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Week of August 5, 2013

Digital radio moves forward, receiver prices to fall
In the budget, too

Poland’s public radio broadcaster Polskie Radio will join the digital movement October 1st, said president Andrzej Siezieniewski, quoted by press.pl (August 1). Ten national channels and two local channels will be available on DAB+ multiplexes in Warsaw and Katowice.

“Today the cost of (receivers) in Western Europe is about €80 to €100,” he said. “As the digitization process unfolds, in three or four years, these prices should be around PLN 100 (about €25).” (See more on digital radio here)

Regulator KRRiT has allocated PLN 10 million, roughly €2.5 million, from the household license fee to the cost of digital radio expansion for Polskie Radio.

Out of the airport, job awaits
On to social media

Edward Snowden has left the airport, reports just about every news outlet. Apparently he received a one-year temporary visa from the Russian government after wearing out his welcome at the Sheremetyevo International Airport transit lounge and other options disappearing.

Mr. Snowden, supposedly with certain web skills, may have a job right there. Russian social network VKontakte  CEO Pavel Durov would be thrilled if he “decides to join a stellar team at VKontakte,” reported by lenta.ru (August 1). “I think it might be interesting for Edward to deal with the protection of personal data of millions of our people.”

VKontakte has been called the Facebook of the East and has about 200 million users. In the logic of Russia, Mr. Durov is considered either a thorn in side of President Vladimir Putin (der Spiegel – May 2) or silently in cooperation (Novaya Gazeta – March 27). (JMH)

News channel to solve image problem
accelerated

Turkey’s state broadcaster TRT will be launching an English-language television news channel within the next year. The project, supposedly long in planning, will be “accelerated at maximum speed,” said Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc, reported Timeturk (July 27). The Turkish government was none too thrilled with international news coverage of the Taksim Square Gesi Park protests last month although local media kept their heads down.

Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan at a June 3 press conference accused Reuters Istanbul correspondent Birsen Altayli of “misrepresenting the situation” in Taksim Square. Other government officials, including Mr. Arinc, followed suit, lodging complaints against CNN and other international news outlets. The solution, as many other government leaders have determined, is starting your very own English-language news channel. (See more on media in Turkey here)

“In terms of the outside world, foreign news media has created an image problem for Turkey,” noted Mr. Arinc. “Let’s hope CNN International and the BBC will take notice of this channel.” (JMH)

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