tv asahi corporation

2012 New Year Message to Employees from President Hiroshi Hayakawa (Summary)

Thanks to your passionate and strenuous work, we were able to start the new year with very bright news again. The audience rating during the turn of the year week (Dec.26th to Jan. 1st) was 13.3% both for golden-time and prime-time and we were proudly placed at the 2nd position. The average audience rating during the New Year holidays (Jan.1st to Jan. 3rd) for both golden-time and prime-time was above 14%, placing us at the 1st position for four consecutive years. This is a huge accomplishment. The key network consisting of 11 stations were also placed at the top and our network showed notable success. Moreover, "Super J Channel" achieved in 2011 an average audience rating of 7.3%, which placed us at the top among the commercial broadcasters during this time-belt on a full year basis for the first time since the launch of our station. We decided to honor the program with a President-Award. All these have been bright news for us.

2011 was a year we experienced two historical incidents, the Great East Japan Earthquake and complete digitalization. There are many different views on these two incidents, but I myself have perceived them as big challenges imposed on the television media. While the internet shows its rapid growth, both audience and advertisers are beginning to change their assessment and perspectives on television. Some argue that these changes point to the decline of television and to the drifting of viewers away from television.

But we already had spent one whole year to discuss the ways and means of our survival against such vigorous changes in the media environment and created "TV Asahi Digital 5 Vision <management plan 2011-2013>" to cope and overcome this major transformation of media environment. And it was in the very first year of Digital 5 Vision that we were challenged with awfully difficult issues such as how to handle the Great East Japan Earthquake as a news organization, how to deal with the decline in sales resulting from the disaster, and how to support the network at such emergency situation. The execution of complete digitalization also loaded us with extra tasks at its final phase consisting of various issues, such as program reshuffling and last-minute technical adjustments as well as informing the public of the end of the analogue transmission.

While we continued our day-to-day business, we overcame those special challenges and agenda at quite high level of achievements, and that was the year 2011 for us. And, it was during the course of these events that we started the Digital 5 Vision in April. We have worked hard to realize the five strategic goals we set in our Vision, and we have been able to raise our audience rating and improve our sales results. Each project we carried out has made a breakthrough and marked our strategic move in that particular field of business. Despite the difficult environment, we did very well and my evaluation is that we have even exceeded our initial expectations.

I would like to touch on the issue of the social responsibility of a broadcaster. For all colleagues and staff members, I think the year 2011 was a year when we were all made to contemplate on the mission, role and responsibility of the media. The Great East Japan Earthquake has shown us that the people have trusted terrestrial television broadcasting as their lifeline in the disaster-hit areas as well as in the entire country. We need to further respond to their trust and demands in a steadfast manner. We must steadfastly continue to report on the issues confronting the disaster-stricken areas and follow up on the efforts and procedures that will lead to the end of the Fukushima nuclear accident. For us to build up a solid revenue base is a prerequisite for our business as well as for fulfilling such public obligation.

In autumn, 2013, our new building consisting of office floors and multipurpose hall in Nishi Azabu will be completed. In the winter of the same year, the integrated master room at our headquarters will also be completed. And needless to say our digital waves will be transmitted from Tokyo Sky Tree then. In this way, long awaited infrastructure and groundwork will all be put into places by the time we celebrate our 55th anniversary of the launch of our station on February 1st, 2014. The last year of Digital 5 Vision is filled with a multitude of plans full of dreams, hope and possibilities. When the five strategic goals of the Vision are achieved with success, we can say that the groundwork is fully completed to become "a top group comprehensive contents company in Japan".

Fortunately, the bridge year, the year 2012, shows us bright prospects. The Olympic Games, through the performance of the Japanese athletes, will bring strong emotions and joy to the Japanese people who tend to have been depressed after the terrible disaster. We hope to create the same cheer-up effects through our coverage of sporting events such as soccer and figure skating that TV Asahi excels in and hope to bring back cheers and energy to Japan.

Though there are uneasy elements such as the European economy and high value of the yen, the economic growth rate for the fiscal year 2012 is predicted to be around 2% in most economic forecasts, and the TV advertisement market is expected to pick up in comparison to the current fiscal year. Taking advantage of the fair wind, let us all work together and put in our very best effort this year with our passionate and dynamic creative activities and business developments to further push up TV Asahi onto new heights.