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BURBANK: Robert Gilby is taking on the newly created role of managing director for The Walt Disney Company Southeast Asia, in addition to his current responsibilities as the managing director of Disney Media Distribution Asia Pacific. With his new responsibilities, Gilby is tasked with driving the company’s strategy, coordinating and …

HONG KONG: CASBAA is staging its inaugural TV Upfront: The Singapore Screenings, a half-day networking and preview event, to take place on December 13 at the Goodwood Park Hotel in Singapore. Led by the Asia TV Advertising Coalition (ATAC), the invitation-only presentations will focus on pay TV as an effective promotional …

SYDNEY/LONDON: ITV Studios Global Entertainment has named Dan Edwards, a former sales director for Asia at Endemol, the senior sales executive for Australia and Japan. Edwards is to report to Augustus Dulgaro, the senior VP of Asia Pacific at ITV Studios Global Entertainment. Edwards will be based at the Australian …

MUMBAI: Viacom 18 has announced plans to launch its fifth channel in India, Sonic, which bills itself as the "Sci-fi platform for the Wi-Fi Generation." Launching this month, Sonic will target viewers 10 to 17, aiming to bridge the gap between kids and teens. The service will be available in …

PREMIUM: GMA Worldwide’s Roxanne Barcelona will be seeking out animation, Korean drama, natural-history titles and movies at the ATF, as well as current-affairs docs.   What have been some of your most successful acquisitions recently? For GMA-7, the main channel, we have acquired top-rating Korean dramas such as Baker King …

MUMBAI: The digitization mandate for Indian cable operators will drive tax revenues for the government, boost consumer choice and accelerate subscriber takeup, bringing about a "significant transformation" of the country’s $7 billion TV industry, according to a new report from Media Partners Asia. "India’s broadcasting and pay-TV market is on the …

SINGAPORE: MediaCorp’s Mandarin-language 8 International (8i) service is launching on FetchTV in Australia as part of the Singapore-Taiwan package. 8i is an extension of Singapore’s leading free-to-air Mandarin channel, Channel 8—a 24-hour channel dedicated to popular Chinese dramas. It features six hours of fresh content daily that include both the …

LONDON: HBO has picked up Content Television’s crime thriller series Thorne, based on the bestselling novels by Mark Billingham, for broadcast throughout Asia in 2012. HBO picked up Thorne: Sleepyhead and Thorne: Scaredy Cat, which star David Morrissey (State of Play), Natascha McElhone (Californication) and Sandra Oh (Grey’s Anatomy). Thorne …

SINGAPORE: Sony Pictures Television Networks, Asia and Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan’s AXN Mystery Channel are collaborating with the Hong Kong-based media company Charis Entertainment on the new series Cyril’s Family Vacation. The six-episode series, filmed exclusively in Hawaii, features Japan’s top magician Cyril Takayama, who performs in real-life situations while …

SINGAPORE: The Asia TV Forum opened here in Singapore today with attendance up 22 percent, according to Reed Exhibitions, with almost 3,500 participants from more than 950 companies. Taking place today through Friday at a new venue, the Marina Bay Sands Convention Center, ATF 2011 is at an all-time high participation …