Innovation boosts 'TVRI Yogyakarta'

Innovation boosts 'TVRI Yogyakarta'

Sri Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta

The establishment of three private local TV stations, namely JogjaTV, RBTV and TuguTV, here at almost the same time has created tougher competition for state- owned television station TVRI Yogyakarta, which turned 42 last August.

Still, the station is optimistic it can win the hearts of locals, saying it has numerous innovative and highly rated programs to offer.

"We are confident we can survive because we have existed for a long time. Besides, we also have a very good relationship with many institutions, including local administrations, businesses, universities and individuals," head of TVRI Yogyakarta Bambang Winarso told The Jakarta Post in a recent interview.

As a state-owned local TV station with a public mission, TVRI Yogyakarta cannot be purely commercial, meaning that commercials can never be its main source of income.

Law No 32/2002 on public broadcasting institutions stipulates that only 15 percent of TVRI's broadcasting hours can be used for TV commercials, of which 30 percent must be allocated for public service announcements.

"That means we can never compete with commercial TV stations. We need innovative programs to survive -- otherwise, due to our limited budget, we will have to replay the same programs over and over," Bambang said.

Currently, the government pays only the salary of TVRI Yogyakarta employees who have the same status as civil servants.

Of 284 employees, 257 are on the government's payroll. For operational costs, which amount to some Rp 2.5 billion a year, TVRI Yogyakarta must generate its own income.

"Generating such a large amount of money is no easy task. We have to really work hard for it. Alhamdulillah (Thank God) we can cover it (operational costs) this year. We hope we can next year too," said Bambang.

One of the approaches that TVRI Yogyakarta has adopted to keep producing new programs is a production-cooperation scheme.

Through the scheme, the station is looking for partners or sponsors willing to pay for the production and broadcasting of a program.

The scheme is offered mostly to local administrations -- at both provincial and regental levels -- as well as educational institutions or companies.

"We also have extra time slots, which the sponsor can use for broadcasting their own material, if they pay the applicable fee," said Bambang, adding that interactive programs presenting local government officials or figures as guest hosts were usually produced via this scheme.

An interactive dialog program, Ceplas-Ceplos, for example, has been broadcast since 2003, in cooperation with the Bantul administration.

Used as a medium for publicizing the new policies of the Bantul administration, the program often features Bantul administration executives, including Regent Idham Samawi.

According to Bambang, the station is mostly concerned with maintaining its audience through the provision of quality programs.

Many programs are considered local favorites, such as Kethoprak (Javanese traditional drama), Bangun Desa (drama presented in Javanese), Obrolan Angkring (comedy presented in Javanese) and Plengkung Gading (interactive program presenting local government or public figures as a source).

Also popular are Harmoni (interactive health consultation), and Yogyawarta (news presented in Javanese).

To make a program more attractive, as well as income- generating, TVRI sometimes runs competitions. Currently, for example, it is running a contest through the Kethoprak program in cooperation with a local bank. It is also broadcasting a weekly live dangdut music show, Jos, in cooperation with a leading cigarette company.

Off-air programs are also made to generate income. One of the most lucrative of these is Otobursa -- a used-car market, held every Sunday in the TVRI Yogyakarta compound on Jl. Magelang.

Some 700 used cars are marketed every week, giving TVRI Yogyakarta the additional income of some Rp 5 million per week.

"We just prepare the parking space and collect Rp 8,000 from the car owners. We don't take any commission for sales made during Otobursa," Bambang said.

Bambang, however, realizes that TVRI Yogyakarta needs to broaden its horizons to profit. A commercial channel is currently being established by the station as a money-earner, much like the Programa 2 channel of state-owned radio station RRI.

TVRI Yogyakarta currently earns some Rp 100 million per month from commercials alone.

By operating the commercial channel, a higher income will be generated to subsidize programs for the public TV channel. "That way we can survive more easily," he said.

TVRI Yogyakarta currently airs programs on two channels, (8 VHF and 22 UHF). The 22 UHF channel is set to become its commercial channel.

On its 8 VHF channel, TVRI Yogyakarta can only transmit local programs from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. The rest of the airtime is for national broadcasting. Local programs that are broadcast after 5 p.m., therefore, are on 22 UHF. channel.

The coverage of TVRI Yogyakarta extends to Yogyakarta province, except parts of Gunungkidul, as well as parts of the neighboring Central Java regions of Karanganyar, Wonogiri, Klaten, Boyolali, Muntilan, Temanggung, Wonosobo and Purworejo.

"We are preparing to have a transmitter at Pathuk Hill, Gunungkidul, to widen our broadcasting coverage in and around Yogyakarta," said Bambang.

Bambang also said that, although the emergence of new local TV stations in Yogyakarta meant competition for TVRI Yogyakarta, in the end it was the public and the advertisers who would decide from which station they would gain the most benefit.