Exclusive Interview: NHK’s Masayuki Matsumoto

PREMIUM: Masayuki Matsumoto, the new president of NHK, tells World Screen about how the public broadcaster aims to go about maintaining viewers’ trust while embracing new technologies.

WORLD SCREEN: What are the major challenges and opportunities that NHK faces this year as the country switches over to digital?
MATSUMOTO: Our primary responsibility as a public broadcaster is to bring quality and diverse programming to every corner of Japan. That mandate is going to be an even bigger challenge when our broadcasts go digital, later this year. The scope of this switchover cannot be understated—it’s a huge national project. Digital terrestrial broadcasting launched in December 2003, so that means Japan has had less than eight years to replace its 110 million analogue televisions with digital devices. We’ll be the first country in Asia to be fully digitized, and NHK is doing everything it can to make this happen.

Currently, our digital broadcasting signal covers more than 99 percent of households in Japan. NHK is working hard to assist those who still have difficulty receiving it and, together with the use of the state’s “satellite safety net,” we are determined to meet our responsibility as a public broadcaster to ensure 100 percent coverage.

Meanwhile, some issues remain on the receivers’ side, such as the digitization of community reception facilities and the setting up of the proper receiving antennas. There are many challenges to overcome in the next four months, but we are committed to doing our utmost to help make our viewers’ transition to digital as smooth and seamless as possible.

Broadcasting’s migration from analogue to digital transmission is a major global innovation. But at NHK, it’s more than that: it’s a great opportunity. Digital broadcasting using Hi-Vision (HD) technology will enable television to evolve into a multifunctional, interactive medium with high-quality picture and sound. We aim to offer diverse services that best suit each platform, such as data broadcasting for television and [mobile digital terrestrial].

WORLD SCREEN: How do NHK’s websites support the programming available on NHK channels? What type of connection and coexistence do you seek?
MATSUMOTO: We are committed to giving our audience access to our content when they want it and how they want it. That’s the purpose of NHK’s “3-Screens” policy—making programming available not just on TV, but also on PCs and mobile devices so viewers can watch at their convenience.

Making use of the Internet is an integral part of NHK’s approach, but for many years we were only allowed to provide program-related information on our websites. However, after Japan’s Diet amended the Broadcast Law in 2008, NHK was able to launch NHK on Demand (NOD), our fee-based video-on-demand service. NOD allows members to watch programs they’ve missed up to two weeks after the original broadcast. In addition, they can access popular shows from NHK’s archives.

The demands of our viewers are becoming more diverse. People no longer want to be constrained by time slots. NHK is determined to constantly update and enhance NOD to allow viewers to watch more of their favorite programs when it suits their schedule.

We are also aiming to offer simultaneous online broadcasts of radio programs to deal with the deterioration in radio signals, which are caused by skyscrapers and the interference of various waves. We are currently asking the government for permission and, if allowed, we will launch the service this autumn.

I have a great deal of confidence in our content and I want to deliver it to the public through a variety of media, including the Internet and other transmission routes. To this end, we need to examine whether the current receiving-fee system is sustainable in the future. We have set up a committee of academics to discuss various options.

WORLD SCREEN:  NHK is projecting a surplus in 2011, the first in three years. What factors have contributed to this improved performance?
MATSUMOTO: NHK has managed to successfully navigate the tough economic climate by focusing on a two-pronged approach: providing quality programs and increasing our efforts to collect receiving fees from our audience. Our three-year corporate plan for fiscal 2009–2011 called for improving payment rates, and NHK is working harder to realize this goal. Receiving fees [license fees] account for more than 96 percent of our total revenue, so we have concentrated on collecting unpaid fees. As a result, we are forecasting the revenues from receiving fees for fiscal 2011 to reach ¥668 billion ($8.2 billion), a ¥13 billion ($158.7 million) increase from the previous year. When we include other income, such as charges for secondary use of programs, we [anticipate that] total revenues for fiscal 2011 will increase by ¥14 billion ($170.9 million) and reach ¥692.6 billion ($8.5 billion).

On the expenditure side, we will continue to concentrate on the upcoming digital switchover and bolster our regional broadcasting capabilities. At the same time, by making our business operations more effective and efficient, we have managed to limit spending. Consequently, we [forecast that] NHK will achieve a budget surplus of ¥4 billion ($49 million) for fiscal 2011.

WORLD SCREEN: The three-year corporate plan includes the goal of reaching an 80-percent weekly reach. How is the organization looking to achieve this?
MATSUMOTO: The most important factor in achieving this goal is to continue to produce high-quality, diverse content. By offering this programming on various platforms, our audience will be able to access NHK’s content whenever and wherever they want. This is how we intend to raise our weekly reach.

Next Japan, a project that provided news and feature stories that deeply probe and report on domestic and global issues, was highly appreciated by our viewers. We have also further developed our “3-Screens” approach.

NHK has also made important changes to its scheduling. For example, to fit the lifestyles of people who are at home in the morning, we changed the starting time for our morning drama series and enhanced our information programming. As a result, the ratings of the weekday 8 a.m. time slot went up drastically. We are encouraged by these positive responses and will continue to improve our programming to achieve an 80-percent weekly reach.

WORLD SCREEN: How has NHK regained the public’s trust following the unfortunate incidents of embezzlement by some employees?
MATSUMOTO: It is vital for NHK to continue to maintain the trust of its audience if it is to carry out its journalistic tasks and fulfill its mission as a public broadcaster. In 2008, we instituted organizational reforms and set up an enterprise risk-management office. Along with that, we strengthened internal controls and took effective measures to ensure that all our employees comply with our standards and practices.

Raising employee awareness and holding training or study sessions is an ongoing job across NHK’s vast network of bureaus and offices. As president, it is my responsibility to take the lead and firmly instill within each and every employee the ideals of public broadcasting and the expectations of our audiences in order to ensure our constant compliance with the regulations.