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T
he year 2003 - if the world economy
isn’t completely destabilised by geo-
political events - is going to be a great
year for the traditional multi-channel television
and broadband markets running from Japan to
India, from China toAustralia. That footprint
covering 3 billion people happens to be one
under which the Cable&Satellite Broadcasting
Association of Asia operates. But the good
news is everywhere.
Because of new technologies (much improved,
evenoverthepasttwoyears),maturingregulatory
environments and gradual renewal of too-long
pent-up investment, Asia’s multi-channel
television and broadband industries are readying
for a “great leap forward” in 2003-2004.
There will be winners and, of course, there
will be losers. Newly invigorated competitors
will emerge for some of the existing media
players, while others will emerge from a
traditional telephony background. Some
companies will be slow to adapt to rapidly
changing conditions. But others will prosper
beyond their wildest dreams.
Look at the evidence of advances in plain old
cable TV and simple satellite TV. In most cases
the first to benefit will beAsia’s quality, fleet-of-
foot content providers as shelf space is enlarged,
markets expand and consumers gain a better
understanding of themeaning of genuine choice.
Broadband, voice telephony,Video on Demand
and “deep content” will be the norm in many
markets by year-end 2003. The challenges of
the telephone companies and their plans for
video services will have to be met and
incorporated byAsia’s multiplicity of cable and
satellite platform operators.
In effect, when we look back at theAsian cable
industry from its inception in Asia in 1991 to
2002 it could be characterised as little more
than a “promotional exercise” for the real thing
that launched in 2003 with digital set-top boxes
and the genuine ability to directly connect and
disconnect customers at the will of the
intellectual property rights holder.
Thus since early 2003 we have seen:
X
In
India
, the introduction of a
nationwide cable TV encryption standard will
be mandatory, starting with a roll-out in July.
According to many, this move will change the
landscape for pay-TV services in India forever.
X
In
Taiwan
, the second and third of
three digitally tiered cable TV and broadband
offerings are launching this year. Genuine and
compelling interactive services are on themenu
for consumers. While the traditional cable
industry adapts to these new opportunities, it
will also be challenged by the huge state-owned
telco, Chunghwa Telecom, which says it is
seriously shopping for a content partner, maybe
rather than just selling stock to investors as the
government struggles to balance its budget.
X
In
Japan
, duringFebuary 2003 a billion
US dollars was raised to fund the further growth
of the largest cable operator, Jupiter
Communications which delivers cable-TV,
internet, fixed wire telephone and interactive
broadband services to almost 1.6 million
subscribers. Meanwhile, national telco NTT
announced it would finally go “live”with its far-
reaching FTTH (Fiber To The Home) network
and start delivering video services to consumers.
X
In
Hong Kong
, in February, a new
DirectToHome satelliteplatformwas announced
whichwill be launched, managed andmarketed
within 12 months by pay-TV experienced
broadcaster TVB and supported by global
satellite operator Intelsat. Also in February,
broadband provider HK Broadband Network
announced it would enter the video services
market with up to 180 pay-TV channels.
X
In
China
, another five non-domestic
channels have been granted landing rights to
“foreign compounds” and “Three Star and
above rated” hotels. Many analysts say that by
Y/E 2003 that ARPU (Average Revenue Per
User) inChinawill have risen from the officially
capped US$1.40 monthly of today to closer to
US$3.00 thanks to the provision of new
services. With China Telecom and China
Unicom spreading their wings the distribution
of video content over fixed and wireless
networks can only be the next logical step.
X
In
Indonesia
,
a new DTH platform
is believed tobe in the
planning stages as the
economy recovers its
equilibrium, while
local cable operators
have been rebuilding
their industry with new soundly executed
business plans.
X
In
Singapore
, the government plans to
license a second pay-TV operator in midyear.
SingTel is tipped to gain a license as incumbent
cable operator StarHub is forecast to go digital
with its cable offering by Y/E 2003 and to
continue the roll-out of broadband and other
telco services via its wireless and fixed wire
networks.
X
In
Korea
, as in Taiwan, the incumbent
telco has been rolling out video based services
and at last the cable industry is finding the bank
financing to pay for the next stages of its
development.
X
In
Australia
, the painful experience of
paying too much for content in a relatively tiny,
thoughwell-heeled,marketwill take time to filter
through to bottom lines. Most importantly, the
regulatory environment is beginning to make
some sense, even as broadband services
delivered by telcos start to create greater demand
for video services.
Even so,Asia’s cable and satellite industry has
plenty to do before it takesmore than the current
30%-35% of the market for video services that
it has been recording over the past year.
One issue remains the chronic disconnect in
understanding between the content providers,
the cable and satellite platform operators and
the traditional telcos.
But that is where organisations such as
CASBAA comes into play. With a range of
participants from the most straightforward
program maker to the highest-end distributor
of IP-based digital video and two-way services,
CASBAA encompasses every course on the
menu “from soup to nuts”.
The lack of understanding between those links
in the food chain is beginning to be bridged.
Thus CASBAA has been reaching out to the
enablers who are assisting with the creation
flexible digital content. Our content provider
companies such as Discovery Asia, MTV
Asia, AOL TimeWarner, ESPN STAR Sports
and HBO Asia are anxious to learn more of
the opportunities provided by the long spoken
of new technology distribution methods
supported by the likes of IBM, Motorola,
Cisco and Juniper Networks as are the cable
broadband and telco providers keen to
engender meaningful relationships with the
content providers.
This is a clear difference between the
atmospherics of three-to- four-years ago when
the concept of “convergence” was all the rage,
but the two ends of the chain were so far apart
they were unable to hear each other.
Asia Pacific DSL Entertainment Forecasts
2003 2004 2005 2006
DSL Entertainment Homes
226 732 1,537 2,759
DSL Entertainment Revenues (US$mil.)
47 185 468 906
Revenues per subscriber (US$)
209 253 304 329
Source: Asia Pacific TV (7th ed.) incorporating CASBAA Asia Cable & Satellite Guide 2003, published by Informa
Media Group
Asia - prime focus for CNNI
Asia’s a burgeoning market with huge potential, says
Simon Twiston Davies
,
chief executive of the Hong-Kong based Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia
Still Good News in Bad Times
