New channels for SAR

Hong Kong is poised to receive more pay television channels as new entrant Yes TV launches its services this month and incumbent i-Cable Communications expands its capacity by digitisation.

I-Cable yesterday announced it would carry the start-up China Travel and Economic Channel by mid-year - the first channel to sign up with i-Cable since it launched a plan to roll-out more than 50 digital channels by the end of the year.

Samuel Tsang Chin-cheung, chief operating officer of Global Media In Force, the sales and programme agency arm of i-Cable Communications, said the exclusive carriage agreement would see a positive contribution to the pay television operator on a 'medium long-term' basis.

I-Cable aims to cover the 200,000 households of its 560,000 subscribers with digital transmission by April.

Meanwhile, a Yes TV source said the company would start its commercial roll-out on January 22 by launching six non-exclusive channels.