NEWS & VIEWS
February-March 2015
5
www.apb-news.com | FEBRUARY-MARCH 2015 | VOLUME 32 | ISSUE 2
NEWS & VIEWS
W O R L D I N B R I E F
NHK commits to 8K
TOKYO – An NHK board meet-
ing last month has approved the
Japanese public broadcaster’s
three-year plan, which includes
re-affirmation of NHK’s vision to-
wards 2020, when NHK will utilise
“leading-edge” technologies such
as 8K (Super Hi-Vision) to cover
the Tokyo Summer Olympics and
Paralympic Games.
SVoD has limited impact
on pay-TV market
LONDON – Subscription video-
on-demand (SVoD) services popu-
larised by the likes of Netflix and
Amazon will account for a mere
3% of the global pay-TV market in
2015, according to Deloitte. SVoD
should not be considered solely as
a competitor to pay-TV, and will
also struggle to match TV broad-
casters’ investment in brand-new
high-end content, said Deloitte.
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CREATION
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MANAGEMENT
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X-PLATFORM
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Surviving 2015:
Go live to stay alive
by shawn liew
LAS VEGAS – If the CES 2015 show
in Las Vegas, USA, in January was
any indication, 4K Ultra HD (UHD)
to the home seems to be a fore-
gone conclusion.
Manufacturers such as Sony,
LG and Samsung rolled out an
array of dazzling 4K UHDTV sets
that promises stunning immersive
viewing experience.
A major announcement that
came out of CES 2015 concerned
Thailand curbs
media domination
BANGKOK – Thailand’s National
Broadcasting and Telecommuni-
cations Commission (NBTC) has
released a set of regulations gov-
erning M&Es and cross-holdings,
to curb domination of the media
sector. TV and radio licence hold-
ers who plan to take over/acquire
a stake of over 25% directly, or
more than 50% indirectly in an-
other licensed company, would
have to receive NBTC approval at
least 60 days in advance.
DISTRIBUTION
2015 will be the year of “go live to stay alive”, so invest
in OTT as a hedge, says Ideal Systems Singapore’s
Fintan Mc Kiernan (right).
the formation of an UHD Alliance, a
grouping of major industry players
such as Netflix, Samsung Electron-
ics, Sony Visual Product, The Walt
Disney Studios and Warner Bros
Entertainment. They aim to bring
a “true UHD experience” to the
home.
If viewers are ready to embrace
4K UHD, are broadcasters, particu-
larly those in Asia-Pacific, ready
to transmit 4K UHD content? Are
their infrastructure and bandwidth
up to speed?
Device manufacturers are al-
ready manufacturing UHDTV-1
compliance display devices at af-
fordable prices, acknowledged Dr
Amal Punchihewa, director of tech-
nology at the Asia-Pacific Broad-
casting Union (ABU), who remains
optimistic about the prospects of
4K UHD in the region.
He told APB: “Although 3D TV
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DTT will remain relevant for a long time
GENEVA – Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) will re-
main the pre-eminent TV viewing platform in Europe
for the foreseeable future, with current efforts and
achievements ensuring a clear roadmap for the next
10-20 years.
According to a new report released by the Digital
Terrestrial Television Action Group (DigiTAG), DTT is the
primary TV delivery platform for 43% of households
across Europe, and is currently used by 250 millon
viewers.
Somet
i
mes
DigiTAG stated: “Coverage [of DTT] is widespread
with most markets making the DTT platform available
to 98% of the population. DTT is the only platform
that provides a percentage of free-to-air services in all
markets, while in many countries there is an extensive
free-to-air offering.
“Linear television continues to grow while non-
linear and ancillary screen complement traditional
viewing.”
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Mongolian broadcaster Mongol TV
has renewed US drama series such as
Hawaii Five-O from CBS.
Mongol TV
maintains quality
offerings
ULAN BATOR – Mongolian broad-
caster Mongol TV has acquired and
renewed a series of content from
the UK and the US.
From UK-based producer and
distributor ITV Studios Global
Entertainment (ITVSGE), Mongol
TV has picked up the Mr Selfridge
series, while from the US, the
broadcaster has renewed drama
series The Good Wife and Hawaii
Five-O from CBS; The Blacklist and
Downton Abbey from NBC; and
Scandal from ABC.
Nomin Chinbat, CEO of Mon-
gol TV, said: “Mongol TV has been
consistently top in ratings in Mon-
golia by providing our audiences
with the best quality programming
from around the world.
“We are fortunate that CBS, ITV,
NBC, Fox, Disney and Sony provide
us with some of their best shows
for our territory; we appreciate our
ongoing partnerships with them.”