It may be young, but Universal Network International knows how to think fast on its feet. Raymund Miranda, the network’s managing director for Asia-Pacific, sits down with Melody Uy for a look back at Universal Network’s recent rebranding push, and explains why you shouldn’t be content with just good content. It’s been a good couple of years for Universal Networks International. Launched in 2008, the global channels division of NBC Universal now reaches 130 countries across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Asia-Pacific. Raymund Miranda, managing director for Asia Pacific at Universal Networks International, has been instrumental in launching six channels in the region. “I joined the company on October 27, 2007. I was employee number one. I did not even set foot in the office. My first official function was to fly to Japan, and then head on to CASBAA. Within five months after my joining we launched the Sci Fi channel,” recalled Miranda. After the launch it was full steam ahead for the Universal Networks team. “It’s been the fastest rollout for what is essentially a start-up – from effectively two channels with the Hallmark acquisition (Hallmark Southeast Asia and Hallmark Australia) to what is now seven channels.” He added that even KidsCo, which the Universal Networks International distributes, is now in 17 markets. “I think we can all look back and say, ‘how the heck did that happen?’” he said. “It’s been like running on a treadmill and never stopping,” said Natalie Gee, marketing and creative director for Asia Pacific. Both agreed that the Universal Network International launch (in July 2008) did not happen at the best of times. For one, there was the writer’s strike in the United States. Also the global financial crisis was beginning to kick in. But with brands such as 13th Street Universal, consistently a top 10 channel on pay-TV in Australia since its launch in November 2009, Miranda says the network got through the worst of it. But the team is not taking it easy. In June this year, Asia Pacific, Universal Networks International embarked on an ambitious upgrade, starting with Universal Channel: “Beyond new graphics packages and new brands, we have heavily invested in fresh and original content for our channels as well as a fresh marketing approach that is aimed at delivering an emotional connection with our audiences,” said Miranda at the time of the channel’s makeover. Universal Channel is the network’s stable for hit shows such as The Office, House, Monk and four shows in the Law & Order franchise (Special Victims Unit, Criminal Intent, Law & Order and the recently acquired Los Angeles). And the brand refresh was just a teaser of the network’s plans for its global pay-TV assets. In July, Sci Fi Channel was rebranded as Syfy Universal in Asia, following the success of the U.S. rebrand a year earlier, which helped the channel garner the highest annual ratings in its 17-year history amongst women in the 18-34, 18-49 and 24-54 demographics. “People can’t and should never underestimate the power of brands,” said Miranda. “We are excited about making the change from Sci Fi to Syfy Universal in Asia. Syfy Universal builds on the channel’s 17- year heritage of delivering imagination-fuelled content to global audiences. We know these changes will appeal not only to our existing and extremely loyal fans but will reach out to a new army of viewers,” he said. The network worked with the branding consultancy Landor Associates and went through about 300 possibilities before going with Syfy. Dave Howe, president of Syfy Universal told media during the U.S. rebranding that during testing: “The thing that we got back from our 18-to-34 techsavvy crowd, which is quite a lot of our audience, is actually this is how you’d text it. It made us feel much cooler, much more cutting-edge, much more hip, which was kind of bang-on for what we wanted to achieve communication-wise.” The new name enabled the brand to expand beyond the limits of a single genre, making it Universal Network’s stable for “imagination-based entertainment” encompassing fantasy, action, paranormal, reality and science fiction. With the switch to Syfy Universal the network also premiered exclusive and original content such as the star-packed Stargate Universe and suspense series Haven. The rebrand was also part of parent company NBC Universal’s multimillion-dollar plan to reposition its global network of pay-TV channels around five flagship brands – Syfy Universal, Studio Universal, Diva Universal, 13th Street Universal and Universal Channel – under the banner of Universal Networks International. Diva Universal, launched in the region in September, replacing the Hallmark Channel, which reaches more than 20 million viewers across 21 Asian countries. In Australia, Hallmark Channel was rebranded as Universal Channel. Packaged as a “stylish yet personable entertainment channel”, Diva Universal offers a mix of drama, escapism and reality shows targeting viewers in the 20s and 30s. The launch of Diva Universal also saw the debut of two highly rated original productions – Rookie Blue, the breakout U.S. police drama which has already been given the green light for season 2 and is currently No. 1 in its timeslot with more than 7 million U.S. viewers per episode, and the second season of Asia’s weight-loss competition series, The Biggest Loser Asia. While Miranda said 2010 was their strongest year of content so far, he admitted it’s not just about that: “It really is the ability to look at everything together, rather than as individual pieces,” he explained. “You can have really strong content but there is nothing that amplifies the strength of that content unless you have strong clear brands. Beyond which the ability to actually communicate that and put that all together in a single dish – because you can have five or six different ingredients – if you don’t serve them up in the right proportions, mixed together, presented together at the right time… these need to all work.” One of the ingredients is delivery format, and Miranda, who regularly checks Twitter for news and feedback on top TV programs (both for Universal Networks International and rival networks), is not afraid of exploring new media spaces. “All these new windows; iTunes and digital and catchup and VOD and SVOD – is that monetizable? And if it is monetizable, how much should it be making or charging?” He also said the skepticism about these new platforms cannibalizing the linear channel business is unfounded: “When ABC, back in the day, introduced programs on iTunes, everybody was afraid of it, [yet] it actually boosted the ratings of the linear channels. And after that they started introducing the catch-up service on the Web. And it was scandalous because it was free. Yet it showed that the TV ratings picked up as well.” The video sharing website Hulu is a joint venture of NBC Universal, Fox Entertainment Group and ABC. “We’re now headed into a different stage of the business in terms of television’s evolution. We are talking about deeper, we are talking about content, we are talking about brand lenses and brand focus, we are talking about excellence, we are talking about gold standards, and we are talking about ‘Okay, what’s next?,” he explained. “There’s still a lot of work that needs to happen there. But after two years if you’re not looking at the next phase, and the phase after that – things move so fast nowadays that we need to begin to press the pause button. Otherwise there is a danger of just being swept by the momentum you’ve generated for yourself.” This is why Universal Networks International is not letting up in its acquisition of strong content. In September the network announced it had bought exclusive first-run basic cable and satellite rights across Asia to three NBC Universal scripted series – The Event and Law & Order: Los Angeles for Universal Channel and Covert Affairs for Diva Universal. Since Universal Network International’s launch in Asia- Pacific, perhaps partly due to the strength of its parent brand NBC Universal, the brand has achieved a worthy presence in the region’s pay-TV market. “I think people forget we’ve only been around for [a little over] two years,” Miranda said. Looking back at the frenetic months of rebranding, Miranda readily admits, “Our brands are just navigational tools… no one watches a brand.” The recipe for success, he emphasizes, depends on how well all the pieces (such as marketing, programming strategy and delivery format) work together. “That’s the beauty and challenge of our game.”