“Content is still king” at Asia TV Forum & Market and Conference 2022

After a 2-year hiatus, the Asia TV Forum & Market (ATF) will return as a full in-person event from 7 to 9 December 2022, at the Marina Bay Sands, Singapore.

The Senior Minister of State from Singapore’s Ministry of Communications and Information will be delivering a welcome address at the Opening Ceremony on 7 December 2022.

The 23rd edition of ATF is expected to make a strong comeback with more than 4,000 trade professionals from leading platforms, studios, and agencies from 60 countries and regions, to celebrate best-in-class Asian storytelling, network and explore partnerships on content across all genres and platforms. A slew of networking events, including the G.H.Y. Culture & Media Night and the Japan Networking Lunch, will aim to facilitate online discussions over the last 2 years to fruition.

The theme of the conference – “Content is Still King” – fortifies how quality content continues to transcend time and boundaries against a dynamic backdrop of industry consolidation, rising prices, the quest for talent, and evolving business models.

The success of regional and global streamers across the world increasingly rests in the might of K-content. The opening day of the ATF Conference shines the Spotlight on Korea – where insights from the following senior executives of top Korean platforms and studios are offered, as they continue to smash screens with their bold visions taking on global competitors, and their winning production strategies:

• CJ ENM – Spencer Thomas, Global Content Strategy
• DITURN – Wonwoo Park, CEO & Chief Creator
• KT Studio Genie – Chul Yeon Kim (Kate), CEO
• SLL – Kyung Moon Jung, CEO
• TVING – Jay Yang, CEO
• Wavve – Lee Tae-hyun, CEO

This spotlight session will be moderated by Jean Noh, Asia Editor for Screen International magazine.

In anticipation of ad-tiers that will be rolling out on some of the world’s biggest streaming services including Netflix and Disney+, ATF will be presenting a keynote exclusive by Tony Gunnarsson, Principal Analyst, TV, Video & Advertising of the global analyst firm, Omdia. He will stage insights backed by research and data, envisioning how this shift will affect business models and content consumption going into 2023.

ATF will also be bringing in financiers – Dr Thomas Kingston, Director of Coherent Media Group, Phil McKenzie, COO of Goldfinch (and recently CCO of MContent as well), and Eric Collins, CEO & Founding Member of Impact X Capital Partners, who will be speaking on new financing models and money matters behind content production. In a closed-door session, they will also be part of an in-depth discussion that will look at content investment as an alternative asset class.

Targeted at producers, the inaugural Lab Series looking at Formats and Documentary, will present experts who will share about IP protection (Formats Lab), and offer pertinent pointers on what it takes to produce content that can be universally sought-after, increasing its financing appeal and sales value (Doc Lab). This is also the first time the Format Recognition and Protection Association (FRAPA) will present its Formats Lab for Asian producers under the new ATF Lab Series banner.

A total of 383 submissions were received for ATF’s 6 pitches, of which, current pitches received 41% increase in submissions. As well, the new Indonesian Pitch in partnership with Vidio, and the Thai Pitch with Warner Bros. Discovery garnered submissions that exceeded expectations. Selection of the final projects are underway and shortlisted finalists will be announced soon to meet with decision makers at ATF 2022.

“We’re encouraged by the industry’s overwhelming response as we welcome the world back to Asia. The fact that ATF is making such a strong comeback shows the pent-up need to connect again. People, businesses, and dynamics have evolved over the last few years, so it’s extremely important to be present and show your commitment to the Asian market,” noted Yeow Hui Leng, Group Project Director of RX Singapore. BCS Bureau