Punit Goenka is new IBF President

New Delhi, 02 September 2016: The 17^th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of The Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) was held in New Delhi today. In the IBF Board of Directors meeting thereafter, Mr. Punit Goenka (Managing Director & CEO, Zee Entertainment Enterprises) was elected as the Foundation’s President.

Punit Goenka, MD & CEO, ZEEL
Mr. Punit Goenka (Managing Director & CEO, Zee Entertainment Enterprises)

The IBF Board also elected Mr. Rajat Sharma (Chairman, India TV), Mr. N.P. Singh (CEO, Sony Pictures Network), Mr. Sudhanshu Vats (Group CEO, Viacom 18), Mr. K. Madhavan (Managing Director, Asianet Communications) as Vice-Presidents; and Mr. K.V.L. Narayan Rao (Executive Vice-Chairperson, NDTV) as the Treasurer of the Foundation for a period of one year.

After being appointed, Mr. Punit Goenka said, “I am delighted to lead the Indian broadcasting sector at a time when there is a lot of churning and India is being looked upon as global destination for investments. In the ensuing and continuing efforts of making India as a broadcasting superpower, I wish to work in a most collaborative manner with the Government, Industry and other stakeholders for realization of the sector’s value chain to the optimum.”

Outgoing IBF President Mr. Uday Shankar said, “I cannot think of a more suitable person than my dear friend, Punit Goenka to handover the leadership of IBF. Over the years, Punit has eminently helped me in navigating IBF through these volatile times. He is also the primary architect of Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC). His intelligence, dynamism and maturity will be great assets for IBF and the Indian media.”

====================ENDS==================

Note to Editors

IBF

Indian Broadcasting Foundation is a not-for-profit industry association. IBF represents and is dedicated to the promotion of television broadcasting in, to and from India. IBF members provide channels and programmes that deliver about 90% of television viewership in India. Member offerings cater to most of India’s diversity and plurality in every language and in every genre of television viewing. The Foundation provides a meeting ground for its members to work in consensus on common goals. The Foundation offers a common platform/forum in which members’ air new or improvement opportunities to arrive at implementable solutions. IBF has, over the years, achieved the unique position of the accredited spokes-body of the television broadcasting industry. IBF endeavours to work closely with and align industry, policy makers, regulators and partners so that the television sector in the media and entertainment industry grows to its fullest potential in an equitable manner.

=============================================================================

Media Contact:

Jayshree Kumar / Arantxa Gonsalves

Corporate Brand – Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL)

Mobile: +91 9769286661 / +91 9820336890

Landline: +91-22-7106 1367 / 7108 5464

Email: jayshree.kumar@zee.esselgroup.com / arantxa.gonsalves@zee.esselgroup.com

2 September, 2016

Welcome to News Views, CASBAA’s news round-up culled from sources across the industry for the week ending September 2nd. 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

Here’s something I bet you didn’t expect… despite all the talk of cord-cutting, Nielsen says the number of US television households has actually increased by 1.7% against this time last year. That might not sound like a huge increase, but it’s actually 2 million households, and it means the number of homes “…receiving traditional TV signals via broadcast, cable, DBS or telco, or having a broadband Internet connection…” is now at 96% penetration in the US. It’s that last bit — broadband — that accounts for the change; since 2013, Nielsen has been including in its numbers homes where TVs are connected to broadband, so now it also captures viewers watching services like Netflix, HBO Now, Hulu, or Sling TV. Which is only slightly confusing, especially since SNL Kagan just came out with an estimate that some 812,000 US pay TV subscribers cut the cord in Q2 — the biggest quarterly loss so far.

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

Ominous signs in Thailand: Read all the way down in the Bangkok Post’s description of a recent disciplinary hearing by the official regulator (NBTC) for a TV channel (Voice TV). It wasn’t the first time Voice TV had been called to account, but it was “the first time an army officer sat at the head of the table.” Reminds me of the ominous closing scene in “Cabaret,” where Joel Grey departs and the camera pans to show that the tables were full of people wearing….umm….uniforms. (Cabaret is being revived in the USA – appropriate given the nature of this year’s electoral politics there……)

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

Meanwhile, in other censorship news, China’s bureaucrats have said they don’t want any “admiration of western lifestyles” on TV. Yawn. How do you say “laughing stock” in Mandarin? Too much singing and dancing is clearly a threat to the Communist Party. Add the latest prohibitions to the long long list of other stuff that can’t be shown, including cleavage, celebrity children, homosexuality, drinking and vengeance, time travel, South Koreans, and space aliens.
Panda shows…..that’s what China needs. Lots of panda shows.

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

Funny you should mention it, John, because Panda TV is actually a thing… but it’s not about pandas, it’s China’s answer to twitch.tv, and features clips of people playing online games (like Dota2 but that’s another story… see below). And while we’re on the subject, when you hear Chinese Communist Party officials saying things like “…the arts should be centered on the people, guided by core socialist values, based on traditional Chinese culture and fueled by innovation…” they’re actually parroting Mao Zedong’s dictums from the Yan’an Forum on Literature and Art held in 1942. But those meetings were held in a cave — Long March-era Mao certainly didn’t have to deal with the exorbitant actors’ fees of today’s China.

Anjan Mitra

Executive Director, India

The gorilla in the telecoms room has flexed its muscles. Reliance Industries Ltd chairman Mukesh Ambani has announced that the long awaited Reliance Jio service will launch on September 5th. During the 45 minutes it took Ambani to deliver his speech at the company’s AGM, share prices of other Indian telcos tumbled, wiping off millions of dollars. Reliance JIO’s roadmap – free voice calling, data cost at almost 1/10th of the prevalent ones, no roaming charges for JIO users and other freebies — clearly signals the battle is about to begin. Media and analysts are collating the takeaways from Ambani-speak… and still counting.

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

According to a Pew Research Center, 40 percent of American adults get their news from Facebook and more than 600 million people see a news story on Facebook every week. And this drove over $6 billion dollars worth of revenue last quarter. But Mark Zuckerberg insists that Facebook “Is Not a Media Company”. Recode disagrees. Facebook are very good at making money using other people’s content. But a real media company would probably be a lot better at curating it. It seems that after replacing 15 editors with an algorithm Facebook’s Trending News Is A Total Mess. Maybe there is some merit to Zuck’s comment.

Kevin Jennings

Vice President, Programme

Kim Dotcom, who is fighting extradition from New Zealand to the U.S., where he’s accused of reproducing and distributing copyrighted content on a massive scale, has successfully petitioned the Judge hearing his appeal in New Zealand to allow video streaming of the court proceedings. Dotcom is the millionaire founder of file-sharing site Megaupload, which was shut down by the U.S. government who allege that Megaupload netted more than US$175m in criminal proceeds and cost copyright owners more than US$500m by offering pirated content. After years of legal wrangling, a court ruled in December that Dotcom could be sent to the U.S., to face charges including conspiracy to commit racketeering and money laundering. Kim has hired his own cameraman to film the appeal and believes sharing the court video online on YouTube will help his case. The video is being delayed by twenty minutes and the judge has ruled that the online video cannot be replayed once the case concludes!!

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

Ahahahahhahahahahahaha! I think the judge is going to get a sudden education in how the transnational internet piracy cabal works, and how much respect they have for courts in ANY country. I’m with the BBC, which points out that “The video of Kim Dotcom’s hearing will be all over the internet, in perpetuity, whether the judge wants it to be or not.”

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

Related to that last, an indictment was issued against the promoters of Kickass Torrents, saying they engaged in a criminal conspiracy to defraud the creative industries of many millions of dollars, and then laundered the proceeds. Again, like Megaupload, the group was providing incentives for people to upload pirated content, and then making millions on advertising. (You can read the full indictment here.) The group’s leader Artem Vaulin was arrested in July in Poland, where he is now being held pending extradition.

Mark Lay

Vice President, Singapore

Anyone who deals with the windowing of their own content or of purchased content will want to take a look at Matthew Ball’s latest Originals piece in REDEF. When no direct-to-consumer offerings were possible and there was a physical constraint on distribution, the old model made sense. In Letting It Go: The End Of Windowing (And What Comes Next), Ball explores how rights owners will maximize the value of their content in a post-window era. This new era may have content creators looking more at the needs of their viewers and fans than the needs of middlemen buyers. (This is also the last piece by Ball we’re likely to see, since he’s been hired by Amazon Studios as Head of strategy.)

Anjan Mitra

Executive Director, India

Touted as the biggest M&A deal in the Indian broadcast industry, Zee-owned TEN Sports’ buyout by Sony Pictures Network India for US$ 385 million should redraw the India’s broadcast map making it a two-horse (Star & Sony-ESPN) market for sports, while signalling consolidation in a fragmented market. Zee could use the money to concentrate on initiatives it wants to. Still, it must have been tough for Subhash Chandra and Zee to let go of sports business. But a commentator aptly termed it business acumen (of Chandra and family) triumphing over emotions.

Kevin Jennings

Vice President, Programme

South Korean behemoth telcom KT has launched a commerce-focused mobile video platform service “dovido”, KT started the ball rolling by concentrating on providing beauty-related commercial content to the Chinese market and expects to raise more than US$ 65 million in sales over the next four years with more than 200 million viewers globally. The dovido service will combine video content, online-to-offline (O2O) services as well as social networking services (SNS) and regard their main competitor as YouTube (which helps when you are initially launching into a market where YouTube is banned). KT plan on rolling out the service globally and are already in discussions with telecom companies in the content sector such as China Mobile and NTT DoCoMo. Dovido is, however, currently only available through Google Play and Apple-ites will have to wait a bit longer.

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

Meanwhile, that ban on South Korean content seems to be broadening. The latest high-profile casualties include director Kim Ki-duk, who has been denied a work visa for a film he was planning to shoot in China, and actress Yoo In-na, who has been dropped as the lead in Chinese soap opera that had almost finished filming its 28 episodes. Unlikely to help matters much: China’s loss to Korea in an AFC World Cup qualifying match this week.

Kevin Jennings

Vice President, Programme

New rules come into force this week in the UK, meaning for the first time all BBC iPlayer users must now own a TV licence, regardless of whether or not they watch programmes live. Previously households only needed a licence to watch broadcast TV – including through Sky and Freeview The new laws mean iPlayer users need to hold a £145.50 a year licence to watch live BBC channels, stream or download programmes on demand. The ruling is likely to particularly affect younger people, who generally consume more content on smartphones or tablets and may not necessarily be covered by their parents licence fee. It is still unclear how the new rules will be enforced, as yet no plans to ask viewers to enter licence fee details on iPlayer have been announced.

Christopher Slaughter

CEO

China might have been disappointed with its medal count at the Rio Olympics, but the nation now has a different reason to rejoice — Wings Gaming has won the Aegis of Champions at The International 2016…! (Translation: a Chinese eSports team won the top prize in gaming company Valve’s “Defense of the Ancients 2” international gaming tournament held in Seattle last week.) Along with the curiously-shaped Aegis shield, Wings are taking US$9.1 million in prize money, out of a total pool of US$20 million. The tournament is a massive production, with every match broadcast live on Sky Sports to serve a global player and fan base that is bordering on rabid. Perhaps it’s just a coincidence, but just a few days before the Chinese team emerged victorius, Valve introduced a new character to the game, The Monkey King, drawn from the Chinese classic “Journey to the West.”

John Medeiros

Chief Policy Officer

File this under “But OF COURSE They Would Say That”: Google got Nielsen to do a case study that found “…TV reach seems to drive YouTube engagement, and in turn, YouTube exposure drives TV reach.” Well, duh…..that sounds like the company line delivered by Youtube in conferences at least 3 years ago: I remember the presentations about how Disney’s Frozen had hugely benefitted from all the videos of little girls singing “Let It Go.” (whether they could sing or not.) And Google spokespeople continue to use the same example. I guess the line hasn’t changed in 3 years……. Another line-to-take is put forth in the recent “How Google Fights Piracy” report. Content ID will take the war on piracy to “unprecedented heights.” But…oh, there are naysayers. Like the British music industry, which says “Google hasn’t managed to implement a Content ID system that people can’t easily get around; of course the fact that Google refuses to remove YouTube videos that show you exactly how to circumvent Content ID doesn’t help.”

Member News

Additional News

Deep understanding of subscriber viewing behaviour with Kantar Media

Using the return path data (RPD) experience of Kantar Media allows MultiChoice and DStv Media Sales to understand their subscribers viewing behaviour and identify key customer segments, across markets in Africa.

Challenge

MultiChoice is the leading pay TV operator in sub-Saharan Africa, with DStv Media Sales responsible for commercial airtime sales and on-air sponsorship. With the TV environment in Africa becoming more competitive, both businesses require a deeper understanding of their audiences and their different requirements across multiple markets.

What we did

We began operating RPD panel services for MultiChoice and DStv Media Sales in 2010, and currently run services in South Africa, Angola, Kenya, Nigeria and Zambia, using subscriber viewing data directly from the set top boxes of DStv subscribers. The data sets are harmonised across countries to ensure consistent demographics enabling multi-country analyses to be carried out.

The result

This is a ground-breaking service for Africa where there is little by way of passive measurement and audience understanding. The audience data we deliver allows MultiChoice and DStv Media Sales to look at the viewing patterns of their subscribers in all of their major markets. The continuous data that is provided allows the sales, marketing, programming and commercial teams to analyse the impact of new channels or big events as they happen, segment the subscriber base and identify key life stages and attitudes to drive their content decisions.

Watch the first video below to hear Brenda Wortley, Head of Research & Audience Measurement at MultiChoice, explain how they are bringing together RPD data from both their linear and Video on Demand systems to create a single metric that works across every viewing type.

The second video below is an interview with Brenda and Aletta Alberts, Head of Content at Multichoice. Brenda and Aletta share insights from across their subscriber base across Africa and explain how the RPD data informs their decision making.

https://vimeo.com/176532701

https://vimeo.com/176537266

To find out more, please visit:

http://www.kantarmedia.com/return_path_data

Fox Brings To Singapore The Year’s Biggest Korean Blockbuster Films

Asia’s leading Pay-TV network has secured for SCM, its leading Chinese movies channel, first and exclusive rights to three record-breaking Korean box office hits.

Singapore, 1 September 2016 – FOX Networks Group (FNG) Asia today announced that it has acquired first and exclusive Pay TV rights to three record-breaking Korean blockbusters from Clover Films. Released this year, the trio of thrillers – The Wailing, Seoul Station and Train to Busan – will be made available to audiences in Singapore on SCM, and on-demand as well as online through the catch-up service, SCM Play.

The acquisition underscores FNG’s commitment to movie fans in Singapore and beyond by bringing the latest box office hits to local audiences more quickly, and to take quality Asian content to a broader global audience. It also reinforces FNG’s continuing efforts to strengthen the SCM brand, already the top movie channel in Singapore, as the undisputed leader in premium blockbuster content.

“The success of SCM has been its ability to be responsive to the changing appetites of the fans, while still staying true to its core promise of being the home of the biggest Asian blockbusters,” said Cora Yim, Senior Vice President, Chinese Entertainment at FOX Networks Group. “Through this agreement with Clover Films, fans will be able to enjoy some of this year’s hottest Korean films, first and exclusively on SCM.”
Train to Busan has sat on the top of the Singapore box office for weeks since it opened early last month, and is the highest-grossing Korean film in Singapore. The train-bound zombie thriller, directed by Sang-Ho Yeon (The King of Pigs) and starring Gong Yoo (Coffee Prince), looks set to become the top non-Chinese Asian film in Singapore.
Seoul Station is the animated prequel to Train to Busan, and is also directed by Yeon. Set to debut later this month, the film has already won critical acclaim and has been invited to a number of film festivals including Annecy, the New York Asian Film Festival, Fantasia and Sitges.
Rounding out the “thrilling threesome” is The Wailing, a Korean box office hit that made waves at the Cannes Film Festival and the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival this year. Produced by FOX International Pictures and distributed by Clover Films in Singapore, The Wailing is another indicator of international interest in Asian productions.

Lim Teck, Managing Director of Clover Films, said, “We are so proud to be collaborating with FNG on this exciting slate of Korean movies! We at Clover Films seek to bring the best Asian content to Singaporean audiences, and FNG has always been our best partner. We believe our Korean titles, especially the record breaking movie Train to Busan, will achieve great ratings for FNG channels!”
Train to Busan, Seoul Station and The Wailing will make their way to SCM in 2017. -End-
About FOX Networks Group

FOX Networks Group (FNG) is 21st Century FOX’s international multi-media business. We develop, produce and distribute 300+ wholly- and majority-owned entertainment, sports, factual and movie channels in 45 languages across Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa. FNG’s core channel brands include FOX, FOX Sports, FOX Life, FOX+ and National Geographic Channel. FNG’s movie channels include FOX Movies, FOX Movies Premium and SCM (formerly Star Chinese Movies). Our non-linear brands include FOX Play, FOX Play+ and Nat Geo Play. These networks and their related mobile, non-linear and high- definition extensions, reach over 1.825 billion cumulative households worldwide. In addition, FNG owns and operates two production studios and produces thousands of local programming hours for its wholly owned channels and third parties.

About SCM
SCM (衛視電影台) (formerly known as STAR Chinese Movies) is the No. 1 Chinese movie channel in Asia and is the premier destination for lovers of blockbuster Chinese cinema, with more than 1,000 titles in its film inventory. SCM is dedicated to providing first-run, premium content as well as cutting-edge advanced services. Premiering box-office hits from Hong Kong, Mainland China and Taiwan, SCM guarantees exclusives from top Chinese and Asian producers and major studios such as Emperor Motion Pictures, Media Asia, Pegasus and Fortune Star. In addition to hit movies, SCM also offers a powerful combination of live events, major concerts and acclaimed Asian documentaries in Cantonese or Mandarin with Chinese and English as well as Bahasa Indonesia and Thai subtitles. With this unrivalled content together with HD viewing, a VOD service and a market-leading online catch-up service called SCM Play, the channel provides an unmatched entertainment experience.

About Clover Films Pte Ltd
CLOVER FILMS PTE LTD was established in 2009 and specializes in the distribution and production of Asian movies, with an emphasis on the Singapore and Malaysia markets. It acquires and distributes quality movies
from all over the world for the markets of Singapore and Malaysia, and with the belief in its immense potential and talent, Clover Films also produces movies in collaboration with regional directors and producers.
A key player in the Singapore movie scene, Clover Films has, since its inception, distributed more than 100 movies, including the record-breaking Jackie Chan blockbuster CZ12, the highest-grossing Chinese movie (excluding local movies) in the history of Singapore and other high-profile movies such as Jay Chou’s The Viral Factor, John Woo’s Reign of Assassins and The Fierce Wife: Final Episode.
Clover Films also co-produced, distributed and marketed Jack Neo’s Ah Boys To Men I & II, which set an all-time record in 2013 for local movies in Singapore’s history, grossing a total of more than S$14 million at the local box office. Other quality home-grown movies produced include 23:59, The Wedding Diary I & II, Ghost Child, Filial Party and King of Mahjong.

For media inquiries, please contact:
FOX Networks Group Asia
Jason HO | Senior Manager, Marketing
Tel: +65 6809 3360 | Email: Jason.HoHan@fox.com

Ashlee ZHANG | Assistant Manager, Marketing
Tel: +65 6809 3362 | Email: Ashlee.zhang@fox.com

Clover Films Distribution Pte Ltd
Winnie TEO | Senior Manager, Marketing
Tel: +65 6841 0815 | Email: winnie@cloverfilms.com.sg

Telkom Group Launches the Innovation Services for Content and Advertising Industry in Indonesia

Jakarta, August 31st, 2016 – PT. Telekomunikasi Indonesia, Tbk (Telkom) through its subsidiary PT Multimedia Nusantara (TelkomMetra) with one of its business units, Metrasat, launch innovative service MediaHub to support content and advertising industry in Indonesia.

Based on the Broadcast Act no. 32 adopted in 2002 regarding the amount of local content and the content censorship and Indonesian Broadcasting Commission circular No. 345/2014 as well as Indonesian Broadcasting Commission Circular No. 2806/2014 and according to Broadcast Act No. 52 adopted in 2005, in relation to thes restriction of foreign commercial advertisement to show on the foreign channels, the time limit rules for TV commercials, and the sort of the ads. However a real solution badly needed by the content provider and advertising industry today.

“Telkom is offering an integrated solutions, not limited to telecommunication but also takes part as the platform that delivers value to content that is delivered through its main connectivity business. This is inline with Telkom’s mission to transfrom its business from Telco (Telecommunication Company) to become Digico (Digital Telco).” stated Director of Enterprise & Business Service Telkom Indonesia, Muhammad Awaluddin.

MediaHub is the first one to facilitate Content Providers, Advertising Agencies, Ministry of Communication and Informatics (Kominfo), the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI) and Pay TV Operators in developing safe and convenient contents, but will also support in a new way of generating revenue and cost efficiencies for content providers and Pay TV Operators. Supported by over than 20 years of experience in playout technology from SmartCast, MediaHub through Metrasat, provides practical solutions as content aggregation and distribution services to overcome the obstacles over content distribution and its monetization in Indonesia.

As a partner for the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission, MediaHub with its playout and Ad-insertion system enables the selected content in dedicated feed to comply the regulation of broadcasting in Indonesia and ready to distribute them in any required formats to pay TV operators. Through its plug and play system, MediaHub provides efficient process to be the only Pay TV Ad Network to supports content business and local productions.

“TelkomMetra focuses on adjacent business to support Telco Business. TelkomMetra’s believe that the growth of content industry will be significant in the years to come. But it needs the support from efficient aggregation and distribution. Therefore TelkomMetra will facilitate content industry in delivering conten effectively and efficiently yet comply with Indonesian regulations. We expect local content to grow even more and at the same time global content will still honor and support Indonesian culture”, TelkomMetra CEO, Teguh Wahyono said.

To confirm his supports, Christian Brenner, Founder and CEO of SmartCast Germany and PT SmartCast Indonesia said “SmartCast serves more than 160 TV channels in 15 countries around the world. We are delighted to be part of this very innovative and unique project in Indonesia. I hope many other countries in Asia will follow such a MediaHub model.”

Managing Director Metrasat, Bogi Witjaksono added “With its reliable background on connectivity technology and playout, MediaHub works closely with the Advertising Agency to provide cost-effective management solution to distribute content and traffic handling with advertising sales supports and operations as an added value for the content owners”

About TelkomMetra

TelkomMetra is a subsidiary strategic investment holding company owned by PT. Telekomunikasi Indonesia, Tbk (Telkom) in adjacent industries to telecommunication business. This company had successfully grown one of its business units, Metrasat.

Metrasat, a satellite based network providing VSAT service to more than 15,000 points across Indonesia with responsive, flexible and high quality services. Metrasat had rapidly expanding the business to Satellite Broadband, Content Network delivery and MediaHub.

For more info about Telkom Metra, please contact:

Sigit Adi Pramono
VP Corporate Affairs
PT. Multimedia Nusantara
sigitadi@metra.co.id
T : +62 21 521 0123
F : +62 21 521 0124

Star India’s Multi Screen Coverage of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Receives Thunderous Response from Sports Fans

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Star India’s highly engaging coverage across screens of the recently concluded Rio 2016 Olympic Games once again proves that when it comes to Sports, the broadcast network continues to set new global benchmarks in viewer experience and viewership numbers. The immersive and data rich experience backed by powerful visuals and marketing, has once again created history in terms of user delight, translating into the highest ever viewership of Olympics in India.

As the official television broadcaster in India, Star Sports brought the game alive and the Rio 2016 Olympic Games was bigger than ever before with an unprecedented 191mn* viewers tuning in to watch the games. Two out of every three viewers tuned in to watch the mega event on the Star Sports network, thus re-establishing its credentials as one of the leading sports networks in India capable of delivering national impact across geographies and demographics.

Hotstar, the exclusive digital streaming partner in India for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, on the other hand, which provided round the clock coverage of the games with 14 live streams for sports fans, established new online records. The digital platform attracted nearly 70 percent of the reach of television in affluent homes in the top 6 metros. The platform delivered an incremental reach of almost 10 million viewers in India with viewers streaming almost an hour of the Games during the two weeks, propelling Olympics into the top brackets of sporting events covered online.

The standout highlight of the tournament was when India came together to watch the thrilling badminton women’s singles final between PV Sindhu and Spain’s Carolina Marin. The grueling encounter garnered 17.2mn impressions*, making it the highest viewed TV programme on that day. It was also the highest rated non-cricket game on any Sports network since the inception of BARC. On Hotstar, more than 5 million viewers tuned in to watch the match live, unprecedented for any event outside of international cricket.

Nitin Kukreja, CEO, Star Sports said, “For us, it is a matter of pride that Star Sports is the destination network for multi sports consumption in the country. Our endeavour to build a multi sports ecosystem is being rewarded with audience interest and attention not just in cricket but even in other sports. We expect this to further gather momentum with the 2016 Kabaddi World Cup in Ahmedabad, the forthcoming season of the Indian Super League and the home cricket season for team India. Catering to the ever growing demands of the Television viewers and new-age digital sports fans, Star India’s unprecedented reach made the Rio 2016 Olympic Games the most epic sporting event in the history of viewing sports in India.”

Ajit Mohan, CEO, Hotstar says, “As the world celebrated its sports champions, Hotstar enabled an experience that was unprecedented for sports fans not just in India but anywhere in the world: free access to almost every single moment of the Olympics fans with big moments being curated and showcased on the platform round the clock. Olympics allowed us to showcase our mission of building India’s most exciting content destination on demand.”

Star Sports had given unprecedented coverage to the Olympics with multiple channels devoted to Olympics broadcast. Further, it launched a highly appreciated campaign #IsseBadaKuchNahi focused on the stature of the Olympics as well as the medal prospects from India.

Star Sports, which has some of the most premier sporting properties in its portfolio, has been assiduously creating a multi-sport ecosystem in India. In 2016, from the ICC World T20 to Seasons 3 & 4 of Pro Kabaddi to the recently concluded Olympics, new benchmarks have been set with each of these events delivering in excess of 175 million* audiences at an all India level (Source: BARC). Further in the year ahead, Star Sports has an enviable multi-sport calendar coming up, consisting of 2016 Kabaddi World Cup in Ahmedabad, the international cricket season at home for team India and the Indian Super League.

Hotstar, having already established itself as the premier digital sports destination in India, offered the widest possible coverage of all 42 sports with over 3000 hours of live coverage on the web, and 14+ streams running on the app all day. Its communication was focused on the massive choice it offered sports fans, with access to every moment of the Olympics and the convenience of watching live games or catching up on big performances any time of the day.

*Source: BARC, CS 4+ Urban

About Star Sports

Home to a number of leading domestic and International sports, the Star Sports network with ten channels broadcasts premier sporting events which include cricket coverage under the purview of the International Cricket Council (ICC), Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Cricket Australia, England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Asian Cricket Council (ACC); Pro Kabaddi; Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL); the Hero Indian Super League (ISL), Premier League, Bundesliga; Badminton World Federation (BWF) events, Premier Badminton League (PBL); Hockey India League (HIL); Formula 1; Wimbledon, The French Open and International Premier Tennis League.

About Hotstar

Hotstar is India’s largest premium streaming platform offering more than 85,000 hours of drama and movies in 8 languages, and coverage of every major global sporting event. Launched in February 2015, it has been downloaded by more than 72 million users and has attracted followers on the back of a highly evolved video streaming technology and high attention to quality of experience across devices and platforms.

Soon after its launch, Hotstar raced on to become one of the fastest adopted new apps anywhere in the world. Hotstar offers most of its content free of cost and recently introduced a pay wall that provides some of the most popular international TV series and films for a monthly subscription fee of Rs. 199.
Media Contact Details
Aziz Khan, MSLGROUP, ,+91-9869692946 , aziz.khan@mslgroup.com

Sony Pictures To Acquire Ten Sports From Zee

Mumbai, August 31, 2016 – Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN) today announced that SPN and its affiliates have entered into definitive agreements to acquire TEN Sports Network from Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEE) and its subsidiaries for 385 million U.S. dollars. Completion of the acquisition is subject to regulatory approval. The acquisition will add South Asia’s leading sports network to SPN’s existing portfolio of channels.
The TEN Sports channels being acquired include TEN 1, TEN 1 HD, TEN 2, TEN 3, TEN Golf HD, TEN Cricket, TEN Sports that operate in several countries including the Indian sub-continent, Maldives, Singapore, Hong Kong, Middle East, Caribbean.
TEN Sports holds broadcast rights to major cricket boards (South Africa, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, West Indies and Zimbabwe). In addition, Ten Sports holds rights to wrestling (WWE), football (UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, French League, English Football League Cup), tennis (WTA Events, ATP events), golf (European Tour, Asian Tour, Ryder Cup, US PGA Championship, LPGA Tour, Professional Golf Tour of India and Golf Channel Block), athletics (Asian Games, Commonwealth Games), motor sports (Moto GP) and cycling (Tour de France) events.
Long a television destination for sports fans, SPN sports properties include cricket (IPL, CPL, Ram Slam), football (FIFA 2018 World Cup Russia, UEFA Euro 2016, FIFA World Events including FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017 in India, European and South American Qualifiers for FIFA WC 2018, FIFA Confederations Cup, LaLiga, Serie A, FA Cup, Copa America Centenario, International Champions Cup), tennis (Australian Open, ATP 1000 and 500 World Tour Events, Champions Tennis League), fight sports (TNA, UFC, Pro Wrestling League), basketball (NBA) as well as NFL and Premier Futsal.

Comments

NP Singh, CEO, Sony Pictures Networks India:
“I welcome TEN Sports to the Sony family. The acquisition of TEN Sports Network will strengthen SPN’s offering for viewers of cricket, football and fight sports, complementing our existing portfolio of international and domestic sporting properties. It also aptly demonstrates SPN’s commitment to providing a broad range of sporting entertainment to fans across India and the sub-continent.”
Andy Kaplan, President, Worldwide Networks, Sony Pictures Television:
“India has been a strong driver of Sony Pictures’ growing networks business for two decades, and sports continue to play a significant role in that growth. The acquisition of TEN Sports, following the launch of SONY ESPN channels, will mean that our Indian networks would reach over 800 million viewers and broadcast many of the most popular and prestigious sporting events in the world.”
Punit Goenka, Managing Director, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEE):

“This is a landmark deal for ZEE and a step towards a strategic portfolio shuffle as we grow our general entertainment business both in the domestic and overseas markets. While we have grown our sports business over the last 10 years through acquisition of content at competitive prices, our focus now is on transforming ourselves into an all-round media and content company, comprising of five verticals, viz. broadcast, digital, films, live events, and international business; and we continue to move rapidly
towards our set business goals. While I have always been proud of our sports business, I strongly believe that Sony will add more value to it by taking it to even greater heights. I wish them all the success.”

About Sony Pictures Networks India

Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN) (formerly Multi Screen Media Private Ltd.), is a subsidiary of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which owns and operates the Sony Entertainment network of television channels.
As a leading television network in India, SPN comprises Sony Entertainment Television (SET), one of India’s leading Hindi general entertainment television channels; MAX, India’s premium Hindi movies and special events channel; MAX 2, a second Hindi movie channel showcasing great Indian Cinema; SAB, a family comedy entertainment channel; PIX, the English movie channel; AXN, the leader amongst English Entertainment Channels; AATH, the Bangla movie channel; MIX, a refreshing Hindi music channel; SIX, a sports channel ; SONY ESPN, the group of sports entertainment channels; LIV, the Digital Entertainment Channel; and SPN’s Motion Pictures division, formerly MSM Motion Pictures.
Sony Pictures Networks India is in its 21st year in India.

About Sony Pictures Television Networks

Sony Pictures Television Networks operates branded entertainment channels reaching over one billion households around the world. Based in Culver City, Budapest, London, Madrid, Miami, Milan, Moscow, Mumbai, Munich, Singapore and Tokyo, Sony’s linear and digital networks offer high-quality film and television content from Sony Pictures and third parties, as well as original content commissioned globally and locally. Sony Pictures Television Networks is a division of Sony Pictures Television Inc., a Sony Pictures Entertainment company.

About Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEE)

Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited is one of India’s leading television media and entertainment companies. It is amongst the largest producers and aggregators of Hindi programming in the world, with an extensive library housing over 222,000 hours of television content. With rights to more than 3,818 movie titles from foremost studios and of iconic film stars, ZEE houses the world’s largest Hindi film library. Through its strong presence worldwide, ZEE entertains over 1 billion viewers across 171 countries.

Media Contacts
Humsa Dhir, SVP & Head, PR & Corp Communications, SPN; +91 22 6701171, humsa.dhir@setindia.com
Jayshree Kumar, DVP, Corporate Communications, ZEE; +91 22 71061367, jayshree.kumar@zee.esselgroup.com
Robert Lawson, Corporate Communications, SPE (USA); +1 310.244.4020; robert_lawson@spe.sony.com

Eutelsat renews its commitment to Télécoms Sans Frontières

New telecom centre opened by TSF in Macedonia

Ten years of supporting emergency connectivity solutions around the world
Paris, 30 August 2016 – Eutelsat Communications (NYSE Euronext Paris: ETL), one of the leading global satellite operators, and Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF), a unique NGO specialising in emergency telecommunications, have renewed their partnership agreement initiated in 2007. The extension of the agreement and future collaboration was discussed today at Eutelsat’s Paris HQ by Rodolphe Belmer, Eutelsat CEO, Jean-François Cazenave, TSF Chairman and Monique Lanne-Petit, TSF Director.

TSF: active in more than 70 countries for over 800 humanitarian organisations

Based in Pau, France, and also operating from bases in Mexico and Thailand, TSF is a non-governmental organisation dedicated to facilitating critical communications services in emergency situations when terrestrial networks are disenabled, and also to providing links in extremely remote areas. Within 24 hours of a crisis TSF can be on the scene anywhere in the world to set up telecommunications centres and the IT equipment required for crisis units, with satellite at the core of the robust technologies deployed. Since its foundation in 1998, TSF has intervened in more than 70 countries, supporting the work of over 800 humanitarian organisations.

Ten years of partnership

The solid partnership nurtured with Eutelsat over almost 10 years enables TSF to leverage the satellite resources and technology of a global operator to establish resilient and immediately available connectivity in areas requiring disaster relief.

Eutelsat’s support of TSF’s missions has stepped up with the migration crisis in Europe and the Middle East. In order to meet increased need for connectivity by humanitarian organisations working in the field, including Save the Children, UNICEF, Médecins Sans Frontières and Oxfam, a dozen satellite dishes have been set up in seven refugee centres in Greece, Serbia and Macedonia. Satellite broadband terminals that are easily transported by air and set up on-site in just a few minutes have enabled more effective information-sharing between NGOs and improved cooperation with stakeholders further afield.

About Eutelsat Communications

Established in 1977, Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris: ETL, ISIN code: FR0010221234) is one of the world’s leading and most experienced operators of communications satellites. The company provides capacity on 39 satellites to clients that include broadcasters and broadcasting associations, pay-TV operators, video, data and Internet service providers, enterprises and government agencies.

Eutelsat’s satellites provide ubiquitous coverage of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Americas, enabling video, data, broadband and government communications to be established irrespective of a user’s location.

Headquartered in Paris, with offices and teleports around the globe, Eutelsat represents a workforce of 1,000 men and women from 37 countries who are experts in their fields and work with clients to deliver the highest quality of service.

For more about Eutelsat please visit www.eutelsat.com

Press
Vanessa O’Connor Tel: + 33 1 53 98 37 91 voconnor@eutelsat.com
Marie-Sophie Ecuer Tel: + 33 1 53 98 37 91 mecuer@eutelsat.com
Violaine du Boucher Tel: + 33 1 53 98 37 91 vduboucher@eutelsat.com

Investors and analysts
Joanna Darlington Tel. : +33 1 53 98 35 30 jdarlington@eutelsat.com
Cédric Pugni Tel. : +33 1 53 98 35 30 cpugni@eutelsat.com

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About Telecoms sans Frontières

Founded in 1998, Télécoms Sans Frontières is the leading NGO specialised in emergency telecommunications and new technologies for humanitarian response. From the onset of a humanitarian crisis or emergency, TSF deploys telecom specialists from its headquarters or from one of its regional bases in less than 24 hours. Its mandate focuses on providing access to information for those affected by humanitarian crises such as refugees and victims of natural disasters as well as reconnecting families through the provision of priority voice or internet connectivity. At the heart of the crisis, TSF teams also install emergency communication centres for aid agencies that strengthen aid coordination by providing relief organisations, UN agencies and local authorities with Internet, phone lines and technical assistance. Télécoms Sans Frontières is part of the United Nations Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) and a partner of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). In addition, TSF is a consultative member of the UN Working Group on Emergency Telecommunications (WGET) and the Directorate General of Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection of the European Commission (ECHO). Within the framework of these operational partnerships, TSF is regularly called upon to provide training for international aid agencies in the use of emergency telecommunications for humanitarian response.

For more information about TSF
tsfi.org
Tel: +33 5 59 84 43 60
communication@tsfi.org

Celestial Tiger Entertainment Launches Miao Mi in Singapore on Mediacorp’s Toggle and Singtel TV’s Cast

Hong Kong (August 31, 2016) – Celestial Tiger Entertainment (CTE), operator of the largest bouquet of pan-Asian channels dedicated to Asian entertainment, announced today the launch of CTE’s kids channel Miao Mi in Singapore on Mediacorp’s Over-The-Top (OTT) service, Toggle, and Singtel TV’s new OTT service, Cast. Miao Mi, the Mandarin edutainment channel created for preschool kids across Asia, is now available on Toggle’s Prime pack, and will be launched on Cast’s Kids pack starting September 1. Singapore is the second market for Miao Mi, following its initial launch in Indonesia this January.

“We are elated to introduce Miao Mi to Singapore with the full support from two prevalent OTT services backed by two Singaporean media powerhouses,” said Ofanny Choi, Executive Vice President, TV Networks, Celestial Tiger Entertainment. “Given the growing importance of Mandarin, and the desire of most parents to have their kids exposed to multiple languages, we believe Miao Mi offers great value for Singaporean families. Preschool kids, and their parents, can enjoy Miao Mi’s high quality children’s programming on various devices while practicing their Mandarin.”

Targeted at children aged 3 – 6, Miao Mi aims to help kids in Singapore learn Mandarin in a fun and engaging way. The channel is carefully curated with programmes that entertain, educate and empower kids with a unique Asian perspective. The programming mix includes first and exclusive animated and live-action series, as well as family movies. These programs come from leading children’s content providers, primarily from China, Korea and Japan, and are all dubbed in Mandarin. Miao Mi also features its own show, Miao Mi Classroom, which is hosted by the channel mascot and uses animated flash cards and catchy songs to facilitate Mandarin language-learning.

$Math Fun with Ria$
Math Fun with Ria

Peet, The Forest Detective

Some of the first and exclusive programs premiering on Miao Mi include: two programs produced by Korea’s preeminent educational broadcaster EBS – Peet, The Forest Detective, a series centered around the theme of nature and Math Fun with Ria, an animated series teaching preschoolers mathematical fundamentals; Peek-a-boo, from Japan’s public broadcaster NHK, a live-action series designed to inspire kids’ curiosity through interesting visuals and sounds; and Pleasant Goat Fun Class, an educational series focused on sports and animals featuring well-known animated characters from the Pleasant Goat franchise.

Miao Mi is available as a linear channel and a subscription VOD service through Toggle and Cast.

– END –

Media Contact:

Pauline Poon

Celestial Tiger Entertainment

T: 852 2239 6131

E: pauline.poon@celestialtiger.com

About Celestial Tiger Entertainment

CELESTIAL TIGER ENTERTAINMENT (CTE) is a leading independent media company dedicated to entertaining audiences in Asia and beyond. The company creates and distributes branded pay television channels and services targeted at Asian consumers.

CTE operates a powerful bouquet of distinct pay television services including: CELESTIAL MOVIES, the premier 24-hour first-run Chinese movie channel in Asia and beyond; CELESTIAL CLASSIC MOVIES, the world’s most-widely distributed Chinese movie channel with an unparalleled array of Chinese movie masterpieces; CELESTIAL MOVIES PINOY, the Chinese movie channel that is programmed, dubbed and promoted specifically to Filipino viewers; cHK, the Chinese entertainment channel offering the latest Hong Kong and other Asian blockbuster movies, alongside highly-anticipated Chinese dramas and series; KIX, the ultimate destination for action entertainment; KIX 360, the dedicated Over-The-Top (OTT) linear feed for KIX; MIAO MI, the Mandarin “Edutainment” channel created for preschool kids across Asia; THRILL, Asia’s only regional horror, thriller and suspense movie channel; and THRILL 360, the dedicated Over-The-Top (OTT) linear feed for THRILL. All of CTE’s channel brands are available as linear, on-demand and over-the-top services. CTE also produces original production for its bouquet of channels.

Headquartered in Hong Kong, CTE’s majority shareholders are Saban Capital Group, a leading private investment firm specializing in the media, entertainment and communications industries; Celestial Pictures, a diversified Asian entertainment company owned by Astro Overseas Limited; and Lionsgate, the world’s largest independent filmed entertainment studio.

For more information, please visit www.celestialtiger.com

2016 “MTV Video Music Awards” Winners and Performances

Beyoncé’s “Formation” wins “Video of the year”

“Lemonade” Takes Home Eight Moonmen in Total; BEYONCÉ Recreates Groundbreaking Visual Album with Surprise Performance

Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award Winner Rihanna Electrifies Madison Square Garden with Career-Spanning Four-Act Performance

Tweet it: 2016 @MTV Video Music Awards winners are out! @beyonce’s “Formation” wins “Video of the Year” #VMA

SINGAPORE, 29 AUGUST 2016 – Beyoncé’s groundbreaking visual album “Lemonade” won eight Moonmen, including “Video of the Year” for “Formation,” at the 2016 “MTV Video Music Awards,” which aired live this morning from New York’s famed Madison Square Garden. The global megastar surprised the audience with a jaw-dropping “Lemonade” medley that recreated the stunning imagery of the visual album. Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award-winner Rihanna dazzled with a career-spanning four-act performance – including an electrifying opening dance medley and a trio of stirring ballads to close – before accepting the VMAs highest honor with a heartfelt tribute by Drake. A repeat telecast of the 2016 “MTV Video Music Awards” will air on MTV tonight at 8pm (WIB), 9pm (SG/PH), 10pm (MY). The show will air on MTV LIVE HD on Tuesday, 30 August at 7.30pm (TH/WIB) and 8.30pm (HK/MY/PH/SG).

Britney Spears made a triumphant return to the VMA stage with a soaring performance of her G-Eazy collaboration “Make Me…” Kanye West made a special appearance to deliver a meditation on fame before introducing the steamy and surreal video for “Fade,” starring actress and GOOD Music recording artist Teyana Taylor and her fiancée, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Iman Shumpert. Future tore through a blistering performance of his 2015 hit “F**k Up Some Commas,” after being introduced by legendary Olympian Michael Phelps, who revealed he’d been listening to Future in the meme-launching photo of him in Rio.

Photos and videos may be obtained from HERE

The following is a complete list of winners and performances:

WINNERS

VIDEO OF THE YEAR

Beyoncé – “Formation”

Director: Melina Matsoukas

MICHAEL JACKSON VIDEO VANGUARD AWARD

Rihanna

BEST FEMALE VIDEO

Beyoncé – “Hold Up”

Director: Jonas Åkerlund, Beyoncé Knowles Carter

BEST MALE VIDEO

Calvin Harris ft. Rihanna – “This Is What You Came For”

Director: Emil Nava

BEST COLLABORATION

Fifth Harmony ft. Ty Dolla $ign – “Work From Home”

Director: Director X

BEST HIP HOP VIDEO

Drake – “Hotline Bling”

Director: Director X

BEST POP VIDEO

Beyoncé – “Formation”

Director: Melina Matsoukas

BEST ROCK VIDEO

twenty one pilots – “Heathens”

Director: Andrew Donoho

BEST ELECTRONIC VIDEO

Calvin Harris & Disciples – “How Deep Is Your Love”

Director: Emil Nava

BREAKTHROUGH LONG-FORM VIDEO

Beyoncé – Lemonade

BEST NEW ARTIST

Presented by Taco Bell®

DNCE

SONG OF SUMMER

Presented by Verizon

Fifth Harmony featuring Fetty Wap – “All In My Head (Flex)”

PROFESSIONAL CATEGORIES

Presented by Orbit® Gum

BEST ART DIRECTION

David Bowie – “Blackstar”

Production Designer: Jan Houllevigue

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY

Beyoncé – “Formation”

Choreographer: Chris Grant, JaQuel Knight, Dana Foglia

BEST DIRECTION

Beyoncé – “Formation”

Director: Melina Matsoukas

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Beyoncé – “Formation”

Cinematographer: Malik Sayeed

BEST EDITING

Beyoncé – “Formation”

Editor: Jeff Selis

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Coldplay – “Up&Up”

VFX Editor: Vania Heymann

PERFORMANCES

RIHANNA

Dance

“Don’t Stop the Music”

“Only Girl in the World”

“We Found Love”

“Where Have You Been”

Reggae

“Rude Boy”

“What’s My Name”

“Work”

Trap

“Needed Me”

“Pour It Up”

“Bitch Better Have My Money”

Ballad

“Stay”

“Diamonds”

“Love on the Brain”

ARIANA GRANDE & NICKI MINAJ – “Side to Side”

BRITNEY SPEARS FT. G-EAZY – “Make Me”

NICK JONAS FT. TY DOLLA $IGN – “Bacon”

FUTURE – “F*ck Up Some Commas”

Beyoncé

“Pray You Catch Me”

“Hold Up”

“Sorry”

“Don’t Hurt Yourself”

“Formation”

KANYE WEST – Special presentation including world premiere video for “Fade”

Jesse Ignjatovic/Den of Thieves is the Executive Producer for the 2016 “MTV Video Music Awards.” Garrett English, Erik Flannigan, Sandy Alouete, Lee Lodge and Jen Jones are Executive Producers. Garrett English also serves as Executive in Charge of Production for MTV. Hamish Hamilton is Director. Wendy Plaut is Executive in Charge of Celebrity Talent.

Want to stay in tune with all things VMA? Follow us on Instagram, Twitter andFacebook and check out the official 2016 VMA Playlist from MTV & Spotify atspotify.com/VMA.

Official sponsors of the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards include: Orbit® Gum, PANTENE®, PEPSI®, Samsung, Taco Bell®, Trojan™ Brand Condoms, truth®, TWIX® and Verizon.

About MTV

MTV is the world’s biggest youth entertainment brand. With a global reach of nearly 785 million households, MTV is the cultural home of the millennial generation, music fans and artists, and a pioneer in creating innovative programming for young people. MTV reflects and creates pop culture with its award-winning content built around compelling storytelling, music discovery and activism across TV, online and mobile. Outside of the United States, MTV is part of Viacom International Media Networks, a division of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAB, VIA), one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all platforms. For more information about MTV in Asia, visit www.mtvasia.com.

Media Contacts

Loh Bi Feng

Manager, Communications, Southeast Asia

t: +65 6420 7154 m: +65 9002 9607

e: loh.bifeng@vimn.com

Twitter: @VIMNAsia_PR

Raemier Francis

Assistant, Communications, Southeast Asia

t: +65 6420 7260

e: raemier.francis@vimnmix.com

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