New media approaches mainstream status: while traditional media still holds strong in Singapore, new media is edging ever-closer to mainstream status. Magz Osborne looks at media consumption trends in the Lion City.(country focus: singapore)

ACCORDING to the Nielsen Media Index 2007 survey, traditional media continue to sustain their mass audience presence. But Internet and cable TV, traditionally seen as 'new' or 'alternative', have moved a step closer to 'mainstream' media status with about half the population viewing cable TV weekly and slightly more than half using the Internet daily.

The television landscape in Singapore has experienced some changes in the past year--from the increase in cable television channels to the launch of IPTV and Video-on-Demand broadband TV services like mio TV, M2B World and MobTV. Despite the influx of changes, terrestrial TV continues to be a staple in the Singaporean media diet--more than eight in 10 (83%) viewed TV yesterday and 96% watched TV within the past week.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

"Television has evolved in recent years in terms of new and varied content, delivery and platforms. This fragmentation, together with the changing population dynamics and the increasingly hectic and mobile lifestyle of people in Singapore presents a challenge for broadcasters to hold their audience although terrestrial TV has so far managed to maintain its audiences," said Rebecca Tan, Executive Director of Nielsen Media Research, Singapore.

With a three percentage point increase recorded from last year, almost half of the Singapore population (48%) is now subscribing to cable television. Past week cable viewership increased by over two %age points to 47%, while yesterday viewership also increased from 35% to 37%. This continued expansion of the subscriber and viewership base to the masses enables cable TV to inch from its original position as an alternative medium towards 'mainstream' medium status.

"Cable has seen much growth in the last few years and continues to exhibit high potential. With the cable take-up nearing half the population in Singapore, cable TV is now a maturing medium. Cable continues to cater to the niche interests of different groups, yet increasingly is gaining broader reach," said Tan. "As the operator adds more digital content channels to its selections, this will cater to more audiences with varied interests. in addition, attractive perks for subscribers who take up integrated services provided by StarHub could also be attributed for the growth of cable TV in Singapore."

"We have seen several new developments on the television front--with the entrance of additional subscription-based TV operators and more Video-on-Demand options available this year. We can expect to see more adjustments in the viewing patterns and habits of people in Singapore in the near future," Tan adds.

Broadband usage at home and wireless internet usage in the past year also saw continued growth. One in two (51%) people reported yesterday usage, while almost three in five (58%) claimed to have used the Internet in the past week.

"The Internet has truly become embedded into people's lifestyles, with users not only from the PMEBs and student groups, but among the masses such as the blue collars and housewives," said Tan. "The fast penetration of Internet in the general population coincides with the continued development of Internet-related technologies whereby we are constantly offered better and more efficient Internet services, such as higher speed upgrades, more wireless options by existing ISPs, free 'hot spots' in the form of Wireless@SG."

Meanwhile StarHub saw its first decline in profits in 11 quarters, attributed to the S$246million (US$170million) the triple-play provider reportedly paid for the exclusive rights to English Premier League (EPL) soccer. This is around 4 times the price for the exclusive Singapore rights for the previous three seasons, 2004-07. Third-quarter net profit fell by 0.2% to $81.3million (US$56.4million), despite a rise in subscription plan prices to offset the price paid for lucrative EPL rights.

Its rival Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) beat market expectations with a 3.3% rise in quarterly earnings. Net profit for its fiscal second quarter amounted to S$988million (US$170million), attributed to a strong showing by its local operations and regional mobile associates.

Analysts point to a rise of almost 10% for SingTel's revenue in Singapore, as well as overseas operations accounting for 53% of the group's underlying net profit- with India's Bharti posting a 73% rise in profits.

SingTel has also boosted its mioTV offering via agreements with more major movie studios--and the launch of Singapore's first Tamil movie channel. Having already launched on-demand services Sony PIX and PIX THRILLER, SingTel announced new agreements with NBC Universal, 20th Century Fox, Disney-ABC International Television and Eros International.

To coincide with the Deepavali celebrations, Eros Bollywood hit mio TV screens on 8 November. Titles include a mixture of the latest movies such as Salaam-E-Ishq, Cheeni Kum, Nishabd, Eklavya, Namastey London, Partner, as well as classic Bollywood favourites like Mother India, Devdas, Mughal-E-Azam, Sholay--all subtitled in English.

Also to coincide with Deepavali, came the launch of Tamil Box Office (TBO), Singapore's first Tamil movie channel. TBO offers movies and programmes that go behind the scenes in Kollywood on TBO Star and also features local entertainment shows.

SINGAPORE

Population 4.5million

TV households 1.1 million (99.4% of homes)

Cable TV households (StarHub) 490,000

IPTV 10,000 (SingTel mio TV)

Internet broadband users 730,000

Fixed telephone lines 1.8million

Mobile phone users 4.6million

HDTV not disclosed

Source: Singapore Dept of Statistics, StarHub, Infocomm Development Authority