Green light for News Corp’s Cielo

News Corp has received assurances that its planned free-to-air channel Cielo will be approved for launch by Italian authorities. Italian undersecretary for telecoms, Paolo Romani, issued a statement on December 10 stating that the channel will get officially authorised.

The channel was announced in early November and was expected to launch at the start of this month. However, the rollout was delayed after the Italian government decided to consult with the European Union over whether Cielo conformed to restrictions on News’ broadcasting operations in the Italian market. Cielo will be programmed with local scripted and reality programming alongside US movies and series.