RESTRICTED
025004
MDLOAN 4281
TO THE ASIASAT SERVICE AND THE ORIGINAL SERVICE TO EUROPE (GENERAL ENTERTAINMENT RATHER THAN NEWS AND LARGELY FOR CABLE TV NETWORKS) THE FOLLOWING IS A BRIEF SUMMARY OF WSTV'S PRESENT ACTIVITIES AND PLANS:
IN AFRICA WSTV IS AVAILABLE FOR PART OF THE DAY VIA THE SOUTH AFRICAN PAY-TV COMPANY M-NET, ON SATELLITE AND WITH A GROWING NUMBER OF TERRESTRIAL RELAYS, OF WHICH ONE IS ABOUT TO START IN SOUTH AFRICA ITSELF. (WE SHALL SHORTLY BE SENDING TO RELEVANT POSTS FULL DETAILS FROM WSTV OF THEIR INCREASING AVAILABILITY IN AFRICA.)
SOME OF WSTV'S NEWS OUTPUT IS SUPPLIED TO CBC'S CABLE NEWS CHANNEL IN CANADA AND TO BROADCASTERS IN RUSSIA (WITH RUSSIAN TRANSLATION) AND EASTERN EUROPE.
- WSTV WILL LAUNCH A ROUND THE CLOCK NEWS AND INFORMATION
CHANNEL IN JAPAN NEXT SPRING IN A JOINT VENTURE WITH THE NISSHO IWAI CORPORATION. THE SERVICE WILL INCLUDE FOUR HOURS OF PEAK-TIME PROGRAMMING TRANSLATED INTO JAPANESE.
THERE ARE ALSO PLANS FOR AN ARABIC SERVICE NEXT YEAR, NOTED ABOVE.
DISCUSSIONS AT VARIOUS LEVELS OF PROGRESS ARE TAKING PLACE TO FILL THE REMAINING GAPS, MAINLY THE USA AND LATIN AMERICA AND AUSTRALIA/NEW ZEALAND. WSTV ARE ALSO KEEN TO LAUNCH A SECOND, NEWS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS, SERVICE IN EUROPE TO COMPETE WITH SKY NEWS AND CNN, BUT NO FIRM PROPOSITION HAS YET EMERGED.
8.
WE SEE NO POINT IN TRYING TO GIVE ALL POSTS A DETAILED BREAKDOWN IN RESPECT OF EVERY COUNTRY. MOST POSTS WILL BY NOW PROBABLY BE FAMILIAR WITH WSTV'S LOCAL AVAILABILITY, ACTIVITIES AND PLANS, AND MANY HAVE CORRESPONDED WITH US OR DIRECT WITH WSTV. BUT IF ANY POSTS DO HAVE POINTS TO RAISE OR QUESTIONS TO ASK ABOUT WSTV, WE AND WSTV WOULD BE GLAD TO HEAR FROM THEM. LOCAL FEEDBACK ON ANY ASPECT OF WSTV WHERE IT IS ON AIR IS ALWAYS WELCOME. IN GENERAL WSTV ARE VERY GRATEFUL FOR THE INTEREST SHOWN BY POSTS AND FOR THE HELP AND SUPPORT WHICH THEY HAVE HAD FROM MANY OF THEM IN MARKETING THEIR SERVICE AND MAKING USEFUL
LOCAL CONTACTS.
HURD