Twenty radio stations in Pakistan have picked up a series of German language courses from Deutsche Welle. “German – Why not?” was broadcast for the first time yesterday and the 26-episode series will continue until January 2012 on radio stations throughout the country. Included are the metropolitan areas of Islamabad and Lahore as well as many rural areas. Although it is considered one of the most-loved second languages in Pakistan, there is a lack of German language courses. DW hopes to fill in these gaps.The course will be broadcast every Monday at 10:00 am local time.

Find out more about DW’s German courses or contact our Business and Sales team.

Africa
Alrai-TV, a channel in Kuwait, will start broadcasting DW programming starting in September. Alrai is the most successful channel in Kuwait, reaching around 60percent of households. It will include the Arabic versions of In Good Shape and drive it! in its line-up starting September 15.

Asia
DW-TV ASIA+ is making waves in Asia with three new deals. The English-focused channel is now part of the MAX3 cable network in Indonesia. The provider currently has 20,000 subscribers – a number that is quickly on the rise. DW-TV ASIA+ is also being broadcast to more than 50,000 subscribers in Tawain via SHIH HSIN Cable. The provider from Chiayi City has a line-up that includes approximately 50 channels. And in Myanmar, DW-TV ASIA+ has been picked up by the DVB-T provider Forever Group. This will make DW’s television programming available in Rangoon and surrounding areas.

Europe
The next phase of the extensive partnership with RBC TV is in full swing. The Russian channel is now using banners to link to content and articles on DW’s website (in Russian). The website from RBC is among the most popular in Russia, with approximately 1.5 million visitors daily and is the number one website in the area of “Info and News”. This latest development in online comes on the heels of two further programming partnerships – with a live feed and the introduction of GLOBAL 3000 earlier this year.

DW has a new number one in Kosovo. With telegrafi , DW has found a partner that can really deliver. The website has quickly become the best referral website for DW’s Albanian page. Telegrafi has included DW’s online news box on its homepage in the “News” section.

Experts from DW’s Albanian service will also be taking part in broadcasts from RTK (Radio Television Kosova) starting in September. DW’s journalists will be dialed in via video-phone twice per week.

Latin America
Deutsche Welle has entered into a comprehensive agreement with ARTV. The Chilean channel has been broadcasting the Spanish shows Cuadriga and Prisma since last month. In addition, DW and ARTV worked together on a coproduction on July 20, when DW’s Director General was in Santiago. ARTV has been operating for 20 years and is available via cable. The channel focuses on arts and culture, as well the cultural contributions of Latin America in the areas of history, society, the environment and human rights.

 

Pakistan’s largest private radio network, Radio FM 100, is now integrating news from Deutsche Welle into its line-up. News from DW’s Urdu service will be broadcast eight times daily, as well as including several magazines and English-language programming.

Nadeem Siddiqui, DW’s sales representative in Pakistan, is convinced this partnership will lead to success. “This step wil definitelyl increase DW’s brand recognition. DW is the first international broadcaster to sign such a major cooperation agreement for news in Pakistan. That puts us a step ahead of the competition.”

FM 100 has quickly become one of the largest radio networks in Pakistan, with coverage in major cities like Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore and Hyderabad. The station is also looking to expand into Multan, Gujrat, Jhelum, Abbottabad and Rahim Yar.

 

Deutsche Welle (DW) and Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW) signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Wednesday, June 1 in Berlin, outlining intensified cooperation in the future on Chinese, Indonesian and Arabic radio programming. Director General Erik Bettermann signed for Germany’s international broadcaster alongside Director General Jan Hoek from The Netherlands.

Bettermann said that this agreement symbolizes a “historical moment”. Bettermann added that it is important to both broadcasters – especially with regards to the historical experiences in both countries – to work in the heart of Europe to solidify their shared values such as freedom of the press, human rights and democracy around the world.

Hoek pointed out that free access to information is an especially important good.  DW and RNW will be focusing their cooperation on Chinese, Indonesian and Arabic programming. The two will exchange links to each other’s websites and use cross promotion in their programming. New forms of cooperation should also be developed in the future. The cooperation should also be expanded to distribution. The goal is to reach each of the target audiences better.

 

Deutsche Welle (DW) will increase its focus on television, online and mobile services and decrease its shortwave broadcasts in a process starting this summer. Starting July 1, 2011, DW  will be making major changes in how and when its radio programming is broadcast in Asia and Europe, as well as German radio programming as a whole.

The measures will ensure the further development of Germany’s international broadcaster to a truly multimedia organization. DW will focus on modern modules that can be integrated into partner’s FM line-ups as well as being offered as stand-alone, on-demand services for the Internet and mobile devices. DW will thereby increase the cooperation with its partners throughout the world. With the exception of Africa and parts of Asia, linear shortwave broadcasts will be discontinued due to limited usage. The resources that have been saved will be reinvested in projects for the future – especially in the development of television services with regional languages and content, as well as an increase in online and mobile services.

DW will aim to use its available resources to offer two TV channels per region. This will give viewers the opportunity to choose between a channel with predominantly German programming and a channel with a focus on one of the regional languages – English, Spanish or Arabic.

Read the official press release here.