Coronavirus: Hong Kong’s TVB to test closed-loop system for staff to keep cameras rolling amid outbreak, possible lockdown
- TVB communication controller says voluntary scheme will divide employees into three shifts, require testing before entry and three-day stay on-site
- Broadcaster plans to formally introduce initiative in event of lockdown during mass testing
Hundreds of employees at Hong Kong’s biggest free-to-air television broadcaster are expected to join a trial run for a closed-loop system next week to ensure the continued production of programmes amid the Covid-19 outbreak and a possible lockdown during mass testing.
TVB’s move came after more than 200 artists and backstage staff had tested positive for the coronavirus, resulting in the suspension of several television productions. The station has more than 3,000 employees.
In response to the incident, Bonnie Wong Tak-wei, TVB’s corporation communication controller, said the company had set up a crisis management task force to devise measures to ensure staff safety and the sufficient supply of programmes.
“We need to continue to keep our TV productions up and running. Our strategy for this fifth wave of the pandemic is: there will be no shutdown of our broadcasting services,” she said. “This is also our social responsibility to maintain our services.”
Wong said TVB was inviting production staff to participate in a trial run of a closed-loop system for three weeks as part of crisis management measures.
The voluntary scheme will divide employees into three shifts, with participants required to undergo rapid antigen tests before starting work and they must remain at the TVB complex for at least three days per rotation.
“There will be specific zones designated for the staff taking rest, getting sleep or eating. They can leave after a three-day interval and when they come back, they need to test negative again via a rapid test and undergo the closed-loop environment again,” she said.
The communication controller said at least 500 employees were expected to participate in the scheme.
TVB also planned to formally introduce a closed-loop system once authorities imposed a lockdown as part of mass testing, with volunteers expected to stay at the company complex for one week per rotation, Wong said.
“The purpose of the scheme is to reduce infection risks among our staff and ensure that our productions will not be affected by a staff shortage,” she said.
However, Wong added that the company had a sufficient reserve of programme content that could air for two to three months.
“We also have a lot of production teams stationed overseas such as mainland China, Taiwan, Thailand and Malaysia,” she said. “In case we have to halt our local production, our overseas production teams will help us film the production in their places.”
In recent years, the broadcaster has reported a sharp drop in advertising revenue and viewership, with the Covid-19 pandemic piling onto its troubles from the social unrest of 2019.
TVB posted a net loss of HK$284 million (US$36.3 million) for the first half of last year, compared with an overall loss of HK$281 million in 2020 and HK$295 million in 2019.