Lionsgate boss says pay-TV piracy ‘boarders on anarchy'

Lionsgate vice chairman Michael Burns has warned that pay-TV piracy is the single biggest threat facing the media industry, as he opened the 2010 CASBAA conference in Hong Kong.

Speaking at the conference, themed “Unlock Your Networks”, Burns said Asia is a key focus for the company, but warned piracy in the region is “bordering on anarchy” and poses a serious challenge to content owners.

“Entertainment content is a precious commodity like oil and gas and there isn't a business model in the world where 20, 40 and 50 cents of each dollar is lost to pirated products,” he said.

“We look to our production, distribution and government partners to work with us in fighting the single, most vicious threats to our media industry today.”

Despite the concerns, Burns struck an optimistic tone on the region’s long-term potential.

“When we look at the future, Asia is a critical cross-road for us, as it is for many businesses today. The logic of an Asian growth market is compelling as we learn how to satisfy an audience and monetize the Asian appetite for film and entertainment.”

He pointed to the rapid growth of pay-TV and broadband as key drivers reshaping the media landscape.

“Double digital growth in pay-TV markets and a broadband environment that uses bits and bytes is being used to shatter long-standing national and cultural barriers,” he said.

The vast, untapped markets of China and India remain central to Lionsgate’s expansion plans.

“Asia today is the wild East where extraordinary opportunity awaits all of us - if we don’t shoot ourselves in the head first.”

Burns added that content owners often approach emerging markets with outdated assumptions around distribution and revenue models.

“We look at these markets with limitations encroached by our own thinking, not market forces. Content owners must lose their tunnel vision when they look at world markets.

“They need to start adding lots of zeros when they look at the revenue potential of Asian media, because this is one of the greatest opportunities we will see in our lifetime. Even a short delay in capitalising on this marketplace will cost this industry billions of dollars.”

“When we look at markets like India, China and Japan we should be thinking in hundreds of millions, not hundreds of thousands, because the consumer appetite for content is rampant and so is the opportunity.”

Lionsgate, which produces the Mad Men television series, is also expanding its film and television business through a merger with debt-stricken MGM Studios.

MGM owns one of Hollywood’s largest film libraries, including franchises such as James Bond, The Pink Panther and Rocky.