Innovation, focus, profit. These three keywords describe CASBAA's three day event in Hong Kong's Convention & Exhibition Centre, to be flagged off on 27 November.

The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia Conference will start with a pre-conference super session on 27 November on Interactive Television and its relevance to Asian audiences. The four hour session will look at the experiences of the first iTV testbeds, pilots and rollouts. It will also deal with Interactive broadband internet content distribution over satellite and cable television networks.

Nine sessions and one super session will mark the two day conference. The first day's sessions will focus on the future of reality television, broadband and branding for networks. One of the sessions will showcase latest media entrants and examine the nature of investment in Asia' media sector. The day's other sessions will also scrutinise the effectiveness of anti piracy measures and the industry's response to the burgeoning piracy in the entertainment sector.

The second day's sessions will look at the revenues of terrestrial, cable and satellite networks, and will predict changes in the advertising landscape. Other sessions will focus on digital behaviour trends across Asia. Panelists will hold forth on their views on the difference between interactive TV and what the web has to offer. The 'Breakout Session' on the second day of the conference focusses on the satellite industry. Experts will tackle the question of how the satellite industry is trying to deliver efficient communication in a cost effective manner.

The focus also shifts to local markets, with panelists talking about how indigenous content providers can distinguish their product from American and European offerings. Desi content will be judged against overseas ones in terms of cost, distribution and returns. At the concluding session, CASBAA 2001 will gaze into 'The Crystal Ball' to get an idea of the direction in which the cable & satellite industry is headed. Thought Leaders from each session will amalgamate their views to form a perspective of the industry ext one to three years. The key challenges, opportunities and issues facing the industry will be delved into.

CASBAA represents 120 Asian corporations catering to over 3 billion people, its members comprising cable operators, satellite platforms, satellite system operators, cable and satellite channels, hardware providers and new media service purveyors and network enablers. Top brass from several corporates and professionals from the cable & satellite industry in the region are expected to attend the event.