Headlines ( Sep 21 2007 )

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> Animal Planet presents 'Mission Impossible'

> NDTV launches NDTV Arabia in ME and North Africa

> Airtel Sri Lanka & Huawei Technologies partner to provide network solutions

> Nat Geo, Pilot Productions collaborate on a new 'Wild World'

> Pay TV operators file legal complaint against Astro

Animal Planet presents 'Mission Impossible'

MUMBAI:

Have you ever heard of reptiles that wander entire oceans, mammals that traverse continents and birds that almost never come to earth? Animal Planet presents the action-packed missions from the animal kingdom with animal expert Steve Leonard on a drive to find out about some of the toughest missions that animals undertake in 'Mission Impossible'.

For us traveling enormous distances is nothing, we let the plane take the strain. We take a trip to Australia and fly 20,000 miles and then come back. Yet some exceptional animals can match these sorts of unbelievable distances with natural power. Sharing his experience in the programme, Steve Leonard said in the programme, "this show gives you a clear insight about which animals are the hardest, which go the furthest, the longest and the most extreme. Here even I am also on a mission to explore some of the impossible yet possible missions for few species set by themselves".

Steve highlights the extreme challenges and fascinating mystery attached to each species that he follows while making of this programme. Some of which are -

* 12 millions sockeye salmon fish are heading for home from all over the north-pacific ocean. With unbelievable accuracy they are returning back to the individual rivers with their breeding hats on and the only thing they can think about is reaching their spawning ground. The target is over 700 miles inland from where they are now and with ospreys, bears, fisherman, everyone waiting for a piece of action, the salmon needs every ounce of energy and unbelievable determination. All the way upriver they change into spectacular mating display colours and finally on reaching the target, while the females lay eggs, the male fertilizes them. But at the end of their mission, it is really hard to digest the fact that, the exhausted fish goes literally belly up and of the millions of fish that start the journey every single one of them will die.

* Sea turtle numbers are tumbling all around the world. The Loggerhead, one of the biggest turtle is certainly the furthest traveled of them all. By checking the tags and analyzing the DNA of Loggerheads researchers have discovered something almost unbelievable. Loggerhead turtles born in Australia have turned up on the other side of the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California, 7,000 miles away. Some turtles even swim right across the Pacific Ocean, which is one-third the way around the world. After reaching the target, the Loggerhead gets even more extreme and decides to come all the way back home. In this programme, Steve gets hold of a turtle in Australia and says that, it might have swum to California and back. Imagine the sort of navigational accuracy they have to swim a round trip of 15,000 miles and hit the same beach they have started 30 years earlier.

* On his mission to find similar exciting animal adventures, Steve then arrives on the Gold coast, Australia, Southern ocean where he meets the legendary Albatross. These birds have got 11-foot wingspans and people write poems about them. Albatross get 98 percent of the energy for flight from the wind. They don't really need the land at all, but if there iss anywhere the wandering albatross calls home is then it's the Bird Island, South Georgia. The tiny island is the home for about 2,000 wandering albatross as they appear every year to nest. But one fact about albatross is, they have got to be the most faithful animals in the whole world. One they finish nesting they separate and fly around the oceans of the world for up to two lonely years before they rendezvous again on this tiny island as if they would never been apart.

* Now Steve finally travels to Willow, Alaska to understand what makes the Husky the ultimate endurance machine when someone got to ride with them. He finds that these dogs are capable of running four full marathons every day for ten days in a row. Huskies just don't stop for anything they do everything on the move, even snatching a drink. They are super fit athletes with hearts and lungs bigger than a wolf. Steve says, they don't even stop when it's dark, the extreme cold keeps them cool and they actually run faster in the night. At distances over ten miles the Alaskan Husky is the fastest runner on the planet. There is nothing alive than can beat the Alaskan Husky in terms of speed and endurance. Strange mixture really, soft as butter, but hard as nails.

To catch up with similar kind of daring adventures by animal experts, watch Animal Planet Personalities series, airing every Wednesday at 10pm only on Animal Planet.

NDTV launches NDTV Arabia in ME and North Africa

Indiantelevision.com Team (20 September 2007 7:30 pm)

MUMBAI: NDTV has launched NDTV Arabia in the Middle East and North Africa region. The 24-hour news and infotainment channel will be free-to-air channel available on Nile Sat.

However an official press release states that the official launch will be around the end of October, after the channel's soft launch today.

The English channel will have a mixed content of business, current affairs and lifestyle. Subsequently the channel is going to have local news content produced from its bureau in Dubai, the release added.

NDTV Ltd. chairman Prannoy Roy said, "We are proud to announce the launch of NDTV Arabia, the first wholly owned region specific channel from the bouquet of NDTV. This launch is in line with our plans to initiate international expansion beyond our current core market and reach new target audiences. The aim is to give more and more people access to credible quality news and information from India and South Asia. Our next step for the region will be to launch further channels targeting the local Diaspora."

NDTV Group CEO KVL Narayan Rao said, "NDTV Arabia is NDTV's first venture into the Middle East and Africa as a customised channel. The channel aims to cater to growing interest in Indian current affairs and economy among a large population of Indian and South Asian origin in the Middle East and Africa."

Airtel Sri Lanka & Huawei Technologies partner to provide network solutions  

Indiantelevision.com  (18 September 2007 7:30 pm) 

MUMBAI:Bharti Airtel Lanka Private Limited announced a deal with Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd, a telecommunications network solutions provider for its customers in Sri Lanka.

With the network deal in place, customers in Sri Lanka can look forward to a host of innovative products and services from Airtel's portfolio.

According to an official statement, the three-year deal is valued at approximately $ 150 million and includes telecom applications and software.

The latest custom-built technology from Huawei is expected to reduce Bharti Airtel's total cost of ownership (TCO). Huawei's Distributed Node B will enable Bharti to deploy the network faster and more cost-effectively.

"Bharti Airtel is committed to creating a state-of-the-art mobile network and offering world-class and affordable 2G and 3G services to customers in Sri Lanka. Huawei has established credentials as a global company producing high quality products and solutions. We are delighted to be partnering Huawei in this endeavour of ours, " said Bharti Airtel executive director international operations and managed services Sanjay Nandrajog.

Bharti Airtel was recently awarded the license to provide 2G and 3G mobile services in Sri Lanka. Under the agreement, Huawei will deploy and manage Airtel's core network, Node-Bs and BTSs and comprehensive end-to-end 2G/3G network solutions.

Huawei India CEO Max Yang said, "We are extremely proud and happy to partner with Bharti Airtel who pioneered the telecom revolution in India and continues to contribute immensely to the remarkable growth of the telecom sector. We look forward to continuing this strategic partnership with Bharti Airtel by providing innovative and customer-oriented solutions and services including wireless solutions."

Nat Geo, Pilot Productions collaborate on a new 'Wild World'

Indiantelevision.com Team

(17 September 2007 1:00 pm)

MUMBAI: UK-based producer of travel and adventure programming Pilot Productions, has co-produced with National Geographic Channels International (NGCI) the production of its fourth series of Treks in a Wild World.

The series will air on NGCI’s Nat Geo Adventure channel.

Aimed at the adventure seeker the show charts journeys through some of the most beautiful and remote places on earth. From cycling to kayaking, climbing to skiing, each episode features a different mode of transport through gorges, oceans and rivers. Packed with practical tips, the series also exposes viewers to ecology, culture and anthropology.

Pilot Productions MD Ian Cross says, "With a growing interest in nature, the environment, and green issues, such as climate change, we are delighted to partner up with National Geographic Channels International in producing the fourth of our treks series, and bringing to the screen an original take on outdoor pursuits."

NGCI VP content Sydney Suissa says, "Treks in a Wild World 4 is a perfect fit for Nat Geo Adventure, with its thrill-seeking expeditions in some of the most ecologically and culturally rich areas in the world. The series is an excellent opportunity for us to further engage the dynamic interests of our viewers who are looking to learn more about their world through unconventional ways."

Treks in this series include, Trekking in Gabon, Diving Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Islands, China’s Tiger Leaping Gorge, and Rafting the Futaleufu River in Chile.

Pay TV operators file legal complaint against Astro

Business News - Saturday, September 15, 2007

Andi Haswidi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Three local pay TV operators have filed a legal complaint with the Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) accusing the pay TV network Astro TV Indonesia of unfair business practices.

The local operators, PT Indosat Mega Media (IM2 Pay TV), PT Indonesia Telemedia (Telkomvision) and PT MNC Sky Vision (Indovision), said Friday that PT Direct Vision, which operates the Astro pay TV service in Indonesia, had unfairly secured the exclusive rights to live broadcasts of the Barclays English Premier League in Indonesia.

PT Direct Vision, which is controlled by Astro All Asia Network, Plc (Astro Malaysia), secured the rights to the English Premier League without going through normal procedures, they said.

Unlike in a normal bidding process, the three pay TV operators said that they were not given a level playing field in biding for the exclusive live broadcast rights by Singapore based ESPN Star Sports (ESS).

"All previous publications, which said that Astro won the exclusive right through a bidding process, are false. As the main players in the industry, we were never invited by ESS," Indovision president director Rudi Tanoesoedibjo told reporters after filing a report to KPPU.

Prior to August 11, TV viewers were able to watch English Premier League Matches live on all pay TV networks and local TV stations.

After ESS declined to respond to their complaints, the three operators decided to file a legal complaint against ESS, Astro Malaysia and PT Direct Vision to KPPU for the violation of the 1999 Anti-monopoly and Unfair Business Practices Law.

KPPU chairman Mohammad Iqbal said that the complaint filed by pay TV operators against Astro (Direct Vision) was the second he had received this month. The first was filed a week ago by a group of citizens, although he declined to name them.

"It is good that the operators are now filing a report. This will further clarify the situation, especially on the allegation of monopoly practices," he said.

Iqbal said the KPPU had formed a team to investigate the case and expected to summon all related stakeholders next week, beginning with those who reported the case.

Indosat M2 corporate secretary Andri Asian said that there was a systematic effort by certain parties to run a monopoly not only in the pay TV industry but also in the terrestrial TV industry as shown in the holding of the broadcast rights by Astro.

Astro TV Indonesia vice president for corporate affairs Halim Mahfudz told The Jakarta Post that the monopoly allegations had no legal ground because the English Premier League was categorized as an intellectual property, which is excluded by the anti-monopoly law.

Halim also said he had met with officials from the ministry and the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission and had delivered offers from ESS, which stated that together with Astro it would share one live broadcast of a match per week.

"If they continue to accuse us of being a monopoly, then Astro will fight for its rights and its consumers' rights," Halim said.

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