2006 : A Year in Review

Well we have come to the end of yet another year and this has been an eventful year in Sri Lanka on the television and radio media front so lets go back and have a quick review of this year.

• This year this Blog celebrated its first anniversary in July and also moved from the Blog Pages in Yahoo 360 to Blogger in April so that it will be more accessible by our readers and then being listed on Kottu. In addition we expanded our portfolio of blogs and included a separate blog for CBNsat, LBN and Comet Cable.
  

• This year saw the addition of one television channel MGM which is still under test transmission and also the rebirth of Channel One MTV as a separate television channel and this too is under test transmission still. We also witnessed the opening of satellite channel Srilakvahini.
  

• We also saw several Sinhala Language radio channels starting such as Siyatha FM, Vee FM and Max Radio (hope we did not miss anything).

• A controversial crisis hit the pay television industry with the sudden closure of CBNsat and LBN which lead to a series of lawsuits which lasted several months. During this crisis announcements were made by telecom giants Dialog Telekom and Sri Lanka Telecom that they were entering the Pay television field.

• Dialog Telekom made a massive entry into media this year by taking control of Asset Media which owns Neth FM and then ending the CBNsat closure by taking control of CBNsat which resulted in the founder chairman of CBNsat Mr. Muhunthan Canagey who can be regarded as the father of DTH in Sri Lanka resigning from his post due to pressure from vested interests who were behind the CBNsat closure.

• This year also saw the closure of Raja FM on controversial grounds

Next year promises to be even better with the official launch of MGM and Channel One MTV due. Including some new television channels such as Siyatha Tv and a few others which are due to commence transmissions including a few more radio stations. The pay television front is set to get really hot with the official launch of CBNsat under Dialog Telekom and also SLT entering the pay television front with their network. The re entry of LBN to the pay television industry is also expected to take place soon but the role of Comet Cable in all this is very uncertain due to the legal issues and the financial state of the company however we have reason to believe that they will achieve something positive next year.

Well that's all folks for this year since we are taking the weekend and January 1st 2007 off, so we will be back with you from January 2nd 2007. Please keep sending us your valuable emails and also updating this blog with your comments on the latest happenings in the television and radio front in Sri Lanka during the next few days while we are away and also throughout the New Year 2007.

We like to take this opportunity to wish all of our readers the Managements of all television and radio stations and pay television networks in Sri Lanka a Happy, Peaceful and Prosperous New Year 2007

Further Reference
2006 : A Year in Review - CBNsat
2006 : A Year in Review - LBN
2006 : A Year in Review - Comet Cable

MGM TV goes off air for a week

It seems that MGM TV (which will be launched as Max TV) has gone off air for a period of one week according to them "to provide a better experience to the viewer". It looks like they are going to move their transmitter to another location or increase the power on their present transmitter since it is not clear in several locations and requires the viewer to change the direction of the antenna.

We hope MGM will be back with a better quality transmission and also a date for their official launch since it has been a very long test transmission.

Maharaja Group to air local TV content in Asia via the Internet - LBO

Capital Maharaja, a unit of the privately held media house the Maharaja Group, has tied up with Tokyo based media group, to digitally deliver television content via broadband to Sri Lankan diaspora in Korea and Japan.

Capital Maharaja group's e-commerce and internet arm RaiderTech penned the deal on Wednesday to deliver MTVs locally produced programs in Sinhala, Tamil and English to Sri Lankans living in Japan and Korean regions.

Tokyo based New Media Group was chosen for their ability to transmit TV software across the internet called IPTV (Internet Protocol Television).

IPTV is a system where a digital television service is delivered using the Internet Protocol (IP) over a network delivered by a broadband connection.

"Japan and Korea has the most broadband connections (to individual homes) in the world," said Maharaja Group Director Mano Wickramanayake said describing why the Korea-Japanese region was chosen.

"Broadband penetration in Korea is almost 100 percent," he said.

Capital Maharaja, a diversified group with interests in manufacturing, marketing, exports, communications, media, information technology, foods and packaging among others expects a full scale launch in mid January 2007.

The group hopes to introduce to many communities as possible during the initial period, Wickramanayake says.

"We want to propagate our signal across thy world," Wickramanayake said.

A Merry Christmas to all

We would like to take this opportunity to Wish all television viewers and radio listeners, the managements of the respective stations and all our fellow readers and Kottu Members and Administrators a Very Merry Christmas and we hope that you will be able to enjoy this festive season to the fullest.

We are taking a break of one week (we should be back towards the latter part of next week) in view of the festive season so please update this blog with the latest developments regarding the state of the media industry in this country. We are also updating this blog to the latest version of "Blogger", so due to this upgrade their may be some difficulties in commenting, so please bear with us if there are some problems while we are away. We are trying our best to make sure that the switch over will be smooth and with minimum interruptions.

Maharaja to launch IPTV

We are getting reports that Maharaja Broadcasting has signed up with a provider of IPTV services and will be launching their channels via IPTV in the near future.

Further details about their plans are not available as yet and we will be posting further details about this story as we get information.

We would also request our fellow bloggers to update us on this story as the days progress.

Derana TV to the rescue

The Derana Television Channel has stepped in to show sports fans in Sri Lanka the live telecast of the 5 One Day Internationals and the two 20-20 Matches match between Sri Lanka and New Zealand commencing 22nd December 06.

Given below is the schedule

1. Dec 22nd 2006 - 11:30am (20-20 Match)
2. Dec 26th 2006 - 6:30am (20-20 Match)
3. Dec 28th 2006 - 3:30am (1st ODI)
4. Dec 31st 2006 - 3:30am (2nd ODI)
5. Jan 2nd 2007 - 3:30am (3rd ODI)
6. Jan 6th 2007 - 6:60am (4th ODI)
7. Jan 9th 2007 - 6:30am (5th ODI)

Cable television viewers will be able to catch the action live on ESPN Star Sports.

Art Tv to showcase some new television programs

Art TV will be bringing some brand new television programs onto our televisions during 2007. At the moment the names of two of those programs have been released and they are "4400" (pronounced as 44 Hundred) and highly acclaimed reality show "Survivor".

The program "4400" has already been telecast over pay channel AXN but "Survivor" is not being telecast on any of the cable television channels available in Sri Lanka so Art TV will be able to draw a considerable amount of cable television viewers also.

We just hope that unlike "Lost" which was advertised as a coming soon attraction on Art Tv for a considerable period of time causing frustration among Art TV viewers, "4400" and "Survivor" should be telecast without too much of a delay.

Close race for top spot

The race is getting hotter. After we started the poll to find out what you think is the "Best English Language Radio Station" we see a close race between Yes FM, TNL Radio and Sun FM. Left in the lurch at the back is E FM.

Vote for the station that you think is the best one and see it coming out on top. The polls have not closed still so hurry and vote for the station of your choice.

Voting can be done on the right hand side of this blog page just below the "About this blog" section or by clicking on the link below.

Vote - The Best English Radio Station in Sri Lanka

CBNsat Commercial Launch likely in January 07

New Channels are being added onto CBNsat and the commercial launch is expected in Jan 2007. Please refer link CBNsat Forum : Commercial Launch likely in January 2007 for more on this story.

Vote for the best English Radio Station

We are carrying out a poll to find out what you think is the best English Language Radio Station in Sri Lanka.

You can find the poll by click below or on the right hand side of the page.

Vote - The Best English Radio Station

E FM needs improvement

E FM is a radio station operated by Colombo Communications Limited (a member of the EAP Group) is on a downward slide in their popularity for a considerable period of time. This is the station that says "We do it differently", but it has been doing the same thing over the last few years.

The downward trend is mainly due to the demise in the popularity of it's morning show which started off several years ago with "Ryan & Omega" as one of the best in Sri Lanka but has gradually become stale with the non ending "Rick the Rooster" segment which is now not worth listening to. At the moment it can be termed as one of the worst morning shows with only Omega conducting the show.

The lack of DJ's has worsened their predicament and very often one DJ is conducting two shows during the day. The ever annoying skipping of their CD's takes place very often.

The rest of the day is also bad with a bad selection of DJ's and the irritating inclusion of a Sinhala song every hour. It should be understood that a English Language station should play songs that cater to its listeners and there is no need to play any Sinhala songs since we have a considerable number of Sinhala language radio stations and anyone who wants to listen to Sinhala music will switch to those stations.

The only time that EFM's listenership rises is during the festive season since they play the most number of Christmas songs during an hour in comparison to the other English language radio stations.

If nothing is done soon we may see the demise of E FM as a radio station.

New Antenna to watch Channel One MTV

Looks like all of us will have to buy a new antenna to watch Channel One MTV clearly once they shift to their new frequency totally. This is what the Channel One engineers are supposed to be telling people who call them to complain about the clarity issues on the new frequency and it is absolutely insane since you cannot expect people to buy a new antenna for watching one channel only.

It may have worked for MTV earlier when they launched over a decade ago and they were the first UHF channel so people had to purchase a new antenna to watch the channel clearly. This was possible earlier because the public was starved of entertainment. Now we have cable television and other channels too so DO NOT EXPECT PEOPLE TO BUY A NEW ANTENNA.

We hope that the management of Channel One MTV will improve the quality of broadcast on the new frequency without the need for a new antenna.

By the way how about hopping aboard the CBNsat platform with a broadband link between the MTV station and CBNSat.

Dedicated Sports Channel a must

It is a big blow for Sri Lankan cricket fans as the Sri Lanka - New Zealand cricket matches are not being shown over the local media.

Only the people who are privileged to have access to cable television are able to view the matches on Star Sports. This brings into light the need for Sri Lanka to have a channel dedicated to sports and showing a wide variety of sporting events and not limiting itself to cricket. We are getting reports that Rupavahini and MTV had shown an interest but due to some reason they pulled out thereby depriving the millions of cricket fans in Sri Lanka of these matches.

If a private broadcaster is not willing to start a sports only channel then it is upto SLRC to come up with one since a sports only channel will be very popular in this country.

We also need a channel dedicated for educational programs too. Since too many channels are devoting themselves towards soap operas and teledramas.

For those with Channel One MTV reception problems

We are receiving many complaints of reception problems for Channel One MTV's new frequency. Please call the following number and inform the engineers at Channel One about this problem

Telephone Number : (011) 2851371

Management Crisis at Srilakvahini

According to information that is being received by us, professionals at Srilakvahini are quitting due to unprofessional approach of it's Chairman. Director Operation and International Affairs and famous marketing specialist, Mr. Nalin Attygalle is the latest to move out. According to our source the major reason is the absence of good cooperate governance and lack of transparency regarding it's heavy bank accounts. it's learned that Managing Director, former HNB maestro Mr. Daya Muthukumarana also follows suit this week.

We got the information about the crisis from an email addressed to us. We are unable to confirm this but according to our source these are legitimate reports. We are sure what this means for the future of Srilakvahini but if Srilakvahini does not continue to operate it will only mean that Sri Lankans living abroad will be stuck to watching only TV Lanka until Rupavahini World launches for local language content.

NILWALASAT.COM - Webcast of Sri Lankan Channels

NILWALASAT.COM is a web based service that is offering Sri Lankan channels for expatriates free of charge. At present they have Swarnavahini and TNL on their streaming service together with a host of manyy Sri Lankan Radio Stations.

Initially they used to offer ITN, Rupavahini and Derana but these were removed since ITN and Rupavahini are starting their own IPTV systems and Derana is having IPTV with JumpTv for a fee.

This service is indeed a treat for the many Sri Lankans who are resident all over the world.

Channel One MTV UHF 58 poor quality reception

We are receiving reports that the new Channel One MTV frequency on UHF 58 is not clear in most areas. Since we are made to understand that the Channel One frequency is still classed as a Test frequency and they have not officially launched Channel One MTV on this, we hope that the clarity issues will be solved before they launch officially.

At present UHF 38 shows reruns. We are unable to obtain information on the official launch date of this new frequency.

Tough regulations stifling satellite tv growth in Sri Lanka, but 'phenomenal' growth expected: analysts

November 30, 2006 (LBO) – Tough regulations are stifling growth of Sri Lanka's cable and satellite television industry, a local research firm says, but is poised to take off as new and larger players' lower costs and improve choice.

Sri Lanka's current penetration of satellite and cable channels is less than one percent of the three million households on the island that have a television.

Though highly under-penetrated, local firm Frontier Research says the sector is poised for growth as telco giants like Dialog Telekom – Sri Lanka's largest mobile phone operator, get into the business.

Dialog, the local unit of Telekom Malaysia, said recently it hoped to buy up satellite pay television operator Communiqu Broadband Networks and CBNSat for 523.8 million rupees.

The telecom giant also recently acquired a stake in Asset Media for 325 million rupees, which comes with a free to air and pay television licence and its own broadcasting studio.

"Sri Lankan media trends are nearing those of the rest of the region and it is down to one word – convergence," Imran Furkan, Analyst with Frontier Research, told LBO in an interview.

"In the past, cable and satellite television were delivered via traditional cables and direct to home transmission. Now they are delivered using new mobile platforms."

Digital convergence, also known as quadruple play, allows telecom operators to offer cable television, broadband, fixed line and mobile telephone services.

Regulatory hurdles though, could stifle expected potential, though Frontier Research did not disclose expected penetration rates over the coming years.

"Growth will also depend on how regulators look at technology. In Sri Lanka we still look at Pay Television as a luxury, unlike in India where it is a utility item and therefore costs less," Furkan said.

Start up units for satellite television broadcasts is charged a 60 percent duty for the equipment, which ups the cost of initial installation.

Other restrictive regulations include the requirement to get an operating licence from a state owned broadcasting company Rupavahini. "How can a competitor be a regulator?" Furkan adds.

Satellite pay TV operator CBNSat was shut down by the government for about six months this year over alleged licence issues, but was cleared for operation recently by local courts.

But CBNSat dominated the market within one year of starting operations in 2005, with 20,000 customers to the averages of about 8000 customers by other cable operators at the time.

"Our regulations were built up in the 1980s, when the state had a monopoly on broadcast. Regulations have not kept pace with rapid technological and competitor growth. Growth would be phenomenal if regulatory constraints were lifted."

Satellite television however, will have to be a mass market product, Furkan says, because of the high costs of technology to distribute it, at the moment.

But rising incomes over the last few years and lowering start up costs, Frontier Research says, could lead to increasing affordability of pay television in Sri Lanka.

Average household incomes in Sri Lanka reached just over 20,000 rupees a month last year, up 36 percent from 2002, while average income in urban areas was up to 31,239 rupees, up 39 percent over the same period.

Consumers, as in completely deregulated markets like the Unites State and Australia also show greater willingness to pay for improved content, the findings show.

Even in semi-regulated markets like Malaysia, average revenues per user is 21.2 dollars at penetration levels of 30 percent, expected to go up to 41 percent by 2015.

"Firstly, consumers can expect wider choice with new players coming in. Secondly, affordability as scales expands than with traditional satellite broadcasters because telecom providers have the infrastructure in place and there is no real capital investment except for upgrades," Furkan said.

To Admin - Lanka Media Outlook

Dear Sir,

Thank You very much for your information. We have made the required updates in our posts saying that you have cleared up this misunderstanding.

The difference of opinion will always exist. After all, if all of us have the same opinion then the world will be a very boring place to live in.

Good Luck and all the best with your blog.

Best Regards
Admin - TV Radio Sri Lanka

More on New Channel One MTV

Channel One MTV which is separating from Shakthi TV to UHF 58 from Colombo and UHF 51 from Kandy from 4th December will be telecasting initially from 6pm onwards. This is still classed as a test transmission also and they will be telecasting repeats of their old programs and also movies shown previously.

This is a run up to the grand launch of Channel One MTV for which the dates we are unable to confirm as yet.

We believe that they will show VOA TV also and they are also tipped to show some international music programs too.

This is a solely English Language Tv channel and will definitely pose some good competition for ETV and Art TV.

Lanka Media Outlook Blog trying to increase hits at others expense

There is a comment in one of of posts that go like this and which we have not deleted since we have nothing to hide.

---------------------------------

"Hi all patriots,
If you think this TVRadio admin works for some one, don't worry lets take a brake and say bye to him. We have something our own, Please log on to http://lankamediaoutlook.blogspot.com/
Where you can find truly srilanka admin's blog. lets meet there. "

---------------------------------

Well we do not work for anyone in the media industry. We gather information about the local media and bring it you and we do not fear to expose people behind some of the incidents that are taking place in the media industry. We also express our point of view on the subject being discussed.

Looks like the blog "Lanka Media Outlook" is trying to tarnish our image to increase the visitors to their blog. So most of the visitors to the all the forums to this blog know how critical we are of the management of these institutions but are also carrying out on line campaigns against those who mistreat them.

So we hope that "Lanka Media Outlook" will not attempt this sort of tactic any further.

Important : Lanka Media Outlook says that the comment referred above was not made by them and has been made by someone else. We like to thank them for this information.

Christmas on Sri Lankan Radio

It is the season for giving and also for listening to loads of Christmas songs and winning prizes.

With effect from today Yes FM is broadcasting from Crescat for the Yes Mas broadcast. E FM is the official Christmas Station and Sun FM is also entertaining the public with their usual Christmas fare.

Taking a review of Christmas past, Yes FM usually gives the best prizes for Christmas and E FM gives the best in terms of number of Christmas songs played also the prize called the Shopping Spree which we are yet to confirm whether will be held this year too. Sun FM we feel falls somewhere in between on songs and prizes front.

So please keep us updated on the happenings of the other Radio and TV stations in the country for the benefit of our readers.

Season's Greetings

Rupavahini to launch educational channel

The SLRC is planning to launch a educational channel according to a news report. This will indeed be a treat for the people since there are not many stations who show educational content to the masses.

SLRC was telecasting Discovery Channel over its airwaves but unfortunately the time spots have to be allocated properly according to the times viewable by school goers.

But this is great news and we hope you will update us on this as the days progress.