Poor Turn-out at China International Film & TV Programs Expo

BEIJING --- Shifted from its traditional August slot due to the Olympic Games, it was (not much) business as usual for the 2008 China International Film and TV Programs Expo, the annual film and TV market the State Administration of Radio, Film and TV (SARFT) hosts in Beijing.

A few large broadcasters dominated the exhibition area, with a massive CCTV stand taking pride of place near the entrance and the Shanghai Media Group (SMG) directly behind. A few independents were bravely pushing their catalogue of programs but many of the major players were absent, including Huayi Brothers and Beijing Jinyingma Movie & TV Culture. Foreign players were also thin on the ground, though the BBC, Bloomberg and KBS had decent exhibitions. BBC Worldwide also hosted a program showcase at the event that had a sizeable turnout, while Fremantle announced a new co-operation with Asian Union.

Most of the stands were an impressive size but largely devoid of key staff for the duration of the market. The stands lacked screening facilities and private meeting rooms, so most of the wheeling and dealing was conducted offsite. The Hotel Nikko next door in particular served as an unofficial venue with many participants simply renting hotel rooms and plying their wares inside. Most of the exhibitors dismantled their stalls before the market closed on November 1.

The lack-luster turn-out was the product of a simple profit-and-loss equation for many companies. The China International Film and TV Programs Expo is smaller and more overtly political in nature than the Shanghai International Film and TV market, but it lacks a straightforward commercial reason for attending, with most real business happening offsite. Many independent and foreign organizations find that the bother and expense of going through the rigmarole of setting up a stand is simply not worth the limited benefits attendance can bring.

Huayi Brothers GM Wang Zhonglei told the Qilu Evening Post that he decided not to exhibit because the money they earned from selling content could not recoup the costs involved with building a stand.

You Xiaogang, chairman and general manager of the Beijing Zhongbei TV Art Center, went one step further by suggesting the organizers should not bother to host the Exhibition in the future.

Simply put, in order to grow its business at all, the event organizers need to shift their focus from keeping high level leaders happy and impressed with the size of the stands. They need to focus more strongly on creating a platform for content buyers and sellers to actually trade. However, given the overtly political background of the event, we don't hold out high hopes for this.