2018 Taipei International TV Market Forum opens: A new ecosystem for the TV content industry and a blossoming of cross-sectoral innovation

Written by Bureau of Audiovisual and Music Industry Development, Ministry of Culture

TAIPEI, TAIWAN - Media OutReach ^[1] - November 15, 2018 - The 2018 Taipei International TV Market & Forum opened on November 13 at the Taipei Marriott Hotel. The 2018 Taipei International TV Market & Forum, running through November 15, is Taiwan's largest annual TV rights trading event.

2018 Taipei International TV Market & Forum opens: A new ecosystem for the TV content industry and a blossoming of cross-sectoral innovation

Deputy Minister of Culture Celest Ting, Taiwan Broadcasting System Chairperson Tchen Yu-chiou, Kiribati Ambassador to the Republic of China Tessie Eria Lambourne, Deputy Director of the Hungarian Trade Office, and representatives from the Polish Office in Taipei, Spanish Chamber of Commerce, and Bureau Francais de Taipei joined in the opening event with first-time buyers from Iran's TVA IPTV and Norway's Northern Film Group.

In remarks, Deputy Minister, Ting, stated that audiovisual content is a critical indicator of a nation's cultural brand. Over the last two years, the Ministry of Culture has shifted from authoritative role to a supportive partner. In doing so, it has forged more links to the pop music, publishing, ACG, and cultural assets sectors, which in turn has led to a renaissance in Taiwan's cultural content. In remarks, foreign representatives posted to Taiwan were looking forward to greater cooperation with Taiwan on film and television projects. Taiwan is a rich, varied historical and cultural landscape whose stories are ripe for developing into audiovisual products. From historical, cultural and technical perspectives, Taiwan is therefore an ideal partner for audiovisual projects. The foreign representatives were happy to work together to build up Taiwan's audiovisual brand.

The Bureau of Audiovisual and Music Industry Development under the Ministry of Culture (BAMID) pointed out that participants in this year's eventincluded well-known TV stations/channels, documentary filmmakers, starups of content creation, publishers, post-production firms, VR/AR firms, related software developers, city/county government film assistance representatives, and domestic investors, in total of 74 companies and over 263 films.

Buyers from 24 countries would be on hand this year, including long-time buyers of Taiwan's content such as Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Southeast Asian nations, and also those newly interested in Taiwan's content such as European, South American, and West Asian nations. Buyers from Iran, Norway, and Spain attend this event for the first time. The number of attendees from Southeast Asia, meanwhile, is up to 53 percent this year. With this trading platform, BAMID expected to provide more exposure of Taiwan's TV content to international buyers, resulting in more exchanging experiences and technologies.

BAMID also stated that this year, rooms for Business Matching and Venture Capital would be provided for participants to conduct business. TV Project Pitching is set for the first time for the producers of Taiwan's TV content and IP adaptation to pitch their ideas for new projects and to present projects already in progress. The event will also connect creators with funding to boost the scale and scope of production of Taiwan's TV content. This will result in more Taiwan-centric content ready for global audiences. Separately, to spur greater innovation in cross-sectoral cooperation, and to build bridges between content and technology, the Technology Exhibition Area showcases cutting-edge broadcasting technology. At the Filming Location Assistance Zone, local government representatives are on hand to share what makes their area great for filming. The Startup Proposal/Demonstration Area, meanwhile, brings the work of rising talents before international buyers' eyes to help them connect to the global market.

Aside from business meetings, the International Forum, consisting of three sessions, will be held over the course of the three-day event. The sessions, entitled "Winning formats: Creating globally popular content"; "A global media strategy: tapping global markets through program rights, transnational co-productions, and IPTV"; and "Inside capital markets for audiovisual products," will see experts from Taiwan and abroad to discuss relevant cases, operating experiences, and the latest industry trends to stir up innovative thinking and vitalize TV culture's economic returns.

During the opening ceremony, Deputy Minister of Culture, Ting, presented the Awards for 2018 Rewarding Domestically Produced Television Dramas for Overseas Broadcasting. The Best Effective Reach on Overseas Platforms Award went to Sanlih E-Television Co., Ltd. for Bromance, while the Best Overseas Promotion Award was given to Eastern Broadcasting Co., Ltd. for Attention, Love!. Clips from these winning series were played for international buyers, in hopes of stirring up greater interest in all the works exhibited this year.

The Overseas TV Drama Broadcasting Awards have been presented since 2015. This year's contest attracted five firms offering five contending works. After a rigorous review process, the evaluating committee recommended Sanlih's Bromance for its having been marketed to Japan, South Korea, the United States, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand. Using a variety of strategies, the series creators successfully penetrated the above markets. Attention, Love! was selected by the Annual Soompi Award for Best Foreign Drama. The series has also been entered into exhibitions in Singapore, Seoul, and Japan. In Japan, the series' leading actor and actress were interviewed by local media and welcomed by fans. Such exposure helped to expand the reach of these series into foreign markets, and for this accomplishment the review committee granted each series NT$1 million as prize.

BAMID also stated that since Minister of Culture, Cheng Li-chiun, took up her post, she has devoted efforts to building up foreign audiences for Taiwan's programming. The Overseas TV Drama Broadcasting Awards continue to be held to encourage the creation of high-quality, marketable programming and to expand the nation's cultural power. This year, the broad standard for these awards was overseas exposure and broadcasting. Awardees were those who used effective marketing strategies to best reach these goals.

Among the criteria this year were the type and effectiveness of overseas broadcasting by various channels/platforms, and the perceived difficulty of penetrating markets entered, the use of a variety of marketing strategies, how proactively a series was entered into foreign film festivals, and the effectiveness of foreign promotions. Bromance and Attention, Love! came out ahead of the pack and took home these prestigious awards.

For more information, please visit http://ttf.tavis.tw/2018/index.php ^[2]