[Prev][Next][Index]

Sat-ND, 6.10.96

Sat-ND 96-10-06 - Satellite and Media News

This service is provided free of charge for personal use. It may be
reproduced for non-commercial reasons only, provided the following notice
is included:
"(c) Copyright 1996 by Sat-ND, http://www.sat-net.com/pck/"
Please send money, news releases, contributions and comments regarding
Sat-ND to
Peter C. Klanowski, Fax +49-451-5820055, pck@LyNet.De

This issue is sponsored by TELE-satellite, Europe's Satellite Magazine 
Have a look at their homepage! >> http://www.TELE-satellit.com/ <<

=========================================================

PICC pays for CHINASAT 7
The People's Insurance (Property) Co. of China (PICC) has paid US$25.9
million for the loss of CHINASTAR 7 in August, "China Daily" reported
today. The satellite was launched aboard a Long March 3 rocket last August
but never reached its proper orbit. According to its president Sun Xiyue,
the satellite's operator China Telecommunications and Broadcasting
Satellite Corp. has now received the indemnity payment from PICC Property.
PICC is also the main insurer for dozens of upcoming satellite launches
including DONGFANGHONG 3, SINOSAT 1, and CHINASAT 1. According to "China
Daily," the total insured sum of the satellites amounts to US$580 million.

China celebrates space industry
Meanwhile, official China is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the
country's space industry. Since the first missile technology research
institute was established in 1956, China's space industry has grown to
deliver rocket carriers, satellites, strategic missiles as well as
air-defence, coastal defence and ground-to-ground missile weapon systems. 
Liu Huaqing, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, nonetheless
said that China's space industry was facing many difficulties and
challenges compared to advanced countries, reported news agency Xinhua. He
claimed that 37 out of the overall 42 satellite launches were successful
and announced that "China will launch high-quality, highly-reliable and
long-life satellites, while building a multi-purpose ground system." Good
luck!

Indonesian digital TV to be launched
Which country will be the next to get some digital TV? Indonesia, with 195
million inhabitants the world's most populous Moslem country, is definitely
among the candidates. The Indovision satellite network, so far transmitting
some analogue channels of U.S. origin, will use a PALAPA transponder to
start digital services this month. Using digital compression, six or seven
channels will be transmitted until December when the service is due to be
launched officially. Three PALAPA transponders will be used, enough to
transmit 18 channels.
Later, the service will be transferred to the INDOSTAR satellite which is
slated to be launched next June. Indovision then hopes to offer 40
channels, including American soaps, sports, news and Indonesian language
movies. 

Digital price war continues in U.S.
Once again, one of the several digital TV services in the USA has announced
a new price structure for reception equipment. This time it's Primestar:
They offer a complete system for US$199 now, provided the customer also
purchases "a year of PrimeEntertainment programming and professional
installation." Which, of course, come at an additional cost.
Another option sounds more interesting for households with multiple TV
sets. "When customers purchase additional receivers for only $325, there is
no upfront programming purchase. Customers can pay monthly for their
programming and select the package they want," Primestar said in a press
release.


RupertWatch
By Dr Sarmaz <DrSarmaz@aol.com>

Mr Murdoch launches conservative news channel
Tomorrow at 6 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time, the world will witness the launch
of Mr Murdoch's own news channel, simply called Fox News Channel (FNC.)
The world? Well, it's closer to the truth to say that initially some 17
million homes in the USA will be able to receive Mr Murdoch's conservative
Anti-CNN which comes from four studios located in News Corp.'s building in
Manhattan. All those 17 million households also receive CNN, however, and
half of them have access to the NBC-Microsoft channel MSNBC. On the other
hand, as Mr Murdoch's News Corp. operates on a global scale, it's not a bad
guess to expect the channel to appear outside the U.S. as well.
FNC Chairman Roger Ailes, formerly CNBC, recently announced "fair and
balanced journalism" to be carried on FNC. Of course. What else could he
have announced - unfair and imbalanced journalism? No way!
Referring to the competitors CNN and MSNBC, Ailes said that "there's
probably room for everybody, in some sense." That may be true as the other
major U.S. networks ABC and CBS will probably not set up news channels of
their own.
Mr Murdoch, however, is by no means a novice when it comes to news
channels. His BSkyB operation includes "Sky News," which is clearly
targeted at the UK. Nevertheless, it is transmitted unscrambled on the
ASTRA satellite system, making it available to viewers  in most parts of
Europe.

=========================================================
Copyright 1996 by Peter C. Klanowski, pck@LyNet.De. All rights reserved.

For information on how to subscribe or unsubscribe, send email to
Majordomo@tags1.dn.net and include the line
	help
in the body of your message.
[Other mailing lists]