VIVAnews Grand Launch

Technology has not only changed how information is sent and obtained, but has already and will continue to change the lifestyle of Indonesians. Over the past two decades, with the growth of the Indonesian television industry, 80 million homes housing almost the entire Indonesian population are easily obtaining information and entertainment at no cost. Over the past decade, with the growth of the cellular phone industry, almost 85 million Indonesians can now communicate and interact with various types of information.

I believe that in the coming decade, with the advances to the telecommunication ’backbone’, there will be over 100 million who will be able to access the internet, which of course provides an incredible amount of information.

These technologies, despite growing at different rates, are going to converge, connect, and interact in the way they can by used. This can be seen in the cellular phone industry. As long as technology is kept affordable with a local nuance, it will be acceptable for the users. In fact, I even suppose that some sort of telepathic technology, if it exists and meets those criteria, will also be made available, and will surely be accepted by the public.

This phenomenon of convergence of various types of technology is frequently called by the industry as “the convergence of three screens”: TV, cellular phone screen, and computer screen. It is through this convergence that various kinds of content can be instantaneously distributed by various means. It is also this phenomenon that has led to the birth of virtual communities which surpass various kinds of limitations, such as geographical, demographical and other constraints. One example of this is the Facebook social networking website, which is visited by 132 million people daily, which is twice the current population of England.

We at VIVA Media Group want to try and be one of the leading players in this “convergence of three screens”. At this time, VIVA is an umbrella for two national TV stations, namely antv and TV One, where antv focuses on family entertainment and news emphasizing the human angle, and TV One focuses on social, political, and economic news content, as well as sports. On December 17, 2008, we also launched the start of our internet media service, namely vivanews.com. We hope that in the future we will be able to launch other internet media which suits the needs of the public.

Even though VIVA is going to produce various types of content, we also employ a system of collaboration with various content providers outside of our group. I believe that through cooperation alone we will be able to provide the very best for users of different backgrounds and aims.

Many have asked why we have launched VIVA and VIVAnews at a time when the economic, political and social challenges in Indonesia are so large and complex. I answer that this is precisely the right time to invest in the converging media industry. Not only are we able to better serve our users, such as viewers, customers and even advertisers, but we also hope to do a lot to help increase employment. In the meantime, the company is cutting costs by synergizing company facilities.

I also hope that our media outlets will disseminate balanced and current information to the general public in this dynamic period. Basically, our business sense is closely connected with our trust in the leadership of the Indonesian government in facing the current issues and disasters.

I hope to receive suggestions, criticisms, and support from you my friends on this blog, so that we will be able to make our vision a reality.

In Latin, VIVA means ‘to live’. It can also be an abbreviation for “Victory for Indonesia, Victory for All”. Viva my Indonesia, long live my beloved homeland.

(Speech at the Launching of the VIVA Media Group and VIVAnews.com at XXI-Jakarta Theatre, December 17, 2008)