Freesat Reaches 100,000 Units

Freesat, the new digital satellite TV service that launched in May this year, has announced it has topped 100,000 units sold across the UK. The sales have been helped by the major sporting events during the summer, such as Euro 2008, Wimbledon and the Olympic Games as well as blockbusters like King Kong, which have been shown in HD.

Sales are set to continue as we look forward to an autumn schedule boasting UEFA Champions' League, England World Cup qualifiers and FA Cup football on ITV HD, exclusive to Freesat.

Freesat makes HDTV available to 98% of UK households, some of whom have previously been unable to benefit from this technology, without the need for a subscription or a contract. Viewers need an HD digital box that connects to an HD-ready TV or a TV with built-in Freesat. Freesat comes with its own inter-viewer interactivity, ‘red' button functionality and EPG service, all through a standard broadband connection.

WRN can guide broadcasters wishing to go onto Freesat through the launch process, having already successful placed six channels on the EPG, with more coming shortly. WRN provides its clients with uplink and capacity services on the Eurobird satellite (used to feed Freesat) and EPG services.

For further information, please contact our Sales Team on [email protected].

WRN North America on Sirius and XM

WRN has launched its North America network on XM Radio on 12th November 2008 on channel 135. The news follows after the merger between Sirius satellite radio and XM satellite radio, the two satellite radio services operating in the United States and Canada.  

This is great news for WRN's clients who broadcast on WRN North America as the merger brings both companies a total of more than 18 million subscribers, based on current subscriber numbers on the date of merging.

The merger was approved at the end of July 2008 and the two commercial broadcasters now operate under the name Sirius XM Radio. WRN North America was previously only available on Sirius, however, since the merger with XM, it is now accessible to subscribers on both platforms.

WRN broadcasts 24/7 news and current affairs radio networks in five different languages (English, French, German, Arabic and Russian). The networks are made up of aggregated content from international public service broadcasters and renowned programme makers, presenting perspectives from around the globe. The WRN Europe service is broadcast on Sky Digital for the UK and Ireland and Hot Bird for Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.

For more information on WRN North America or any of WRN's other networks, please contact the Sales Team +44 (0) 207 896 4020 or e-mail [email protected].

CVC takes on Ignition Radio 

WRN is excited to announce it will be launching CVC's Hindi service, The Voice Asia, on Sky channel 0203. The launch will take place on 1st December 2008.

CVC is the media arm of Christian Vision, a non-profit charitable company founded in the United Kingdom in 1988 and has been a valued client of WRN for many years. CVC The Voice Asia first started broadcasting in 2002 in the Hindi language to the Indian sub-continent. The programming is broadcast 20 hours daily on Shortwave and seven days a week on the Hotbird satellite. The service is also available 24/7 on the Internet.

Sky will offer the Hindi service a chance to reach new audiences in the UK and Europe. CVC will lease the Sky channel from WRN until 2009 and will benefit from instant access to the Sky platform, which has been closed since October 2007; EPG services and 24/7 monitoring and support.

Christian Vision's Director of International Broadcasting, Andrew Flynn says: "We greatly appreciate our relationship with WRN and especially their ability to provide access to a wide range of platforms."

Danny Choranji, Director of CVC The Voice Asia says: "16 years at the BBC has taught me the value of the power of media and I am excited at this development for CVC The Voice Asia. I believe that this will impact people and connect loved ones from India and Pakistan to the UK and Europe. My staff are all geared up and we will be the first Asian radio station to transmit 24 hours of live radio programming a day over the UK, Europe and South Asia. So on behalf of the team at The Voice Asia I would like to welcome you to join us and take part in our programmes."

Christian Vision is headquartered in Coleshill, England and has facilities in the United Kingdom, Germany, United States, Chile, Brazil, Zambia, South Africa, Singapore, India and Australia, among others.

For more information on WRN's ad hoc Sky channels or to find out how to access the Sky platform, please contact the Sales Team +44 (0) 207 896 4020 or e-mail [email protected].

For more information on CVC The Voice Asia see http://www.thevoiceasia.com/.

WRN Meets Insight Radio at House of Commons 

WRN was thrilled to attend a reception held by Insight Radio at the House of Commons. Insight Radio, Europe's first radio station for the blind and partially sighted, was revealing plans for future expansion.

The station is run by the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), which communicates the needs and interests of blind and partially sighted people throughout the UK.

Following its hugely successful launch on Sky in August, 2007, Insight Radio has continued to grow as WRN helped launch the station on Freesat, the new digital satellite TV and radio service, in September, 2008.

The station is based in Glasgow but is already in the process of opening new facilities in Birmingham, Newcastle, Edinburgh and London and further planning to open studios in Cardiff, Belfast and Manchester in the future.

The guest list included press, Members of Parliament and Insight Radio staff, such as Mickey Hughes, who was runner up in this year's Big Brother. Mickey's stint in the Big Brother House has helped gain Insight Radio more notoriety among UK audiences and made him a familiar face in the media as he speaks of the real reason behind Insight Radio: to give a voice to people with vision impairment.

A keen supporter of the station and the RNIB is MP John Robertson of Glasgow City's labour party who attended the reception.

MP John Robertson, says: "Insight Radio provides an excellent service to people with sight problems. They cater for people worldwide through their Internet streaming service among their other services and I am absolutely honoured to support them."

For more information about accessing the Sky or Freesat platforms, contact the WRN sales team on [email protected]

Sky Surpasses 9 Million Subscribers in the UK

At the end of October, BSkyB announced its subscribers had surpassed 9 million in the UK. The announcement comes after Sky published its results for this quarter. Coming in ahead of analysts expectations, Sky's net customer addition over the last three months has climbed to 93,000, bringing the total amount to 9.067m subscribers.

Despite negative projections in light of the credit crunch, these figures prove that Sky is still the premier DTH platform of choice in the UK. WRN boasts a portfolio of 25+ clients on the platform, including NME, Absolute Radio and Jazz FM.

The Digital Switchover in 2012 will require all 26 million UK households to select a Digital TV solution. Sky is without doubt making good progress in its HD product development as this past month of October has seen Sky giving a special promotional push to high definition, with lower box fees and a boost to the number of HD channels on offer. BSkyB is assured that it is in an advantageous position to add many more of those households to its subscriber list.

Despite Sky's closure of the EPG queue in October last year, WRN is able to help any broadcaster wishing to access the platform in the purchase or sub-lease of an EPG. WRN also provides satellite uplink, capacity and EPG management services and can consult on licensing and regulatory issues.

For further information on Sky and EPG services, please contact the WRN Sales Team on [email protected] or call +44 (0) 20 7896 4020.

WRN Appoints New Operations Manager 

WRN is pleased to announce the latest addition to its growing team. Michael Ward, formerly of Sislink, has joined WRN as Operations Manager to head up the Technical Department and play a major role in the strategic development of the company and its technical services.

Michael began his career as an apprentice at Telecine in the early 1990's and worked his way up to MCR shift leader. He left Telecine in 2002 to join Sislink, Europe's largest satellite uplink fleet, where he helped develop the MCR into one of the busiest in the world.

Michael says: "working at Sislink was a rewarding time spent developing my skills in technical management and satellite uplinking. I am confident that these skills will come to great use at WRN and I am very happy to be a part of a team that is always at the forefront of new technologies."

Michael will coordinate the daily operations of WRN's renowned technical team, continuing to ensure that our clients always receive the best possible service.

If you would like to meet with Michael, or any other member of the WRN team, please contact the WRN Sales Team at [email protected].