News Broadcasting
BroadcastAsia2004 to feature business, technology sessions and seminars
MUMBAI: Asia’s premier electronic media event BroadcastAsia2004 will be conducting an international conference and a number of adjacent events to equip the industry with the latest technologies, trends and insights. Parallel business and technology sessions, an audio technology seminar and masterclass are some of the programmes organised as part of the event that is to be held in Singapore from 15 – 18 June.
The annual event BroadcastAsia gives the participating organisations ample opportunity to learn and network with the industry.
The session media asset management and information technology scheduled for 15 June will focus on maximising content to the user’s advantage. The session will deal with media asset management and the use of information technology in content production. Audio restoration techniques to be held on 16 June will deal with techniques and methods for the preservation and restoration of audio material in sound archives. The session will be presented by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union.
Digital lifestyles session on 16 June discuss on the use of digital processing in content preparation and delivery. The session also reviews the implementation and opportunities of interactivity and broadcasting via mobile TV, mobile phones and PDAs. Asian D-Cinema summit scheduled for 16 June aims to set the direction for the industry by addressing the key issues of business models, rights management, delivery modes and security. Experts from organisations like Eng Wah, GDC Technology, Mukta Adlabs and SingTel will be sharing their views and vision for digital cinema in Asia in this session.
Accountable management in broadcasting presented by Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development aims at providing examples and best practices in broadcasting management in the scenario of media proliferation and technological changes. The session will be held on 16 June.
Digital content delivery will have participants examining case studies of digital television systems and networks. The Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) conference will highlight developments in the world of DAB through the experiences and success stories of leading DAB players in Asia and Europe. The eighth session will have a regulatory forum on the topic Mobile Broadcasting – Bane or Boon? All these three sessions are scheduled for 17 June.
On 18 June, there will be sessions titled digital radio, production tools and innovations, station/channel identity and planning of broadcasting projects . Digital radio will review and access the latest technologies that extend the traditional perception of radio broadcasting while production tools and innovations will explore new technical innovations and production opportunities. Station/channel identity will deal with the importance of TV channels having a clear and relevant identity according to its audience, as to promote its programmes. Planning of broadcasting projects will outline some of the basic concepts of planning for broadcasting projects and will focus on the requirements for a proper needs analysis.
The audio technology seminar to be held on 17 June is targeted at all audio professionals involved in mid-range live sound for studio, theatres & auditoriums. Chief Engineers roundtable on the same day is an interactive programme where participants can team up to design state-of-the-art broadcast systems to deliver new revenue streams. The post-production masterclass that will touch on the creative challenges in directing and producing animation in Asia will be held on 18 June.
The events graphite 2004 and VRCAI2004 will be co-located with BroadcastAsia 2004. The Graphite2004 conference will bring together people and technologies from a variety of locations and disciplines – to share ideas and form new partnerships in computer graphics and interactive techniques. VRCAI2004 will showcase the latest development of the state-of-the-art technology in the virtual reality continuum.
News Broadcasting
Senior media executive Madhu Soman exits Zee Media
Former Reuters and Bloomberg leader says he leaves with “no regrets” after brief stint at WION and Zee Business
NOIDA: Madhu Soman, a veteran of global newsrooms and media sales floors, has stepped away from Zee Media Corporation after a short stint steering business strategy for WION and Zee Business.
In a reflective LinkedIn note marking his departure, Soman said his time within the network’s corridors was always likely to be brief. “Some chapters close faster than expected,” he wrote, signalling the end of a nearly two-year spell in which he oversaw both editorial partnerships and commercial strategy.
Soman joined Zee Media in 2022 after more than a decade abroad with Reuters and Bloomberg, returning to India to take on the role of chief business officer for WION and Zee Business. His mandate was ambitious: bridge the newsroom and the revenue desk while expanding digital and broadcast reach.
During the stint, Zee Business reached break-even for the first time since its launch in 2005, while WION refreshed programming and strengthened its digital footprint across platforms such as YouTube and Facebook.
But Soman suggested the cultural fit proved uneasy. Describing himself as a “cultural misfit”, he hinted at deeper tensions between editorial instincts shaped in global newsrooms and the realities of India’s television news ecosystem.
Before joining Zee, Soman spent more than seven years at Bloomberg in Hong Kong as head of broadcast sales for Asia-Pacific, expanding the company’s news syndication business across several markets. Earlier, he held senior editorial roles at Reuters, overseeing online strategy in India and managing Reuters Video Services from London.
His career began in television and wire reporting, including a stint with ANI during the 1999 Kargil conflict, before moving into digital publishing as India’s internet media landscape took shape.
Now, after nearly three decades in broadcast and digital media, Soman is leaving Delhi NCR and returning to his hometown, Trivandrum.
Exhausted, he admits. But unbowed. And with one quiet line that sums up the journey: he didn’t sell his soul — because some things, after all, are not for sale.
