Building on the success of the all-Japan television industry PR event “Treasure Box Japan?New Formats Dinner,” held on October 7, 2012, in Cannes, France, eight public and private television stations will hold “Treasure Box Japan? World Premiere! Brand New Formats!” on April 7, 2013, also in Cannes. Joining forces are public broadcaster Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK) and private broadcasters Nippon Television Network Corporation, TV Asahi Corporation, Tokyo Broadcasting System Television, Inc. (TBS), TV Tokyo Corporation, Fuji Television Network, Inc., Asahi Broadcasting Corporation and new participant Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation.

Celebrating its 50th anniversary, the world’s largest TV content market, MIPTV, will take place April 8-11 in Cannes. In addition, the TV format market, MIPFORMATS, will take place April 6-7 in the same location. Offering “Treasure Box Japan” as a special session at MIPFORMATS, the eight Japanese broadcasters will present their new TV formats to the global marketplace. After the session, the broadcasters will hold a luncheon for decision makers and present further information about their products.

Every year, buyers representing television broadcasters and production companies come to MIPTV from over 100 countries, making it an ideal time for the Japanese broadcasters to present their new offerings to the world. Appreciated by buyers for their unique appeal, Japanese program formats have become a true “treasure box” for the global TV industry. While the US and Europe tend to dominate in terms of program sales, Japan is equally competitive in the format arena. By making a big impression during MIPFORMATS, the eight broadcasters also aim to give their program sales a power boost during MIPTV.

Japanese broadcasters have participated proactively in program and format markets since the 1980s, but it was only with last year’s “Treasure Box” event that they began promoting Japanese offerings as a unified team. In recent years, Korea, China and other countries have begun promoting content on a national basis. Japanese broadcasters have advocated for initiatives to promote Japanese programs and formats globally and increase Japan’s market share in the global TV industry. Their initiative has resulted in a new level of cooperation between the government and public and private broadcasters and a series of exciting new PR events focused on Japan as a whole.

In a supplementary budget for 2012, the nonprofit Visual Industry Promotion Organization (VIPO) established the Japan Content Localization and Promotion Support Fund. As with the first “Treasure Box” event, the upcoming event is supported by this fund, demonstrating the cooperation between public and private entities to promote Japanese content on a global basis. Going forward, Japanese broadcasters plan to use the “Treasure Box” events as a foundation for greater coordination in program and format markets. They intend to group their displays in the same area of convention centers to form “Japan villages” that emphasize Japan’s presence in the marketplace. The end goal is to effectively promote Japanese formats, as well as animated programs, dramas and the many other types of program content Japan has to offer.

Outline of “Treasure Box Japan?World Premiere! Brand New Formats!”