Rozhan Thinks Beyond Pay-TV

With its channels already beamed into one in two Malaysian homes, how much more room is there for Malaysian pay-TV operator Astro TV to grow? That, says chief executive Rohana Rozhan, depends on how you look at the company. “Where is the point of saturation? I would like to believe it’s subject to the value proposition we put together.”

This starts with dropping the idea that Astro is a pay-TV platform, a description which limits the company’s ambition. Rozhan prefers the term multi-channel service provider.

“If you look at where we are in terms of 50% penetration, we do not see a point of saturation yet,” she explains. “We do however realize that the current services, the current products, have got a saturation point, but what is very important for us is to evolve. In that evolution, we have to take into consideration what our aspirations are.”

A content powerhouse
Subscriber growth shows no signs of abating for Astro, thanks to a deft application of localization and segmentation. Building on early successes delivering international content to Malaysia’s most affluent homes, including Chinese and Indian audiences, Astro broadened its reach to suburban households by ramping up investment in local programming to become one of Asia’s leading content powerhouses.

Astro now has 29 self-branded channels within its portfolio, more than any other operator in the region.

That may be enough for Rozhan. “I’m not sure channels have got longevity from now on,” she says. “If you look at it, there are mass, there are niches. We have to balance the two.”

Instead, she wants to chart a different direction, paying more attention to two lines of development beyond subscriber growth: value-added services to persuade existing subscribers to pay more, as well as more platforms over time to move Astro away from being a pure DTH company and ultimately more than a pay-TV operator.

That push, dubbed Astro B.yond, started in earnest last year with HD channels making their Malaysian debut, in tandem with an improved EPG. New PVRs followed in June this year, with more interactive and mobile services, as well as IPTV connectivity, to follow.

Using a retail analogy, Rozhan says Astro should be like a supermarket, with something for everyone.

“Today I define the rules of somebody even coming into my supermarket – that means there is a basic subscription, and you have to pay every month, every year. Really what we want is to provide choice, different packages, different promotions, and everyone’s welcome.”

This is an edited extract from a feature published in the Q2 2010 edition of The Asia Media Journal. The latest issue of The Asia Media Journal is available in full here.