Kenya’s Habari TV to offer streamed online news from TV stations across Africa

As the Thema Pay TV channels in France have shown, there’s a huge appetite for news from “back home” amongst those living in the global African diaspora. Kenya’s Habari TV hopes to capitalise on this interest by providing streamed news programmes from key African broadcasters. Russell Southwood spoke to Habari TV’s Kelvin Karungu about its plans.

In issue 69

Content

USAID provides funding for two seasons of Sesame Street Nigeria

South Africa: 1.1 million viewers Choose Pay TV over Free-To-Air options, says TAMS

Ghana facing Nations Cup TV black-out because of 1.5 million fee for rights

Tunisia: Australia’s SBS TV shoots documentary on Kerkennah Islands

Broadcast

Short-wave radio still going strong in Darfur, says listeners survey

New HD DSTV channel for South African subscribers

SportFive is taking SABC to court in Paris

Kenyan TV begins the long journey to going digital

Distribution

SES World Skies and Satlink collaboration expands reach for African clients

South Africa: Football fans will be able to watch the 2010 World Cup live in 3D

Investment

Hollywood is looking to produce in Cape Town Film Studios

South Africa: Football fans will be able to watch the 2010 World Cup live in 3D

Regulation & policy

Technology & convergence

Events

People

Opportunities

Top story

Kenya’s Habari TV to offer streamed online news from TV stations across Africa

Habari TV’s ambition is to be the web site where news programmes from TV stations all over Africa are aggregated under the slogan “News like Home”. It wants to be able to offer these news programmes within 24 hours of transmission, either at full length or as news clips. It also aims to carry news output in local languages. So for example, in Kenya, the objective would be to carry news output from the main five channels.

It’s working on getting the news programmes on to its servers within one hour of transmission. For broadcasters working digitally, this is fairly easy as it can be sent over the Internet and then formatted for presentation on the Habari TV site. It will index and tag clips and date stamp them, enabling users to use key words for searching.

The pitch to local broadcasters is that rather than buy rights from them, Habari TV will do a revenue share with the broadcaster. Kelvin Karungu won’t give specific numbers but says:”We have created a formula for the percentage revenue split based on ratings and viewership. The more views, the more money you get.” Whilst some broadcasters like Nation TV and KTN already have clips on their website, Habari TV’s service to TV stations is ideal for those who may not yet have a developed online offer.

The costs of having enough bandwidth for streaming programmes are not trivial and Habari TV offers a cost-effective way into the market. As Kelvin Karungu, Habari TV told us:”It’s an untapped market for broadcasters. It’s ideal for those who like the idea of doing it but don’t know how to do it.”

The business model is based on offering a subscription service. After a three day free trial, users pay US$19.99 for the news content carried by the website. There are significant discounts if you sign up for a quarterly or annual subscription. Registration is a very simple process and the web site is clear and easy to use. All content is streamed and requires a minimum down link of 256 kbps. The service is hosted in Canada. And as Karungu notes:”It’s easier to watch locally using 3G.”

Currently the web site has the nightly news programmes of Kenya’s Citizen TV and Uganda’s public broadcaster UBS. But it will be announcing two new signings in East Africa shortly. Beyond that, it wants to add Anglophone, Francophone and Arabic news content from across the continent.

The primary target audience will initially by the East African diaspora in the UK, the USA and Canada but it hopes to also reach out to those living in Australia and the Middle East. According to Karungu:”For it to succeed, we need to attract tens of thousands of subscribers but we believe they exist. An early test without payment attracted 60,000 unique views. And that was without really advertising it and it was only available for a relatively short period of time with just one newsclip.” If successful, it will provide competition for the diaspora channels being carried by Sky in the UK.

The site is clearly focused on news but will it widen its scope:”News is clearly the carrot but we’ve had discussions about other popular locally produced programmes.” It’s also looking at offering archive footage on a VOD basis.

Go online and try it – www.habari.tv - because you never know what you might find out. Digital set-top boxes in Kenya cost a staggering US$75 so President Mwai Kibaki has pledged that he will remove taxes from them to make them cheaper. And Jomo Kenyatta Airport suffered a power blackout.

Content

USAID provides funding for two seasons of Sesame Street Nigeria

Focus on the importance of education, empowerment for girls and HIV/AIDS will be part of the Nigerian version of the long-running children’s series Sesame Street. The programme is an extension of The Adventures of Kami and Big Bird pilot outreach project that launched in Nigeria earlier in 2009.

A five-year grant from the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

has been allocated to Sesame Street Nigeria (working title). The Nigerian series will incorporate 78 30-minute episodes and supporting outreach materials, as well as conduct research to evaluate the programme's impact.

The first season is themed“We Can,”and will focus on empowering children to aspire to be anything they want and encouraging them to stay in school. The episodes will involve community participation in the children’s learning process and also show the importance of time for play, fun.

Season two,“We Do It Right,”will highlight honesty and integrity, courtesy and coping with mistakes.Mutual respect and understanding and gender parity will be incorporated in the episodes.“We Live Here,” the third season, will focus on community activities that reflect the importance of culture and caring for the environment.

(Source: Screen Africa)

South Africa: 1.1 million viewers Choose Pay TV over Free-To-Air options, says TAMS

DStv viewers have grown 33%, which translates to an impressive 1.129- million new viewers, pitching it for the first time against terrestrial channels SABC and e.tv, the latest Television Audience Measurement Survey (TAMS) has shown.

The South African Advertising Research Foundation's TAMS data for January to June last year show that the shift to pay-TV is not limited to the upper-income groups. The living standards measure (LSM) 1-6 adult audience -- LSM 1 having the lowest living standard -- has grown 105%, or 195000 viewers. In the LSM 5 category alone, adult TV viewers increased 212%.

It has been suggested that the increase in pay-TV viewers has a lot to do with a number of sporting events to which MultiChoice has the rights, including Premier Soccer League matches and the African Nations Cup, and an array of DStv packages. The research found total adult TV viewers had increased 4%, or 837,833, while Free-To-Air TV declined by 1%, losing more than 291,000 viewers.

The foundation's senior technical support executive, Claire Welch, said last week that the data showed a change in the viewing behaviour of South Africans. "There is a clear shift towards DStv, whose adult viewers rose from 3,392- million to 4,522-million. If you look at TV viewing in total, the audience is quite stable, as are audience ratings.... Due to the huge move to DStv, however, there is an equal shift away from terrestrial TV. As a whole, terrestrial TV is now competing head to head with satellite."

The biggest loss for Free-To-Air TV was in the upper LSMs. In LSM 7-10, Free-To-Air TV lost 602,000 adult viewers and pay-TV gained more than 934,000. Terrestrial TV LSM 7 adult viewers dropped 9%, LSM 8 fell 14%, LSM 9 lost 8% and LSM 10 dropped 12%. "DStv is no longer the exclusive preserve of the upper classes," Welch said. "More and more lower LSM households are moving to pay TV."

The biggest loss in nonpay-TV viewership was in Gauteng, where 290,000 adult viewers were lost. DStv, on the other hand, gained more than 422,000 adult viewers.

(Source: Business Day)

Ghana facing Nations Cup TV black-out because of 1.5 million fee for rights

Ghanaians might not be able to watch the upcoming Africa Cup Nations Cup to be staged in Angola on television due to the inability of local TV stations to secure the rights for the four-week tournament, Ghanasoccernet understands.

The three television stations-GTV, Metro TV and TV3 are struggling to secure the rights from AFNEX for live telecast of the matches for local fans. The three TV Stations must cough up a whopping 1.5 million euros for the rights. Optimum Media Prime acting on behalf of the TV networks says the deal has stalled following the inability of the two parties to reach an agreement.

The Ghanaian consortium body fears local fans might not be able to watch the Nations Cup in the South African region if external factors are not induced. Ghanaian soccer fans are waiting with baited breath to catch the action live in Luanda after the Black Stars qualified for the biannual soccer show piece.

The General Manager of Optmum Media Prime Kenneth Ashigbey is eager to have the issue resolved."It is a shame but we have not been able to secure the right and that is a major source of worry to us,'' Ashigbey said. "The money been charged by CAF is on a high side and with the world cup coming up, it doesn't make economic sense to doll out such monies for the nations cup alone.

"We need to appeal to CAF to understand that this is an African event and such African fans and for the matter Ghanaian fans deserve the right to watch the games because they make the game. These fans are the ones who make the game thick and so if we are unable to watch it on TV, then there is a fundamental problem."

(source: The Accra Mall)

Tunisia: Australia’s SBS TV shoots documentary on Kerkennah Islands

Under the title: "Looks at the relaxed lifestyle of the Kerkennah Islands in Tunisia", the Australian TV channel "SBS TV", broadcast a 30 minute documentary on the Kerkennah Islands on Sunday and in prime time on "Thalassa", the French documentary channel.

It looks at the relaxed lifestyle of the Kerkennah Islands in Tunisia where fishermen collect fish using palm branches and education is highly valued and the documentary showcases the wonders of ancient Cercina (the Roman name of Kekennah Islands).

Often portrayed as a dream island, the Kerkennah archipelago is also home to one of the country's oldest native population, the Amazigh. They blended first with the Phoenicians and later with the Romans.

The islands were originally called "Cercina" because the witch-goddess "Circe" is supposed to have imprisoned Odysseus in kekennah, believing him too handsome to let go. She set a trend: Kerkennah has been a place of exile for centuries, but prisoners can hardly have cried when told that their fate was to be shipped over a shallow sea to the insular equivalent of the Elysian Fields".

Kerkennah is well known for its wealth marine fauna, especially octopus, which is the major source of living of fishermen and their families.

(source: Tunisia Online)

In Brief

- Twelve Sudanese journalists received one-month training on election reporting under UNESCO’s programme, Joint Media Elections Training. The participants, from both Northern and Southern Sudan, attended two weeks of classroom training – the first one took place in Juba, from 12 to 16 October, and the second one in Khartoum, from 7 to 11 November. The lessons were interspersed with three weeks of mentored joint exercises.

- - Nabil Karoui, D-G of Algeria’s Nessma TV said that the channel will support the national team (les verts) in the African Cup of Nations with a weekly programme with contributors from Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. He also said that both Cup of Nations and World Cup coverage would be enabled the Hotbird satellite so that the Maghreb diaspora could see it in Europe and elsewhere. Nessma alao wants to globalise Maghreb music and to do so it will present on its Star Academy 2 150 national songs modernised by Algerian composer Safy Boutella. According to a survey by Média Sens, Nessma TV had 70% viewing figures and a 79.5% satisfaction rating.

Broadcast

Sudan: Short-wave radio still going strong in Darfur, says listeners survey

A recent listener survey showed that Darfuri listen en masse to radio broadcasts via the short-wave band. 95% of the population over the age of 15 listen to the radio at least once a week. Over 70% of the people in Darfur listen at least once a week to Radio Dabanga, the Darfuri name for Radio Darfur. According to researcher Graham Mytton:”This research shows that short-wave radio is a very powerful medium in Darfur.”

After the state radio Omdurman – which broadcasts the entire day – Radio Darfur is the most popular radio station in terms of listeners. Asked which station people tune into to listen to the news, 39% said Radio Dabanga. Furthermore, it turns out that the questioned Darfuri primarily listen to the radio at times when Radio Dabanga transmits its broadcasts, from 7.30 a.m. to 8.30 a.m. and from 6.30 p.m. to 8.30 p.m.

Graham Mytton, formerly head of Media Research at the BBC and presently working as an independent media researcher, was commissioned by Press Now to conduct research into the listening behaviour of the Darfuri. The survey was held immediately after Ramadan, from September to the end of November 2009. The first results came in three days ago. The survey was held among 1,582 respondents over the age of 18 from all over Darfur, both men and women. The remarkable thing is that men and women listen in equal measure to the radio. ‘I have never seen that, nowhere in Africa – it’s usually a male affair,’ says Mytton, who has led numerous media studies in Africa. The preliminary results are very good for Radio Dabanga”.

Graham Mytton presented these provisional survey results at an evening in Desmet Studios, Amsterdam, during the celebration of Radio Darfur’s first anniversary. The data presented by Mytton were provisional results that will still be supplemented by further research. The full research report will be rounded off around 1 January 2010.

New HD DSTV channel for South African subscribers

HD PVR subscribers to get dedicated high definition sports channel in December. MultiChoice this morning announced that it would be increasing its channel offering for HD PVR subscribers. by Tom Manners

On the 26th of December the pay-TV operator plans to go live with an additional High Definition (HD) channel dedicated to sport coverage. This will coincide with the start of a test match between the South African and English cricket teams.

Initially the channel will intermittently broadcast sports coverage according to demand but will move over to a full 24-hour service on the 12th of February – set to coincide with the commencement of the 2010 Super 14 Rugby tournament.

The sports dedicated channel will be called Supersport HD and will be broadcast on channel 171. HD schedules will be published in the media and on www.supersport.com, while Supersport will promote HD schedules on its other channels.

“We are pleased that we are able to make this viewing experience part of our DStv offering. High Definition is the new international television standard and MultiChoice would like to ensure that our customers are always kept abreast of new developments. The new Supersport HD channel will make viewing sport on DStv an even more exciting and rewarding experience,” said Nico Meyer, CEO of MultiChoice South Africa regarding the imminent launch.

This announcement will certainly be met with praise from MultiChoice HD PVR subscribers; some of whom have complained that a single HD channel was inadequate.

MultiChoice broadcasts in 720p High Definition, which is not technically regarded as full HD. This is however industry standard around the world due to the excessive bandwidth requirements of 1080p broadcasting.

(source: http://mybroadband.co.za)

SportFive is taking SABC to court in Paris

The Paris-based agent for the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has served a summons on the cash-strapped South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) for money it claims it is owed for a R1-billion contract it signed with the broadcaster.

The contract was raised in Parliament last month by interim board member and advocate Leslie Sedibe, who described it as "shocking". Attempts are being made to renegotiate the contract, but CAF agent SportFive is now understood to have served a summons on the SABC.

SportFive is understood to be taking the broadcaster to court in Paris. SABC interim board chairman Irene Charnley referred the Mail & Guardian's questions to Sedibe, who said he could not comment on the negotiations or on any legal dispute the SABC might face over the contract.

At the end of last year Mvuzo Mbebe, the group executive for content enterprises, signed a R1-billion deal for the TV rights to all CAF games in the next eight years. The corporation's interim board has since suspended Mbebe.

The extraordinary price paid for the contract was allegedly not authorised by the former SABC board, which was aware of the crippling funding crisis gripping the broadcaster. Mbebe signed the contract at a time of mounting SABC debt, when senior executives had already been briefed on two occasions about the broadcaster's financial crisis.

SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said the SABC did not wish to comment on the CAF contract or on legal issues surrounding it until negotiations between the parties had been concluded. "A press statement will be issued as soon as the discussions are concluded," said Kganyago.

SABC sources told the M&G the corporation's chief financial officer, Robin Nicholson, had repudiated the deal. Mbebe and Nicholson flew to Paris in February this year to renegotiate the contract. It is understood that the guarantee was dropped and the terms of payment renegotiated.

(source: http://www.mg.co.za)

Kenyan TV begins the long journey to going digital

Kenya's long journey to digital broadcasting has begin in Nairobi amid concerns that the high pricing of set top boxes will prevent millions of viewers from migrating to the new and clearer transmission platform.

TV owners say the cost of the boxes - the equipment that enables analogue TV sets to receive digital signals - has risen by large margins since the government issued specifications for the recommended brands, putting the set top boxes beyond the reach of many homes. But dealers reckoned that the low uptake of the boxes has made it difficult to cut prices without hurting their margins. "It may take a national rollout to get the right sales volumes that will enable us to cut prices," said Jayesh Patel, an electronics dealer in Nairobi's Westlands.

Information ministry officials said last week that a tax rebate on the boxes was on the cards to speed up their uptake and help phase out analogue TV as planned.

The switch from analogue to digital broadcasting requires both broadcasters and consumers to buy new equipment that converts analogue signals to digital. The government two months ago announced that only digital set top boxes that are Digital Video Broadcasting Terrestrial (DVBT) and MPEG4-enabled will be sold in Kenya.

The government says the set top boxes should be priced at between Sh3,000 and Sh5,000 but consumers say they are currently priced at Sh10,000. Digital TV sets that don't require the set top boxes are priced at between Sh30,000 and Sh500,000 for high definition versions.

Migration to digital broadcasting is expected to unlock the frequencies logjam and break the long queue for licenses by those seeking to invest in Kenya's vibrant broadcasting sector.

An increase in the number of broadcasters is in turn expected to spur growth down the chain, especially in the content generation market to keep the stations running. All broadcasters are from next year expected to air at least 40 per cent local content, a regulation that opens up a huge business potential for homegrown production houses.

Information permanent secretary Bitange Ndemo said allowing private dealerships in the sale of the set top boxes was expected to bring in competition and pull down prices. Dr Ndemo said the government was also considering setting up local assembly operations to help drive down prices.

Kenya Digital Committee, the team that is overseeing the migration to digital broadcasting, says the government should also allow Kenya Broadcasting Corporation to import the gadgets through its subsidiary Signet for faster uptake. Signet has already shipped in some boxes for the trials.

The government has formed Signet as a KBC subsidiary to transmit the digital signals for all broadcasters until 2012 to reduce the cost of migration. But the move is also seen as an attempt to level the playing field by removing the high cost of equipment that has acted as an entry barrier to potential investors.

Broadcasters will be required to sign transmission contracts with Signet upon licensing by the CCK. A number of broadcasters including NTV, KTN, CNBC, K24, STV, KBC, EATN, Oxgen and Family TV are already broadcasting through Signet and can be received by anyone with the set top boxes.

Establishment of a single signal distributor leaves broadcasters with the task of generating content, opening a new competition front. All broadcasters are also expected to apply for new licences in January to meet the requirements of the Kenya Communication Amendment Act 2009.

Kenya has 110 television channels and 264 FM frequencies assigned to 23 television companies and 62 FM broadcasters.

Under the new transmission model, broadcasters will have uniform signal coverage removing reach and clarity as an item of competition in the market. "The challenge is for the broadcasters to generate local content that will enable them to run the stations 24 hours without breaching the regulations," Njoroge said citing the new rule requiring them to have at least 40 per cent local content.

David Waweru, the KBC managing director, said the industry should now concentrate on content development as opposed to incurring costs on none core business issues such as building and maintaining infrastructure.

"With analogue broadcasting it required a broadcaster to put up between 25 to 30 transmitters worth not less than Sh1 million each," said Waweru.

(source: Business Daily)

In Brief

- Governor Martin Elechi has threatened to sack all the staff and management of the state owed Ebonyi State Broadcasting Service (EBBS) in Nigeria, should trouble continue to be experienced in the organisation.

- A week-long sports journalists training programme opened at the Senegalese capital Dakar over the weekend with the participation of sports writers from Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Liberia, Sao Tome, The Gambia and hosts Senegal. The training, which is sponsored by the world football's governing body (FIFA), is meant to provide mid-career training to more than 300 reporters and photographers across the continent. The programme is part of FIFA's "Win in Africa with Africa" development programme, which was launched shortly after South Africa were named as hosts of the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals. The Dakar course, which came on the heels of similar courses held in June 2009, is directed by the AFP Foundation, the international training arm of Agence France-Presse and co-financed by the European Union. Similar sessions will simultaneously take place in Cairo, Johannesburg, Libreville, Maputo, Nairobi and Rabat with a total of 137 reporters and 15 photographers from over 40 African countries benefiting.

- A workshop entitled “Francophone Africa faces the challenge of the transition to digital broadcasting” was held in Ouagadougou from 29 November to 4 December. The meeting produced a declaration that called for an immediate engagement by all the different actors to carry out the implementation. It also called for specialist organisations to supply help in matters such as spectrum planning.

Distribution

SES World Skies and Satlink collaboration expands reach for African clients

SatLink Communications Ltd and SES World Skies have announced the launch of a new DS3 fiber link connecting their teleport facilities. The new link allows SatLink client's direct access to SES World Skies' US satellite fleet while also enabling

SES World Skies to further expand the reach of its satellites covering Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

This collaboration strengthens the two companies decade-long relationship and is expected to bring additional business opportunities to both companies. For SES World Skies, the connection represents an additional means to extend the reach of SES' satellite fleet in the growing Asian, Pacific, African, Middle Eastern and European markets. SatLink, one of SES World Skies key teleport partners in the Middle East region, enhances its global distribution capabilities by linking its Israel-based teleport to the Americas through SES World Skies’ satellite fleet and augments its world-wide transmission capacity and global fiber network.

Earlier in 2009, SatLink acquired capacity on SES Astra's Astra 4A (Sirius 4) satellite with a MCPC (Multi-Channel Per Carrier) platform providing Direct-to-Home reach in sub-Saharan Africa.

South Africa: Football fans will be able to watch the 2010 World Cup live in 3D

Fifa has signed an agreement with Sony to film up to 25 games from the finals in South Africa in 3D. Fans will be able to watch the games on 3D-ready televisions at home or at special public screens in seven cities around the world, including London, using special glasses.

"During June and July 2010 we will provide our European consumers with the most compelling 3D content to enjoy and experience first-hand, for example at the Fifa International Fan Fests," said Fujio Nishida, president of Sony Europe.

Sky has filmed a number of events, including the recent ATP World Tour Finals at the O2, in 3D. From 2010, Sony will be incorporating 3D compatibility into a wide range of consumer products such as "BRAVIA" LCD TV, Blu-ray Disc recorders and players, VAIO and PlayStation(R)3, to provide a multitude of ways in which 3D content - from 3D movies to stereoscopic 3D games - can be enjoyed in the home. By having viewers around the world experience sensational 3D content from the World Cup tournament, Sony aims to accelerate the expansion of 3D from professionals to consumers in 2010 and beyond.

"The transition to 3D is underway, and, we, at Sony, intend to be leaders in every aspect. Our sponsorship of the FIFA World Cup allows us to leverage our cutting-edge 3D technology and premier products with dazzling content to produce a unique and totally compelling viewing experience. 3D viewers around the world will feel as though they are inside the stadiums in South Africa, watching the games in person," said Sir Howard Stringer, Chairman, CEO and President of Sony Corporation.

"This propels the football fan into a whole new viewing dimension and marks the dawning of a new era in the broadcasting of sport," said FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke. "We are proud that the FIFA World Cup can serve as a platform for advancing technology and the viewing experience, and are truly fortunate to have Sony as a partner in this endeavour."

During the 2010 FIFA World Cup, FIFA will host the "International FIFA Fan Fest(TM)" public viewing events in 7 cities around the world (Berlin, London, Mexico City, Paris, Rio De Janeiro, Rome, and Sydney). At Sony's commercial displays located within the "Fan Fest," people will be able to enjoy and experience promotional highlight trailers of the FIFA World Cup in 3D.

In anticipation of the Official 3D Film, viewers will be able to watch promotional trailers for the film of the World Cup in 3D at retail outlets(including Sony stores) that sell Sony products around the world.

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment plans to produce and distribute the Official 3D Film on the Blu-ray Disc*[1] and other formats.

By combining the excitement of the FIFA World Cup with 3D images generated using Sony's technology and products, Sony and FIFA will seek to deliver 3D images that convey the action and emotion of the World Cup to viewers around the world, and a viewing experience as if they were in the stadium itself. 3D specification of BD is under consideration by the BDA (Blu-ray Disc Association).

(source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk)

In Brief

- The Durban International Film Festival has announced that its 31st edition will take place from 22 July to 1 August 2010. The festival will present over 200 screenings of films from around the world, with a special focus on films from South African and Africa. Screenings will take place throughout Durban including township areas where cinemas are non-existent. The festival will also offer an extensive seminar and workshop programme featuring local and international filmmakers. The festival calls for entries from around the world. Feature films, short films and documentaries are all welcome. The festival does have a competition component. The deadline for entries is 31 March 2010 for short films and documentaries; 15 April 2010 for feature films. Early submissions are encouraged.

The entry form is available on the web http://www.cca.ukzn.ac.za/Durban_International_Film_Festival.htm

For more information visit: http://www.cca.ukzn.ac.za/ email diff@ukzn.ac.za or call +27 (0)31 260 2506.

Investment

Hollywood is looking to produce in Cape Town Film Studios

Thanks to the international success of District 9, Hollywood is showing great interest in the Cape Town Film Studios (CTFS), which is being built outside Somerset West.

Nico Dekker, the chief executive of CTFS, has recently returned from his first major marketing visit to the six major film producers in Los Angeles - namely Fox, Paramount, Disney, Sony, Universal and Warner. He also met a number of smaller production companies.

While his company had not funded District 9, the film put South Africa on the map for the American film industry, Dekker said.

Apart from a saving of up to 50% on production costs for foreign producers, the greater maturity of the local film industry has, according to Dekker, demonstrated to them that the Western Cape has the necessary technical expertise to compete internationally.

Dekker had expected to see three managers in Los Angeles, but when he got there 26 were waiting for him. The South African consulate in Los Angeles told him that his marketing endeavour had been the most successful of its type to date.

Laurence Mitchell, managing executive of the Cape Film Commission (CFC), says several Johannesburg film producers are planning to open branches in Cape Town for at least the next couple of years, to benefit from a major number of productions about the 2010 World Cup, in particular.

He is also thrilled that the CFC was able to persuade the BBC to make Cape Town its 2010 base. Apart from soccer, the BBC will be producing educational and entertainment programmes there. According to Mitchell, the BBC wants to ensure that its 200m viewers see that its crew is not merely sitting in a studio in London.

In the run-up to the World Cup soccer tournament next year, Mitchell expects production to increase massively from January onwards. This could help to counter the effects of the recession, which has handicapped local productions, especially in light of the problems at the SABC.

Among the year's highlights, says Mitchell, was the filming of the film Laconia about a luxury passenger liner that sank during the Second World War. The budget amounted to more than R60m for 61 days of filming in Cape Town.

Various Bollywood productions like No Problem, with Slum Dog Millionaire's Anil Kapoor in the cast, as well as Clint Eastwood's rugby picture Invictus, were mainly filmed here. Skills development is also taking place at the new animation academy at the False Bay College in Khayelitsha.

(source: http://www.capetownfilmstudios.co.za)

Huge Group launches Huge Media with agreement to distribute mobile advertising technology

Huge Group has announced the launch of its latest operating subsidiary, Huge Media, in Johannesburg. Huge Media aims to enter the rapidly emerging digital media arena, positioning itself as a media owner on the leading edge of the digital technology curve.

Huge Media has signed a distribution agreement for South Africa with mobile phone technology provider Eyeballs Mobile Advertising, giving it the rights to distribute the cutting edge “Eyeballs” mobile advertising technology in South Africa. Huge Group’s majority shareholding in Eyeballs Mobile Advertising means the group will also benefit from any international expansion moves by Eyeballs.

Duncan Palmer, Group Marketing Manager for Huge Group, says Huge Media was formed to take the Eyeballs technology to market in South Africa. “Huge Media will become a ‘media owner’ – it will build and own the access to a mobile phone subscriber base, to which it will be able to serve advertising.”

The Eyeballs technology utilizes the “interaction-initiation” time on users’ mobile phones to display customized advertising, content and information to the user. The technology has been developed in South Africa over several years, is in many respects a world first, and enjoys patent protections both in South Africa and internationally. Currently the technology solution runs on Symbian-based smartphones, across all networks, with BlackBerry compatibility next in the development queue and due for release in early 2010.

Huge Media will be the first commercial implementation of the Eyeballs technology worldwide, after a beta trial that was run in South Africa last year. Justin Lavers, Sales and Marketing Manager for Huge Media, comments, “Cellphones are South Africa’s primary and ubiquitous form of communication, with a pervasiveness not seen in any other medium. It makes perfect sense that this will soon be the most valuable real estate in the media world, as well as possibly the most fickle – it takes a lot for a user to invite a supplier onto their personal mobile space. The Eyeballs technology achieves this with a level of elegance diametrically opposed to existing market offerings, and we have already seen an unusually high level of product loyalty in the beta trials.”

Lavers says the technology has unique user appeal and acceptability. “Unlike current methods of mobile advertising, which generally invade your personal space and time even if opt-in, this technology is completely non-intrusive and does not require the user to change mobile phone behaviour. In fact, international research has shown that users are positively disposed during genuine phone communication time. Further, it is measurable right down to the confirmed view status of each advertisement, making our reporting completely accurate and transparent.”

“In addition,” says Lavers, “we believe this advertising proposition will be extremely well received, at the aggressive cpm (cost-per-thousand) rates at which we will be able to deliver, which will compete very favourably with existing, far less sophisticated or transparent digital media offerings. It will be a case of newer-better-cheaper.”

In Brief

- Gabon’s Radio Télédiffusion Gabonaise (RTG 1) has invested in a new web site for the channel. Users can have access to the channel’s content by subject and to a weekly programme of what’s on. The site can be found at: www.rtg.ga

Regulation & policy
Technology & convergence
Events
People
Opportunities

Regulation & policy

Tanzanian Government worried about rural viewers in the shift to digital by 2015

The Tanzanian Government is worried about those living in rural areas having access to electronic broadcasts once the broadcasting system in country shifts from analogue to digital mode by 2015.

In a superb pice of buck-passing, the deputy minister for Communication, Science and Technology, Dr Maua Daftari, therefore challenged broadcasters last week to come up with resolutions that would advise the government on ways to ensure that people in villages would not be left out after the exercise.

The shifting of the broadcasting media in the country to the digital format was agreed upon during the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) meeting in Geneva in 2006. "It is my hope that you will brainstorm and come up with what the Government can do to ensure that no Tanzanians are left out of getting services once the analogue system is phased out," she said.

She called upon the broadcasting media stakeholders to assess the economic readiness of the people in adopting the digital technology. The concern by the deputy minister is due to the fact that services in the digital system may need people to dig deeper into their pockets to buy signal receiving equipment while the majority of them live on meagre income.

For his part, the chairman of the Media Owners Association of Tanzania (Moat), Reginald Mengi passed the buck back to Government, saying one way to ease costs of services in the digital technology is for the Government to remove the tax on 'set top Box' a decoder-like instrument for receiving signals in television sets.

The director general of the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA), Prof John Nkoma, said in the digital technology, the broadcasting media houses would only produce programmes, and transmission would be undertaken by other companies known as signal carriers. The companies that will become signal carriers are Star Media Tanzania and Business Transmission Ltd.

"The important change in the digital broadcasting technology is that one company will be transmitting for several television stations unlike now when each television station has to set up its transmission equipment," said Prof Nkoma.

(source: The Citizen)

Cote d’Ivoire: CNCA orders non-licensed broadcasters to stop transmission

In a communiqué broadcast on the news programme 20 heures, Félix Nagnio, Secretary General of the Conseil national de la communication audiovisuelle (CNCA), ordered:”the immediate close down of all non-authorised radio and television broadcasts in the centre, north and west.”

According to Nagnio, the decision was necessary because various private radio and television stations were broadcasting without authorisation from CNCA despite repeated injunctions for them to get authorisations. Furthermore, “the principles of fairness and equity don’t seem to be applied in these areas” to the different candidates in the Presidential election.

Nagnio of CNCA forbade them to “produce and transmit programmes of a political character.” However, his solution to this issue was to suggest that the national radio broadcaster Radio télévision ivoirienne (Rti) extend its coverage to these areas. This approach is justified by the regulation covering these areas which specifies the need “to guarantee to the populace access to the same sources of information.”

(source: Fraternité Matin)

In Brief

- The Somali media and journalist associations decided on a cooperative action plan to counter the growing oppression of the media in Somalia. In 2009 six Somali journalists have been killed, others were detained, several stations were closed or taken over by armed groups. More than 30 independent media houses representing all parts of the Somali speaking territories, signed a joined declaration calling for the establishment of a training and solidarity centre for reporters to handle security issues, arrests, corruption and biased reporting. Such a Solidarity Centre will document harassments, random arrest, imprisonment and torture of reporters, closure of radio stations and killing of journalists. It will collect detailed reports and evidence to end the impunity of perpetrators.

The Somali journalists also decided to form a media cooperation that will help the independent media to disseminate their news. Several radio stations based in all Somali speaking territories will seek close cooperation. The stations are committed to share their news through a central desk at a safe location. The collected materials will be packaged and redistributed to all the partnering stations. A structural training and coaching program to enhance the professional skills of the media sector will be attached to the project. Some stations based in the most restricted areas are considering building a re-broadcasting station that cannot be controlled by any of the warring parties.

Technology & convergence

UNESCO and CBA launch new guidelines for broadcasters on user-generated content

For the first time guidelines have been published on how broadcasters around the world can encourage audiences to produce better-quality user-generated content. The new guidelines will also enable the public to become more media and information literate.

Abdul Waheed Khan, UNESCO’s Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information, said of the guidelines launched today: “UNESCO and CBA joined forces to encourage broadcasters, particularly from the developing countries, to interact with their viewers and listeners to enhance the quality of the user-generated content (UGC) through improved media and information literacy (MIL) of their audiences and, more specifically, UGC producers”.

The Guidelines for Broadcasters on Promoting User-Generated Content and Media and Information Literacy were suggested and funded by UNESCO, and commissioned by the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association (CBA). They provide guidance on how to encourage a greater diversity of material from a wider range of voices - material that serves both the public duty and commercial needs of broadcasters, as well as democratic needs of the audience. Written by Martin Scott, lecturer in media and development at the University of East Anglia, the report follows research published last year by UNESCO and CBA, which found a lack of initiatives by broadcasters to promote user-generated content (UGC), and media and information literacy.

Rapid advances in technology mean that audiences are able to generate more and wider- ranging content to offer broadcasters - from letters, emails and text messages to photos, videos and blogs. Benefits of promoting and using UGC include free access to material that broadcasters might not otherwise obtain, for example footage of breaking news stories. Recent examples include the post-election riots in Iran and the terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

The new guidelines address potential risks and concerns about the commercial and practical implications of using audience-generated material. “These guidelines come at a time when the production and availability of UGC continues to grow, and there is increasing recognition that, in order to take part in modern information societies, people across the world need to be media and information literate,” explained Scott, of the School of International Development. “By providing not only space for the public to express themselves, but also the skills and capacity to take part in public debate, broadcasters can ensure that citizens’ right to freedom of expression is realised, as well as engage with communities they might not otherwise reach.”

The guidelines can be downloaded for free: http://www.cba.org.uk

New UK TV set from Cello offers convergence with iPlayer and 14 Internet channels

A new TV set which offers people the chance to view the BBC iPlayer directly, has launched. The iViewer, from British firm Cello, has built-in internet access, and requires a broadband or wifi connection in order to view net channels.bIt will be sold exclusively in Marks and Spencer stores until March 1 2010.

Currently the BBC catch-up service is only available on television via set top boxes, games consoles or a digital TV subscription with Virgin Media. Other internet channels available on iViewer will include Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food, YouTube and video podcasts by news providers CNN and chat show host Larry King.

The set has taken a year to develop, said Brian Palmer, owner of Cello Electronics. A delay in the delivery of an essential chip manufactured in the US set back the software writing process by four months. "We start manufacturing the sets in County Durham this weekend," he told BBC News. "But they will be in short supply before Christmas."

The LCD sets are available in 26 and 32 inch models (priced £399 and £499 respectively) and are designed to be upgraded remotely by Cello when BBC iPlayer starts broadcasting in HD.

(source: BBC News)

In Brief

- IMPALA, the International MHEG Promotion Alliance, welcomed the news of the beta release of the world’s first deployment of hybrid broadcast broadband MHEG Interaction Channel (MHEG-IC) by UK free-to-air satellite platform Freesat. Freesat, which is owned by the BBC and ITV, will allow access to the highly successful BBC iPlayer catch-up TV service via the IP connection, supplementing its existing broadcast content. The principles behind the MHEG-IC are to provide a seamless viewer experience of broadcast-delivered content augmented with content delivered over IP as an extension of the channel or network. The MHEG-IC gives access to streamed on-demand video content in addition to traditional text and graphics as well as the ability to support secure transactions.

Events

*4th December 2009

Auteur Experimental Short Film Festival -

venue: Labia on Kloof, Cape Town, SA.

Submission closes 28th November 2009. Auteur Experimental Short Film Festival is inviting entries from newly graduated film school students.

If your short film is no longer than 10 minutes and produced entirely by film school students or newly graduated students, then we'd love to have your submission.

The short film festival runs for one evening only.

click for details (http://www.filmcontact.com/south-africa/events/auteur-experimental-short-film-festival-2009)

* January 2010 (date TBC)

Nigeria, India plan joint film festival

venue: Nigeria.

INDIAN and Nigerian governments have concluded plans to host a joint film festival for Bollywood and Nollywood to commemorate the 60th and 50th independence anniversaries of both countries respectively. The festival, which is scheduled to take place by January 2010, is expected to serve as a vehicle for strengthening the cultural and economic ties that have existed between the two countries over the years.

Mahesh Sachdev, Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria said the result of the partnership would benefit 1.1 billion people in India and 140 million Nigerians.

*18th February 2010

African History month co-presentation

venue: NY, USA - Schomburg Center for research in black culture organised by Africa Film Festival Inc.

click for details (http://www.africanfilmny.org/aff_fest.html)

*22nd till 28th February 2010

Aluta Film Festival

venue: Kimberley, South Africa.

Call for Entries: The organisers of the Aluta Film Festival, South African premier township cinema event, are calling for entries from South African and International filmmakers for 2010, the 7th edition of the festival.

Deadline: November

Categories: Features; documentaries; animation; short films

Requirements: Preview: DVD PAL. Screening: 16mm, 35mm and video

Awards: Aluta! Revolution Awards

Fees: None

Administrative address: 18985 Guttenburg Pitse Street, John Mampe. Phase One, Galeshewe, Kimberley 8300, South Africa

Tel: +27 (0)76 853 1214

Fax: +27 (0)86 513 7783

Festival Director: Motheo Seleke (motheoseleke@yahoo.com)

Festival Administrator: Nandipha Shwababa

*24-26 February 2010

DISCOP AFRICA 3

Venue: Pullman Teranga hotel in Dakar, Senegal.

Film and TV content trade show, one of the most important event for the development of audiovisual content business in sub-saharan Africa fueled by overall growth in disposable income and advertising spending, the ongoing switchover process, strong broadband deployment, a fast-growing home-video marketplace, the construction of multiplex cinemas and the emergence of IPTV.

click for details (http://www.discop.com/ci/pages/show/discop_africa_3)

* February 2010 (date TBC)

SAFTA 2010 -

The 4th South African Film and Television Awards. The closing date for entry submission was July 30 2009.

Formats include:

- For the Feature Film, Made for TV Movie, Documentary, Television Non Fiction, Short Film, And Student Sections

- In the Television Fiction section: TV Drama, TV Soap, Mini Series and TV Comedy

click for details (http://nfvf.co.za)

* 17-27 March 2010

Cape Winelands Film Festival 2010 -

venue: Cape Town

One of South Africa’s largest film festivals, Cape Winelands Film Festival has announced an official call for entries.

click for details (http://films-for-africa.co.za/index.php?option=com
_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=28)

*5-10 April 2010

AMAA Short Film Competition

Venue: Lagos, Nigeria.

The AMAAs are barely half a decade old – but within this relatively short period, they have made a significant impact on the African motion picture industry. They have created vast opportunities for linkages, for networking and for interfacing within and outside the continent. This synergy has diversified and intensified the reservoir of creativity in the industry.

click for details (http://www.filmcontact.com/nigeria/events/amaa-short-film-competition-african-universities)

*April 7th to 13th, 2010

17th NY Africa Film Festival (first session)

venue: NY, USA - Walter Reade Theatre, Lincoln Center,

The famous Festival organised by African Film Festival, Inc. (AFF) celebrates the richness of African and African Diaspora culture.

CELEBRATING: FIFTY YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE FOR 17 AFRICAN NATIONS • NEW AND EMERGING THEMES IN AFRICAN CINEMA • 2010 SOUTH AFRICAN WORLD CUP

click for details (http://www.africanfilmny.org/aff_fest.html)

*10-15 April 2010

NAB Show 2010

Venue: Las Vegas Convention Center, Nevada, USA.

More than just broadcasting, the NAB Show is the world\rquote s largest digital media industry event attended by leading media, content, entertainment and communications professionals who share a passion for the next generation of video and audio content across multiple platforms \emdash from television, radios and computers to phones, the big screen and beyond.

Over twice the size of any other event of its kind, the annual NAB Show usually attracts more than 23,000 buyers from outside the U.S. who come to do business with more than 1,500 of the leading industry suppliers.

click for details (http://www.nabshow.com/2010/index.asp)

*10-11 April 2010

MIPDoc 2010

Venue: Cannes, France.

click for details (http://www.mipworld.com/en/MIPDOC/)

*12-15 April 2010

SatCom Africa 2010

Venue: Sandton Convention Centre - Johannesburg, South Africa

click for details: http://www.terrapinn.com/2010/satcomza/

followed by SatCom Star Awards: http://www.terrapinn.com/2010/satcomawardsza/

*12-16 April 2010

MIPTV 2010

venue: Cannes, France.

The World's international TV content market event. The conference programme usually presents over 150 of the biggest names in global TV and film entertainment, digital media and advertising.

Exhibitors from Africa and Middle East usually accounts for 3% of total figures.

click for details (http://www.mipworld.com/en/MIPTV/Conferences-events/)

*13-April 2010

SatCom Star Awards

Venue: Sandton Sun Hotel - Johannesburg, SA.

Africa\rquote s premier satellite event brings you the industry awards for best practice.

click for details: http://www.terrapinn.com/2010/satcomawardsza/

*15-25 April 2010

26th PanAfrican International Film Festival

Venue: Montreal, Canada

Festival organized by Vues d’Afrique, open to films from all the continents, depicting African, Caribbean and Diaspora realities through a broad range of subjects.

For the past few years the festival has devoted an entire section to the new generation of African Digital filmmaking. Works who aspire to be "a direct reflection of what happens on the ground" and that enable us to discover video productions that are both very contemporary and urban.

click for details: www.festivalpanafrica.com

*19-21 May 2010

Broadcast & Film Africa 2010

venue: Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC) Nairobi - Kenya.

click for details: http://www.aitecafrica.com/event/view/43

*12-23 May 2010

Festival de Cannes

venue: Palais du Festival, Cannes, South of France.

The Festival de Cannes has celebrated the cinema for more than 60 years.

Over the years, the French Association of the International Film Festival has been able to evolve whilst retaining the essential: the passion for motion pictures, discovery of new talents, and enthusiasm of festival-goers and professionals from around the world, all contributing to the birth and distribution of films.

click for details: (http://www.festival-cannes.com)

*May 28th to 31st, 2010

17th NY Africa Film Festival (second session)

venue: NY, USA - Bamcinémateque and Bam Rose Cinemas

The famous Festival organised by African Film Festival, Inc. (AFF) celebrates the richness of African and African Diaspora culture.

CELEBRATING: FIFTY YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE FOR 17 AFRICAN NATIONS • NEW AND EMERGING THEMES IN AFRICAN CINEMA • 2010 SOUTH AFRICAN WORLD CUP

click for details (http://www.africanfilmny.org/aff_fest.html)

*16-27 June 2010

2010 Edinburgh International Film Festival

Venue: Edinburgh, Scotland.

The Festival is internationally regarded as a focus for discovery, a celebration of cinema, a centre of debate and a catalyst for new films. EIFF is committed to screening high quality new short and feature film and video work in all genres from around the world.

Please note all submitted films should be no more than 12 months old by June 2010 and EIFF requires at least UK premiere status.

click for details (http://www.edfilmfest.org.uk/)

*June 2010 - date TBA

RWANDA FILM FESTIVAL

venue: Kigali, Rwanda

click for details: http://tinyurl.com/yczef4g

*July 2010 - date TBA

ZANZIBAR INTERNATIONAL FILMFESTIVAL (ZIFF)

venue: Tanzania

http://www.ziff.or.tz/

*2-3 August 2010

The Internet Show Africa

Venue: Sandton Convention Centre - Johannesburg, SA.

There are four seminar theatres themed around the following: Digital advertising and marketing, Web 2.0 and social networking, e-commerce and payments, Content management and streaming.

click for details (http://www.terrapinn.com/2010/africa/)

People

Academy Award winner Morgan Freeman, along with his producing partner at Revelations Entertainment, Lori McCreary, will be in South Africa this month to attend the local premiere events for the motion picture release Invictus starring Freeman as Nelson Mandela and directed by Oscar winner Clint Eastwood (Million Dollar Baby, Unforgiven). During their stay in the country, Freeman and McCreary will also support various charity initiatives around the film’s 11 December release.

Shot entirely on location in South Africa, Invictus tells the inspiring true story of how the newly elected South African president joined forces with the captain of South Africa’s rugby team, Francois Pienaar (played by Matt Damon) to help unite their country. The South African cast includes Tony Kgoroge, Patrick Mofokeng, Matt Stern, Leleti Khumalo and Marguerite Wheatley as Francois Pienaar’s wife.

In the spirit of reconciliation, Freeman and McCreary will participate in a corporate charity drive to raise funds for three charities: The Nelson Mandela Foundation, The Make a Difference Foundation and the Chris Burger/Petro Jackson Players’ Fund. The donations will be handed over to these charities on South Africa’s National Day of Reconciliation – December 16th - at an event at Maponya Mall, Soweto.

The trip marks a return to Africa for Freeman and McCreary, who shot the feature film Bopha! entirely on location in Zimbabwe in 1993. Freeman directed Bopha! with McCreary serving as producer.

Opening nationwide on 11 December 2009, Invictus will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company and sub-distributed by Nu Metro Films in South Africa.

Opportunities and requests

2010 International Emmy Awards

Call for entries

ENTRY DEADLINE: Friday, February 5, 2010

The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences is now accepting entries for the 2010 International Emmy Awards.

Rules& Regulations and entry forms can be found at http://www.iemmys.tv/awards_entry.aspx

Eligible submissions must have been created and initially distributed outside of the United States between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2009. The deadline for entries is February 5, 2010.

Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Awards Department of The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences at awardsdept@iemmys.tv or +1-212-489-1946.

7th African Film Festival, Tarifa

The 2nd Spanish-African forum of film co-production Africa Produce and Co-production Incentive Fund has issued a Call for Entries. Africa Produce is a forum between African filmmakers and Spanish producers and Spanish TV commissioning editors and TV managers in charge of co-production. The goal is to introduce

African cinema projects to the Spanish co-production market.

The Centro de Divulgación Cultural del Estrecho Al Tarab (the NGO organizing The African Film Festival of Tarifa and Africa Produce) invites African filmmakers to participate with their feature length and documentary film projects1 in the 2nd Spanish-African forum of film co- production, Africa Produce.

Africa Produce takes place within the African Film Festival of Tarifa (May 21st-29th, 2010) and it is supported by the Spanish Agency for International Development and Co-operation (AECID).

All projects must be sent before January 15th, 2010 to: carlos@fcat.es Before sending projects, please contact Carlos for the criteria for what projects may be submitted.

Vue d'Afrique: Call for entries

26th PanAfrican International Film Festival

15th to 25th April 2010

Montreal, Canada

FILM SUBMISSIONS

Festival organized by Vues d’Afrique

100, Sherbrooke East

Suite 3100

Montreal, (Québec) H2X 1C3

Canada

Email : coordination@vuesdafrique.org

Tel. : +1 514 284 3322 extension 230

Registration and guidelines (in French), www.festivalpanafrica.com

INTERNATIONAL SECTION

Fiction, Feature length and short film Category

Documentary, Feature length and short film Category

Open to films from all the continents, depicting African, Caribbean and Diaspora realities through a broad range of subjects.

Deadline for submission: 31st December 2009

Registration Fees: none

Eligibility:

1) Film finished on or after: 1st January 2008

2) Origin: All countries

3) Screening format: 35 mm, Beta SP, Digital Betacam or DVD

4) Films need to be in French or subtitled in French or English

INTERNATIONAL SECTION

Digital Africa category. TV series, soaps, fiction and short films

Deadline for submission: 15th January 2010

Registration Fees: none

Eligibility:

1) Film finished on or after: 1st January 2008

2) Origin: All countries

3) Screening format: Beta SP, Digital Betacam or DVD

4) Film need to be in French or subtitled in French or English

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