DTG SUMMIT 2008 – LONDON. A team from the Digital TV Group has published proposals on the future use of terrestrial spectrum in the UK. The plan builds on the DTG’s earlier response to Ofcom’s Digital Dividend Review, the conclusions of which are due to be published within the next few weeks.
Dutch digital homes pass 3 million
At year end 2007 there were 3,044,000 digital homes in The Netherlands, according to research by GfK on behalf the Digital Expert Group from Immovator. Cable was by far the main digital distribution infrastructure with over 1,510,00 homes.
Canal Digitaal to launch Dutch HD bouquet
The Dutch DTH provider Canal Digitaal Satelliet will launch a three-channel HD bouquet for the Dutch market from the 23.5 degrees East position this April. National Geographic HD and Discovery HD will be part of the offer.
Vodafone launches DVB-T phone in Germany
CeBIT – Hanover. Vodafone will launch smart phones with DVB-T on the German market, said Friedrich Joussen, CEO Vodafone Deutschland. The new phones are able to receive existing DTT broadcasts.
5.3 million Canal+ subs
The board of directors at Canal+ SA have approved the pay-TV giant’s end of year accounts. The Paris-based operation closed 2007 with 5.3 million subscribers in France, its overseas territories and Africa, representing a net increase of 80,000.
Belgacom TV reaches 305,319
The Belgian incumbent Belgacom has said it had a very successful year for its IPTV service Belgacom TV, with 305,319 subscribers at the end of 2007. Last year the company earned 165,654 new homes. ARPU for the digital service was €16.10 a month.
Subs boost for Virgin Media
Virgin Media has reported its best quarter in terms of subscriber numbers since the company was formed from the merger of NTL and Telewest. The cablenet reported a significant improvement in both customer and RGU growth with the addition of 272,100 so-called Revenue Generating Units in the 4th quarter.
Internet and phone growth masks KDG sub fall
Kabel Deutschland has grown its internet and phone subscriptions by a staggering 126% in 2007 to over 605,000. Germany’s largest cable operator announced that digital TV, internet and telephony services now represented a share of customer subscriptions of over 20%. EBITDA rose by 10% on the year to stand at €115 million.
Swisscom introduces Bluewin HD offer
The incumbent Swiss telecom operator Swisscom has said it will add four HD channels to its Bluewin TV offer by the end of this month. The four channels will be BBC HD, the German Anixe HD, Arte HD, and HD suisse for no addtional charge for subscribers to Bluewin TV Plus.
NDS enables Canal HD DVR upgrade
NDS has announced the deployment of a new version of its MediaHighway middleware that allows subscribers to upgrade standard HD boxes into digital video recorders. Subscribers to Canal+ and CanalSat in France can attach an external hard drive via the USB port on their existing HD set-top box to have a fully functional DVR facility.