Thinker's posts, page 11

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TH
Thinker

Al Jazeera English & Al Jazeera America

Do they have to pay for it? I know it's mainly on cable but it won't be something they pay extra for. The same online, that's free isn't it?

AJE used to appear on terrestrial in a couple of markets, Washington DC being one. I assume they changed to AJ US


AIUI most US cable companies provide very few channels without subscription (usually just rebroadcasts of local terrestrial services). Even these are now increasingly being encrypted and require a box or cable card to be rented (though no subscription paid for the actual channels)

I suspect AJA is included in "Basic cable" - which is a bit like the basic Sky Entertainment pack over here - lots of non-premium channels for a monthly subscription which is significant, but still a lot less than if you include premium movies and sport.


US cable companies tend to offer most English non-premium channels in different tiers. The names of these tiers differ between providers, but the first tier is basically what you get with your cable connection and includes the local stations, C-SPAN and perhaps some shopping or religious channels. Most of the well known basic cable channels are in the second tier, and then there's a third tier which includes spin-offs and lesser known channels.

Typically, the second tier includes legacy channels established in the days before digital cable and the third tier includes those established with the introduction of digital cable. If a provider carries Al Jazeera America or BBC World News, they are usually included in the third tier. My understanding is that you have to be prepared to pay $50 or more per month if you want to watch AJA.
TH
Thinker

Bat's wings 60th anniversary

On Monday it'll be sixty years since BBC-TV introduced its first animated symbol, the famous mechanical "bat's wings", designed by Abram Games.

A report about the history of BBC idents is slated to air on Monday and will include an interview with Martin Lambie-Nairn.



TH
Thinker

Scottish broadcasting

Here's the full section on culture from the white paper:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2013/11/9348/13

The SNP expects that they will inherit all of BBC Scotland and a proportional share of BBC's commercial ventures, including BBC Worldwide. Presumably, they hope the SBS will also contribute a proportional amount of input into BBC Worldwide (i.e. sellable programmes).

The SBS will launch a new TV channel. The availability of existing BBC channels will be ensured by a joint-venture with the BBC. The option to opt out of BBC One and Two will remain. Of course, all of this remains uncertain as there will be no negotiations until after a yes vote.
TH
Thinker

Should we axe BBC Three and Four?

Some radio shows on this subject:

The Media Show from 16 October, where BBC Two controller Janice Hadlow is asked about what makes her channel distinctive and how its differs from BBC Four (about 7 minutes in):

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03cngzy

The latest episode of Media Talk starts by discussing Dimbleby's recent comments:

http://www.theguardian.com/media/audio/2013/nov/22/itv-bbc-im-a-celebrity-media-talk
TH
Thinker

Scottish broadcasting

The latest edition of The Media Show discussed how BBC Scotland would be separated from the rest of the corporation if there is a yes vote for Scottish independence.

A Scottish Government's white paper on an independent Scotland is due next week and will address the issue further. Existing licenses for ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 will apparently be honoured.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b03hwbrm/The_Media_Show_Independent_Scotland_BBC_North_Young_Journalist_Award/
Last edited by Thinker on 26 November 2013 2:57pm
TH
Thinker

Battle for ITV Border Scotland services

Full details on Border's website:

http://www.itv.com/news/border/2013-11-11/changes-to-freeview-for-itv-border-region/
TH
Thinker

UTV to launch channel in Republic of Ireland

Here's how the announcement was reported on RTE. If you click on "audio" there's a seven minute radio snippet. The Julian Simmons issue is addressed at the very end.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2013/1106/484908-utv-channel/
TH
Thinker

UTV to launch channel in Republic of Ireland

To be honest I can't see the channel getting a licence...


Is there even a remote possibility that the BAI wouldn't grant them a license to broadcast? I don't see how that could be possible in an open society.

It'll be interesting to see if it gets onto Saorview, though. It appears to be a closed platform reserved for the PSBs (excluding 3e?). AIUI, Ireland is far more reliant on cable and satellite than the UK, so they could just ignore it.
TH
Thinker

Identify the correct year for the Pres.

There were a few articles written about it at the time:

http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/article/515051/sky-one-unveils-new-image-autumn-shows
http://www.campaignlive.co.uk/news/220668/
http://www.brandrepublic.com/news/220241/Sky-One-swaps-orange-olive-Winkreative-redesign/

It was also discussed on this forum:

http://www.tvforum.co.uk/tvhome/sky-one-new-look-12012/
TH
Thinker

BBC One to launch +1 channel

I wonder how they are going to bring it to Freeview. An SD stream using vacant capacity on the existing HD mux would make the most sense.

If they are going cram an extra stream onto Mux 1, it would be more interesting if they made BBC Three or Four 24 hours instead. BBC One +1 could timeshare with one of the children's channels.
TH
Thinker

US TV Presentation

Here's an episode of a podcast that explains public radio in the United States is heavily governed by clocks. I imagine some of it translates to television as well. These constraints force producers to make their programmes at a certain pace, which makes them sound more slick.

https://soundcloud.com/roman-mars/99-invisible-88-the-broadcast
TH
Thinker

International Presentation

The likes of TV3 and Kanal 5 are uplinked from London and broadcast via satellite to the main playout centre in Gothenburg's Kanalhuset , which then relays the signal to terrestrial transmitters and cable networks around the country.


Are you certain they are broadcast via Gothenburg? I thought the playout operations were in Chiswick Park and that the channels were relayed via satellite or fiber to Stockholm's Kaknastornet for broadcast across Sweden. A source, in Swedish.