APBU laments RI indifference over Olympic telecast<\/p>\n
Eva C. Komandjaja
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
The Kuala Lumpur-based Asia Pacific Broadcasting Union (APBU)
\nlamented the fact that no Indonesian TV stations or radio
\nbroadcasters would air the upcoming Olympic Games.<\/p>\n
\"Indonesia will be the only country out of the 220 represented
\nin Athens, not to telecast it,\" John Barton, head of the APBU's
\nbroadcast operations, said in a release here on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Barton said that the APBU would be putting together over 3,500
\nhours of live Olympic programming, which would be seen in the
\nAsia-Pacific region.<\/p>\n
\"We have done everything possible to secure television
\ncoverage for the people in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"It is a sad day for international sports, and for the many
\npeople in Indonesia who would be keen to support their athletes
\nand teams in Athens, and in particular the nation's badminton
\nplayers who still have a strong chance for medals,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Indonesia will be represented by 39 athletes in 14 sports in
\nAthens.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, local television stations said that weak commercial
\nvalue and expensive prices for the broadcast rights were the
\nreason that they would not show the centennial edition of the
\nOlympics to the people of this country.<\/p>\n
\"Learning from our past experience, it is not commercially
\nadvantageous to buy broadcasting rights for a multi-event
\nsporting showcase like the Olympics, because we have to buy it in
\none entire package, while our viewers are only interested in a
\nfew sports such as badminton and soccer,\" RCTI's spokesman Teguh
\nJuwarno told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
\"Besides, the price of the broadcasting rights is very
\nexpensive so we cannot determine its economic value if we want to
\nbuy it,\" he said, while refusing to mention the price.<\/p>\n
RCTI, one of Indonesia's leading TV stations for live sports
\nprogramming, devoted a large portion of its telecasts to the 2000
\nOlympic Games in Sydney.<\/p>\n
Teguh said that RCTI was content to simply relay some footage
\nof the events as part of its regular sports news programming.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Uki Hastama, SCTV spokesman blamed Indonesia's
\ndiscouraging athletic performances for the local stations'
\nreluctance to buy the package.<\/p>\n
\"Usually, a group of TV stations go in together to share the
\nrights, but this time nobody has come up with the plan so I guess
\nthe price is too expensive,\" Uki said.<\/p>\n
\"Back then (previous Olympics), people were interested to
\nwatch badminton matches on TV, but since the shuttlers'
\nperformances have declined, the people seem to have lost
\ninterest,\" Uki said.<\/p>\n
Most of the stations are also undecided about whether to send
\nreporters to the world's most popular sporting event, which will
\nrun from Aug. 13 to Aug. 29 in Athens.<\/p>",
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