The World Radiocommunication Conference opened in Geneva today to review and revise the Radio Regulations, the international treaty governing the use of radio-frequency spectrum and satellite orbits. The work of this international treaty-making Conference will be conducted over four weeks until 17 February to address the changes required to the regulation of orbit/spectrum resources in the interest of the users of these scarce resources, with global implications for policy-makers, regulators, the industry as well as end-users.

CABSAT, the leading digital media event in the region, and third largest on the global calendar, is set to be bigger, better and more compelling than ever. The 2013 edition of CABSAT runs from March 12 to 14 at Dubai World Trade Centre and comes at a time of transformational change in the broadcast and media industry in the region. The event boasts a 15% increase in size and is set to welcome leading broadcast and satellite technology companies from around the world.

Global pay-TV market added nearly 47 million subscribers in 2012 reaching a total of 864 million subscribers. “The growth in satellite, cable, and IPTV markets was strong, although digital terrestrial TV growth was flat in 2012. ABI Research expects that the pay-TV market will continue to grow in 2013 to reach 907 million subscribers,” said Jake Saunders, VP and practice director of core forecasting.

The World Teleport Association released a new white paper, Best Practices in Buying Satellite Antennas and the RF Chain. The latest in the Four-Nines series of reports shares insights from WTA members on the trade-offs between cost and quality, standards-based and proprietary, and investment risk versus revenue opportunity of purchasing antennas and RF equipment. The report is made possible by the financial support of XipLink.

TV Connect (formerly known as IP&TV World Forum) is to unite the world’s biggest gaming, telcos and high rising OTT players, as it addresses the rapidly converging TV market and future of connected entertainment. CXO level executives from Electronic Arts, AT&T and Spotify will kick-start the three-day event, which builds on the heritage of IP&TV and its legacy within the evolving ecosystem.

Low ARPUs, growing competitive threats, and rival multiscreen services are driving many pay-TV providers in Europe and Asia to explore new business strategies in video services, according to international research firm Parks Associates. TV Everywhere: Growth, Solutions, and Strategies - Europe and Asia/Pacific,a new report from Parks Associates, indicates multiscreen services now reach 66% of pay-TV subscribers in Western Europe, 21% in Eastern Europe, and 9% in Asia, compared to 90% in North America.

Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems and is the largest telecom market in Europe. Because of intensive capital expenditures since reunification in 1990, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part.

The World Teleport Association published its annual rankings for the Top Teleport Operators of 2012. The annual ranking provides a unique look into the diverse teleport sector of the global communications industry. For the second year in a row, the teleport operators reported their total spending on satellite capacity. The Top Independent Operators in 2012 spent $830 million on satellite capacity, which represented 40% on average of their annual revenues.

For better or worse – and mostly for better, I think –2012 has been the Year of Spectrum. We have seen a series of amazing announcements about step-changes in the number of megabits we can run through a given amount of satellite spectrum. 

The World Conference on International Telecommunications opened on a buoyant note today in Dubai, with positive words of encouragement from government, civil society and industry. ICANN’s President & CEO Fadi Chehadé spoke of a “new season of engagement and cooperation” between ITU and his agency, recognizing ITU’s critical role in the development of the telecommunications industry and broadband infrastructure.