Technical and expert committee meetings tied to the 63rd General Assembly of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union opened on Friday at Cinnamon Life, City of Dreams, in Colombo.
Sessions of the ABU’s Sports Committee, Programme Committee and Technical Committee were held with international media executives and regional representatives attending, NewsFirst reported.
ABU Secretary-General Ahmed Nadeem and Yasarath Kamalsiri, chief executive of MTV Channels (Pvt) Ltd, welcomed the visiting delegations. Kamalsiri said hosting this year’s assembly was an honour for MTV Channels and the Maharaja Media Network, and pointed to the broadcaster’s Gammadda initiative as an example of media contributing to social change.
What the ABU chief told delegates
Nadeem said audiences — younger viewers in particular — are shifting towards short-form content and personalised experiences, and argued that broadcasters must embrace innovation while protecting the quality, credibility and cultural relevance of their output.
He also addressed artificial intelligence, saying it is playing a growing role in content production and can improve workflows and support producers and content creators. Alongside that, he said the industry needs to confront cybersecurity, content security and authenticity challenges.
The week ahead
The committee discussions were due to continue on Saturday, turning to policies expected to shape broadcasting across the Asia-Pacific region. The event signage photographed at the venue gives the sitting times as 09:00–17:00 on 30 October and 09:00–12:30 on 31 October.
The official inauguration of the 63rd General Assembly is set for Sunday, 1 November at Cinnamon Life. A concert featuring artistes from across the region is scheduled for Monday, 2 November at the Stein Studios Complex in Ratmalana.
Not reported
The filing does not give the number of delegates or member broadcasters attending, name the countries represented, or say what decisions the General Assembly itself is expected to take. It does not state the assembly’s theme, and this desk has not reproduced one from secondary summaries.
Single verified source. A check of the Daily Mirror and Hiru News rails on Friday evening found no filing from either outlet on the opening of the committee meetings, and Ada Derana has returned a CloudFront block to this desk for roughly 51 consecutive days.
