Dream Satellite TV

Dream Satellite TV was the first all-digital Direct-To-Home (DTH) television broadcasting service via satellite in the Philippines. Broadcasting from the Dream Broadcast Center located at the Clark Special Economic Zone in Pampanga. Content is received from program providers, compressed and broadcast via Koreasat 5 (Mugunghwa 5) in DVB-S and NTSC color format exclusively to its subscribers using the Integrated Receiver-Decoder and the Conax/Nagravision 3 Encryption System.[1][2][3]

Dream Satellite TV
TypeDirect-broadcast satellite television
Country
Philippines
FoundedApril 1997 (1997-04)
Slogan"Reaching You, Touching You"
HeadquartersDREAM Broadcast Center, Clark Special Economic Zone, Pampanga, Philippines
OwnerPhilippine Multi-Media System, Inc.
Key people
Antonio Tonyboy Conjuangco (Chairman)
Launch date
April 22, 2001 (2001-04-22)
DissolvedDecember 31, 2017 (2017-12-31)
Picture format
DVB, NTSC

To receive Dream's broadcasting signals, subscribers must acquire a 60 centimetres (24 in) in diameter satellite dish antenna, an Integrated Receiver-Decoder (IRD) and a Dream Conditional Access Card (Smart Card). To provide security and protection, the satellite signals of Dream shall be encrypted using a Conditional Access System. Thus, exclusive use of Dream programs and services will only be available to Dream subscribers.

History

1996-2001: Incorporation and launch

In April 1996, Dream was incorporated to the Philippine Multi-Media System, Inc. (PMSI). On February 6, 1998, the Philippine Congress passed into law Republic Act No. 8630 which granted PMSI a franchise to construct, install, maintain and operate for commercial purposes and in the public interest, television and radio broadcasting in the Philippines. The franchise term is 25 years.[4] On February 1, 2000, The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) granted a provisional authority to engage in Direct-To-Home (DTH) satellite services. On February 7, 2001, the PMSI inaugurates its Dream Broadcasting Center at Clark Development Center, and on April 22, 2001, the commercial launch of Dream Broadcasting System, the first DTH system in the Philippines, took place.[5]

In 2003, Dream Broadcasting System was renamed as "Dream Satellite TV".

2006-2011: Koreasat 5 secondary broadcast and Agila II closedown

In 2006, Dream began to use Koreasat 5 as an additional main broadcast to the

Starting 2010 until 2011, Dream closed all of the transponders of Agila II (ABS-5/ABS-3) for its main broadcast, due to the fact that it was only 2 years left in the orbit. When all of the Dream Satellite channels were transferred to Koreasat 5, Dream announced customers to migrate their receivers (which uses Nagravision 3/Conax CAS7) to Koreasat 5 as the replacement for ABS-5/ABS-3 satellite.

In 2011, Antonio "Tonyboy" O. Cojuangco, Jr., owner of PMSI, has plans to sell the company.[6] In August 2013, it was revealed that SkyCable was in the advanced stages of negotiations of acquisition of PMSI.[7][8]

2017: Koreasat 7 third broadcast

In 2017 Dream stated that it is planning to sign a multi-year, multi-transponder capacity agreement with Korea-based KT Corporation to broadcast DTH television channels via Koreasat 7 satellite at 116.0 degrees East & upgrade to DVB-S2. Koreasat 7 is expected to be operational by middle of 2017 to compete among 3 dth operators in the Philippines.

The end of Dream Satellite TV

On December 31, 2017, Dream Satellite TV ceased their operations after 16 years due to bankruptcy, and stiff competition from Direct-to-Home Satellite TV providers such as Cignal, Sky Direct and G Sat.[9] Meanwhile, the Koreasat 7 satellite is currently handled by SatLite, a digital prepaid pay TV service owned by Cignal.

Hardware

Receivers

Early receivers were made by Nokia (Nokia MediaMaster 8830S/8630S), Digital AllWorld (DAW951 and DAW-SNA4400), ViStar and Crystal. Those receivers were already phased out by Dream (except for DAW-SNA4400 and Crystal), due to the lack of Nagravision 3/Conax support. The later receivers, such as Homecast eM-152USNA, KAON K-270 and the Arion AF-5102S (both of them were still offered by Dream). Both of these receivers are only capable of receiving standard definition broadcasts.

Smart cards

At the time when the first DVB-version of Nagravision is not yet introduced, Dream Satellite used Conax CAS3 for the main broadcast until they switch to Nagravision 2 and Conax CAS7 encryption on 2006. In 2009, following the Dish Network anti-piracy upgrade, a conditional access swap to the smart card has been completed. This also made the smart card system transitioned to Nagravision Merlin and Conax CAS7.5.

Status of competition and controversy

Dream Satellite TV filed a complaint with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) against Global Broadcasting and Multimedia, Inc. (G Sat) for offering A DTH service in the Philippines without a franchise and a license from Philippine authorities, namely the Philippine Congress for a broadcast franchise and the NTC for a Certificate of Public Convenience.[10] Aside from Dream, the Lopez-owned Sky Cable Corporation also filed a similar complaint against GBMI. It argued that GBMI's illegal entry into the industry will result in the unnecessary duplication of an existing service that existing cable TV and DTH-TV service providers already adequately provide.[11]

References
  1. "Dream Satellite TV Migrated into KoreaSat 5 at 113.0 °E". Tianjin Satellite TV Service Center. Archived from the original on November 11, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  2. "Dream TV Taps South Korea's Mugunghwa 5 Satellite". Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on September 5, 2012. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  3. "Dream Satellite TV on Koreasat 5 at 113.0°E". Lyngemark Satellite. November 9, 2013. Archived from the original on November 11, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  4. "Republic Act No. 8630: An Act granting the Philippine Multi-Media System, Inc., a franchise to construct, install, establish, operate and maintain radio And television stations in the Philippines" (PDF). Congress of the Philippines. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 11, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  5. "Historical Highlights". Dream Satellite TV. Archived from the original on November 11, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  6. "Cojuangco in talks to sell Dream TV". BusinessMirror. ABS-CBN News. July 6, 2011. Archived from the original on 2013-11-14. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  7. Lenie Lectura (August 11, 2013). "SkyCable on the lookout for possible acquisitions". BusinessMirror. Archived from the original on November 11, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  8. Aishwariya S (August 12, 2013). "Philippines-based telecom company Sky Cable looks to acquire another DTH player". NexTV Asia. Archived from the original on 2013-11-11. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  9. "Dream Satellite TV public service announcement". DTV Pilipinas FB Page. December 29, 2017. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  10. "Dream TV operator seeks regulator help over satellite TV dispute". ABS-CBN News. January 1, 2009. Retrieved November 11, 2013.
  11. "SkyCable sues DTH competitor". Yehey!. January 19, 2009.


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