06 February, 2015

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending Feb 6th. Curated by CASBAA, News Views keeps you in the loop. We always value your feedback, so tell us what you think!

Brought to you by:

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

I’m reaching for a Godzilla analogy, and not quite grasping it: Netflix has announced it will launch in Japan later this year. It’s a challenging market for foreign players, but understandably attractive, if only because of its broadband infrastructure. Right, that’s 1 down, 149 more to go for Netflix to reach its stated goal of 200 markets by 2016.

It’s been whispered about for months now, but Singtel’s new HOOQ service has finally been officially announced. The OTT service is a joint venture between Singtel, Warner Bros and Sony, and will start rolling out this quarter in the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, and India, all markets where Singtel has significant stakes in mobile operators. Predictably, the initial comparisons are to Netflix, but even the articles with a favourable slant are still taking a wait-and-see approach to the new service.

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

The evolving world of OTT is still, well, evolving. New to the scene is Nickelodeon who is to unveil stand-alone subscription video service in February. Not a lot of details were made available. Next we have Walt Disney chairman and CEO Bob Iger who squashed any hopes for a standalone ESPN over the top product for the near-term. I guess Mr. Iger was talking about the main ESPN channel as tech website re/codereports that ESPN takes another step outside the bundle, starts selling streaming Cricket World Cup subscriptions. And as if all that wasn’t enough, re/code is ALSO reporting that Apple is looking at launching its own streaming TV service. Again.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

The political battle lines have formed in Thailand, over the role and authority of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC). The post-coup government has proposed taking back from the NBTC the power to make spectrum licensing decisions, but civil society groups don’t like that – they see an attempt by various groups to use “political connections” to secure spectrum. And even the head of a “superboard” named by a previous government to oversee the NBTC announced his group didn’t like the new proposals, and would urge the legislature to leave the NBTC’s independence unobstructed, to avoid “third-party intervention, particularly from politicians, in the frequency allocation process.”

Kevin Jennings

Programme Director

Binge viewing gets the thumbs down from researchers. People under 30 were asked to complete a survey on their feelings of loneliness and depression. According to the findings, the more lonely or depressed a person feels the more likely they are to binge watch several episodes of a TV show online.

Anjan Mitra

Executive Director, India

In several Asian countries, there are heated debates underway about censorship of pay-TV broadcasts, and – in keeping with India’s democratic traditions – nowhere is the dialogue more enthusiastic than there. Last week, the chief film censor said that TV broadcasts really need more censorship. And a Hindustan Times journalist responded with a wonderful column entitled “If a Film Offends, You Don’t HAVE To Watch It”. He wrote that the CBFC certification board “has morphed into a public morality nanny, scissors in hand at the slightest whiff of sex, politics and religion,” and complained “The CBFC must be alive to the threats to our constitutional freedoms. We need a board that will stand for creativity, not create lists of banned words.”

Jane Buckthought

Advertising Consultant

With the OTT Summit coming up in early March, it’s fascinating to see the new trends developing in the digital space. China’s mobile internet use has increased by about 56.72 percent year-on-year and now accounts for as much as 85.8 percent of total online population. Last year, China’s internet user base stood at 618 million. Meanwhile, Japan is beginning to embrace digital video, witnessing a 31% growth in the sector last year to JPY81 billion (US$670 million). Globally, Ooyala estimates strong growth for video-on-demand (VOD) services, interactive services, multi-view on multi-screens offered by telcos along with pure-play IPTV services. These factors will provide significant fuel for market growth, as will the expanded availability of OTT content and the ubiquity of mobile devices..

Michael Steel

Regulatory Assistant

In China, one of the more logical and reasonable commentaries this week came from the usually rabid Global Times newspaper. The author noted that the rise in internet video deals cries out for settling one set of standards – a level playing field – between online and offline content supply, and implied (but didn’t state) that the standards should be lighter than the traditional SAPPRFT heavy-handed approach. Sadly, that’s not the way things seem to be going.

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

With 114.4 million viewers, Super Bowl XLIX became the most-watched programme in US television history. It’s fair to say that not all of those viewers were supporting the Seahawks or the Patriots, and quite a few were just watching to see the ads, many of which actually appeared online before the big game. And sacrilegious though it might seem, with each 30-second spot costing up to US$4.5 million, some observers are wondering if there might not be other ways for brands to get more bang for their bucks.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

Hong Kong’s regulators responded with a wag of their collective finger and a loud “Tsk, Tsk” to news that FTA licensee ATV, in addition to not paying its workers, has not been paying its license fees to the government, either. The TV station has been given fines (which it won’t bother to pay), and three more months to settle up. So much for even-handed regulation… who thinks if this were an international company, it would be given only a slap with a wet noodle, for not paying its government fees? (If you think that, I have a bridge in Brooklyn I’d like to sell you.)

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

MP & Silva have been busy. Last week I reported on how they had secured a 15-year rights deal with Malaysian FA. And this week we see that the Football Association of Singapore has inked a deal worth over $25 million with MP & Silva “The six-year deal, announced on Monday (Feb 2), will see the international firm manage media and sponsorship rights, as well as international events for the Singapore national team and the age-group teams.” “This is the biggest commercial partnership for the FAS, eclipsing the $15 million, 10-year deal signed in 2001 with Tiger Beer.”

Kevin Jennings

Programme Director

News from Australia is that Telstra is reportedly replacing its set-top box with a cheaper version with limited storage. While customers can use the new box to access streaming Internet video services they wont be able to access Netflix or Stan. While still unconfirmed, the story is bound to create more tension with competing OTT services like Netflix sure to cry foul.

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

The latest update to Cisco’s Visual Networking Index Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast has hit the streets. Weighing in at 42 pages, it’s not exactly light reading, but it’s definitely chock-full of information. For our industry, one of the key headlines: by 2019, Cisco says almost three-quarters of mobile data traffic will be video.

Some additional links you might be interested in:

Member News:

30 January, 2015

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending Jan 30th. Curated by CASBAA, News Views keeps you in the loop. We always value your feedback, so tell us what you think!

Brought to you by:

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

The future of TV is here… ummm, well, a few different versions of the future, anyway. This week, Dish’s widely-heralded Sling TV service got a soft-launch in the US, to slightly delirious applause from cord-cutting sports lovers in particular. Meanwhile, some sneak peeks of Sony’s Playstation Vue internet TV service emerged as well, offering a slightly different take on things (minus ESPN). And just a few days before, ex-Hulu CEO Jason Kilar opened his new venture, online video service Vessel, for beta testing, with YouTube squarely in his sights.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

The satellite industry is justifiably concerned about attempts to take the C-band spectrum so vital for broadcast distribution and add it to the hoard of frequencies in the hands of the mobile telecom operators.CASBAA helps get this message out in Asia, and at a conference last week in Nigeria, the same theme was repeated for Africa. The CEO of Eutelsat told a conference in Abuja that “terrestrial operators already have access to a very broad range of spectrum and should be using this first before seeking to acquire more, particularly if this process is carried out at the expense of critical applications” such as broadcasting, he said.

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

On the OTT front, streaming media player ownership to hit 40% in US with the “weekly per-capita viewing of over-the-top TV sports expected to grow from just under 25 minutes in 2015 to more than four hours in 2025″, according to TDG research. And still on sports, it looks like WWE has hit their one million subscriber mark that it said it needs “to offset potential PPV revenue losses it will suffer from migrating its events to the WWE Network”.

Kevin Jennings

Programme Director

In an interesting turn of events now it’s a cable company offering calls instead of the telco carrying TV. The service will initially only be available in New York and offers unlimited calls for a monthly fee.

Jane Buckthought

Advertising Consultant

The rate of growth in global advertising expenditure is expected to slow to 5.1% this year before picking up again to 6.0% in 2016, according to a new forecast. However, India and China are powering ahead and will see all-media growth of 11.6% and 10.3% respectively.

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

UK trade association PACT (the Producers Alliance for Cinema and Television) represents Britain’s independent production industry, and is now setting up shop in the United States. This is the group thatsucceeded in getting the Terms of Trade changed back in 2003, to wrest control of programme IP rights away from broadcasters and give them to producers. The battle over IP rights has been going on for years in the UK, and now PACT is looking to bring that fight to the US.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

Hong Kong is a wired city, and its FTA broadcasters are being hard hit by competition from Internet TV. Hastening the process: the government’s licensing restrictions have meant that dynamic local entrepreneur Ricky Wong, rebuffed from joining the FTA industry, hasput his broadcasting on the internet instead. I guess the motto is “If you can’t join ‘em, beat ‘em.” Oh, and cynical me can’t refrain from pointing out that the local newspaper’s very detailed commentary on this issuemanaged to cover the whole waterfront…..without once mentioning the competition from online piracy. Blinkered view? Nahhhhhh…….

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

For those of you who did not attend the CASBAA Indonesia in View event in Jakarta last week, you missed Joe Welch of 21st Century Fox who gave a very entertaining presentation-cum-performance before the piracy panel where it was revealed that “gambling, pornography fuel Indonesia’s content piracy”. Also, during the sports panel, Beatrice Lee of MP & Silva announced that the company secured a 15-year rights deal with Malaysian FA.

Kevin Jennings

Programme Director

Thailand’s National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission has released new regulations governing mergers and acquisitions, cross-holdings and domination in the radio and broadcasting industry.

Some additional links you might be interested in:

Member News:

23 January, 2015

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending Jan 23rd. Curated by CASBAA, News Views keeps you in the loop. We always value your feedback, so tell us what you think!

Brought to you by:

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

“It is increasingly clear that virtually all entertainment video will be Internet video in the future…” So says the latest quarterly shareholder letter issued by Netflix. The company also declared it will complete its global expansion to 200 countries within two years, and that its original content strategy cost less and got better viewing metrics than programmes it licensed. Meanwhile, Netflix content head Ted Sarandos amplified that, telling the audience at NATPE that he’s looking to release up to twenty original scripted series per year.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

Net Neutrality is a hot topic in many countries these days. Close to us,India and Vietnam are both grappling with whether telecom operators should be allowed to put “speed bumps” in the way of consumer accessto services like Skype and Wechat and WhatsApp. This is an issue that is really ripe for “sloganeering over the Internet,” as one Indian commentator noted, adding that “the ‘net neutrality’ argument…sounds logical, but it is inappropriate for India.” TRAI is expected to launch a regulatory consultation soon, which will be interesting to watch.

In Indonesia, Kominfo Minister Rudiantara told this week’s CASBAA “Indonesia in View” conference he was trying to broker talks between Indonesian telcos and foreign chat network operators, to work out an approach to similar issues.

Meanwhile, In the USA, the debate is more about OTT video programming than chat services. Now there is firm support by the cable and wireless operators for legislation that would mandate a mostly-neutral regime, but avoid the FCC declaring the internet to be a fully regulated (and fully neutral) utility – and leave a bit of wiggle room for “prioritization” of specialized services. What that means, only time would tell. NCTA Chairman Michael Powell said legislation is the only way to avoid years of litigation, should the FCC decide to regulate, and he’s certainly right about that. But can Congress really pass meaningful legislation? (And is it a coincidence that this legislation pops up just after the Republicans take control of both houses of Congress?) Watch for more political polarization over OTT, as both US political parties jockey for support from different industry groups.

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

Hopefully not a sign of what’s to come in Asia but Standard Media Index described the (US) television sector’s performance in the fourth quarter of 2014 as “paltry” and “lackluster” in its latest quarterly ad spend report.” And if this isn’t enough, “Facebook has been working hard to convince marketers to shift part of their TV ad budget to the social network.”

Kevin Jennings

Programme Director

If you want to wrap your head around Programmatic Buying in China, there’s an interesting article from Clickz that offers some insight into the way it’s handled at the Chinese video platform Youku.

Anjan Mitra

Executive Director, India

Technology is such a wonderful thing. It can even make policy-makers realise the futility of regulations at times. The Indian MIB and Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley, recently hinted about reviewing some irksome policies that may signal acche din (good days) to come. Jaitley ruled out government censorship of media as technology has made such moves almost irrelevant and will also re-examine the advertising minutage cap on TV channels, but cautioned media that all freedom comes with a fair dose of responsibility. More importantly, Jaitley started a serious debate on the possible need to review the level of foreign investment in news media, which is restricted at 26% and is said to be a major stumbling block for big global players to set up ops in India.

Jane Buckthought

Advertising Consultant

The Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), the Indian industry body formed by broadcasters, advertisers and advertising agencies, is in final stages to launch its TV ratings measurement system with more than 275 channels having signed up for embedders. All major networks in each region and across genres are on-board and a series of roadshows will begin in February to showcase the plans for the next TV measurement service as well.

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

There’s been no official comment from China’s State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (the agency formerly known as SARFT), but more foreign TV shows have apparently been pulled from online video services. SAPPRFT announced last year it would tighten up its control over online video services, and it seems to be making good on that promise.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

Participants in CASBAA’s Indonesia in View conference in Jakarta last Tuesday chewed over the state of the pay-TV market there… and concluded that some of the sweetness has gone out of it. One of the main problems, the conference heard, is too much supply of pay-TV chasing not enough consumer demand. CASBAA members candownload a short market summary distributed at the conference, which notes that, in addition to cable, there are 14 licensed satellite DTH operators functioning in the country, with 16 more licenses in the pipeline!

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

On the programming side, a number of CASBAA members are seeing more distribution as Now TV adds BBC, Disney, FOX, Warner to on-demand library. And, down in my part of Asia, YuppTV to stream Zee TV in Singapore.

Kevin Jennings

Programme Director

In a move that might be a sign of things to come in the broader industry,Amazon has announced it plans to produce and acquire original movies for theatrical release which will then premiere online in the US just four to eight weeks after their cinematic debut.

Some additional links you might be interested in:

Member News:

16 January, 2015

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending Jan 16th. Curated by CASBAA, News Views keeps you in the loop. We always value your feedback, so tell us what you think!

Brought to you by:

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

I spent several overwhelming days in Las Vegas at CES week before last (me and 160,497 of my closest friends), and have spent a fair bit of time since then processing the experience. Given that it’s still principally a consumer products show, there were seven square miles filled with gadgets on display, but it was the 4K TVs that caught everyone’s attention. It’s clear that manufacturers are doubling down on 4K (to use a casino metaphor, of course). Although there is still some confusion in the market, there are also efforts being made to standardise. And despite the proliferation of hardware, there are still questions about how much Ultra HD content is available. But even so, the consensus is clear: 4K is coming, and sooner, rather than later.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

A media analyst in Thailand is expecting another challenging year for pay-TV players. And I expect he is right, with the industry being squeezed on one hand by the plethora of new digital terrestrial channels, and on the other hand by growing online piracy. Expanding broadband connectivity is a two-edged sword – it brings market opportunities as well as piracy challenges. Following a merger last year between pay-TV providers CTH and GMMZ, the revamped company is looking at large-scale broadband distribution – on an OTT basis, apparently, as they don’t own any networks. (CTH is still trying to claw its way back from vastly overpaying for the current 3-year EPL rights.) Market leader True Visions, in the meantime, is seeking to broaden its appeal, moving toward a more mass-market base. Their new Chief Commercial Officer told The Nation that a subscription mix of 30% premium, 20% mid-tier, and 50% mass-market would be great.

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

Who remembers the TV series The Kraft Music Hall? Of course nobody does!!! But that was the last time Woody Allen wrote for TV and the year was 1969. Now, after Woody’s one-film-per-year formula that he’s been doing forever, he has signed up to do a full season of a half hour program for Amazon. Whoa!! When people say that OTT is changing the business, this is proof. Chet Fenster, head of MEC Content, believes it’s an arms race, and if so, Woody Allen doing TV is definitely an unconventional weapon.

Kevin Jennings

Programme Director

PRESTO online TV device in Australia has announced its basic service will cost A$9.99 per month– thought to be on par with Netflix which will launch in March and 1 cent cheaper than its local rival STAN charging A$10 per month for TV and Movie access.

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Anjan Mitra

Executive Director, India

Indian distribition market is heading for some very interesting times in a regulatory regime that continues to become more challenging. After having promised to bring in quality 4G and GSM services (consumers are actually waiting for the formal launch of such services having experiencing falling quality amongst incumbent telcos), Reliance Jio proposes to apply for an all-India MSO licence. Being part of a cash-rich Reliance Industries Ltd, promoted by Mukesh Ambani, Reliance Jio has all the hallmark of playing the disruptive game over a long period of time very effectively.

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

Remember how a couple weeks ago, we predicted that you’d start seeing articles in trade press full of predictions? Add Deloitte to the list, with their TMT Predictions 2015 report now available. Best takeaway line? The rise of Netflix doesn’t mean the demise of pay TV.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

In Korea, the cable channels established just a couple of years ago are coming under criticism as too conservative, and also too focused on news coverage. It seems the critics want more “generalist” programming… (Another case of “I want my MTV?”)

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

Receiving unauthorised content through use of a VPN is something that the CASBAA Regulatory and Anti-Piracy Committee often discusses. Variety sheds some light on the double-edged sword that could cut Netflix’s subscriber base. And, previous claims that Netflix was cracking down on VPN use may not have been accurate.

Kevin Jennings

Programme Director

Vodafone’s boss claims customers don’t care about 4G and are only interested in whether the network can perform fast enough for streaming.

Some additional links you might be interested in:

Member News:

9 January, 2015

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending Jan 9th. Curated by CASBAA, News Views keeps you in the loop. We always value your feedback, so tell us what you think!

Brought to you by:

John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	China’s TV content censorship rules have come in for a lot of comment lately. The case of a Hunan satellite TV drama that was suddenly pulled off the air attracted attention. No politics involved, apparently… just a case of old fashioned puritanical fear of too much flesh. (One Shanghai website opined that “the only solution is to make the breasts smaller, which would require a great deal of effort from the post-production team.”) But the specific case illustrates the general point that content regulation on the mainland is excessively strict. The reaction to the rules brilliantly illustrates the pernicious economic effects of stifling regulation: one consultant reported that increased censorship was likely the reason for a 25% decline in the number of TV dramas aired on prime-time Chinese TV last year. And finally, the spread of these broadcast censorship rules to the internet was derided as one of 2014’s 12 low points of China’s tech industry.
Christopher Slaughter CEO	For years, news channels have been unhappy (putting it mildly, perhaps) about audience measurement regimes that do not include out-of-home viewing figures. In the US, CNBC is finally doing something about it. Later this year, the business network will be handing the measurement of its daytime programming over to market research firm Cogent Reports. The jury is still out on whether the move will fix measurement, or just screw things up further.
Kevin Jennings Programme Director	Dish TV in the US have announced they are launching a streaming TV service – for only US$20 per month which will include ESPN. Analysts are already asking how this will affect the cable operators long term as well as the channel bundling that currently dominates the market. Money magazine noted that consumers think they’ll be happy with unbundling… but they may end up paying more in the end!
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	If you don’t know what programmatic buying is, it’s time you did as it has been changing the way brands are buying advertising. And, for a lot of our programming members, advertising is a significant part of their revenue. But it may not be all peaches and cream for digital video advertising as it seems that “less than half of all online video ads are even seen by viewers”.
Anjan Mitra Executive Director, India	The Indian broadcast and cable industry (at least a majority of players) is wondering whether or not to applaud latest salvos from Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, including a new tariff order for analog areas. Actually an amendment to an earlier tariff order, it tries to address concerns of broadcasters and consumers. However, most industry players chorus there’s `nothing new’. What is worrying industry more, especially DTH operators, is TRAI’s bid to further micro-manage business. TRAI has hinted that it may review the freedom given to DTH service providers in deciding subscription charges of HD channels.Reason? TRAI sources don’t see much difference between SD and HD channels. Ummm, ahem!! Another one, may be, for the courts to hold sway on at some later stage.
John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	In Thailand, the post-coup regime has been rethinking regulatory structures for broadcasting and telecommunications. There have been seminars, discussions and proposals, many concerning whether there should be one regulator, or two. And apparently, a decision: legislation was approved by the Cabinet that would keep the NBTC’s jurisdiction over broadcasting and telecom competition, but strip the Commission of authority over spectrum allocation, returning those “difficult” duties to the government ministry in charge. Well, spectrum has always been the apple of discord of regulatory policy in Thailand. (And spectrum auctions do make huge profits for the government.) One interesting little note is that part of the new legislation would also deal with online violations of intellectual property! Have to see what that’s all about…
Kevin Jennings Programme Director	With Netflix launching a local Australia version there is concern overreports that they intend to clamp down harder on people who access the US version from overseas. Opinion seems divided whether this is an actionable threat or they are just going through the motions to appease local broadcasters who have already bought Netflix content on an exclusive basis.
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	Fortune is speculating that Yahoo could be interested in scooping up a cable network. Scripps and CNN are mentioned as possible targets. After a $30+ billion windfall from the Alibaba IPO, there may be nothing better to do than a little bit of shopping.
Anjan Mitra Executive Director, India	On a lighter note, this piece of news could make many salivate — India’s Shemaroo Entertainment and Net Mobile AG to distribute brandedPlayboy content on mobile platforms in South Asian countries. On a serious note, if such a service finally takes wings, it would seriously test in India the limits of government’s thinking on content delivered on TV, mobile, pads, Internet, movie screens and other such platforms.

Some additional links you might be interested in:

19 December, 2014

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending Dec 19th. Curated by CASBAA, News Views keeps you in the loop. We always value your feedback, so tell us what you think!

Brought to you by:

Christopher Slaughter CEO	As the year comes to an end, it’s time to take stock. Which means that “Best of 2014” lists are starting to pop up all over the place, so you can take your pick. Everyone’s got an opinion, some even pick specific episodes, but the lists are almost unavoidable. But brace yourself… over the next couple weeks, the “Predictions for 2015” lists will be growing like mushrooms.
John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	We keep asking for a level playing field, but we want less regulation, not more. And seemingly, that’s not what some Asian governments have in mind. This week, there were reports of impending heavy increases in web censorship in Indonesia, and China. In Jakarta, they’re focused on porn, but in Beijing it’s……well……everything! “What is forbidden to traditional media, is also forbidden to online media,” says the regulator, and that covers a wide swathe.
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	I have to admit that I’m not a Twitter guy (yet), but the more I hear about Twitter and TV, the more interesting it gets. If you want to increase awareness and viewer engagement of your programs, during the live airing window and in the days that follow, maybe Twitter is your solution. To see some stats check out: Oscars, World Cup and zombies garner millions of tweets.
Desmond Chung Associate Director, PR & Communications	As US broadcasters and networks continues to grapple with the conundrum of OTT services and the bottom line, research from JW Player’s first Trends in Online Video report, which looks at the state of online video across six continents, paints a somewhat rosier picture. I guess this means even more people glued to their tech toys to further impede my already joyous morning commute!
Christopher Slaughter CEO	Although in some ways, they’re sort of peripheral to our business, it’s still important for us to to pay attention to what’s happening with the emerging breed of online media companies. Wired has a pretty good look inside the world of clickbait and listicles.
John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	“You tell me over and over and over my friend….you don’t believe we’re on the Eve of Destruction”……You know its worrisome for the cable industry in the USA, when Fox Business News joins the analysts’ chorus, singing anthems of doom and desolation for the cable TV industry:
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	As we look to the new year what we can expect for the 4 media trends for 2015 may be found by listening to SingTel Advertising’s chief revenue officer, Anthony Shiner.
John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	I know, I know……the policy stuff is all supposed to be very dry, and wonkish. Here’s a bit of comic relief, though: The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart skewers the latest regulations from Beijing: “From now on all meanings must be literal, and all entendres must be single!” Hear, hear….No more frivolity!
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	After analysing the click-throughs for the weekly CASBAA News Views it has become clear that OTT and TVE are subjects of high interest. A couple interesting articles this week are Pay TV Disruption Doesn’t End With Unbundling and TV Everywhere Video Consumption Doubles.

Some additional links you might be interested in:

CASBAA’s holiday wishes: peace on Earth…and in your inbox! News Views will take a short hiatus during the festive season but will return on January 9 for another year of weekly news recaps – with that unique CASBAA twist.

12 December, 2014

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending Dec 12th. Curated by CASBAA, News Views keeps you in the loop. We always value your feedback, so tell us what you think!

Brought to you by:

Christopher Slaughter CEO	It’s a little bit late to the party, but The New Yorker has a characteristically lengthy-but-sort-of-rambling piece about how user-generated content is getting serious attention from the entertainment industry. So if you’re wondering why Google is starting to put its talent on contract, or how a grumpy cat can earn US$100 million, look no further.
John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	There is a feeling of pervasive dread in the Indian media industry that more intrusive content regulation is coming down the road. One well-respected commentator fears the arrival of “draconian” media regulation. There are good reasons for concern; in any case it’s never a good thing when one of the houses of Parliament spends time talking about “indecency” in cable TV. The government responded that it issues advisories to the channels, but it does not want to impinge on freedom of expression. Let’s hope such wisdom prevails. (Meanwhile, a Bollywood commentator raked the parliamentarians over the coals, suggesting if they were worried about bare-breasted women bathing in public they should “go to the Andamans and hand out sarees to the tribes there.”)
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	We have all heard the expression “build it or buy it”…probably from a number of CASBAA’s technology provider members. For the technology platform for HBO’s new OTT service, HBO has decided to buy it. And really, why wouldn’t they, when the cost of their facility in Seattle has been rumoured to be costing them $100 million per year.
Anjan Mitra Executive Director, India	A recent rap on the knuckles by the Indian government auditor, Comptroller & Auditor General of India for failing to meet transponder demands from Indian customers, notwithstanding, Indian Space & Research Organisation (ISRO) has got something to smile about, may be, smiles also dot faces of many Indian communications and media companies in search of transponder capacity, made more scarce by restrictive government policies. ISRO’s new communications satellite, GSAT 16, carries 12 Ku-band transponders, 24 C-band transponders and 12 upper extended C-band transponders. How the distribution of satellite capacity, amongst a plethora and varied companies, is made will be worth watching. But any additional sat capacity over Indian skies is always welcome.
Sara Madera Director, Member Relations & Marketing	You Tube has released their list of top 10 ads, half of which were created for use natively online, showing that brands are getting more savvy about how to use social media.
Christopher Slaughter CEO	Okay, so now we’ve got a ticking clock: Netflix wants to have a global footprint within five years. Oh, and by the way, ratings don’t matter. Oh, and while we’re on the subject, broadcast television will be gone in sixteen years.
John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	Hats off to Philippine broadcaster ABS-CBN, which had the gumption to file – and win – court actions in the USA against New Zealand-based websites pirating ABS-CBN’s Pinoy content. The USA is an important market for ABS-CBN and it has been taking energetic enforcement actions there.
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	For those of you who were too busy to attend the 42nd annual UBS Global Media and Communications Conference in New York, I have pulled together a couple interesting articles that sum up the discussions. James Murdoch talks succession…sort of. Starz CEO Chris Albrecht thinks it is “really shortsighted for these networks to be selling their shows to Netflix, while Discovery has inked a deal with Hulu.
Anjan Mitra Executive Director, India	God giveth, God taketh away. Should work both ways. After having pushed deadlines of complete cable digitisation to end 2016, much criticised by broadcasting companies in India, the Indian government is proposing a bit of a leg-up for India digital. Having delayed speedy rollout by insisting on max usage of domestically manufactured STBs, which are scarce, Ministry of Information Technology proposes a corpus of Rs.100 crore (Rs 1 bn) to boost local manufacturing. To compete with SE Asia-made cheaper STBs, Indian manufacturers would be extended long terms of credit from this corpus. Makes business sense. But Indian customers of STBs bemoan that hopefully such a proposal doesn’t degenerate into a futile exercise leading to more delays in now-hiccuping digital roll-out.
Christopher Slaughter CEO	Bloomberg Businessweek is celebrating its 85th birthday this week by listing the top 85 disruptors in its history, and you guessed it, TV is right up there, at number 5. That’s way above kitty litter (#73), Singapore (#71), Facebook (#51), or even gay marriage (#35).
John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	And the shoe has finally dropped in Australia, where – after months of debate and deliberation – the government has finally come out with its copyright protection package. It includes site blocking for egregious overseas pirate sites, as well as an ultimatum to ISPs and the content industry to come up with a workable program to send escalating notices to individuals caught doing pirate downloads.
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	King Julien of Madagascar fame once said, “Take note, Maurice. Tonight, chow mein is my main chow”. And I guess it is as, DreamWorks Animation to Launch TV Channel in Asia, “though ONLY (emphasis mine) in 19 countries across Asia, at least initially”. “While DreamWorks Animation will handle programming and distribution, it also has partnered with HBO Asia for affiliate sales, marketing and technical services.”

Some additional links you might be interested in:

5 December, 2014

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending Dec 5th. Curated by CASBAA, News Views keeps you in the loop. We always value your feedback, so tell us what you think!

Brought to you by:

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

Another of China’s online video giants, Tencent, has inked a deal with HBO to distribute its content on an exclusive basis. That is, of course, after the programmes have been approved by China’s censors, and that might prove difficult.

Meanwhile, Chinese hotel, cinema, and department store conglomerate Dalian Wanda is reportedly in talks to buy a stake in Lions Gate Entertainment. Last we heard, it was Alibaba that was sniffing around, but with Wanda getting ready for a multi-billion dollar listing on the Hong Kong stock market, founder Wang Jianlin needs to find something to do with his money.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

This will produce some interesting hiccups: It seems that a controlling interest in Taiwan-based DTH platform Dish HD is being acquired by a PRC-controlled company. The deal notes that the article is “pending regulatory approval,” which begs the question of how Taiwan’s regulatory authorities will regard this acquisition. They tend to look askance at mainland investments in Taiwan media. (Of course, THAT begs the question of whether Dish HD is really Taiwan media, and how many viewers they have inside Taiwan, versus…….elsewhere.)

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

In the ongoing online anti-piracy campaign, some progress is being made in the UK, as “The High Court has ordered the biggest batch yet of piracy websites to be blocked”. “It brings the tally of blocked sites providing access to copyright-infringing content to 93 since the first restrictions began in 2012.”

Jane Buckthought

Advertising Consultant

CASBAA’s annual report containing the latest regional data and statistics, Asia Pacific Multichannel TV Advertising 2015, was officially released during the CASBAA Convention this year and has garnered its fair share of publicity this week!

Michael Steel

Regulatory Assistant

China’s primary media regulator SAPPRFT has beautifully demonstrated why the Asian giant’s media industry fails to compete on the global market. Excessive regulations on trivial matters (like this most recent ban on puns!) curb the creative potential of over a fifth of the world’s population. If China wants to grow its creative industries and improve its soft power on the global stage, it had better reconsider its priorities.

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

It’s been a couple weeks, but we haven’t forgotten about that whole Comcast-Time Warner Cable thing. For that matter, neither has the FCC in the US, which has restarted the clock on its 180-day review of the deal. As if on cue, the cleverly-named “Stop Mega Comcast Coalition” announced its formation on the same day; no prizes for guessing what THEIR purpose in life is.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

You’ve heard about retransmission disputes in the USA, where content owners pull their stuff off pay-TV platforms when the two sides can’t agree on compensation payments. Now here’s one for the broadband age, appropriately from Korea where broadband penetration is so high: content owners pulling their clips off Youtube because the video goliath won’t pay them enough of its ad revenue.

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

Looks like Discovery and Foxtel are teaming up to take a bid at the broadcast market in Australia. But they may have to pay more than initially offered.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

The impending arrival of Netflix has already shaken up Australia’s media sector, and I found this ABC report to be an interesting snapshot of how the changes are being seen by industry players as well as consumers. (If you like linear consumption of your news, be sure to watch the video version, which includes a great line about competition in the industry and the rush to get the first-available content: “When you’re fresh meat, you kill, and throw them something fresher.” )

Some additional links you might be interested in:

28 November, 2014

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending Nov 28th. Curated by CASBAA, News Views keeps you in the loop. We always value your feedback, so tell us what you think!

Brought to you by:

John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	Three years after the SOPA debacle, there is suddenly debate in Washington over an update to U.S. copyright enforcement. The rise of illegal streaming – including through “black box” streaming media players and other means – has finally awakened our colleagues in America, and there’s talk about a bill to make unauthorized streaming of content a criminal matter. (This is a straightforward application of principles well-established in the physical world to internet uploads.) Nothing passed in the last days of the outgoing Congress, but the White House expressed support for the principle.
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	My private jet is fuelled up and my hotel suite is reserved. Who else from Asia will I see in Utah as Netflix Summons Entertainment Moguls to an Internet TV Summit? For more on Netflix, Quartz believes that “Netflix is taking the opposite approach: it wants to be everything to everyone”. I’m thinking that that hasn’t worked out for many in the past. There may be some competition soon in the SVOD market in Canada as Bell Media is supposedly launching a Netflix competitor.
Desmond Chung Associate Director, PR & Communications	Is anybody out there? Does it feel like sometimes your activity on social media is akin to yelling into a never ending black abyss – never knowing if your messages are reaching their intended target (OK, so I just watched Interstellar recently). According to new research, social media posts have a positive impact on companies’ sales based on a just completed, large-scale field experiment on the Chinese microblogging service Weibo with a large global media company that produces documentary TV shows.
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	Everyone wants to get their hand on OTT research and stats in markets around the world. It may be a while till we have this information for Asia but here is a glimpse into children’s viewing habits in the UK.
Anjan Mitra Executive Director, India	The idea of a super regulator overseeing broadcast & cable, telecoms and information technology sectors is once again being discussed actively in corridors of policy-making in New Delhi. Incidentally, such an idea was first mooted when a previous BJP-led government held federal powers from March 1998 to May 2004. But when introduced in Parliament, The Communications Convergence Bill, 2001 was stalled by policy-makers, which ultimately saw it being put in cold storage. Though, legal critics had hailed it as an exemplary piece of forward-looking draft legislation. Reason? Politicians thought the super-regulator would be too powerful for their liking. Can the present BJP-led government cut through political criticisms to enact a legislation taking into account technology’s march that will also reduce red tape?
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	TrueVisions is back in the news this week, as it maps out a new strategy “to expand its subscriber base into the middle-to-mass market”. “TrueVisions plans to adjust its subscribers’ proportion based on tiers — 50% mass tier, 20% premium tier and 30% mid-tier.”
Sara Madera Director, Member Relations & Marketing	Do you think streaming is the subscription model of the future or ruining the business? This article from the New Yorker on Spotify gives insights on their business model, including whether the disruptor will get disrupted. After that, check out CASBAA 2020‘s thoughts on whether Taylor Swift will be on Spotify in 2020.
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	If you, like me, believe that “reality is your friend”, possibly you should take heed of what’s happening in the US cable TV ad market. The article states that Iger (Chairman & CEO of Disney) calls the current ratings situation “very frustrating.” Seems like some things are the same all over the world. Still in the US, US TV audiences decline as SVOD ramps up. Luckily here in Asia we still have some breathing room to possibly adjust business plans accordingly.

Some additional links you might be interested in:

21 November, 2014

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending Nov 21st. Curated by CASBAA, News Views keeps you in the loop. We always value your feedback, so tell us what you think!

Brought to you by:

Christopher Slaughter CEO	Worst-kept secret in the industry: Netflix is heading Down Under. It’s been rumoured for what seems like forever, but now it’s confirmed that Australia and New Zealand will be the company’s next international markets.
John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	In the USA, the FCC Chairman wants to look at licensing OTT players as “Multichannel Video Programming Distributors” (aka pay-TV companies). I kinda think this might be a good opportunity to balance out some of the “Tilted Playing Field” issues – after all, if OTT operators want equal rights with pay-TV networks, they have to expect equal obligations, too! And in a public statement, the US broadcasters said they welcomed the “worthy goals” of this policy re-examination, and hoped the FCC would do it right. But the broadcasters took issue with Chairman Wheeler’s (rather obtuse) comment that existing FCC rules had allowed the broadcasters to stop Internet retransmission startup Aereo. The broadcasters bristled: it wasn’t FCC rules that led to the Supreme Court nixing Aereo, it was the Copyright Act! Said the National Association of Broadcasters: “If the Aereos of the world could simply take what local stations and networks pour billions of dollars into producing …. content creators would have little or no incentive to produce that work.”
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	Looking at Asia the options for delivering video content in Thailand are going to greatly increase over the next few years. The parent company of TrueVisions, True Corp, will invest 43 billion baht (US$1.31 billion) over the next two years to increase the reach of high speed Internet access across Thailand. Around ten billion baht will be invested in True Corp’s 4G LTE mobile service, to cover 80% of the population by the middle of 2015. That’s 1.3 BILLION USD!!! To put this in perspective Thailand’s GDP last year was about US $388 billion.
Desmond Chung Associate Director, PR & Communications	So… it’s officially a “thing”. Well, actually, it’s officially been a thing since 1996 when the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed November 21 as World Television Day. This year, viewers are being asked to share their favourite TV moments and contributions made to websites, Facebook and twitter will be collated by local broadcasters with the potential to create a new clip called ‘You love TV.’ Happy World Television Day everybody!
Christopher Slaughter CEO	Space X founder Elon Musk apparently wants to get into the satellite internet business, reportedly partnering with Greg Wyler, the founder of O3b Networks. Although one report calls the business a “widowmaker”, there is always keen media interest in what Musk is up to. While you wait for more details on the project, amuse yourself with an animated info-graphic featuring every satellite in orbit over the Earth.
John Medeiros Chief Policy Officer	Meanwhile, here’s another take on a “Tilted Playing Field” issue: An Aussie FTA TV mogul who comes right out and says he doesn’t worry about the government’s market share rules any more; broadcasters are just going to move to online streaming and go right ‘round the rules. Gotta love that……Aussies know how to Tell It Like It Is. I loved this quote: “Everyone watches streamed content these days. If you can watch it from America, trust me you can watch it from Wagga.” Hm. Yes. And vice versa.
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	A number of CASBAA members’ channels will be now seen in Malaysia as Astro adds 10 channels. Growing markets are great for business, but not so for US pay-TV operators as they are seeing an increased loss of subscribers.
Anjan Mitra Executive Director, India	Lot has been said about the new government in New Delhi; especially Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s fav line about less government and more governance. Small efforts can be seen in streamlining processes of various government permissions and clearances. The latest being putting out a clear-cut format for Home Ministry security clearance for uplink/downlink permissions for TV channels. Meanwhile, TRAI issued its recommendations to regulate cable channels run by MSOs and LCOs). Did we say too soon hail less government?
Mark Lay Vice President, Singapore	How to move a sports brand into OTT? The big US sport leagues of MLB, NFL and NHL have taken the slow and steady approach while protecting the revenues from their existing distribution platforms. WWE took the fast Smackdown approach. Looks like they may have stalled out before hitting their number.

Some additional links you might be interested in:

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