ATF 09 - Day 3 & Outcome
Asia, business for everybody

By Fabricio Ferrara

The 10 th Anniversary edition of ATF came to an end with very good results, as most of the participants agreed. The show has been growing year by year and is consolidating as one of the most important Asian programming markets. Buyers and sellers consulted also highlight that ATF gathers acquisition executives from more Asian countries, facing other regional events.

During the market, Prensario has checked that there are many territories gaining importance through the Asian content market. Apart from Taiwan and Hong Kong, Vietnam and Thailand are good examples of that. This is mainly because of the “good time” of their economies: in Vietnam there are many new developments as the new TV Channels VBC and Yan TV, which attended this ATF looking for all type of contents like series, formats, documentaries and kids programming. Also, Vietnam Cable Television and Electronic Co. will launch an IPTV platform next year. Similar developments are happening all across Asia.

About the traditional business segments, it can be said that they have been also very active. In Malaysia, local dramas are working really well; at the always very competitive Indonesian market, (it has more than 10 free TV channels) international formats have reached very good rating levels in some broadcasters; in Philippines, Asian dramas are being broadcast at prime time. And in China, local entertainment shows and dramas are leading the audiences.

Michael Mu, from the Chinese satellite station Jiangsu Broadcasting Corp. explained: ‘We cover the whole country, so we need to find the most common programming for everybody. We mainly broadcast drama series, locally produced, but also there is a good space for entertainment shows. The Chinese audience loves entertainment; they want funny programs, easy to understand'.

New Media, also, grows every market. According to the Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA), subscription for TV services in the Asia Pacific region currently stands at 326 millions, with 35% accessing to digital TV. Only in Singapore, there are 11 IPTV niche license providers (mioTV, from SingTel, will be launched on August 2010, for example), and the cable market is growing fast. The main TV cable operator is Star Hub, with 530.000 subscribers.

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