A&E TELEVISION NETWORKS AND ASTRO FORM JOINT VENTURE - -
Written by Upstream Asia   
THE HISTORY CHANNEL® AND CRIME & INVESTIGATION NETWORK™
TO LAUNCH IN SOUTHEAST ASIA, HONG KONG AND TAIWAN

Apr 19, 2007 -- /prbuzz/ -- New York/Kuala Lumpur/Singapore/Hong Kong - - A&E Television Networks (AETN™) and ASTRO ALL ASIA NETWORKS plc (ASTRO), through its subsidiary ASTRO All Asia Entertainment Networks Limited, have formed a landmark joint venture, AETN All Asia Networks Pte. Ltd., to launch and operate branded channels and services across Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Headquartered in Singapore, AETN All Asia Networks will also have operations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The venture is set to launch The History Channel® and Crime & Investigation Network™ in Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, The Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei in Q2 and Q3 2007. The channels will launch in Taiwan by the end of the year. The History Channel and Crime & Investigation Network will be fully language-versioned in Bahasa Malaysia, Bahasa Indonesia, Thai and Chinese.

AETN All Asia Networks¡¦ also plans to launch The Biography Channel® in the region, and to deploy the brands and programming via VOD, mobile, broadband and HD.

Sean Cohan, Sr. Vice President, International, AETN, said, ¡§We are very pleased to partner with ASTRO to bring The History Channel and Crime & Investigation Network to the region. ASTRO is a true pay-TV leader in Asia; we value their strong track record and local expertise as we prepare to launch these brands and services. The region has a deep commitment to education and a great tradition of story-telling, and I believe our channels will have tremendous appeal to viewers throughout the region.¡¨

Azran Osman-Rani, Senior Director, Business Affairs, ASTRO, said, ¡§We believe this venture represents a new model for content providers and platform operators that will become increasingly prevalent in Asia going forward. Joint investment and commitment to localization of programmes and brands, and sharing complementary expertise as committed partners with aligned interests, should lead to a stronger and more sustainable value proposition ultimately for customers. In this respect, we¡¦re excited to pioneer this with AETN who brings world-class skills and products in the factual-programming genre.¡¨

Program schedules for both The History Channel and Crime & Investigation Network will feature local acquisitions and local productions.

Now available in over 130 countries in more than 230 million TV households, The History Channel is the only international television network devoted exclusively to historical programming, featuring informative and entertaining series, specials and documentaries. The network reveals the power and passion of history, allowing viewers to experience history personally and connect their own lives to the great lives and events of the past. The History Channel was first launched by AETN in January 1995 in the United States

The History Channel features award-winning programming that covers a variety of topics, including ancient history, contemporary history, military history and conflict, and technology and transport. Among the original series that air on The History Channel are Battle Stations, Engineering an Empire, MegaDisasters, and Digging for the Truth; specials include The Crusades: Crescent and The Cross, Titanic, French Revolution and Egypt: Beyond the Pyramids.

Real crime, real people, real drama ¡V Crime & Investigation Network is the ultimate destination for viewers looking to unearth the real story behind the headlines. Crime & Investigation Network opens the door to crime labs, police archives and courtrooms, providing a behind-the-scenes look at criminal investigations, probing unexplained mysteries and examining the lives of infamous murderers and villains. While police work to crack some of the world¡¦s most fascinating crimes, viewers witness first-hand as law enforcement agencies utilize old fashioned detective techniques and the latest forensic investigation tools to solve cases ¡V both new and cold.

Among the original series set to air on Crime & Investigation Network are First 48, SWAT, Cold Case Files and Crime & Punishment.


Note to editors: For images please contact Upstream Asia.


About A&E Television Networks:
A&E Television Networks (AETN) is a joint venture of The Hearst Corporation, ABC, Inc. and NBC. AETN is an award-winning, international media company offering consumers a diverse communications environment ranging from television programming, magazine publishing, and web sites, to books, music CDs and home entertainment, as well as supporting Saturn educational initiatives. A&E Television Networks is comprised of A&E„¥ Network, The History Channel, The Biography Channel„¥, History International„¥, The History Channel en español„§, Military History Channel„§, A&E HD™, Crime & Investigation Network„§, AETN International and AETN Consumer Products. AETN channels and programs are available in more than 135 countries to over 255 million TV households. The AETN International web site is located at www.AETNinternational.com.

About ASTRO:
ASTRO ALL ASIA NETWORKS plc is the region¡¦s leading cross-media operator with Direct-To-Home satellite multi-channel television services in Malaysia and Brunei and soon, in Indonesia. It is the country¡¦s leader in commercial radio, and publishes Malaysia¡¦s most widely circulated magazine, the Astro Guide. The ASTRO Entertainment Network produces 18 television channels of original and aggregated content of various genres in multiple languages. Celestial Pictures owns the world¡¦s largest Chinese Film library and its digitally remastered films are released internationally through theatrical, video, television and new media distribution, and the Celestial Movies channels. The strength of these complementary brands has extended into interactive and multi-media services, including provision of content for mobile devices. ASTRO operates out of the All Asia Broadcast Centre, a fully-integrated digital broadcast and production complex in Kuala Lumpur. With market capitalization of RM10 billion (US $2.8 billion), it ranks among the top 20 companies on Bursa Malaysia.

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CONTACT:
For A&E Television Networks:
Kerri Tarmey
Tel at MIP TV: +1 646 643 5737
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For ASTRO All Asia Networks:
David Yap
Tel: +603 9543 9129
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Upstream Asia for A&E Television Networks and ASTRO All Asia Networks
Tracy Cheung / Maria Cheong
Tel: +852 2973 0222
Email: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it / This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

About the Press Release
A&E Television Networks (AETN) and ASTRO ALL ASIA NETWORKS plc (ASTRO), through its subsidiary ASTRO All Asia Entertainment Networks Limited, have formed a landmark joint venture, AETN All Asia Networks Pte. Ltd., to launch and operate branded channels and services across Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Headquartered in Singapore, AETN All Asia Networks will also have operations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.


 
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