Regional broadcaster Channel NewsAsia has partnered KapanLagi Network, Indonesia’s largest online lifestyle news and entertainment media, in a strategic deal that will see business and media collaborations in many areas.
The announcement was made today at a networking event at Exodus Jakarta for the start-up community, including venture capitalists, corporate clients in the start-up scene, potential advertisers and sponsors, and the media. This event is jointly organized by Channel NewsAsia and KapanLagi Network to bring together the who’s who in the Indonesian start-up ecosystem, in conjunction with the launch of Season 2 of Channel NewsAsia’s Start-UP project. The event aims to encourage and nurture entrepreneurial spirit in Indonesia and regionally.
About Start-UP
Start-UP is a multi-platform project that includes a reality TV series which tracks the journey of a group of entrepreneurs going through the relentlessly competitive paces on multiple platforms – television, blogs, web portal and “live” webchat. Their aim is to pitch for part of the S$2 million in seed funding for their business ideas. Alongside the series is an interactive online portal at channelnewsasia.com that serves as a solution reference and contains insights on the start-up landscape. (see Annex for details)
Joint projects
A prime project in the partnership is the localisation of Start-UP with KapanLagi Network, presented in Bahasa Indonesia for the burgeoning local digital market. Channel NewsAsia will share production material and expertise for the construction of the microsite for Start-UP to KapanLagi Network. There will be on-site consultancy for the TV programme to capture the process of participants from pitching for venture capital seed money to the selection of finalists and winners in the contest. Plans are being made to broadcast this Indonesian series on local television.
Introducing KLN Play
At the event today, KapanLagi Network introduced a new arm of business, KLN Play. As an incubator of start-ups, KLN Play will offer budding Indonesian entrepreneurs seed funding and strategic support to jumpstart their businesses. This includes helping to build traffic, boosting the branding; providing IT advice, mentorship and potential advertising links. KLN Play is eyeing start-ups on e-commerce on the digital, mobile and online platforms for any category of business, with special interest in start-ups which think mobile first. It is looking to work with up to 10 start-ups in 2015, investing in them directly or to co-invest with other companies. “This relationship brings together two of the region’s top enterprises in an area of common interest, how to grow future businesses in Asia, particularly in the digital space. We believe we can leverage KapanLagi Network’s reach in Indonesia, and license our groundbreaking format for Start-UP in a win-win formula. I look forward to developing further collaborations with our partners,” said Ms Debra Soon, Head of MediaCorp’s News Segment.
News collaboration
Channel NewsAsia and KapanLagi Network will also cooperate to leverage the strength of news coverage of both parties on the digital platform. With its extensive network of correspondents and staff in the region, Channel NewsAsia will work closely with KapanLagi, which has a proven track record in covering Indonesia, to collaborate to support each other in news coverage. News exchange online, sharing of technical expertise, training stints and staff attachments are part of this collaboration.