On 31 December 2001 ABC Asia Pacific, a new television service for the region, was launched. The return of a reinvigorated television service, complemented by its own online service, was - and is - intended to strengthen the ABC's ability to provide an independent voice in the region and raise awareness of Australia's economic and trade capabilities.

ABC Asia Pacific has a different relationship with ABC from other ABC networks. ABC AP has its own board and it has a business-type relationship with the ABC in that it will pay for programs produced by the ABC and will commission programs from it. However it is still under the control of the ABC Board.

It has separate funding, a grant of $90M over five years from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade; DFAT maintains that the service will remain independent of Government.

To be viable ABC AP has to supplement its income through sponsorship and advertising. Commercials are placed at the beginning or end of programs (except on programs purchased from the domestic commercial channels). There is strong reliance on sponsorship, particularly from the education Sector.

ABC Asia Pacific can be viewed by large direct-to-home dishes, by cables in hotels and apartment blocks, and as part of local pay-TV services. Cable providers currently providing ABC AP include: Cambodia, East Timor, Micronesia, Fiji, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Laos, Macau, Mongolia, Pacific Islands, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. (It is on the banned list in Malaysia.)

John Doherty says 'we are now available in around 6.5 million homes, exposing us to a potential audience of around 25 million. That is not to say all those 25 million people are watching us. Its the potential.The actual numbers are far less.'

'In Jakarta, where the host pay-TV service has 500,000 subscribers, ABC-AP rates 24th out of 60 channels, with more viewers than CNBC and Bloomberg, but about half the number watching BBC World. Cable and satellite reach in the city is limited but the audience we know reaches the influential and Government leaders.'

The service is evolving in response to its reception. In 2003 the service underwent a program reorganisation aimed at making it more watched than exclusively Australian.
Off the schedule are domestic Australian news bulletins, top current affairs programs such as The 7.30 Report and Four Corners, and re-runs of old Australian soaps and documentaries. In are new drama series, plus the pick of the best documentary programming from France, the US, Britain, and, soon, China. Where the service was once 100 per cent Australian, it will soon be about 60 per cent Australian and 40 per cent "other". 1

Similarly, programs such as Australian Story and Foreign Correspondent are raided for relevant material, and repackaged, while non-Australian documentaries on subjects ranging from Egyptian mummies to the six wives of Henry VIII are being included because they are judged to be well made and interesting. 1

Management of ABC AP, Ian Carroll (head of programming) and John Doherty (who is in charge of redistribution, transmission, sales and marketing) have been able to respond to their audiences and adapt their services. It seems that they could be getting it pretty well right.

The Australian 4sep03