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CASBAA highlighted issues of Japan’s pay-TV audience measurement system with Dentsu and Hakuhodo
Representatives of the CASBAA Board of Directors and Council of Governors visited Tokyo, Japan, April 11-13 to meet government agencies, platforms and broadcasters to examine core issues affecting the future of multi-channel TV across the region.
Hosting the CASBAA delegation were Tetsuo Yamakawa (Vice Minister, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications), Shuichi Mori (President & CEO, J:COM), Shigeki Nishiyama (Chairman, SP JSAT), Akira Sugimoto (SVP, BoD, Dentsu), Teruo Adachi (Sr. Corp. Officer, BoD, Hakuhodo), Kazunobu Iijima (MD, FujiTV), Atsushi Nishijo (Chairman, JCTA), Hisao Omori (President & CEO, Hakuhodo DY Media Partners) and Shinji Takeda (Managing Director, BoD, TBS).
CASBAA firstly lauded the MIC for its light-touch and generally positive regulatory framework and “quite effective” IPR regulations although there remain concerns over the unauthorized distribution of Japanese content especially through Chinese websites. Also of concern is the treatment of OTT services as part of the telecommunications market and therefore not regulated in line with the broadcasting industry.
Advertising Agency Meetings
Meetings with ad agencies Dentsu and two groups from Hakuhodo highlighted the weaknesses in Japan’s pay-TV audience measurement system, noting there are only 600 pay-TV audience measurement boxes deployed in just two cities -- in Osaka and Tokyo by Video Research, controlled by the five dominant terrestrial networks. And that data is only collected twice per month. There was also discussion of the CASBAA Upfronts process that could be replicated by CASBAA in Japan sometime in the foreseeable future.
During meetings with the two largest Japanese pay-TV platforms, SKY Perfect JSAT (3.8m subs) and new CASBAA member J:COM (3.64m subs), issues of how to improve awareness of the quality of pay TV through HD content and VOD/OTT offerings were highlighted. The JCTA flagged operator worries about low cost digital bouquets by IPTV players while noting that smaller cable companies are beginning to up-grade their offerings. Discussions with NHK World, the international arm of Japan’s largest public broadcaster, highlighted the commercial challenges of international distribution especially in emerging markets such as Vietnam.
Delegation encounters with two of the country’s largest terrestrial broadcasters, Fuji TV and TBS, reminded that Japan sees itself as a mature market and that broadcasters need to look for new revenue outlets through content exports while exploring joint production opportunities with CASBAA members and others. They cited the success of Korean TV programmes being exported to other markets around the world and would like to replicate this accomplishment with Japanese content.
Those participating in the CASBAA delegation included Sompan Charumilinda (TrueVision), Marcel Fenez (PwC), Alan Hodges (A+E Networks), Yoshitsugu Koizumi (Fox International Channels), Tomoyuki Moriizumi, Tom Perry (Turner International Asia Pacific), and Jonathan Spink (HBO Asia).
Associated materials (available for member only):
Asia Pacific Pay-TV Market
MIC Presentation
Dentsu Presentation
Hakuhodo Presentation
JCTA Presentation
Broadcasting Act
MIC Intellectual Property Rights Presentation
Global CabSat Audience Measurement