Macau Court Whacks Government
Over Cable Piracy

A Macau appeals court was highly critical of government inaction over the continuing problem of cable piracy by the “antenna companies” servicing most of the SAR’s apartment buildings. Read the whole story here

Meet the Decoders @ CASBAA Convention 2011

From across Asia and around the world, meet the global decision-makers at the CASBAA Convention 2011 including Blair Westlake (Microsoft),Tony Maddox (CNN International) and Jeff Shell (NBCUniversal International). For more speakers, click here

The Digital North

Digital pay-TV services across North Asia are set to continue their recent growth patterns. Read the full article in the upcoming issue of Connections. For more data, visit here

New Push for Broadcast Treaty

The World Intellectual Property Organization is trying again to push ahead with negotiation of a treaty to provide international copyright protection for Broadcasting Organizations. More information can be found here (for CASBAA members only) 

The Digital Content (R)Evolution

CASBAA’s Connected Media & Mobility Group presented a members’ only Digital Roundtable with Anthony Zameczkowski, Head of Youtube Partnerships. Hispresentation is available for CASBAA members. View photos from the event here

Protecting Satellites

An insightful broadcast industry brief on the importance of protecting spectrum access for satellite services. Viewhere

In the News

CASBAA keeps you up-to-date on issues affecting the multichannel TV industry.

• MCMC: Request for proposal for digital terrestrial TV broadcasting out soon. More

• Tom Rogers of Tivo: internet-connected TV hasn’t been able to compete with traditional cable companies yet because the technology is still clunky. More

• CTAM: Video app usage boosts viewer engagement. More

• Online-video providers are scrambling to get content to Asian Internet users. More

• Clearing pay-TV hurdles in emerging markets. More

Protecting the Digital Environment

CASBAA recently submitted recommendations to Hong Kong’s Legislative Council on the Copyright Amendment legislation. Read the full letter here

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Vietnam: Keeping Communications Open

CASBAA provided information to Vietnamese authorities on licensing procedures in regional uplink centers used by CASBAA member channels. View the full document here

CASBAA Birthday Party – Hong Kong

Industry leaders celebrate CASBAA’s 20th birthday at Azure. Who was here?

Highlights of our Singapore party can be watched here

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CASBAA Convention 2011: TV365 – Watch Closely!

Be at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong from the 31st Oct to 3rd Nov for TV365. Industry leaders will explore and inform how the pay TV industry is evolving. Preliminary programme available here

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CASBAA Cares Needs You!

Make a difference to the lives of 5,000 children in Masbate in the Philippines by donating to this precious cause. More information here 

Regulating Pay-TV Rates

Retail rates for Pay TV are frequently debated by regulators and governments. To shed new light on this issue, CASBAA has produced an up-to-date “Fact sheet” describing rate regulation practices across Asia.
See the Fact Sheet on rate regulation here

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A “six strikes” copyright plan

Major US Internet providers have signed on to a voluntary agreement with movie and music businesses to crack down on online copyright infringers.More

Pay-TV Matters

Designed by advertising agency TBWA, ATAC’s sleek, new, flash-based presentation promotes the power of advertising on pay TV. View it here

In the News

CASBAA keeps you up-to-date on issues affecting the multichannel TV industry.

• TrueVisions has announced an expansion of high-definition services in a bid to broaden its subscriber base. More

• Singapore’s pay-TV landscape set for change under MDA’s cross-carriage measure. More

• Digital TV Research forecasts that the number of homes paying for IPTV will rocket to 155 million by end-2016. More

• A new video-on-demand gadget with multiple benefits is expected to improve Hollywood and the cable biz alike. More

Vietnam’s New Pay-TV Regs

Vietnam’s Ministry of Information and Communications invited CASBAA and member channels to a meeting to discuss new pay-TV regulations. Members can download a full summary here.
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Satellite Up Across Asia

Experts and industry leaders across Asia and the world were in Singapore to explore the state of the satellite industry in the region. For a full recap of the Forum, click here.

CASBAA Convention 2011: TV365 – Watch Closely!

Taking place from 31 Oct – 3 Nov at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, this year’s event explores TV in the myriad ways it can be experienced: 365 days a year…in over 365 million multichannel TV homes throughout Asia…on a full 360° range of platforms and devices.
More info here

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Content Coalition Against “Rogue Sites”

CASBAA and other members of the Coalition Against Online Video Piracy wrote to leaders of the US Senate Judiciary Committee urging passage of the “Protect IP” Act of 2011. Read the letter here

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Warns of International Repercussions

CASBAA urges Australia to avoid C-band for mobile broadband, as to do so will contribute to jeopardizing essential C-band communication services across a wide swathe of Australia’s neighbouring countries. Read the document here.

In the News

CASBAA keeps you up-to-date on the issues affecting the industry today. Some of the hot topics affecting our industry:

• Global pay-TV revenues reached $155 billion in 2010 and about 338 million digital homes were added globally between 2006 and 2010, according to a new report. More

• Top cable TV executives disputed suggestions that they are in danger of losing their connection with consumers because of the rise of digital technologies. More

• China’s IPTV market revenue is set to grow at a CAGR of 38% from 2012 to 2014. More

• Thousands of Malaysians joined an online protest against a government effort to block access to 10 popular websites often used to download movies, television shows and music illegally.More

CASBAA heads to Hanoi

CASBAA is organizing a delegation of industry leaders to meet with Vietnamese authorities in mid-June to seek clarification on a number of the unclear provisions in Vietnam’s new pay-TV regulations. More
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Quelling the C-Band Invasion

CASBAA and its members are fighting back against the C-band invasion by other groups including wireless broadband systems. More
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CASBAA Singapore Satellite Industry Forum
20 June 2011, Shangri-La Hotel Singapore

What is the future of satellite and where is the industry headed? Don’t miss the Satellite Industry Forum on 20 June.
Register now!

Twenty years ago on 28 May 1991 saw the founding of Asia’s multichannel TV industry group CASBAA. Looking ahead CASBAA lines up events and initiatives to ensure that the Association will continue to be a vital force in the region. More

In the Beginning

Click here for an overview of the first 20 years of CASBAA.

Who was at the Singapore Birthday Bash?

For its 20th anniversary, CASBAA held a special celebration in Singapore at the Pierside. Click here to see who was at the party.

Win an iPad2 with CASBAA mobile!

CASBAA’s mobile site provides multichannel TV industry information on the move. Visit www.casbaa.com with your mobile to win an iPad 2.

ATAC Reboot

Wrapped in an updated, easy to navigate interface, the revamped ATAC website provides all the essential information and resources to boost subscription TV ad revenue in Asia

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Google Fights IP Legislation

The “Protect IP Act of 2011” is designed to fight online infringements of intellectual property but Google, for one, has said it will fight the legislation. More

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Pulling the Plug on Online Sports Piracy

An India-based IP expert provides an analysis of challenges facing broadcasters as online piracy gets better, faster and more widespread. More

Whats making news?

Some hot topics in the news affecting our industry:

• China announces a new agency to take charge of the regulations and restrictions on the internet industry. More

• New US bill to criminalize illegal TV streaming. More

• The Indian Government mulls amendments in laws to crackdown on illegal TV channels with provision of imprisonment. More

• The I&B ministry has “broadly” agreed to increase the foreign direct investment (FDI) limit for broadcast carriage services to 74%. More

• “Is Content Still King?” What do Jeff Bewkes (Time Warner), Leslie Moonves (CBS) and Rob Wiesenthal (Sony) say about the business.More

“Open Access” Better than “Cross Carriage”

CASBAA recommends an “open access” alternative to the MDA proposed “cross-carriage” system in Singapore. More

CASBAA Connects with Digital Matters
24-25 May 2011, The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore

Navigate your brand and optimize your content in today’s converging world at the CASBAA
“Connected Media” discussion. Special rates for CASBAA Members.Register here!
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CASBAA Singapore Satellite Industry Forum
20 June 2011, Shangri-La Hotel Singapore

Global satellite industry leaders take to the CASBAA stage including Dave McGlade (Intelsat),
Romain Bausch (SES) and many more top names.
Register now!

All Eyes on CASBAA

Switch on to casbaa.com/video – the visual resource for the Asian multichannel TV market

CASBAA Sizzler 2011	Taxability of Foreign Satellite Operators in India	Thai PM endorses the power of Pay-TV
Star Movie	Al Jazeera	CI
HBO	TrueVisions	Animal Planet

Papers and Reports

WAG gets Working:

The CASBAA Wireless Action Group (WAG) publishes several briefing papers on protecting the satellite usage of
C-band. More

Spending Behaviour

The fifth annual survey of Media Atlas data from Synovate reveals the lifestyles, attitudes, spending, media and digital habits of pay-TV subscribers from Hong Kong & the Philippines.

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Indonesia Pay-TV 2011

Get the latest year-in-review snapshot of the Indonesian pay-TV market and find out what lies ahead this year. More

Vietnam’s Pay-TV Regulations

In late March, the Vietnamese government approved new requirements for international pay-TV channels. Read CASBAA’s translation of the regulations here.

In The News

• The $7.5-billion Changhong Group is considering a joint venture company to manufacture set-top boxes in India. More

• VOD has established itself rapidly as a mainstay in pay-TV homes and will become an even faster growing entity for providers as it integrates over the top streams. More

• The Supreme Court raises rates for DTH operators in India. More

CASBAA Supports Future Leadership

Marketing and Communication Master students from the University Pantheon Assas Paris 2 in France will be undertaking a study tour in Hong Kong and Shanghai from May 28 to June 4.

During this trip, the school is looking to arrange meetings with television companies in Hong Kong on Tuesday May 31 to educate students about the television business in the Asian region.

Companies interested in doing a presentation to these students should contact Mr Philippe Legendre at philippelegendre@irep.asso.fr;
Tél. +331 45 63 71 73; Mob. +336 16 90 13 83

Keeping Thailand in View

CASBAA kicked-off the New Year by keeping Thailand in View! With estimated cable and satellite ad billings to be worth over US$110million (nearly 3.5 billion baht) at the close of 2010, Thailand’s broadcasting industry deserves a closer look.

On January 20th, CASBAA, in association with the Satellite Television Association of Thailand (STAT), presented the Thailand in View seminar in Bangkok with a full roster of influential speakers, including the Prime Minister of Thailand, discussing the country’s broadcasting business today and what lies ahead for its future. The forum, attracting some 200 delegates, speakers and media, offered valuable insights across a variety of subjects including the widening reach of cable and satellite TV, rising ad spend and the exponential growth of free-to-air satellite TV.

For more of the tools you need to do business in Thailand, please visit ourATAC site.

The full Thailand in View country report is available soon.  For a sneak peek of the report, click here.

Regulatory

Vietnam on the spot
CASBAA takes aim

Controversy has continued to swirl over sports rights in Vietnam. Recent weeks have been marked by a major petition campaign against the migration of soccer games from free-TV to pay-TV, and the announcement of signature of a 20-year exclusive broadcasting deal for Vietnam’s domestic football V-League with pay-TV newcomer AVG. Meanwhile, CASBAA has been active in conveying to the Vietnam government the pay-TV industry’s view that exclusive content is an important part of the business model for a growing industry. The most recent set of CASBAA letters and papers can be downloaded from the CASBAA website Member Zone.

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The dangers of A La Carte

Singapore’s Straits Times newspaper published an Op-Ed column talking about the perils of mandating by regulation the break-up of pay-TV bundles and market-determined commercial offerings. The article is an unusually clear discussion of some of the key issues affecting the pay-TV industry.Read more.

Market News

Traditional media need to be on their toes amid shift to digital, social networking and cable TV. Read more.

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With the Cricket World Cup in the offing, authorities in the UAE have threatened fines against individuals using smuggled set-top boxes and smartcards to view Indian DTH services. Read more.

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A research group has come out with the list of 10 key technologies that will greatly impact the technology world in 2011. Read more.

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Taiwan’s National Communications Commission is proposing legislation to bring about more competition in the cable-TV industry and eliminate the current monopoly enjoyed within service areas by individual cable providers.Read more.

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The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is preparing to publish a consultation paper on 4G, even as the service providers have still not fulfilled their obligations relating to 3G and 2G which have run into controversies.Read more.