Monster Media 1994 #2/Monster Media No. 2 (Monster Media)(1994).ISO/ham/snews.zip/SNEWS131.TXT

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:---------------------Electronic Headlines----------------------:
:                                                               :
: Issue: 131 :-------:Published Biweekly:------: Date: 18/04/94 :
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:---------(C) Copyright 1991-94 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD ----------:
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: 1991-94 M2 Communications Limited. This   :  INTERNET         :
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TELECOM AUSTRALIA APPROVES INFO SUPERHIGHWAY INVESTMENT
At a recent meeting of Telecom Australia's board, approval was given to
an A$710 million (GBP1=2.16) initial investment to construct an
information superhighway throughout Australia. Much work has already
been made on the network, and the funding will help consolidate and
expand existing infrastructure.  Telecom Australia operates the world's
single-largest fibre-optic network presently, and from July this will be
used to distribute a range of television programmes to subscribers
through Visionstream Pty.  Philips Australia has been awarded a A$160
million, three-year contract to act as systems integrator and prime
supplier -- its largest ever local contract.  Gerry Moriaryt, managing
director of TA's network products division, said: "We are now starting
to build the superhighway which will ultimately offer our customers
video on demand, home shopping, banking and other essential services.
While the initial use of this highway will be pay-TV, it is designed for
the full range of services which will emerge over the next 10 years."
TA says that the project will create several thousand new jobs and 70
percent of the interim investment will utilise locally manufactured
equipment, materials and labour.

FORD PLANS US$100 MILLION NORTH AMERICAN SAT NETWORK
Ford Motor Co. is planning to spend US$100 million on building a North
American satellite network which will provide video, data and
interactive multimedia services to its 6,000 dealers.  Installation is
set to commence during the fourth quarter of 1994. Thomas Wagner, vice-
president of customer communication and satisfaction, said that
installation is set to be completed by the end of 1995.  The network,
known as FordStar, will be used to broadcast video, data and computer
graphics over eight separate channels. Interactive training will be
conducted with two-way voice channels permitting audience participation.
Once FordStar is operational, the service will be expanded to include
assembly plants and other corporate offices.  Wagner said that the
company would also benefit from an upgrade in the data communications
services used by dealers, as FordStar will be able to transmit data up
to five times faster than the present-day terrestrial network service.
Ford plans to test the satellite system with 50 US dealers this
month. The prime contractor is Hughes Network Systems, a business unit
of GM Hughes Electronics Corp.  General Motors and Chrysler Corp. also
operate pan-American satellite networks, but FordStar will be most
advanced of its kind presently in operation.

C&W, BELL CANADA AND UK CABLE COS. CONSOLIDATE
Cable & Wireless Cable, Bell Canada International and Jones Intercable
Inc. have signed a letter of intent to consolidate their UK cable
television and telephony interests.  The interests will be merged into
BCETI Cable Limited, presently held by BCI (80 percent) and Cable &
Wireless (20 percent).  A public share offering is also being made of
BCETI Cable, now the third largest cable company in the UK in terms of
equity investment. As part of the transaction, Jones will contribute its
UK cable interests and Cable & Wireless will contribute its equity
interest in Jones Cable Group of Leeds Holding plc, in exchange for
shares in BCETI Cable. Rod Olsen, executive director, finance of Cable &
Wireless, said: "This alliance recognises the changes taking place in
today's telecommunications industry. It strengthens Cable & Wireless'
position in the UK  in the provision of communication, information and
entertainment services and complements the activities of our subsidiary
Mercury Communications Limited."

GRACE PERIOD GIVEN FOR MALAYSIAN DISH BAN
The Malaysian government's Telecommunications Department is not to crack
down on the illegal usage of satellite antennas even through the Cabinet
has given the go-ahead for legal action to be taken. For a short time at
least! According to the Energy, Telecommunications and Posts Minister
Samy Vellu, one month's notice will be given to offenders to dismantle
their setup before legal action is taken. According to Vellu, the
Sarawak region has more satellite dishes which 'break' the Malaysian
ruling than other states.  There are around 22,000 dishes in Sarawak
compared to 2,000 in Sabah.  Under the Telecommunications Act 1950,
revised in 1970, persons convicted of owning a parabolic dish without a
licence from the Ministry can be fined up to RM100,000 (GBP1=4.07).

SATELLITE VIEWED AS IMPORTANT DRIVER FOR GERMAN PTT
Satellite communications services are being viewed as the international
telecommunications technology of the future and Deutsche Bundespost
Telekom, the yet-to-be-privatised state-owned telecomms company, is
watching developments with interest.  German postal Minister Wolfgang
Boetsche said that DBP-T would be taking an active role in the globally-
important market. DBP-T has already taken a stake in SES, the operators
of the European satellite system, and DBP-T has a signatory stake in
Inmarsat, Intelsat and Eutelsat.  DBP-T also offers a range of satellite
video, data and audio services.

TELEWEST CONSIDERING UK MARKET LISTING
The UK's largest cable TV company, Telewest, is still considering a
stock market listing, valuing the firm at around GBP1 billion.  A
decision is slated to be taken by the end of April. If the company is
not listed, the US West/Tele-Communications Inc. joint venture will seek
additional financing for expansion from the open market. Goldman Sachs
and Kleinwort Benson, well-known flotation-specialist merchant bankers,
have been retained to independently examine the proposals. Telewest has
24 UK franchises and has laid service past 1.1 million of the 3.3
million homes, gaining 230,000 cable television and 145,000 cable
telephony customers. Meanwhile Marketing Week in the UK reports that US
West has apparently appointed J Walter Thompson to handle advertising
for a secret video-on-demand service, expected to be operated in direct
competition to BT's service, through an offshoot company.

STENTOR ATTEMPTS TO WORK WITH CANADIAN CABLE FIRMS
Stentor, the alliance of major Canadian telephone companies, hopes to
work with cable television companies instead of fight with them. Cable
firms already have access to around 70 percent of homes, and Stentor
believes that this is an important asset when it builds a US$6 billion
broadband fibre-optic network  known as the Beacon project.  Talks have
been started with the Cable Television Association of Canada to avoid
conflict and to seek ways of possibly reducing costs and maximising
advantages for all parties concerned.

STRONG DEMAND FOR GERMAN SATELLITE RECEIVER ASSOCIATION
Demand and interest in AG SAT, the recently formed German satellite
receiver association, has been high, said Walter Thurl, chairman of the
operation.  AG SAT was first highlighted at CeBIT in March and since
then many inquiries have been made to the Bonn-based organisation.  The
group was formed by receiver makers Ankaro, Astro, Fuba, Hirschmann,
Katherin and Wisi, with Astra Marketing GmbH and the Zentralverband der
deutschen Elektrohandwerke electricians' trade union.  Thurl said that
Grundig, Philips, Nokia and RFT were seeking membership of the
association, which plans to impose quality standards from production to
installation of products.

IRAN CONFIRMS SATELLITE DISH BAN PLAN
The Iranian government has confirmed its plans to confiscate illegally-
installed satellite dishes on cultural grounds. Ali Mohammad Besharati,
Interior Minister for the government, said that 'law enforcement
officials' would remove illegal installations by June. "We are dutybound
to counter the cultural onslaught whatever it may be and from wherever
it may come," said Besharati.

NORSAT FORMS CHINESE MANUFACTURE VENTURE WITH CHINA
NII Norsat International Inc. has signed a letter of agreement with
Comtech Holdings Limited of Hong Kong and Chinese Star Trading Co. Ltd.
of Macao to form a manufacturing and distribution business primarily for
Norsat's Encoder and Addressable Cable TV Broadcasting Systems. Norsat
has been demonstrating its N-Code II Encoder/Decoder Systems to various
Cable TV companies in Mainland China since 1993. The N-Code II System is
a proprietary video and audio television scrambling technology,
primarily for use in satellite broadcasting, cable television and cable
Microwave Multipoint Distribution Systems. Norsat's Norsat (China) Co.
Ltd. subsidiary will handle the regional business.  Terms were not
disclosed, but US$5 million will initially invested into Norsat (China)
with expected sales of US$30 million within three years of operation.

TCI, BELL ATLANTIC STILL CONSIDERING JOINT VENTURES
Tele-Communications Inc. and Bell Atlantic Corp. are still holding
discussions about possible joint ventures even though their planned
merger fell by the wayside.  John Malone, chief executive of CEO, said
in a Reuters interview that relations between the two companies are
friendly and that geographic as well as technological cooperations could
be formed.  Both companies are planning to create and operate full-
service networks providing a full range of video, telephony, audio and
data services as part of the so-called information superhighway.

DMX & BSKYB SIGN ASTRA CONTRACTS, OTHER SERVICE EXPANSIONS
British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) has signed an agreement with ICT Europe
providing a UK and pan-European  market for the DMX music service. The
DMX direct-to-home service is expected to be available to subscribers
towards the end of 1994, offering 86 channels of CD quality music. BSkyB
is to lease up to 40 digital audio subcarriers on the Astra satellite
system and will jointly market the service to its subscribers.
ICT-Europe is currently in negotiations with other groups for the
provision of additional audio sub-carriers.  BSkyB will market the
service like its own range of subscription channels, with significant
dealer channel support.  DMX, launched in Europe a year ago, is
presently available on cable networks in he UK, Denmark, Norway, the
Czech Republic and Ireland. DMX offers -- according to ICT --
CD-quality sound and the widest range of music formats of any premium
audio service, ranging from alternative rock to opera, classical to
country and chart hits to country-specific genres. Lance Thomas, chief
executive of ICT-Europe, said: "We are very pleased to have BSkyB as a
strategic partner in the distribution of DMX. This agreement and the
joint efforts of the two companies should create tremendous consumer
awareness for this exciting new service." DMX has also signed agreements
with Cable Plus, the largest cable operator in the Czech and Slovak
Republics, and County Cavan in the Republic of Ireland.

PPV PROBLEM SEES FREE ADULT PROGRAMMING ERROR
An unspecified problem with a pay-per-view encryption system caused all
customers of the Greater Media Cable TV service in Worcester, USA to
receive the unscrambled broadcast of an Adult cable channel recently.
Programming was in the clear for 90 minutes from 1800-1930.  A full
investigation has been started and customers have received an apology.
The cable system uses a call in voice response system to allow customers
to activate the pay-per-view staations offered by the system, with the
activation code for the customer's cable box being broadcast over the
cable system to unscramble the selected pay-per-view offering.

WORLD'S SMALLEST SATELLITE RECEIVER MARKET AGREEMENT MADE
Metro Wireless Interactive Corp. has signed a letter of intent with
Processing Research Inc. to distribute and market a miniaturised
satellite receiving system, said to be the smallest in the world.
Metro's rights are exclusive and worldwide. The satellite receiving
system, known as VIPR, retrofits to a satellite receiver's Low Noise
Amplifier using an antenna about the size of a portable cellular phone.
In operation VIPR claims to operate to the same specifications of a 10
metre satellite dish.  The technology, known as "Coherent On Receive
Only" or "Vector Integration Processing Receiver," was developed for the
US military by the late Dr. Clarence Stewart, a nationally recognized
expert in signal intelligence systems architecture, design and analysis.

DIRECTV TO LAUNCH BY JUNE
DirecTV Inc. is to begin offering its direct satellite service in five
US cities by June, according to a statement issued by Eddy Hartenstein,
president of the company. DirecTV has opened its US$100 million digital
broadcast facility, and advanced plans are being made to expedite the
service roll-out.  DirecTV viewers will use a US$699 satellite system
and 18-inch receive antenna to view up to 150 channels of programming,
although at launch around 75 basic, subscription and pay-per-view
channels are to be offered.  The satellite dishes will be manufactured
by Thomson Consumer Electronics and sold through consumer electronics
stores under the brand name RCA, a Thomson subsidiary.  Full national
roll-out is slated for September or October of this year.

COMSAT GETS BEHIND AMERICAN-AFRICAN DISTANCE LEARNING PROJECT
Bruce Crockett, president and CEO of Comsat Corp., said that a pilot
distance learning programme recently held between the United States and
Africa is proof that satellite technology can provide unlimited
opportunities for educational programming worldwide. Comsat's World
Systems business unit, Texas A&M University, the US Congress and two
African nations participated jointly for the Mickey Eland Distance
Learning Project in honour of the late US representative who sought to
combat hunger and provide educational opportunities for children of
developing nations. Comsat began transmitting educational programming on
11 April from Texas A&M University to universities in Kenya and
Zimbabwe, with transmissions concluding on 14 April. Digital compression
technology was used as it provided a high-quality signal and allows for
the most efficient use of satellite capacity, said Comsat.

SMS MAKES LARGEST EVER COMMERCIAL DELIVERY
Satellite Media Services (SMS), the London, UK-based satellite
distributor of commercials and programming, has recently made its
largest ever single delivery, distributing 178 different Tango drink
commercials to 80 radio stations in the UK.  The adverts were received
at 10pm and delivered to each station within four hours.  The commercial
production job for ad agency Howell Henry Chaldecott Lury saw the radio
stations begin by inviting listeners to participate in the recording of
the commercials, impersonating the Ralph and Tony characters from
Tango's current theme of advertising. The tapes were sent to London
where Mandy Wheeler Sound Productions recorded individual introductions
for each script. In total 217 scripts were used, with 12 hours of
re-recording involving the Ralph and Tony characters - actor Hugh Dennis
and footballer Ray Wilkins.

MAXAT PREPARES FOR MCPC SERVICE ON EUTELSAT II-F6
Maxat is planning to offer broadcasters and programming providers a
flexible digital satellite television distribution service later this
year with the launch of Eutelsat II-F6.  The Maxat offer will be based
on a flexible multiple channel per carrier (MCPC) option. The MCPC link
will allow up to four separate channels to be multiplexed together and
then uplinked to the satellite at 13 degrees east longitude. Daniel
Nabet, head of broadcast services at Maxat, said: "This is Maxat's
second major digital offer, closely following the transatlantic digital
service announced in NAB in March [involving Keystone Communications]."

LOW POWER DIGITAL SNG TRIALS BY NBC, NTL
NBC Television has trialed NTL's video compression system to establish
the potential of digital satellite news gathering. Initial results show
that standard-size SNG uplinks could be used digitally with much lower
power - even for C-Band satellites, previously inaccessible to
'fly-away' uplinks.  Tests were made by NBC with Advent Communications,
producers of a wide range of uplinks. To make the trial even more
difficult, a satellite with an inclined orbit was used. On an analogue
satellite uplink, a prohibitive 3.5 kW transmit power (75 dBW from a
1.9-metre antenna) would theoretically be required for C-Band operation,
while when using NTL's System 2000 MPEG-based digital compression
system, the power level could be reduced by at least 18 dB while still
decoding perfectly. The transmit power into the 1.9-metre antenna used
in the NBC tests could be as little as 55 watts (56.5 dBW), giving the
possibility of both C-Band access and all-solid-state SNG uplinks.

GLOBALSTAR OVER-SUBSCRIBED, NEW INVESTORS SEEK ENTRY
Deutsche Aerospace AG (DASA) ha confirmed that it is negotiating to take
a stake in the GLOBALSTAR consortium, a planned worldwide satellite
communications network, while Loral Corp. said that it has raised US$275
million from its initial partners and that the offering was over-
subscribed.  Globalstar plans to see 2.7 million subscribers and yearly
revenues of US$1.6 billion by 2002, growing in time to 16 million users.
A public share offering raising up to US$300 million will be made by
1999. Initial workloads have been designed.  Loral will design, build
and integrate the satellite operations centre and telemetry, tracking
and command stations, Alcatel Espace will design and delivery the
satellite payload modules, Vodafone Group will help design and implement
the network and apply for a number of local operating licences.

KEY-TV OFFER ADVANCED MULTI-ENCRYPTION CHANNEL SERVICE
Key-TV has launched what it says is a multi-user TV smart card viewing
system enabling broadcasters to set their own tariffs and collect their
revenues at the same time while using the Videocrypt encryption standard
to maintain signals security. A number of other benefits including an
interactive televised bingo game to be played.  According to the
company, KEY-TV viewing cards would be sold through retail chains at a
nominal cost, each containing up to 20 channels. Once inserted into a
receiver-decoder the card becomes live, enabling up to 14 days of trial
viewing. Customers would complete a single contract for the channels
they require and return it. Pay-per-view is also being offered, whereby
up to four events could be pre-booked through an automated telephone
system, with card debit authorization made by the decoder's authorise
button.  According to the operators, the service is virtually hacker-
proof and a one-year guarantee is offered for the encryption standard
and an indemnity for all participating channels against the threat of
piracy by issuing a replacement card within seven days of any card being
hacked.

ODYSSEY PERSONAL COMMS SATELLITE TECH REVIEW HELD
TRW has concluded a three-day technical review of the planned Odyssey
personal communications satellite system, slated for launch in 1998 to
provide voice and data services direct to handheld terminals.  The
latest review concentrated on the ground segment and terrestrial network
to be used. "The working sessions allowed us to elaborate requirements
and interfaces for the ground segment and network.  Our approach
emphasizes the ease of system operation and providing users the
highest-quality services at a low cost.  The system will function
transparently to users, whether they are in New York, Paris or roaming
in Kenya," said Odyssey programme director Roger Rusch. Participant
partners included Northern Telecom, Harris Corp., Nortel Matra, Stanford
Telecommunications, Spar Aerospace, Thomson-CSF and ANT.

GREECE CALLS FOR EC SATELLITE FUNDING
The Greek government has applied to the European Commission for a ECU1
million (GBP1=ECU1.35) subsidy which would finance a feasibility study
on the launch and operations of a telecommunications satellite.  The
Ministry of Transport and Communications is keen to see a launch which
would help modernise the country's telecommunications network as well as
increase its defence network.  Last October Greece made a formal
application for a geostationary orbital position for its Hellas Stat
satellite.

ASCOM TO SELL CABLE TV HOLDINGS
Ascom Holdings AG has signed a memorandum of understanding with a
Siemens-Albis AG consortium to sell its cable television stations in
Switzerland and Austria. Ascom is presently financially troubled and
attempting to refocus on its core telecommunications service activities.
The consortium comprises of Siemens' Swiss subsidiary, Fischer Holdings
AG and Swiss PTT Telecom, and the services will operate under the
Cablecom Holdings AG name.   A statement issued said that: "...the
purchasers intend to jointly utilize the networks, as well as to expand
and develop, and to acquire cable television networks."

LORAL LAUNCHES GOES-I WEATHER SATELLITE
Loral Corp.'s Space Systems/Loral business unit has launched the GOES-I
weather forecasting satellite aboard a General Dynamics Corp. Atlas I
rocket launcher. First indications suggest that the satellite is
performing according to programme specification.  The satellite is the
first of five planned weather satellites to be built by the company.

CHINA, SINGAPORE WORK TOGETHER ON SATELLITE VENTURE
Singapore Telecom and China's Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications
are considering working together on an Asia-Pacific satellite
telecommunications venture, along with other communications-related
issues.  Singapore's Minister for Communications, Mah Bow Tan confirmed
the plans in an interview with Lianhe Zaobao, a Chinese daily newspaper
published in Singapore. Singapore Telecom has also confirmed that talks
are ongoing in a 'preliminary stage' only.  Singapore Telecom already
has a one-seventh interest in APT Satellite Company, operators of the
APTSTAR satellite network, and the talks with China are independent of
this agreement.  A cooperation agreement has been signed between the two
countries on a wide range of postal and telecommunications issues.

STM WINS MAJOR COLOMBIAN VSAT CONTRACT
Satellite Technology Management has been awarded a US$1.2 million
contract by El Tiempo, Colombia's largest daily newspaper, for a private
VSAT network. The STM-provided network, consisting of a hub and remote
VSATs, will supplement existing point-to-point satellite links that
connect the newspaper's plants in Bogota, Barranquilla and Cali. An STM
network management system will enable El Tiempo's operators to monitor
and control all network operations. The VSAT network will operate in
C-band, using the PanAmSat satellite, supporting data and other digital
transmissions. Steve Strohman, STM's senior vice president, said: "This
is our first system in Colombia and is another achievement in STM's
continuing marketing emphasis on South America following our contracts
in Ecuador and Brazil. In addition, this contract continues STM's
commitment to the publishing industry.  This commitment began with STM's
provision of the Investor's Business Daily satellite network in 1986,
and continued with networks such as the data/voice network that we
furnished to Mexico's largest newspaper publisher in 1991.  This latter
network was recently upgraded to include such features as `drivable'
VSATs."

ULSTER TV PLANS BELFAST CABLE MOVE
Ulster Television, a terrestrial independent television broadcasting
company in Northern Ireland, is planning to bid for a yet-to-be-issued
cable television licence.  In 1984 a joint venture of BT, STC and UTV
made encouraging noises about moving into cable television in the
province, but nothing more came of the venture.  Desmond Smith, chief
executive of Ulster TV, said that the company was holding preliminary
talks with Mercury Communications over bidding for the franchise, set to
be advertised by the Independent Television Commission later this year.
UTV is a relatively small broadcasting company and it is looking at
possibly buying out another minor broadcaster in a bid to strengthen its
position.

MORRIS SUES OVER ABC TV CLAIMS
Tobacco giants Philip Morris has issued a US$10 billion lawsuit for
alleged libel against ABC Television in the US. The suit contends that
ABC's Day One current affairs programme made a number of false and
defamatory statements when  claiming that Morris added extra nicotine to
make the product more addictive, and consequently more profitable.
The suit says that ABC was aware that the allegations were untrue but it
continued to broadcast the programme anyway.

YORKSHIRE CABLE SIGNS FOR R&S MONITORING SYSTEM
Yorkshire Cable in the UK has signed a contract with Rohde & Schwarz for
a cable television monitoring system, the fourth system supplied by R&S
to UK cable television operators.  Yorkshire Cable will use the system
at its new headend in Sheffield, set to go live shortly.
Instrumentation supplied includes an automatic video analyzer, RF
tuneable demodulator, video waveform monitor and vectorscope and video
pattern generator.  Measurement and tracking equipment is also provided.
Terms of the contract were not disclosed.  R&S has also launched a new
video quality management system, based around its EMFP TV test
transmitter, the UAF video analyzer and VTA waveform monitor and
vectorscope. The system is configurable through a PC-link.

EUTELSAT, NTL DEMO DIGITAL SATELLITE TV
At the recent London Cable & Satellite 1994 show NTL and Eutelsat
jointly made a test transmission to prove that digital television
signals could be added to an existing analogue satellite channel without
causing interference in a standard 36MHz transponder.  The trial proved
that an analogue channel and associated audio subcarriers could utilise
27MHz of the transponder while the remaining bandwidth is used tor a
broadcast-quality video and near CD-quality audio signal along with
ancillary data. NTL's MPEG-based System 2000 video compression equipment
was used for the trial, hosted over a  Eutelsat II-F1 transponder at 13
degrees east.  Both companies said that the trial would enable
broadcasters to make a gradual migration to digital broadcasting without
affecting the established userbase. NTL also used the show for the first
European real-time demonstration of MPEG-2 video compression, proving
that transmissions could be achieved at low data rates of 1.5Mbit/s.
NTL is developing an end-to-end MPEG-2 digital TV standard for a number
of broadcasters, including News International.  BSkyB is understood to
be planning a major digital compression service using NTL sourced kit
for use on Astra 1D.

US MEDIA REGULATIONS BLASTED AS 'SOVIET STYLE'
The world's largest media company, Time Warner Inc., has hit out at US
media regulations introduced and upheld by the Clinton administration.
Time Warner said that the rules were reminiscent of a Soviet regime and
stifled attempts to build the information superhighway. Government-
backed rate reductions and other restrictions have affected companies
cash flows, stopping them from exploiting technological advances.

Darren Ingram
Telecomworldwire, M2 Communications Limited
Reptile House, 2nd Fl, 20 Heathfield Rd, Coventry CV5 8BT, UK
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone], Mobile: [phone]