MUMBAI: National Geographic Channel will air the series ‘Animal Mega Moves‘ from 20-24 February at 8.30 pm.

Poaching, disease and human encroachment are now part of an animal‘slife on the African plains. There is a desperate need to protect the continent‘s magnificent and diverse species and sometimes the only way to do this is to move them somewhere else. But how do you move enormous mammals, elephants, restless rhinos, hefty horses and speedy sharks? This is where Game Capture teams prove their worth.

These individuals are working with the ultimate delivery deadline - their cargo must arrive on time, intact and alive. Viewers can follow specialist teams of animal movers, vets and transport engineers as they attempt to relocate animals across the globe by air and road in the episodes of Animal Mega Moves.

In Malawi district of Africa, drought has pushed elephants and villagers into a dangerous conflict that has already caused injury and death on both sides. The solution is to move an entire herd some 250 miles across the country to the safety of the Majete Wildlife Reserve; but that‘s easier said than done.

Animal mega movers attempts to capture and move the herd using helicopters to locate them in the bush, darts them to tranquilize them, cranes to carefully lift them onto trucks and transports them by road to their new home. This mission is fraught with dangers and difficulties as the team races to identify, sort, capture and truck the living cargo to their new home safely.

MUMBAI: Asian pay-TV association Casbaa has congratulated Australian police for a dramatic raid on a pirate TV syndicate operating in Australia via high-capacity Internet servers based in China.

The raid on the B&L LED Sign company in Hurstville, in the suburbs of Sydney, signaled the latest stage in a long term campaign to track down the promoters and users of Internet-based networks distributing illegal TV signals in Australia. Based on the cash raked in by the Hurstville operation, police estimated that 150 million Australian Dollars could have been effectively stolen from the legitimate TV distribution industry by multinational criminal gangs.

Casbaa CEO Simon Twiston Davies said, "This time the primary victim was TVB Australia, and the Hurstville police have done a great job to get this far. And so has TVB Australia, which brought the initial information to them."

TVB, based in Hong Kong, creates and sells Chinese-language TV programming, distributing its programming in Australia through a satellite-based pay-TV service, TVB Australia. The piracy network was stealing and reselling TV signals from TVB as well as a host of other international pay-TV channels, in English as well as Chinese.

Other channels distributed included high-value TV networks such as CNN, ESPN, MTV, Discovery, National Geographic, HBO, Fox and the BBC, alongside a library of Video on Demand shows and movies not yet released on legal DVDs -- all streamed from China directly to the user‘s TV set.

Police said they will file charges that carry heavy fines and potential maximum jail terms of five years. They will also interview homeowners who have received the stolen programming, some of whom may face charges themselves.

Increases in broadband penetration throughout Asia are making it easier for criminals to steal TV programming they do not own, and to re-sell to others. Too often, consumers sign up as accomplices in the theft. "Australia has strong laws to protect copyrighted broadcasts including holding end-users responsible for the consumption of stolen signals" said Davies

Casbaa held up the Hurstville raid as evidence that Australia is committed to enforcing its laws, and that policing there is effective. "We wish that other governments in this region would demonstrate the same commitment as Australia to preventing misuse of the Internet for TV piracy The problem is only going to grow, if other governments don‘t get serious" added Davies.

MUMBAI: National Geographic Channels International (NGCI) has appointed Hamish Mykura as EVP, head of international content effective early 2012.

The announcement was made by NGCI, Fox International Channels CEO Hernan Lopez. Mykura will also serve as the London Head of Global Development for National Geographic Channel.

Mykura will oversee all editorial development and production for NGCI, working closely with local programming teams and reporting to Lopez. He will also help spearhead NGCI?s success across the globe in 165 countries and provide supervision for its portfolio of networks: NGC, NGC HD, Nat Geo Wild, Nat Geo Wild HD, and Nat Geo Adventure.

As London Head of Global Development, he will be responsible for bringing projects from UK-based production houses to NGC?s global commissioning team in Washington, DC, and in respect to this role he will report toNGC US EVP of content Michael Cascio.

Lopez said, "With more than 20 years of experience in the television industry, Hamish brings outstanding insight and vision to NGCI. Working closely with NGCI regional programmers and UK-based production houses, Hamish will build upon a solid foundation to bring new viewers to the National Geographic brand."

National Geographic Channels US and Global Programming CEO David Lyle said, "Expanding our development presence in the UK is key to our strategy of reaching out to the production community globally and forming more partnerships to produce the best programming for our channels. Hamish is the perfect person to be leading this charge for us in the UK."

MUMBAI: Howard T. Owens has been named National Geographic Channels president US, succeeding Steve Schiffman. The announcement was made by National Geographic Channels US and global programming CEO David Lyle.

Lyle also named Courteney Monroe to the newly created position of CMO for the US Channels. Michael Cascio has been elevated to executive VP, programming for National Geographic Channel US. Owens and Monroe will report to Lyle; Cascio to Owens.

Lyle said, "I am delighted to have superb executives like Howard, Courteney and Michael in these critical roles for our networks as we build on the success of our highest-rated summer in NGC‘s history. I have known Howard for more than a decade, and I am confident he is the right person at the right time to take our network into our next era. His leadership, creativity, passion and vision are unmatched in this business, and is just what we need to drive our networks forward."

Owens will work closely with CEO Lyle on the overall supervision of the domestic channels ? which include the National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo Wild and Nat Geo Mundo ? owned jointly by the Fox Networks Group and the National Geographic Society.

Owens will oversee the programming, development, communications, research and business affairs units at the U.S. networks as well as working closely on the strategic business efforts of the networks‘ ad sales and affiliate teams. Schiffman plans to stay at the network through a transition period.

MUMBAI: Fox International Channels (FIC), the multimedia company of the Fox Entertainment Group dedicated to the production and distribution of Pay TV channels and digital services worldwide, has announced that 24Kitchen, its new food channel, will launch in the Netherlands on 1 October.

24Kitchen, a joint initiative of Fox Channels Benelux and Jan Dekker Holding, will be all about food. The majority of the content will be original local production exclusive to the channel.

24Kitchen will be available 24 hours per day to over 3 million Dutch digital basic subscribers. 24Kitchen will occupy channel position 24 on the cable TV platforms Ziggo, UPC and Caiway, and position 247 on Glashart Media?s platform.

In addition to the linear TV channel, 24Kitchen will offer On-Demand services, a robust website, an e-magazine and will organise off air events.

Original local programmes will be presented by established Dutch TV masterchefs Rudolph van Veen and Ang?lique Schmeinck, as well as new talents Giovanni Caminita, Danny Jansen, Rob Baan, Nadia Zerouali and Merijn Tol, Andrea van Lieshout and John Gerdsen.

FIC Europe and Africa president Jes?s Perezagua said, ?24Kitchen is FIC?s first fully local lifestyle channel in Europe. The Netherlands is a priority market for FIC. Its fast digital roll out and dynamic production community make it an ideal market for 24Kitchen and a great launching pad from which to take this channel to the rest of Europe.?

Among its content, 24Kitchen will feature Dutch TV chef Rudolph van Veen in ?The Easy Meal?, ?Rudolph?s Bakery? and ?The Taste of Life Travel?. Rudolph and horticulturalist Rob Baan collaborate in ?The Taste of Life Basics? to highlight local, seasonal products and how to prepare them. And Angelique Schmeinck reveals a world of flavors in?The Taste of Cooking?.

24Kitchen will complement FIC?s existing Pay TV channel portfolio and its tentpole channels Fox and National Geographic. Following its launch in The Netherlands, FIC plans to export 24Kitchen to additional European markets.