MILAN - A single digital TV platform in Italy seems increasingly unlikely, as preliminary agreements among the various partners in the venture have apparently come unstuck.
Pubcaster RAI and state-run telco Telecom Italia have been joined by producer-distrib Cecchi Gori Communications (CGC) in saying they will go ahead with a separate all Italian platform if final disagreements with erstwhile partners Canal Plus and Silvio Berlusconi's Mediaset cannot be ironed out in the next few days.
The French media conglom owns 90% of Italy's sole pay service Telepiu.
Ultimatum
"By the end of February, either we finalize the deal with all the other players, or we will end it forever. Our group cannot waste more time," Biagio Agnes, president of CGC, told reporters in Milan Wednesday.
"If we can find an agreement with Canal Plus, very well. But if not, we can proceed with a separate platform, created only by Italian companies. It would need a much larger investment but we can manage it," Agnes said.
Sticking points
According to Agnes, the main sticking points are:
- Decoders, which only the Italian partners want with an open standard;
- the evaluation of the assets of Telepiu (45% of which will be sold to the Italian partners);
- the future role of each company in the management of the single platform;
- the deadline by which the 1 million Telepiu analog subscribers must switch to the digital service.
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