Keeping Pace with Digital Technology Advances

Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan says Vietnam has kept pace with global technological advances, introducing digital terrestrial TV services in 2005, one of the first countries within Asia Pacific and the world to digitize broadcasting transmission, and completing the transition process from analogue to digital by 2020.

“ We are moving forward, updating technologies, professionalizing programs, and diversifying content to meet the increasing demand of domestic and foreign audiences,” Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan told over 500 participants during the inauguration ceremony of the Asia Media Summit that began today in Hanoi.

In his keynote address, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan said the government has set policies that have facilitated the development of radio and TV, with coverage reaching almost 100% of the country’s population, and Internet made available to about 87% of communes, wards and townships.

Vietnam has 67 radio and TV stations that offer nearly 200 public channels. Its pay TV network has expanded significantly, providing 50 domestic and 75 foreign channels. It has also more than 20 millions internet users, including those in schools.

For his part, Mr. Thoyyib Mohamed Waheed, Minister of State for Tourism, Arts and Culture Maldives and President of AIBD, said in the digital world it is no longer business as usual for broadcasters. He said we must go beyond seeing television as just a ‘box’ in the living or dining room.

“ It has to be a dynamic platform that incorporates new digital technology, that accommodates changing consumers’ experiences, and that allows for creative strategies to perform financially and pursue their role in development more effectively,” he said.

Mr. Janis Karklins, UNESCO Assistant Director General, stressed the need to invest in capacity building efforts for broadcasters in the digital environment not only through in-house digital media training but also through the use of open courseware.

He said UNESCO would continue to partner with organizations to improve the quality of media training and ensure wider access and accessibility to information.

As more audiences moving towards the use of new distribution platforms, he called on broadcasters to work together to serve their audiences better.

Mr. Vu Van Hien, President of Voice of Vietnam, lauded the Summit as a major communication event and urged participants to share their expertise and experience to improve broadcast industry services in the digital era.

In closing the inaugural ceremony, AIBD Director Yang Binyuan urged participants to be ore active in the Summit and thanked the government of Vietnam and Voice of Vietnam in hosting the Summit.

(Source : Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development)