Music and much, much more

Complaints flooded the social networks a couple of years ago when cable TV service provider TrueVisions announced that due to the expiry of its contract with MTV , the American basic cable and satellite television channel would no longer be broadcast.

Now it’s coming back, complete with new marketing platforms, although the social networks will probably hum once again, as MTV is taking over the slot of Channel [V], another music channel with an expired contract.

“Viacom International Media Networks, which is the parent company of MTV, took a close look at Thailand’s big entertainment market and decided to cut a deal,” says Amarit “Mark” Sukhavanij, managing director of MTV Thailand. 

“The MTV of today is much more striking than in the past, offering sitcoms, series, movies and reality shows in addition to music.”

Mark, who headed off to university in the States a year before MTV’s 1981 launch, remembers the early days. The original purpose of the channel, he says, was to play music videos, guided by television personalities known as "video jockeys," or VJs. 

In its early years, MTV's main target demographic were young adults, but today, MTV's programming is primarily targeted at adolescents in addition to young adults.

“Most young people at that time watched MTV, as it was the only place to see music videos. The slogan back then was ‘I Want My MTV’,” says the executive, who has also held senior marketing positions the Total Access Communications(Dtac) and Telenor.

“MTV has adjusted its programming constantly over the last 30 years. And that’s helped it remain an influential and seductive channel for several generations of young people. It’s also recognised the need to adapt to consumer behaviour and for the last few years, viewers have wanted not just music videos but also shows. Its marketing strategy is excellent.”

While music still plays an important role channel, taking up 60 per cent of airplay, Thai viewers will be able to enjoy a far greater variety of programmes. Mark says 70 per cent of these are taken from the international feed while 30 per cent of the shows are local.

The international menu features “Awkward”, an American teen comedy about an unpopular 15 year old who gains immediate, yet unwanted, popularity at her high school when the student body mistakes an accident she has for a suicide attempt, along with “Teen Mom”, an American reality TV series that focuses on the themes of changing relationships between family, friends, and boys, while highlighting the struggles teenage mothers have to go through to raise their children,

“Ridiculousness” is a video clip show that shows various viral videos from the Internet and viewers can also look forward to “Catfish the TV Show”, “I Used to Be Fat”, and “Disaster Date”.

Local content includes “MTV Journey”, “MTV Fanatic”, “MTV at the Movies”, “MTV Adrenaline”, which focuses on sports, and “MTV Fash”, a semi-reality programme hosted by hip-hop fashion leader Bobby and makeup and theatrical artist Pearypie.

“Pearypie is very popular in online so she was an obvious choice for the show. ‘Fash’ follows her throughout a day as she dresses up and goes to boutiques. We’ve made every effort to produce new programmes that match the MTV character and we’re lucky in that the cable and satellite market is well-staffed by talented professionals who are able to produce interesting contents for young viewers who don’t want to see the same music videos that they can find on YouTube,” says Mark.

Despite his reference to the video-sharing website, Mark doesn’t regard YouTube as a direct rival to MTV though he admits the availability of  user-generated video content has affected the channel.

“It’s one of the reasons why the music segment in each of programmes is just half an hour. Studies conducted in the US has shown that many youngsters are connected to the social media while watching TV. For example, we know that kids watching ‘Awkward’ are simultaneously chatting with their friends about the series.”

The recent event at Parc Paragon to relaunch MTV Thailand at Parc Paragon also saw the start of the “MTV VJ Hunt 2013”, which runs through November. And Mark is already busy planning the schedule for next year.

“I’d like to put on a show similar to the MTV Asia Awards in Singapore or MTV World Stage in Malaysia. Our challenge is to make a difference and to please our viewers,” he says.

 

Grab the remote

_ You can tune into MTV on TrueVisions Channel 80 (True Knowledge), TrueVisions Channel 71 (True Super Packs), TrueVisions Channel 151 (HD) and PSI on Channel 158.

 

 

 

 

Growing up with MTV

 

Sethapong “First” Durongjirakan, front man of Slot Machine

“I used to tune into MTV to find out about the artists, watch their music videos and find out more information before deciding to buy a CD. I’m pleased it’s coming back, especially as the channel is never out-of-date. No matter what you see on YouTube or other social media, the original is always better on MTV. Sometimes, you  just want to watch and MTV lets you do that.”

 

Supagit “Golf” Puntajack, aka F—king Hero

“I always watched MTV to see the latest music videos and it’s from the channel that I found out about artists like Bjork. I think MTV has influenced young people since the beginning and that can only help the fashion and music industries. Personally, I’d rather watch music videos on MTV than YouTube.”

 

Tachaya “Keng” Prathumwan, aka Keng The Voice

“I watch more music videos on MTV than YouTube and I don’t find the channel old-fashioned. It’s a good way of keeping up with trends and I’m looking forward to enjoying a wider range of interesting programmes.”

 

Ratchakorn “Champ” Udomtanawat, singer and songwriter of Tabasco

“I used to watch MTV to catch the new music videos of artists like Nirvana and Green Day. Before MTV came to Thailand, I looked for pirated videos of the shows and scored guitar scales from them. These days, I can find everything I need on the social networks like YouTube.

 

Korbpob “Toey” Baiyam, former drummer of Silly Fools

“I loved MTV’s rock programme ‘Headbangers Ball’ and also tuned in for music videos. It allowed me to keep up-to-date not just about music trends but also about fashion. The new look MTV Thailand is contemporary with lots more content.”