(Hong Kong, 23rd April 2012) ITV Granada has signed a deal with leading independent distributor DRG, acquiring hit drama Doc Martin for first-run broadcast across Asia and the Middle East. The agreement, finalised at MIPTV 2012, is the first third party deal for ITV Granada.

ITV Granada will air the programme from the third series on partner TV platforms across Asia and the Middle East, keeping content fresh and up to date with UK scheduling. Doc Martin will add to ITV Granada’s established lineup of award winning, primetime dramas which include Lewis, Poirot and Monroe.

Doc Martin is one of the UK’s highest rating drama series which consistently achieves in excess of 10 million viewers. It has been a success for ITV in the UK ever since its launch in 2004.

Each episode of the much-loved show follows Doc Martin, played by Martin Clunes (Reggie Perrin, Men Behaving Badly), as he turns his back on life as a celebrated ‘big city’ surgeon and moves to a sleepy seaside village to become the local doctor.

Despite his surgical brilliance (and a phobia to blood) Doc Martin has few interpersonal skills and his bedside manner soon starts to upset his new patients. To make matters worse he inherits the world’s most incompetent receptionist.

The community is united in horror at their grumpy new doctor and Doc Martin soon finds he needs all the allies he can get as he tries to negotiate his way around village life with hilarious consequences.

Simon Li, Channel Director at ITV Granada comments “It’s fantastic to be able to work with DRG on our first third party acquisition, even more so to add an award winning ITV brand like Doc Martin to our primetime schedule.”

Chris Bartlett, Vice President, Sales at DRG who brokered the deal added, “Doc Martin is a huge international brand for DRG, successful on all platforms from TV and Digital media through to Home Entertainment. We’re delighted to partner with ITV Granada in bringing this ratings hit to wider audiences throughout Asia and the Middle East.”

Doc Martin Series 3 will air on ITV Granada from 26th June 2012.

About ITV Granada

ITV Granada shows a wide array of contemporary entertainment, award-winning drama, cool comedy and the latest in reality shows from leading producers in the UK and around the world. Available throughout Asia and the Middle East, reaching over 5.5 million households, in more than 15 countries.

ITV Granada is available in Hong Kong – nowTV 517, Indonesia – TelkomVision 503, Malaysia – ASTRO 735, Malta – Go Cable 305 & Melita Cable 309, Singapore – StarHub 523 & Mio TV 23, Taiwan – Chung Hwa Telecom 82, Middle East – OSN 47, and Thailand through CTH’s extensive distribution network.

www.itv.asia

www.facebook.com/ITVGranada

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For further information contact:

Jennifer Tattersall
Marketing & PR Manager
ITV Granada
Telephone: +852 2511 9701
Email: jennifer.tattersall@itv.com

Celestial Tiger Entertainment Secures First and Exclusive Content Deals for its Channels Across Asia
KIX is the “home of combat” with exclusive mixed martial arts and kickboxing events
CJ E&M Corporation exclusive volume deal brings edgy, top-rated Korean TV series to CTE channels

HONG KONG (April 23, 2012) – Celestial Tiger Entertainment (CTE), the operator of the largest bouquet of pan-Asian channels dedicated to Asian entertainment, announced today several first and exclusive content deals for its channels. CTE makes KIX the “home of combat” in Asia by securing two multi-year output deals with renowned mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter Bellator Fighting Championships and kickboxing promoter It’s Showtime. CTE also concludes a volume deal with CJ E&M Corporation (CJ E&M) that locks in edgy action series and thrilling dramas on a first-run basis for all CTE channels in Asia.

KIX, the new destination for “all action” entertainment in Asia, carries a multitude of combat events first and exclusively. Premiering in May is the sixth season of the world’s largest tournament-based mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion, Bellator Fighting Championships. Bellator, distributed by FremantleMedia Enterprises, involves single-elimination tournaments with champions crowned across a number of weight classes. Viewers will be able to follow the contestants as they fight their way to the top.

CTE also signed an exclusive multi-year output deal with French media rights agency Fighting Spirit for It’s Showtime. It’s Showtime is a global championship kickboxing tournament featuring top level fights with stellar production values and the most famous kickboxers worldwide.

Together with other martial arts and combat programs currently in the channel’s programming mix, KIX establishes itself as the “home of combat” in Asia. Such programs include K-1, the worldwide promotion, founded in Japan, focusing on stand up martial arts techniques; Strikeforce, the U.S.-based MMA promotion featuring legendary fighters such as Fedor Emelianenko; and Dream, a must-watch yearly MMA fight-fest with some of the best Japanese and international MMA talents.

The largest entertainment company in South Korea, CJ E&M Corporation, will also be bringing a selection of its latest and most exciting TV series first and exclusively to CTE’s channels in Asia. Included in the volume deal are hits like Blood Thirsty Prosecutor, the number one cable series in South Korea in 2011 starring Yun Jung-hoon; Hero, with Yang Dong-gun as a bad boy who wakes up from a coma and decides to fight evil; Quiz from God, starring acclaimed actor Ryu Duk-hwan as a medical examiner who solves mysterious crimes tied to rare diseases; Ten, a thrilling police drama featuring a group of criminal investigators who tackle the toughest cases while living by the motto “No more unsolved crimes.”; and Girl Killer K, a miniseries about a female assassin starring one of Korea’s hottest new singers and actresses, Han Groo.

“With the growing popularity of mixed martial arts tournaments in Asia, we are securing two major combat promotions exclusively for KIX which, together with the current MMA programs, will make KIX the ‘home of combat’ in Asia. In addition, our partnership with CJ E&M guarantees our channels a pipeline of big-budget action series and thrillers that are truly daring, distinctive and Asian,” said Ofanny Choi, Executive Vice President, TV Networks, Celestial Tiger Entertainment.

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Media enquiries

Pauline Poon
Celestial Tiger Entertainment
T: 852 2626 8131
E: pauline.poon@celestialtiger.com

About Celestial Tiger Entertainment

CELESTIAL TIGER ENTERTAINMENT (CTE) is a diversified media company dedicated to entertaining audiences in Asia and beyond. The company focuses on the operation of branded pay television channels, content creation and content distribution targeted at Asian consumers.

CTE operates a powerful bouquet of distinct pay television channels including: CELESTIAL MOVIES, the most broadly distributed 24-hour Chinese and Asian movies channel in the world; CELESTIAL CLASSIC MOVIES, the gateway to an unparalleled array of Chinese movie masterpieces; CELESTIAL MOVIES ON DEMAND, Celestial’s subscription Video On Demand service; KIX, the ultimate in action entertainment; Thrill, Asia’s only horror and suspense movie channel; and KIX HD, featuring the best of action with a late-night dose of thrillers in high definition.

As one of Asia’s largest vertically integrated entertainment companies, CTE produces original content which complements its channels business. CTE is also the exclusive sales agent of content in all media in Southeast Asia and China from independent Hollywood studio Lionsgate.

Headquartered in Hong Kong, CTE is a joint venture among Saban Capital Group, a leading private investment firm specializing in the media, entertainment and communications industries; Celestial Pictures, a major Asian entertainment company wholly-owned by Astro, the owner and operator of the leading DTH platform in Malaysia; and Lionsgate, the world’s largest independent filmed entertainment studio.

New MPEG-DASH development kit enables partners to deliver high-quality audio for HD streaming

LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Dolby Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE: DLB) today announced the availability of a development kit to bring the full power of Dolby® Digital Plus premium-quality multichannel audio to partners that leverage the MPEG Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP (MPEG-DASH) standard. MPEG ratified MPEG-DASH in November 2011, and it is quickly gaining traction as a mainstream delivery format for streaming content over the Internet.

“Netflix® welcomes the growing support for emerging online standards, including MPEG-DASH and the associated common encryption specification for ISO files. These standards will enable continued efficient and high-quality integration of over-the-top services like Netflix across a wide range of devices,” said Mark Watson, Director, Streaming Standards, Netflix.

Dolby technology has been selected by leading online video services including Netflix, HBO Go®, Vudu™, Best Buy® CinemaNow®, Samsung™ Acetrax™, Dixons KnowHow™ Movies, Voddler®, Apple® iTunes®, and Amazon® Instant Video. This development kit will enable current and future partners, such as encoder vendors and digital rights management (DRM) vendors, to easily implement and test Dolby Digital Plus for products and services in the online video ecosystem. The development kit includes test vectors as well as specifications that describe how Dolby Digital Plus can be signaled and transported within MPEG-DASH, Microsoft® Smooth Streaming, and Apple HTTP Live Streaming (HLS).

“The emergence of the MPEG-DASH specification is an important step in the maturation of adaptive bit-rate delivery for multiscreen video,” said Tony Huang, Senior Product Manager, Broadcast and Live, Digital Rapids®. “We’re excited to be extending our support for Dolby Digital Plus audio to DASH, enabling our customers to bring premium content with high-quality audio to their audiences on any compatible device in a reliable and consistent manner.”

“Envivio is closely collaborating with Dolby to provide Dolby Digital Plus alongside AVC/H.264 video at different bit rates while supporting seamless adaptive switching, enabling our customers to deliver high-quality multichannel audio entertainment to consumers on any compatible device while lowering their operational costs,” said Arnaud Perrier, VP of Solutions, Envivio®. “As the DASH standard becomes more universally adopted, even more service providers will be able to leverage these technologies.”

“As more consumers enjoy streaming content on multiple screens, it’s increasingly important that the entertainment experiences are the best quality, regardless of delivery medium and playback devices,” said Thierry Fautier, Senior Director of Convergence Solutions, Harmonic. “We look forward to working with Dolby to improve content delivery to connected and portable devices. Harmonic and Dolby believe that when consumers enjoy entertainment over the Internet, they never need compromise on quality.”

Dolby Digital Plus enables the delivery of high-quality audio to any compatible device and any distribution workflow, including broadcast, over-the-top (OTT), online, and on demand. It includes scalable, adaptive, and bandwidth-efficient multichannel coding designed for bandwidth-constrained delivery networks, as well as technologies such as loudness control and device-playback sound optimization. Widely supported within the digital entertainment ecosystem, it is available on more than 640 million products, including connected TVs, smartphones, tablets, PCs, game consoles, and Blu-ray™ players, making it the preferred audio solution for artists, operators, carriers, and device makers worldwide. Dolby is demonstrating how Dolby Digital Plus enhances entertainment experiences across platforms and screens at NAB Show® 2012 (booth SU1212).

About Dolby Laboratories

Dolby Laboratories (NYSE:DLB) is the global leader in technologies that are essential elements in the best entertainment experiences. Founded in 1965 and best known for high-quality audio and surround sound, Dolby creates innovations that enrich entertainment at the movies, at home, or on the go. For more information about Dolby Laboratories or Dolby technologies, please visit www.dolby.com.

Dolby and the double-D symbol are registered trademarks of Dolby Laboratories, Inc. All other trademarks remain the property of their respective owners. S12/25557 DLB-G

Dolby Laboratories
Daniel Schneider, 415-558-0738
daniel.schneider@dolby.com

Source: Dolby Laboratories, Inc.

News Provided by Acquire Media

New York Festivals International Television and Film Awards honors Al Jazeera shows ” Nepal: Children for Sale” and “China’s Animal Crusaders”

April 18 – Al Jazeera English’s Asian current affairs show 101 East has been awarded a Silver Medal for its film Nepal: Children for Sale by the New York Festivals International Television and Film Awards. 101 East’s film China’s Animal Crusaders is also a finalist in television/documentary category of the competition.

The winners of the 55th annual New York Festivals International Television and Film awards were announced on April 17th at the National Association of Broadcasters show in Las Vegas. The awards honor programming in all lengths and forms from over 50 countries. A jury of leading media professionals from around the world including Argentina, Ireland, Italy, UK, and Malaysia select winners in categories ranging from Animation, Comedy, Documentary, Feature Films, and Reality Shows.

Nepal: Children for Sale aired on Al Jazeera’s Kuala Lumpur based program 101 East in August 2011. Children for Sale investigates the lucrative business of international adoption services in Nepal. The show examines the large and complicated industry in the country, where it remains difficult to know whether children up for adoption are orphaned, abandoned, or are being trafficked.

“We are extremely proud to be honored by the New York Festival’s International Television and Film Awards. It’s exciting that the stories we are producing out of Asia are being recognized by prestigious U.S. institutions and drives us to continue to tell the stories from the region that aren’t being told,” said Sharon Roobol, Programme Editor of 101 East.

China’s Animal Crusaders chronicles the fight for animal rights in a country that has traditionally used animals for food and for traditional medicines. With no animal welfare laws except for wild animals, 101 East looked at how growing numbers of Chinese are using blogs, websites and the streets to protest against the mistreatment of animals.

Al Jazeera English is an international English language news channel with over 60 bureaus around the world. In the last year, the channel has won the Royal Television Society’s “News Channel of the Year” award, a 2012 Peabody award for its coverage of the Arab uprisings, a George Polk award for the film “Bahrain: Shouting in the Dark,” and an Alfred I. Dupont award for its film “Haiti: Six Months On.”

United Arab Emirates’ second communications satellite ready to launch

• Y1B, the second communications satellite for Yahsat, will be orbited by a Proton launcher from Baikonur on 24 April 2012
• Y1B will complete the UAE’s state-of-the-art satellite communications network for both commercial and governmental users
• Astrium and Thales Alenia space are co-prime contractors on this major contract for the UAE 

18 April 2012 – Y1B, the second satellite of the United Arab Emirates’ space communications programme is ready to be launched on a Proton launcher from Baikonur in Kazakhstan.

Comprising two satellites and a ground segment, the Yahsat project is a complete commercial and military satellite communications system built by Astrium and Thales Alenia Space (TAS) for the Al Yah Satellite Communications Company (Yahsat). Based in the UAE, Yahsat is a satellite communications operator and a pioneer in the field across the Middle East, Africa, South West Asia and Europe. The Yahsat system will offer innovative commercial solutions, including HDTV broadcasting, internet trunking via satellite, corporate data networks, and internet services for public and private users, as well as secure communications.

Astrium is responsible for the final integration of the two satellites and for delivery in orbit. Thales Alenia Space provided the payloads and is responsible for the space segment, including the launch of the satellites.

Astrium Services, with its partner Thales Alenia Space, is responsible for the ground segment, which comprises a network of ground terminals, and for a management system which provides remote control of all system hardware.

Astrium Services, in association with Thales Communication and Security, is also in charge of operating this system, providing ground segment maintenance and of training Emirati operators over a five-year period.

Y1B will deliver communications in Ka-band for both commercial and governmental users. It will provide high-data rate internet services for public and private users in the Middle East, Africa and South West Asia with state-of-the-art Ka-band multi spot-beam technology, achieving cost-effective bandwidth supply through 61 narrow spot beams. The governmental mission will bring a substantial increase in the total capacity available for the UAE secure communications over the Middle East, complementing the Y1A satellite.

With a launch mass of approximately 6,000 kg and a spacecraft power of 14 kW, Y1B has a design lifetime of more than 15 years. Like Y1A, Y1B was integrated by Astrium on a Eurostar E3000 platform and tested at its Toulouse site. More than 50 Eurostar satellites have now been launched and have accumulated over 400 years of successful in-orbit operation. Both commercial and military Ka-band payloads were built with state-of-the-art Ka-band multi spotbeam technology from Thales Alenia Space. Early orbit phase operations will be conducted by Astrium from its spacecraft control centre in Toulouse.

About Al Yah Satellite Communications Company PrJSC (Yahsat)

Yahsat provides multipurpose satellite solutions (government and commercial) for broadband, broadcast, military communications use across the Middle East, Africa and South West Asia. Based in Abu Dhabi, and wholly owned by Mubadala, Yahsat is the first company in the Middle East and Africa to offer multi-purpose satellite services:

• YahClick – the satellite broadband service
• YahSecure – the government satellite service
• YahLink – the satellite connectivity service
• YahService – end to end satellite solutions
• YahCarrier – satellite solutions for telecommunications carriers

Yahsat’s first satellite Y1A was successfully launched in April 2011, and is preparing to launch its second satellite Y1B in April 2012 (www.yahsat.ae).

About Astrium

Astrium, the number one company in Europe for space technologies and the third in the world. In 2011, Astrium had a turnover close to €5 billion and 18,000 employees worldwide, mainly in France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain and the Netherlands Astrium is the sole European company that covers the whole range of civil and defence space systems and services.

Its three business units are: Astrium Space Transportation for launchers and orbital infrastructure; Astrium Satellites for spacecraft and ground segment; Astrium Services for comprehensive fixed and mobile end-to-end solutions covering secure and commercial satcoms and networks, high security and broadcast satellite communications equipment and systems, and bespoke geo-information services, worldwide.

Astrium is a wholly owned subsidiary of EADS, a global leader in aerospace, defence and related services. In 2011, the Group – comprising Airbus, Astrium, Cassidian and Eurocopter – generated revenues of € 49.1 billion and employed a workforce of over 133,000.

Press contacts:
Jeremy Close (Astrium UK) / Tel.: +44 (0)1 438 77 3872
Gregory Gavroy (Astrium FR) / Tel.: +33 (0) 1 77 75 80 32
Mathias Pikelj (Astrium GER) / Tel.: +49 (0) 7545 8 9123
Francisco Lechón (Astrium SP) / Tel.: +34 91 586 37 41

www.astrium.eads.net

bbTV of Hong Kong Broadband Network Limited (“HKBN”, a wholly-owned subsidiary of City Telecom (HK) Limited, HKEX: 1137, NASDAQ: CTEL) has launched international rugby channel Setanta Sports, bringing its action-packed line-up of live & exclusive rugby to its customers in Hong Kong.

Setanta is available on bbTV channel 323 as a premium service to residential, hotel and commercial subscribers.

Live & exclusive rugby broadcasts on the channel include the RBS Six Nations, Super Rugby, The Rugby Championship (formerly the Tri Nations), The Currie Cup, ITM Cup, Aviva Premiership, Anglo-Welsh Cup and Pro-12 (previously Magners League), as well as live Rugby League from the NRL and State Of Origin.

With over 500 exclusive rugby matches from both the Northern & Southern Hemispheres, Setanta offers an action packed line-up of rugby throughout the year.

Ms. To Wai Bing, Managing Director of Business Development, HKBN said, “We are very proud to introduce Setanta Sports to our bbTV subscribers. Rugby is becoming a popular sport in Hong Kong and I believe our subscribers will be able to enjoy the excitement bring by different rugby matches through watching Setanta Sports at home anytime.”

Roger Hall, Managing Director of Setanta Sports International, said: “We are really pleased to be part of the premium offering of television channels on bbTV at an exciting time in the development of their business.”

This is the 12th distribution agreement for Setanta in Asia, following agreements with Many of Asia’s leading subscription television operators including Now TV (Hong Kong), StarHub & Singtel mio TV (Singapore), Astro (Malaysia & Brunei), True Visions (Thailand), First Media (Indonesia) and Dialog TV (Sri Lanka), among others.

Setanta Sports now reaches over 5m households across Asia.

About Setanta Sports

Setanta Sports is an international sports broadcaster operating 11 different sports channels worldwide, in 31 countries to over 32m households. In Asia, Setanta Sports is currently available in Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Mongolia.

To learn more about Setanta Sports please visit the Setanta website at www.setanta.com/asia

About City Telecom/Hong Kong Broadband Network Limited

Established in 1992, City Telecom (H.K.) Limited (HKEX: 1137, NASDAQ: CTEL) provides integrated telecommunications services in Hong Kong via its own self-built fiber network. City Telecom’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Hong Kong Broadband Network Limited (HKBN), is the fastest growing broadband service provider in Hong Kong. HKBN offers a diversified portfolio of innovative products that service over 1,240,000 subscriptions for broadband, local telephony and IP-TV. The Company has built a solid market position with top-of-the-line applications and practices enabling its substantial growth. The company takes great pride in developing its over 3,000 Talent force into a competitive advantage. Additional information on City Telecom can be found at www.ctigroup.com.hk.

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Media contact information at Setanta Sports:
Ph: +61 2 8324 0600
Email: customerservice-asia@setanta.com