On October 29-31 Kyiv hosted a successful Eastern European exhibition and conference EEBC 2008 Telecom & Broadcasting: more than 50 events during the exhibition, 3850 unique visitors, 195 participating companies-manufacturers of telecommunications technologies from 30 countries, 21 partners of the exhibition.

This year EEBC 2008 Telecom & Broadcasting was supported by international partners such as ACE Marketing, Trade Fair Support, Selten, CCBN, as well as industry associations, government agencies and associations, including the Internet Association of Ukraine, the Association of Information Technology Enterprises of Ukraine, Wireless Ukraine Association, the Ukrainian Cable Television Union, Ukrteleset Association, the All-Ukrainian Association of operators of cable television and telecommunication networks, the Industrial Television Committee, the Independent Broadcasters Association, Telecom Club, the All-Ukrainian Television & Radio Association UKR-DVB-FORUM.

Among the partners and co-organizers of the conference were the Concern of Broadcasting, Radio Communication and Television of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Radio and Television Research Institute, Global VSAT Forum, Internews-Ukraine MOO, Forum Nokia, UMTS Forum, as well as BMCo Forum.

Compared to the previous year, the level of the exhibition increased more than by one third – the total area of the exhibition this year amounted to 6050 sq. m, which is 38 % more than in 2007. The proportion of telecommunications companies and television channels among the exhibition participants significantly increased. The exhibitors were represented by companies of the following areas: equipment for satellite and cable television (37 %), telecommunications equipment (26 %), equipment for production and broadcast of content (11 %) as well as TV channels and production studios (26 %).

“From theory to practice” – this was the focus of EEBC 2008 Telecom & Broadcasting exhibition. For the first time during the exhibition in Ukraine a complete cycle of production, broadcasting and playback of TV-content for High-Definition Television (HDTV) was demonstrated – for three days live broadcast of football games was carried out to HD plasma panels at the exhibitors’ stands and to mobile devices, within the I make TV project.

In the business program EEBC 2008 Telecom & Broadcasting, which was held along with the exhibition for three days, 45 speeches were delivered. Among the key speakers were Alexander Lyakhov, President of the Telecommunications House of Ukraine, Anatoly Melnik, Head of satellite communication systems department of UNIIRT GP, Alexander Bogdanov, Head of satellite technology department of RRT Concern, Yuri Balychev, Deputy Director, Ukrkosmos GP, Ivan Gorbach, chief designer of satellite distribution network information, Ukrkosmos GP, Alexey Kolokolov, Head of spacecraft design sector, Yuzhnoye GP KB, Dmitry Makoveenko, leading engineer of radio frequencies department of UNIIRT GP.

This year the reports were presented not only by representatives from Ukraine and the CIS, but also by managers of leading international companies and organizations, such as Bosco Eduardo Fernandes, Chairman of the task group on mobile TV development at UMTSF and GSMA, UMTS Forum, Dr. Klaus Sattler, Executive Director of BMCo Forum, Martin Gerald, International Programs Director at GVF, Maria A. Kendro, Managing Director, Communication Cooperative International, Eszter Csapó, Erős Ügyvédi Iroda, Squire, Sanders & Dempsey LLP and many others.

The main issues that were raised at the conferences and aroused the most interest among the delegates were: development of national policy in the telecommunications industry and regulatory system for the future integration of Ukraine into the European Union; the state of the Ukrainian media market; the principles and procedure of the transition to the 4th generation networks (4G); technology and services in convergent networks; a national satellite communication system; the development of broadband infrastructure in Ukraine; the prospects for the development of satellite platforms in Ukraine, as well as the services in satellite communication networks; the results of the debate on the introduction of mobile TV in Europe and the prospects for the development of mobile broadcasting in Ukraine.

One of the most significant events at the conference was a round-table discussion “The need to create a combined non-governmental and governmental organization structure to manage the transition to digital terrestrial television” which attracted attention of both key participants of telecommunications and broadcasting market and state authorities regulating the market and non-governmental organizations. The initiators of the debate were: the All-Ukrainian Television & Radio Association UKR-DVB-FORUM, the Concern of Broadcasting, Radio Communication and Television of Ukraine and the State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcasting of Ukraine. Summarizing the results of the discussion an appeal is planned to be sent to the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine with a proposal to establish a single coordinating authority to manage the transition to digital TV broadcasting and to head it.