Oceania (Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia) Digital TV News

Free TV and Broadcast Australia partner for DVB-T2 trials
Mar 21, 2018 – Free TV and Broadcast Australia have announced that they had agreed to conduct trials of next generation broadcast technology in Sydney. The SBS and the ABC will also be active participants in the trials.
News categories: Free TV, Broadcast Australia, Bridget Fair, Peter Lambourne, Australia, Content Distribution, Digital TV, DVB-T2

News Corp and Telstra to combine Foxtel and FOX SPORTS Australia
Mar 5, 2018 – News Corp and Telstra have announced they have signed definitive agreements to combine Foxtel and FOX SPORTS Australia. News Corp will have 65% of the combined entity and Telstra will have 35%.
News categories: News Corp, Telstra, Foxtel, Robert Thomson, Michael Miller, Andy Penn, Patrick Delany, Australia, Cable TV, Digital TV, MandA, Satellite

Australian Video Viewing Report released
Mar 5, 2018 – The latest Australian Video Viewing Report, spanning the year through Q4 2017, builds on the continuing story of how Australians are embracing opportunities to watch video on an ever-increasing array of options.
News categories: Regional TAM, OzTAM, Nielsen, Dave Walker, Doug Peiffer, Craig Johnson, Australia, Digital TV, Market Research, Mobile

Yospace and Seven agree dynamic ad insertion deal for live OTT channels
Feb 8, 2018 – Yospace and Seven have made a long-term agreement for enabling Dynamic Ad Insertion into live OTT channels. Yospace’s platform allows Seven to open up online ad breaks in live OTT streams in a way that is as seamless to the viewer.
News categories: Yospace, Seven, David Springall, Clive Dickens, Advertising, Australia, Digital TV, Streaming

Optus' Fetch STB now works with Google Assistant
Jan 25, 2018 – Optus has announced that their Fetch set-top box now works with Google Assistant. Using voice activated AI, Fetch customers have the option of hands-free entertainment and can use their voice to search for something to watch, find out what’s on, set recordings, change the channel and more.
News categories: Optus, Ben White, Australia, Digital TV, Set Top Box, Smart Home

Apple's wireless speaker arrives February 9
Jan 23, 2018 – HomePod, the wireless speaker from Apple, arrives on February 9 in the US, UK and Australia. HomePod will arrive in France and Germany this spring. With Siri, HomePod can control a wide range of HomeKit smart home accessories.
News categories: Apple, Philip Schiller, Australia, France, Germany, Smart Home, UK, USA

Piracy-enabling STB supplier closed down in Australia
Nov 28, 2017 – Following a joint investigation in Australia by the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) and CASBAA's Coalition Against Piracy (CAP) into a large supplier of IPTV set-top boxes, pre-loaded to play pirated movies, television shows, sports programming, and other content has had these operations closed down in Australia.
News categories: CASBAA, Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment, Neil Gane, Zoe Thorogood, Australia, Content Protection, Digital TV, Set Top Box, Streaming

AsiaSat 9 fully operational at 122°E
Nov 27, 2017 – AsiaSat 9 is fully operational at 122°E following successful migration of all services from AsiaSat 4, delivering enhanced power, greater bandwidth and improved efficiency to customers for advanced DTH, TV distribution, VSAT broadband and mobility services across the Asia-Pacific.
News categories: AsiaSat, Andrew Jordan, Asia, Content Distribution, Indonesia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Oceania, Satellite

Fiji selects EUTELSAT 172B to provide universal TV access
Nov 23, 2017 – Walesi, the Fijian Government’s Digital Television infrastructure management company, has signed a multi-year agreement with Eutelsat (Paris: ETL) that will for the first time expand free-to-air television throughout Fiji.
News categories: Eutelsat, Michel Azibert, Content Distribution, Digital TV, Melanesia, Satellite, Set Top Box