January 19th, London – FOX Sports unveils today #18TOWIN, its first ever global social media activation officially dedicated to promoting the return of the Bundesliga on Friday January 22nd at 8.30pm (Central European Time – CET).

#18TOWIN is a two-week online campaign featuring all 18 Bundesliga clubs in training as some of the world’s best players go up against their own teammates in a hit or miss penalty shootout. Fans vote on social media platforms using the universal language Emoji to predict which players will score, and which players crack under pressure. Once the predictions are in, the results will be revealed on all FOX Sports platforms on Friday February 5th at 5.30pm (CET).

Top players including Marco Reus, Fabian Johnson, Marco Fabian and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are taking part in the #18TOWIN challenge and the hashtag has already reached over 30 million people online.

Exclusive and fun content will be unlocked on Twitter and Facebook for users who submit and share their predictions online. The game allows FOX Sports to engage with new and existing fans all over the globe driving tune-in to the league’s return in an enjoyable, competitive and unique way.

Bundesliga fans in the US, Italy, Netherlands, Latin America and Asia will continue to enjoy some of Europe’s most exciting football from January 22nd on FOX Sports.

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#18TOWIN
www.18toWin.com

For more information / press enquiries:
Antoine Chapuy
+44 (0) 203 426 7126
antoine.chapuy@fox.com
 
Belen Frias
+34 (0) 91 702 26 90
belen.frias@fox.com

ABOUT FOX SPORTS

FOX Sports is FOX Networks Group’s core sports property. The channel is the world’s leading sports television brand, both in terms of distribution and programming rights. FOX Sports is known around the world as an innovator in the areas of live sports broadcasting, news and presentation and has quickly set a new standard of excellence in international markets through its bold production values, engaging commentary and presenters. FOX Sports carries some of the world’s most watched and most sought after sports franchises including the Barclays Premier League, Serie A, Bundesliga, the FA Cup, the League Cup, Coppa Italia, the UEFA League, Copa Sudamericana, the NFL, MLB, and premiere tennis, golf and racing events. The FOX Sports multiplex, which currently include FOX Sports 2, FOX Sports 3, FOX Sports International and FOX Sports Eredivisie, reaches 73 million homes in 88 countries and 8 languages outside of the U.S. It is accessible via SD and HD linear feeds as well as through the authenticated FOX Sports Play app.

19, Jan, 2016 – HBO plans to launch a steaming service in Spain later this year that will compete directly with Netflix.

Bloomberg reports the Time Warner company will retain the exclusive rights to its shows for the service and no longer licence its programming to pay-TV operations in the country.

It also quotes Richard Pleper, the company’s CEO, as saying: “we follow the money. We’re making a determination of where we think the profits must lie”.

Read more at Broadband TV News

19 Jan, 2016 – In yet another of its acquisitions of key niche players in broadcast, Ericsson has revealed plans to acquire FYI Television, the metadata and rich media content supplier.

Based in Grand Prairie, Texas, FYI Television accumulates and distributes TV entertainment content and linear scheduling data from more than 9,000 TV networks daily, aggregating the information into customised formats for various digital, media, content, analytics and print clients for use on their connected devices such as tablets, phones, desktops, Internet portals and gaming consoles.

Read more at Rapid TV News

20 Jan, 2016 – SINGAPORE: FOX Sports Asia is making all 411 matches of the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam event of 2016, available live on its network to tennis fans in Asia.

FOX Sports’s coverage will exceed 200 hours of live in-studio production from Singapore with all matches being shown live across its flagship FOX Sports and FOX Sports 2 channels, as well as on-the-go on the FOX Sports Play app and on online on foxsportsasia.com. Tennis fans will be able to catch multiple matches in a variety of camera angles with the seamless addition of FOX Sports Play offering a seamless experience and unprecedented access across platforms. FOX Sports’s live broadcast will also be complemented by studio shows.

Read more at World Screen

19 Jan, 2016 – A reorganisation designed to offer a simplified and more co-ordinated strategy across BBC Television’s channel portfolio has seen Charlotte Moore appointed Controller, TV Channels and iPlayer.

In the newly created role, Moore – currently Controller of BBC One – will become the creative, editorial and strategic lead for BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Four and BBC iPlayer, ensuring the channels work in a complementary way while enhancing their distinctive positioning.

The reorganisation will support new, creative approaches to programming and scheduling that reflect changing audience behaviour and the growing role of BBC iPlayer, as well as encouraging greater collaboration and allowing simpler movement of ideas and talent across the portfolio. It will also create a more streamlined commissioning system, with a single point of contact and faster decision-making.

Read more at Advanced Television

20 Jan,2016 – When Subhash Chandra left his small-town in Haryana to pursue his dreams in Delhi, he was 20 and had just Rs 17 in his pocket. For the man who later pioneered private satellite television in India, it was by no means an easy journey. But he never forgot what his grandfather Jagannath Goenka wanted him to imbibe: be fearless, stay committed, and never abandon the path of truth.

Read more at Television Post

18 Jan, 2016 – Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) will enter Germany with the launch of a free-to-air (FTA) television channel by mid-2016.

The channel will, for the first time, bring Bollywood films produced by the Indian movie industry as well as popular Indian TV series to German screens, 24-hours a day.

The new channel´s core target group will be females between the ages of 19 and 59. The channel is planned to be available on the most important satellite and cable platforms.

Read more at Television Post

19 Jan, 2016 – Chinese Internet company LeEco, formerly LeTV Holdings Co Ltd, signed cooperation agreements with Beijing Guoan Football Club on Tuesday, to further expand its presence in the nation’s sports industry.

“Le Sports will support the innovation-driven marketization of the club,” said Lei Zhenjian, chief executive officer of Le Sports, a subsidiary company of LeEco.

According to Lei, thanks to LeEco’s Internet ecosystem, die-hard fans will be closely connected with Guoan’s players.

Read more at China Daily

Bermuda, 18tth January 2016 – ABS announced today at PTC 2016 that FSM Telecommunications Corporation (FSMTC) has extended its partnership with ABS for the ABS-6 satellite. FSMTC has contracted additional capacity to provide connectivity to its neighbouring islands in the Micronesia states. The contract follows shortly after the initial agreement in July 2015.

FSMTC currently provides internet connectivity via ABS-6 to support commercial and government entities, as well as serving educational institutions and communities helping economies and giving social benefits. The additional capacity will connect predominantly the Chuuk Atoll region and the rest of the underserved regions of FSM. The service will offer communications for mobile, education and general connectivity access.

John Sohl, CEO of FSMTC said,” We are extending our presence and reach in this region to deliver on our promise to provide affordable connectivity services across FSM. ABS, our preferred partner has supported us and understands our goal to continually serve our customers with reliable satellite communications”.

“We are proud to be a part of FSMTC’s business growth as it ventures out and expands its subscriber base. Competitive pricing has been a key value proposition that ABS offers all our partners. It’s essential for us that our partners can also grow their businesses so we can grow with them,” said Tom Choi of ABS. We are confident that we can bring about change and provide the basic needs of communications to all islands of the Pacific.”

You can find the latest information on ABS website at: http://www.absatellite.com/2016/01/19/fsmtc-expands-bandwidth-connectivity-with-abs-to-underserved-regions-of-the-federated-states-of-micronesia-fsm/

Munich, Germany / Mumbai, India; 18 January 2016: India’s leading media conglomerate, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) today announced its foray into Germany. The company also shared its plans to launch a free-to-air television channel for this market by mid-2016. This FTA channel, for the first time, will bring high-quality Bollywood films produced by the Indian film industry as well as popular Indian television series to German screens, 24-hours a day. The new channel´s core target group will be females between the ages of 19 and 59. The channel is planned to be available on the most important satellite and cable platforms. Friederike Behrends will be responsible for business operations in the German-speaking area.

Amit Goenka, CEO-International Broadcast Business, ZEEL: “Our foray into Germany is a major step as part of our international expansion strategy. The objective is to establish a lasting presence and grow in the German television market. With our highest levels of entertainment and new content, we are confident of being able to offer our German viewers an attractive enrichment to the existing range of television offerings.”

Neeraj Dhingra, CEO Europe at Asia TV Ltd. (Zee TV): “The launch of the channel will signify ZEEL´s entry into one of the world´s most important television markets, in which the Bollywood genre is still barely represented as yet. With 210,000 hours of programming and more than 3,500 film titles, our endeavor is to delight the German audiences with Indian content.”
“We also welcome Friederike to the ZEE family. She brings with her a rich experience and in-depth knowledge of Media, Broadcasting and TV content. Her extensive international and national industry expertise will help us not only to cement our presence in the German market, but take it to greater heights;” Dhingra added.

Friederike Behrends: “Bollywood content offers a much broader spectrum than is known on German television. The aim is to enhance Germany´s entertainment offerings by introducing an entirely new genre. We intend to capture the hearts of German viewers with Bollywood. We are currently engaged in intensive talks with German TV-platform operators with a view to expanding the reach as quickly as possible on a broad scale via all transmission paths.”

Until recently, Friederike Behrends was the Senior Strategy Advisor for the international streaming provider Magine, being responsible for its German market entry in 2014. From 2008 to 2012, she was Managing Director of WDR media group digital GmbH and the full-service internet agency webCOLONY in Cologne. She took over these positions after becoming a member of the Board of Directors at Bild.-T-Online.de AG & Co. KG, where she had worked since 2001. Previous career stages included a period at Grundy UFA TV Produktions GmbH.

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Note to Editors

About Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL):

Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) is one of India’s leading television media and entertainment companies. It is amongst the largest producers and aggregators of Hindi programming in the world, with an extensive library housing over 210,000 hours of television content. With rights to more than 3,500 movie titles from foremost studios and of iconic film stars, ZEE houses the world’s largest Hindi film library. Through its strong presence worldwide, ZEE entertains over 959 million viewers across 169 countries.
Pioneer of television entertainment industry in India, ZEE’s well-known brands include Zee TV, &tv, Zee Cinema, Zee Action, Zee Classic, &pictures, Zee Anmol, Ten Sports, Ten Cricket, Ten Action, Zee Cafe, Zee Studio, Zee Salaam, Zing, ETC Bollywood, Zee Q and Zindagi. The company also has a strong offering in the regional language domain with channels such as Zee Marathi, Zee Talkies, Zee Bangla, Zee Bangla Cinema, Zee Telugu, Zee Kannada and Zee Tamil. The company’s HD offerings include Zee TV HD, Zee Cinema HD, &tv HD, Zee Café HD, Zee Studio HD, &pictures HD, Ten HD and Ten Golf HD. ZEE and its affiliate companies have leading presence across the media value chain including television broadcasting, cable distribution, direct-to-home satellite services, digital media and print media amongst others. ZEEL also operates its own digital platforms with OTT offerings on Ditto TV and india.com. More information about ZEE and its businesses is available on www.zeetelevision.com

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