Net Profit Rises from 500 Million to Over 1.4 Billion in Three Years… TV Asahi, Winner of the Triple Crown in Viewer Ratings, Surprises Us with “Thoughtful Distribution Tactics”!

On June 30, “Paravi,” a video distribution service provided by TBS, TV Tokyo, WOWOW, and others, and “U-NEXT,” a major subscription-based video distribution service, merged. The simple total number of members reached approximately 3.85 million, making it the largest video distribution service in Japan.

Although video distribution services have been doing well since the COVID-19 crisis, Paravi has never been in the black since its launch in ’18, with a total loss of nearly 10 billion yen. They probably wanted to get out of their predicament by integrating with U-NEXT, which is doing well” (producer, key station).

Surprisingly, the distribution business is doing well for TV Asahi, which has lagged behind in terms of core viewer ratings (ratings among men and women aged 13-49), which sponsors place a high priority on.

TV Asahi’s subscription-based video distribution service, TELASA, is a joint venture with telecommunications giant KDDI, which is probably why they are so good at utilizing TV Asahi’s content. In fact, sales are growing year after year.”

According to the official gazette, net income for fiscal 2008 was just over 500 million yen. This grew to 900 million yen in fiscal 2009 and to 1.46 billion yen in fiscal 2010.

Since TV Asahi’s net income for FY 2010 was 1.3 billion yen, TELASA’s profit alone has surpassed that of its parent company.

The reason behind TELASA’s growth is its strategy of “low-cost content production.

For example, the “Music Station” team is being used to produce a series of programs featuring popular artists. For example, “UVERworld”‘s first crown program aired from June to July.

After airing on terrestrial TV, scenes that were omitted from the on-air broadcast were released for distribution only, leading fans to TELASA. Since there is no recording for distribution, expenses can be kept down and the artists can promote themselves, so it’s a win-win situation,” said a source from a record company.

In May, “Tetsuko’s Interview: Yuzuru Hanyu Special Edition” was released for limited distribution and attracted a lot of attention.

TV Asahi has lagged behind in terms of core viewer ratings, but it has been doing solid business with two-hour suspense dramas and detective dramas, its forte. They are also making steady money through distribution.

On the other hand, TV Asahi’s strategy of focusing on discovering and nurturing young staff and talent through such programs as the late-night variety slot “Barabara Daisakusen” has been a tailwind, and the number of experimental programs in the late-night slot and special programs is on the rise. Because it is easy for projects to be accepted, freelance TV workers have come to say, “TV Asahi is the place to go for interesting projects.

The station is also active on YouTube.

On the station’s official channel, “Video, Hajimete Shitamashita” (Video, Hajimete Shitamashita), in addition to Metaverse idols and anime songs, projects linked to “Barabara Daisakusen” are also being uploaded. The fact that “Barabara Daisakusen” is less than 20 minutes in length is also aimed at young people who are accustomed to short videos.

TV Asahi is skillful in creating programs that appeal to the elderly, such as period dramas, and won the triple crown in viewer ratings (household viewer ratings) in 2010, but it is also capturing younger viewers through distribution.

TV Asahi is taking the industry by storm with its tactic of “separating” terrestrial broadcasting and distribution.

From the July 28, 2023 issue of FRIDAY