A majority of the Japanese broadcasting market is comprised of NHK (Nippon Hoso Kyokai) and commercial terrestrial broadcasters. These two alone make up 83.4 percent (nearly $27.9 billion or 3.1 trillion yen) of the broadcasting market in Japan, according to an October 2004 summary by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), the former Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications. Commercial satellite and cable TV broadcasters make up the remaining 16.6 percent.
As redistributors of original broadcasts, one-third of Japanese cable TV operators are unprofitable, said Japan Inc. in 2003. While satellite broadcasting has heightened competition in the broadcasting market, the Japanese government’s initiative to switch all terrestrial broadcasting from analog to digital by the year 2011 also promises to significantly alter the broadcasting landscape.
Digital Broadcasting So Far
As of today, digital broadcasting is available for terrestrial, satellite and cable outlets, as well as for the keitai (mobile phone). CS broadcasters DirecTV and Sky PerfecTV entered the market in the late 1990s, and BS digital satellite broadcasting services commenced on Dec. 1, 2000. Most recently, digital keitai broadcasting service MobaHO launched in 2004. Survey results released by the MIC on June 14, 2005* revealed that 78.4 percent of the Japanese population is aware of the terrestrial digital broadcasting plan, and 60.9 percent understand that Japan will cease analog broadcasting. Yet nearly 74 percent were unaware of the 2011 deadline to cease analog broadcasting.
Terrestrial digital broadcasting in Japan began in December 2003 in Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka, and more regions are being added today. If all goes as planned, the Japanese government will have phased out terrestrial analog broadcasting by July 24, 2011. Japan is not the only country aiming to do away with analog broadcasting; Italy plans to achieve this goal by 2006. In the United States, TV stations must relinquish all analog channels by Dec. 31, 2006, or when 85 percent of the TV audience can receive digital signals. As of 2005, an estimated 21 million American households solely receive broadcast network television according to the Government Accountability Office. The Senate Commerce Committee is currently drafting a bill that would require TV stations to cease analog broadcasting by April 7, 2009, with plans to auction the newly available airwaves to commercial wireless providers.
Because digital compression allows for more data to be transmitted over narrower frequencies, it is said that in Japan the newly available frequencies will be applied to keitai and other telecommunication tools.
Broadcasters must free up frequencies in a process known as ana-ana henkan, or analog-to-analog change, wherein television stations will prevent existing analog channels from coinciding with future digital channels by shifting current analog channels to unused analog channels. Many regional stations will be unable to broadcast digital programming until construction is complete in surrounding areas; the process of moving frequencies is puzzle-like and affects viewers until all stations can settle on the broadcasting frequency allotted to them.
The Association of Radio Industries and Businesses is responsible for determining the regions where the digital transition will not be possible under current channel settings. In such regions, The Association will assist affected viewers by resetting the digital receiver settings, adjusting the antennae and ensuring their reception of the new digital channels. The government is subsidizing the fees for private homeowners and non-profit organizations such as hospitals and assisted living facilities.
Redistribution of Terrestrial Broadcasting via Satellite
Beginning August 2005, the government has agreed to experimentally redistribute terrestrial digital broadcasting via communications satellite (CS) and fiber optics networks, with hopes of implementing a regular CS redistribution network in the future. Satellite redistribution would be beneficial for broadcasts to remote areas that are hard to reach over terrain or fiber optic cables. For metropolitan areas where skyscrapers obstruct broadcasting waves, NTT is expected to provide fiber optic networks for redistribution. NTT aims to switch 30 million terrestrial phone lines to fiber optic lines by 2010. Regular programming redistribution by way of fiber optics are planned for 2006, and high-definition for 2008. However, the problem of copyright remains an issue so long as IP broadcast content is deemed tsushin (communication), and not housou (broadcast), as current copyright laws dictate.
Redistribution poses a problem to regional network broadcasters: Similar to the newspaper distribution networks that hold back Web newspaper publishing in Japan, regional stations oppose the idea of a system in which network programming from Tokyo is no longer limited to specific regions, but can instead directly reach households nationwide. Facing the threat of becoming obsolete, the regional stations lobby for lawmakers to ensure that they are not bypassed in the new terrestrial broadcasting system. At the same time, unlike terrestrial analog broadcasts in which broadcasts might leak over territory lines, digital broadcasting gives regional stations precise control over broadcast districts, eliminating any competition from neighboring stations.
Advantages of Digital Broadcasting
Similar to what digital cable television services tout in the United States, the advantages of digital broadcasting, according to MIC, Terrestrial Digital Broadcasting Perfect Guide are:
- High quality images and sound (sans ghosting and static)
- Data broadcast (live weather and traffic updates, local sites and sounds, cooking recipes)
- Two-way data exchange (interactive programming)
- Enhanced services for the elderly and disabled (control over audio speed, Braille)
- Reliable mobile device reception
- Program information (TV Guide) access
- DVR and On-Demand functionalities
- Three-channel viewing on a single screen
- Copyright management capabilities
Required Equipment
Terrestrial digital broadcasts are sent over short wave frequencies, which require UHF antennas and digital receivers. Consumers may either buy a digital tuner or a TV set that features digital reception. VCRs and other analog equipment should become a thing of the past once viewers adapt to next generation DVD recorders, hard drive recorders and D-VHS. Meanwhile, the Blu-Ray versus HD-DVD debate continues to rage on among PC and electronics manufacturers.
The Ministry of Internal Communication and Affairs (Soumushou) Information and Communications Policy Bureau appears doubtful Japan will cease analog broadcasts by 2011. In a mid-term report released by the Ministry on July 29, 2005 there was an apparent lack of confidence that the country could establish broadcasting stations – particularly in rural regions – and ensure that every household be equipped with a digital receiver within six years’ time.
According to Ministry estimates, a mere 8.5 percent of households have such digital equipment. Of those who do not yet own a digital reception TV set, 78.1 percent mentioned price as the deciding factor for purchasing a new TV, 50.1 percent as picture and sound quality, and 45.3 percent as operability. More than half of the respondents said they would consider purchasing TV sets if they were priced below $88 (10,000 yen). Meanwhile, broadcasters are looking at a cost upwards of $1.05 billion (120 billion yen) to set up the necessary infrastructure. Still, the Ministry maintains a positive outlook, saying that 37 million, or roughly 79 percent of all households will have the ability to receive terrestrial digital programming by December 2006.
An article published in Nikkei BP* cites concerns over one electronics manufacturer company executive who says demand for digital receivers and television sets will fluctuate greatly as consumers get ready for analog broadcasts to cease in 2011. According to this executive, demand will soar directly preceding the 2006 Soccer World Cup in Germany, the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa and the 2011 switch from analog to full digital terrestrial broadcasting, before completely dropping off after the switch.
The date is still undetermined when all of the terrestrial broadcasting stations will complete their switch to digital, but the D-PA (Association for Promotion of Digital Broadcasting) has published a Broadcast Area Schedule. ??Local broadcasting is scheduled to roll out in this manner:
Dec. 1, 2003, Tokyo Metropolitan Television: Completed
Dec. 1, 2004, Terebi Kanagawa: Completed
Dec. 1, 2005, Terebi Saitama: Scheduled
Dec. 1, 2005, Tochigi Terebi: Scheduled
April 1, 2006, Chiba Terebi Housou: Scheduled
Sept. 1, 2006, Gunma Terebi: Scheduled
Dec. 1, 2006, Housou Daigaku Gakuen: Scheduled
Resources
Japan Inc. - February 2003 Cable TV: Lots of viewers, little profit – statistics.”
NikkeiBP.jp, July 1, 2005 IT Pro
Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication - Soumushou Jyouhou Tsushin Seisakukyoku.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications branches that are leading the digital initiative in their respective regions can be found at www.kbt.go.jp.