אסטרא תעביר תערוכת אלקטרוניקה בHD

[Kobi B]

אם הבנתי נכון

Astra to offer IFA reports in HDTV

Jörn Krieger



Satellite operator SES Astra will offer coverage of the latest developments at international consumer electronics fair Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA) on its HDTV demonstration channel on Astra (19.2° East).

In addition to the presentation of new products from the fields of consumer electronics and household devices, viewers will be taken on a foray into the fair, which runs from September 4 to 9 in Berlin. From August 28 the first preview shows will provide information on the event.

The daily programmes, presented in English, will commence at 10:00 CET during the fair and will be repeated every two hours. Highlights from the event will be shown after its closure until September 18. The service will be operated jointly by IFA event organiser gfu, IFA International TV and SES Astra, with playout provided by Astra subsidiary APS Astra Platform Services.

The HDTV presentation channel is available free-to-air on the frequency 11.303 GHz H (SR 22,000, FEC 2/3).

[Kobi B]

Astra offers HD+ to existing HD households

Jörn Krieger

Satellite operator SES Astra wants to offer existing HDTV households in Germany the opportunity of receiving its planned platform HD+.

According to spokesman Markus Payer, set-top-boxes and TV sets with conventional common interface slots (CI) will be able to receive the service through a software update. So-called legacy models will then enable reception of the channels offered on HD+, with the advantage that existing HDTV households will not need to buy new reception devices.

Within the industry it is estimated that more than half a million HDTV set-top-boxes have been sold in Germany so far, but how many of those have CI and can be upgraded is not known.

The first manufacturers to offer the software updates are TechniSat and Humax - others could follow. “The solution for the current generation of CI slots is also open to other manufacturers,“ said Payer, stressing, however, that this was only intended as an interim solution to bridge the gap between CI Plus and CI. “We continue to give our full support to the new generation CI Plus, which represents the future of open interfaces.”

Payer explained that CI Plus fulfilled the requirements of rights dealers, for example for Hollywood movies or large sporting events, regarding signal protection and security standards in digital television. “It’s a necessary step for the industry,” he said.

HD+ will launch in late autumn on Astra (19.2° East) with RTL and VOX on board, followed in January 2010 by Sat.1, ProSieben and kabel eins. The platform, which is open to further broadcasters, will be encrypted in Nagravision with viewers having to pay a reception fee. “HD+ provides a neutral infrastructure aimed at all TV broadcasters,” explained Payer. “We hope to have more channels on board for the launch.”