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Saturday 26 September 2009, AM

South and Central Wales go digital

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Project Canvas boxes to be available for Christmas 2010 - Media news - Media Week

If approved, the first wave of set-top boxes are expected to cost between 100 and 200 and will include a common electronic programme guide EPG that would allow users to flick freely between scheduled and on-demand programming. The broadcasters behind Canvas are already assuring potential content partners the ordering of the EPG will be purely democratic, based on the most popular, and not pre-determined. The products are also set to include a PVR recording device, so that users can store their own content, and will allow audiences to access the full range of digital without using an aerial such as Freeview, or a satellite dish. - mediaweek.co.uk

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Friday 25 September 2009, PM

Tony Ball and ITV end job talks

Mr Ball was opposed to proposed candidates to replace Michael Grade. It is understood that Mr Ball had set a deadline of this weekend to agree terms. Shares in ITV fell 1.2p to 45.3p on the news. - news.bbc.co.uk

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Friday 25 September 2009, AM

Media Talk podcast: Strictly Come Dancing, the Observer, and trouble in the political blogosphere

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Full text of David Elsteins Beesley lecture |Media |guardian.co.uk

That is the subject of my lecture tonight, launching the Beesley series. For over 30 years, from 1955 to 1988, the UK enjoyed a stable, managed broadcasting sector, built on spectrum scarcity. The advent of Channel 4 in 1982 was seamlessly integrated. - guardian.co.uk

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Tories will tell BBC to give up licence fee increase |Media |guardian.co.uk

A Conservative government will tell the BBC to give up its annual licence-fee increase next year if the party wins the general election and the economic downturn continues, shadow culture secretary Jeremy Hunt said today. The Tories, who could be in government when the next fee increase is debated in parliament early in the summer, voted in May for the BBC to give up this year's 3 rise to the 139.50 fee, saying that it should be frozen because the country was in recession and that there was no inflation. The current six-year licence fee settlement, which was agreed in January 2007 and runs until the end of March 2013, handed the BBC a 3 annual rise for the two years from April 2007, a 2 rise for the following three years, and an increase of between 0 and 2 in the final year of the deal. - guardian.co.uk

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Wanted: TV news presenter. Must be female. Young need not apply - TV Radio, Media - The Indep

Mark Thompson, the director general, has ordered BBC News to find an older newsreader within a year and has also called on every director to look into recruiting more mature women presenters if they are under-represented in their department. The recruitment drive will be welcome news to campaigners who believe the BBC needs to do more to broaden the news reading pool, while others will no doubt argue the move is simply a knee-jerk reaction to appease some critics. The BBC has always strongly denied favouring younger people but a number of high-profile female presenters have complained that they felt forced out of the news organisation because of their age. - independent.co.uk

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BBC Trust - Trust launches its largest review of BBC TV services

Please visit the BBC Trust homepage to find the information you want. you may have typed the web address incorrectly - please check the spelling, or that there are no spaces or capital letters. Alternatively, please try the other links and search box on this page. - bbc.co.uk

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Astra to axe analogue TV in 2012

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BBC Media SHow: Political weeklies, STV and smart phones

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Devon24 - Time for TV re-tune in Torridge

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PLEASE ADJUST YOUR SETS - Arbroath Today

Anyone who uses Freeview to obtain their digital television signal will be affected by the change which takes place next Wednesday September 30. Ailsa Redford, a partner of Hosies, told us that she was amazed how few people were aware of the change taking place that day. Freeview is also used by BT Vision and Top up TV. - arbroathherald.co.uk

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The future of TV: technologies to watch - Telegraph

By the time the Olympics rolls into town, the analogue television signal will have been switched off across the country. All televisions, from the 40in set in your living-room to the black-and-white set in the shed, will need to be hooked up to a digital service, via, for example, a Freeview set-top box, the Freesat subscription-free satellite service, or paid-for services such as Sky or Virgin Media. Most televisions can be converted cheaply and easily to receive a digital signal, and DigitalUK, charged with overseeing the process, offers help to elderly people or those on low incomes digitaluk.co.uk. - telegraph.co.uk

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Sky wanted top channels on DTT - Rapid TV News

Read more Louise Duffy 04-01-2013 A Pakistani parliamentary panel has asked the government to ban all foreign content in any language during prime time on television. Read more Iaki Ferreras 04-01-2013 Madrid's regional public broadcaster Telemadrid is going through the worst time in its history the company has serious financial problems and is close to shutting... - rapidtvnews.com

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Thursday 24 September 2009, PM

BBC to boost childrens spending by 25m and BBC2 drama budget by 50% |Media |guardian.co.uk

ITV has cut its children's TV funding from 50m a year to 10m. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. - guardian.co.uk

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Digital Radio - Just a Minute Reloaded

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ITV network licence no longer sustainable in 2012: response to government sets out proposed delivery of regional news af

Independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries. 4G auction bidders announced December 20, 2012 Ofcom has today announced the bidders in the forthcoming 4G mobile spectrum auction the largest ever sale of mobile airwaves in the UK. npower fined for making abandoned calls December 6, 2012 The conclusion of an Ofcom investigation has today found npower, the gas and electricity supplier, to be in breach of rules on abandoned calls. - ofcom.org.uk

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ITV and Tony Ball clash on scale of pay package - TV Radio, Media - The Independent

The favourite to land the top job at ITV is reported to be holding out for more money creating a stand-off that could force the media group to reopen the search for a new chief executive, five months after beginning the process. Tony Ball, who has already been offered the job of running ITV, is understood to be holding out for a five-year package worth as much as 30m. The company, which broadcasts shows such as The X Factor and which has been squeezed by the precarious state of the advertising market, is thought to have told Mr Ball that his demands are unacceptable a stance that could see the group withdrawing the offer of the job. - independent.co.uk

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More funding needed for ITV regional news, warns Ofcom - Business News, Business - The Independ

ITV's regional news services could be losing as much as 64m a year by 2012 as competition from digital rivals renders current business models unsustainable, the media watchdog said yesterday. Ofcom came out in support of plans for independent consortiums to provide the content. Pilot schemes are scheduled to go ahead next year. - independent.co.uk

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ITV launches 38m lawsuit against STV - Business News, Business - The Independent

The row has been rumbling for some time, since STV cut back on expensive programmes produced by ITV in favour of regional alternatives. After more than a year, it has now turned to the courts to settle the dispute. - independent.co.uk

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Thursday 24 September 2009, AM

Why commercial tv has no more shots in the locker | Opinion | Marketing Week

That something is the BBC it is too big for its boots and must be cut down to size. Murdoch, it will be remembered, used the MacTaggart lecture last month to lambast the BBCs smothering Orwellian tendency, particularly in the sphere of online news journalism. The gist of his argument is that the BBC is perverting public subsidy by trespassing on what should properly be the sacred precinct of private enterprise. - marketingweek.co.uk

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Next-gen Humax Freesat receiver and PVR in 2010

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BBC defends Freeview HD copy protection - Digital Spy

The BBC has defended its plan to ensure that all Freeview HD equipment will be equipped with more stringent copy protection technology. We could have said no to the content owners' request and delayed the launch of Freeview HD, but we had to balance this with the fact that respecting the request for content protection should result in more programmes and hence a better viewing experience for our audiences. - digitalspy.co.uk

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Talking DAB and the future of radio - The Register

The Switchoff Scare that wasn't Recently there's all this scaremongering about switch-off. It says if you get digital listening to 50 per cent - and you've got to solve a lot of problems to get to that 50 per cent - you've got to think about switch-off. By the time you get to a switch off most people won't be listening on analog. - theregister.co.uk

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North West TV viewers urged to go digital before switchover From Lancashire Telegraph)

Analogue signals will begin to be switched over in the Granada region on November 4, with the total switch-off planned to be completed on December 2. John Askew, who is leading the North Wests switchover, said We dont think there are many people who have not already switched to digital. There are already millions who have transferred, either through Sky, Freesat or Freeview. - lancashiretelegraph.co.uk

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Group test: 32in LCD TVs - AVReview Home cinema reviews

However, it's got a rather handy excuse for its costliness in the form of a built-in Freesat tuner, capable of receiving the digital satellite platform's free HD and standard definition broadcasts. Unfortunately, though, the L32G10's pictures don't really do all of its fancy technology proud. For starters, HD pictures from Blu-ray or the Freesat tuner don't look especially crisp and detailed. - avreview.co.uk

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Hybrid Internet-TV Makes Progress in Europe - NYTimes.com

Within several months, viewers in Germany with specially equipped televisions may be able to watch public broadcasters Internet television services, which let users catch up on the shows of the previous week, whenever they choose, via their computers. In Britain, the BBC and several partners are working on a more ambitious project to bring what is called catch-up TV and a variety of other programming and interactive services to television sets as soon as next year. Why would viewers, who can already get dozens of channels over the air, via cable or satellite or through their telephone lines, need yet another way to watch television - nytimes.com

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Duncan failed to deliver the big one for Channel 4 - Media news - Media Week

Steve Barrett editor of Media Week Duncan had some successes in his five-and-a-half years at the helm. With 4oD, C4 was the first major broadcaster to launch a fully fledged video-on-demand service. In 2005, it was the first UK operator to simultaneously broadcast on TV and PC. - mediaweek.co.uk

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Virgin Bingo Make TV Bingo History

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SNP plan for telly on cheap | The Sun |Home Scotland|Scottish News

Arts Minister Mike Russell called for a mixed funding model like that used in Ireland. It means Scots would still be able to watch EastEnders and River City but might have to put up with ads in the middle. Mr Russell said the 4.6billion of programmes provided by the BBC would be replaced by a 300milion Scottish-based broadcaster. - thesun.co.uk

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Finally, Ofcom supplies an answer! (why local TV is problematic) : | OfcomWatch |

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Monday 21 September 2009, AM

RTS Cambridge Convention: Trouble at the top |Media |The Guardian

Channel 4's chief executive, Andy Duncan, announced his departure on the eve of the conference while its chairman, Luke Johnson, will also be gone by the beginning of next year. His appointment is expected to hasten the departure of its chairman, Michael Grade. But, as its chairman, Michael Lyons, pointed out in response to Bradshaw's speech, the government could at least have given it until the next licence fee settlement in 2012 to call time. - guardian.co.uk

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Should Ofcom regulate the BBC? : | OfcomWatch |

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For the record: 21/09/2009 - Press, Media - The Independent

Perhaps Anne has some memory loss or dreamt it. Staff at BBC Radio Sheffield or indeed Vogue have no need to reach for the lippy, it's strictly about media agencies. The winner will get 1,000 to spend in Banana Republic. - independent.co.uk

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Mobile broadband dongles up to speed? : | OfcomWatch |

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Shiny Jeremy Hunt nearly stole the show |Media |The Guardian

Through a refining process of endless speeches, presentations, conferences, posturing, leaking and spinning, the British television industry is moving towards knowing its own mind in terms of what it would like. Now all it needs is an administration that can help this most heavily regulated of sectors achieve its nirvana. But, unusually, it was the shiny shadow culture secretary, Jeremy Hunt, whose presence on stage wasmost eagerly awaited. - guardian.co.uk

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Saturday 19 September 2009, AM

Hauppauge launches budget networkable HD media player

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Virgin Media and BT retaliate as pay-TV row with BSkyB escalates |Media |guardian.co.uk

In June Ofcom proposed regulated prices for Sky's wholesale of its sports and movie channels to competing pay-TV companies. A bundle of Sky Sports 1 and 2 and the movie channels which now costs Virgin 23.40 per subscriber to buy wholesale from Sky would cost between 16.98 and 20.43, a 27 discount on current prices and the same as Sky's cost-plus price. Virgin Media would be expected to pass at least some of this discount on to its cable TV subscribers. - guardian.co.uk

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What we learned at the Oxford Social Media Convention |Media |guardian.co.uk

Watching the numbers of suits in the crowd, you could clearly see that social media is not only for nerds anymore, but taken seriously. The nerds engaging with social media are funny. Indeed the conference showed that social media is a rather vague term. - guardian.co.uk

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TV news crisis needs a radical solution | Richard Tait |Media |guardian.co.uk

Broadcast news has not often been at the top of the agenda at the Royal Television Society's Cambridge Convention. What will be debated is whether the current problems are so severe that the whole structure that has, up to now, provided plurality and independence, needs fundamental change. It proposes a new relationship between the press and the state by suggesting that the new groups should be funded in part by public subsidy using a portion of the television licence fee. - guardian.co.uk

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Google CEO questions Murdochs online pay plan - Online, Media - The Independent

Publishers of general news would find it hard to charge for their content online because too much free content is available, the chief executive of Google said yesterday. Speaking to a group of British broadcasting executives via video link, Eric Schmidt said he could, however, imagine niche providers of content such as business news succeeding in this area. The Wall Street Journal, bought by News Corp in 2007, is one of the few daily newspapers that makes people pay to read its news on the Web. - independent.co.uk

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BBC should justify money spent on digital channels, says Jeremy Hunt |Media |guardian.co.uk

Jeremy Hunt believed the scheduling of Strictly Come Dancing was 'extraordinary'. Hunt, speaking at the Royal Television Society's Cambridge Convention late yesterday, said the two channels had small audiences but cost a lot. He reiterated his opposition to sharing the licence fee with other broadcasters to protect regional news on ITV. - guardian.co.uk

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Hunt outlines Tory BBC proposals : | OfcomWatch |

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ITV postpones ITV1+1 launch - Digital Spy

The announcement comes just one day after electronic programme guide data for the channel appeared on a transponder ahead of its proposed October 1 launch. - digitalspy.co.uk

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Tories would constrain BBC to core broadcasting - TV Radio, Media - The Independent

Jeremy Hunt said the 142.50 licence fee could be frozen and BBC executives' salaries capped at 192,250, less than a quarter of director-general Mark Thompson's current wage. The corporation's commercial arm, BBC Worldwide, would be limited to promoting products overseas and Mr Hunt said parts of it might be sold off. It could be worth more than 1 billion, he said, adding that any revenue would be welcome when national debt was high and the government was facing severe public spending constraints. - independent.co.uk

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BSkyB to attack Ofcom proposals |Media |guardian.co.uk

Darroch also claimed that the satellite company offered Ofcom a deal on sports and film channels in a bid to resolve questions about the pay-TV market. He said that in December 2007 Sky offered to wholesale its premium channels on all secure rival platforms. In return, the broadcaster asked Ofcom to give the go-ahead to Picnic, its now-rejected pay-TV service on digital terrestrial television. - guardian.co.uk

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Sky strikes back at Ofcom price-cuts proposal

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Friday 18 September 2009, PM

Media Guardian International Television Festival - all sessions, all content.

You probably found this page because one of our subscribers used MailChimp to send you an email campaign, and you traced a link in the email back here to investigate. MailChimp is an email-marketing service that serves more than 2.5 million companies of all shapes and sizes, from all over the world. We send more than 90 million emails every day, and we help our customers comply with spam laws and best practices so they can get their campaigns into their subscribers' inboxes. - us1.campaign-archive.com

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Media Talk: Ben Bradshaw socks it to the Beeb

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Friday 18 September 2009, AM

Top-slicing is not the only solution | Jeremy Dear |Comment is free |guardian.co.uk

Ofcom estimates we face a funding gap of between 145m and 235m a year, just to maintain the current levels of service on channels like ITV, Channel 4 and Five. Meanwhile, the free marketeers follow in James Murdoch's wake in the hope that this particular market failure will offer a new opportunity to bash the BBC. The kind of public interest programming produced by these channels matters in its own right, but so many other things also depend on a strong public service sector. - guardian.co.uk

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