FIC Asia to Revamp Chinese Movies Channel

HONG KONG: STAR Chinese Movies (SCM) is expanding its lineup this month to include more first-run content, originals, concerts, award shows and Asian documentaries.

The expanded slate on the channel includes upcoming highlights such as the thriller Life Without Principles; Canto-pop star Leon Lai’s concert LEON Xu; and the documentary Burma, A Human Tragedy. The refreshed channel—which will be known in English as just SCM—rolls out in Hong Kong May 19, followed by Southeast Asia in the coming months.

The revamp of SCM is part of FOX International Channels’ strategy to develop a strong portfolio of Chinese-language pay-TV channels. In addition to expanding the dominance of SCM in Hong Kong and Taiwan, FIC is looking into taking the premium-channel brand into markets such as Australia, the Middle East, the U.S. and parts of Europe. FIC is also launching an online on-demand player for the channel, SCM Play. It follows the rollout of an accompanying of an online player for FOX Movies Premium.
 
“FOX International Channels is giving SCM the lift and treatment that the number one Chinese movies channel in Asia deserves,” said Zubin Gandevia, the COO for the Asia Pacific and Middle East at FOX International Channels. “This is the just the start of our plans for SCM and our Chinese-language channels in general, and FIC will be blazing the trail in redefining the whole Chinese entertainment genre.”