MUMBAI: Lowering cost of the latest technologically advanced video display products have been driving increasing consumer spend in Southeast Asia?s television sector, which in the first 11 months of 2011 totaled nearly $4 billion?a 14 per cent growth versus the same period last year, reported leading global market research company GfK Asia.

According to GfK retail tracking, LCD and LED reign as the most sought after TV technologies across Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and Philippines, registering a considerable 27 per cent hike in overall sales revenue across the region this year.

GfK Asia regional account director for digital technology Gerard Tan said, "LCD and LED TVs have become more attractive due to their falling prices. Our reports showed that these segments continue to experience price erosion, with average prices for this year reflecting nearly 20 per cent drop from 2010. This has resulted in greater affordability and pushed up consumer demand in the region.?

Among all the Southeast Asian countries, the Indonesia and Philippines markets are least advanced when it comes to adopting the latest TV technology; with more than half of the total TV sales in each market still currently being contributed by CRT TVs.

In Indonesia, three out of every five TV sets purchased by the locals still belong to these traditional models.

"Unlike the developed market of Singapore where the industry has already fully phased out sales of CRT TVs, other emerging markets have yet to do so, which means there are still plenty of growth potential for manufacturers. For instance, Indonesia is now the fastest growing market for TV in the region; with 146 per cent more units of LCD and 1,102 per cent of LED TVs sold over last year. These two combined segments contribute 39 per cent in value sales to the entire TV market there. As such, retailers in emerging countries are today allocating more space within their shops for flat screens,? highlighted Tan.

Meanwhile, while performance of the overall TV market has stabilised in Singapore, LED TVs are increasingly widespread. Quantity of LED TVs sold tripled over last year and is today selling on par with LCD TVs.

Another noteworthy trend emerging in the market in the past year is the difference in screen size preferences. Although 32-inch TVs remain the most popular category across the region, countries like Indonesia, Philippines, and Vietnam are seeing escalating demand for 32-inch and below TV sets while more affluent markets like Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand are seeing increasing demand for larger screen sizes above 42- inch.

"Manufacturers have been successful in tailoring their marketing activities to cater to the different consumer segments. While promoting the smaller screen sizes to reach out to more price conscious buyers in effort to get them to switchover from their traditional TVs, the industry have also been actively raising awareness on the various advantages of the higher-end LED TVs to appeal to the more technological savvy and affluent consumers. With the inclusion of Internet-enabled TVs, the market is taking the next step and offering wider usage possibilities to the consumer,? noted Tan.

In a separate report released recently by GfK Digital World, produced in partnership with Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), it was forecasted that global spending on consumer technology devices will surpass $1 trillion in 2012 for the first time, increasing by 5 per cent over 2011‘s figure of $993 billion.

As one of the key product segments in Consumer Technology industry, TV will continue to be in the forefront driving growth and remain a key contributor to the world?s digital products business.

"The TV market looks optimistic in 2012. With the mounting football fever arising from the highly anticipated Euro Cup in June, we can already foresee strong demand for TVs in the months leading up to the event, which will push the performance of the market to great heights in 2012,? he concluded.

NEW DELHI: The Government has approved the proposal by the Walt Disney Company (Southeast Asia) Pte Ltd, Singapore, for increasing its shareholding on fully diluted basis to 100 per cent of UTV Software Communications.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved the proposal following the recommendation of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) in its meeting on 15 November.

Disney, which holds 50.44 per cent in UTV, will infuse around Rs 20.13 billion for acquiring the remaining stake in the Indian media conglomerate.

UTV Software had announced on 26 July that Walt Disney had offered to buy out stakes held by public shareholders and other promoters of the company.

It had been announced that subsequent to the buyout of the public shareholders, the company will be delisted from both the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange. "The delisting proposal entails an offer to acquire all outstanding equity shares held by public shareholders in the company," UTV said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Upon the completion of the transactions, Rohinton Screwvala shall cease to be an employee of the company and instead be employed by The Walt Disney Company India as its managing director.

UTV operates in five verticals - broadcasting, games, motion pictures, digital content and television content.

MUMBAI: Singapore pay TV platform StarHub has acquired the broadcast rights to the soccer tourney Uefa Euro 2012.

UEFA Euro 2012 will be jointly hosted by Poland and Ukraine. It will kick off with an opening ceremony at National Stadium, Warsaw, Poland on 8 June 2012 (Singapore time). The final showdown will be played in the Olympic Stadium, Kyiv, Ukraine on 2 July 2012.

StarHub VP of home solutions and content Iris Wee said, "We are thrilled to be the official broadcaster of Uefa Euro 2012 in Singapore. We are looking forward to bringing nonstop ?live? European Football Championship action closer to local fans, and making the Uefa Euro 2012 experience an exciting and immersive one for our customers."

The Uefa Euro 2012 Final Draw, taking place in Kyiv, Ukraine, will be telecast ?live? on StarHub TV?s Football Channel (Channel 222) at 1 am on 3 December 2011. The draw will divide the 16 finalists into four groups, determining which teams will play one another in Group Stage 1 of the tournament.

MUMBAI: The Asia Television Forum (ATF) which takes place in Singapore from 7-9 December 2011 has announced that Dick de Rijk will deliver a keynote.

He created formats like ‘Deal or No Deal‘. In collaboration with MIPFormats, the keynote session by Rijk will focus on the creative process of developing and producing original reality formats that appeal to a variety of viewers in as many different cultures. The formats industry today holds great commercial potential but to harness commercial success, producers and broadcasters alike must also be able to anticipate the strategic potential of multi-territorial developments of a hit show.

Using his latest game show format, "You Deserve It", as an example, Rijk will analyse the makings of a hit reality show - packaging, game play and promotion. ‘You Deserve It‘ is a new studio-based family game show with a reality twist and was recently bought by ABC in the US.

He will dwell on the factors needed to for a reality television show to be a hit. ATF project manager Yeow Hui Leng said, "The ATF is the most important content market in the region, where we present an impressive lineup of international content providers, Asian production companies and TV networks. We want everyone to gain a new perspective on today‘s market and increase their value because of our lectures, which are given by the industry‘s most important players."

In addition ATF in partnership with uniFrance will bring the Soci?t? G?n?rale Private Banking 1st Rendezvous With French Cinema. The film ‘The Artist‘ will be screened. Carole Bouquet will be leading a delegation of actors and directors to this Red Carpet Event. It will serve as a networking opportunity.

There will also be a Spotlight on Malaysia. ATF will present a four-panel discussion featuring executives who together, will open the window into this Asian market.

Also in order to gain first-hand insight into China, the world‘s largest TV market by audience, how its TV industry works, content buying and production as well as generating international collaborations, ATF and CMM-I will bring together two panels to share case studies in cooperation and offer new thoughts on upcoming trends.

One panel ‘Co-producing with China‘, will feature senior producers from the drama, animation and documentary sectors as they introduce recent co-production projects and take part in a discussion on what worked and what did not. The second panel, ‘What do Chinese Buyers Want‘, will see Chinese media executives presenting the content popular with local audiences and international buying trends by Chinese companies across TV and new media platforms. Both panels will be moderated by CMM-I research director, Kristian Kender.

Another highlight of ATF will be the Asian Animation Showcase. In line with the rising animation industry in Asia, ATF 2011 will showcase the latest and most talented animation content from the various Asian countries. A panel discussion led by representatives of ATF‘s Asian animation delegations will offer country-specific insights, future market trends and what they are look for in terms of content import and potential co-productions.

This industry session will also offer extensive business opportunities between Asia animation companies and a wide range of global buyers as well as create dialogues that will spur further cooperation and partnerships, both regionally and globally.