News Analysis

London, UK, June 12, 2013--Global pay TV households will reach nearly 1 billion by 2018, up from 772 million  in 2012 and 814 million in 2013. According to the Digital TV World Household  Forecasts report, the Asia Pacific region will contribute 59% (587 million) of the  global total by 2018.

Bangkok, Thailand, June 6, 2013– Asia-Pacific’s premier multichannel TV industry association turned the spotlight on the “land of smiles” with CASBAA Thailand in View 2013, recently held on 30 May at Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld.

Tokyo, Japan, June 4, 2013-Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications will be adopting  8K broadcasts, which is 16 times the resolution of current HDTV, by 2016, two years ahead of schedule. Japanese broadcaster  NHK said it already has plans to conduct trials 8K Super Hi-Vision TV in 2016. Reports say NHK is preparing to build a compact, more-easily managed camera that can capture in the double 4K resolution.

Stockholm, Sweden, June 3, 2013--The new edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report reveals thatmobile-data traffic will continue to grow significantly in the coming years, a trend driven mainly by video. Overall data traffic is expected to grow 12-fold by the end of 2018. Increasing usage is driven by continual growth in the amount of content available as well as the improved network speeds that come with HSPA and LTE development.

Brussels, Belgium,  June 3, 2013--IDATE  has published the 13^th edition of its DigiWorld Yearbook with its theme "Embrace innovation: Evolve or die!  IDATE experts provide a concise and easy to read reference manual of the digital world, including key figures and a look at the latest innovations and key events that marked telecom, internet and media markets during 2012.

Singapore, June 3, 2013 — Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. (ST), Southeast Asia’s biggest telco, is seeking more than US$1.93 billion (Au$2 billion) starting bid for the sale of its Australian satellite unit, according to various media reports.

Bangkok, Thailand, May 17, 2013 — Thailand-based satellite operator Thaicom posted a net income of US$11.08 million (THB 330 million) in the first quarter, up from US$1.41 million (THB 42 million) in the year-ago period equivalent to an increase by almost 300 percent.

Singapore, May 10, 2013 — Singaporean telco StarHub has reported a 3 percent rise in Q1 net profit to US$73.24 million (S$91 million) compared with the same period a year ago. However, its group operating revenue for the period fell 2 percent to US$466.83 million (S$580 million) while EBITDA grew 3 percent to US$146.47 million (S$182 million) from US$142.45 million (S$177 million) previously.

Sydney, Australia,  May 9, 2013-- Mobile satellite communications company Inmarsat has acquired TC Communications Pty Ltd. based in Australia. Inmarsat will integrate the company into its existing operations with a particular focus on supporting its expanding Global Government and Enterprise Business Units, according to a company statement.

Petah Tikva, Israel, May 8, 2013 — Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. said revenues rose 8 percent to US$ 82.8 million while EBITDA increased to US$ 5.1 million, up 74 percent, during the first quarter of 2013.