First Asia to address need for TV, 'Net content

<p>Singapore-trained lawyer Khoo Shao Tze and a group of fellow </p><p>investors have started up a new company which they hope will raise the </p><p>standards of television programming across the Asia-Pacific region. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The Hong Kong-based company, First Asia Entertainment Production, plans </p><p>to produce up to 400 hours of programming in its first year of operation </p><p>through production houses in the SAR, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan and </p><p>Singapore. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The programming will be sold to free-to-air TV, pay and satellite </p><p>television and broadband operators throughout the region. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Mr Khoo said that a company like First Asia Entertainment was needed </p><p>because the booming Asian media industry had resulted in an "abundance </p><p>of lackluster programming in the region". </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"A significant proportion of the money being poured into the television </p><p>and broadband media has gone into hardware, however, a lot of the </p><p>companies involved have limited or no production capacity," he told </p><p>MEDIA. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"To address this situation, we have recruited an elite team of producers </p><p>and scriptwriters across Asia. With our independent productions funded </p><p>by generous production budgets and a company ethos rooted in </p><p>professionalism, we are confident of fulfilling our promise to Asian </p><p>audiences - quality content first and foremost." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Mr Khoo - who practised law in international law firms in Hong Kong and </p><p>Singapore and sat on the boards of a number of listed firms in Malaysia </p><p>over the past 10 years - said that the company would initially </p><p>concentrate on producing lifestyle programmes and various documentaries </p><p>but not current affairs. At a later date, First Asia Entertainment would </p><p>strike out and start producing drama series as well. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Mr Khoo acknowledged that producing about 400 hours of programming in </p><p>the first year didn't sound like much, however, he stressed that he was </p><p>aiming for quality and not quantity. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>