HKTV and ATV Collaboration Proposal Dissipates
With its days numbered, ATV was offered a new revenue opportunity when HKTV Chairman Ricky Wong (王維基) proposed renting ATV’s channels to broadcast dramas. Unfortunately, the two broadcasters were unable to come to terms and HKTV has withdrawn its offer.
Cash-strapped and struggling to pay employee wages in recent months, ATV also failed to renew its television broadcasting license, which will expire next April. The Hong Kong government stated that ATV has no right to appeal, as the station was previously given adequate time to provide a restructuring plan.
Hoping to reach a wider audience, online broadcaster HKTV offered to pay ATV $5 million HKD per month to air four hours of programs every day on ATV’s channels. However ATV requested HKTV to pay $10 million HKD and reduce its programming to only three hours every day.
HKTV hoped to negotiate more favorable terms, and extended its offer deadline from April 20 to April 27. Unfortunately, Ricky Wong’s deadline extension was met with ATV Executive Director Ip Ka Po‘s (葉家寶) demanding requests. Unable to reach a compromise, HKTV officially retracted its offer to rent ATV’s channels for broadcasting purposes.
Source: ihktv.com
This article is written by Su for JayneStars.com.
really ATV you’re struggling and still demanding such high fees?!? this is a joke or what… ATV is losing here compared to HKTV they have nothing else to lose as they already did.
This offer would be good for both side but then ATV is being so arrogant and start to act all so mighty we don’t need your money. good luck ATV, can’t wait to see the day you closed down for good.
In the meantime TVB is all laughing and enjoying this whole drama.
I don’t get it. What could be mutually benefiting (one wants a place to broadcast, the other funds to continue) and yet this is like a dead end. Either ATV has no vision or they have a better deal.
@funnlim Agree. I think ATV is stupid in not accepting the offer. Something is better than nothing until April 2016. At least their employees will get paid for the wages owed.
@orchid123 That’s because Ip Ka Po mainly wants the money in his own hip pocket, not to pay his poor employees. I feel for them.
With boneheaded decisions like this, how is anyone supposed to feel sorry for ATV shutting down?
Although $5 million HKD per month is the minimum they will get, it is still not enough to pay the wages of the employees.
The costs are much more than that. I am not surprised they demanded more money.
@mtt84, no mather deal or not they are already death,its just delay of the execution.its better for the employee now they can find another job much earlier than estimated.
Would think that at this late stage, they could at least think about the employees (to be paid in part if not all)
I believe there was another white knight in talks but I fail to see how extra guaranteed money to help keep you afloat for a while longer is bad business. Buying more time seems like a valid strategy given their current state. They could’ve done a rental monthly contract with HKTV in case the new investor doesn’t agree with the arrangement, but the demand compared to the offer has such a wide gap that I have to wonder if the white knight talk is the reason for this display of confidence in their demand or if the executive level has simply gone full retard.
The employees who were die hard loyal can at least start considering other options knowing nothing is in it for them in the near future. ATV has been rotten for so long that they should consider themselves lucky to still be in business as a non-factor anyway.
Once again, ATV management are being retards! Ok, fine, 5 million HKD may not be enough to pay all their employees, but with their dire situation, something is better than nothing…I’m sure their employees would rather be partially paid than not paid at all. So stupid…it’s because of these types of bonehead decisions that ATV got into this mess in the first place! I guess Ip Kar Bo would rather ATV close down on 5/29 as rumored than to agree to anything with HKTV (ironically, they didn’t think twice about selling all their classic dramas to TVB, did they?).
ATV deserves absolutely NO sympathy. Good riddance to them — please close down now and put everyone out of their misery so we don’t have to keep hearing about your management’s stupidities for another year!
@llwy12 something is better than nothing,if they had handled matters on this way then they are already saved now, but unfortunately their strategy was everything of nothing,still they think they have room to negotiate?
@kolo Well, with such incompetent management, it’s no wonder that Wong Ching was able to take over so easily and completely ruin ATV. They (the management) only have themselves to thank for getting to this point.
Also, to me, this further proves that ATV doesn’t care about its employees. Being able to pay their employees should be the first and foremost concern, yet time and time again, they (ATV management) are ‘toying’ with their employees’ livelihoods. I honestly don’t understand why the employees even bother to stick around anymore….sure, I get the “loyalty” piece, but come on, loyalty can only take you so far, especially knowing that ATV doesn’t give a crap about their employees.
Does anyone notice how bad HKTV drama is?
1- Lack of characters
2-same people acting in almost all series?
3- no characters progression or developments….
4- half the series is talking about the past..
AND the camera always zoom in or weird angle, because they want to save money on filming ( bigger vision cost more )
The lighting and sound of hktv is similar to ATV…. very dim and bad sound…
TVB drama is bad also, but at least they have more people and camera ,sound,lighting is better…