To thyself be true
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Connie, Thank you...:o}I hope you mean Tarot, astrology is just my hobby..:o}
No offence taken it really is for entertainment purposes and sometimes that is all we have especially with this stock....lol
I have seen things turn around on a dime in business myself, nothing is surprising in business. It is true for big as well as small businesses. One little click in the right direction will start the snowball rolling. Look at Apple they were at deaths door (even if they were a huge company at the time). Here comes little ole iPod and throws them in to the stratosphere....:o} There are many more examples like that. Same with publicity, one day you are a dog next you are the Top dog....lol
No offence taken it really is for entertainment purposes and sometimes that is all we have especially with this stock....lol
I have seen things turn around on a dime in business myself, nothing is surprising in business. It is true for big as well as small businesses. One little click in the right direction will start the snowball rolling. Look at Apple they were at deaths door (even if they were a huge company at the time). Here comes little ole iPod and throws them in to the stratosphere....:o} There are many more examples like that. Same with publicity, one day you are a dog next you are the Top dog....lol
Enjoy it I did say it is FOR ENTERTAINMENT....... or don't read it......I don't add controversy anywhere in life, there is enough of that stuff everywhere. Let someone catch you doing something good for someone else.....:o}
For entertainment purpose only....:o} Here we go......
QBID'S 10th. Tarot Reading 5-6-2006
The Cut:
Success comes with a combination of two businesses or people connected to a culture or cultural thing.
1.There is going to be some kind of a financial uplift, but there is a little confusion of which way to go. This crossroad is connected to an unsure decision. There will be a need for some reconstruction.
2. Whoever is responsible is going to feel like saying "eeny-miny-mo", until they check something out. They either have to go to a knowledge base or speak to someone they know who has the knowledge, because they themselves have been in the same position at some time.
3. Something is going to be undone it will be both a positive as well as negative situation. To overcome a problem the ultimate outcome will be more important.
4. There is probably something painful that we have to go through, but it may not necessarily be financial for us investors, but the company will have to through it financially. Could be with employment matters.
5. The culture thing came up in the form of image of the company. There is something that "fuzzies" up the picture, like when someone smears vaseline on a lens, it won't be totally clear right away so everyone has to exercise patience. This is coming from before, presumably Frank's shenanigans.
6. A plan will be worked out to solve it. There will be lots of curiosity how it is going to work out, like necks are stretched to see over a fence. This plan will have to be secure with lock and key and nobody can jump up and down until it is finished.
7. This situation should be handled with lots of caution and secrecy, it can't be revealed until completely done. This will definitely benefit QTN.
8. Meetings regarding research into a situation from the past, that results in a clean sweep of some misinformation.
9. The company is not worried about the share account, they want to move the "Karma Wheel or the Wheel of Fortune" forward. There are other decisions that are more important right now.
10. Improved gains in finances. There are going to be articles or write ups written about QTN that are sounding very generous. They can put you down, but they can also uplift you, and that is what it is going to sound like - uplifting.
11. There is confusion where QTN wants to end up and that is why they want the freedom, while there are problems, to make decisions without restrictions. This gives QTN the flexibility to make moves that will be best for the company.
12. Long term I feel shows are going to be reconnected, because nobody wants to get rid of them, even if they have been dormant for awhile.
13. There will be a feeling of relief and support from those who like the programs,
even from the outside of the investor's community, where people "come out of the woodworks" so to speak. They feel QTN is needed. Watch the write-ups.
14. Even when QTN come out of this tough call, there is a slash that won't heal so fast. The memory will not fade so easily. People are going to be much more aware and grateful of QTN's success, than if it had gone in a straight line to the sunny side of the street.
There you go QBID longs....;o}
http://www.gxpress.com/qbidastro/qbidtarot.html
VDC IPTV Service Review-IPTV is going to be a hot acronym when it comes to mobile entertainment. Short for Internet Protocol Television, it's a catch-all phrase used to describe live on-demand television services, in this case on a computer. VDC has launched such a service that it hopes will help it carve out a nice section of this high growth industry.
How it Works
The VDC service is a browser-based system compatible with Windows machines and Windows Mobile based PDAs and smartphones (Mac support is expected later this year). VDC Live uses Windows Media Player embedded in the browser to play the streaming video. The quality is remarkably good, even at lower bitrates. The player even works in full screen mode with few artifacts, which is better than other video services we've tested. Programming is also available through VDC's proprietary "peel-and-stick" viewer, or virtual television set, that can be placed anywhere on the PC desktop, allowing television to stream while surfing the net or using other computer programs.
PC interface, the previews on the right are live action (view large image)
VDC Content
The limiting factor right now though with this service is the content. You're not going to see much in terms of brand name content, though VDC hopes to change this as they grow. At the moment they offer: AP Global Newswire, AP News Bytes, Fashion TV, MavTV, The Pentagon Channel, NASA Television, Q Television Network (QTN), Men's Outdoors and Recreation, Healthy Living Channel, iDrive, Resort & Residence Channel, High Definition Demo, Adrenaline Nation TV, Video Game Channel, Resi Moovie Classics, QVC, ShopNBC and Celebrity Shopping Network. VDC is also close to rolling out a few branded channels exclusively for Windows Mobile PDA and smartphone users including TLC, Discovery Channel and BBC America. Those channels should be live at the end of next week.
The service costs $11.95 per month, which for the content listed above, is a little pricey. VDC knows this though and is working extremely hard to bring on more mainstream content providers. From what I understand a primary hurdle is content licensing, which is why you're going to see channels like TLC on the PDA exclusively right now. TLC doesn't have online distribution rights to all of the programming they air, however they do have rights to distribute to mobile devices. It is important to note though that VDC does not charge extra for their PDA content; that is included in the service fee.
Bitrate options and capture of the NASA channel
The VDC service is also available anywhere you can get online, something that makes it more flexible than something like MobiTV, which is geared toward PDA and smartphone users only. VDC is also easy to install and use, a core advantage it has over something like Slingbox, which requires additional hardware and a dedicated client to view the video.
Conclusion
Mobile entertainment services like VDC are going to be important as users demand more access to programming while on the go. While VDC's content offerings are a little thin, they do offer tremendous quality in an easy to use interface, with PDA/smartphone access for free. It's definitely worth checking out; they currently offer a few channels for free, like NASA Television, that showcase the quality of the service.
Good old times..lol
FROM THE DESK OF FRANK OLSEN – AUGUST 16, 2001
As CEO/President of Triangle Multi-Media Limited, Inc., a publicly-traded Washington Corporation (NQB-Pink Sheets, QBID); the following information is provided for shareholders, subscribers and as a response to recent statements made by individuals with their own agenda or alternative motives to harm and destroy the Triangle Television Network (TTN) before it even launches.
First, let me provide you with our mission statement. Our goal is to provide affordable, high-quality gay and lesbian programming for the gay and lesbian community. All TTN programming and products will always focus on meeting the wide-variety of needs and interests required to entertain, educate and inform the gay and lesbian community. The company is to be run primarily by gay and lesbian staff, but we are an Equal Opportunity Employer and include everyone.
We are not asking anyone to buy QBID stock. If anyone should ever decide to buy a penny-stock, any financial advisor or manager will always remind the person never to invest more in a penny-stock company, including ours, than that person can afford to lose in Vegas. This is a development stage venture and should be viewed and treated as such. The shareholders who invest in and buy QBID stock should feel comfortable with these facts.
Since the inception of Triangle Multi-Media Limited, Inc, over $7 million of cash and guaranteed obligations has been invested in both the company (QBID) and the launch and broadcast of TTN. Of this money, 79 percent has come from private investors, 17 percent has been raised from sales of product and advertising and 4 percent has come from the sale of stock. With $5.5 million of cash and personal guarantees invested by the primary operators of both companies, you know they will do everything possible to make it a success.
The following is provided to address the questions regarding the relationship of Co-Media, Inc (a private Nevada company) and Triangle Multi-Media Limited, Inc (QBID). Co-Media, Inc. is the investment and banking entity funding and guaranteeing contracts, leases and obligations on behalf of Triangle Multi-Media Limited, Inc. Co-Media, Inc is owned by the private investors who have provided the $5.5 million in cash and guaranteed obligations to fund both QBID and the launch of the Triangle Television Network. They will continue to back QBID until it can stand on its own. Please view Co-Media, Inc as the investment banker for QBID because this relationship is similar to what most all companies have with their investment bank or funding source.
Triangle Multi-Media Limited, Inc (QBID) has a 100 percent ownership in the Triangle Television Network. There is a security agreement on behalf of Co-Media which provides for all past, current and future funding.
The launch date for TTN remains September 5, 2001. Once TTN launches with programming for the gay and lesbian community and we begin to grow both our subscriber and sponsorship base, I believe people throughout the gay and lesbian community will be pleased. Also, I believe our legitimate investors and shareholders will be pleased.
All subscribers will receive the first 30 days of TTN for free. Call your local cable or satellite provider to request the Triangle Television Network so you can receive the channel and your free 30-day trial subscription. Watch TTN and then give us your opinion. The only thing we ask of subscribers and shareholders is to give us a chance to get on the air.
If you have any questions or concerns, please email me on frank@triangletelevisionnetwork.com
Looking forward to seeing you on the air.
Frank Olsen
CEO/President, Triangle Multi-Media Limited, Inc.
CEO/President, Co-Media, Inc.
------------------------
The History of the Triangle Television Network
In 1993, Frank Olsen, the initial founder of the Triangle Television Network (TTN), developed an idea to broadcast a nationwide television network with programming focused on providing entertainment, information and education for the gay and lesbian community. With Frank’s diverse background, as an owner of television and radio stations as well as several other gay-related businesses, many believed he was the perfect person to make this enterprise a reality.
During the early stages of due diligence, Frank approached business leaders and different broadcast entities to begin building a business model for the network. A vast majority of the people that were approached believed the concept had merit.
In late 1993, Frank received private placement funding to begin developing programming, locating a studio, and finding the distribution mechanism needed to broadcast TTN. The goal was to have the network on-air by 1995. At this point, Frank and the other co-founders began a journey with numerous twists and turns that demonstrated the complexity of broadcasting a nationwide network with niche programming for the gay and lesbian community. TTN was offering a subject specific format that was different and more volatile than many of the other niche channels that were beginning to hit the airwaves in the 90’s. The co-founders of TTN learned quickly that coming up with good ideas was easy (good ideas are a dime a dozen), but implementing ideas into reality was the hard part.
When the co-founders began the process of getting TTN on-air, shows such as “Ellen” and “Will and Grace” had not been developed. Showtime was airing “The Brothers” series with moderate success. The nation and our military were wrapped up in “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”. Both the national and local broadcast and print media rarely covered “gay” related stories and issues. The only consistent coverage of “gay” stories was regarding HIV/AIDS.
During this early period (1993-1996), when the co-founders were pursuing the objective of launching the network, both the broadcast and the print media were just beginning to discover that covering “gay” related stories was viable subject matter. They were winning viewers and readers, not losing them. The backlash was minimal. Slowly but surely, an entire demographic group was being discovered by not only broadcast and print media, but also corporate America.
Even though the launch of the Triangle Television Network was privately being greeted with enthusiasm by prospective investors, advertisers, and broadcasters, the reality was that the network faced enormous obstacles related to distribution, development of programming and the sale of advertisement. Throughout mainstream and corporate America, the value, awareness and acceptance of the gay and lesbian community and market was gradually increasing. However, few companies or individuals were willing to openly support or pursue this demographic group. In 1994-1995, the timing for TTN was not quite right, but the co-founders still believed this was a project worth pursuing.
In 1994, TTN hired several employees to both find and develop programming for the network. Under the initial business model, our objective was to have one-third of our programming produced by the network, one-third would come from existing product, and the other third would be provided by independent, gay and lesbian producers.
During our search for programming, we learned that a number of programming ideas and scripts had been sitting on the shelf for years. However, they were never acted upon because a viable distribution mechanism was not in place to justify the cost of production. As we began to pursue existing programming, we were surprised to find a number of programs available. Initially, most of the programming we were finding was produced for broadcast on Public Access channels, and the quality was very disappointing. From the beginning of TTN in 1993, we set an objective that both the programming and the advertising standards for the Triangle Television Network would always adhere to the highest broadcast standards.
We continued to aggressively look for existing programming, and we discovered that the BBC and a station in England had been producing high quality, gay programming for about a year. TTN started the contracting process for about 400 hours of fresh programming per month.
We always knew TTN would be a premium channel. Frank Olsen understood many of the aspects of operating a premium channel because of his previous experience with a premium channel, The Movie Channel, before it was sold to Showtime.
Having TTN as a premium channel meant that we were effectively providing a “double-lockout” situation for the general public. First, the viewer would have to be a subscriber to the satellite system or digital cable system. Then, the TTN viewer would have to specifically request our premium channel. All the satellite systems and digital cable systems offer a program lockout function that acts as a third level of screening for people not interested in viewing TTN. The signal can be transmitted to someone’s home without the knowledge of anyone. Unless you ask for it specifically, you’ll never know that gay television is being broadcast. TTN should not be intrusive for those that would not enjoy it, but it should be available to subscribers who would enjoy gay and lesbian television in their home, office or business.
As we began to pursue our distribution mechanism, the first place we turned to was cable. In 1994-1996, a vast majority of the cable systems only had room for thirty or forty channels. As we began discussions with numerous cable companies, we learned the extent to which many of these cable companies were operating with local municipalities under franchise type agreements. The local communities and politicians had enough say as to what programming was to be aired on the local cable system that we quickly understood how fragmented our distribution would be. Clearly, in many parts of the country the opposition to carrying a gay and lesbian channel using limited cable channel resources was enormous. Without nationwide coverage, the business model would not work. Using cable as a distribution mechanism in 1996 would not allow for nationwide coverage for TTN. This was very distressing. There had to be another solution.
The other solution quickly surfaced in the form of satellite broadcast. DIRECT TV, PRIMESTAR and ECHOSTAR/ DISH were just getting their assets up and running with a much greater channel capacity than cable. Satellite television gave TTN the ability to have gay and lesbian programming broadcast nationwide, without local controls to fragment and limit our distribution.
As we began to pursue contractual agreements with the satellite companies, we soon discovered that they too were going up the learning curve in both understanding the potential number of new viewers TTN would bring to their subscriber base, and in appreciating the enormous spending power of this specific demographic group. Additionally, the satellite distribution industry was undergoing several corporate mergers and changes of ownership that further extended contract negotiations. As a result of these issues, TTN continued to communicate and negotiate with the various satellite broadcast companies for 6 years.
The co-founders still strongly believed that the premise of the TTN business model was sound and that the gay and lesbian community was a niche group just waiting to have a broadcast entity they could call their own. Our resolve was still strong, yet the timing was not quite right.
In 1998, with the advent of digital cable nationwide, the competition for both customers and programming between digital cable companies, and the remaining two satellite distribution companies, was heating up. Additionally, the national and local broadcast and print media was accelerating their offering of entertainment and news related to the gay and lesbian community. The coverage wasn’t just HIV/AIDS anymore. The gay and lesbian community was now beginning to be portrayed as a demographic group that had value, importance, and purchasing power. With the environment shifting in our favor, the co-founders strongly believed the launch of TTN was not only viable, but imminent.
In 1999, the co-founders of TTN opened their offices in Palm Springs, California. The 12,000 square foot building included a complete broadcasting and production studio with uplink and downlink capacity.
From our offices in Palm Springs, the Triangle Television Network has been developing strategic partnerships with program providers and advertisers in order to provide quality programming while generating strong loyalty from our subscriber base. TTN has received oral and written commitments from a number of entities and individuals pertaining to, (i) providing advertising, and (ii) licensing feature films to TTN as part of the process of acquiring and producing programming for the network.
Moving forward to 2001, “Ellen” ran for several seasons and “Will and Grace” is a successful sitcom. HBO, Showtime and Sundance are beginning to broadcast gay programming. Recently, Bravo devoted segments of an entire week for its first “OUT” festival for the gay and lesbian community. Both the local and national television networks and print media are providing extensive coverage on a wide range of topics related to the gay and lesbian community. Gay programming is now being produced everywhere. Gay producers, directors and actors are looking for a home to air their programming. The late 90’s have truly turned out to be “THE GAY 90’s”.
Finally, the timing is right. After 8 years of putting forth significant resources and energy, TTN now has a contractual agreement to begin broadcasting the Triangle Television Network, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. TTN is ready to roll.
-------------------------------------
http://triangletelevisionnetwork.com/" target="_blank">http://web.archive.org/web/20020527062447/http://triangletelevisionnetwork.com/
This is not the ADR I posted before, but look at this little Pinkie...lol It is possible to have a stock over 1 dollar on the Pink Sheets.
A 140-year-old Swiss-based Nestle SA (NSRGF dot PK: Quote, Profile, Research) , the world's biggest food maker, lists its American depositary receipts on the system -- avoiding U.S. exchange filing rules.
NESTLE SA CHAM ET VE (Other OTC:NSRGF dot PK)
Last Trade: 256.00Trade
Day's Range: 256.00 - 260.62
Trade Time: Jul 22-05
NESTLE SA CHAM ET VE (Other OTC:NSRGF dot PK) Delayed quote data
Last Trade: 293.25
Trade Time: Apr 13-2006
Change: 0.00 (0.00%)
Prev Close: 293.25
As the world’s major incumbent telcos respond with IPTV deployments of their own, the full potential impact of IPTV is becoming clear...............
The success of IPTV to date demonstrates that telcos have a compelling consumer proposition, but the need to differentiate services is becoming more pressing. A growing emphasis on content and marketing is certain. And if powerful broadcast networks like direct-to-home satellite can add two-way interactivity, then it is imperative that telcos minimise the cost of delivering each TV stream to the home. It will not be enough just to deploy networks that can support next-generation, high bit rate video services; they must be able to scale cost-effectively to provide a competitive platform from which to operate. ..............
2006 is the year of next-generation video services like HDTV, more hybrid multiple access networks and the beginning of the fightback from cable and satellite. Nobody really expected the world’s most powerful media companies to stand-by as their core television businesses were threatened. Now that IPTV has established itself as viable technology and a real business, and is proving a genuine threat to the established video order, the real battle is about to begin. Are you ready?
http://www.iptv-forum.com/2006
What is IPTV?
April 24, 2006
By Corey Kronengold
Jay Amato, Viewpoint alum and managing partner of PersonalScreen Media, defines IPTV vs. VOD and answers other questions about this emerging medium.
Jay Amato, former president and CEO of Viewpoint, is a managing partner at newly formed PersonalScreen Media. The company aims to deliver original entertainment to consumers, along with more effective ways for companies and advertisers to promote their goods and services to a growing audience of consumers who demand movies and programming "anytime, anywhere." Its first original "television-quality" series, "In Men We Trust," is set to premiere on May 1.
Corey Kronengold: There's a lot of confusion about IPTV and VOD and WebTV. What is different about them, particularly for the end user?
Jay Amato: You hear a lot about IPTV, but technically speaking, IPTV is a very specific thing. It's not just video on the internet as we know it.
If you look at it, there's internet TV, interactive TV, VOD on the web and VOD on cable. I don't think that there's a lot of clarity right now about how all these things vary. What they all come down to is more choice for the viewer. IP-driven video allows for a greater sense of interactivity, which is a big benefit for consumers as well.
For the end user, in a traditional VOD environment, VOD is based on a cable TV. Pick a show and watch it and its not affected by commercials. But it's mostly a one-way communication. Ninety-five percent of the people would accept that VOD is still a cable phenomenon.
The true benefit of IPTV is a much more immersive, much more interactive environment. Product placement in TV, being interactive, having more info about characters is something that people have talked about for years.
Kronengold: Is it too new a medium to have a specialized IPTV strategy?
Amato: The people driving advertising, especially for the big brands, are realizing that internet TV has sort of snuck up and become a very big issue. They need an interactive strategy, whether it's for the web or IPTV. And the smart advertisers are embracing -- or at least testing -- this new medium. It's very important for them to experiment with it at this point. The costs aren't like experimenting with TV. It's a great time for experimenting and developing new demographics and coming up with new ways to present products in an exciting fashion.
Kronengold: Video quality on the web varies tremendously. How broad does broadband need to get before video is 'really' good?
Amato: It doesn't need to get any broader per se. It needs to get more stable. In an office or at home, the ability to hold on to a megabyte of bandwidth at any time is not good. All of these low-cost broadband environments-- I'm not sure that they are worried about providing a stable enough environment. But the issue is that they need higher quality broadband so that you are guaranteed a minimum throughput, and then the quality would be quite good.
Kronengold: The last big online video event was the NCAA tournament. Technology aside, did you think it was a quality experience? Or more of a compromise between seeing something you wouldn't normally see?
Amato: It was definitely the latter, and I'm not sure that's how we're going to win viewers on the web.
Kronengold: How did working at Viewpoint help you shape the idea for PersonalScreen Media?
Amato: Coming from the online ad world, we had a number of choices. But we didn't want to be a technology company. While we've got the technology and a great user interface, it's not our core function. We named our company PersonalScreen because it was the right way to talk about what we were doing. Excellent content presented in an interactive and immersive way.
Kronengold: What did you do at PersonalScreen when creating "In Men We Trust" to ensure a better user experience?
Amato: We filmed at high quality so we could show it on a large screen or a small screen. Even our video window is larger than the usual video window to provide a better experience. Ours is 480 x 360. We're trying to go for a quality experience. That is what it is going to take to keep loyal viewers.
Kronengold: What makes "In Men We Trust" different than other sitcoms?
Amato: We didn't just take a 30-minute show and cut it up into seven-minute sections. We've got a whole story arc in a seven-minute period of time. It really allows the users to immerse themselves in the story and walk away with a level of completion as opposed to just taking "Desperate Housewives" and cutting it up.
Kronengold: Are there different qualities that make for a good web program, as compared to TV?
Amato: What makes a good seven-minute episode is like any other story for TV or the movies. You need to have a good story arc that moves you to a natural conclusion of that story or episode. We actually developed our shows in house and brought in people who are writers and they worked together to develop the story. We needed to create that seven-minute environment. Now that we've got that down, we actually have a number of writers and producers pitching ideas for other stories and we have a number of things in development from reality shows to teen programming and we're developing a shooting schedule.
Kronengold: When will the first episodes be ready?
Amato: Our first episodes of "In Men We Trust" will be completed at the end of the month. We're in negotiations now with a number of the large TV networks and their web properties for the distribution of our show.
Kronengold: Are you are offering your programming and your player to other web publishers?
Amato: We are looking at that. We may sign a deal with a TV network for this show because it's a drama/comedy, and that fits into their strategy. But the next show could be aimed at teens and that would be for a different type of property. So we are talking to a number of different publishers about options on distribution of the content.
Kronengold: How do you define PersonalScreen Media as a company? Clearly you aren't another online advertising technology company.
Amato: We are a production company specializing in seven-minute episodic content for the web.
http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/9198.asp
Original PR about GG...
STUPENDOUS BREAKING DEVELOPMENT:---Federation of Gay Games® Chicago Signs $3.2 Million Broadcast Rights Deal with Q Television.
$1.7 Million Cash and $1.5 Million Barter Secure TV, Radio
and Internet Broadcast Rights for New LGBT TV Network
2004-12-03.
http://www.gaygameschicago.org/media/article.php?aid=67
"CHICAGO, IL - Chicago organizers of Gay Games VII today announced the signing of a contract with the California-based Q Television Network (Pink Sheets:QBID) granting the new gay network television, radio and Internet broadcast rights in a deal valued at more than $3.2 million. Gay Games VII Sports and Cultural Festival will take place in Chicago, IL, USA, 15-22 July 2006.
The Q Television/Gay Games VII deal is for $1.7 million in cash plus more than $1.5 million in advertising and programming benefits, making the partnership worth more than $3.2 million, the largest-ever sponsorship of an event for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. The contract, signed Dec. 3, 2004, grants Q Television Internet, radio and television broadcast rights and provides for joint development of Gay Games-related programming, broadcast advertising of the Gay Games from now through 2006, and live and taped coverage of the 2006 Gay Games in Chicago. (All sums are in US dollars.)
As part of the deal, Q Television, a paid cable network, will unscramble its signal during the week of the Gay Games, ensuring broad-based access to the pageantry of the ceremonies, exciting sporting competitions, inspiring cultural and arts offerings, and the warmth and beauty of Chicago. Q Television will also serve as the agent for the worldwide redistribution of television, radio and Internet broadcast rights, allowing for access beyond Q Television's cable footprint, especially in international markets. The media rights sold do not prohibit standard news coverage.
"The Q Television Network is proud to now be the broadcast home of the Gay Games," said Frank Olsen, President and CEO of Q Television Network. "This is a major contract for Q Television. Lesbian and gay sports are a crucial part of the LGBT community and the Gay Games are the worldwide expression of the best in amateur sport. The Gay Games in Chicago will be a monumental event for the worldwide gay and lesbian community and we are thrilled to be the only television network to have an exclusive contract. We look forward to telling the stories of these amazing athletes and artists to our viewers."
"Our partnership with Q Television will ensure international visibility for the Gay Games movement throughout the next two years," said Tracy Baim, Chicago Games, Inc. (CGI) Co-Vice Chair. "With integrated programming scheduled to take place throughout the months leading up to Gay Games VII in Chicago, Q Television Network will earn the title ‘Network of the Gay Games'." CGI's negotiation team included Baim, attorney Gary Medler of Hinshaw & Culbertson, and CGI Co-Chairs Sam Coady and Suzanne Arnold. The broadcast relationship was initiated by Plan B, Chicago's primary corporate sponsorship development firm with offices in Los Angeles, Montreal and London.
Kathleen Webster, co-president of the international Federation of Gay Games, expressed excitement about the deal and the Chicago team. "This is the largest corporate partner ever to sponsor the Gay Games, and we are very excited at how quickly Chicago has secured major sponsorship for Gay Games VII. Having already surpassed corporate sponsorship totals for all of Gay Games VI in Sydney in 2002, CGI is on track to meet or exceed all financial projections," said Webster. Earlier this year, Chicago announced that PlanetOut, Inc. (Nasdaq: LGBT) had become a Premium sponsor of the 2006 Gay Games for $1.06 million, which, until the Q Television announcement, was the largest corporate support for an LGBT sporting event ever.
Foxy-I am sure Fan saw things happening, but like with most of us investors, there is the denial factor, that at least stopped me in my tracks, when I don't want to believe even what I am clearly seeing. I believe he tried to talk sense to Frank, after the shock wore off.
Frank seemed to me pretty headstrong about QTN and had his own vision (possibly crooked-I don't know), but nevertheless probably didn't want to listen to reason.
Then Fan must have woken up to the fact that things weren't getting better and his and his group of investors money was going down the drain and he decided to take over.
My belief is that QTN will make it with good leadership, it has short legs under it (wobbly-yes), but those little stumps can grow bigger...;o}
islandtime-You are welcome, my pleasure..:o} eom
Transition to 3G, IP–based infra keeps system integrator upbeat
By MELVIN G. CALIMAG
The gradual shift of the telecommunications industry into 3G as well as the move of companies to replace their systems with an IP-based infrastructure is keeping systems integrators such as Singapore–based Datacraft excited as these developments assure them that their services will still be eagerly sought.
In a recent visit to the country, Datacraft CEO Bill Padfield said the changing technology landscape in the Philippines is giving system integrators a big reason to be optimistic.
"Although Datacraft is only involved in the infrastructure, 3G is and will be a big driver for our revenue growth," he said, adding that the telecommunications industry comprises 30 percent of its business in the country.
Padfield also sees the trend of migrating among companies to an IPbased system, just like what PLDT is doing, as a change necessary in making the convergence of divergent technologies.
He said in other countries, households no longer just use their TV sets to watch their shows, but also as an answering machine, telephone, or as computer to connect to the Internet.
"A lot of things that you’re doing here in the Philippines, especially in the mobile telecommunications, is world-class," he said. "But I think IPTV could very well be the killer application that would push technology to the homes."
Padfield said this phenomenon is now being felt in countries like South Korea where there’s now real convergence of fixed and mobile networks that is fueling growth for operators and content providers.
"As companies go IP, we feel that the market is coming to us," the official said.
While the deployment of IP-based infrastructure has not gone full-blast yet, Padfield said Datacraft’s main revenues sources are banks and telcos who outsource "managed services" to Datacraft.
In a statement, the company said it has doubled its profit for the first quarter of its financial year 2006. Compared to the same period last year, the figure was up 100 percent to .2 million – the highest in 13 quarters.
As for the Philippines, Padfield said he was "pleased" with the performance of the local office under its current country manager, Sonia Magpily. The company did not release local revenue figures.
A member of the Dimension Group, Datacraft is listed on the main board of the Singapore Exchange and is a component company of the Straits Times Index. It has 50 offices and 1,200 employees across the Asia Pacific region.
http://www.mb.com.ph/INFO2006042462184.html
IPTV use set to rocket
I want my IPTV
William Eazel, vnunet.com 23 Apr 2006
New forecasts predict that the number of DSL subscribers worldwide will grow from 97 million in 2004 to 256 million in 2009, at a compounded annual growth rate of 21 per cent. Market research house, Research and Markets, believes that this growth in DSL subscriber numbers will form the base for the growth in IP TV subscribers.
The researcher expects the number of global IP TV subscribers to grow from 4.3 million in 2005 to 36.8 million in 2009, at a compound annual growth rate of 72 per cent.
At present, Europe is leading the market and has higher subscriber numbers, while both Asia and North America have slipped a bit, mainly due to a slower than expected rate of fiber deployment, especially with AT&T in the US. Some service providers in Asia are having difficulty with marketing the service and Research and Markets has tempered its enthusiasm for China a bit.
Meanwhile, in the UK, BT is planning to deliver IPTV services this year.
The telco has joined forces with electronics giant Philips and Microsoft so it can offer combined access to 30 digital terrestrial channels, video on demand and a range of other interactive services using broadband.
The move will put BT in direct competition with satellite broadcasters such as BSkyB, which recently bought internet service provider Easynet.
http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2154560/iptv-set-rocket
Gay Games Visitors Find Gay Chicago’s Best Dining, Bars and Entertainment on ChicagoPride.com
The #1 Online Guide to Gay Chicago Provides Valuable Resource for Summer Visitors
Chicago, IL (PRWEB) April 23, 2006 -- Gays and lesbians planning a visit to the Windy City this summer for the 2006 Chicago Gay Games are encouraged to let popular LGBT website ChicagoPride.com be their guide to gay Chicago.
"If you want to keep your finger on the pulse of the local GLBT community, you've got to check out ChicagoPride.com,” Q on the Move, Q Television Network.
The Chicago-based website (www.chicagopride.com) offers unique content and state-of-the-art technology which has propelled it to become the leading online resource for Chicago’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-gendered community.
Drawing on the expertise of over 40 regular contributors and photographers, ChicagoPride.com provides extensive coverage of “things to do” and “places to visit.” Updated regularly the site offers restaurant and bar listings, reviews and recommendations.
ChicagoPride.com created the first gay and lesbian interactive database of events and businesses allowing visitors to locate comprehensive information and reviews on thousands of businesses, restaurants and bars serving the community. Members are able to search and personalize the events calendar and business directory to create a better online experience.
The site also provides maps, public transportation information and weather.
“Our Lifestyle Tools will make it easy for visitors to find what they need to plan their summer visit to Chicago,” says R. Matthew Inawat, president. “Our team has spent extensive time researching Chicago’s GLBT community and we believe our site offers the most complete information on the internet. We are extremely excited to showcase the vibrancy and diversity of gay Chicago.”
Additionally, ChicagoPride.com has created an online community offering the opportunity for members to search for, meet and communicate with people who share common interests. The ChicagoPride.com Totally Free Personals have quickly grown to become the most popular online dating service for Chicago’s LGBT market.
ChicagoPride.com is an All-Star sponsor of the Gay Games VII Sports and Cultural Festival, 15-22 July 2006.
About ChicagoPride.com
ChicagoPride.com is the leading web-based resource serving Chicago’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. The ChicagoPride.com website, which has consistently been ranked in the top 1% of all websites (Amazon.com/Alexa Data), features event calendars, a popular matchmaker, special interest columns, and a comprehensive phone directory emphasizing local gay & lesbian dining and nightlife. Utilizing real-time data and exclusive web tools, ChicagoPride.com allows organizations and advertisers to better develop marketing strategies to reach Chicago’s GLBT community.
IP TV, Streaming Movie and Music Revenue Set to Explode, Says Insight Research
Friday April 21, 10:00 am ET
BOONTON, N.J., April 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Streaming video and music distributed across the Internet or directly to a mobile handset is fast becoming a mainstream entertainment delivery vehicle that will generate more than $27 billion in network-derived and content-derived revenue into the US markets by 2011, according to a new market research study from The Insight Research Corporation. Streaming media refers to the transmission of digital audio and video files over an IP network or wireless network in real time or on-demand, while prohibiting users from storing the files locally.
Insight's market analysis study, "Streaming Media, IP TV, and Broadband Transport: Telecommunications Carriers and Entertainment Services 2006-2011," describes the technology and market forces underpinning the network-derived revenues generated from distributing streamed content across the public Internet, content distribution networks, cellular networks, or telco IP networks. The study also estimates the revenue from the various types of content-derived revenues, along with associated advertising revenue. The streaming market is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of nearly 32 percent over the next five years, driven by on-demand audio, on-demand video, as well as the accompanying advertising revenue.
"The US streaming media market has entered a growth phase, meaning it is experiencing realistic and sustainable growth," says Robert Rosenberg, Insight Research president. "The forecasts that we present are conservative and in line with current performance. If, however, per-stream costs drop faster then anticipated, we have quicker acceptance of IPTV, or improvements in 3G delivery take place faster than expected, it could blow the doors off of our forecasts, propelling this industry into explosive growth," Rosenberg continues.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060421/laf009.html?.v=53
Internet TV gets government boost 04/20/2006
The Asahi Shimbun
Despite misgivings of TV broadcasters, the government is promoting infrastructure to distribute programs through broadband, fiber-optic networks using Internet protocol.
Its goal is a nationwide shift from analog to digital terrestrial TV broadcasting by 2011, with IP broadcasting serving areas with poor reception of airborne signals.
Telecommunications companies are behind the effort, with the expectation that the addition of popular terrestrial programming will stimulate demand for online services through fiber-optic networks.
But regional TV stations are concerned that Internet broadcasting may overturn the long-standing industry setup.
The broadcasters, which are licensed to serve a single prefecture, are concerned that they will lose viewers if IP broadcasters are allowed to offer programs of TV stations outside the prefecture.
Lower viewership would debase advertising revenues at regional stations.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications has allocated about 1.8 billion yen in its fiscal 2006 budget to accelerate experiments in transmitting digital terrestrial programming to households using IP technology.
In February, the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, an independent administrative agency, conducted a demonstration of high-definition video transmission to multiple locations, primarily through fiber-optic networks.
The technology will be used for distribution of digital terrestrial TV programs over the Internet.
The communications ministry expects distribution of standard-quality digital TV programs to begin by the end of this year, at the earliest, and commercial distribution of high-definition versions in 2008.
In addition to solving technological problems, the ministry will have to select operators and negotiate cost sharing for installation and management of infrastructure, such as fiber-optic networks.
Unlike airwaves, cable networks have a limited transmission capacity. The ministry's immediate goal is for each household to be able to receive two channels concurrently through fiber-optic networks.
Akira Arima, senior vice president of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp., said users should be informed about the limited capacity of IP broadcasting before they make choices.
Although TV broadcasters admit IP broadcasting will help them achieve their objective of digitizing terrestrial services, their support for the technology is conditional.
"We will cooperate if the government guarantees that IP broadcasters will be licensed to provide their services only within specified areas," a TV station official said.
Behind the cautiousness is the deliberation among the government and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party over reforms of the broadcasting industry.
Under the current regulations, the government is expected to limit licenses of IP broadcasters to certain regions in accordance with prefecture-based licenses for conventional TV stations.
But Satoru Matsubara, who chairs a private panel on telecommunications and broadcasting under communications minister Heizo Takenaka, questions why TV broadcasting service is restricted by prefectural borders.
"I think (regional restriction) hinders technological progress," said Matsubara, professor at Toyo University's department of social economic systems.
IP broadcasting would technically enable residents in areas covered by only two or three commercial TV stations to watch all the programs aired by the nation's five major TV networks based in Tokyo.
The prefecture-based licenses are meant to encourage regional TV stations to provide local information.
However, programming produced by regional broadcasters accounts for slightly more than 10 percent of their total airtime on average.
Some broadcasting industry officials acknowledge that regional stations are merely relaying programming from major networks.
A senior official of a major Tokyo-based network said it is important for regional TV stations to broadcast more original programs.(IHT/Asahi: April 20,2006)
Wednesday, April 19, 2006 Montclair International Film Festival is back at the Wellmont Theatre: — bigger and better than ever
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
By JOAN FINN
of The Montclair Times
Rob Moretti, producer of the Montclair International Film Festival at the Wellmont Theater. Staff photo by Adam Anik.
Film buffs are in for a treat when the Montclair International Film Festival kicks off its ninth season, beginning today, Thursday, April 20, running through Sunday, April 23, at the Wellmont Theatre, at 5 Seymour St. This year’s festival will screen more than 30 selections from 12 different countries, including both feature-length films and shorts.
Taking nearly two years off from the last festival to write, direct and star in his first feature film, “Crutch,” co-founder Rob Moretti of Montclair is delighted with the growth of this year’s event.
“With hundreds of submissions from around the world, we have selected a wide diversity of films,” he told The Times. “We’re sure that there will be something everyone can relate to, with films spanning a broad range of catego-ries, including animation, comedy, drama, horror and foreign projects. Because of the amount of theater and filming that goes on here all the time, Montclair is the perfect community for this type of event.”
Some of the films this year include “Rock the Paint,” starring Douglas Smith (“Citizen Duane,” TV’s “Big Love”), and Kevin Phillips (“The Cookout” and “American Gun”), produced by former Montclair resident Dallas Brennen, a graduate of Montclair High School. The film is about a teenage basketball player from the cornfields of Indiana whose knowledge of race, prejudice and friendship is tested when he is relocated to the tough, urban streets of Newark.
Another Montclair resident, Chris Williams, will debut his feature film, “Bellclair Times,” the story of a racially mixed community in New Jersey — a community with a violent past. Other films include “Glow Ropes,” starring Judy Reyes (TV’s “Scrubs”) and the emotionally charged “Self-Medicated,” based on the life of director Monty Lapica.
Foreign film entries include “Anna und der Soldat,” by director Christian Prettin, from Italy/Germany; “Performer,” by director Olaf Wendt, from the United Kingdom; “Ghost Fleet: The Voyage of Zheng He,” directed by Jonathan Finnegan, from Singapore/New Zealand/China/India/Indonesia; “Ne Gezer Ask Daglarda?” (What’s Love Doing in the Mountains?), by director Unus Emre Firat, from Turkey; “The Last Confession,” by director David Finley, from Canada; and “Space Chase,” by director Daniel Dugan, from the United Kingdom.
This year, the festival has joined forces with the newly formed Montclair Arts Council and the Montclair Center Business Improvement District. “We are excited about working closely with these organizations sharing in the same vision we do — advancing the arts, particularly with the younger generations and in our schools,” the filmmaker said.
Moretti began acting at the age of 16. Within two years of studying his craft, he landed a co-starring role in his first feature film, “House on Tombstone Hill.” Not long after, he landed other roles in both mainstream and indie films such as “Quiet Winter” with Joe Dorsey, “Scenes from a Mall” with Bette Midler and Woody Allen, and “The Beat” with John Savage.
Moretti moved to Montclair in 1992 because of his love of the arts. “To me, Montclair is like New York City, but without the stress of urban life,” he said.
In 1994, he created his own production company, HP Productions. Since its inception, Moretti has produced a number of short films, the most memorable and rewarding being, “Evil & Upside Down” with Will Arnett (TV’s “Arrested Development”).
The Montclair International Film Festival started in 1995 with a small pull-down screen and a few folding chairs in the basement of the Park Street Studios. Today, it has expanded to a movie theater setting, screening more than 30 films from around the world.
Moretti decided to put the festival on hold for a few years to write, direct, produce and star in his first feature film, “Crutch.” Within one year, the film opened in New York City at the Quad Cinema and aired exclusively on the Q Television Network. The film placed fourth in the country for “Highest Grossing Films Per Screen” on its first week-end. In the summer of 2005, “Crutch” was released nationwide on DVD. Most recently, the film spent three weeks in the Top 50 DVD Rentals in the United States. “Not bad for a low budget movie,” Moretti said.
The success of “Crutch” also helped to expand HP Productions, the parent company of the festival. Over the past year, HP has branched off into several different divisions, including HP Releasing, a home entertainment and theat-rical distribution company, and Parabox Media, a movies, music and video games e-retailer.
One of the most exciting additions to festival will be that one feature and short film will receive a Distribution Agreement from HP Releasing, a new division of HP Productions. “Since our last event, we have grown as a company, due in part to the enormous success of my film, ‘Crutch,’ Moretti. said. “Spending three weeks in the top 50 DVD rentals in the U.S. earlier this year didn’t hurt either. We expect to make several other exciting announce-ments during the remainder of the year having recently attracted capital. This has allowed the company to develop solutions for the independent filmmaker to problems which have hurt the domestic growth of the industry and impeded the ability to finance films in the United States,” he added.
“I never went to film school,” Moretti told The Times. “I learned the craft from being on film sets and in movies since the age of 16. I feel the best way to learn something is to experience it as you go along. Growing up on my own, I didn’t have the funds nor the means to go to film school. So my basic training in film work was in ‘doing.’”
And from the continued success of HP Productions and the Montclair International Film Festival, it seems that Rob Moretti is a filmmaker, who spends his time “doing” — “doing” things right.
The 9th Montclair International Film Festival will be held April 20 through Sunday, April 23, at the Wellmont Theatre, 5 Seymour St. Thursday: starting at 1:30 p.m., 25 short films playing. Friday: starting at 2:30 p.m., 25 short films playing. Saturday: starting at 2 p.m., 4 feature films playing. Sunday: starting at 1 p.m., 3 feature films playing. Admission is $10 per series or feature film; $25 for a Day Pass with access to all films playing that day; $40 for a Two-Day Pass with access to any two days of films playing that day; And $75 for an All-Access Pass, with access to any film on the four days of the festival. Tickets may be purchased online at www.montclairfilmfestival.com.
Contact Joan Finn.com at finn@montclairtimes
THROWING TV A CURVE BALL by John Burfitt
Mathieu Chantelois, host of reality TV's search for a male model, Coverboy
TWO NEW, ALL-QUEER TV CHANNELS HAVE BEEN LAUNCHED ON SUBSCRIPTION TV'S SELECTV. THEY HAVE BEEN A LONG TIME COMING.
Pay TV was first introduced to Australia in 1995, and within months there were predictions of dedicated queer TV channels being broadcast 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Eleven years later those predictions have finally come to fruition with the launch of two new TV channels, screening from the United States and Canada. Q Television Network (QTN) is broadcast directly from the USA, while Out TV is packaged from Canada.
The two new channels are part of the Curve TV package (available for $24.95 per month) on the newest player in the Australian subscription TV market, Selectv.
Selectv’s chief executive, Jim Blomfield, admits launching the two channels is something of a risk, but believes it is a move which is long overdue in the Australian TV market.
“People have been speculating about this all along, and it should have been done a long time ago,” Blomfield says. “I openly admit that I don’t know enough about it [the queer TV audience], but we do know there is a huge market there and we should be addressing it.
“Selectv does a whole group of niche pay-TV channels, like foreign language and small English channels, and we looked at the gaps in the market. That is how we came up with the idea of Curve TV.”
Among the established North American hits of the Curve TV programming schedule are morning talk show Brunch, same sex couples’ weddings on I Now Pronounce You, variety and music with On Q Live, the cult-hit travel show Chris & John’s Road Trip, drag diva Crystal Lite’s own The Crystal Lite Show, and the search for the next hot male model with Coverguy.
At this stage, neither channel on Curve TV will screen any Australian content, but Blomfield believes it is only a matter of time before subscriptions numbers will provide the economic support for production of local shows. He estimates Curve TV will attract an audience of 10,000 subscribers within three years.
“We view this as the beginning of a journey,” Blomfield says. “I hope it leads to more relevant and more specific input from Australia, but to begin with, these are readily produced channels which offer a range of content.
“The question has always been, can you get enough content to sustain channels for the GLBT audience, and from the experience we have seen in the US and Canada, it is possible. What we are seeing on QTN is very good, and Out TV is a little edgier.
“We have had good discussions with QTN in particular to understand the GLBT community in Australian and they see huge potential for local production. By the time of next year’s Mardi Gras, we would certainly expect to be a part of it.”
For more information visit the Selectv website.
Lots of markets for content in the future-China mobile TV market
DAB backers to kick start China mobile TV market
Junko Yoshida
EE Times
(04/18/2006 12:38 PM EDT)
PARIS — A meeting this week in Beijing is being staged by promoters of the Digital Audio Broadcast (DAB) standard who have invested heavily in China and are now seeking to drum up market volume and a return on their investment after years of DAB technology development.
The World DAB Forum is staging an international DAB conference in the Chinese capital on April 20-21.
Although the DAB-based digital radio market is taking off in the U.K., skeptics note that the standard still remains U.K.-centric. The DAB group is hoping it will catch on in China via mobile TV applications.
Two different mobile TV specs have already emerged within the family of DAB standards: Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (DMB) and DAB-IP.
Last December, South Korea rolled out the first commercial mobile TV broadcast services based on the Terrestrial-DMB standard. Still, many chip vendors and handset manufacturers acknowledged they are developing DMB solutions that target the Chinese market.
Bhaskar Banerjee, strategic business manager at Analog Devices Inc., said, "We've been looking hard at the DAB market because we know that DMB will be much bigger than DAB." ADI is rolling out its Blackfin DSP core-based T-DMB solution this year.
For now, chip companies want design wins in Korean mobile TV handsets because they know Korean cellphone makers will start exporting them soon. Korean phones are expected to initially dominate the Chinese T-DMB market. Samsung Electronics has agreed to supply 500,000 DMB phones to two major Chinese DMB operators, according to the World DAB Forum.
DAB technology developers in the U.K., including RadioScape Ltd. and Frontier Silicon, are also helping Chinese broadcasters build their DMB infrastructure. RadioScape has been quietly working with Chinese broadcasters over the last two years to advance DMB. John Hall, CEO of infrastructure and receiver developer RadioScape (London), said it has systems installed at nine locations, including Beijing Jolon Digital Media Broadcasting, Shanghai Oriental Pearl Group and Guangdong Yue Guang Digital Multimedia Broadcasting.
Frontier Silicon announced an alliance on Tuesday (April 18) with Factum Electronics, a supplier of head-end solutions for DAB and T-DMB, to supply Chinese broadcasters with broadcast solutions for mobile TV and digital radio.
How soon and how fast Chinese consumers embrace DMB, however, remains unclear.
It is still unclear if China is committed to T-DMB for mobile TV broadcasts. Instead, different Chinese provinces and cities appeared to be making ad hoc decisions. Some have been more eager to dabble in DMB than others.
The World DAB Forum noted that China is conducting DMB trials as well as commercial rollouts. The group said Guangdong Mobile Television Media plans to launch commercial DMB services in May. Beijing Jolon Digital Media Broadcasting Co.'s also plans to introduce commercial services in May with coverage reaching as many as 15 million viewers. Jolon has also been working with manufacturers Blaupunkt, Lenovo and JVC to develop DAB/DMB receivers.
zandant-Good thinking-fantasy is great.lol.eom
Have a series 7.., and a Wholly Owned Subsidiary company (QTN) is controlleded by Triangle Multi-Media, Inc. The trade symbol is QBID.PK. That's BS about Richard trading, he works for Triangle MM aka QTN/QBID.PK.
Do you have Series 7?
Formula to be happy in your investment, with minimum of pain.
If QBID becomes successful no problem.........:o}
You can rant and moan every waking hour of every day, all year(s), that QBID is going down the tube and be unhappy for years and thus mess up the rest of your life in the process. Same scenario if it doesn't happen, you can just go on with your happy life (that you didn't bitch away)......:o} You are a winner either way!!!
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http://www.usabilityviews.com/simply_google.htm
Hi StockUp WHEN are you coming back??? Miss you!
Especially for Satellite.... April 18, 2006 08:00 AM US Eastern Timezone
DG2L to Unveil Industry's First Hybrid High Definition DVB-IP Set-Top-Box; Neuron 2000 Redefines Home Entertainment for Broadcasters and Network Operators; New Hybrid to be Unveiled at NAB 2006
NAB2006
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 18, 2006--DG2L Technologies today announced the upcoming availability of Neuron 2000, the first high definition (1080i) hybrid set-top-box that supports both Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) and ATSC broadcast services as well as Internet Protocol (IP) standards with H.264/AVC compression support. Designed for high performance and bandwidth efficiency, the Neuron 2000 enables broadcasters and network operators to leverage both traditional one-way broadcast as well as two-way interactive IP delivery.
The Neuron 2000 is the second in a series of DG2L's line of Neuron set-top-boxes based on the MPEG-4 compression standard. The new hybrid box also supports advanced interactive television services, such as personal video recording, a required feature for next-generation set-top-boxes.
"The Neuron 2000 is already generating tremendous excitement among broadcasters and network operators," said Ankur Sheth, CEO of DG2L Technologies. "Both traditional broadcasters and IPTV network operators have been asking for a more efficient means of delivering high definition TV and other advanced programming to the home, and are looking to AVC compression to provide the solution for the next decade and beyond. With the Neuron 2000, DG2L is responding to industry demand with a sophisticated AVC-based solution that sets a new standard for TV-centric home entertainment."
Neuron 2000 Hybrid Redefines Home Entertainment Experience
Hybrid boxes such as the Neuron 2000 are expected to become an increasingly important product for satellite television service providers and terrestrial TV broadcasters who want to deliver interactive services, such as video-on-demand, along with broadcast programming, as well as cable television system operators looking to expand their programming pipes into the home. The Neuron 2000 was developed in response to terrestrial broadcaster and video services network operator demand for an advanced set-top-box capable of layering IP-based content delivery on top of traditional broadcast pipes. It is an acknowledgement of the growing importance of multiple program delivery pipes into the home.
For consumers, the deployment of the Neuron 2000 will mean a broader array of high definition programming, everything from sports to movies concerts and other cultural events, by effectively doubling the bandwidth available to broadcasters and network operators. It will also give them access to a vast assortment of on-demand programming enabled by the use of IP network delivery.
Why AVC?
AVC stands for Advanced Video Coding and is a digital video codec standard that is known for achieving the highest level of data compression. AVC is the latest version of MPEG-4 and contains new features that compress video much more effectively than older standards without compromising image quality. Service providers prefer AVC over other compression standards because of its superior performance and cost savings that result from an increased number of HD channels that can be carried within the same bandwidth for the same price.
Neuron 2000 Builds on DG2L's Success
The new Neuron 2000 builds on the strengths of the company's original Neuron set-top box. It includes the following new features and services:
-- H.264 (AVC) HD as well as MPEG-2 decoding for efficient bandwidth HD programming services. By supporting new AVC-based HD programming services, the Neuron 2000 will deliver crisp images using half the bandwidth of current MPEG-2 compression.
-- Simultaneous DVB/ATSC and IP networks support enable content delivery over traditional broadcast and IP connections through the same set-top-box. Hybrid DVB/ATSC-IP boxes address the growing role IP networks are playing in entertainment content delivery to the home.
-- Built-in digital Personal Video Recorder (PVR) capabilities enable advanced programming recording for all network operators and broadcasters, as well as virtual VOD services for satellite and digital terrestrial service providers. Personal Video Recorders will soon become a required feature on virtually all set-top-boxes deployed by network operators globally.
DG2L at NAB 2006
DG2L will showcase the Neuron 2000 at the National Association of Broadcasters Convention 2006 in Las Vegas, April 24-27, 2006 in the AVC Alliance Stand, South Hall 2, Booth SL1976. DG2L will also offer a hospitality suite for private demonstrations at the Hilton Hotel, North Tower Suite, #23121. To schedule a meeting for a private demonstration at NAB 2006, please contact Matt Mckee; matt.mckee@dg2l.com.
Availability
The Neuron 2000 is shipping in sample quantities and is scheduled to be generally available in June 2006.
About DG2L
Founded in 2001, DG2L Technologies Inc. is a premier provider of next-generation digital media products, including digital cinema systems, set-top boxes and broadcast encoders for video services network operators. The company is one of the first in the world to engineer technology solutions based on MPEG-4 compression for high definition as well as standard definition content creation, distribution and playback. DG2L is headquartered in New York with offices in Tokyo, Beijing, Taiwan, Singapore, Mumbai, Changsa, and ChongQing. For more information about DG2L, please visit www.DG2L.com.
For customers interested in learning more about Neuron 2000 and DG2L products:
Global customers: 212-332-4370; sales@dg2l.com
United States Only: 831-251-1592
IP Entertainment Starting To Rock
David Richards - Tuesday, 18 April 2006
Leading digital lifestyle research group Park & Associates claims that the recent announcement that Walt Disney will offer programs for free from their Website is a large step forward for the adoption of IP video delivery.
It is also a boost to the role that the home computer will play in aggregating and displaying entertainment content, the projected growth of multimedia networks, and a shift in advertising toward a more targeted, user-focused means of delivery.
The research group claims that the announcement immediately enhances the broadband-connected computer as an alternative entertainment hub in the home – further diminishing the hegemony of the traditional TV and set-top box pairing. Video entertainment is increasingly a personal experience, with one person filling the "two-foot experience" with simultaneous instant messaging, e-mailing, Web surfing, and video viewing. For people who suppose that consumers will find the home computer an inferior entertainment platform, they have clearly not witnessed a teenager "consume" a Media Center PC, time slicing between its many functions. These many capabilities, on the other hand, could take a large bite out of the time spent in front of the HDTV in the living room.
The fact that popular programming is available online immediately puts the broadband providers into the primetime program delivery business as users find yet another justification for their broadband subscriptions. Despite the great appeal of DVRs, the ability to call up one's favorite programs anytime without having previously recorded them gives consumers with even greater control. We certainly don't believe these developments will cool consumers' enthusiasm for the TV experience in the living room, but we do see that the cable companies and satellite providers will have to work hard to prevent further erosion of time logged on the couch.
Of course this announcement gives a nice lift to Microsoft's Media Center PC, Hewlett-Packard's push of the entertainment PC (ePC), and Intel's Viiv™ initiative. While we are still hesitant to predict a PC acting as a media server in every living room, the availability of compelling and high-quality video content from the Internet will serve as a driver for consumers to consider – at the very least – directly linking a multimedia PC platform to a digital television display to enhance the viewing experience.
Advertising as Infotainment
The ABC/Disney announcement further opens the door for an advertising model that should be highly palatable for consumers. The company will offer viewers a choice of advertising formats – traditional or "game-like." Targeting features will enrich the advertisements – the viewer will log in via the portal, enabling a middleware application that will take his or her viewer profile and position advertising the viewer is actually interested in watching. It stands to reason that the combination of highly qualified prospects and happy viewers will equal strong advertising revenues.
The success of Disney's experiment hinges on the satisfaction of both consumers and advertisers. Disney is trialing with fewer ad minutes per episode (down from 15 minutes per hour to only three minutes) and longer form (one minute in duration) to avoid audience fatigue. At the same time, however, the company can charge higher ad rates due to higher targetability and accountability for Internet-based ads than traditional broadcast ads.
The first two months of experiments will be crucial for building advertisers' confidence in this new advertising opportunity. If successful (depending on each advertiser's internal goal), we are likely to see steeper cuts on traditional TV ad spending from major advertisers from the automobile, food, pharmaceutical, and beverage industries. We don't know the expectations of advertisers but speculate that they will be happy if the demand exceeds the aggregate viewership of a couple of cable channels (2-3 million).
The Role of the Middleman
Walt Disney, the last major movie studio to start working with Movielink, has been looking to chart its own path into new media. Disney harbors some significant ambitions for controlling a large amount of IP content, and it views the migration to digital as its chance to really re-write the rules to its advantage. Its relationship with Moviebeam, video content sold on iTunes, and this most-recent announcement are all examples of how the company is seeking to establish a more direct relationship with consumers, cutting the middlemen out in the process, whether those middlemen are the cable or satellite TV providers, aggregators such as Google or Movielink, or their own affiliates.
Choices, Freedom, Control
Prior to 2006, as we were mulling the potential growth of broadband-delivered video services, we recognised that the video creators and owners would act with greater expediency to 1) get their compelling content to IP channels; and 2) think flexibly in terms of the business models applied to it. After all, leaders in the entertainment industry learned a painful lesson about what the impact of Net piracy can be to the music business, and the studios desired a more proactive approach and at least experiment with their own IP deployment models. Disney's foray into ad-supported IP content is just one of what we expect to be many similar announcements through the course of this year.
And, whether the "winning" model turns out to be $1.99 one-off downloads, a $15.99 subscription, a $20 download-to-own offering, or an ad-supported free view, one finding resonates most strongly with us. In our groundbreaking Global Digital Living™ research of approximately 10,000 consumers in 13 countries spanning North America, Western Europe, and Asia-Pacific nations, consumers told us that they place a higher premium on content services that provide them with more choice, flexibility, and convenience. And we believe that they will pay – either with their local currency or their eyeballs on advertisements – for such services. Either way, we'll learn much from Disney's experiment.
Watching the Nervous Little TV Networks
More articles by Kenneth Musante
More and more TV networks are releasing their video content online for free. AOL’s In2TV is showing a ton of vintage Warner Bros. TV shows, and CBS is showing on-demand episodes of Survivor. And while I give them all my heartiest golf clap for their efforts, it still seems to me that they’ve only stuck their collective big toes in the waters and are afraid to take the cannonball dive into the lake.
It’s obvious to anyone that the future of video is distribution via some form of the Internet. It’s not just traditional TV advertising that’s dying; it’s TV itself. It‘s not just about ratings and statistics. Video distributed over the Internet is interactive, engaging, and on-demand. While the Internet pipes aren’t yet big enough to warrant direct streaming of HD-quality TV shows, TV networks should at least be preparing for the day when their primary business of broadcasting content over the airwaves becomes pushed aside by the distribution of content over IP.
With today’s online advertising technology, it should be possible to serve appropriate video ad segments according to a person’s viewing habits, how they found the video in the first place, where they are located, and what content is contained in the show. Advertising over the air, or even via cable is too static. All you can do with them is estimate the number of viewers by a score determined by a third-party rating service. In other words, a targeted video advertisement delivered via IP is worth more per second than a 30-second spot delivered to a broad, un-targeted audience via TV.
There’s also been the move to sell downloaded TV episodes as premium content. Nearly all of the major networks are selling shows on iTunes. But seriously, how many people are going to pay $1.99 for an episode of Welcome Back, Kotter? It makes much more sense to distribute older content for free, and incorporate some sort of contextual video advertising system.
Most of the newer video content that TV networks are distributing online appears after the initial TV release. This May Disney will release Lost, Desperate Housewives, Alias, and Commander in Chief available online a day after their initial TV broadcast. I presume they’re trying to avoid pulling viewers away from their TV sets, thus reducing ratings and lowering TV ad revenue. It’s an acceptable transition strategy, since TV is their primary business, but any delay longer than a week or so not only means the loss of potentially valuable online ad revenue, but it also encourages piracy.
People want to watch their favorite shows as soon as they’re released. The longer the delay between the release of a show on TV and the release of a show online, the greater the window of opportunity for would-be video pirates to re-purpose the TV content and make it available online themselves. TV networks need to focus on phasing out TV advertising as their primary business and focus on the more potential Internet advertising. To do that, they need to release their TV content (with advertising) as close to the TV airdate as possible, with as high a quality as possible. If a viewer can watch or download a high-quality version of a particular show via a TV network’s official website, why would they waste their time downloading some shoddy video with a questionable bit rate and unknown codec ripped from TV or DVD?
The TV industry’s slow transition to online makes sense if you consider their commitments to the traditional broadcast, cable, and satellite platforms. But their still sluggish movement towards online means there’s plenty of room for a small agile start-up network to trounce them all…if it can get in there fast enough.
Tags: IPTV, TV and video on demand
This section is heating up April 17, 2006 09:55 AM US Eastern Timezone
April 17, 2006 09:55 AM US Eastern Timezone
EWAN Files Patent to Protect Proprietary Technology in Advance of Broadcasting Its First-to-Market IPTV Global Programming
SANTA ANA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 17, 2006--EWAN 1 Inc. (Pink Sheets:EWAN) has filed an application with the U.S. Patent Office to protect its proprietary technology to its unique Triple Play DMC set-top box. EWAN will launch their Global Internet television service over the EWAN Network, at the IPTV show, "IPTV & Beyond," April 19, 2006, at the Marriott Del Mar, San Diego, CA. EWAN retained an intellectual rights specialist to submit the appropriate filing, which covers the computerized engineering developed by EWAN's wholly-owned subsidiary, CoCom.
Scott Kettle, EWAN's President, observed: "Our DMC set-top box is one of the first wireless set-top boxes on the market, with features unmatched by any of our potential competitors. For instance, EWAN believes that it is the first company with the ability to deliver Internet TV with the clarity of high definition to our subscriber's TV sets, negating the need to purchase an actual High Definition TV set and screen. We will begin delivering multiple channels of "On Demand" content delivered to our subscribers via any DSL or broadband connection beginning April 19th, 2006, and, as far as we know, we will be first-to-market, and the only global Internet TV network."
Direct Connect, a wholly owned EWAN subsidiary, will provide traditional broadcast television, as well as local stations on an a la carte basis, allowing subscribers to pick and choose only those channels they are willing to pay for. EWAN's set-top box includes Internet, telephone service (VOIP), data and video capability, and subscribers will be joining a new, private, exclusive TV network at a cost of approximately one-third of that now charged by existing cable or satellite companies.
Infonetics magazine reports that IPTV is set to skyrocket to 53.7 million subscribers and $44 billion in service revenue by 2009, and that the number of IPTV subscribers in North America will increase 12,985% between 2004 and 2009. According to IP Television Magazine - In the 1st quarter 2005, there were: 2.1 million IPTV users worldwide.
For demonstration, email CEO@eWAN1.com. Please furnish name, address, and office telephone numbers. http://www.ewan1.com
For Further Information on EWAN 1, Inc., contact: Michael Selsman @ Public Communications Co., 310-553-5732, or ms@publiccommunications.biz, or Brass Bulls Corp., Marc Lovito 1-866-342-2700.
EWAN (http://www.eWAN1.com) specializes in broadband network solutions including high-speed Internet access, data, gaming, voice and video services, utilizing the most advanced network design and architecture in the industry, based on building its telecommunications network "on top" of major metropolitan fiber optic interconnection points within class 'A' carrier facilities, and by incorporating the fastest, most reliable, redundant and scalable hardware available. At present, EWAN is the only midsize ISP offering "wire-speed" networking in every device, at every access point.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this news release may contain "forward-looking" information within the meaning of Rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Act of 1934 and are subject to the safe harbor created by those rules. All statements, other than statements of fact, included in this release may include forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.
Contacts
For EWAN 1, Inc., Santa Ana
Public Communications Co.
Michael Selsman, 310-553-5732
ms@publiccommunications.biz
or
Brass Bulls Corp.
Marc Lovito, 1-866-342-2700
FYI-IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) describes a system where a digital television service is delivered to subscribing consumers using the Internet Protocol over a broadband connection. This service is often provided in conjunction with Video on Demand and may also include Internet services such as Web access and VOIP where it may be called Triple Play and is typically supplied by a broadband operator using the same infrastructure. Perhaps a simpler definition would be television content that, instead of being delivered through the traditional format, is received by the viewer through the technologies used for the World Wide Web.
In the past, this technology has been nearly impossible with slow dial-up download speeds inhibiting any form of video content to be received. Now, however, IPTV is expected to grow at a brisk pace in the coming years as broadband is now available to more than 100 million households worldwide. Many of the world's major telecommunications providers are exploring IPTV as a new revenue opportunity from their existing markets and as a defensive measure against encroachment from more conventional Cable Television services.
Architecture
IPTV has two major architecture forms: free and fee based. As of January 2006, there are over 1,200 free IPTV channels available. This sector is growing rapidly, and major television broadcasters worldwide are transmitting their broadcast signal over the Internet. These free IPTV channels only require an Internet connection and an Internet enabled device such as a personal computer, iPod, HDTV connected to a computer or even a 3G cell phone to watch the IPTV broadcasts. Various web portals offer access to these free IPTV channels. Some cite the ad-sponsored availability of TV series such as Lost and Desperate Housewives as indicators that IPTV will become more prevalent.
Because it uses the Internet and sends less information than standard analog or digital television, IPTV promises lower costs for operators and lower prices for consumers. Using set-top boxes with broadband Internet connections, video can be streamed to households more efficiently than current coaxial cable. AT&T and Verizon have both upgraded or plan to upgrade their networks with fiber-optic technology to bring higher speeds across their networks. In addition to higher speeds, Digital Video Recorders (DVR), such as TiVo, will be able to record multiple programs at once and improve current program guides.
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Protocols
IPTV covers both live TV (multicasting) as well as stored video (Video on Demand VOD). The playback of IPTV requires either a personal computer or a "set-top box" connected to a TV. Video content is typically MPEG2 Transport stream delivered via IP Multicast, a method in which information can be sent to multiple computers at the same time, with the newly released H.264 format thought to replace the older MPEG-2. In standards-based IPTV systems, the primary underlying protocols used for IPTV are IGMP version 2 for channel change signaling for live TV and RTSP for Video on Demand.
Currently, the only alternatives to IPTV are traditional TV distribution technologies such as terrestrial, satellite and cable TV. However, cable can be upgraded to two-way capability and can thus also carry IPTV.
Another alternative is (Video on Demand VOD). VOD in the US is usually delivered over cable TV using the DVB protocol and is not labelled as an IPTV service.
[edit]
Advantages
Advantages of IPTV include two-way capability lacked by traditional TV distribution technologies, as well as point-to-point distribution allowing each viewer to view individual broadcasts. This enables stream control (pause, wind/rewind etc.) and a free selection of programming much like its narrowband cousin, the web.
Triple Play is an expression used by service operators describing a consumer package including telephony, data and video. Offering tripleplay on a broadband connection requires the use of IPTV and IP Telephony (Voice over IP, VoIP).
ltesprit-Yup you are right, Internet is still in its commercial first 10 years so it still is in its infancy. Anything that has been working well, someone else have improved it or morfed it into something else. That's how things progress, but in the new era of the Internet the whole world is involved and there are so many different talents that can put their heads together, that progress happens much faster and in bigger leaps. IP has been here too long to go anywhere.
FYI (in case you don't know).
Where Internet Protocol (IP) came from is the addresses couldn't be remembered so easily by the general public (when the commercial part of the Net became viable), so they came up with the domain names. Every domain name actually is a representation of 4 sets of numbers separated by a period.
Some more nice numbers:...Traffic up over a mil since 10 Apr 2006, 05:10 PM EDT
Traffic is for VDC:2,544,481
this is all good.;O}
16 Apr 2006, 012:10 PM EDT
vdc.com
Traffic Rank for vdc.com: 3,836,387
It is really spooky to read my very first QTN Tarot reading, it sure seemed strange at the time....;o}
I don't feel it is strange anymore. Fan and Group will pull it through.
QBID'S 1st. Tarot Reading 10-25-04
1. Frustrated anonymous (like online) religious women (they don't like sex or anyone who does..lol), are going to be the biggest opposition.
2. The foreign Gay male population will be the friendliest. Bringing Gays from many countries together.
3. There are legal issues, looks like this marriage thing can't be pushed by force, it will happen eventually. Still too early for the general population to accept. It will have to stay underground for now, but it will come out. Pandoras box is ajar..lol
4. Lots of money, serious money is going to be made especially longterm. Many have to keep quiet of how rich they are.
Some who misuse it will end up sick in some way.
5. QTN is going to be like a Octopus, it will be in many areas of daily living and entertainment.
6. Very big on the Internet.
More to come..........
http://www.gxpress.com/qbidastro/qbidtarot.html
AOL's Online TV Push Just Starting
April 15, 2006
If you thought AOL was done remodeling itself with the introduction of its new, snappier name, think again! The Internet giant's transformation is just beginning. The company that was once the king of Internet Service Providers is in the throes of remaking itself to be the king of Internet TV, bent in the reality TV and comedy direction.
The CEO of AOL, Jonathan Miller, recently spoke about the company's plans to be a major provider of made-for-Internet television content. Under development right now is a show called Gold Rush, that will engage participants on a treasure hunt with clues on the Web site’s pages that point to locations in America. Mark Burnett, the producer of Survivor and The Apprentice, is developing the reality show.
AOL has also inked a deal with Katalyst Films - the company launched by actor Ashton Kutcher and producer Jason Goldman - to create five comedy series. Each show will reportedly have 20 episodes at the start. This figure is a heck of a lot better than made-for-cable where seasons run short, very short. Take Oz, for example, with some of its eight-episode seasons now available on DVD for a whopping $60-plus a season.
Plus AOL has launched its In2TV site where viewers can catch older TV shows like Alice and Wonder Woman.
AOL's shift in focus no doubt has a lot do to with its slumping number of subscribers and big drop in page hits following the introduction of the broadband age. Once considered one of the largest entertainment portals, AOL's lost popularity in recent history. Whatever AOL's motivations, the plans sound pretty exciting for television viewers.
We all knew that some day the traditional media and the Internet world would end up bumping into each other," Mr. Miller said. "That's really happening now. And once it starts, it goes faster than anyone thinks."
NY Times
I'm expecting we'll all enjoy the ride!
TeevBlogger
Fox Follows Suit On Internet TV
By Brian Cleveland: 2006-04-14
Continuing to do what they do best - steal others ideas and try to get it done before they can - Fox has signed a deal to offer reruns of some of their shows on the Internet. ABC and Disney announced a similar deal earlier in the week as reported here.
The agreement allows Fox to make 60 percent of its prime-time schedule available online the morning after the shows air. This deal encompasses all 187 of the affiliated FOX stations and will essentially get a 12.5 percent cut after costs.
All of the other networks have already announced or played around with offering content on the Internet. ABC will offer four of its most popular shows" for free on an ad-based service, while CBS made the "March Madness" NCAA college basketball playoff games available online, and NBC was the first network offering programs for sale on iTunes last December.
It is about time that all of the networks begin to take advantage of the Internet. People are using legal and illegal methods to be able to view programs that they miss the first time around. It most likely to their benefit to offer this shows on their own services.
Internet TV must tune out obstacles
www.chinaview.cn 2006-04-14 08:23:03
BEIJING, April 14 -- Internet-based television services such as video-on-demand won't be widely adopted in China until 2008, according to new reports from research firms that watch the industry.
The obstacles include uncertain policies, immature technology and high prices, according to research firms iSuppli Corp, Deloitte and International Data Corp.
The Internet-protocol TV user base in China reached 300,000 in 2005 - a huge leap from the previous year's 50,000 but still only a limited portion of the total TV user base of 300 million.
"IPTV is a wise choice for telecom operators to expand their business scope, but it still faces restrictions at present," IDC China analyst Yang Feng said in a new report.
The IPTV market won't develop rapidly until 2008, the researchers said. By the end of that year, the IPTV user base should hit 10 million and reach 23 million by 2010, IDC said. Currently, China Telecom and China Netcom have launched trial IPTV services in Shanghai and in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province.
The State Administration of Radio Film and Television, worried about the convergence of the telecom and media sectors, have issued IPTV license only to media giants such as Shanghai Media Group. As a result, telecom operators have to cooperate with media groups to run IPTV services.
IPTV provides interactive programs including video-on-demand and remote medical, education and videoconference services, all of which depend on high speed Internet access.
High-definition TV programs need speeds of 1 to 2 megabits a second, but most Chinese broadband networks can deliver only 512 kilobits to 1 megabit, industry insiders said.
China Telecom is upgrading its national broadband network and hopes to triple or quadruple Internet speeds by 2008. But speed isn't the only pathway to profits. Content is another key.
"The main challenge for the majority of IPTV operators is that telecommunications carriers are relatively inexperience in selling media services," Deloitte said in a report.
High prices are another problem. The monthly breakeven price of IPTV in China is 85 yuan (US$10.62). Digital cable TV, which provides a huge number of TV channels but without interactive functions, has a break-even price of only 28 yuan.
(Source: Shanghai Daily)
Editor: Helen Mo
Internet TV could revolutionise broadcasting, says BBC's Head of New Media
07 April 2006
The consumer trial of the BBC's Integrated Media Player (iMP) reveals that television over the internet could revolutionise broadcasting, according to the BBC's Director of New Media & Technology Ashley Highfield.
Research indicates that it increased the viewing of BBC programmes, extended peak-time and built loyalty.
Highfield revealed key findings from the consumer trial research of iMP in a keynote speech at Milia, the audiovisual and digital content market at MipTV in Cannes.
During the trial, iMP offered downloadable BBC television and radio programmes on a catch-up basis via the PC to a closed panel of 5,000 triallists for four months between November 2005 and February 2006.
Highfield said: "This research gives us the first glimpse into viewing behaviour in the on-demand future.
"It provides the first significant clues as to how TV programmes over the internet could revolutionise broadcasting, and prompt a wider, cultural shift in television consumption."
Triallists consistently watched on average two programmes a week via iMP during the period of the trial, the equivalent of an hour's viewing per week, despite a limited range of content.
"This is equivalent to 6% of a typical household's BBC viewing in a week," said Highfield. "Consumption was consistent over the period of the trial, and the iMP appealed equally to men and women."
While the main reason for usage was to catch up on favourite programmes, iMP also introduced users to new titles and, in doing so, unlocked the 'long-tail effect.'
"Niche programmes that would have struggled in a mainstream linear schedule performed consistently well throughout the period of the trial," said Highfield.
"While the top five programmes accounted for a quarter of all the viewing, some niche programming performed disproportionately well. The Amazon 'long-tail effect' – seen in the publishing and music industries – indicates that there is significant value in a broadcaster's archive."
The results of the research into iMP will underpin the development of the proposed MyBBCPlayer, which "aims to put the audience in the driving seat" by offering users live streamed television and radio as well as a downloadable seven-day catch-up service of tv and radio programmes.
The launch of MyBBCPlayer will be subject to the necessary public value test and approvals as outlined in the Government's White Paper on the BBC Charter.
(GB)
Research and Markets: This must be the bigger pic.....
The Number of IP TV Subscribers is Predicted to Grow from 3.7 Million to 36.9 Million by 2009
April 05, 2006 12:20 PM US Eastern Timezone
DUBLIN, Ireland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 5, 2006--Research and Markets has announced the addition of IP TV Global Forecast - 2005 To 2009: September 2005 to their offering.
IP TV Global Forecast - 2005 to 2009: September 2005 incorporates the most recent information on IP TV deployments including:
-- The current status of plans by SBC and BellSouth to deploy large IP TV networks in the U.S.
-- The rollout of Verizon's video offering that will use IP TV technology for Video On Demand (VOD) services to supplement its RF based broadband video service over its Fiber to the Premise (FTTP) access network.
-- The introduction of VOD IP TV services by China Telecom.
-- The introduction of VOD services by Atlas Interactive in India.
-- The broad deployment of IP TV services in many countries in Europe.
-- The continued growth of subscribers by the major established IP TV service providers, such as, Free in France, PCCW in Hong Kong, and Fastweb in Italy.
-- A number of new deployments including Belgacom, Softbank BB, KPN, and Telekom Austria are reflected in the forecast.
We are forecasting that the number of DSL subscribers will grow from 97 million on 2005 to 221 million in 2009, a compound annual growth rate of 22 percent.
The number of global IP TV subscribers will grow from 3.7 million in 2005 to 36.9 million in 2009, a compound annual growth rate of 78 percent.
Europe is leading the market. The forecast for North America has decreased due to schedule slips and is now behind Asia. Schedules for SBC and BellSouth have slipped because they are waiting for MPEG-4 set-top boxes and Microsoft's middleware as well the difficulty of integrating IP TV with back office systems.
The global IP TV service revenue forecast is $880 million in 2005 growing to $9.9 billion in 2009, a compound annual growth rate of 83 percent. Of the four regions, Europe and North America are generating a significant amount of this revenue. Asia is generating a lower amount of revenue due to lower average prices.
The forecast for global IP TV system revenue will grow from $774 million in 2005 too $3.3 billion in 2009, a compound annual growth rate of 44 percent. The set-top boxes and the access systems together account for 68 percent of the total in 2009. The other five product categories account for 32 percent of the total in the same year.
The market for IP TV services and equipment will be a strong one with strong opportunities in Europe, Asia, and North America. We expect growth to continue. In addition, the opportunity in the Rest of the World is increasing.
Germany to host 2010 Gay Games
Gay Games officials have announced that Cologne, Germany will play host for the 2010 Gay Games VIII. The city beat bids from Johannesberg and Paris.
The Gay Games has become a sought-after international event by cities worldwide. The 2006 Gay Games VII in Chicago is expected to bring more than 100,000 people and millions of dollars in tourist revenue to the city. “As one of Europe’s most welcoming and diverse cities, Cologne welcomes the international LGBT community, their friends and families, with open arms,” the Cologne bid committee said following the announcement.
The Federation of Gay Games is holding its annual meeting in Chicago this year in part to review plans for the 2006 Gay Games VII, FGG co-president Robert Mantaci announced. “Progress in Chicago is on track with more sponsors, thousands of athletes already registered, and, for the first time, television coverage of a Gay Games,” he said.
In addition, Sir Elton John has signed on as one of the Gay Games Ambassadors.
Outgames, an international LGBT sports and arts festival, kicks off in Montreal one week after the Gay Games close in July. Montreal had originally been selected to host the 2006 Games, but lost the event in a dispute with the Federation over budgetary control.
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