Discovery adsales up 60 per cent in Asia

<p>The Discovery Channel has achieved a 60 per cent increase in </p><p>advertising sales in 1999, doubling the number of its regional clients </p><p>in Asia. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and China are the key markets </p><p>driving the channel's distribution, which grew from 23 million to 45 </p><p>million homes. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"1999 was an extremely encouraging year for us, with growth in every </p><p>aspect of our business," said Discovery Channel Asia senior VP and </p><p>general manger Kevin-john McIntyre. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Seventy five per cent of regional clients renewed their deals with </p><p>Discovery; including Mercedes Benz, Caltex, Acer, Canon and Apple. New </p><p>clients include ABN Amro, Citizen, 3Com, the New Zealand Tourism Board </p><p>and Kuala Lumpur International Airport. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"We work closely with our on-air and marketing departments to offer </p><p>clients the most effective media buy available to accomplish their </p><p>branding objectives," said Discovery VP, adsales, Eric Lynge. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>For instance, Citizen signed a multi-level marketing deal, involving not </p><p>only traditional spot buys but also POS campaigns in Citizen retail </p><p>outlets. The campaign featured the "Discover the World with Citizen" </p><p>contest offering consumers the chance to win special prizes. Apple </p><p>computers also ran a similar campaign earlier this year as part of its </p><p>marketing strategy for the launch of iMacs. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Advertising sales growth is expected to be consistent in 2000, said Mr </p><p>Lynge, who added that local advertising revenue, currently accounting </p><p>for about 45 per cent of total income, would grow further over regional </p><p>sales. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Accessing 150 million households worldwide, Mr Lynge said Discovery had </p><p>strengthened its global sales initiative, with every region selling </p><p>advertising opportunities for other regions as well. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Currently boasting more than 40 million subscribers in Asia, Discovery's </p><p>hotel distribution has more than doubled from 1998's 65,000, to 1999's </p><p>130,000 hotel rooms. Discovery programming is now featured on board with </p><p>Cathay Pacific's inflight entertainment programmes. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>For Discovery's sister network Animal Planet, Mr Lynge said </p><p>strengthening distribution clout was the key focus for the channel, </p><p>which will start selling advertising this year. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>