MDA on lookout for Singapore producers

• Call for original content
• Acquired for YR Asia Satellite TV
• Aim for over 600 hours of content

Singapore - The Media Development Authority of Singapore (MDA), Singapore's Net Leader Holdings (NL Holdings) and China-based Gobi Partners have announced a joint call for proposals from Singapore producers, in collaboration with Asian partners, to co-produce original content for international distribution.

The programmes will be acquired for broadcast on NL Holdings' satellite TV channel, YR Asia Satellite TV, which NL Holdings owns and manages. The channel is currently available in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Malaysia and there are plans to expand its services to 15 countries, reaching out to 1.2 billion Mandarin-speaking people in China and the rest of Asia Pacific.

Through the call, MDA, NL Holdings and Gobi Partners aim to support more than 600 hours of original content with public service values for Singapore and international markets.

"We are casting the net wide for quality, compelling content that promote shared values and showcase the fabric of Asian culture and talents to the world," Dr Christopher Chia, CEO of MDA, said.

Lau Wai Kit, partner of Gobi Partners commented: "Together with NL Holdings, we will be bringing in producers from China, Hong Kong SAR and other Asian countries to work with Singapore producers, creating an opportunity for them to exchange pointers."

"Through this, we can expect to see many new ideas that were never explored before. We are also in discussion with Jinyingma Movie and Television Production, AsiaPlus Satellite TV, Shanghai Cartoon, Digital Media Group, Prime Time Entertainment and Cloudpic to explore the possibilities of collaborating with Singapore producers. We are definitely looking forward to the results of this initiative."

Aside from content creation, NL Holdings owns and manages the satellite TV channel, YR Asia Satellite TV while Gobi Partners is a China-based specialist venture capital firm which focuses on digital media and manages digital media funds targeted at private companies operating in China.