Exclusive Interview: Astro’s Henry Tan

PREMIUM: Henry Tan, COO of Malaysian DTH platform Astro, talks about how the company is catering to its subscribers with relevant content and advanced services like HD and VOD.

Celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2011, Malaysian platform Astro today reaches half of the country’s TV households with 128 channels—more than 30 of which are Astro-branded. With Malaysia’s diverse mix of cultures and languages, offering up a varied slate is crucial, according to the platform’s COO, Henry Tan.

“It is common to find two to three generations living in the same household in Malaysia, thus adding to the complexities in programming and packaging,” Tan says. “Our ongoing challenge is to better understand our customer, our customer trends and our customer content needs so that these can be translated into an appealing value proposition as well as relevant products and services. Today we look at our customers from a household perspective. Going forward, we are looking at the changing Malaysian demographics, [and the] evolution of consumer trends and realizing that it is not about a household anymore but about individuals within the households—for example, the father, mother, son, daughter and grandparents may all have different viewing needs and preferred devices to get their content.”

Technological innovation has become Astro’s mandate as digitization sweeps across the region, Tan notes, citing the launch last year of its Astro B.yond service. Subscribers to Astro B.yond can access ten HD channels, with more on the planner. And in June of this year, Astro introduced a PVR box, the first in Malaysia. “We are on track to offer other innovative services like VOD and IP connectivity, and all these will make us ready to serve the digital generation.”

Content innovation has also been one of Tan’s priorities, with an emphasis on both international and local fare. “We aim to bring the best of Malay, the best of Chinese and best of Indian programming to meet the viewing needs of our customers from diverse cultures and languages,” Tan explains.

Sports has been a key focus, with the platform now carrying about a dozen sports networks, two of which, ESPN HD and Astro SuperSport, are in high definition.

Astro offers up live coverage of English Premier League action, among other international tournaments, and this year carried all 64 matches live from the World Cup across ten different channels. The final was aired in 3D, says Tan, a first in Malaysian broadcast history.

Beyond entertainment, Tan notes that Astro has committed to educational initiatives, among them Kampus Astro. “Through Kampus Astro, we hope to change the perception of Malaysian consumers that Astro is only about entertainment,” he says. “Through our learning channels, Astro TVIQ and Astro Xiao Tai Yang, with science, math content and languages, we hope to help students learn better. Most recently, Astro launched Tutor TV to help students revise for the exams.”

On the roster for 2011 are additional HD networks, as well as a “next-generation Astro B.yond box which will deliver PVR and VOD functionality, as well as IP connectivity. We will leverage our Astro platform to deliver satellite DTH, IPTV, VOD, online, mobile and other advanced services from a single unified infrastructure, providing customers with a new viewing experience on the Astro B.player online and on mobile applications.”

Tan adds, “Innovation has always been and will continue to be the driving force behind every facet of our business, from developing content to leveraging cutting-edge technology for operational excellence and rolling out quality customer experiences. Looking beyond, we will continue to deliver sustainable growth by constantly refreshing and customizing our content while we introduce compelling products and services that are relevant to the lifestyle needs of our customers.”