Chris Dziadul looks at developments in Bulgarian cable The process of consolidation that has been a constant feature in cable markets throughout the region in recent years is finally being felt in Bulgaria. While CableTel’s acquisition of Evrotur will not create a near-monopoly situation comparable to that in the Czech Republic, for instance, it will […]
O2 TV introduces 3D movies
Telefónica’s Czech ADSL platform O2 TV has begun to offer movies in 3D. Typically costing around CZK70 (€2.5) for a one-hour or CZK49 for a 30-minute production, they are being made available as part of the service’s Videoteka virtual video rental shop. O2 TV made its debut in September 2006 and according to Telefónica already […]
Bulgarian telco sale draws nearer
The Turkish mobile operator Turkcell and Dubai’s Oger Telecom are reported to have emerged as the frontrunners to buy a controlling (65%) stake in the Bulgarian telco BTC. Both companies have lodged higher bids – in one instance of €1.95 billion – than the private equity groups Mid Europa Partners and Texas Pacific Group/Warburg Pincus. […]
Trouble looms for Ukraine’s Kyivstar
According to a local report, Ukraine’s leading mobile operator Kyivstar could default on a $175 million (€130.3 million) Eurobond issue due to an on-going dispute between its two leading shareholders. The company, which ended 2006 with 21.5 million subscribers, is majority owned by Norway’s Telenor (56.5%) and Russia’s Alfa Group, through its subsidiary Storm LLC […]
New IPTV service for Spain
The Deutsche Telekom-backed company Ya.com has launched a new IPTV service in Spain. Employing the Microsoft IPTV Edition software platform favoured by almost all other Deutsche Telekom operations in Europe, Ya.com TV offers subscribers a basic package of 24 TV channels that will in due course be expanded to include TDT (DTT) services. Reception is […]
DTT debut for TVP Sport
According to local reports, the Polish public broadcaster TVP has begun trial digital terrestrial transmissions of its thematic channel TVP Sport. The service is being distributed, alongside the national channels TVP1 and TVP2 and regional service TVP3, in the Wisla/Góra Skrzyczne region in the south of the country. Although TVP is currently using MPEG-2 compression, […]
Delisting threat for Russia’s MCC
Moscow CableCom Corp. has revealed that it received notification last week of possible delisting from the Nasdaq Global Market. The reason given for this was a delay in submitting its 2006 annual report on Form 10-K, which the company is now “working diligently to finalize and file”. Moscow CableCom Corp. has also made clear that […]
Moscow broadband take-up grows
Moscow CableCom Corp. saw the homes passed figure for its broadband network in the Russian capital increase by 1.5% to 853,537 in March this year. At the same time, its active terrestrial (203,760), pay-TV (84,431) and Internet (118,158) subscriber totals were up by 4.5%, 6.9% and 6.5% respectively. Moscow CableCom Corp. provides cable and broadband […]
Sony re-brands anime channel
Sony Pictures Television International (SPTI) has announced that its anime (dedicated Japanese animation) channel A+ has been re-branded Animax. SPTI is the international arm of Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) and acquired A+, which has some 4 million viewers in Hungary, Romania, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, last October. The Animax brand is already well established […]
Bulgarian cable market consolidates
Bulgaria’s largest cable operator CableTel has announced the acquisition of Evrotur for an undisclosed fee. Evrotur is also a leading player in the Bulgarian cable industry, being the first operator to launch a digital TV service in 2002. Like CableTel, it has since become a triple play company. CableTel is majority owned by the US’s […]