
From The Independent. Posted October 6 2007, 12.35am
The BBC newsreader Natasha Kaplinsky is quitting the corporation's Six O'Clock News to become the presenter of Five News. Her appointment by the commercial broadcaster follows the departure in August of Kirsty Young, who was the main presenter of Five News for 10 years. (more)

TVNZ-New Zealand to go HDTV for Beijing Olympics
From Media Network Weblog. Posted October 1 2007, 5.11pm
TVNZ-New Zealand will introduce High Definition TV (HDTV) on the Freeview Digital Terrestrial Transmission platform (DTT), in time for the Beijing Olympics in August. The public broadcaster will invest in the technology infrastructure to introduce its TV ONE and TV2 channels in HDTV on the Freeview DTT platform by July 2008. On the Freeview DTT [...] (more)

Dutch radio listening figures for July/August 2007
From Media Network Weblog. Posted September 27 2007, 11.20am
The Dutch radio listening figures for July/August 2007 were released this morning by research bureau Intomart GfK. The report is based on the listening diaries of 9237 respondents aged 10 years and above. There is no change in the top placings, but Sky Radio’s market share has dropped again. Radio 1, the public news and talk [...] (more)

ABCe: Sun and Telegraph buck August web traffic trend
From Press Gazette. Posted September 27 2007, 12.00am
The Sun and Telegraph were the only national newspaper websites to post month-on-month unique user increases in August, according to ABCe figures released today. (more)

Free copies make up more than third of Standard's August circulation
From Brand Republic. Posted September 7 2007, 1.05pm
LONDON - The Evening Standard gave away nearly 100,000 bulk copies in August, ahead of the anniversary of the launch of the afternoon freesheets, according to the newspaper ABC figures for August. (more)

The Sun keeps above 3m as red tops enjoy August
From Brand Republic. Posted September 7 2007, 12.05pm
LONDON - In a good month for the red-top newspapers The Sun dispelled speculation that its current cover price promotion meant its circulation was close to falling below 3m copies with a near 1% rise to 3,158,045 copies, according to the August ABC figures. More soon. (more)

Al-Jazeera English plans to devolve control from Qatar
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 27 2007, 3.26pm
The Qatar-based international satellite TV news channel Al-Jazeera English (AJE) is preparing to give its three broadcast centres outside Doha (Kuala Lumpur, London and Washington) more autonomy over regional news agendas later this year, according to AJE managing director Nigel Parsons. His remarks were reported on 27 August by Content Asia, an Asia-based information resource aimed [...] (more)

South Korean satellite TV to get foothold in China
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 27 2007, 10.28am
Text of report in English by South Korean news agency Yonhap The public broadcaster KBS said Sunday [26 August] it will soon begin airing its satellite channel KBS World in China for Korean and foreign viewers as well as Chinese in the world’s most populous country. KBS President Jeong Yeon-ju will formally announce the launching of the [...] (more)

Special programme on 675 kHz on 31 August
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 26 2007, 12.58pm
Stichting Norderney, the Dutch organisation set up to preserve the history of Radio Veronica’s years as an offshore broadcaster, has arranged a special broadcast on 31 August, the anniversary of the offshore station’s closure in 1974. The broadcast will be on 675 kHz by arrangement with Arrow Classic Rock. It starts at 0500 UTC with recordings of historic broadcasts, [...] (more)

New Weather Presenter for STV News
From Merry Media. Posted August 23 2007, 1.24pm
Sean Batty has been announced as the new weather presenter for Scotland Today and North Tonight on STV weeknights at 6pm from Tuesday 28 August.. (more)

Japan asks Chile to adopt Japanese system for digital TV
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 21 2007, 9.43am
Text of report in English by Japanese news agency Kyodo Japanese communications minister Yoshihide Suga on Monday [20 August] requested his Chilean counterpart in a meeting in Santiago to adopt the Japanese system for terrestrial digital TV broadcasts, Japanese government officials said. Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Suga told Chilean transportation and communications minister Rene Cortazar [...] (more)

TV ratings: August 20
From Media Guardian. Posted August 21 2007, 1.00am
TV overnights: Robson Green's new drama lost a massive 1.4 million viewers on its second outing on ITV1. By Leigh Holmwood. (more)

Boxer Khan gets ready for Channel 4 series
From Biz Asia. Posted August 20 2007, 11.11pm
Boxing sensation Amir Khan will take part in a new Channel 4 series where he will try to help six troubled young men whose violent and antisocial behaviour is spiraling out of control. The Commonwealth lightweight champion will star in a three-part series entitled 'Amir Khan's Angry Young Men', to be aired on August 21. Amir explained why he wanted to make this series: "I just wanted to give them a chance, in a way; those six angry young men. They've had a tough life, and they wanted to change their lives around. Boxing is the toughest sport out there, and it's going to give them discipline and help them to control their lives better." Amir will use the discipline required in boxing to help them turn their lives around in just four weeks. (more)

?Last day? for BBC?s FM broadcasts in Russia - daily
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 20 2007, 4.04pm
Text of report in English by Russian newspaper Kommersant website on 20 August Today is the last day the British Broadcasting Co.’s Russian service will be heard in Russia at 99.6 MHz on FM radio. The Finam investment holding company has purchased Bolshoye Radio (Big Radio), which broadcast the British programming. That company decided that [...] (more)

ZEE TV brings 'Habitat' show in the UK
From Biz Asia. Posted August 20 2007, 9.20am
ZEE Network's Dubai based property and lifestyle show 'Habitat', which focuses on real estate development, design and home financing across the Middle East, is now being screened on ZEE TV UK. The programme first went live on Sunday 12th August at 22:00. There are also talks to bring the live 'Habitat' exhibition show in the UK. (more)

Russian regulator says BBC FM partner breached own programming plan
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 17 2007, 4.53pm
Excerpt from report by Russian news agency Interfax Moscow, 17 August: The BBC television and radio broadcasting corporation’s FM-frequency broadcasts in Russia may resume, believes Boris Boyarskov, head of Rossvyazokhrankultura [Russia’s Federal Service for Supervision in Mass Communications, Communications and Preservation of Cultural Heritage]. “The BBC always has the opportunity to return to the FM frequency, if [...] (more)

BBC kicks off sale process for BBC Resources
From BBC Press Ofice. Posted August 15 2007, 12.00pm
The BBC has announced today that the process for the sale of its commercial subsidiary BBC Resources Limited has begun and an advertisement is to appear in the Financial Times Times and UK trade magazine Broadcast on Thursday 16 August. The sale is subject to the necessary approvals by the BBCs Executive Board and the BBC Trust. (more)

TV ratings: August 14
From Media Guardian. Posted August 15 2007, 1.00am
TV overnights: ITV1's new chatshow host Antony Cotton held on to his audience in his second outing. By Leigh Holmwood. (more)

ZEE Cinema to telecast 'Kaafila' in September
From Biz Asia. Posted August 14 2007, 9.56pm
ZEE Cinema will be telecasting the World TV Premiere of the Indo-Pak based movie 'Kaafila' barely a month after its theatrical release. The film, which opened up at cinemas last Friday (10th August) proved a box office dud. It stars Sunny Deol, Ammtoje Mann, Sudesh Berry and Sandeep Kang. 'Kaafila' will be shown on ZEE Cinema UK on Saturday 29th September at 20:00. Also next month, the three-month long Raj Kapoor movie festival comes to an end with the final lot of films from the infamous library being screened on the channel. 'Ram Teri Ganga Maili', 'Heena', 'Prem Granth', 'Aa Aab Laut Chalen' and 'Mera Naam Joker' will be shown on Sunday nights as part of the 'Sunday Sitaron Ka' band. Related link: ZEE Network acquires movie 'Kaafila' (more)

Cotton gives ITV a happy Monday
From Digital Spy. Posted August 14 2007, 4.06pm
ITV1 won its best share and volume performance for an August Monday yesterday, with 2 million viewers tuning into The Anthony Cotton Show. (more)

TV ratings: August 12
From Media Guardian. Posted August 13 2007, 1.00am
TV overnights: ITV1 leaped aboard the heritage bandwagon with new series Britain's Favourite View picking up 4.8m viewers. By Leigh Holmwood. (more)

TV ratings: August 9
From Media Guardian. Posted August 10 2007, 1.00am
TV overnights: ITV1's Britain's Youngest Brides did not bring much bliss to the network last night. By Tara Conlan. (more)

TV ratings: August 6
From Media Guardian. Posted August 7 2007, 1.00am
TV overnights: Channel 4's genealogy series Empire's Children finished on a series low of 1.1m viewers. By Ben Dowell. (more)

Five satellite TV channels to be launched in Iraqi Kurdistan
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 6 2007, 1.17pm
Text of report by independent Iraqi Kurdish newspaper Jamawar on 6 August Decisions have been taken for the official launch of five new Kurdish satellite TVs in the near future, three of which will be based in Sulaymaniyah. It has been decided that the satellite TVs of the Islamic Union [of Kurdistan], the [Kurdistan] Democratic Party [...] (more)

TV ratings: August 5
From Media Guardian. Posted August 6 2007, 1.00am
TV overnights: Lewis Hamilton's win in the Hungarian Grand Prix drew a peak of 4.6m viewers to ITV1. By John Plunkett. (more)

TV ratings: August 4
From Media Guardian. Posted August 6 2007, 1.00am
TV overnights: BBC1's DanceX suffered its first ratings defeat at the hands of ITV1's dance show rival Baby Ballroom. By John Plunkett. (more)

Jordanian TV station prevented from transmission for failing to adhere to norms
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 3 2007, 10.00am
 Text of report in English by Jordan Times newspaper on 3 August Amman: The Audio-visual Commission (AVC) on Thursday [2 August] said it had requested ATV, a private television channel, not to go ahead with its scheduled transmission on Wednesday evening for several reasons. According to Sufian Nabulsi, director of the AVC engineering department, one of [...] (more)

TV ratings: August 1
From Media Guardian. Posted August 2 2007, 1.00am
TV overnights: BBC2's US drama Heroes fell back to earth with a fall of 900,000 viewers compared with its debut. By Tara Conlan (more)

Oliver Burkeman on the August silly season
From Media Guardian. Posted August 2 2007, 1.00am
This week the Sun has been reporting sightings of great white sharks off the English coast. Oliver Burkeman offers a sneak preview of some of the other silly season scoops. (more)

Minivan Radio back on shortwave from 1 August
From Media Network Weblog. Posted July 30 2007, 6.22pm
Minivan Radio will resume shortwave broadcasts from 1 August. The Maldivian opposition station has only been available via the Internet since it stopped shortwave broadcasts four months ago in anticipation of winning an FM licence, but has so far been unable to procure one. It has been decided to resume shortwave broadcasts in the run-up to a referendum in late [...] (more)

'Don' to premiere on STAR Gold in August
From Biz Asia. Posted July 26 2007, 9.32pm
One of last year's box office hits 'Don' starring Shah Rukh Khan, a remake of the classic Amitabh Bachchan movie will premiere on STAR Gold next month. The action packed thriller also stars Priyanka Chopra will air on Saturday 25th August at 21:00. The channel will also repeat telecast of 'Krrish' starring Hrithik Roshan and Priyanka Chopra, once again. As well as a screening this Sunday (29th July), 'Krrish' will also air on Sunday 19th August at midday. (more)

TV network refuses to promote upcoming movie
From Biz Asia. Posted July 26 2007, 12.42am
Call it competition or whatever else - seems STAR UK has refused to run any commercial of the forthcoming (rather obscure) Bollywood film 'Kaafila' (releasing on 10th August) if it carries the logo of its arch rival, ZEE. (ZEE holds the worldwide distribution rights of 'Kaafila'.) With a tame looking 'Chak Dey India' out on the same day as 'Kaafila' and ZEE staying away from the Yashraj title (thanks to an old unresolved dispute between the two), it might make supreme sense for ZEE to go heavy on 'Kaafila'. But given the fact that it's a small Sunny Deol-starrer with a host of newcomers, it may not, on second thoughts! Updated: 07:53 on 26/07/07 (more)

New Balaji soap 'Kasturi' launches on STAR Plus
From Biz Asia. Posted July 22 2007, 3.27pm
Balaji Telefilms new offering 'Kasturi' launches on STAR Plus UK next month. 'Kasturi' is about a middle class girl and her struggle to protect her family’s legacy. It's about her dreams and aspirations-which are closely intertwined with her family. She is a girl who finds happiness even in the smallest and simplest of things. 'Kasturi' is humble and polite but innately very strong-who's fighting to build her own identity. Her beauty is in her simplicity and her respect for tradition. Her discipline and inherent strength enables her to stand up and fight for her right. Kasturi is determined to make a mark for herself. It launched on STAR Plus India in April of this year. Since then, the Ekta Kapoor produced soap has eagerly awaited in the UK. 'Kasturi' has proved a ratings winner for the channel, giving stiff competition to its rival 'Saat Phere' on ZEE TV. Ajay Vidyasagar, Executive Vice President, STAR India said, "Over the last 6 years STAR Plus has been successful in thoroughly entertaining the audiences. With Balaji Telefilms producing 'Kasturi' we sure can promise our viewers some compelling content on primetime. We are confident that 'Kasturi' will find a special place with the STAR Plus viewers." The show's central character 'Kasturi' is played by Shubhangi Atre. Other Star cast of 'Kasturi' includes Rupa Ganguly, Madhumalti, Kanika Shivpuri, Priya Arya, Vikram Kapadia and Nikhil Arya to name a few. 'Kasturi' launches on STAR Plus UK on Monday 6th August, taking over the 22:30 slot from 'Kahin To Hoga' which ends on Friday 3rd August. Updated: 19:44 (more)

CCTV5 to become Olympic channel in 2008
From Media Network Weblog. Posted July 18 2007, 1.33pm
China’s CCTV5, the country’s main sport channel, will become a 24-hour Olympics channel from January 1st, 2008, China Central Television (CCTV) President, Zhao Huayong has said. Zhao said preparation work including promotion, technical upgrades, logistics, multimedia and marketing has almost finished for the CCTV5 Olympic reporting group. The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games will open in August [...] (more)

ZEEL Q1 results show impressive figures
From Biz Asia. Posted July 18 2007, 9.13am
ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) has reported its first quarter consolidated revenues of Rs 3,916 million, representing a 35 per cent growth over the corresponding period in the previous fiscal. The consolidated operating profit stood at Rs 1,197 million. These are higher by 81 per cent as compared to the corresponding quarter last fiscal. Operating profit margin rose by 30.6 per cent from 23 per cent, as compared to the corresponding quarter last fiscal. Profit before tax for the first quarter of fiscal 2007 was Rs 1,225 million, while net profit was Rs 813 million, recording a growth of 51 per cent over the corresponding period last year. The company registered advertisement revenue of Rs 2,044 million for the first quarter ended June 30, 2007, an increase of 47 per cent as compared to the corresponding period last fiscal. The average channel share of the flagship channel increased to 25 per cent within the general entertainment genre, which increased by 10 per cent from the previous quarter. Subhash Chandra, Chairman, ZEEL, said, "We are pleased that operating margins have improved to 30.6 per cent, compared to the 23 per cent in the first quarter last fiscal. Most of us are aware of the exciting opportunities ahead of us in the television content business. We are making the right investments in capturing a larger mind share of the viewers, both nationally and globally. With rapid transformation in the Indian media scenario through digitisation, the coming years hold a lot of promise and we are confident of delivering long term shareholder value." Punit Goenka, Director, ZEEL, said, "We continued to gain market share in the general entertainment genre. ZEE TV has maintained its ratings across time bands and has averaged 234 gross rating points during the quarter, and an average channel share of 25 per cent within the general entertainment category, up from 23 per cent during the previous quarter.” He further stated that during the quarter, ZEE TV had come closest ever to the genre leader in the last seven years. Goenka explained that STAR Plus’ 'KBC-3', which went off-air in mid-April, helped both 'Kasamh Se' and 'Saat Phere' to regain their respective leadership positions. 'Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007' continues to be the leader despite many shows based on a similar theme. Elaborating on the performance, Pradeep Guha, CEO, ZEEL, said, "Our team has done well, both in gaining viewership share and in monetising that effectively. We are pleased with the good start to the fiscal year. On the international business front, we continued to do well, though rising strength of rupee has impacted our revenues." Guha further said that in terms of sports, his company had got out of the cricket contract, and that it is looking forward to build franchise in football. He said that the channel would showcase cricket from the Indian Cricket League. The sports genre for the flagship company saw Ten Sports as a clear winner as it registered a 51 per cent viewership share. ZEE Sports and Ten Sports will now look forward to a strong second quarter with a variety of joint ventures. They will increase their joint impact on the market, particularly in August, as both channels will share a new line-up of football rights, including deals with various football clubs. Article from Exchange4Media (more)

Azerbaijan announces tender for frequency of Turkish TV channel
From Media Network Weblog. Posted July 18 2007, 8.51am
Nushirvan Maharramli, the Chairman of the National Council of Television and Radio Broadcasting, announced the commencement of a tender on 17 July for the national frequency broadcast by the Turkish television channel Samanyolu (STV).  The closing date for the tender is 17 August and transmission of STV will continue until then. During the meeting held on [...] (more)

Three Sony TV executives quit
From Biz Asia. Posted July 13 2007, 3.00pm
Two executives from Sony Entertainment Television Asia's operations in India have left, it’s been confirmed. Chief creative officer Sandip Sikand who has been responsible for hit reality show 'Bigg Boss' is currently working his notice period. SET EVP and business head Albert Almeida confirmed the developments. Sandip has been with Sony TV since August 2006 and prior to that worked as creative head at Balaji Telefilms. Also on the way out from India's number 3 entertainment channel is Anupama Mandloi. The former programming head will be joining STAR Plus as content head. STAR officials confirmed the news; however refuse to divulge further details until an official announcement is made next week. Last month, ZEE TV's Vivek Behl was poached by STAR as creative head to focus on fictional content across STAR Plus and STAR One. More locally, Kiran Patel, Sony TV UK's marketing executive has left to join Jetix (Disney). During her tenure at the channel, the 24-year old was responsible for various marketing strategies for the flagship service. (more)

Aaj Tak to launch on Sky Digital in August
From Biz Asia. Posted July 11 2007, 9.14am
India's leading news broadcaster Aaj Tak will be launching on Sky Digital next month, it’s been confirmed. (more)

Azerbaijan to pull Russian Channel One off air on 11 July
From Media Network Weblog. Posted July 9 2007, 3.30pm
Russia’s state-run Channel One television station will be pulled off the air in Azerbaijan July 11, and the Rossiya (RTR) channel will follow in August, the chairman of the country’s broadcasting council said today. Azerbaijan’s National Broadcasting Council said it would ban Russian state-run Channel One and Rossiya (RTR) networks, and some Turkish channels, because neither [...] (more)

First free-to-air Chinese TV channel to launch in New Zealand
From Media Network Weblog. Posted July 6 2007, 10.51am
CTV8 (Chinese Television 8) will launch a free-to-air (FTA) broadcast to the Auckland area of New Zealand on UHF channel 62 on 1 August 2007. The 24-hour service has been organised by Auckland-based World Television (WTV) .  CTV8 will be capable of bilingual broadcasting, with simulcast Mandarin and Cantonese audio feeds to satisfy the demands of a huge and diverse Chinese population. According to [...] (more)

Rajshri.com signs NDTV, Zoom & ZEE content
From Biz Asia. Posted June 29 2007, 10.24pm
Rajshri.com has signed up content deals with three major Indian broadcasters to stream on it online portal. News channel NDTV, entertainment channels Zoom TV and ZEE TV have all supplied hours of material, which will be available to download via Rajshri's website. ZEE Network has given 2000 hours of their content to be put on the website. Shows that are available on the website are 'Astitva - Ek Prem Kahani', 'Jeena Isi Ka Naam Hai', 'Rishtey', 'Hum Paanch', 'After Hrs', 'Johny Aala Re', 'Bombay Talking', 'Kareena Kareena' and 'B News'. On the other hand, NDTV's shows like 'Walk The Talk', 'Jai Jawan', 'Best of Gustakhi Maaf', 'Boss's Day Out' and 'India Questions' are currently being streamed on the website. Apart from this four Zoom shows like 'Page 3', 'Popkorn Newz', 'Maximum Style Diva' and 'Let's Talk' are also available for free streaming. "It is the progressive content owners who are high on the learning curve that have come on board first rather than the traditional ones," informs Rajshri Media managing director Rajjat Barjatya. "A lot of convincing was required to break the mindset of content owners and inform them about the potential of this new distribution and revenue channel. The platform that we are building is unmatched in terms of content and features and augurs very well for the future, since the medium is reaching out to a truly global audience," he adds. Seven months into its launch, Rajshri.com now sports more than 1400 music videos, 275 movies, 988 television shows and more on its website. The website has also undergone a change over the months and has been made navigation friendly. (more)

Sony TV to revamp declining prime-time
From Biz Asia. Posted June 29 2007, 1.05am
Sony Entertainment Television Asia is closely observing its waning weekday prime-time schedule by launching a slew of new shows. The channel has been lagging behind rivals STAR Plus and ZEE TV for a number of months and beside 'Indian Idol', other shows have failed to make a mark on the all-important TRP (television ratings) charts. According to a report in India's Financial Express, Sony TV performs the worst out of the three big channels in India between the crucial prime-time hours of 20:00 and 22:30. Once 'Indian Idol' is through, Sony TV plans to axe the underperforming dramas that currently consist of 'Kajjal', Shobana Desai’s 'Thodi Khushi Thode Gham' and 'Durgesh Nandini' and Smriti Irani’s 'Virrudh' by replacing them with new soaps in the months of August and September. Rohit Gupta, president-network sales, SET India confirmed the plans to Financial Express, "While the TRPs for these shows have gone down, the focus will be on the new shows which will be launched once Indian Idol 3 is through." With the way things stand in India: 20:00 'Banoo Main Teri Dulhan' on ZEE TV wins the slot with a rating of 2.9 (according to rating agency aMap) 20:30 Balaji’s 'Kasautii Zindagii Kay' dominates this slot on STAR Plus 21:00 Balaji’s 'Kasamh Se' rules this slot on ZEE TV 21:30 ZEE TV has been leading the race with 'Saat Phere' in this slot but now faces competition from STAR Plus' 'Kasturi' 22:00 & 22:30 These slots command high TRPs with Balaji’s longest running soaps 'Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii' (3.8) and 'Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi' (4.4). For the entire prime time slot, Sony TV has lowest ratings for all the shows. None of its shows rating is reaching even 1 TRP, according to the aMap data. An interesting fact here is that none of the prime time shows on Sony TV are churned out from Balaji Telefilms. Extracts from Financial Express Related links: Biz Exec: SET Asia's Rajan Singh New shows throw good figures for STAR Plus (more)

Global warming at Arabic news channels
From Media Network Weblog. Posted June 23 2007, 11.31am
Alvin Snyder, Senior Fellow at the USC Center on Public Diplomacy, Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California writes:  ”Tempers at the TV newsrooms of Al Jazeera and Alhurra are flaring with the summer heat, so one can only imagine what August may bring.” “Journalists at Al Jazeera have begun leaking stories to the media and [...] (more)

New Head of Communications at BBC Cymru Wales
From Merry Media. Posted June 12 2007, 3.06pm
Alun Shurmer has been named as the new Head of Communications for BBC Cymru Wales, taking up the position in August.. (more)

Asian channels set for EPG reshuffle on Sky
From Biz Asia. Posted June 11 2007, 9.25pm
Our sister site SkyDigiOnline.co.uk is reporting on EPG changes that will affect Asian TV channels on Sky Digital scheduled to take place on Monday 6th August. Some new Asian channels in the 'International' category of the Sky EPG, which are being planned to launch on Sky Digital may have to wait until the changes. Broadcasters are being given the choice of waiting until the EPG reshuffle has taken place or launching in the "overspill section", which BizAsia.co.uk reported on previously. Raj TV, which is available in the 'Entertainment' section of the Sky EPG is currently on channel 187, it will be moved to 171 on Monday 18th June. Full article on SkyDigiOnline.co.uk here. Related links: EXCLUSIVE: New Sky EPG changes for Asian TV EXCLUSIVE: Sky confirm EPG reshuffle (more)

Bernama to launch 24-hour radio service in August
From Media Network Weblog. Posted June 1 2007, 2.58pm
Bernama, the Malaysian National News Agency, will launch a 24-hour radio station, Berita 24 (24 News), in August, Information Minister Datuk Seri Zainuddin Maidin said today. He said the launch was in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the country’s independence to meet the demand of the people who hunger for the latest news and [...] (more)

Sunday 'best' for ITV1
From Digital Spy. Posted April 30 2007, 12.41pm
Channel reports lowest Saturday audience figures since August last year, but its Sunday line-up pulls in the viewers. (more)

Sunday best for ITV1
From Digital Spy. Posted April 30 2007, 12.41pm
Channel reports lowest Saturday audience figures since August last year, but its Sunday line-up pulls in the viewers. (more)

Sky News Appoints Creative Director
From Merry Media. Posted April 24 2007, 3.50pm
Sky News has appointed BBC Sport’s Head of Presentation Simon Buglione as its Creative Director, starting at the end of August.. (more)

Sky News hires creative chief from BBC
From Press Gazette. Posted April 24 2007, 1.08pm
Sky News has poached BBC Sport's head of presentation Simon Buglione to work as its creative director from August this year. (more)

�188 million - and no office for the boss
From The Scotsman. Posted April 17 2007, 1.23am
THE new BBC building has taken just over two years to build, but work on kitting out the digital electronics will not be fully finished until August. (more)

YLE clears central digital-analogue converters
From Media Network Weblog. Posted April 4 2007, 3.37pm
The Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) said in a statement it would allow the fitting of so-called central digital-analogue signal converters. The central boxes convert the digital TV signal to an analogue one so that the residents of a building fitted with one do not need to buy separate set-top boxes for each television by August, [...] (more)

ZEE Network to form own Indian cricket league
From Biz Asia. Posted April 3 2007, 9.16pm
ZEE Network today announced the formation of a new cricket series, which will be known as the Indian Cricket League. Group Chairman Subhash Chandra said, "It is not in conflict with the BCCI but is complementary to it." Chandra said the league will have an initial corpus of Rs 100 crore and each of the six teams would be coached by an ex-India player. The league, to be held annually, would have its own contracted Indian and international players, apart from a paid selection committee. The league will start with the Twenty20 format, keeping in mind the World Cup of this new version in South Africa later this year. Six teams will participate in this year`s league, which would start any time between July and August. The number of teams would be extended to 16 in the coming three years. Each team would comprise of two national, four international and eight budding players, who would be selected by the talent scouts. The matches will be played both in the ODI and Twenty20 formats with teams playing on a home and away basis. The league will be supported by cricketing academies across the country having state-of-the-art facilities headed by international and domestic coaches. "The country where cricket is followed like a religion fares so poorly," Chandra said pointing at the World Cup disaster. Chandra claimed 40 percent of Indian viewers had lost interest in cricket after team India`s world cup debacle and said if corporate support to the game ceased, it would create a crisis for the game worldwide. "After all, India pool in major chunk of the money in international cricket," he said. BCCI reacts The Indian cricket board (BCCI) today said it will take an appropriate decision on the letter from ZEE Network, seeking permission to start a parallel league. "The president, BCCI, Sharad Pawar has received a letter from Mr Subhash Chandra, ZEE Television, seeking permission to start the Indian Cricket League. An appropriate decision in this matter will be taken by the board," BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah said in a media release. (more)

Bangladesh?s ETV resumes broadcasting as ban ends
From Media Network Weblog. Posted March 30 2007, 4.37pm
A private Bangladesh television channel banned four-and-a-half-years ago for alleged political bias has been allowed to resume broadcasting by the new interim government, officials said. Ekushey Television (ETV) was taken off air on 29 August, 2002 after the broadcasting authority under then-prime minister Begum Khaleda Zia accused it of showing programmes that were biased towards her [...] (more)

BBC and BSkyB lose rights to FA Cup coverage
From Media Network Weblog. Posted March 30 2007, 12.21pm
The English Football Association (FA) has confirmed newspaper speculation that UK commercial broadcaster ITV and pay-TV company Setanta will be its exclusive UK broadcast partners for the four-year period from August 2008 to July 2012. The announcement follows the conclusion of a bidding process for a range of FA events, including the core broadcast properties – The FA [...] (more)

Record hits for Sky Sports website
From SkyDigi Online. Posted February 9 2007, 12.53pm
January 2007 was a record month for the Sky Sports website beating its previous best set back in August 2006. (more)

BBC Sport Announces New Deal for the Masters
From Merry Media. Posted October 27 2006, 10.47pm
BBC Sport has renewed its contract to broadcast exclusive, live television coverage of the world's most prestigious overseas golf tournament – the Masters – from Augusta, Georgia.. (more)

Dutch radio listening figures for August/September 2006
From Media Network Weblog. Posted October 19 2006, 12.22pm
The Dutch radio listening figures for August/September 2006 were released this morning by research bureau Intomart GfK. Market leader Radio 538 has gained 0.4% in market share, while second-placed Radio 2 has remained static, so Radio 538 is now comfortably ahead by one percentage point. Most stations saw very little change from the July/August shares, but [...] (more)

Setanta to show Premier League matches on Digital Terrestrial TV in UK
From Media Network Weblog. Posted October 10 2006, 11.40am
Irish pay-TV company Setanta, which owns the right to broadcast English Premier League soccer matches from August 2007, said yesterday it would offer a subscription channel on the digital terrestrial TV platform Freeview. Setanta won the rights to show 46 top-flight English soccer matches per season for three years in May, while British satellite TV [...] (more)

Freebie Watch: August 2006
From Press Gazette. Posted September 14 2006, 12.00am
It’s surely only a matter of time before newspapers start giving away wallpaper sheet-by-sheet... (more)

War and terror in August fail to attract extra readers
From Press Gazette. Posted September 14 2006, 12.00am
The war in Lebanon, the alleged airport terror plot and the Tommy Sheridan libel trial ensured August was anything but the normal “silly season” for news. (more)

National newspaper ABCs: sales slide across the board in August
From Press Gazette. Posted September 8 2006, 12.27pm
The war in Lebanon and the 'foiled terror plot' failed to give a boost to national newspapers, today's ABC figures have revealed. (more)

Standard and Star get best of August newspaper market
From Brand Republic. Posted September 8 2006, 12.09pm
LONDON - A mostly flat August for national newspaper circulation was bucked only by 4% rise for the Evening Standard and the Daily Star and a 2% fall for The Guardian in the latest ABC figures. (more)

August newspaper ABCs out today
From Media Guardian. Posted September 8 2006, 1.00am
The latest ABC newspaper circulation figures will be on MediaGuardian.co.uk from 12pm today. (more)

Red-top sales heat up in August
From Media Guardian. Posted September 8 2006, 1.00am
August ABCs: This summer's airport chaos boosted the tabloids during a traditionally quiet month. By Stephen Brook. (more)

China announces digital TV standard
From Media Network Weblog. Posted September 2 2006, 2.12pm
China has chosen a standard for terrestrial digital TV broadcasts, opting for a domestically developed system over foreign technology. The standard will become mandatory for Chinese broadcasters on 1 August next year, the China Daily said. China is the world’s biggest television market, with TV sets in an estimated 400 million households. Along with 3G mobile [...] (more)

TV ratings: August 30
From Media Guardian. Posted August 31 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: Sharon Osbourne's ITV1 chatshow lost a fifth of its audience on its second day. By Tara Conlan. (more)

SMG Reject UTV's Merger Proposal
From Merry Media. Posted August 29 2006, 3.08pm
The board of SMG have rejected the revised merger proposal from UTV due to it being unacceptable with regards to the market values of both SMG and UTV, SMG's prospects and the value of its portfolio of assets. UTV made the proposal wit SMG receiving only a 52 per cent equity interest in the combined entity. At the same time, the board of SMG explained its view on these factors to UTV and indicated its willingness to meet to discuss with the board of UTV whether a potential merger on mutually acceptable terms would be possible. On the 22nd August the board of SMG received a revised merger proposal from UTV under which SMG shareholders would receive only a 52 per cent equity interest in the combined entity.. (more)

TV ratings: August 28
From Media Guardian. Posted August 29 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: ITV1's Love Island finished much as it begun - with disappointing ratings. By Jason Deans. (more)

BBC launches FM frequency with tailored programme for Moldova
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 23 2006, 5.49pm
The BBC celebrates Moldovan Independence Day on Sunday, 27 August with the launch of multilingual broadcasts and a new current affairs programme for its Moldovan audiences, Actualitatea în Republica Moldova (Moldova Today) all on a new frequency - 97.2 FM. Actualitatea în Republica Moldova is a new 15 minute news and current affairs programme from BBC [...] (more)

TV ratings: August 22
From Media Guardian. Posted August 23 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: Fewer than 4 million viewers watched ITV1's coverage of Liverpool's Champions League match, which was beaten by BBC1's Holby City. By John Plunkett. (more)

Soviet troops plundered Czechoslovak Radio building in August 1968
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 22 2006, 10.48am
Yesterday, 21 August, was the 38th anniversary of the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Soviet troops. For the first time, a Czech daily newspaper, Mlada fronta Dnes, has revealed some details of what happened inside the Czechoslovak Radio building that was occupied by the troops. Citing documents stored in Prague’s National Archives which have never been published, the paper [...] (more)

TV ratings: August 21
From Media Guardian. Posted August 22 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: The true story of the attempted abduction of Princess Anne in the early 70s drew less than half the audience of BBC1's Silent Witness. By John Plunkett. (more)

TV ratings: August 18-19
From Media Guardian. Posted August 21 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: Big Brother went out in style while ITV1's The X Factor returned with 7m. By Leigh Holmwood. (more)

Vietnam radio broadcasts first M?Nong ethnic language programme 19 August
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 20 2006, 12.11pm
Text of report in English by Vietnamese news agency VNA website Dak Lak: Radio the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) launched its first broadcast in the M’Nong ethnic language on 19 August. The M’Nong-language broadcast, the eleventh service of the VOV for ethnic minority groups, will be aired six times a day at 6020KHz SW (short wave), [...] (more)

Thailand: Met FM drops BBC, VOA news in favour of more music
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 18 2006, 4.17pm
Excerpt from report by Thai newspaper Bangkok Post website on 17 August MCOT [Mass Communication Organization of Thailand] PLC yesterday signed an agreement with four major music labels, aiming to increase the popularity of its relaunched Met FM 107 radio station. President Mingkwan Sangsuwan said the company had come to an agreement with EMI Records, Sony BMG [...] (more)

Radio Netherlands to launch on Sky EPG 0205 on Monday 21 August
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 17 2006, 2.40pm
We’re pleased to confirm that RNW2, the 24-hour English stream of Radio Netherlands, will become available to Sky Subscribers and free-to-air satellite viewers in the UK and Ireland from Monday Morning. Sky have just confirmed that we will be on channel 0205 on the EPG. For satellite viewers in the coverage area of the Eurobird satellite at 28.5 [...] (more)

TV ratings: August 16
From Media Guardian. Posted August 17 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: England's 4-0 victory over Greece attracted more than 7 million viewers to BBC1. By Jason Deans. (more)

TV ratings: August 15
From Media Guardian. Posted August 16 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: The One Show, BBC1's attempt to recreate the success of early evening magazine show Nationwide, saw a slight dip in its audience on its second outing. By Mark Sweney. (more)

Match of the Day Returns to BBC One
From Merry Media. Posted August 14 2006, 2.07pm
Match of the Day returns to BBC One on Saturday nights for the start of the 2006/2007 Premiership season on 19th August. Bringing the football to life and presenting the pick of the action from every one of the day's matches will be Gary Lineker, while regular pundits Alan Hansen and Mark Lawrenson will provide viewers with their unique brand of expert analysis and candid opinion. They will though have a new colleague alongside them this season - former England and Newcastle United captain Alan Shearer. John Motson, Jonathan Pearce, Steve Wilson, Simon Brotherton and Guy Mowbray will commentate.. (more)

Dutch Internet station remembers 14 August 1967
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 14 2006, 9.24am
Today, the Dutch organisation Stichting Norderney is marking the 39th anniversary of the closure of most of the British offshore radio stations on 14 August 1967. The Internet radio station Veronica192.nl is carrying special programming, including at 1000-1300 UTC the entire last three hours of Radio London (Big L) as originally broadcast. The whole day there [...] (more)

TV ratings: August 13
From Media Guardian. Posted August 14 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: Dawn French's new BBC1 series about women in comedy got off to a good start, pulling in 4.5m viewers. By Leigh Holmwood. (more)

BBC Shropshire TV's Spiritual Search
From Merry Media. Posted August 11 2006, 3.03pm
BBC Shropshire TV has been on a mission to seek out people and places from around the country, in an effort to gain an insight into the spiritual make-up of the county. A week long series of films goes out between Monday 14th August and Sunday 20th August, examining faith and religion in modern society. The week of programming looks into people and places in Shropshire that have a strong spritual character.. (more)

TV ratings: August 7
From Media Guardian. Posted August 8 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: ITV1's Love Island could not sustain Sunday night's jump in ratings, slumping back to just 2.2 million viewers. By Leigh Holmwood. (more)

Gala inks �2m deal to sponsor Sharon Osbourne show
From Brand Republic. Posted August 4 2006, 1.08pm
LONDON - Bingo chain Gala Bingo has signed a �2m deal to sponsor Sharon Osbourne's new talk show 'Mrs Osbourne Presents' starting on August 29 on ITV1. (more)

TV ratings: August 3
From Media Guardian. Posted August 4 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: BBC2's new lineup had mixed success, with Dragons' Den scoring well while comedies disappointed. By Leigh Holmwood. (more)

Sudan: Lakes State TV to be restored
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 3 2006, 3.46pm
Excerpt from report in English by Paris-based Sudanese newspaper Sudan Tribune website on 2 August Plans are underway to revive the Lakes State TV station which was ravaged by war and fell into disuse since the liberation of Rumbek by the SPLA forces in 1 July 1997. The TV station dates back to the late 1970s when [...] (more)

Bectu applauds Allen's ITV departure
From The Stage. Posted August 3 2006, 12.15pm
He has yet to officially confirm his resignation but already ITV's biggest union Bectu has welcomed news that chief executive Charles Allen is set to stand down at August 9's board meeting. (more)

TV ratings: August 2
From Media Guardian. Posted August 3 2006, 1.00am
TV overnights: Gordon Ramsay came out on top in the 9pm ratings battle on a strong night for Channel 4. By Jason Deans. (more)

Allen to step down next week
From Media Guardian. Posted August 3 2006, 1.00am
Why August 9 is D-day for ITV - chief executive Charles Allen will confirm his resignation next week, but will takeover bidders come in? By Dan Milmo. (more)

BARB Issues Blueprint for Future Shape
From Merry Media. Posted August 2 2006, 3.55pm
BARB is issuing its blueprint for the future shape of the service on August 1st 2006 - the 25th anniversary of the start of reporting of viewing data by BARB. As part of its formal process for awarding its new research contracts (to start January 2010) BARB is making available its 'Request for Proposals' document to potential suppliers. Proposals and indicative tenders will be received in December 2006. Invitations to tender are expected to be issued in spring 2007, for final tenders in summer 2007, with the award of contracts planned for the end of 2007.. (more)

Tajikistan denies FM broadcast licence to BBC
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 2 2006, 2.34pm
Excerpt from report by Tajik news agency Asia-Plus website Dushanbe, 2 August: The TV and Radio Committee under the Tajik government has denied the BBC company in Tajikistan a licence for resuming its programmes on FM in Dushanbe and Khujand. The first deputy chairman of the committee, Abdurahmon Abdumannonov, told Asia-Plus that an official letter containing [...] (more)

Radio Uruzgan.FM launches for Dutch troops in Afghanistan on 8 August
From Media Network Weblog. Posted August 2 2006, 10.01am
Uruzgan.FM, the daily radio show for Dutch troops in Afghanistan jointly developed by Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW) and domestic public network 3FM will launch on 8 August. The one-hour programme at 1400 UTC will be sent via satellite and rebroadcast locally on FM in the four Dutch military camps in Uruzgan. The programme will also be broadcast on local radio stations [...] (more)

Alhurra to begin broadcasting to Europe
From Media Network Weblog. Posted July 25 2006, 5.49pm
On August 1st, Alhurra will become the first 24/7 Western Arabic-language television network broadcasting to Europe, with the launch of Alhurra Europe on the Eutelsat Hotbird 3 satellite system (13 deg E) on channel 190. The new channel will provide Arabic-speaking viewers in Europe with the popular news and information programming currently available throughout the [...] (more)

Charlotte Church in Her Own TV Show
From Merry Media. Posted July 21 2006, 2.22pm
Charlotte Church takes to the streets to fool members of the public in her very own tv show for Channel 4 - The All New Charlotte Church Show. The show starts in August and will see comedy sketches, celebrity guests and hidden camera clips with the public beingcaught out at all sorts of behaviour. 20 year old Church hosted an episode of Have I Got News For You when she was only 17.. (more)

ABC Asia Pacific to relaunch as Australia Network
From Media Network Weblog. Posted July 10 2006, 3.31pm
Australia’s international TV service, ABC Asia Pacific, is to relaunch on 7 August under the new name of Australia Network. Although it will continue to broadcast many of the same programmes, the schedule is being revised and will include new additions. Launching during August will be Focus, a brand new current affairs programme airing Tuesdays and Thursdays [...] (more)

100%NL starts tonight shortly after 2200 UTC - website to be launched in mid-August
From Media Network Weblog. Posted July 7 2006, 3.27pm
New Dutch commercial radio station 100%NL will begin broadcasting shortly after midnight Dutch time (2200 UTC) tonight. Programming will start once the main FM transmitters have been switched over to the new satellite feed. These main stations can be switched quickly, but some of the smaller transmitters will take a bit longer. It’s anticipated that [...] (more)

'Wossie' in trouble over the 'T-word'
From The Independent. Posted June 25 2006, 12.00am
The BBC was forced on the defensive last night after senior Conservatives attacked it for broadcasting "disgusting" remarks about Baroness Thatcher by Jonathan Ross. (more)

I turned off Motty, too
From The Independent. Posted June 18 2006, 12.00am
The appointment of Roger Mosey as head of BBC Sport last August did not go down well with the strapping, front-row types in the Sports division. They wondered how a man nicknamed "Mr Blobby", an obviously cerebral former head of BBC Television News known for his fascination with politics, could blend into the macho world of sports journalism. It didn't help that Mosey seemed to want to shake up BBC sports coverage. (more)

August chill beckons as advertising slips at ITV
From The Times. Posted June 14 2006, 12.00am
ITV'S flagship channel is heading for a dismal August, as media buyers say that the broadcaster's advertising bookings are down about 17 per cent.... (more)

German operators start TV-to-mobile phones experiment
From Media Network Weblog. Posted May 30 2006, 9.22am
Germany's four mobile phone operators yesterday began trials of broadcasting television pictures, including coverage of World Cup football matches, on handsets. Clients of T-Mobile, Vodafone, O2 and E-Plus with specially equipped phones will be able to receive television programmes and 16 radio stations until August 31. The pilot project is only being operated in the cities of Berlin, Hamburg, (more)

Allen to give MacTaggart lecture
From Media Guardian. Posted May 10 2006, 1.54pm
12.45pm update: ITV chief executive Charles Allen will deliver this year's MacTaggart lecture at the MediaGuardian Edinburgh International TV Festival in August. By Ben Dowell. (more)

Setanta mulls Freeview football
From Media Guardian. Posted May 5 2006, 7.19pm
Setanta may offer live Premiership football via Freeview for the first time from next August having secured two packages of matches. By Ben Dowell and Chris Tryhorn. (more)

Edinburgh TV festival seeks screen stars for training scheme
From The Stage. Posted April 24 2006, 12.50pm
The Edinburgh International Television Festival is looking for upcoming TV talent to take part in its Fast Track training initiative in August. (more)

Nearly half of Finnish households ready for digital TV
From Media Network Weblog. Posted April 18 2006, 12.46pm
Almost half of Finnish households have purchased a digital television adapter or a digital television, the Finnish transport and communications minister said in a statement today. According to the Finnpanel survey, about 975,000 households were ready for digital TV, up from 830,000 in November-December. Analogue television broadcasts are to cease in August 2007 and have already done so in the (more)

Five set to launch women's lifestyle channel in August
From Brand Republic. Posted March 24 2006, 9.03am
LONDON - Five looks set to launch a women's lifestyle channel this August, which would see it go up against Living TV, making it the final UK terrestrial broadcaster to expand into the multichannel market. (more)

Why the future is bright for UK TV formats
From The Independent. Posted March 20 2006, 12.00am
If Peter Bazalgette had approached American television networks about buying Ready Steady Cook and Changing Rooms in the early 1990s, he believes they would not have given him the time of day. At the time, Britain was seen as a parochial programme maker. But all that changed in August 1999 when the US version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire was an overnight success. Suddenly, the Yanks were in the market for British formats and Endemol's chief creative officer flogged his shows. (more)

The day ‘Disgusted from Tunbridge Wells’ took over the news room
From Press Gazette. Posted March 16 2006, 12.00am
On Monday BBC South East opened its doors to 14 members of the public to produce the day’s key television and radio news programmes. Caitlin Pike joined them (more)

BBC rapped for accident report
From Press Gazette. Posted January 12 2006, 12.29am
Ofcom has upheld in part a complaint of unfair treatment by BBC South East Today in its coverage of a fatal car accident on 11 August 2004. (more)

BBC4 - Welcome to the sanctuary
From The Independent. Posted January 1 1970, 12.59am
Let's get one thing straight from the start - I am a Celebrity Big Brother fan. In its undeniably malevolent way, I believe the show produces the sort of unpredictable, closely observed psychodrama that most television dramatists can only fantasise about. And in sparking protests in Westminster and on the streets of Mumbai by people who have never even watched the show, it is as salutary as Tom Wolfe's The Bonfire of the Vanities. On the other hand, I can fully understand why many cultured viewers agree with Ken Russell and have turned away in disgust. For such as these, Big Brother is symptomatic of the more general disappointment they feel about Channel 4, a broadcaster that started out promising bold, sophisticated programming, and has ended up with Jade Goody haranguing a Bollywood starlet over the correct use of stock cubes. (more)

Thompson fights to keep Masters coverage on BBC
From The Independent. Posted January 1 1970, 12.59am
Mark Thompson, the BBC's director general, flew into Augusta yesterday in a personal attempt to stop the green jackets from handing away yet another of the corporation's sporting gems. (more)