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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1994
FOUNDED ON FREE TRADE AND THE RULE OF LAW, SUPPORTED BY A FAVOURABLE LAISSEZ-FAIRE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT, THE TERRITORY SAT, FAVOURED BY GEOGRAPHY, AS A GATEWAY TO THE LARGEST BUDDING MARKET THE WORLD, HE SAID.
IN
"IT IS NO ACCIDENT THAT HONG KONG IS PLAYING SUCH AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN BROADCASTING IN THE REGION AND HAS LED THE WAY IN PIONEERING THE INTRODUCTION OF SIGNIFICANT NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN THE TELEVISION FIELD WHICH AFFECT THE WHOLE OF ASIA," HE SAID.
ON HONG KONG'S CONTRIBUTION TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF TELEVISION IN ASIA, MR SO NOTED THE REVOLUTION IN TELEVISION IN ASIA ORIGINATED FROM HONG KONG.
MR SO SAID THE VISION AND DARING OF THE FOUNDERS OF STAR TV, COMBINED WITH THE GOVERNMENT'S FORWARD LOOKING BROADCASTING POLICY, JOINED TO CREATE A CATALYST THAT ALMOST OVERNIGHT REVOLUTIONISED TELEVISION VIEWING TO OVER HALF OF THE WORLD'S POPULATION.
"IT CUTS ACROSS THE TRADITIONAL BOTTLENECKS OF STATE PROVIDED TELEVISION VIEWING, WHERE THIS WAS NORMALLY THE CASE, AND OPENED UP A WHOLE NEW WORLD TO THE PEOPLES OF THIS REGION.
"RECENT FIGURES INDICATE THE STAR CHANNELS ARE RECEIVED IN 53 COUNTRIES BY SOME 220 MILLION VIEWERS, MR SO SAID.
1
MR SO NOTED THAT HONG KONG HAD ALSO PLAYED A CATALYSING ROLE IN BRINGING SUBSCRIPTION TV POSSIBLE IN THE REGION IN VERY SHORT TIME.
HE SAID STAR TV'S FREE-TO-AIR BROADCASTS HAD MADE ASIAN GOVERNMENTS DO SOMETHING ABOUT IMPROVING THE BROADCASTING INFRASTRUCTURE WITHIN THEIR OWN COUNTRIES, So AS NOT ΤΟ LOSE THE HEARTS AND MINDS OF THEIR OWN PEOPLE.
CABLE SYSTEMS, BOTH OFFICIALLY AND COMMERCIALLY SPRUNG UP ALL OVER ASIA, HE SAID.
PROVIDED, HAVE
SIMPLE.
"SO THE SOLUTION TO SATELLITE SUBSCRIPTION TV IN THE REGION
IS
"SINCE IT IS THE CABLE OPERATORS WHO NEED THE PROGRAMMING ΤΟ INCREASE THEIR SUBSCRIBER BASE AND ARE THE ONES WHO CAN PAY SUBSCRIPTIONS ON A REGULAR BASIS, THERE IS NO NEED FOR THE SATELLITE TV OPERATORS TO TARGET THE INDIVIDUAL HOUSEHOLDERS, MR SO EXPLAINED.
A COMBINATION OF SUBSCRIPTION SATELLITE TEAMED UP WITH LOCALISED CABLE SYSTEMS THEREFORE SEEMED TO BE THE IMMEDIATE FUTURE FOR TELEVISION IN ASIA AND HONG KONG CONTINUED TO PLAY A PIVOTAL ROLE IN THIS REGARD, MR SO SAID.
ON TELEVISION PROGRAMME PRODUCTION, MR SO SAID HONG KONG HAD ONE OF THE LARGEST AND MOST SOPHISTICATED FILM AND TV PRODUCTION INDUSTRIES OUTSIDE OF HOLLYWOOD.
IT PRODUCED SOME 41,000 HOURS OF TELEVISION PROGRAMMING AND 430 FILMS A YEAR AND HAD THE LARGEST LIBRARY STOCK OF CHINESE LANGUAGE PROGRAMMING IN THE WORLD.
/MR SO