TelecomLive January-2019

[ News Bytes ] www.telecomlive.com 61 Telecom LIVE January 2019 platform 'Bflix' in 2019. T h e c h a n n e l w i l l s h ow c a s e e x c l u s i v e content from the vast Viacom18 library dubbed in Thai. The content will be available in Thailand and key South East Asia markets. The deal was signed recently at the annual Asia Television Forum (ATF) in Singa- pore. ZMCL calls off Rs 1,592 cr deal with RBNL for purchase of FM radio biz ZeeMedia Corporation Ltd (ZMCL) has called off its deal withAnil Ambani- owned Reliance Broad- cast Network Ltd (RBNL) for the purchase of the latter's FM radio busi- ness. The deal with RBNL did not progress due to delay in securing clear- a n c e f r o m t h e I & B m i n i s t r y a n d h ome ministry. In Nov 2016, ZMCL had signed a definitive agreement with RBNL to acquire 49 pc stake in R B N L ' s F M r a d i o business with an option to acquire the balance 51 pc stake after the three year lock-inperiod. YouTube to make all new originals free YouTub e p l a n s t o make all future original programming available to u s e r s f o r f r e e w i t h advertising. The shift in s t r a t e gy me ans t ha t starting 2019, YouTube Premium will no longer have exclusive access to o r i g i n a l p r o g r am s , removing one of the main benefits of the subscrip- tion offering. YouTube's paid option will still remove ads from origi- nals as well as all other videos, and it comes with music streaming privi- leges. YouTube Pr emi um costs about $12 a month in the US. The dozens of p r e v i o u s l y r e l e a s e d shows and movies in YouTube Premium, such as the first season of popular action comedy “Cobra Kai,” will remain behind the paywall, the company said. In the meantime, Netflix Inc said it will adapt celebrated British children's author Roald Dahl's books such as “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “Matilda” as animation series. The company, which had kept aside $8 bn to create original content in 2018, has already spent $6.9 bn on TV shows and movies by the end of its third quarter. Netflix had 137 mn subscribers to its movie and TV streaming serviceworldwide as of Sep 2018. Sun Direct's FY18 net profit stays flat at Rs 45 crore Sun Direct's net profit for the fiscal endedMar 2018 has seen a marginal increase at Rs 45 cr compared to Rs 44 cr in the previous fiscal. The company's PAT margin has fallen to 3.3 pc compared to 3.7 pc in the previous fiscal. The company's revenue sawan upswingwith a 13.25 pc jump at Rs 1,367 cr compared to Rs 1,207 cr in the year ago period. Sun Direct is among the top five DTH operators in India with a gross subscriber base of 13.92 mn and a net subscriber base of 6.99 mn as on Mar 31, 2018. SunDirect has a strong presence, withmore than 40 B P O & B R O A D C A S T I N G - B Y T E S