just sharing....new HD channel lauched today on Starhub, STAR Chinese Movies HD [Mandarin with Chinese/English Subtitles]......Astro is still the first to launch a Chinese HD channel.....demand Astro for it.  cheers.

Digital cable TV coming

PETALING JAYA: Newcomer Nilamas Corp Sdn Bhd has secured all the requisite licences from the Government to offer digital cable TV in the country and it is targeting the launch of its offering in the second quarter of 2012.

Nilamas will compete in the pay-TV space, which has Astro All Asia Networks plc's (Astro) and several IPTV providers includingTelekom Malaysia Bhd ™.

The set up cost for the cable network offering is expected to be more than RM2bil over a five-year period and Nilamas, according to sources is looking at a 40:60 equity-debt combination to fund its venture.

Mohd Anwar is one of the directors of Nilamas. He is formerly the armed forces chief of the country.

It is not clear how much the company has secured thus far, however, it has invested in a building in Puchong which will house its broadcasting centre.

According to Nilamas' website, its directors are Tan Sri Mohd Anwar Mohd Nor, Tan Sri Mohamad Noor Abdul Rahim and Datuk Nik Mohd Amin. They are also shareholders of the business.

Sources said Nilamas planned to offer entertainment and educational programmes with an interactive focus.

Sources added that a “branding launch” is slated sometime next month.

Nilamas secured the requisite licences to offer subscription broadcasting in the country from the industry regulator, Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission on Aug 11 and with this licence, it is allowed to offer broadcasting services for a fee.

The company also has network facilities licences that will allow it to build up a network and also a network service provider licence. The licences are valid for five years.

Over the past two months the company has been hiring people.

It had advertised for several top positions including that of chief operating officer, chief technology officer, chief content officer, chief financial officer, head of communications, head of strategy and head of marketing.

Sources said the company has already hired about 20 people and is looking to have a workforce of around 200 people in three months. It aims to have a workforce of 800 by the time its services are launched.

Sources also said the company was in talks with numerous content providers but added that it might find it difficult to secure content already sold to competitors such as Astro and TM.

However an industry expert said: “There is plenty of content out there for the taking, it is up to the company to decide what it wants to offer and that would depend on the segment of the market it is targeting.”

As for its network, sources said Nilamas would use fibre for its backhaul which will be leased from fibre operators such as TM, Time dotCom Bhd, Tenaga Nasional Bhd, Fiberail and Fibercom.

Nilamas may also consider rolling out is own last mile fibre cables to reach homes, considering that most of the last mile connections in the country still use copper, which doesn't carry as much bandwidth as fibre optic cables.

“This will give rise to a lot of jobs for contractors that are involved in the laying of fibre. They could lay fibre in the ground or use existing electricity poles to pull the fibre to homes,” said a source familiar with Nilamas' plans.

It is unclear if customers would need to pay for the set top box for this service or whether that would be absorbed by the company.

OMG ,YTL was supposed to roll out this year end and is sleeping,UNifi started and still cannot cover KL,forget about nationwide and now comes this one These fellows are only helping asstro build up its base more stronger and nothing else.....like they say its the empty vessels which make most noise!!   The lesson is if cannot go nationwide you are screwed!

Heard that Astro will be bringing in few channels from India ( Sony entertainment television, star plus and etc) . Can anyone confirm this or heard similar news?

Anyone notice that Ch311 WLT logo on the right top colour is weird now?

Bro..next time can u at least give some description on whatever link u post? Not all of us here understand whatever u post here..and that article might not be easy to understand to anyone who is not technology savvy..i could read it 10 times and yet I may still not understand it..

So instead of Hmm... , maybe u could explain a bit whats it all about..

Im not angry or mad or serious or anything..I just find some of the things u post vey hard to understand..sorry mate..no hard feelings

some news to share on Sony Entertainment Television Asia channel coming to Malaysia.

Appeared in weekly Indian community newspaper today (Fri) in Singapore, TABLA, an interview with the GM and VP of
Sony Entertainment Television Asia....talks in the way to launch the channel on Malaysia.

http://www.tabla.com.sg/epaper/fvxp/fvxlau...aram=2011-10-28  - Page 4, full article "Beaming Confidence".

"....Talks are also in progress to telecast Sony in Malaysia, which is one of the few countries in the region where the entertainment giant does not have a footprint...."

Keep your fingers crossed.  Cheers! 

What the channel under sony asia

Kenneth Eswaran behind new pay-TV venture

Astro began service in 1996 with 22 channels and took a decade to break even. It currently broadcasts some 125 pay-TV channels in four major languages including eight channels in high definition across Malaysia and Brunei to more than 2.93 million households.

Sources told The Malaysian Insider that the new venture would use fibre for its backhaul which will be leased from fibre operators such as TM, Time dotCom Bhd, Tenaga Nasional Bhd, Fiberail and Fibercom.

FIC Unveils New Premium Movie Service, Online Player
By Mansha Daswani
Published: October 31, 2011

HONG KONG: FOX International Channels is set to roll out FOX Movies Premium in Asia in January 2012 delivering blockbuster features, series and mini-series, documentaries and special events, with the linear service to be accompanied by an authenticated online player that was unveiled at a press conference in Hong Kong today.

FOX Movies Premium will replace the Star Movies brand in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, the initial target markets for the new service. The Star Movies brand will continue to operate in Taiwan and the Philippines.

Interesting media mag......page 14 talks about rumours on sharing of content between Astro and TM.

http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/534982ad#/534982ad/15

More updates.....STAR Movies revamp.....Cartoon Network HD coming in Jan 2012....

http://www.contentasia.tv/pdf/Emag/130.Con...t-13Nov2011.pdf

Trace Sports HD Expands To Malaysia, Indonesia


Bringing Sports Fans a Unique Celebrity News & Showbiz Channel focused on providing the best of Sporting Entertainment

(Hong Kong) TRACE Sports HD was launch in Malaysia on November 1st and , bringing devoted sports fans across South East Asia the best of sport news and entertainment.

The deals were brokered by VP of TRACE Asia, Huey Yi Wang, and as a result sports enthusiasts will soon be able to watch the latest sporting stories, gossip, tips and more provided by TRACE Sports, via HyppTV, Malyasia’s newest Broadband TV provider.

Viewers in Malaysia can tune in to TRACE SPORTS via HyppTV’s subscription-based internet package on Telekom Malaysia Berhad ™s pay TV service, which allows customers to subscribe to over 46 live streaming TV channels.

Tiger Gate Offers New HD Channel

HONG KONG: Tiger Gate Entertainment is launching KIX HD, a new 24-hour channel offering on SingTel's mioTV, to be included in an entertainment pack and also sold a la carte.

KIX HD, available to mioTV subscribers on channel 54 starting in November, is a high-definition hybrid of its existing KIX and Thrill channels. The launch expands Tiger Gate's reach in Singapore, giving all Singapore pay-TV viewers access to the channel as well. KIX and Thrill are also available in Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines. The channel features action-packed series, blockbuster movies, fight events from around the world, anime during the day and late-night thrillers, horror and suspense movies from Asia and Hollywood.

William Pfeiffer, the CEO of Tiger Gate Entertainment, said, "Tiger Gate's launch into the business of high-definition television channels is an important milestone for the company as we enter our next phase of growth. The enhanced viewing experience offered by HD will make watching KIX, Thrill, and our future channels even more exciting. We are excited that through our strong relationship with SingTel, we will provide Singapore viewers a new source for the action-packed content they crave, in dazzling high definition!"

Qash-M, u are fast in sourcing news.

KyLinTV Continues to Deliver More Exclusive Chinese HD Channels
Released on November 3rd, 2011


PLAINVIEW, N.Y., Nov. 3, 2011 — World-leading Chinese IPTV provider KyLinTV announced today the official launch of two more HD channels – KyLinTV Variety HD Channel and Kunlun Drama HD Channel as part of its KyLinTV package. All KyLinTV subscribers in North America can now receive these channels on KyLinTV Package. The two newly launched HD channels will soon be available in Latin America, Europe, Singapore, Taiwan and other South East Asia countries.


KyLinTV Variety HD Channel is a tailor-made entertainment HD channel launched by KyLinTV this month. It brings the best entertainment lineup from China, which includes entertainment news, fashion & culture, celebrity interviews, gala shows and concerts etc. All programs are produced in HD format by famous TV stations or production houses, which can ensure audiences best programs with highest viewing quality.

Kunlun Drama HD Channel is a 24 hour drama channel launched by KyLinTV. It offers audiences a wide selection of top-notched HD dramas, which include the most popular costume dramas, contemporary dramas and action series.

With the addition of KyLinTV Variety HD Channel and Kunlun Drama HD Channel to the KyLin package, the total number of HD channels on Kylin2.0 has increased to eight channels with six other HD channels in the Great Wall package. From now on, all audiences on Kylin2.0 can watch HD channels no matter which package they choose with no additional cost.

KyLinTV president Duan Jianbing said: “We are very pleased to see the expansion of the HD channel line-up on Kylin2.0. With KyLinTV’s unique advantages in technology, service and content, we will continue to maintain our leadership position in the IPTV sector and accelerate the widening of the footprint of premier Chinese TV channels and HD channels all over the world.”

*About KyLinTV*

KyLinTV is a world leading Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) service provider dedicated to servicing the overseas Chinese communities in North America, Latin America, Europe, Singapore, Taiwan and South East Asia. As the first platform that offers Chinese HD content and the largest selection of TV channels, KyLinTV provides more than 100 of the most popular Chinese channels, over 20 mainstream English channels and more than 30,000 hours of video-on-demand programs through multiple viewing devices, including set-top boxes for TV, PC and iPad.

For more information on KyLinTV, please visit http://www.kylintv.com.

WEBwww.AsiaSentinel.com   
Home  Blog  M.A. Wind  Worrisome words from the Khazanah MD
Worrisome words from the Khazanah MD       
Written by M.A. Wind   
Sunday, 06 November 2011 
"Pay television operator Astro All Asia Networks plc is best taken private at this stage of its development, the chief of its major shareholder Khazanah Nasional Bhd said.

"We feel in its current stage of development with high definition television and the Indian investment, it is time when it needs to be taken off the market. I think you get better value ... but the debt market gets developed as a result," managing director Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar told reporters on the sidelines of the Invest Malaysia conference yesterday.

"But you can see the track record of the Usaha Tegas group ... they eventually go back for a listing," he said, referring to the recent re-listing of the group's Maxis Bhd.

Khazanah, which owns about 21.4 per cent of Astro, together with other owners Usaha Tegas Sdn Bhd and Bumiputera foundations had on March 17 offered to buy out minority shareholders of Astro at RM4.30 a share.

Astro closed up 2 sen at RM4.28 yesterday."

Just hoping at least thier attitude and offerings are revamped and things turn better for subsribers.