Press license policy doesn't deter investors<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesians do not like the word "retreat". A
\npopular proverb, mati satu, tumbuh seribu, which means "one dies,
\nanother appears", is reflected strongly in the nation's
\npublishing industry.<\/p>\n
Two magazines and one tabloid, Tempo, Editor and DeTik, were
\nbanned last June. In a period of a little over six months, two
\nnew magazines, Gatra and Tiras, took their place.<\/p>\n
The potential of the market, which is still wide open for new
\npublications, notably for those specializing in particular
\nfields, such as economics, is said to be the main reason behind
\nthe growth of the industry despite such pitfalls as press bans.<\/p>\n
"Indonesia is still lacking in print media, while the number
\nof Indonesians who are literate and love to read keeps
\nincreasing. Therefore, in terms of business, this industry is
\nvery promising," said Marah Sakti Siregar, chief editor of the
\nnewly-published Tiras weekly.<\/p>\n
Launched last month to replace the banned Editor magazine and
\nproduced by former Editor journalists, Tiras aims to regain the
\nfavor of faithful Editor readers. Before the ban, Editor's
\ncirculation was around 60,000 copies per week.<\/p>\n
According to a survey carried out by the Tiras magazine, not
\nall readers of the three banned publications have switched to the
\nother magazines available on the market. After the banning of the
\nthree media, there was a void of between 300,000 and 350,000
\ncopies per week.<\/p>\n
"That's why we believe publishing Tiras will be profitable. We
\nhope we can seize a bigger market this time, not only among
\nformer Editor readers, but also the readers of the defunct Tempo
\nand DeTik," Siregar told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Aburizal Bakrie, the man behind the Bakrie Group conglomerate,
\nwhich has expanded its business field with the dailies Pelita and
\nBerita Yudha, as well as the Gema Olahraga sport magazine and
\nANteve television station, shared Siregar's view.<\/p>\n
The Bakrie group is reported to have allocated not less than
\nRp 100 billion rupiah (US$47.16 million) for its media business.
\nFor ANteve alone the group has spent around Rp 60 billion.<\/p>\n
The lure of profits encourages people to invest in the media
\nbusiness. The powerful SIUPP, or publishing license, policy,
\nwhich can confront them with a ban at any time, does not seem to
\nbe a threat anymore. The publishing license, has in fact become
\nan element, which can tone down competition in the industry.<\/p>\n
Or as Siregar put it: "The SIUPP is not wholly an obstacle. In
\nthe business world, there is a kind of tradition that the more
\nregulations there are, the more chances there are to get more
\nprofits. SIUPP offers protection for those who have invested
\nbillions of rupiah in the business because it is difficult for
\npeople to apply for it."<\/p>\n
Commenting on the publishing license, Bakrie strongly argued
\nthat it is not an obstacle for investment.<\/p>\n
"In Singapore, where regulations are stricter, The Straits
\nTimes, for example, makes a lot of money."<\/p>\n
Media also means power and prestige.<\/p>\n
"One of investors' reasons to entering this business is to get
\nthe power and the prestige. By possessing a publication, they can
\ngrow bigger and use their media as an umbrella for securing their
\nbusiness, or they themselves, on condition that journalists of
\ntheir media are willing to do that," Siregar said.<\/p>\n
By expanding into the press business, investors have the
\nchance to become informed, he added.<\/p>\n
"It is possible that they use their media business to monitor
\ninformation from their business partners or competitors. Again,
\nthis is valid only if their journalists don't mind doing such a
\nthing," Siregar explained.<\/p>\n
But investing large amounts of funds in the business doesn't
\nguarantee that it will work and that the publication will sell
\nlike hotcakes, said Ashadi Siregar, a lecturer at the
\ncommunication science department of Gadjah Mada University in
\nYogyakarta.<\/p>\n
"The media business doesn't acknowledge a common business
\nformula, because a publication should be particular. It can't use
\nanother products' recipe. It should be very competitive and bear
\na specific character. It is a very serious and difficult
\nbusiness," Ashadi told Sinar weekly.<\/p>\n
Bakrie, who agreed that it is a high risk business, said that
\nthe press industry is similar to the property business because it
\nis involves long term investment.<\/p>\n
"The rate of return can reach 30 percent to 40 percent
\naccording to our prediction. But, we are dead, if no one wants to
\nplace their advertisements in our media," he added.<\/p>\n
Siregar is more optimistic in this view. Tiras, published with
\ncapital of around Rp 5 billion, is predicted to gain a rate of
\nreturn in a period of three years. (als)<\/p>",
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