Broadband TV vendor Akimbo announced that it'll no longer use it's set-top boxes to deliver broadband content to customers. Instead Akimbo will focus on selling content services.

What about customers who already have Akimbo's set-top boxes? Akimbo is offering three months of free service, refunds on recent purchases, and credit toward other services.

Using NeuLion's iPTV platform, Hawaii IPTV will deliver a variety of Hawaii programming, in real-time and on-demand, directly to subscription and pay-for-view consumers anywhere in the world. Hawaii IPTV streams live to television providing a better service than slower download methods. The goal of the Hawaii IPTV service is to deliver the Hawaii experience to Native Hawaiians and Hawaii expatriates living away from Hawaii.

PanAmSat announced that its Galaxy 16 satellite had successfully soared into space at 3:50 a.m. ET. Launched into orbit by Sea Launch, Galaxy 16 is the 24th satellite in PanAmSat’s fleet and its 11th over the United States. The satellite, to be located at 99 degrees west longitude, will replace Galaxy 4R, and join the number-one neighborhood of satellites in the U.S. This is PanAmSat's 43rd satellite since the launch of Galaxy 1 in 1983.

ECI Telecom announced the successful deployment of a turnkey triple-play network for one of the leading ISPs in Europe. This ISP, a subsidiary of one of the largest European carriers, has already deployed hundreds of thousands of high-speed, IPTV-ready ADSL lines. Deployment of additional lines is expected in the near future. ECI was chosen as the sole broadband access supplier for the network. The multi-year contract is valued at approximately $20 million.

Harmonic Inc. announced that HanseNet Telekommunikation GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Telecom Italia, is using Harmonic's MPEG-4 AVC (H.264) video solutions to deliver a range of digital TV services as part of its Alice brand. The advanced compression capabilities of Harmonic's industry-leading DiviCom encoders make it possible to distribute video service over longer distances and via bandwidth constrained links while maintaining a broadcast-quality picture. The new TV service is being launched in Hamburg, Germany, first and rolled out country-wide over the coming months, and represents the first large-scale, real-time broadcast IPTV over ADSL service in the country. By adding TV to its portfolio, Alice is now able to offer a range of telephone, Internet and television bundles that are expected to better attract and retain customers.

eWAN1, Inc. announced that it is launching its Global Internet television (IPtv) service in front of the entire sponsorship and attendee base of the "IPTV & Beyond" Expo being held today and Thursday at the Marriott Del Mar, San Diego, CA. EWAN, a "Panel Sponsor" of the event, is joining other world leading telecommunications and technology companies to present at the Expo, including Motorola, Alcatel, Bell Canada, Siemens, Tut Systems, Inc. and a host of others.

Lucent Technologies and Telefonica Group announced that the two companies have reached a strategic agreement under which Lucent will support Telefonica's IPTV service rollouts worldwide. The agreement was signed today (Wednesday, April 19) in Miami, Florida by Telefonica's Chairman and CEO Cesar Alierta and Lucent's Chairman and CEO Patricia Russo.

EWAN 1, Inc. announces publication of its new website, www.eWAN1.com, confirming the launch of their Global Internet television service at the IPTV show, "IPTV & Beyond," April 19, 2006, at the Marriott Del Mar, San Diego, CA, and detailing the advantages of its proprietary and exclusive DMC (Digital Media Center) Triple Play set-top box, which offers high definition quality TV reception on an ordinary TV set. The DMC combines a personal computer, home audio player, media storage device, residential Internet gateway, and telephone, Video, Voice, and Data, all in one unit. Leading cable companies, as well as phone companies from around the world, have shown interest in offering their clientele EWAN's futuristic technology.

i2Telecom International, Inc., a pioneer in globally ultra-portable high quality Voice-over Internet Protocol (VoIP) products and services, announced the introduction of i2TV, a high quality streaming Video & Voice over Internet Protocol (VVoIP) broadband service. i2TV is immediately available for free viewing during the trial period at www.i2telecom.com.

FYI, we gave the trial a whirl but it kept closing after launch with no sign of a tutorial. Additionally, the installation had no default directory. Let's hope they update this.

eWAN1, Inc. announced that the Company will launch their Global Internet television (IPTV) service on April 19, 2006, offering consumers 75 channels of high definition clarity "On Demand" broadcast content through their television screens via any broadband internet connection.

NBC Universal is aiming to offer movies and television shows on-demand via IPTV. But wait, to receive the shows, you will first need a set top box by Aeon Digital. The Aeon Digital DV-200 will deliver IPTV at a cost of $299 and will allow viewers to access music, television shows, and movies. On demand titles will be available for a 24-hour viewing period after purchase.

DAVE.TV, a global IPTV digital entertainment distribution network, today announces the launch of its Content Publishing Network enabling content owners and publishers, for the first time, to deliver their content simultaneously to the TV, PC, portable and mobile devices all over the world and across multiple service provider networks. DAVE.TV develops IPTV platforms for service providers such as Telcos, CLECs, MSOs and ISPs. DAVE.TV will be exhibiting at the NATPE Conference in Las Vegas January 24-26, 2006 in Booth #748 in the ITA Alternative Upfronts Digital Village.

Interactive Television Networks, Inc. (ITVN), a leader in Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), announced it has partnered with the National Lacrosse League (NLL) to launch "LacrosseTV," the first 24/7 broadcast network dedicated to lacrosse. LacrosseTV will broadcast live games, archived games and other features to subscribers' televisions over ITVN's internet broadcast network. LacrosseTV is certain to be a destination for all lacrosse fans, players and coaches.

Alcatel has been awarded a 88 Million Saudi Riyal equivalent (15 Million EURO) contract by Saudi Telecom (STC) the largest ADSL telecom operator in the Middle East. Within this agreement, 180,000 ports shall be made available using new technologies for digital lines (IP DSLAM) to be executed all over the Kingdom within a period of 12 months.

Interactive Television Networks, Inc., a leader in Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), is delighted to announce that it has been recognized as the Innovator of the Year at DigitalLife 2005.

The award was given by the editors at Ziff-Davis publications, who selected the winner out of 27 show exhibitors, all of who were first invited to be part of the Class of 2005 Innovators Program. This is the first year for this award to be given but will become an annual event.