MDA in New Korean Alliance

SINGAPORE,
December 11: At the ATF, the Media Development Authority of Singapore (MDA)
announced an alliance with the Korea
IT International Cooperation Agency (KIICA), and unveiled the first two
projects from its tie-up with Australia's ScreenWest.

KIICA has been appointed
by the Korean government to coordinate international media cooperation. The
deal, the latest in a string of Korean collaborations for the MDA, is aimed at
fostering the co-development of factual fare. The alliance begins with KIICA
and the MDA funding an HD doc from Singapore's Infocus Asia and Korea's Digital
Chosun about technological advances in the broadcasting and communications
industry, the switch from analogue to digital transmissions and the role of
interactive digital media in the future.

"KIICA is focused on
raising the quality of the broadcasting and new-media industry, and on
promoting digital media in Korea through international collaborations and
projects," said Lee Yun-Soo, the VP of KIICA. "With MDA as our
strategic partner, we are confident that the Korean-Singapore co-production of
factual broadcasting programs will ignite further collaborations between Korea
and Singapore media companies, and encourage more media content co-production,
new IPTV services, and the marketing of Asian content between both countries
and internationally."

"The extension of our
media partnership today underscores the significance of Singapore's
long-standing relationship with Korea, and will further cement the strong ties
between our governments and media industries," added Christopher
Chia, the CEO of the MDA. "Through this initiative, Singapore will
bring to the table our expertise and resources in factual programming. With our
English-speaking population, libraries, researchers, robust intellectual
property and legal framework and business-friendly environment, Korean media
companies will be able to tap on the growing pool of talent, film funds, ideas
and natural locales here."

The MDA already has
alliances with the Korea Culture & Content Agency (KOCCA), the Korean
Broadcasting Commission (KBC), the Korean Film Council (KOFIC) and the Korean
Broadcasting Institute (KBI).

At the ATF, MDA also
announced the first multimedia projects that will receive funding via its
Cross-Media Development Initiative with Australia's ScreenWest, signed in
October.

Off the Wall from ZacToons in Western Australia and Scrawl Studios in Singapore,
and Origami Samurai by Vue DC
(Western Australia) and Sitting In Pictures (Singapore), will be awarded a
grant of up to $30,000 each in development funding. Each project will extend beyond
the TV screen via publishing, as well as online and mobile distribution.

"Capitalizing on the
experience and strengths of each other's capabilities, Singapore and Western
Australia media companies are poised to develop more multiplatform intellectual
properties," said the MDA's Chia. "We are confident that these new
projects will have the potential to enjoy a wide reach globally when they are
fully commercialized."

ScreenWest's chief
executive, Ian Booth, added: "I am delighted at the high standards and
strong interest shown by the production companies from both regions. As a
result, two additional projects were recommended to apply under the official
Singapore-Australia Co-Production treaty; documentaries Extreme Wild from Vue DC and Infocus Asia, together with Borders' by Artemis International
(Western Australia) and Threesixzero Productions (Singapore)."

—By
Mansha Daswani