Conax security hub enabling a broad spectrum of leading Indian content distributors with smooth digitization, increased ARPU and flexible solutions for capturing additional market segments

Delhi, India, January 21st, 2013: Conax, a leading global expert in total service protection for digital video content distribution over all types of networks and devices, today announced that it will demonstrate its total value chain broad portfolio of service protection solutions at Convergence India, January 21st – 23rd. The company will be holding a feature event at Convergence India on January 21st at 4 pm on the Conax stand with KCCL and partners to reveal the details of launch of new Conax technology in the KCCL operations.

Conax’ 11 years of India success and broad spectrum of reference customers is a result of dedication to pay-TV operators in India, a pioneering approach to the needs of the market and its renowned open partnering policy for secure set-top-boxes for pay-TV operators. Conax is helping operators secure increased ARPU through digital service offerings, and easy, flexible upgrade for new, future solutions such as secure hybrid content delivery and multiscreen, anytime/anywhere content delivery.

Equipping operators for the future, Conax is providing an entire value chain of service protection – future-proof, open and flexible solutions and partnerships for evolving new business models and capturing new segments well into the future, enabling operators to be first out with new services and solutions.

22nd Convergence India panel: “Next Gen Television -Reshaping Content with new Solutions for Multi-screen content delivery”
Wednesday, January 22nd at 10 am
Join leading industry experts including security and solutions expert, Tor Helge Kristiansen, VP Product Management, Conax, for a panel discussion on the latest trends in multiscreen content delivery. Mr. Kristiansen has over 20 years of experience in the content protection industry.

Demonstrating Conax Value Chain of total Solutions at Convergence India
Today’s marketplace filled with challenges and opportunities, thus service providers are on the move to identify the best technologies and solutions to positioning for future business. Meet experts from Conax to learn how we can bring your operations into the future.

• Conax Contego™, the CAS solution with a broad portfolio of future-proof Secure Clients provides content security for any device with or without Smart Cards. It is designed to support operators of any size; small, medium and large, delivering unrivalled security to satellite, cable, terrestrial, IP and OTT networks.

• Conax is expanding its future-proof client portfolio with a cardless option that provides a unique level of cardless content security using new chip technology not offered by competitor’s pure software solutions. Conax recommends a combined approach using smart card security for high-end content operations and the cardless option for low-end ARPU content, based on the joint Conax security back-end

• Hybrid, multiscreen and OTT content distribution for the future: The Conax team will feature Conax security hardened PlayReady Clients and Conax Xtend Multiscreen™, – cost-efficient, pre-integrated, fast-time-to market solutions, enabling any operator to easily add and capitalize on a multiscreen offering.

Contact us at info@conax.com to pre-book a meeting, or stop by our stand, Hall 18, C83.

Conax Access Systems Private Limited
Film City, Noida, Uttar Pradesh-201301
India
Email: apac@conax.com
Phone: +91 120 467 43 00

Conax media contact
Leslie Johnsen
Head of Public Relations & Communications
Mob: +47 41 45 80 43
Email: leslie.johnsen@conax.com

About Conax (www.conax.com)
Conax provides the future-oriented security solutions and expertise that empower multi-screen digital TV content providers around the globe to deliver premium content over the combined Over-The-Top scenario of broadcast, broadband and connected devices securely and eliminate potential revenue threats. Conax Contego™ portfolio of solutions furnish content providers, cable, satellite, IP, mobile and terrestrial operators with solutions that offer a competitive advantage – reduced hardware costs, easy deployment and upgrade, including the new Conax Xtend Multiscreen™ together with partners. Conax flagship, Conax Contego™, bundles 25 years of pioneering experience into one unique solution to guide operators in navigating and realizing new business models. Through its benchmark policy for security-evaluated client devices and strategic partner network, Conax technology secures content for operators representing 125 million pay TV consumers in over 80 countries around the globe.

ISO 9001 & 27001 certified, Conax is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, and represented in Russia, Germany, Brazil, USA, Canada, Mexico, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, China, Singapore, with 24/7 Global Support operations in India. Conax is part of Telenor Group who has operations in 11 markets, 33.000 employees, 150 million mobile subscriptions and is among the world’s largest mobile operators. Corporate responsibility. Follow Conax on Twitter

(19 Jan, 2014) Chinese TV manufactuer Skyworth has selected the full suite of Opera TV solutions for its smart TVs.

After achieving No.1 domestic TV market share in China, Skyworth now has its eyes on the global smart TV market by launching its new Smart TV models powered by the Opera Devices Software Development Kit (SDK), Opera TV Store and Opera TV browser. The first model equipped with Opera TV solutions is the Skyworth 39E36. It will be available in Latin America from Q2 2014 and soon after to other regions.

Read more at Broadband TV News

Discover the New Face of Elite Model Management Barcelona

Hong Kong, January 21, 2014 – Fashion One, the international channel for fashion, entertainment and lifestyle content, partners with the prestigious international modeling agency, Elite Model Management Barcelona, to bring the most renowned modeling contest in Spain, Elite Model Look Spain 2013, to international television.

In this new original reality-documentary series from Fashion One, we follow aspiring models from the castings in the cities of Barcelona, Madrid, Alicante, Malaga and A Coruña, to the semifinal, and finally the finale where the new Elite girl and the new Elite boy are chosen. Along the way, each candidate is trained extensively to become the new face of tomorrow’s international fashion marketplace. We will share their dreams, their hopes, their fears and their emotional journey as these young hopefuls go through the different phases of the competition leading up to the finale.

Organized by Elite Model Management, Elite Model Look is an ideal launch pad in the modeling industry that has helped introduce top models such as Nieves Alvarez, Cindy Crawford, Stephanie Seymour, Linda Evangelista and Gisele Bündchen. Elite Model Look Spain is the national leg of the competition, screening local young models that will represent Spain in the Elite Model Look World Final.

“Before the fame and glamour, top models all started from a casting call. This collaboration with Elite Model Management gave us the opportunity to feature young talents as they are being discovered and trained to be the rising stars of tomorrow. We bring our viewers back to the core of fashion where it all begins, showcasing an important part of the fashion chain that is rarely emphasized,” said Ashley Jordan, CEO of Fashion One.

“Elite Model Look Spain is the spine of Elite Model Management Spain. EML girls are vital for a market in crisis like ours and numbers speak by themselves as 45% of our annual income is coming from our rooster of Elite Model Look girls. If we go into details, the top seller girls are past winners of Elite Model Look,” expressed Elite Model Management Barcelona director, Gael Marie.

Elite Model Look Spain 2013 premieres January 30, 2014 and will be shown every Thursday at 22:00 (GMT+8) exclusively on Fashion One. Check your cable operators for your local TV channel listing.

Elite Model Look Spain 2013 is an event exclusively covered by Fashion One. The show is created by executive producers Michael Gleissner and Ashley Jordan, with Sergi Mañas as producer. To learn more about Elite Model Look Spain 2013, please visit http://www.fashionone.com/emls13 or post your comments on @fashion_one #FashionOneEMLS13.

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Copenhagen, Denmark, January 20th 2014, Xstream, the premium provider of OTT and TV Everywhere services, today announced that SES Platform Services, a leading service provider of play-out and content management services for broadcasters and media companies has selected Xstream’s award winning management system, Xstream MediaMaker™, to power their existing Video on Demand delivery platform.

The OTT video solution created by Xstream will enable SES Platform Services to offer their customers the market’s most flexible multi-tenant platform for the delivery of videos to Video on Demand platforms and to a wide range of devices, supporting all business models, worldwide. Additionally, the solution features several custom-made RESTful API’s for a number of innovative and powerful integrations and features.

“Xstream’s innovative and proven platform, their impressive track record, flexibility and ability to act as a solution partner, made them a natural partner and first choice for us” said Dr Frank Hoffmann, Chief Product Officer at SES Platform Services. “Importantly, thanks to the flexibility to customize and interface with our existing ingest-, transcoding- and metadata-engine, we are able to create precisely the kind of solution we need to offer a state of the art video management and delivery solution to our customers”

Using Xstream MediaMaker™, SES Platform Services will dramatically simplify their customers’ workflows, enabling them to take full control of the entire ingest, and delivery process.

“We are very excited to partner with SES Platform Services and to know that a leading global service provider has endorsed Xstream and our services this way.” said Frank Thorup, CEO at Xstream. ” Xstream MediaMaker™ is designed to work in parallel with legacy TV systems, leveraging existing infrastructure investments while, at the same time, be flexible to integrate with any other third party solution. The innovative multi-tenant OTT solution we’re developing for SES Platform Services is a clear proof of the systems flexibility to adapt to the customers needs.”

Next generation Content Ingest
The in-built Ingest module within Xstream MediaMaker™, greatly simplifies the ingest process of media assets and offers a completely transparent process to fit into any media rollout. Additionally, the Ingest module collects content from multiple sources with ease and with a minimum of human resources needed, enabling SES Platform Services to reduce time spent on setting up ingest workflows, decrease time to market and scale their offerings faster, better and wider than ever before.

About SES Platform Services (www.ses-ps.com)
SES Platform Services operates one of Europe’s most modern broadcasting centres. SES Platform Services provides technical support for broadcasters and production companies and offers a comprehensive range of services for the preparation and transmission of content. These include digital archiving and playout, as well as preparation and transmission of content via satellite, over the internet and to mobile devices. Clients of SES Platform Services include well-known broadasters from both the public and private sphere, as well as Pay-TV providers, rights owners, cable network operators and global companies.

About Xstream (www.xstream.net)
Xstream has been a pioneer in OTT and TV Everywhere since 1999. Drawing on their extensive experience, Xstream works with world-leading Telco’s, cable operators and MSOs. Xstream deliver simpler, smarter OTT TV solutions characterized by superior flexibility, usability, scalability and cost-efficiency. Xstream’s comprehensive and scalable online end-to-end video management solution, Xstream MediaMaker™, offers numerous key modules such as Shop and Payment, domain control, assets management and analytics. Xstream also offer a suite of outstanding individual services, including: Apps for Connected devices, Ingest, DRM, Transcoding and Encoding.

Xstream is trusted by leading companies like Disney, Canal Digital, Telenor, Fuhu, Altibox, SBS Belgium, Pathe, Schibsted, Jyllands-Posten and SES Platform Services,

For more information, contact Xstream:
Brynhild Vinskei, CMO & PR Officer
Tel: +45 29 66 64 20
bv@xstream.net
www.xstream.net

For more information, contact SES:
Joerg Hansen
Vice President Commercial Operations
Tel +49(0)89 1896 3134
joerg.hansen@ses-ps.com
www.ses-ps.com

(Monday, 20 January 2014, Mumbai) – BBC Worldwide India has appointed Akhauri Sinha as the COO of Content and Production. Based in Mumbai, Akhauri will report to Myleeta Aga, SVP and General Manager India and Content Head for Asia, and will oversee BBC Worldwide’s production business in the country.

Akhauri will head the production of BBC Worldwide formats and local originally developed concepts in both fiction and non-fiction genres, for the Indian market. He is also tasked to formulate and implement local development strategies to maximise commissioning opportunities within the territory.

Akhauri joins BBC Worldwide from Moving Picture Company (MPC) in Bangalore where he headed the India studio for the global visual effects giant. Prior to that, Akhauri worked with Nimbus and UTV, managing the film entertainment division and business development, respectively.

“I am very pleased to have Akhauri join the BBC Worldwide family”, said Myleeta Aga. “Akhauri has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the media industry and has managed major production and other media businesses. With him working closely with our team on the ground, I am confident that BBC Worldwide in India will continue to produce quality formats and local productions that will appeal to our growing audience.”

Last month, BBC Worldwide India was recognised at the 2013 Asian Television Awards when Disney Q Family Mastermind (India) was awarded with the Best Game/Quiz Programme. The format was adapted from the classic BBC format, Mastermind, which was revised to include families as participants. It airs on Disney Channel India.

The sixth and latest season of the Hindi version of Dancing with the Stars, Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, which aired on Colors, achieved its best audience figures to date – the grand finale, on 14th September 2013, pushed the show to the top of weekend programming nearly doubling the ratings from 2012. There is also a regional Bengali version of the show.

– Ends–

For more information, please contact:

Jeanne Leong
BBC Worldwide Asia
Tel: +65 6849 5292
Email: Jeanne.Leong@bbc.com

About BBC Worldwide
About BBC Worldwide Ltd. BBC Worldwide Limited is the main commercial arm and a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). BBC Worldwide exists to support the BBC public service mission and to maximise profits on its behalf. It does this through investing in, commercialising and showcasing content from the BBC around the world, in a way that is consistent with BBC standards and values. The business also builds the reach and reputation of the BBC brand overseas and champions British creativity.

In 2012/13, BBC Worldwide generated headline profits of £156m and headline sales of £1,116m and returned £156m to the BBC. For more detailed performance information please see our Annual Review website: http://www.bbcworldwide.com/annualreview

bbcworldwide.com
twitter.com/bbcwpress

Cassandra Wong | Communications Executive
BBC Worldwide Asia
BBC Worldwide, 700 Beach Road, #08-08, Singapore 199598
T: +65 6849 5511 | DID: +65 6849 5295 | M: +65 9129 8490 | F: +65 6225 2060

Continued success for FIC during the 2014 awards season

Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, 20 January 2014 – Awards season continued over the weekend, with the winners of the 20th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards being announced on January 18, 2014 at the Los Angeles Shrine Exposition Center. FOX International Channels Asia (FIC) enjoyed yet another triumphant evening with FOX’s Modern Family and two movies to which FOX Movies Premium has acquired the pay-TV rights, taking home a total of four awards.

The Screen Actors Guild Awards are unique among the top industry accolades presented to film and television performers as they are the only ones selected by actors’ peers, all of whom are members of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA).

12 Years a Slave continued its stellar run this awards season, leading the SAG Awards with four nominations. Actor Lupita Nyong’o eventually took home the award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role, for her pivotal role as Patsey in the critically-acclaimed drama.

American war film Lone Survivor, starring Mark Wahlberg and Eric Bana, won Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture.

Finally, perennial favourite Modern Family was honoured with the award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series for the second year in a row, with cast member Ty Burrell also winning the award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series.

Brian Lau, Senior Vice President of Content and Communications at FIC Asia said, “It is an honour that so many of the shows and movies broadcast on our channels have received Screen Actors Guild Awards. Unlike many of the other awards ceremonies, this one focuses on the performances given by those involved and credits those that are truly exceptional. This underscores exactly what we strive to do as Asia’s leading pay-TV network bringing unrivalled, outstanding television and feature films to our fans.”

Screen Actors Guild Awards for films for which FIC has acquired the pay-TV rights (2):

FOX Movies Premium (HK/SEA)
12 Years a Slave (1 award):
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role – Lupita Nyong’o

Lone Survivor (1 award):
Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture

Screen Actors Guild Awards for television programmes shown on FIC’s channels (2):

FOX (HK/SEA)
Modern Family (2 awards):
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series – Ty Burrell

-End-

About FOX International Channels (FIC)
FOX International Channels (FIC) is 21st Century FOX’s international multi-media business. We develop, produce and distribute 300+ wholly- and majority-owned entertainment, factual, sports, movie and lifestyle channels across Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa, in 45 languages. These networks and their related mobile, non-linear and high-definition extensions, reach over 1.6 billion cumulative households worldwide.

In Asia, FIC operates or distributes 30+ channel brands, including the FOX, STAR and National Geographic brands, with over 100 feeds across 14 markets. As the leading pay-TV network in the region, we reach more than 550 million cumulative subscribers across Asia Pacific and the Middle East with offices in Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, India, Australia and the UAE.

For more information, please visit www.foxinternationalchannels.com.

This press release was issued on behalf of FOX International Channels Asia by Tactic Public Relations Limited (Tactic). For further information, please contact:

FOX International Channels Tactic Public Relations Limited (Tactic)
Kelly Jang
Director, Pan Regional Trade Marketing & PR
DID: +852 2621 8875
kelly.jang@fox.com

Kristen Gallagher
Tactic – Hong Kong
DID: +852 2114 4345
FAX: +852 2114 0880
kristen.gallagher@tacticpr.com.hk

Diana Low
Tactic – Singapore
DID: +65 6325 8264
FAX: +65 6325 8262
diana.low@tacticpr.com.sg

(18-01-2014) Leading satellite operator SES closed a long-term agreement with SIS LIVE to provide Ka-band capacity on the ASTRA 1L satellite located at 19.2 degrees East.

SIS LIVE, which owns and operates what are said to be the largest uplink facilities in Europe, has become the first major SNG organisation operating DVB and IP services on Ka-band capacity. Under the terms of the deal with SES, SIS LIVE will be able to deliver satellite newsgathering (SNG) services to premier news and content providers in the UK such as ITN and ITV.

Read more at Rapid TV News 

Performance Reinforces FIC’s Position as Asia’s Leading Pay-TV Network

Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, 17 January, 2014 – Nominations for the 86th Academy Awards were announced yesterday at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverley Hills, California. FOX International Channels Asia (FIC) received an incredible 23 nominations for 10 films that it has acquired the pay-TV rights to across Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, reinforcing its position as Asia’s leading pay-TV network.

The 86th Academy Awards will be held on 2 March 2014 and will mark both the culmination of the awards season, and also the most hotly-anticipated ceremony of the year. Internationally recognised as the most prestigious awards in the film industry, triumphs at the Academy Awards will ensure enduring success for the winners on a global scale.

The number of nominations earned by feature films that FIC has acquired the pay-TV rights for substantiates FIC’s efforts to deliver exceptional content to its fans and viewers.

Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, established itself as a front runner after receiving an incredible nine nominations, including ‘Best Picture’ and ‘Director’, ‘Lead Actor’ for Chiwetel Ejiofor, ‘Supporting Actor’ for Michael Fassbender and ‘Supporting Actress’ for Lupita Nyong’o. This has proven a remarkable awards season for the historical-epic, which is certain to become one of the top films of the year. Other notable achievers include The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug, which picked up three nominations, and Wong Kar-Wai’s masterpiece broadcast on FIC’s leading Chinese movie channel STAR Chinese Movies (SCM), The Grandmaster, which picked up two nominations, demonstrating the ever increasing popularity of Chinese content globally.

“The Academy Awards are the highlight of the awards season and we are enormously proud that both FOX Movies Premium and STAR Chinese Movies are both well represented this year. 2014 will see the strongest line up yet on FMP with 9 out of the top 15 movies of 2013, which we expect will once again place FMP as the #1 Hollywood movies channel in Malaysia and Singapore, as it was in 2013,” said Brian Lau, Senior Vice President of Content and Communications at FIC Asia. “Our strong Chinese portfolio which includes SCM, SCM Legend and STAR Chinese Channel coupled with our premier Hollywood channel line-up of FMP, FOX Action Movies, FOX Family Movies and online catch-up service FOX Movies Play puts FIC at the top of the industry in terms of delivering the very best premium content on offer.”

The Academy Awards nominations for films to which FIC has acquired the pay-TV rights for in HK/SEA (23):

STAR Chinese Movies (SCM)
The Grandmaster (2 nominations):
Cinematography – Philippe Le Sourd
Costume Design – William Chang Suk Ping

FOX Movies Premium (FMP)
12 Years a Slave (9 nominations):
Best Picture
Director – Steve McQueen
Lead Actor – Chiwetel Ejiofor
Supporting Actor – Michael Fassbender
Supporting Actress – Lupita Nyong’o
Costume Design – Patricia Norris
Film Editing – Joe Walker
Production Design – Adam Stockhausen (Production Design), Alice Baker (Set Decoration)
Adapted Screenplay – John Ridley

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (3 nominations):
Sound Editing – Brent Burge
Sound Mixing – Christopher Boyes, Michael Hedges, Michael Semanick and Tony Johnson
Visual Effects – Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and Eric Reynolds

Frozen (2 nominations):
Animated Feature Film
Original Song – “Let It Go”

The Lone Ranger (2 nominations):
Makeup and Hairstyling – Joel Harlow and Gloria Pasqua-Casny
Visual Effects – Tim Alexander, Gary Brozenich, Edson Williams and John Frazier

The Croods (1 nomination):
Animated Feature Film

Prisoners (1 nomination):
Cinematography – Roger A. Deakins

The Book Thief (1 nomination):
Original Score – John Williams

Saving Mr. Banks (1 nomination):
Original Score – Thomas Newman

Iron Man 3 (1 nomination):
Visual Effects – Christopher Townsend, Guy Williams, Erik Nash and Dan Sudick

-End-

About FOX International Channels (FIC)
FOX International Channels (FIC) is 21stCentury FOX’s international multi-media business. We develop, produce and distribute 300+ wholly- and majority-owned entertainment, factual, sports, movie and lifestyle channels across Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa, in 45 languages. These networks and their related mobile, non-linear and high-definition extensions, reach over 1.6 billion cumulative households worldwide.

In Asia, FIC operates or distributes 30+ channel brands, including the FOX, STAR and National Geographic brands, with over 100 feeds across 14 markets. As the leading pay-TV network in the region, we reach more than 550 million cumulative subscribers across Asia Pacific and the Middle East with offices in Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, India, Australia and the UAE.

For more information, please visit www.foxinternationalchannels.com.

This press release was issued on behalf of FOX International Channels Asia by Tactic Public Relations Limited (Tactic). For further information, please contact:

FOX International Channels
Kelly Jang
Director
Pan Regional Trade Marketing & PR
DID: +852 2621 8875
Email: kelly.jang@fox.com

Tactic Public Relations Limited (Tactic)
Kristen Gallagher
Tactic – Hong Kong
DID: +852 2114 4345
Email: kristen.gallagher@tacticpr.com.hk

Diana Low
Tactic – Singapore
DID: +65 6325 8264
Email: diana.low@tacticpr.com.sg

(15 Jan, 2014) Perrette takes over for 23-year Discovery veteran Mark Hollinger, who announced his resignation in September.

“JB is one of the smartest and most versatile executives I have worked with in the media business. Since his time at NBC as a leader in business development, distribution and digital to all the success and value he has built at Discovery, JB has it all — strong strategic vision, operational expertise and exceptional team-building skills. This is a demanding role like no other, which I believe requires a corporate executive with a broad background to oversee all aspects of the business across 220 countries. Having spent half his career internationally, and with a unique mix of distribution, digital, strategy and business development experience, JB is the perfect fit to lead Discovery’s international operations,” said David Zaslav, president and CEO of Discovery Communications.

Read more at Broadband TV News