[Prev][Next][Index]

Sat-ND, 21.10.96

Sat-ND 96-10-22 - 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/ <<

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

HotBird 2 transponder line-up
By Igor Uvodic
Yesterday I got a brochure from Eutelsat, who held a seminar in Italy last
week, containing the expected transponder line-up for HotBird 2 due to be
launched in mid-November. Here it is:
		Frequency:		Beam:		Channel:		
tr. 50		11.727 GHz V		Widebeam	RTP International	Analogue
tr. 51		11.747 GHz H		Widebeam	EDTV Dubai		Analoque
tr. 52		11.766 GHz V		Superbeam	RAI (Italy)		Digital
tr. 53		11.785 GHz H		Superbeam	WDR (?) (Phoenix from 1.4.97) Analogue
tr. 54		11.804 GHz V		Superbeam	RAI (Italy)		Digital
tr. 55		11.823 GHz H		Superbeam	NETHOLD			Digital
tr. 56		11.843 GHz V		Superbeam	STET (Italy)		Digital
tr. 57		11.862 GHz H		Superbeam	NETHOLD			Digital
tr. 58		11.881 GHz V		Superbeam	STET (Italy)		Digital
tr. 59		11.900 GHz H		Superbeam	NETHOLD			Digital
tr. 60		11.919 GHz V		Superbeam	RTI (probably MEDIASET)	Digital
tr. 61		11.938 GHz H		Superbeam	TPS (French)		Digital
tr. 62		11.958 GHz V		Superbeam	TELEPIU	(Italy)		Digital
tr. 63		11.977 GHz H		Superbeam	Svenska Kabel (Sweden)	Digital
tr. 64		11.996 GHz V		Superbeam	TELEPIU	(Italy)		Digital
tr. 65		12.015 GHz H		Superbeam	ART Europe		Analogue
tr. 66		12.034 GHz V		Superbeam	TELEPIU	(Italy)		Digital
tr. 67		12.053 GHz H		Superbeam	Svenska Kabel (Sweden)	Digital
tr. 68		12.072 GHz V		Superbeam	TELEPIU	(Italy)		Digital
tr. 69		12.092 GHz H		Widebeam	NBC			Analogue
So, there will be five analogue channels and the only new one will be
Phoenix from ARD/ZDF, due to be launched on April 1, 1997. All the digital
channels, except for those of Italian public broadcaster RAI, will be
scrambled. 
I also read that CANAL + Poland will start broadcast from 13 E very soon,
but in analogue mode. So we can expect a lot of new stuff concerning
Eutelsat and Hotbird satellites on 13°E.
[Thank you very much for your contribution, Igor. Should anybody have
difficulties reading the table above, it's also available for the next few
days at
http://www.sat-net.com/pck/hotbird2.html -- Ed.]

TCI set to control LodgeNet Entertainment
LodgeNet Entertainment Corp. and TCI Satellite Entertainment Inc. announced
today that TCI Satellite has purchased an equity interest of 4.99 percent
in LodgeNet's residential subsidiary, ResNet Communications, Inc. for
US$5.4 million. TCI Satellite will later take over an additional stake of
36.99 percent for US$34.6 million which will be used to purchase Ku-band
satellite receiver equipment. TCI Satellite will also have the option to
increase its ownership in ResNet by an additional 13.01%, exercisable after
three years in return for an additional cash investment based upon the
market value of ResNet at that time.
ResNet will in turn have long-term access to TCI Satellite's direct
broadcast satellite (DBS) signals in the USA. LodgeNet President and CEO
Tim C. Flynn stated that "this agreement will significantly reduce ResNet's
capital costs and increase programming options for our subscribers. We can
now use a smaller satellite dish and less expensive receiving and decoding
equipment and have access to a larger variety of programming on a single
transponder as compared to traditional C-band technology."
LodgeNet Entertainment Corporation is a specialised communications company
that, through its proprietary B-LAN (broadband local area network)
technology, provides video on-demand, network-based video games, PRIMESTAR
digital basic and premium television systems and programming, as well as
other interactive, multimedia entertainment and information services. 

EchoStar eyes MMDS and cable market
EchoStar Communications Corp. today announced it is interested in providing
digital satellite programming services to independent Multichannel
Multipoint Distribution Service (MMDS) and small cable operators. 
Both will be able to receive and rebroadcast programming from ECHOSTAR 1
and 2 via digital turnaround technology. It consists of digitally
compressing programming from video information providers, uplinking to the
ECHOSTAR satellites, downlinking from the satellites at regional headends,
and then rebroadcasting this programming, combined with locally compressed
programming, to the customer via an MMDS network. These programming signals
are compliant with the MPEG-2/DVB standards, giving operators their choice
of headend systems and set-top box vendors.
EchoStar offers satellite-based direct-to-home (DTH) signal broadcasting
services through DISH Network(TM) and is also a world-wide manufacturer and
distributor of satellite television products and the only U.S. provider of
state-of-the-art, fully MPEG-2/DVB compliant satellite television systems. 
http://www.echostar.com/
http://www.dishnetwork.com/

U.S. Public Broadcasters to offer datacasting
WavePhore, Inc. and PBS National Datacast, Inc. today announced the
establishment of a new, full service, U.S.-wide datacasting network. It
will deliver a variety of content, including Internet related news and
information, delivered to their personal computers (PCs) via the vertical
blanking interval (VBI) of the television signals of the Public
Broadcasting Service (PBS) and its member stations. 
WavePhore will distribute digital data and information over PBS National
Datacast's data broadcasting network of more than 250 PBS member television
stations which reaches about 99% of television households in the United
States. The data transmitted by WavePhore will be available off of the TV
signal to PCs equipped with VBI decoder technology, like Intercast(TM), or
by installing add-on boards with WavePhore decoding technology to existing
PCs.
Today's announced consumer VBI network will be added to the existing group
of WavePhore, managed networks which includes business-to-business
broadcast using VBI, small dish satellite, FM radio subcarrier, and
television in-band (TVT1/4.) 
PBS National Datacast, Inc., a for profit subsidiary of the Public
Broadcasting Service (PBS), operates a data network of PBS member
television stations, providing data broadcasting services that can be
received at homes, businesses, government offices, and educational
facilities in the U.S. The income derived from PBS National Datacast's
services benefits PBS and its member public television stations.
http://www.wavephore.com/
http://www.pbs.org/


Zeroes and Ones
By Grandpa Zheng <http://www.sat-net.com/pck/zheng/>

China re-invents the Internet
Everybody's talking about Internet censorship... although the solution is
so simple. Instead of linking the country to the dangerous outside world,
populated with pornographers, child molesters, capitalists and
bomb-building terrorists, China has decided to set up an Internet of its
own. The result, called China Wide Web (CWW,) was launched today. It is run
by Hong Kong based China Internet Corp. and controlled by China's state-run
news agency Xinhua as the company's majority owner.
However, although considered highly secure, CWW will be available to
Chinese companies only, but not to individuals. They may still be able to
connect to the Internet, or rather: what Chinese censors decide to let into
the country, and only after registering with the police.
CWW will provide mainly business information -- what happened to that
communists lately, by the way? -- but also "reflect Chinese culture." Apart
from Xinhua news, there are also economic news from Bloomberg and Reuters
available as well as credit and market information from Dun & Bradstreet
Information Services, bilingual home pages for domestic firms and foreign
companies in China, and even a limited (censored?!) email service. CWW is
also expected to boost foreign understanding of the Chinese market,
officials said -- although it would be nice if China tried to just
understand the Western world a bit. Just for a change, you know.


=========================================================
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]