Elisa brings Nordic movies and series to Chinese audience
Elisa enters the Chinese IPTV business in partnership with the leading Chinese IPTV service provider. The aim is to develop Nordic TV a nationwide brand.
Finnish telecommunications, ICT, and digital service company Elisa has partnered with China Broadcasting and Television Media (CBM, a subsidiary of China Broadcasting Network) in July, to provide the Nordic TV video service for Chinese audience. The agreement with CBM opens access to 245 million cable-TV households.
Nordic TV is a comprehensive subscriber video on-demand service containing Nordic movies, TV series, documentaries, sports, and variety shows. For example, the Finnish drama series Downshifters, the documentary Tale of a Lake short versions which depicts the beauty of Nordic nature, and the car racing variety show Virittäjät, etc.
“Last year, Nordic TV succeeded in a pilot in Shenzhen, a top-tier city with a population of over 10 million people. The pilot confirmed that Chinese consumers have a desire for Nordic content and they are willing to pay for it”, says Einari Kanerva, Director of Nordic TV.
As a crucial part of Elisa’s international entertainment business, Nordic TV will put more resources and effort in content acquisition, localization, and delivery, while the Chinese partner CBM is taking care of local operation and marketing.
"The Nordic lifestyle and nature are of interest to Chinese consumers. In partnership with Elisa, we can offer our customers a new kind of content that stands out from other TV shows. Our goal is to build Nordic TV a nationwide brand", says Chen Kai, General Manager of CBM.
The plan is to launch Nordic TV product in selected provinces starting from Shenzhen at the end of this year. Nordic TV will use AI and other advanced tools in developing and delivering the service.
“China is known as an exciting but difficult market. The direct partnership with leading local company helps us to overcome regulatory barriers and enter the market. This is a great opportunity for the Nordic content producers and owners and we hope they would contact us actively”, Kanerva says.
