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VIDEOAGE "PAPER CLIPS": A WEEKLY PRESS REVIEW Beginning
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PROGRAMMING
On
American Idol, a golden ticket usually means a free pass to Hollywood -- except
that is, when it doesn't. A 23-year-old Texas man seen receiving one at last
week's San Antonio audition says he was disinvited from the competition just
days before leaving for the next round in Hollywood. The man, Akron Watson,
is one of a handful of people who get cut between the first and second rounds
for reasons the show's producers won't explain. But Watson, who was featured
prominently on last week's show, has gone public about the dismissal.
E! Online
BUSINESS
The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT), China's TV
regulator, has demanded that all cable TV operators provide at least six
channels of analog programming for the public when they digitize their services.
The country is promoting digital cable in urban areas, and 25 Chinese cities
-- including Shenzhen, Qingdao, Hangzhou, Dalian and Nanjing -- have already
switched over to digital. Recently, some cable users have complained that
local cable operators have closed off all analog cable TV and that charges
for digital cable TV and the set-top box used to receive the signal are simply
too expensive.
China Military Online
The Czech Republic's delay in launching digital television is creating complications
for digital license holders, who had been ready to start broadcasting this
year. After investing millions in new TV studios and hiring dozens of new employees,
the stations are left waiting, without a way to get a return on their investments
anytime soon. Many have had to dismiss most of their staff. Some digital stations
such as Oeko and TV Barrandov are continuing to prepare programs.
Prague Daily Monitor
The BBC has spent £700,000
of license payers' money on on-screen links between programs. Three of the
new BBC2 shorts were shot in South Africa, apparently because filmmakers
wanted sunny weather. The spots were designed to convey that the channel
has become a window on the world, but after being shot in various exotic
locales the spots are expected to raise concerns over costs, especially as
the corporation is in the process of cutting more than 3,700 jobs as part
of a cost-saving exercise.
Telegraph
TECHNOLOGY
Elion, Estonia's largest telecommunications firm, is set to become a pioneer
in digital television. The company will begin transmitting a high-definition
TV signal later this month, making it the first company in the Baltics to
do so. Elion will begin transmitting the first HDTV channel, VOOM, to customers
of Kaabel DigiTV in February.
The Baltic Times
CONTROVERSY
Cartoon Network general manager Jim Samples resigned last week as a result
of the negative publicity caused by an ill-fated campaign that was supposed
to draw attention to the upcoming feature film based on the late night Adult
Swim offering Aqua Teen Hunger Force, but instead caused panic in Boston.
Beantown residents mistook the 38 Lite Brite devices that had been placed
around the city to promote the movie, for bombs. Samples said he hopes that
stepping down will help the network put the incident behind it.
E! Online
VIDEO GAMES
Video game giant Ubisoft is expanding its Quebec operations, investing C$454
million to create 1,400 new positions in the province by 2013. The company
is looking to increase its video game team and build a studio for computer-generated
films. The Quebec government will pitch in C$19 million to finance tax credits
and job training, while the federal government has promised an C$8 million
loan to the studio.
The Gazette
FILM
A topping out ceremony was held for what has been touted as the "world's
biggest and most advanced" studio of its kind, the Korda Film Studios.
Construction on the studio began last May and is scheduled for completion by
year's end. The complex, which will feature six studios (four of which will
be operational by May of this year), is being built jointly by Hungarian real
estate developer Sandor Demjan, Hungarian-born producer Andrew G. Vajna and
Hungarian-born Canadian businessman Peter Munk.
The Budapest Sun
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