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Week ending June 17, 2006

ITU - Digital broadcasting set to transform communication landscape by 2015 – June 16, 2006

from Trajco Gavrilov ITU

A treaty agreement was signed today at the conclusion of ITU's Regional Radiocommunication Conference (RRC-06) in Geneva, heralding the development of 'all-digital' terrestrial broadcast services for sound and television. The digitalization of broadcasting in Europe, Africa, Middle East and the Islamic Republic of Iran by 2015 represents a major landmark towards establishing a more equitable, just and people-centered Information Society. The digital switchover will leapfrog existing technologies to connect the unconnected in underserved and remote communities and close the digital divide.

"The most important achievement of the Conference," remarked Mr Yoshio Utsumi, Secretary-General of ITU, "is that the new digital Plan provides not only new possibilities for structured development of digital terrestrial broadcasting but also sufficient flexibilities for adaptation to the changing telecommunication environment."

The agreement reached at RRC-06 paves the way for utilizing the full potential of information and communication technologies to achieve the internationally recognized development goals. The date of transition to digital terrestrial broadcasting in the year 2015 is intended to coincide with the targets set by the Millennium Development Goals.

The regional agreement for digital services has been reached in the frequency bands 174 - 230 MHz and 470 - 862 MHz. It marks the beginning of the end of analogue broadcasting.

The Conference agreed that the transition period from analogue to digital broadcasting, which begins at 0001 UTC 17 June 2006, should end on 17 June 2015, but some countries preferred an additional five-year extension for the VHF band (174-230 MHz).

The Regional Radiocommunication Conference was chaired and brought to a successful conclusion by Mr Kavouss Arasteh of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The switchover from analogue to digital broadcasting will create new distribution networks and expand the potential for wireless innovation and services. The digital dividend accruing from efficiencies in spectrum usage will allow more channels to be carried across fewer airwaves and lead to greater convergence of services.

The inherent flexibility offered by digital terrestrial broadcasting will support mobile reception of video, internet and multimedia data, making applications, services and information accessible and usable anywhere and at any time. It opens the door to new innovations such as Handheld TV Broadcast (DVB-H) along with High-Definition Television (HDTV) while providing greater bandwidth to existing mobile, fixed and radionavigation services. Services ancillary to broadcasting (wireless microphones, talk back links) are also planned on a national basis and need to be extended.

The World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-07), which will meet in the autumn of 2007, will deal with the regulatory aspects of the usage of the spectrum for these services.

This important agreement, which paves the way for a new paradigm of wireless digital communication technologies, is expected to be extrapolated by other regions and countries and influence a global shift away from the analogue system that has been in place for the past 45 years.

During the five weeks of deliberations which began on 15 May, RRC-06 took decisions to allow iteration of the complex software tools used by the ITU secretariat as a basis to generate the draft plan that will facilitate the coordinated and timely introduction of digital broadcasting. The Plan assures that an outstanding 70'500 digital broadcasting requirements, including stations, will become a reality within the planned area. It succeeded in creating a level playing field as a new basis for competition.

The first session of this Conference (RRC-04) took place in May 2004 and established a solid, comprehensive and technical basis for the agreement, including the framework for the intersessional studies. It has already resulted in the accelerated introduction of digital terrestrial broadcasting in many countries. "Digital technologies are now transmitting high-resolution images of the Soccer World Cup from Germany to fans around the world who are watching the matches with excitement," said Mr Utsumi. "Digital terrestrial broadcasting is now a reality with a bright future."

Conference Chairman Mr Kavouss Arasteh said that RRC-06 was a technically complex process comprising voluminous computational calculations and data processing tasks, electronic document handling and the use of five working languages. He added that ITU, although facing these challenges for the first time, could provide the Conference with adequate technical and regulatory expertise and support for the full satisfaction of the participating delegations.

More than 1000 delegates representing 104 countries met in Geneva to adopt the treaty agreement that will replace the analogue broadcasting plans existing since 1961 for Europe and since 1989 for Africa. The new digital Plan, based on broadcasting standards known as T-DAB (for sound) and DVB-T (for TV), covers a wide area of the world including Europe, countries of the CIS, Africa, Middle East and the Islamic Republic of Iran.

A major challenge faced by the conference was to find ways for digital and analogue broadcasting to co-exist on the radio-frequency spectrum during the transition period without causing interference.

A key ingredient for the success of the Conference was the unprecedented level of cooperation between ITU, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN).

The complex planning activities conducted at this conference and during the intersessional period were based on the software developed by EBU, which includes hundreds of thousands of program lines. In preparing the Plan for digital terrestrial broadcasting, ITU experts performed meticulous calculations within a limited timeframe using two independent infrastructures: the ITU distributed system with 100 PCs; and the CERN Grid infrastructure that is based on a few hundred dedicated CPUs from several European institutions.

CUP - Copyright Users Organizations Flag Rights Users Concerns in Joint Publication and Seminar – June 15, 2006

from Christina Sleszynska AER

Next June 20th in Brussels, seven associations participating in the Copyright Users Platform (CUP) will be presenting a joint publication describing some of the concerns and risks which copyright users are increasingly being confronted with. These seven organizations are: ACT, AER, ECCA, EBU, EICTA, HOTREC and PEARLE*. The publication is intended to present in a non-exhaustive way, information on the rights that different users need and insight into some of the urgent issues currently at stake.

This document will be made available to the participants of a Seminar jointly organized by CUP and entitled “Time to review copyright management in Europe” held in Brussels on June 20th. At this event, representatives from different industries will set out copyright users’ concerns about the current operation of collective rights management in the European Union. A number of distinguished panelists from the European Parliament and European Commission have been invited to debate these issues with the copyright users.

This seminar is the first opportunity for rights users and their organizations to jointly raise national and EU policy-makers’ awareness of the need for reform of the collective rights management system.

BBC radio increases presence in the Arab world with Arabsat agreement – June 14, 2006

from Lala Najafova BBC WS

Audiences in Asia, Europe, Africa and the Middle East can now enjoy a range of BBC radio programs in two streams - Arabic and English.  Both languages are available in digital quality sound, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, thanks to a renewed partnership between the international radio and online broadcaster BBC World Service and the satellite operator Arabsat. 

Simon Kendall, Business Development Manager, BBC World Service, said: “We are delighted to be renewing our already long standing relationship with Arabsat. This agreement will ensure that substantial audiences across the Arab world will have easy access to both our English and Arabic radio services.” 

Khalid Balkhyour, Arabsat President & CEO, welcomed the expansion of BBC Arabic and English broadcasts on Arabsat, wishing them every success: “BBC World Service radio enjoys a well established reputation throughout the Middle East for high quality news coverage, and we are proud to be their partner in delivering their services to our audience of 130 million listeners.  

“We are honored by their trust in our system and their confidence in the extensive penetration of Arabsat's constellation of BADR satellites at our 26° East primary fast growing DTH neighborhood.”

Khalid Balkhyour also confirmed Arabsat’s strong commitment to contribute to its customers' success by supporting their growth throughout the Middle East and North Africa.

Recent reconfiguration of the Arabsat bouquet means that established BBC listeners via Arabsat will need to retune their receivers. The BBC services are available on the multiplex operating frequency 11.861 MHz, FEC 3/4 Symbol rate 27 500. The channel IDs are 20 for BBC Arabic and 21 for BBC English.

Audiences listening in English can enjoy the BBC’s flagship programs Newshour, 60 minutes of news and analysis of the day's top stories from the BBC's most experienced correspondents, and Outlook which brings human interest stories from across the globe.  World, Have Your Say is the daily multimedia, interactive phone-in programme encouraging people across the world to question experts and leading international figures in the news. 

Listeners in Arabic can enjoy BBC Arabic service’s flagship news programme The World This Morning (Al-alam hatha al-sabah) which sets the day’s agenda every morning, seven days a week, and Discussion Point (Nuqtat Hewar), the place to exchange opinions and share views on a wide range of issues for Arab speakers across the world. 

RNW - Radio Nederlands Worldwide goes on a global search for the 'new' Rembrandt – June 13, 2006

from Marjolein Klaassen-Hulst RNW

Who is the Rembrandt of our time? How does the ‘great Dutch master” inspire contemporary artists worldwide? To find out, Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW) is lauching an international competition under the title ‘Inspired by Rembrandt’. Artists around the globe are invited to submit their entries via the official website rembrandt.rnw.nl. They will compete for a special workshop at the Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam, a leading Dutch art institute. The best submissions will be shown at an exhibition in the Netherlands.

The ‘Inspired by Rembrandt’ competition will be officially launched tonight at a special ceremony in the Rijksmuseum by Dutch photographer and jury member Corbino (Maarten Corbijn).

Radio Netherlands Worldwide will invite artists all over the world to take part in the competition through its international transmissions and websites (in nine languages). It will also approach thousands of radio stations and art institutes around the world. Artists can enter their paintings or photographs until 30 September 2006. A jury of experts will then select 10 semi-finalists, whose entries will be posted on rembrandt.rnw.nl. A voting form on the website will allow the general public to pick the winning piece of art from 15 October to 30 November.

Radio Netherlands Worldwide has already received some entries. One is from Josep Agus Tomo who's from Jakarta and says he has drawn inspiration from Rembrandt’s use of colour: “He paints colour on colour. The layers are painted in such a way that they’re in harmony with each other. Which is perfect! In my work, I’m also looking for the right balance between light, colour and focus.”

The judging panel consists of Ad ‘s Gravesande (Chairman of the Art and Culture Broadcasting Organisation), renowned international photographer Maarten Corbijn (Corbino), Ernst W. Veen (Managing Director of the Nieuwe Kerk and the Hermitage Museum in Amsterdam), Mavis Albertina (Editor-in-Chief/ Publisher of MAVIS magazine), Cathy Spierenburg (Channel Coordinator of Z@pp children’s TV) and Joop Daalmeijer (Editor-in-Chief, Radio Netherlands Worldwide). The public jury is headed by Ms Nolly A. van Berge, notary public in Amsterdam. More details about the competition are available at: rembrandt.rnw.nl.

Celebrations marking the 400th anniversary of Rembrandt’s birth will be held in the Netherlands throughout the year. In its capacity as an ambassador of Dutch culture, Radio Netherlands provides an international multimedia platform for this ‘Rembrandt Year’ through radio, television and the internet. Earlier this year Radio Netherlands Worldwide released the radio drama ‘The Edges of the Night Watch’ in Dutch, English, Spanish, Indonesian, French and Italian.

WDR - Pleitgen: Vielen Kindern das Leben gerettet -  Kinderkrebsklinik in Perm feiert zehnjähriges Bestehen – June 12, 2006

from Sabine Moldrings WDR

Da gratuliert auch die Bundeskanzlerin – sogar  mit einigen Sätzen in Russisch - zum zehnjährigen Bestehen der  Kinderkrebsklinik im russischen Perm: „Dieses deutsch-russische  Gemeinschaftswerk betrachte ich mit viel Sympathie, weil es auf  Hilfsbereitschaft, gegenseitigem Vertrauen und  Verantwortungsbewusstsein gründet.“ Mit einer Videobotschaft  wird sich Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel an die Gäste der  Jubiläumsveranstaltung richten, bei der am Dienstag, 13. Juni  2006, in Perm der Geburtstag der Kinderkrebsklinik gefeiert wird –  mit Kindern, Eltern, Ärzten und Wissenschaftlern aus Russland und  Deutschland, dem Gouverneur der Region Perm sowie WDR Intendant Fritz Pleitgen.

Die auf Initiative des WDR gegründete Spendenaktion „Die Kinder  von Perm“ und vor allem die große Hilfs- und Spendenbereitschaft  vieler Menschen ermöglichten vor zehn Jahren den Neubau der  Kinderkrebsklinik, die seitdem mit großem Erfolg arbeitet. Die  Behandlung der leukämiekranken Kinder in der Region Perm am  Fuße des Urals im Osten Russlands hat sich entscheidend  verbessert.

„Wenn ein Kind das Krankenhaus gesund verlassen kann, dann ist  das ein gemeinsames Fest. Es ist das schönste Geschenk für uns  Ärzte“, sagt Olga Ryskal, die Leiterin der Klinik. Jedes Jahr werden  bis zu 80 Kinder behandelt. Der Behandlungserfolg entspricht  mittlerweile annähernd dem Standard in Westeuropa, wo acht von  zehn kranken Kindern geheilt werden können.

„Das Krankenhaus leistet erstklassige Arbeit. Ärzte und  Schwestern kommen regelmäßig zur Weiterbildung an die  Uniklinik nach Düsseldorf. Dank ihres fachlichen Könnens und  ihres großen Engagements haben sie vielen Kindern das Leben  gerettet“, betont WDR-Intendant Fritz Pleitgen, dessen Berichte  über die katastrophale Situation im Kinder-Hospital in Perm 1991  die Welle der Hilfsbereitschaft ausgelöst hatten.

Seitdem unterstützt die Spendenaktion „Die Kinder von Perm“ das  „Kinderonkohämatologische Zentrum“ (KOHZ) in Perm und leistet  Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe. Zunehmend steht dabei die Fortbildung der  russischen Ärzte und Schwestern im Mittelpunkt, unter der  Federführung von Prof. Dr. Ulrich Göbel, Leiter der  Kinderonkologie der Universitätsklinik Düsseldorf.

Das WDR Fernsehen sendet die Feier aus Perm am Dienstag, 13.  Juni 2006 von 13.00 bis 14.00 Uhr; eine Zusammenfassung wird es  am Abend geben (Dienstag, 13. Juni 2006, 23.30 bis 0.00 Uhr).  Parallel senden auch die „Aktuelle Stunde“, „WDR aktuell“, das  „ARD Morgenmagazin“ und „Brisant“ Berichte über die  Kinderkrebsklinik und die Feier zum zehnjährigen Bestehen.

OWBT - Zimbabwean radio station wins international recognition – June 8, 2006

from Nynke Brett OWBT

Radio station goes out of Africa to give a voice to the people of Zimbabwe

A Zimbabwean radio station that has survived bomb attacks, police raids and arrests, frequency jams, and an impending court case, has won an international media award, formerly held by global giant BBC World Service.

Despite repressive media laws which have seen foreign correspondents deported, and all non-government-sanctioned media banned, Radio Voice of the People (Radio VOP), the recipient of the One World Special Award, sponsored by BBC World Service Trust,  broadcasts a daily programme, providing a lifeline for up to half a million listeners hungry for a free media.

Each day, the independently funded Radio VOP broadcasts a one-hour programme of news, views and information in the country’s three national languages - Shona, Ndebele and English. In the six years since its launch, it has exposed human rights abuses, including the violent land seizures since 2000 and the so-called Operation Murambatsvina (Restore Order) which cost some 700,000 Zimbabweans their homes and livelihoods and otherwise affected nearly a fifth of the troubled country's population.

Radio VOP operates as a communications trust, established in June 2000, and is run by Zimbabwean-based trustees who include journalists and lawyers. Executive director John Masuku, a BBC-trained veteran broadcaster who will visit London to receive the award, manages its day-to-day affairs.

John leads a team of 6 full-time journalists and 15 freelance correspondents based throughout the country. The trust promotes the right to free information so that citizens can make informed choices. Radio VOP ’s position became almost untenable when the Broadcasting Services Act was introduced in 2001 effectively quashing all independent media by withholding broadcasting licenses from private media through the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe. More recently Radio VOP has applied for a commercial radio license; but like other independent TV and radio operators, they were turned down.

“In its lifetime the station has been criticized, threatened and jammed but what drives us on is the belief in giving a voice to the voiceless – giving the people of Zimbabwe an opportunity to speak freely about issues that affect their lives and country,” said Radio VOP director, John Masuku.

As well as news and debate, the station is also committed to working closely with NGOs and other bodies to promote health, education and human rights, especially around HIV/AIDS. This includes features on home-based care for HIV/AIDS sufferers as well as the administration of anti-retroviral drugs.

Radio VOP has run programs on promoting basic human rights with the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights and has covered issues about constitution making with the National Constitutional Assembly. During Parliamentary and local elections the station works with organizations like Zimbabwe Electoral Support Network and Zimbabwe Civic Education Trust to encourage participation. Radio VOP frequently runs on-air competitions for Short Wave radios.

Radio Netherlands’ relay transmitters in Madagascar broadcast the programs to Zimbabwe. As a production house VOP sends its programs files by e-mail, internet and courier. It receives funding from a range of organizations including the Soros Foundation’s Open Society Initiative, Heinrich Boell Foundation and Hivos, among others.

Previous News From You

Week ending June 3, 2006

Week ending May 26, 2006

Week ending May 19, 2006

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Week ending April 14, 2006

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