SUN NETWORK MAKES AMERICAN FORAY

The Sun TV Network - consisting of Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam language services branded Sun TV, Gemini TV, Udaya TV and Surya TV respectively - is looking at entering the US and Canadian market with a new service entitled SunWorld TV within two months. Programming from all the four southern Indian language TV channels will be repackaged into the new service.

Chennai-based CTV Entertainment, in which Hollywood film-maker and former tennis ace Ashok Amritraj is said to be a partner, will coordinate the service's activities in the US. It is believed to be in conversation with an American distributor, to distribute SunWorld TV on one of the DTH services. SunWorld TV will be subscription-driven with a monthly fee of under $20 a month. The channel is targeting an audience of over a million south Indian language speaking individuals in the US.

TNT & CARTOON NETWORK TO BEGIN DIGITAL TESTS

TNT & Cartoon Network is scheduled to begin digital signal testing of its south Asian feed from 13 January. This is part of a phased plan to digitally encrypt the channel in the first half of 1999. The digital signal will be tested on weekdays from 9:30 am to 11:00 am on its current analog frequency 4114 MHz on its existing transponder on PAS-4. The channel's distribution team recently imported its first batch of Scientific Atlanta digital receivers in preparation of its going digital.

FIRST INDIAN INERNET TRADE SHOW

ISP India '99, India's first-ever conference and trade show for Internet Service Providers, is being held in Mumbai's Oberoi Hotel from 13th to 15th January. The event will bring together Indian ISPs and prospective ISPs, bandwidth and gateway providers, ISP hardware and software vendors, telecom, cable operators, satellite, networking and wireless companies, content providers/ web designers, consultants and large corporate users on a single platform to deliberate on vital issues. The Indian government recently allowed the private sector to offer Internet services.

ISP India '99 is being organised by Trade Fairs & Conferences International and co-organised by ISPAI (Internet Service Providers Association of India).

BBC WORLD SERVICE RADIO LAUNCHES SOUTH ASIA-TARGETED SHOW

BBC World Service Radio is scheduled to flag off a daily three-hour breakfast show "The World Today" from today. BBC World Service chief Mark Byford says it has an audience of 140 million worldwide and that the show will be a complementary parallel service to its BBC World Television service. Byford added that BBC has an increased budget of 30 million pound sterling to be spent over the next three years.