AT&T announces the addition of MSNBC and MSNBC HD to the AT&T U-verse TV channel lineup in parts of Connecticut. The channels — which have previously been available to many local U-verse TV subscribers — are now available to every U-verse TV customer in Connecticut.

MSNBC is available as part of the U100 package on channel 215, and MSNBC HD is available with an HD service subscription on channel 1215.

Swisscom will add four new HD channels to the three channels currently offered by Swisscom TV. German channels ARD and ZDF and Austrian channel Servus TV will be available free of charge as part of the basic package from Swisscom TV plus. Swisscom TV plus customers will continue to have exclusive on-demand access to films, concerts and documentaries in HD quality.

Today's HD-enabled televisions deliver extremely sharp pictures to the living room, which is why Swisscom is committed to continually expanding its range of HD offerings. The four channels currently available - HD suisse, BBC HD, Anixe HD and Arte HD - will now be supplemented by ARD, ZDF and Servus TV in HD quality. Popular German-language programmes such as the crime series Tatort, as well as sporting events, are now being produced and broadcast in HD quality. The first highlight will be the HD broadcast of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver in mid-February.

KIT digital has closed the previously announced sale of 2,980,000 shares of common stock at $10.50 per share for gross proceeds to the company of $31.3 million.

The net proceeds received by the company are expected to be approximately $28,500,000, after deducting the proceeds from underwriting discounts, commissions, legal fees, and deal-related expenses payable by the company.

The Recording Academy and Ooyala announce their collaboration to power GRAMMY Live!, giving live, online access to the events leading up the 52nd Annual GRAMMY Awards.

Continuous coverage kicks off Friday, Jan. 29, and wraps on Music’s Biggest Night at The GRAMMY Awards on Sunday, Jan. 31. Internet viewers can expect an exclusive interactive experience including:

• Red-carpet access
• Behind-the-scenes footage of the 52nd Annual GRAMMY Awards
• Video On Demand of memorable GRAMMY moments throughout the years

Teracue supplied Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk with the ENC-200 H.264 encoder and the DEC-200 H.264 decoder for the Olympic Winter Games 2010 in Vancouver.

The ready-to-broadcast signal, which goes to ARD and/or ZDF is encoded with the ENC-200 into a compressed H.264 format and is streamed via an IP network into hotels in Vancouver to be distributed and decoded again there. This gives the editorial teams on site the chance to follow the Olympic Games in hotels where normally the ARD and ZDF signals are not available.

Brightcove introduces the Brightcove TV Everywhere Solution Pack, which provides TV programmers with everything needed to operate rich, branded and authenticated TV Everywhere-compatible catch-up TV services. Brightcove TVE-SP combines the robust and flexible enterprise edition of the Brightcove 4 platform with valued-added components and services to enable TV programmers and multi-channel video programming distributors to bring more licensed and subscriber-entitled video content online.

AOL has acquired StudioNow online platform for quality video creation and distribution. The acquisition will allow AOL to integrate a fully functional video creation platform into its newly-launched content management system, Seed.com. StudioNow will also continue to develop its existing business as a provider of online video creation, management, storage and syndication services to commercial companies.

SureWest has launched its highly-anticipated Advanced Digital TV service and customers in the Sacramento region are already buzzing about the product's Whole Home DVR, crystal-clear HD, extremely fast channel change times and a host of other great new features.

Powered by the Microsoft Mediaroom IPTV software platform, Advanced Digital TV brings Whole Home DVR and many other advanced features to over 205,000 Sacramento area marketable homes on SureWest's fiber-to-the-home and copper networks. The launch coincides with new technologies that recently enhanced SureWest's copper network and allow the company to extend its video service to 25,000 existing voice and data marketable copper homes, creating a new and superior triple-play option.

ANT announces that CreNova Technology will build its new range of hybrid set-top boxes on the ANT Galio HbbTV Platform. CreNova will implement a HbbTV retail strategy across Europe, enabling consumers to access a range of on-demand services such as catch-up TV, VoD and interactive advertising.

The HbbTV initiative was launched in August 2009 to provide an open platform for hybrid services based on Web technologies. Since the launch, over 30 companies from across the value chain have become supporters. As an initial member of the group, ANT continues to play a key role in the HbbTV initiative, which submitted version 1.1.1 of the specification to ETSI (The European Telecommunications Standards Initiative) in December 2009.

EchoStar announces an agreement to deliver its ViP-TV video transport service to BTC Broadband, a provider of whole home telecommunications services in Oklahoma. BTC will receive transport of up to 49 HDTV channels to its IPTV headend.

BTC Broadband is a communications company offering a variety of cutting-edge communications and entertainment products for residential and business customers in Oklahoma, including local and long distance telephone, high speed Internet, enhanced calling features, digital television and wireless service. BTC Broadband has deployed fiber-to-the-home for delivery of high speed two-way video, voice and data services.

KIT digital is developing and adapting its forthcoming next generation “VX-one” IP video management platform to include the optimized delivery of IP video to tablet computers.

The move comes as KIT digital has seen the types of devices which its clients’ end-users are watching video on increase 95 percent, from 190 in 2008 to 370 in 2010.

CenComm, Diverse Communications, LaHarpe Video & Data Company, New Windsor Cable Television, Oneida Cablevision, Reynolds Cable, and Viola Communications, have all selected Conklin-Intracom’s fs|cdn IPTV solution for the delivery of broadcast as well as on demand, standard definition and high definition MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 video services. The companies are all members of the Western Illinois Video group. The seven telcos all have existing video services and are employing the fs|cdn solution as part of their long term plans to provide enhanced viewing experiences to customers.

du has announced the launch of its premier Video on Demand service as part of its du TV and du TV+ (premier IPTV service). The service is a fully managed video-on-demand offering with On Demand Group, the three-screen video enabler for top content and operations brands.

On Demand Group will develop and maintain an on-demand library of thousands of top-rated studio and network television titles. Selections will include transactional video-on-demand content from major Hollywood studios, and a range of subscription video-on-demand movies, series, documentaries, kids programming and music videos. The relationship will establish the leading on-demand television service in the UAE, underscored by the latest blockbuster movies and the largest video-on-demand selection.

The newly released IMS Research report Market Opportunities for Internet Video to the TV -2010 edition, reveals that Internet video device shipments will experience global growth of 78% year-over-year from 2009 to 2010. The device categories that will see the most significant uptake in the short term are connected TVs and connected Blu-ray players.

TVover.net andInforma are giving away 1 free pass to the Digital Switchover Strategies Summit 2010, February 2-3, 2010 at the Copthorne Tara Hotel in London, UK. Enter to win by emailing us at media@tvover.net with name, email, company, address and phone number by January 18, 2010. The winner will be randomly drawn.