The Background of Nippon Hoso Kyokai - Essay Example

Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK) Introduction Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK) whose official English is Japan Broadcasting Corporation is the nations’ public broadcaster. NHK is a parastatal funded by viewers payments of a television license fee (Krauss 3). NHK has always branded itself to its viewers by the English pronunciation of its initials. The broadcaster operates three radio networks, and three satellite and two terrestrial television services. It also provides an international broadcasting service (NHK World). NHK world television, NHK World Premium, and the shortwave radio service NHK World Radio Japan compose the NHK World. World Radio Japan broadcasts some of its programs on the internet. The background of NHK 1926 was the year when NHK was founded. Krauss states that NHK was modeled on the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) radio company of Britain (6). NHK evolved from the merger of the three local broadcasting corporations. This merger and reorganization was carried out under the backing of Japans’ ministry of communications. In 1931, NHK started the second radio network. This was followed by the establishment of a shortwave radio service, Radio Japan, for its overseas listeners. The Imperial Japanese army took control of all public news organizations in 1941 and harmonized their efforts through the information liaison confidential committee. All published and transmitted news reports duration of world war two became official broadcast of the Imperial army general headquarters. The headquarters was in Tokyo. NHK broadcasted the famous Tokyo rose wartime programs. After the war in 1950, three radio regulations were enacted including the broadcast law. Under this law, NHK started afresh as a unique corporation to be supported by its viewers. In 1950, NHK started general television followed by educational television in 1959 (Foreign Press Center 22). NHK aired its initial color television transmission in 1960. In the 1982, NHK started NHK BS television broadcasts and followed with NHK world television in 1995. The year 2000 saw NHK start satellite digital television transmissions. This was followed by in 2003 by terrestrial digital television transmissions for three megacity areas, with plans to cover almost the whole nation by 2011. NHK BS Hi-Vision analog television was stopped in 2007. NHK world television became free-to-air over the Astra in Europe at the end of 2008. Currently, NHK operates fifty four stations across the nation and has correspondents in twenty eight locations around the globe. A certain amount of money is usually paid by viewers in Japan to NHK known as license fees (which is similar to British Broadcasting Company’s license fee),. The broadcast law which regulates NHK funding demands that any television equipped to receive NHK is required to pay. Feldman explains that this system enables the NHK to retain its independence from any governmental and private associations and guarantees that the opinions of their audiences and listeners are assigned top priority. The license fee is standardized but it has discounts for students who commute and office workers as well as for the residents of Okinawa territory. The broadcast law, however, lists no castigatory actions for non payment. As a result of this, the number of citizens who had not paid the fee exceeded one million users after a couple of NHK-related scandals. These incidences ignited debate over the fee system fairness. NHK opted, in 2006, to take legal action against those most blatantly in defiance of this law. NHK supports intercultural dialogue and persistently undertakes new co-production projects with other broadcasting stations, distributors and production companies all over the globe (NHK Broadcasting Culture and Research 4). Between 2007 and 2008, NHK broadcasted sixty eight co-productions in thirty three titles, of which thirty one were produced in hi-vision. It is worth noting that NHK has been carrying out research on more advanced technology. An example is the super hi-vision, an ultrahigh-definition widescreen system. The picture resolution is sixteen times better than the current system. NHK is also in the process of developing special-needs broadcasting services for the physically challenged and elderly. The NHK broadcasting center, is the headquarters of NHK and it is situated in Jinnan, Tokyo. The center has shops, studios, a studio park and offices. The studio park is a popular tourist attraction and it is often visited by school children. The NHK hall is also situated within the complex. This is where presentations are regularly held and broadcasted. Other NHK related organizations have offices in buildings in nearby streets. A number of worldwide broadcasters are hosted at the center, including Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) of Australia and American Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) of United States. Others include Korean Broadcasting Company (KBS) of South Korea and Cable China Television (CCTV) of China. Organization structure The board of governors The board of governors is the body tasked with decision-making. The board of governors consists of twelve governors who are appointed by the prime minister and are approved by both houses of the Diet. The executive board The NHK’s president, executive vice-president and the nine managing directors make up the executive board. The president oversees matters designated by the board of governors as NHK business. The executive board usually discusses matters that need the official approval of the board of governors, as well as issues that the president would like the executive board to scrutinize. The Audit Committee The committee audits all business carried out by the board of governors and the executive board and accounts to the board of governors. The audit committee has three or more members selected from and appointed by the board of governors. One member is at least, appointed full time. The audit committee is always independent of both the executive board and the board of governors. The financial woes and other problems of NHK NHK, Japans sole public broadcaster, faced the biggest ever predicament in its fifty six year old history. A sequence of scandals has prompted an intense discussion on the fate of one of the worlds largest media corporation (Altman 98). An embezzlement scandal in 2004 led to a massive financial blow as more than a million Japanese cancelled or refused to pay the licensing fee after it was discovered top executives were defrauding the company. It is said that NHK employed more than ten thousand people and had revenue from a viewing fee that came to almost US dollars five billion. But then all hell broke loose. Top executives were accused of embezzling funds, and the popular company chairman was forced to step down. NHK came under increased governmental and legal scrutiny, and competitors revved up their engines. The 2004 scandal triggered waves of consumer discontent, resulting in about two million consumers’ refusal to pay. The percent of consumers who paid license fees dropped by almost ten percent. This translates into a total revenue loss of some US dollars forty two million or eight percent of NHK’s gross revenue. An example of the citizens of Japan refusing to pay the license fee is best captured by NHK public relations division. It stated that a certain woman signed up for NHK in January 2004 but since august that year, she had remitted her monthly fees. It was unfortunate that NHK went to court to compel the woman to pay (Kraus 681). After the scandals, NHK created strict regulations for the submission of performing fees and picking transmission writers. The management of NHK had ordered all divisions of the corporation to look into their business and check business tours as quickly as possible to avert a recurrence. Goods administration was also made tighter and stricter, and ways of managing even each ballpoint pen was launched at some workplaces. It was made obligatory to submit business trip reports along detailed explanations of all expenses including hotel and transportation expenses. The receipts were also to be attached. However, there were still loopholes in the new dispensation. Such submitted reports were not required or considered for single-day trips. . Eight of their board of directors was later replaced as part of NHK efforts to regain public trust. The move was aimed at reducing the growing number of NHK customers who were refusing to pay NHK broadcast reception fees. The management of NHK had agreed not to pay all those implicated in the scandals. Later on, NHK announced that it will give out its eight former top executives including former president a fraction of their retirement benefits that had been frozen. The former president had been forced to step down over his conduct over the fraud scandals that had rocked NHK. The management of NHK had in the beginning frozen a hundred percent of the retirement benefits, but later slashed them to between fifteen and fifty percent. The NHK management came up with the decision to go on with the payments as a way of settling the matter once and for all. That marked only the beginnings of NHK’s financial woes. Several problems were approaching on the horizon that would affect NHK’s bottom line for years to come. These were the financial crisis (the scandals), the world wide financial recession of 2008-09 and the huge changes in the media world brought about by the internet. Bell views that the money for quality journalism is drying up (97). In 2007, newspaper advertising revenue in the United States dropped by nearly ten percent, the largest amount in the more than fifty years since statistics have been kept. There have been similar reductions in media companies in Japan and around the world. Media companies are finding that serious journalism is in trouble. The same can be said for NHK. Laborious and expensive, news stories and investigative reports that reflect a passionate commitment to the public interest are being squeezed out of our media by new economic realities. This has resulted in decreased revenues (Bell 137). Strategies to get back public support and increasing profits NHK needs to consolidate, in part to take advantage of economies of scale. Their newsrooms need to be shrunk and circulations decreased. Consolidation helps in cutting on controllable and foreseen expenses. It also helps in proper planning, organizing and allocation of the available resources. Part of NHK’s problem is that it is too big and unwieldy. In order to compete into today’s segmented market, it should divide itself up into a number of subsidiary companies that focus on different aspects of media and take different approaches. This will also allow NHK to experiment and see what works in today’s rapidly changing marketplace (Kamimura, Ikoma and Nakano 27). For example, the television divisions should be under one subsidiary while the radio ones would be in another. Also, the electronic division may be separated from the print division. NHK should maintain its hold on the Japanese market so as to prove its competitiveness. It is the duty of the marketing department to vigorously market the corporation in Japan. They will need to engage in projects such as community projects, community clean ups, construction of basic facilities (health centers) and sponsoring social and sporting events (Kamimurai, Ikoma and Nakano 39). This will go a long way in recapturing and maintaining public trust and interest. NHK should try and establish its presence in rapidly growing markets such as Korea, China, Vietnam and Africa. There are tens of millions of people who have limited access to media in these areas and who hunger for more. American broadcasters have really succeeded in reaching out to new markets. One potential bright side is the expansion of NHK broadcasting internationally. Last year, NHK began a satellite service in English to European markets. This will be very good for branding purposes and market positioning. NHK needs to be able to establish its market niche in Europe and exploit on it. NHK should use the internet more to increase its revenue. NHK could seek online ad revenue. Perhaps it can find traction by using an online subscription model that would allow it to make money the same way their pre-internet newsprint ancestors once did. NHK should maximize the use of free and inexpensive promotion. Such examples of inexpensive promotion include allowing its brand name to be used at a fee. NHK should market test every new product or service before investing in it or marketing it. It should go on with what is working and discontinue with what is not working. Customers usually do not want guarantees from suppliers or retailers of services and products. It is their right to high quality services and products. Customers want the service or product to be right the first time. NHK should strive to always please their customers and they will become NHK best sales people. NHK should get to know their customers and what is of importance to them. The media industry is the most competitive industry in the world (Altman 54). NHK should look for various ways to add value to their products and services without adding to the cost. This might include having news updates at the top of each hour instead of waiting till evening. It may also differentiate its products and services from other media companies. NHK should always strive to stay at the cutting edge of the media industry. It will do well to NHK if it knew its competitors and what they are doing. The pricing strategy of NHK products ad services should be considered. NHK needs to lower the price of its products and services. This will help in attracting the low income earners into doing business with them. When it does so, it also needs to try and cut its costs (expenditure) and not its profit. NHK should use historical financial information accurately to determine costs. NHK should engage in cost containment. This involves the discontinuation of services or products that do not add up to the bottom line. Employees who are of no benefit to the corporation should be sacked. NHK employees should be employed based on performance contracts. Operating costs should be kept as low as possible without jeopardizing outcomes. All expenditures should be rightfully justified. Conclusion NHK needs to think carefully about its place in the world and in the marketplace. Things have changed and it can no longer rely on its near monopoly and the goodwill of the Japanese people. Like all media companies in the world, NHK has taken huge revenue hit in recent years. This should be a wake up call which it must take very seriously. The world is changing. If NHK doesn’t change with it, it will cease to exist. Works cited Altman, Kristin Kyoko. Media and Politics in Japan. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2007. Bell, Alan. The Language of News Media. Blackwell: Oxford University Press, 2006. Curtis, Gerald. The Logic of Japanese Politics: Leaders, Institutions, and the Limits of Change. New York: Columbia University Press, 1999. Feldman, Ofer. Politics and the News Media in Japan. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press, 2003. Foreign Press Center. Japans Mass Media. Tokyo: Foreign Press Center, 2005. Kamimura Shuichi, Ikoma Chiho and Nakano Sachiko. The Japanese and Television: The Current State of TV Viewing’ NHK Broadcasting Culture and Research 13.5, (2004). Krauss, Ellis S, Changing Television News in Japan Journal of Asian Studies 57.3 (2005): 663-692. Krauss, Ellis. Broadcasting Politics in Japan: NHK and Television News. New York: Cornell University Press, 2008. NHK Broadcasting Culture and Research, ‘Japanese Broadcasting Data’, NHK Broadcasting Culture and Research, 17.6 (2005). Read More