The three-month American Writers Guild strike took a heavy toll on many Asian broadcasters, forcing them to run repeats, delay the launches of some series and otherwise rejig their schedules. Now that the supply of US programming is flowing again, the outlook among the Hollywood studios and the region’s channels is optimistic in the lead-up to the LA Screenings. Apart, that is, from the spill-over effects of the financial shocks in the US, particularly in US-sensitive territories such as the Philippines. Asian buyers polled by Television Asia Plus indicated their willingness to buy as much- if not more- US programming in 2008 as last year, depending, of course, on its perceived appeal in local markets, and the pricing. In April, the Asian Development Bank forecast that Asian economies, excluding Japan, will expand by an average of 7.6% this year, down from a two-decade high of 8.7% in 2007. “Asia will not be immune to the global slowdown, neither will it be hostage to it,” said the Manila-based bank’s chief economist Ifzal Ali. “It remains tied to global activity through traditional trade channels, and increasingly, through its closer integration in international financial markets.” The ADB expects China’s economy to grow by 10% (versus 11.4% last year) and India to cool slightly to 8%, down from 8.7%. On the upside, Ali said Asia’s economic modernization and structural transformation will continue to keep the region on a strong growth path—which jells with the US studios’ bullish outlook for their business in the region. “Economic downturn will always have an effect on business in general. With that said, we are very positive about the TV business in Asia. With the Beijing Olympics and the continued growth of channels and platforms, we project a very healthy year ahead,” says Ross Pollack, senior vice president, distribution, Asia, Sony Pictures Television International. Similarly upbeat is Barry Chamberlain, senior vice president, sales, at CBS Paramount International Television, who says, “We’re very positive about our potential throughout Asia due to the influx of new channels on both a pan-regional and local basis. With the breadth and depth of our content in all genres and a library of more than 70,000 hours, we’re poised to be able to offer any new platform exactly what they are looking for.” At 20th Century Fox Television Distribution, Richard Samuels, senior VP & managing director Asia Pacific, maintains: “We don’t foresee any downturn in the next 12 months. There’s no talk of any slowdown in China or India. We’re seeing the biggest percentage growth in India, and Korea is still strong. Also, the weakness of the US dollar means our programming has become more competitive.” Fox’s stalwarts Prison Break and 24 continue to draw audiences across the region, and Fox has sold Women’s Murder Club to quite a few territories. Also, reality shows The Simple Life, Trading Spouses and Beauty and the Geek have been placed with broadcasters in Korea, Hong Kong and the Philippines. Likewise, Greg Robertson, senior vice president, Warner Bros International Television, asserts, “The outlook is positive, and we are yet to see any ramifications of the US financial downturn.” Among WB’s new series, Gossip Girl and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles have sold briskly across Asia. Gossip Girl has launched in India on Z Café, in the Philippines on ETC and in Malaysia on 8TV. Sarah Connor is slated to premiere soon in many markets and Robertson says, “There is a great buzz surrounding the show, and we expect it to perform very well across the region.” In Korea, Gossip Girl plays on Orion Cinema Network, which also bought Chuck. Ted Lai, vice president, Warner Bros. International Television, says he has high expectations for Pushing Daisies and The Sarah Connor Chronicles, which are licensed to CJ Media. While most studios were still finalizing their LA Screenings offerings at press-time, Robertson confirmed WB has series orders for three one-hour dramas: Eleventh Hour from Jerry Bruckheimer, Fringe from J.J. Abrams, and Truth in Advertising, plus several one-hour drama series and half-hour comedy series with pilot orders. Customarily, the US distributors initiate discussions with Asian buyers at the Screenings, and deals are closed during follow-up sales trips, often within 6-8 weeks. The disruption to the production and development of scripted US series during the writers’ strike is seen as creating more opportunities for some Latin American producers and distributors. “The outlook for sales to Asia this year is positive for us. On one hand, the US financial downturn and the writers’ strike means less programming coming from the US to Asia. On the other hand, the whole world is demanding more Latin content, especially series and telenovelas,” says Pedro Dávila, director of international projects, Caracol Television. “Broadcasters are maintaining fiction as the backbone of their programming strategies and Caracol TV is recognized for creating the best fiction shows. We also see opportunities for co-producing and broadcasting in all digital platforms, from cable to IPTV, VOD and mobile.” Another Latino force, Argentina’s Telefe International, is confident its offerings—both formats and finished programming—will continue to make inroads in Asian markets. “The feeling we have this year is that Asia will grow and open in content purchases,” observes Michelle Wasserman, head of sales/programming distribution, Telefe International. “A stable tendency with a slight positive growth. “We forecast a combination of format demand for those territories with production capacity such as Indonesia, and especially India, which is also demanding ready-made products for their 16 new satellite signals. Malaysia will still be one of the main focal points and China is slowly opening the door to the West. Different distributors have made the first steps and if these experimental tests do well, it will very good for the industry.” Meanwhile, economic growth in the Philippines is expected to run at 6% this year, down from 7.3% in 2007, because a US-led global slowdown will shrink exports and remittances from Filipinos working abroad, according to the Asian Development Bank. But there are differing views on how this will impact the television business. “We are feeling the effects of the US recession and the stronger peso has not really spurred more ad spend,” says Leo P. Katigbak, managing director of the channel Studio 23, part of the ABS-CBN media empire. “TV is competing with so many new platforms and below-the-line exposures that it’s going to be an interesting year,” he continues. Nonetheless, Katigbak says he expects his channel’s US acquisitions will be roughly the same volume this year as last, although he adds a caveat: “We should be ready to flow with the market wants and adjust accordingly.” The outlook is brighter at rival broadcaster GMA. “We are still very positive about income from TV advertising,” says Roxanne J. Barcelona, vice president GMA Worldwide Inc. GMA’s flagship Channel 7 does not screen US series or miniseries, but Barcelona says she may decide to acquire more US series this year for its second channel, QTV 11. “Our decisions will be based on the series’ potential to rate locally and of course, the price,” she adds. Among the most successful US shows on QTV 11 are American Idol and Are You Smarter than A 5th Grader? That channel has also acquired the format rights and finished versions of My Dad is Better Than Your Dad, and Amnesia. Emphasizing the importance of the LA Screenings, this year Barcelona will attend along with four colleagues from sales and marketing, and production. Kyle XY, Smallville, Grey’s Anatomy, Desperate Housewives and the CSI franchise are among the most watched shows on Studio 23, while Ugly Betty and Brothers and Sisters have slowly gained momentum. The writers’ strike forced Studio 23 to delay the launches of several shows, including Samantha Who? and Dirty Sexy Money, which were current with the US. “The moment the flow of originals stopped, we had to go on repeats but its not so bad on multi-year shows,” says Katigbak. “We’ve had to push back some launches until we can guarantee a steadier flow of episodes because it does take awhile before shows become habit-forming for the viewer; an abbreviated run kills the momentum.” The channel has a deal with Endemol for its marquee formats, and it recently acquired game show formats National Bingo and The Singing Bee, and several telenovelas including Mexico’s Rubi. Summing up the approach of many US buyers to the wares which will be unveiled at the Screenings, Katigbak says, “Some are looking very promising, although we reserve judgment until we get a better feel for shows. Loglines and pitches can grab you but they may not always translate to good shows.” The ADB forecast Malaysia’s economic growth to slow to 5.4% this year, down from 6.3% in 2007, due to reduced consumer and business spending, in line with a slowdown in global growth and rising inflation. But Media Prima Berhad, the country’s dominant media powerhouse, expects advertising expenditure will continue to grow in tandem with the economy. “As a Group, we have been able to grow faster than the market via the TV share of the total ADEX,” says MPB spokesperson Eliza Mohamed. “We hope to continue growing the TV share of the ADEX share faster than the market by investing in the best innovative and compelling content as well as aggressively promoting our media brands. We will also leverage on this year’s special events, which include Euro 2008.” The best performing US series on MPB’s channels include Smallville and Kyle XY on TV3, CSI on ntv 7 and Desperate Housewives, Ugly Betty, Prison Break and Lost on 8TV. CBS Paramount’s CSI franchise is popular throughout Asia, and that network’s stable of other successes in the region include NCIS, Medium and Numb3rs. Looking ahead to the LA Screenings, Chamberlain says, “Our potential slate looks very promising. Even with the writers’ strike and accelerated development season, we’re very excited by the content under consideration for the broadcast networks, and we also have some compelling new cable series and formats we’ll showcase in May.” The Glenn Close series Damages has been a big success for SPTI, particularly in Korea where it has aired on free TV (KBS) and cable (XTM) as well as featuring on all three major IPTV VOD platforms (HanaTV, MegaTV, MyLGtv); it’s also available on telco SKT’s mobile VOD platform. Pan-regionally, Damages has fared well on AXN; and it’s been shown on free TV in Hong Kong and Malaysia. At press-time SPTI had numerous network and cable pilots awaiting pick up. Pollack says deals with Asian buyers usually close after the Screenings, but a “hot” show can spark immediate bids. “We also have volume partners who come to see the new shows they will be getting,” he notes. At the LA Screenings, Caracol will launch El Cartel de los Sapos, a 40 x 1 hour series based on the true story of 10 friends, members of a dangerous drug cartel, whose lust for power and money spurs them to start killing each other. Also new on its slate is Who Will Love Maria?, a 120 x 1 hour telenovela which tells the story of María Guerra, who is reaching the age limit she set to have a child but lacks a stable relationship with a man. She decides to clinically select a man to provide the genetic material for her beloved child, but falls in love, which turns into an obstacle. Caracol will also offer A Branch of Heaven, a series which chronicles the changes and conflicts in a city and society when an important event, like the Olympic Games, is staged there. Last year Caracol sold Table for Three to Broadmedia (Before ClubIT) in Japan, which was well received, and it’s now working with that company to promote its telenovelas in the region. Luna the Heiress aired on free TV in Malaysia and the firm is negotiating a contract to produce another of its stories for that territory. Its scripted formats Newly Rich Newly Poor and Pedro el Escamoso sold in India and Southeast Asia. The scripts for Newly Rich Newly Poor were bought by O3 Productions, a subsidiary of the MBC Group, for Middle East and North Africa. “So, hopefully, by the end of the year we are going to see this story produced in many different languages,” says Dávila. At the Screenings Telefe International will launch an array of programs including: Dazzled, a telenovela custom-made for cell phone users, chiefly targeting teens; Don Juan and His Fair Lady, a new classic telenovela with an amusing and catchy story; Taking Lives, a new telenovela aired during prime-time at 10:30 pm; Countdown, a new season of suspense unitaries co-produced with Fox Telecolombia; a new season of children’s/teen telenovela Teenangels; and romantic comedy B&B. Telefe’s Tiny Angels is a true multi-platform property. As well as a children’s TV show, there are spin-off products in music, merchandising, mobile phones, movies and live shows. Its series Watch Over Me, a remake co-produced with Fox US for My Network TV, has been well received in Asia, including platforms in Indonesia, Korea and the Philippines. Wasserman observes, “In Asia there are few original Latin telenovelas being programmed. But even if telenovelas are not central on Asian open TV, we see new windows such as pay TV and theme satellite channels, IPTV, VOD, SVOD, mobile TV and broadband, among others.” Opinions are divided on the value of theatrical films to free TV broadcasters. Movies still drive deals in Asia, according to Sony’s Pollack, who says, “Rather than shrink the audience for movies, we feel that the proliferation of pay TV channels and new platforms will actually grow the audience – servicing those viewers who may not have tuned in, in the past, via one platform. The idea is if you provide the content audiences want, when they want it, the overall pie will get bigger.” Warner’s Robertson says, “The availability of theatrical features via distribution outlets other than free TV has impacted demand in some markets. However, piracy is a much bigger issue than the wide availability of features across pay TV, PPV and online.” GMA’s Barcelona puts it more bluntly, “The value of US theatrical titles on free TV in the Philippines has declined and this can be attributed to downloads and piracy.”