After launching in 2004 to an audience of just over 700,000, Maori Television has proven itself as more than a niche broadcaster. It’s quality international series and documentaries have helped grow its viewership by an average of 14 per cent each year, and it now reaches an estimated 1.9 million viewers. With the International Rugby Board’s (IRB) backing, Maori Television went head-to-head with television heavyweights TVNZ and Mediaworks in the bid for the free-to-air coverage. … [Read more...] about A World Cup scrum
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Offscreen antics
Most of the drama on Australian television this year has been going on in the boardrooms rather than on the screen, but should they ever decide to turn it into a TV show it would likely make a riveting plot. In the past 12 months there have been takeovers, poaching, court dramas, proposed mergers, unwanted attention from the Australian regulator – the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) – and yet another blow for a beleaguered Rupert Murdoch. Network outage Ten has … [Read more...] about Offscreen antics
Blasts from the past
Traditionally if Aussie audiences went for a period drama it was a bodice-ripping BBC yarn like the recent Downton Abbey, but 2011 has been the year that has seen a pair of local historical dramas head from television’s outback to the mainstream. After three years mining the recent criminal past, Nine Network’s Underbelly series took a gamble and went right back to the 1920s for Underbelly: Razor the story of the razor gangs that terrorized Sydney during a bloody battle against two … [Read more...] about Blasts from the past
Eyes on Asia
There’s no doubt 2011 has been a signifi cant one for TV business globally and in Asia. Localization is almost commonplace across various genres; content creation and co-productions are on the up; new PayTV channels are adding to the mix and various technologies are being launched to tackle the insatiable need for varied and different content on multiple platforms. The highs I began by asking our panel of executives, “What trends in viewership are they seeing for their respective … [Read more...] about Eyes on Asia
App-centric television
Perhaps the most exciting aspect of Apps is that their full potential is as yet unknown and does not rely solely on the operator or content owner. Apps can allow operators to exploit the creativity of third party developers, as has happened in the world of IT ever since the PC was invented a generation ago. The difference is that in the payTV world the winner takes all, with operators either retaining control of the customer, or losing out to new emerging players providing services over the … [Read more...] about App-centric television
Uncommon allies
It might be dated to term television, a traditional medium. Today, there is nothing traditional about it at all. Content providers and even telecom operators are bringing television content to more households and viewers, via various innovative platforms such as mobile applications and the internet. Some industry observers foresee that this trend of allegiance will be increasingly pronounced in the near future. Central to this idea of synergy, is the nascent but fast growing relationship between … [Read more...] about Uncommon allies