Hong Kong, July 30, 2007 – The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) today applauded a decision by Singapore’s Minister for Information, Communication and the Arts (MICA), Lee Boon Yang, to refrain from intervention in exclusive carriage agreements in Singapore’s pay-TV industry.
“CASBAA welcomes the Singapore decision,” said Simon Twiston Davies, CEO of CASBAA. “The right to contract between parties for premium and exclusive content is part of the bedrock of the global pay-TV industry.
“The MICA decision is the way ahead for digital media, as new channels of delivery open new vistas for consumers.”
Twiston Davies noted that the recent launch of SingTel’s long-awaited IPTV service has resulted in the announcement of several additional pay-TV channel offerings for Singapore consumers.
Meanwhile, statistics from Hong Kong – where exclusive carriage agreements are permitted and four pay-TV providers compete for consumer dollars – also demonstrate a rapid increase in the range of content on offer to consumers. International “best practice” always encourages exclusivity, permitting pay-TV content providers and platform operators to differentiate their products.
“Exclusive content is an important competitive tool and Singapore is poised to see similar growth to that experienced in Hong Kong,” said Twiston Davies.
In making his decision, Minister Lee supported a ruling by the Media Development Authority (MDA) made after three years of study on the impact of exclusive carriage contracts.
“Government intervention in contractual arrangements can restrict this important competitive feature, resulting in less investment and – in the long run – less consumer choice,” said Twiston Davies. “We hope to see similar policy decisions to that taken in Singapore implemented in other Asian countries.”
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The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA) 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 125 Asia-based corporations, which in turn serve more than three billion people. Members include AETN International (History Channel), Asia Broadcast Networks, Asia Broadcast Satellite, AsiaSat, Astro, Australia Network, Bloomberg Television, Chunghwa Telecom, Discovery Networks Asia, Genesis Networks, Granada International/ITV Worldwide, HBO Asia, Intelsat, Macquarie, MediaFLO Technologies, Motorola, MTV Networks Asia Pacific, Nokia, now TV, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Sony Pictures Television International, STAR Group, Sun Microsystems, TrueVisions, Turner International Asia Pacific, Walt Disney Television International, Zonemedia, Al Jazeera, Amarchand Mangaldas, Asian Food Channel, BBC Global Channels Asia-Pacific, Celestial Movies, ESPN STAR Sports, GMA Network Inc., GroupM, Fu Yang Media, HiT Entertainment, Hong Kong Cable, Irdeto, KDB Skylife, Lovells, Measat, MGM Channels, Minter Ellison, National Geographic, Paul Weiss, Playboy TV, ProtoStar, PT Direct Vision, SAT-GE, Tandberg Television, Tata Sky, Ten Sports, TimeWarner, TV18, Viaccess and Zee TV.
CONTACTS:
CASBAA
Helen Shek / Katie Wong
CASBAA Communications
Tel: +852 2854 9913
Fax: +852 2854 9530
Email: pr@casbaa.com