clampdown in the U.S. would move trading to London. Future traders, however, seem resigned to new trading limits in some form. “This is inevitable,” said one lobbyist with the CME Group. “It’s just a matter of when and how and who.” Affected the most by CFTC’s newly found authority include sectors like banking, oil, currency trading and investments: All had an active role in creating the current financial crisis and poor economic enviroment. IPTV Is Where Cable Can’t Be According to a recent report from the Jordan-based Arab Advisors Group, there were six countries in the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) region offering IPTV services as of May 2009 — Algeria, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Qatar and the UAE. This number was up from the four that were wired as of August 2007. Reportedly there are also seven other countries/ governments working towards integrating IPTV technology, including Egypt, Kuwait, Oman and Tunisia. The growth of the IPTV platform in the aforementioned regions can be attributed to a number of factors. There has been an ongoing overhaul of outdated media legislation, a youthful demographic skew in many countries, and the rise of devoted media zones such as Dubai Media City have all led to a greater acceptance of new technologies and greater content production. Additionally, UAE telco Etisalat is near completion on its citywide Fiberto-the-Home network in Abu Dhabi. Singapore’s GIC Cut Its Gig While the international TV industry was heading to the Asia TV Forum in Singapore, the Singapore government announced that its sovereign wealth fund is planning a shift towards emerging markets. This is surely good news for Asian, Latin American and African countries. The Government of Singapore Investment Corp. (GIC) suffered an estimated U.S. $40 billion drop in its assets’ values last year, partially due to illtimed investments in developed countries. However, the GIC used its second annual report to point out that the strong market rally since April has helped it regain more than half of those losses. It is estimated that the GIC fund’s assets are valued at U.S.$300 billion, making it the world’s third largest sovereign wealth fund. Investments cover all industries, including entertainment, media and trade show organizers. Tony Tan, executive director of the GIC, told local media that the group would now focus on growth opportunities in fast-growing Asian economies. As of March 2009, Asia, excluding Japan, accounted for 13 percent of GIC’s global portfolio, with the U.S. accounting for 38 percent. Holdings in real estate and private equity account for 30 percent. GIC announced in September that it had pocketed a U.S. $1.6 billion profit after selling half of the nine percent stake in Citigroup it acquired during this year’s U.S. government-led refinancing of the bank. On the flipside, however, the group’s U.S. $10.7 billion investment in UBS, the Swiss bank, is now worth U.S. $6.2 billion. It has been said that the fund’s losses would have been higher had it not been for its decision to reduce its exposure to public equities in developed markets in the latter half of 2008. Turkey Punishes Unfriendly Media The equivalent of a U.S.$2.5 billion tax fine has been imposed on the Dogan media group in Turkey by the government of prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, prompting a feud between him and the media group’s owner, Aydin Dogan, who owns more than half of Turkey’s print and broadcast media. Prime minister Erdogan has often lashed out at Dogan, whose publications have portrayed his government as a threat to Turkey’s secular order and reported aggressively on corruption scandals. Erdogan asserted that the fine is not politically motivated, saying that inspectors were examining all media groups without bias. On the other side of the argument, some Turkish journalists not involved in Dogan publications see the fine as the result of a situation in which businessmen with interests in sectors susceptible to state influence have exploited media ownership to wield political influence. DE C E M B E R 2 0 0 9 (Continued from Page 6) V I D E O • A G E 8 *Toqualifyforthis$1,295Early-BirdRate, paymentmustbereceived infullbyWednesdayDecember23.Offervalidfornewregistrationsonly.Rate isnotretroactive.Allpricing is inUSdollars.Fullregistrationrate is$1,395.Workshopsareanadditional$395.©2009BrunicoCommunicationsLtd.Allrights reserved.366AdelaideStreetWest,Suite500,Toronto,Ontario,Canada,M5V1R9.Tel:416-408-2300.Fax:416-408-0870.™KidScreen isatrademarkofBrunicoCommunicationsLtd.™KidScreenSummittitle,taglineand logoaretrademarksof,andtheevent isproducedby,BrunicoMarketingInc. 12 Where the kids business connects Register Now! Save $100* February 10-12, 2010 Hilton NY, NewYork MARQUEE SPONSOR Sponsors MARKETING PARTNER GOLD SPONSOR SILVER SPONSOR Who’s Attending? Register online beforeDecember 23 to save $100. Or contact Joel Pintoby email (jpinto@brunico.com) or by phone (416-408-2300 x650). summit.kidscreen.com Uniting executives from all sectors of the kids entertainment business, KidScreen Summit provides unparalleled access to the industry’s most influential decision-makers. Last year, more than 1,400 professionals from around the world gathered to: • Build their businesses by networking with industry leaders • Engage in critical dialogue on issues that affect the business • Recognize and understand current market needs, opportunities and challenges • Rejuvenate their creativity • Discover new talent and build relationships with potential partners Making connections at this level will help you move your projects forward and line up new business. If you make your living in kids entertainment, you really can’t afford to miss this event! Kay Benbow (CBeebies), Carole Bonneau (Teletoon), Julien Borde (France Télévisions), Jules Borkent (Nickelodeon), TimBrooke-Hunt (ABCAustralia), Miles Bullough (Aardman Animations), Clement Calvet (Gaumont-Alphanim), Vincent Chalvon-Demersay (MarathonMedia), Laura Clunie (E1 Entertainment), Stan Clutton (Fisher-Price), Eric Coleman (Walt Disney Television Animation), François Deplanck (Canal +), Olivier Dumont (TVLoonland), Michael Goldsmith (FamilyChannel and Playhouse DisneyCanada), SeanGorman (AmericanGreetings Properties), JocelynHamilton (YTV& Treehouse), RonnenHarrary (SpinMaster), RobHudnut (Mattel), LenoraHume (HIT Entertainment), Heather Kenyon (StarzMedia), PietroMarietti (Atlantyca), Adina Pitt (Cartoon Network), Maura Regan (Sesame Workshop), Linda Simensky (PBS), Chloe VanDen Berg (Classic Media), Arnie Zipursky (CCI Entertainment) Theseare just ahandful of theheavyweightswho’ve registeredalready! 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