Japanese Pay-TV Majors Express Need for International Content

HONG KONG: The heads of Sky Perfect JSAT, J:COM and WOWOW told CASBAA delegates in a session today that they are looking to international content to help them drive the Japanese multichannel market, while the AsiaPac leaders of four top channel operators weighed in on the challenges and opportunities of the market.

Shigeki Nishiyama, chairman of leading pay-TV operator Sky Perfect JSAT—which has a 31-percent share of the multichannel market—said the platform was eager to obtain high-quality international content. Japanese viewers, he said, are receptive to content from around the world. With the potential for growth in the Japanese multichannel market, "There will be a greater need for foreign content than ever before."

He went on to say that Japan is an "attractive markeplace for content providers." The company is also eager to export its original content and says there are opportunities to partner with international companies on 3D.

J:COM, which has a 23-percent share of the market, has been expanding its VOD slate, said Shuichi Mori, president and CEO of the cable platform. It offers 32,000 titles to 2 million homes and is looking to expand this service. It is also pushing TV Everywhere. "We will promote location free viewing," he said. Mori noted that key to growing Japan’s 23-percent pay TV penetration is offering exclusive quality content from a wide range of genres. "We will promote alliances with overseas content suppliers more aggressively."

Nobuya Wazaki, president of the pay-TV channel operator WOWOW, noted the popularity of foreign content on its services, as well as its original programming, both of which have allowed it to differentiate itself from free TV. "We must offer content worth paying for." Wazaki said the company wants to share its original content, primarily dramas and docs, with the world, and is eager to co-produce content for the Japanese and global markets.

Next up in the Japan session was a panel with four leading pay-TV channel operators in Asia: Discovery’s Tom Keaveny, HBO Asia’s Jonathan Spink, FOX International Channels’ Ward Platt and Turner’s Steve Marcopoto. Platt talked about the importance of investing more in Japanese content, as did Keaveny, who noted that Discovery is producing the series Rebuilding Japan. Marcopoto said that Turner now owns two Japanese channels and that the country is the company’s most profitable market in the region. Disagreeing with Spink, Marcopoto said Japan is not a difficult market to operate in. "It’s accessible." All panelists talked about the limitations of the pay-TV ad market in Japan. "This is an industry issue," Keaveny said. The executives agreed that platforms and channels need to come together to convince ad agencies of the opportunities in pay.