ITV

Tag: China

  • Youku Tudou licenses Paramount’s movie titles for TVOD

    Youku Tudou licenses Paramount’s movie titles for TVOD

    MUMBAI: China’s Youku Tudou, Inc has entered into a content licensing agreement with Paramount Pictures that will bring more than a hundred film titles from Paramount Picture’s library to Youku Tudou.

     

    Popular franchises and titles such as Transformers, Shrek, Star Trek, Mission: Impossible and Forrest Gump will be viewable through Youku Tudou’s subscription service and select future Paramount releases will be available through TVOD.

     

    Youku Tudou’s subscription service currently offers a wide selection of content from both foreign and domestic studios. More licensed content as well as Youku Tudou web-native content will be added on an ongoing basis.

     

    “The consumer-driven demand for premium online services in China is growing rapidly. With top branded content such as Paramount Picture’s array of films, our commitment to enhancing our subscription services to create a premium experience and drive consumer-based revenue continues in earnest,” said Youku Tudou chairman and CEO Victor Koo.

     

    With this agreement, Youku Tudou now has a library of over 4,000 movie titles that encompass domestic, foreign and original productions.

  • Internet advertising to overtake television in 2018: Zenithoptimedia

    Internet advertising to overtake television in 2018: Zenithoptimedia

    MUMBAI: Even as desktop internet advertising continues to grow, it is slated to lose market share for the first time this year, dropping from 19.8 per cent of global adspend in 2014 to 19.4 per cent according to ZenithOptimedia’s new Advertising Expenditure Forecasts.

    By 2017, ZenithOptimedia forecasts desktop internet to account for 19.1 per cent of global adspend. Meanwhile, mobile internet advertising’s share of the global ad market will rise from 5.7 per cent in 2014 to 15 per cent in 2017. Overall, internet advertising will account for 34 per cent of global adspend in 2017, slightly behind television’s 35.9 per cent.

    The market share gap between the two media will narrow from 13.3 percentage points in 2014 to 1.9 in 2017. At this rate of growth, internet advertising will overtake television in 2018.

    On the other hand, print adspend continues to decline across most of the world, as it has done since 2008. The report predicts that newspaper adspend will shrink by an average of 4.9 per cent a year through to 2017, while magazine advertising will shrink by 3.2 per cent a year. Their combined share of global adspend has fallen from 39.4 per cent in 2007 to 19.6 per cent this year, and we expect it to fall further to 16.7 per cent by 2017.

     

    Mobile advertising to overtake newspapers in 2016: 

     

    Mobile internet advertising will overtake newspaper advertising next year, accounting for 12.4 per cent of global adspend while newspapers account for 11.9 per cent, according to ZenithOptimedia.

    Mobile internet will be the third-largest advertising medium, behind television and desktop internet. Mobile advertising will grow 38 per cent in 2016 to $71billion, while newspaper advertising will shrink four per cent to $68 billion.

    Mobile advertising remains the driving force behind the growth of the entire advertising market, contributing 83 per cent of all new ad dollars between 2014 and 2017.

     

    Global adspend to grow 4.0 per cent in 2015

     

    ZenithOptimedia forecasts that global adspend will grow four per cent to reach $554 billion in 2015, and will accelerate to five per cent growth in 2016, boosted by the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio and the US Presidential elections. Adspend will then slow down slightly in the absence of these events, growing 4.4 per cent in 2017.

     

    Mature Markets to lead adspend growth for the first time in nine years

     

    ZenithOptimedia has reduced its forecasts for adspend growth in 2015 since its June forecast by 0.2 percentage points. There has been broad-based deceleration across the world as marketers have moderated their expectations of global economic growth. With Brazil and Russia in recession, and China slowing down, the world can no longer rely on emerging markets to set the pace of growth. The agency expects ‘Mature Markets’ (defined as North America, Western Europe and Japan) to contribute more to global adspend growth this year than ‘Rising Markets’ (everywhere else), for the first time since 2006. The agency says that this is a temporary aberration, however – Rising Markets will become the leading contributors to ad market growth again in 2016, and will increase their market share from 37.4 per cent in 2015 to 38.8 per cent in 2017.

     

    China slows but is still growing twice as fast as the world as a whole

     

    China’s ad market has not been substantially affected by the turmoil in its stock market, but the slowing economy and concerns about the potential for future growth have caused advertisers to moderate their spending slightly. The report forecasts adspend growth in China to fall from 10.5 per cent in 2014 to 7.8 per cent in 2015 – a rate of growth that’s still twice as fast as the global ad market’s, and which places China as the 13th – fastest growing ad market of the 81 that the agency covers.

     

    Low oil prices weigh on big producers

     

    While beneficial for the global economy – and the ad market – as a whole, low oil prices are depressing activity in the big oil producers. The report forecasts double-digit declines in adspend this year in Azerbaijan, Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates, and declines of seven – eight per cent in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. In Russia, the problem of low oil prices has been exacerbated by international sanctions, leading to an estimated 14.1 per cent drop in adspend this year.

    “Mobile technology is rapidly transforming the way consumers across the world live their lives, and is disrupting business models across all industries. We are now witnessing the fastest transition of ad budgets in history as marketers and agencies scramble to catch up with consumers’ embrace of the mobile way of life,” said ZenithOptimedia worldwide CEO Steve King.

  • FIC promotes Keertan Adyanthaya as EVP Hong Kong & SE Asia

    FIC promotes Keertan Adyanthaya as EVP Hong Kong & SE Asia

    MUMBAI: Fox International Channels head of entertainment and factual channels for Hong Kong & Southeast Asia Keertan Adyanthaya has been elevated as executive vice president – content and communications – Hong Kong & Southeast Asia with effect from 1 September.

     

    In his new role, Adyanthaya will be responsible for all content, channel operations and marketing for the HK and SE Asia covering Hollywood and Chinese entertainment as well as factual genres.

     

    It may be recalled that a couple of months back Adyanthaya, who was heading FIC’s India operations as NGC Network India managing director, was re-located to Hong Kong to handle a broader portfolio.

     

    Adyanthaya elevation is one of many structural reshuffling done by FIC in north Asia so as to align with its new strategy as the company positions itself for a growth spurt in China with an aim to ramp up its investment in production of Chinese content and communications. The restructuring exercise reflects emerging opportunities in these markets including China, Japan and Korea.

     

    FIC Asia Pacific and Middle East president Zubin Gandevia said, “Japan and Korea are two of the biggest media markets in our footprint.  In view of recent strategic partnerships we’ve forged in both countries, including with JTBC to launch JTBC3 FOX Sports in Korea and with Avex in Japan as part of an OTT offering, we see massive potential for further growth in these markets.”

     

    As a part of the restructuring, FIC managing director for SE Asia and Hong Kong Joon Lee will now move into a dual role, which is focused on driving growth initiatives in Japan and Korea as well as increasing FIC’s share of the growing opportunities in original Chinese production as executive vice president, North Asia & head of original productions – Mainland China.

     

    “Joon’s unique combination of experience – his familiarity with our businesses in both countries plus his proven leadership and creativity – will be invaluable in helping us to dive deeper in these markets,” added Gandevia.

     

    On the other hand, Simeon Dawes has been named FIC EVP ad sales and partnerships and MD – Hong Kong, Southeast Asia & Middle East and will take over some of Lee’s responsibilities in Hong Kong and southeast Asia, even as he will continue to oversee FIC’s Middle Eastern business and ad sales across Asia Pacific.

     

    FIC EVP commercial and sports Rohit D’Silva will continue in his current role, which includes the FOX Sports Asia business as well as affiliate and content partnerships, and non-linear products. 

     

    “Keertan’s proven successes with content-driven initiatives will complement Simeon and Rohit’s ability to forge mutually beneficial partnerships with our advertisers and platform partners.  All four executives are proven leaders in FIC and will without a doubt propel our businesses in North and Southeast Asia to new heights,” Gandevia said.

  • Worldwide 4K TV shipments to surpass 30 million units in 2015

    Worldwide 4K TV shipments to surpass 30 million units in 2015

    MUMBAI: 4K TV shipments are expected to grow by 147 per cent in 2015, despite overall two per cent fall in TV sales, as per the worldwide TV market report from Futuresource Consulting.

     

    Global TV sales rose in 2014 by three per cent to reach 235 million units, with trade value up to $94 billion. The TV market landscape remains varied across the globe, with some regions, such as Latin America, experiencing significant growth, caused by the Brazilian World Cup and the start of analogue switch-offs in the region, which are set to continue beyond the forecast period. 

     

    Europe, too, enjoyed three per cent growth. APAC, however, saw declines during 2014 but remained the largest region for TV demand, accounting for 37 per cent of shipments. With saturation in many countries within the region relatively low, Futuresource expects growth to return in the coming years.

     

    The report anticipates that trade value globally in 2015 will fall by three per cent to $91 billion. This decline in sales value is due mainly to a continued depressed market in China as well Russia’s economic issues. Economic uncertainty continues to affect many markets in Europe, contributing to expected declines in many countries across the continent.

     

    However, according to Futuresource, the decline won’t last, with larger screens and 4K models being adopted faster than previously forecast. Whilst industry opinion on curved screens remains mixed, strong growth is expected from them in 2015, with the growth in the 4K market helping their performance. Meanwhile, Smart TV continues to grow its share of the market, although not at the pace previously anticipated.

     

    “Although we expect to see a decrease in worldwide shipments in 2015, Futuresource expects the TV market to recover well in the longer term. In the coming years Futuresource believes that replacement demand will increase with sets bought at the start of flat panel boom being upgraded. Also, the shift in consumer preference to larger screen sizes will help the performance of 4K sets,” said Futuresource Consulting senior market analyst Jack Wetherill.

  • Eros International inks multiple film deals in China

    Eros International inks multiple film deals in China

    MUMBAI: Eros International has inked as many as three deals with China’s state owned film and entertainment companies to promote, co-produce, distribute and unlock value in respective intellectual properties for Sino-Indian films across all platforms in both the countries.

    After signing a co-production deal with China Film Group Corporation (CFGC), Eros has now signed Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) with Shanghai Film Group Corporation (SFG) and Fudan University.

    The collaboration with the Shanghai Film Group Corporation incorporates exploitation of intellectual property rights owned by each party in their respective markets, development, co-production and distribution of film projects for both India and China. The treaty paves the way for Eros to become the preferred Indian film partner in China.

    Eros has also entered into an association with Fudan University, which includes the ability for Eros to license Fudan’s IP for remakes or co-productions in India. Fudan will also assist Eros in obtaining publishing licenses for the promotion and distribution of the films from the Eros library in China across various platforms including dubbing them or remaking them to suit local audience tastes.

    The MoUs were signed by Eros International managing director Sunil Lulla at the recently concluded India-China Business Forum in Shanghai, attended by Indian Prime Minster Narendra Modi.

     
    Lulla said, “This is a very proud moment for us at Eros to be associated with the biggest and most-respected Chinese media companies. We are humbled by the gestures that make us the most preferred partner in the field of media and entertainment and we are committed to helping both countries expand their market and audience instantly to over 2.5 billion people. We are really excited about the possibilities and the potential and making films together is just the tip of the ice-berg as we hope to extend these partnerships across all platforms including online.”

    China Film Group Corporation chairman La Peking said, “Wish India and China collaboration will be more and more fruitful.”

    Shanghai Film Group Corporation president Ren Zhonglun added, “Eros is a very respectable company, which we always looked forward to working with. This strategic partnership MoU between Eros and SFG fits into the general background of the collaboration between two countries – India and China. It is also the fruit of collaborative effort on resource sharing by filmmakers from two countries. China and India together have 2.5 billion population with great market potential. As Asian countries, we share a lot of similarities in terms of culture, religion and art. There is big space in movie co-operation. We expect to visit back to India and Eros in the near future to further our collaboration.”

    As was reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, Eros International signed its first ever Sino-Indian co-production deal with Chinese state owned production company CFGC to co-produce the movie Da Tang Xuan Zang (Monk Xuan Zang) based on the life of a Chinese monk.

     

    The Chinese movie market is sized at $4.8 billion, second only to the US, and grew 34 per cent in 2014. China produced over 600 films in 2014. The number of theatre screens in China has also quadrupled since 2010 with 5,397 screens added in 2014 alone, taking their screen count to 23,600. As per industry projections in the next five years, China is expected to surpass the US to be the world’s largest box office. In comparison, India’s widest release to date has been across just 5,000 screens.

     

  • Doordarshan & China’s CCTV ink MoU for co-production

    Doordarshan & China’s CCTV ink MoU for co-production

    MUMBAI: Indian pubcaster Doordarshan has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with China Central Television (CCTV). The agreement between the two is for exchange of television programmes, promotion of co-production on themes of mutual interest and training production and technical staff.

     

    The MoU aims to help develop greater understanding between the two broadcasters and strengthen cooperation in the field of television and broadcasting. 

     

    The agreement was signed by Prasar Bharati CEO Jawahar Sircar and CCTV president Nie Chen Xi. The move came after Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and Chinese premier Li Keqiang expanded the cooperation between the two countries from films to television co-productions. 

     

    Sircar said that the agreement between CCTV and Doordarshan will foster better people to people understanding between the two countries.

     

    According to Sircar, the agreement will enable Doordarshan and CCTV to share programmes free of cost. The two will share programmes relating to art, culture, education, science, agriculture, entertainment, tourism, sports, news and current affairs along with human interest, development and success stories.

     

    DD and CCTV will jointly produce TV programmes on areas of mutual interest, which include documentaries on the travels of Fa Xian and Hieun Tsang to India.

     

    The MoU also envisages mechanisms to promote training for programme and technical staff of the two broadcasters through exchange and bilateral visits of DD and CCTV personnels. 

     

    The programmes exchange between the two channels will begin by the end of this year.

  • Tata & China Telecom ink video network deal to tap $2.6 bn market

    Tata & China Telecom ink video network deal to tap $2.6 bn market

    NEW DELHI: Catering to a market opportunity of $2.57 billion, Tata Communications and China Telecom Global have teamed up to launch a new video network partnership to enable and manage media content for customers in China and globally.

     

    This partnership leverages China Telecom Global’s regional expertise and leadership and Tata Communications’ Global Video Network to ensure a compelling service offering to their customers.

     

    The partnership, which began with the successful delivery of the 2015 World Figure Skating Championship from Shanghai to Japan, enables China Telecom Global to leverage the global reach, quality and reliability of Tata Communications’ Global Video Network to offer unparalleled reach for all their live sporting events in China.

     

    China Telecom Global vice president, product development Pengcheng Fan said, “Mobile video consumption is growing at an exponential rate with a robust growth trajectory expected in the next five years. Through our new video network partnership, China Telecom Global can provide seamless connectivity for our media and entertainment customers across China. The partnership is defined by connectivity to key global destinations, premium quality and industry leading SLAs. We are excited about this partnership as it helps to further differentiate our service offerings in the market.”

     

    Reports state that mobile video will generate more than 69 per cent of mobile data traffic by 2019. To ensure that its customers have leading edge technology, Tata Communications recently launched the new Media Ecosystem, which combines traditional video contribution services with IP-based connectivity. The ecosystem enables seamless management of content as a cloud-based managed service and supports global media distribution requirements, OTT and mobility applications. This platform provides customers with flexibility and intelligence, allowing customers to experiment with new formats and to launch new services and channels at the touch of a button.

     

    Tata Communications vice president and general manager, global media &entertainment servicesBrian Morris added, “Tata Communications is dedicated to offering its media customers access to key media hotspots for the distribution of premium broadcast quality content across the globe. This partnership with China Telecom Global is a natural step in that direction and marks the expansion of Tata Communications’ Global Video Network reach into China. We are excited to leverage China Telecom Global’s video network in China and to offer our customers access to this key region, connecting broadcasters, media and entertainment providers, news bureaus and service providers across the globe.”

  • Disney’s ‘Cinderella’ crosses $500 million worldwide

    Disney’s ‘Cinderella’ crosses $500 million worldwide

    MUMBAI: Disney’s Cinderella crossed the $500 million threshold at the global box office on 6 May 2015. 

     

    Since its stellar $67.8 million domestic debut on 13 March, Cinderella has taken in nearly $195 million and is the third highest grossing film of the year. Its international gross to date is more than $308 million.

     

    Cinderella most recently opened at first position in its final international market, Japan, on 25 April with the biggest opening day and weekend of the year for a Western release, and it remained the top Western release in its second weekend. 

     

    The film enjoyed a phenomenal performance in China with $71.1 million, where it opened with $25 million for the biggest March debut of all time. Other top markets include the UK ($29.2 million), Japan, ($21.6 million), Italy and Australia ($16.5 million each), Brazil ($15.5 million), and Mexico ($15.4 million).  

  • India & China lead nominations for Asian Film Awards in Macau

    India & China lead nominations for Asian Film Awards in Macau

    NEW DELHI: Three Indian films share seven nominations among 42 films nominated in 14 categories for the Asian Film Awards this year. 

     

    Haider has four nominations. In addition to Best Film, Haider is recognised for its director Vishal Bhardwaj, supporting actress Tabu, and production design. 

     

    Margarita, With a Straw is recognised for Kalki Koechlin’s performance and its score. 

     

    Court is nominated for director Chaitanya Tamhane’s screenplay.

     

    The awards are returning to Macau on 25 March this year. In sharp contrast to December’s Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA), there are no nominations shared with the remainder of Asia or the Middle East. The festival defines the Asian Region as “East of the Suez”. It still maintains several voting members from Iran, a country that has previously won big at the awards. 

     

    With five nominations, Ann Hui’s biographical drama The Golden Era (China – Hong Kong) has the highest number of nominations for any single film, but it has not been recognised for Best Film. 

     

    Overall, films from China – including Hong Kong co-productions – are the most recognised with 26 nominations out of 74 in all categories. Three local Hong Kong films – That Demon Within, Golden Chickensss and The Midnight After -score an additional three nominations.

     

    Along with Haider, China’s Black Coal, Thin Ice and Blind Massage are the next most recognised films, with four nominations apiece. They will compete for Best Film with Japan’s The Light Shines Only There and from South Korea, Hill of Freedom and Ode to My Father. 

     

    Three China co-productions received four nominations apiece: Diao Yi’nan Black Coal, Thin Ice, Lou Ye’s Blind Massage and Jiang Wen’s Gone with the Bullets. Tsui Hark’s The Taking of Tiger Mountain 3D received three nominations; Zhang Yimou’s Coming Home has two nominations, for actresses Gong Li and Zhang Huiwen.

     

    From South Korea, 10 films have received 16 nominations. Two films received three nominations apiece: Hong Sang-soo’s Hill of Freedom (including Best Actor for Japan’s Kase Ryo) and Kim Seong-hun’s A Hard Day. The two films screened in Venice and Cannes last year. 

     

    From Japan, 12 films have received 15 nominations. Only two films received more than one nomination: Oh Mipo’s The Light Shines Only There and Miike Takashi’s Over Your Dead Body. In addition to Best Film, Oh’s film is nominated for Takada Ryo’s screenplay and Ikewaki Chizuru’s supporting actress performance.

     

    The cinema of Southeast Asia is almost completely overlooked in the nominations. Just two films are recognised: Indonesia’s The Raid 2 directed by Gareth Evans, and the Philippines’ From What is Before directed by Lav Diaz. Diaz has a Best Director nominee for his 338-minute drama.

  • Documentary on constitution lands Chinese filmmaker in jail

    Documentary on constitution lands Chinese filmmaker in jail

    MUMBAI: After making a documentary about Chinese constitution, Shen Yongping , a Chinese filmmaker, has been sentenced to one year in prison for “illegal business activities”.

     

    Yongping’s film, A Hundred Years of Constitutionalis, looks at the country’s constitutional governance from the period of the Qing dynasty, which ended in 1911, until the present day.

     

    President Xi Jinping has taken a hard line against dissent and scores of activists, writers and artists have been rounded up in recent months.

     

    There has also been a raft of new censorship rules taking aim at new media. The new rules will mean TV shows streamed online will have to comply with the same strict standards as traditional broadcasters.

     

    Shen claimed political persecution because he said the charge of “illegal business activities” did not apply as the DVDs and downloads were free and he didn’t profit from the film. His lawyer Zhang Xuezhong said the charge was “ridiculous”.

     

    Shen’s conviction comes soon after a high-level Communist Party meeting which pledged to uphold the rule of law according to the same constitution.