HKTV dramas to be screened first in Malaysia
Deal with major TV broadcaster means viewers there can see shows a day before Ricky Wong's station launches programmes in Hong Kong
Millions of Malaysians will be the first to tune in to dramas produced by HKTV, as a major television station in the Southeast Asian country will air shows a day ahead of the online station's launch in the city.
Malaysian station Astro has signed a deal with HKTV to broadcast and distribute Cantonese-language dramas produced by the station from November 18 on the Astro Shuang Xing channel, it was announced yesterday.
Astro, which has pay-television, radio, publications and digital media interests, is broadcast to 4.2 million households, 60 per cent of Malaysian homes.
HKTV dramas will also be available across Southeast Asia, New Zealand and Australia as Astro also owns the rights for these regions.
Choo Chi Han, vice-president of Astro's Chinese customer business, said the introduction of the HKTV dramas would enrich the content of Astro, which operates 172 television channels.
He said the shows would also be offered in its on-demand television service and on other devices under its on-the-go service.
According to Malaysian government statistics, Malaysia had a total population of 28.6 million in 2010, of whom 22 per cent were ethnically Chinese.