Tuesday, 15th April 2008

INFO BOX

Focus on Japan
Television Asia Executive Briefing 15th Apr 2008

* International sports like the FIFA World Cup soccer finals and elimination rounds; women’s figure skating championships; World Baseball Classics have seen ratings jump above 40%.
* In June2006, the live broadcasting of the match between Japan and Croatia recorded ratings of 52.7% on TV Asahi and the one between Japan and Australia, 49% on NHK during the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals.
* On March 21, 2006, the game between Japan and Cuba in the finals of the World Baseball Classics attracted 43.4% on Nippon TV.
* FIFA matches lost steam this year; the Asian elimination match between Japan and Thailand on TBS on February 6 ended up with only 17.7%, while the one between Japan and Bahrain on TV Asahi on March 26 recorded only 11.6%.
* While total ad spend in 2007 edged up 1.1% over the previous year to reach Yen 7,019billion (US$63billion), spending in the four major media fell by 2.6%, both newspaper and television posting year-on-year decline for the third consecutive year.
* Cable and satellite media-related ad expenditures increased 10.8%, and internet ads registered a 24.4% jump to Yen 600billion (US$5.45billion), passing magazine ads to loom as the third largest medium, after TV and newspaper. Mobile ads for cell phone and other mobile media among internet ads reached US$569million in 2007, up 60% from a year ago.
* At the current growth rate, Nomura Research Institute predicts internet advertising to exceed US$6.5billion, or 10% of the total Japanese ad spend in 2011. In the meantime, the number of cell phones and PHS (personal handyphone system) users exceeded 104 million in 2007, accounting for 82% of total population.
* The number of broadband users as of the end of 2007 stood at 28.3million or 56% of Japanese households. In the greater Tokyo metro area, those using either FTTH (fiber to the home), DSL or cable TV for broadband communications accounted for 61.8% of the total households. Tokyo by far leads other prefectures with 11,100,412 broadband contracts or 70.1% of total households.


SPORTS SHORTS

* UEFA has awarded the media rights for the 2009-2012 UEFA Cup in Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei to current partner Astro. The deal means that Astro will show coverage of at least one live match, one highlights programme and one delayed game each match week on its Pay TV channel – Astro Super Sport. Astro will also exploit the rights across other broadcast platforms – on the internet via astro.com.my (Malaysia), astro-nusantara.com (Indonesia) and simpur.net.bn (Brunei), and also on mobile. Uefa.com, Sportcal, 14th Apr 2008

* Electronic City Entertainment has secured the exclusive Indonesian broadcast rights for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa, the company announced Friday. "We want everybody in Indonesia to be able to enjoy the quadrennial event so we will cooperate with at least two television stations and a radio station," sales and marketing director Fary Farghob said in Jakarta. Electronic City Entertainment is the first non-broadcast media company in the country to hold the World Cup broadcast rights. Fary said the company was entitled to process any sponsorship related to the World Cup and would soon hold a meeting for prominent sponsors and broadcasting companies to make bids. Jakarta Post, 12th Apr 2008

* Korea will join the ranks of the A1GP series next season after signing an agreement at Sunday's event in Shanghai. Korea will contest the series from the start of the 2008/09 campaign - the fourth season of A1GP and the first that will see competitors running with Ferrari-designed engines and chassis. Seat holder Joshua Kim said: "Korea has the fifth biggest automobile industry in the world but, as a nation, we are not familiar with motorsport, so this is my main reason for joining A1GP." He added: "Korean people love sport but they do not know about motorsport. Through A1GP, motorsport will become more popular and people will know about the sport." A total of 22 nations are contesting the third season of A1GP. Series leaders Switzerland need just four points to wrap up the title at the final races at Brands Hatch on May 4. The Press Association, 14th Apr 2008

* 17 government departments will launch a joint city-wide campaign to wipe out illegal television satellites that can receive foreign TV programs across Shanghai. Authorities including Shanghai Media Group, the industrial and commercial administration, public security forces, the real estate bureau, prosecutors and courts have already released notices to more than 11,000 property management companies across the city about the campaign, the report said. Installations of the satellites in public places such as rooftops and the walls of residential buildings will be major targets during this year's campaign. The authority may dismantle the illegal satellites by force if owners refuse to co-operate and those who resist the dismantlement may face prosecution. The number of illegal TV satellites was estimated to be more than 300,000 in Shanghai. ATV, 15th Apr 2008

* FIFA president Sepp Blatter is convinced the governing body's goal of boosting the development of the sport in India is well on its way to being realised. FIFA last year helped to launch the 'Win in India with India' initiative and was updated on its progress by a delegation representing the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and the Indian Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. It was decided that Win in India with India would concentrate on developing Indian football at elite level, namely the top two divisions in the country. The initiative will most notably focus on helping to develop infrastructure for clubs and on providing support in management and club licensing. The initiative will also support the development of national teams, particularly with regard to infrastructure, while training coaches, referees and technical directors will be another cornerstone of the initiative. Football Insider, 14th Apr 2008

* Chennai in India has been announced as the host of this year’s World International Doubles Squash Championships. The 4th edition of the event, which was first held in 1997 in Hong Kong, will be held at the ICL Squash Academy in the southern Indian city from December 15 to 20. The championships will be the first to feature the new wider doubles court and other rules changes adopted at the World Squash Federation annual general meeting in Bermuda last year. The new court and regulations were adopted by Squash Australia at its recent National Doubles championships and the format is being tested at the world championships with a view to holding doubles tournaments at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. Sportcal.com, 14th Apr 2008

* German pay-television, Premiere, looks set to win rights to broadcast the DFB Pokal after it was reported to have reached a landmark agreement with the DFB, the German soccer federation. Premiere will begin broadcasting matches of the DFB Pokal from next season after reaching a deal worth €50 million ($79.2 million) to €60 million a season, dramatically increasing the number of games available to viewers, according to a German soccer magazine. ARD and ZDF’s existing contract with the DFB is worth €390 million over five seasons, but the two broadcasters are said not to be keen on paying substantially more for a new deal with exclusive DFB Pokal rights. Sportcal, 14th Apr 2008

* IPTV service provider NeuLion and the International Fight League (IFL) have forged a partnership to deliver the competition to its followers through The IFL Network. The agreement will see The IFL Network offer live events and video on-demand of the fighters as they prepare to go in the ring. Through its IPTV service, NeuLion will also provide the IFL with billing services to support pay-per-view, registration, and future subscriptions. The IFL is currently televised in the United States on Fox Sports Net and HDNet and in more than 70 countries worldwide. This video player caters to the growing fan base and gives consumers a central place to access IFL and watch the latest content not available anywhere else. Sports Media, 14th Apr 2008

* The quantity of Argentine-born imports now playing in Major League Soccer (MLS) has reached 18 and more are on the way as part of a Latin infusion into the league, Deputy Commissioner Ivan Gazidis said last week as reported in the Sun-Sentinel. MLS commissioner Don Garber and Gazidis have recently gone on record as saying that the best way of boosting the popularity of the game in the USA is by importing quality players from Latin America who will improve the level of quality. 14 players from Mexico, 11 from Brazil and 8 from Colombia are also playing in the league. Soccer Investor, 14th Apr 2008

* According to a new report from market research and consulting firm Parks Associates, the number of households worldwide using telco/IPTV services jumped from 4.7 million in 2006 to exceed 14 million in 2007, with Europe accounting for nearly 60 percent of the total. Europe experienced a growth rate of 250 percent between 2006 and 2007 for telco/IPTV services, defined as landline-based multichannel and on-demand video services provided by a telephone operator. According to Parks Associates, operators should examine network and customer premise equipment upgrades for features and applications that can personalize the entire television experience and build customer loyalty. World Screen, 14th Apr 2008


MORE NEWS

Asia/Broadcast: India, Russia, New DTH Hot Spots

A new study says that with many DTH operators like DirecTV and BSkyB entering mature mass-market cycles, the world’s programmers are looking aggressively to new markets. This report, from Northern Sky Research, confirms that pay-TV services globally have exhibited tremendous growth over the past two decades, particularly in developed country markets. Driven by economic growth and increasing levels of disposable income, households of the world's economic elite have opted for cable TV, DTH and other emerging platforms such as IPTV as a basic feature of consumption for household entertainment.

“However, as penetration levels begin to increase and saturation levels are reached in the world's top economic tier, the pay-TV industry is now looking for newer markets that are just beginning to emerge,” says the study. “There are a multitude of countries around the globe that have exhibited highly robust and even stunning economic growth in recent years. Economic performance appears sustainable and will likely continue over the medium term, which should lead to rapid and positive wealth effects for household consumption.

Ten specific markets are studied in some detail: Brazil, the Czech Republic, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Turkey and Vietnam. Indeed, TV penetration in many emerging markets has breached the 90% level. Pay-TV services in these Greenfield markets have exhibited increased take-up rates, particularly in urban areas for cable TV services. These positive trends are leading to clear opportunities for DTH, whether as a niche offering or as a direct competitor to cable TV platforms. Leveraging reach, a digitized format, as well as outright consumer preference for satellite platforms, DTH appears to be well positioned in the 10 emerging country markets covered in this report. Rapid TV News, 14th Apr 2008