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Summary
of Press Conference (March, 2006)
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Review of the 2006 Winter Olympics
in Turin
(Comment by Genichi Hashimoto)
Despite the 8-hour time lag, the Turin Olympics attracted a
large audience throughout the 18-day period of the Games. Many
viewers stayed up late or rose early to watch the events in
real time on the nights when Shizuka Arakawa won the gold medal
in the women’s figure skating and when the men’s
500m speed skating took place. NHK aired the Games for a total
of 723 hours, of which 143 hours 50 minutes were aired on General
TV, the most ever allotted to the coverage of Winter Olympic
Games on this channel. During the Games, a total of 10,387 responses
were received at NHK’s Call Center. In addition, 6,989
messages to individual athletes were received by fax or e-mail
in response to the call made on General TV. These results indicate
a strong interest of the Japanese public in the Olympics. I
was surprised to learn that the curling attracted the second
most messages and inquiries, following the figure skating. It
made me realize how the public’s interest in winter sports
was expanding in Japan. (Comment by
Taeko Nagai, Executive Vice President of NHK )
I flew to Turin to attend the closing ceremony. I was deeply
impressed by how the Italian people cheered Shizuka Arakawa
in the women’s figure skating event. I think their cheers
were the loudest during her performance. I also believe that
NHK’s broadcasts, including the special program on Arakawa’s
past achievements, helped to enhance the excitement.
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On the recipients of the 57th
NHK Broadcasting Culture Award
(Comment by Genichi Hasimoto)
This year’s NHK Broadcasting Culture Award will be presented
to the following six people: Ms. Yoshino Oishi, photo journalist;
Mr. Seiji Ozawa, Principal Conductor of the Vienna State Opera;
Ms. Keiko Kishi, film actress and author; Dr. Tomio Tada, Professor
Emeritus at Tokyo University; Dr. Kenichi Futaki, Special Professor
of the Literature Faculty at Kokugakuin University; and Dr.
Yasuhiko Yasuda, Professor of Science and Engineering at Waseda
University.
The presentation ceremony is scheduled to be held on Wednesday,
March 22, as part of NHK’s anniversary events.
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On a new phase of the digital
terrestrial TV services
(Comment by Genichi Hashimoto)
The digital terrestrial TV broadcasting will be introduced in
another five prefectures, Fukuoka, Okinawa, Nagano, Niigata,
and Yamanashi, on April 1. The number of households with potential
access to this service will reach about 30.9 million by the
end of April, accounting for about 66% of all households in
the country. The diffusion is going smoothly, and this number
is expected to increase to about 39.5 million households, or
84% of the total, by the end of this year. The “One Seg”
(Single Frequency Band Segment) system will also be launched
in 29 prefectures on April 1, enabling users of mobile phones
and other mobile terminals to receive digital terrestrial broadcasting.
Details of this system will be explained later this month at
the press conference by Toyohiko Harada, the Executive Director-general
of General Broadcasting Administration.
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On the US debut of Japan’s
Super Hi-Vision System
Super Hi-Vision, which attracted considerable
attention during the Aichi EXPO in 2005, will be shown at
the world’s largest exhibition of broadcasting technology
in Las Vegas, the US, at the request of the organizer, NAB
(National Association of Broadcasters). Super Hi-Vision is
currently on permanent display at the Kyushu National Museum
but has never been taken outside Japan before.
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On the broadcasting schedule for
live coverage of professional baseball games in fiscal 2006
(Comment by Genichi Hashimoto)
NHK plans to air 126 of Japan’s baseball games live in
the regular season, same as last year. 40 of them will be inter-league
games between the Pacific and Central Leagues. As usual, we
hope to cover the games at the home grounds of all 12 teams.
Five of the Yomiuri Giants’ home games will be aired simultaneously
on General TV and Digital BS-hi. 25 other home games will be
covered by the Digital BS-hi channel alone, making 30 home games
in all, same as last year.
(Comment by Toyohiko Harada, Executive Director-General
of General Broadcasting Administration)
At my last press conference, I said that the number of baseball
games NHK relays live would be slightly fewer than last year
because a considerable amount of time would be allotted to
covering the 2006 FIFA World Cup. However, thanks to the time
difference for the coverage of football matches, it turned
out that we could air the same number of baseball games as
last year.
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NHK’s basic concept for
international broadcasting
(Comment by Genichi Hashimoto)
NHK provides international broadcasting services on both radio
and television. We will place the central aim on raising the
proportion of programs with an English-language version from
the current 56% to 100% by 2008, as explained in NHK’s
three-year corporate plan. Being a public broadcaster financed
on receiving fees revenue and independent from any particular
organization, NHK is acceptable to people overseas. In this
kind of broadcasting milieu, we will strive to deepen international
understanding towards Japan.
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On the funding of international
broadcasting
(Comment by Genichi Hashimoto)
I believe that receiving fees revenue is the best way to fund
our international broadcasting.
I did introduce that there are several options and possibilities
being suggested for its funding, including advertising revenue
and an establishment of a fund, at my last press conference
at the Japan National Press Club (JNP), but I never said that
I want advertising revenue to be used for the international
services. And I did also mention at the conference that I think
the best way is to use our receiving fee revenue.
(Comment by Toyohiko Harada)
People outside Japan who wish to receive NHK World TV would
have to set up a fairly large parabolic antenna. Currently,
therefore, it is not easy for individuals to access the service.
Unless we rent a TV channel in each country, be it on satellite
or cable television, the service will not be accessible to
ordinary homes.
(Comment by Genichi Hashimoto)
Whether it is appropriate to use the receiving fee collected
from domestic viewers to cover the last mile in delivering
programs to ordinary homes outside Japan must be discussed
broadly, and at the Diet level as well. This is not the kind
of matter which NHK can decide on its own. I believe a national
consensus is necessary on this issue.
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Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi
recently said that his previous suggestion for NHK to intensify
its global transmission of Japanese information does not necessarily
mean an organizational expansion, and that his impression was
rather that NHK has too many “kyoku”. What is your
reaction to this remark?
(Comment by Genichi Hashimoto)
I don’t understand what he meant by NHK has too many “kyoku”.
Does the comment refer to the number of our domestic channels,
or organizational restructuring of NHK? It’s hard to comment
on something whose meaning is not clear to us.
Regarding the number of NHK channels, our stance, as described
in the three-year corporate plan, is that the demand of our
viewers and listeners and the contemporary roles of the public
broadcaster must be considered in making any decision.
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