Satellite Television (DBS, DTH, DSat, DVB-S, DVB-S2) News

2.09 million pay TV subscribers in Chile at end March 2012
Jul 12, 2012 – Chile's Subsecretaría de Telecomunicaciones (Subtel) has released pay TV statistics to end-March 2012. Pay TV subscriber numbers grew from 1.972 million at end-March 2011 to 2.092 million, up 6.1% year-on-year.
News categories: Subtel, Cable TV, Chile, Digital TV, IPTV, Market Research, Satellite, Subscribers

Pay TV Companies Struggle to Keep Up With Netflix's User Interface
Jul 11, 2012 – Pay TV companies are struggling to keep up with video experiences enabled by connected TVs and iPads. Their situation is exacerbated by suffering a hardware disadvantage as they rely on set-top boxes that are typically a 5-7 year-old technology.
News categories: ABI Research, Cable TV, Digital TV, Market Research, Middleware, Satellite, Set Top Box, Streaming

Steering Board Approves Update Of DVB-S2 For Use With Wideband Transponders
Jul 11, 2012 – At the 71st meeting of the DVB Steering Board, approval was given for an update of the DVB-S2 standard for use with wideband transponders. The update will allow efficient use of wideband transponders which are now becoming available.
News categories: DVB Project, Digital TV, DVB-S2, Satellite

The End of Set-Top Box Domination Looms as Multiscreen Pay-TV Operators Shift to PCs, Smartphones and Tablets
Jul 10, 2012 – In 2015, 49% of all devices obtaining TV services from 43 of the largest global pay-TV operators that have commenced deployment of multiscreen services will be PCs, smartphones, tablets and other so-called multiscreen devices, according to IHS Screen Digest.
News categories: Screen Digest, Cable TV, Digital TV, Gaming, IPTV, Market Research, Satellite, Set Top Box, Smart TV, Smartphone, Streaming, Tablet, TV Everywhere

One and a half million active smartcards for TivùSat
Jul 10, 2012 – As Italy's analogue terrestrial TV is switched-off, TivùSat has announced that it has more than one and a half million active smartcards for its satellite service. 5.2% of Italian families are now subscribers.
News categories: Tivù, CAM, Digital TV, Italy, Satellite, Subscribers

87% of U.S. households still subscribe to multi-channel video services
Jul 5, 2012 – New consumer research from Leichtman Research Group (LRG) finds that 87% of U.S. households subscribe to some form of multi-channel video service, similar to the past two years, and up from 80% in 2004.
News categories: Leichtman Research, Cable TV, Digital TV, IPTV, Market Research, Satellite, USA

Asia-Pacific Will Be Responsible For 50% of 220 Million Unit Set-Top Box Market From 2013
Jul 5, 2012 – A jump in cable and satellite set-top box shipments in Asia-Pacific markets is being driven by cable digitization in India and China, as well as China's rollout of digital satellite boxes to its rural households, according to ABI Research.
News categories: ABI Research, Cable TV, China, Digital TV, India, Market Research, Satellite, Set Top Box

HISPASAT makes first transmissions of second generation 3DTV
Jul 4, 2012 – HISPASAT has made the world's first demonstration of the JEDI television channel in 3D compatible with the MVC (Multiview Video Coding) format. With this format it's possible to transmit the same content in HD and 3D Full HD on the same signal.
News categories: HISPASAT, JEDI consortium, Digital TV, Metaverse, Satellite

RRT releases Report on Lithuanian Communications Sector for 2011
Jul 4, 2012 – Lithuania's Communications Regulatory Authority (RRT) has released a Report on the Lithuanian Communications Sector for 2011. Pay TV subscribers increased by 4.1 per cent in 2011 with the number of digital subscribers going up by 21.5 per cent.
News categories: RRT, Cable TV, Digital TV, IPTV, Lithuania, Market Research, MMDS, Mobile, Satellite, Subscribers, Terrestrial