Hong Kong & Beijing, March 9, 2006 — China International Television Corp (CITV) and the Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) are pleased to announce details of the second annual China International Sports Television Forum in Beijing on Thursday August 24th, 2006.
Themed New Definitions: The Sports TV Digital Revolution, the Forum is hosted by the State Administration of Radio, Film & Television (SARFT) and co-organized by CASBAA with CITV, the commercial arm of the state broadcaster CCTV, in association with CITV Sports Promotion Limited Corporation (CITVSP). The event media partner is national sports TV network CCTV-5.
Sessions will cover sports television and economic development, sports branding and sponsorship for China, as well as new media opportunities and the lessons learned from the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. The day will wrap-up with a high-powered CEO panel looking at the future of sports television production and HDTV.
“This is a uniquely exciting time for sports broadcasting in China in the run-up to the 2008 Beijing games”, said Mr Li Jian, the President of CITV. “China has made great progress to lay the foundations of a modern sports television market that can be a major force for economic change and industry progress. In a rapidly evolving broadcast market, this Forum provides a rare opportunity to examine the best business models and technologies internationally that can be brought to the China market. ”
“The China International Sports TV Forum has already established itself as the pre-eminent event for China’s burgeoning sports television industry”, said Marcel Fenez, the chairman of CASBAA and Asia Pacific Leader of PricewaterhouseCoopers Entertainment and Media Practice.
“As a regional industry organization devoted to the advancement of multi-channel television, CASBAA is delighted to once again partner with CITV, forging yet closer mainland relationships. Last year’s inaugural Sports TV Forum drew an unparalleled gathering of decision makers in the global sports industry and we expect this year to be even better.”
The speaker line-up for the one-day conference at the Shangri-La Hotel in Beijing includes CEOs and representatives from companies and organizations in Asia, the Middle East, North America and Europe.
Participants will include CCTV, Beijing Olympic Broadcasting (BoB), the Beijing Olympic Committee Organizing Group (BOCOG) and representatives of national Chinese and European sports bodies, along with global sports TV networks and sports management teams. Other speakers and delegates will be drawn from the wireless, broadband and HDTV sectors.
ABOUT CASBAA – www.casbaa.com
The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia is an industry-based advocacy group dedicated to the promotion of multi-channel TV via cable, satellite, broadband and wireless video networks across the Asia-Pacific. CASBAA represents some 110 Asia-based corporations, which in turn serve more than three billion people. Members include ABC Asia Pacific, ABN AMRO, AETN International (History Channel), AsiaSat, Astro (Malaysia), Bloomberg Television, China Entertainment Television, Comverse, Discovery Networks Asia, EMC, HBO Asia, IBM, MTV Networks Asia Pacific, Nokia, now Broadband TV, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Sony Pictures Television International, STAR Group, Sun Microsystems, Turner International Asia Pacific, UBC (Thailand), Walt Disney Television International, Zone Vision, Asian Food Channel, BBC World, Cosmedia, CSM Media Research, ESPN STAR Sports, HSBC Bank, National Geographic, Starhub, TimeWarner and TVBI.
ABOUT CITVC
Established in 1984, CITVC is a wholly stated-owned enterprise invested by China Central Television (CCTV). Since its reorganization of assets and restructuring in 1997, CITVC has developed into a media conglomerate. Its major businesses include television program production and distribution, the advertisement agency for CCTV, channel management, television technical services, new media development, television rating and other professional investigations and consultations. It also involves itself in industrial and capital investments. CITVC has now become one of the biggest and strongest media industrial group corporations in China’s mainland.
CONTACTS:
CITVC
Fang Li
Tel: +8610 8824 4240
Fax: +8610 8824 3347
Email: cctv5@vip.sina.com
CASBAA
Rebecca Kennedy / Katie Wong
Communications Team
Tel: +852 2854 9913
Fax: +852 2854 9530
Email: pr@casbaa.com