Asian Pay Television Trust Gets About 8 Cornerstone Investors for S$1.4 ... - 4

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 By P.R. Venkat 
 

SINGAPORE–Asian Pay Television Trust has secured commitments from about eight cornerstone investors who will take up nearly a third of its planned 1.4 billion Singapore dollar (US$1.13 billion) initial public offering in Singapore, people with knowledge of the deal said Wednesday.

The cornerstone investors–who commit to holding a significant stake for a certain length of time, demonstrating their confidence in a deal–include insurance firms, long-only funds and some hedge funds, the people said, without naming the investors.

Asian Pay Television Trust is an investment vehicle for Taiwan Broadband Communications, one of Taiwan’s biggest pay-TV operators.

The planned offering would be Singapore’s second-biggest flotation so far this year after Mapletree Investments Pte. Ltd.–a unit of Singaporean state-investment firm Temasek Holdings Pte. Ltd.–raised US$1.3 billion in an IPO for a China-focused real-estate investment trust in March.

Taiwan Broadband Communications is owned by two funds managed by Australia’s Macquarie Group Ltd. ( Macquarie Group Limited)–the Macquarie International Infrastructure Fund (M41.SG), known as MIIF, and Macquarie Korea Opportunities Fund–which plan to sell their stakes to Asian Pay Television Trust.

The company is seeking to pay a yield ranging between 8.25% and 9.0% for 2014, one of the people said.

A Macquarie spokeswoman declined to comment.

Write to P.R. Venkat at venkat.pr@wsj.com

Asian Pay Television Trust Gets About 8 Cornerstone Investors for S$1.4 ... - 4

200 gather for picnic at Hong Lim Park

Some 200 people chose to celebrate Labour Day by having a picnic at Hong Lim Park early Wednesday morning.

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SINGAPORE: Some 200 people chose to celebrate Labour Day by having a picnic at Hong Lim Park early Wednesday morning.

Singaporeans of all ages and races mingled together while participating in a variety of games with the aim of getting to know one another better.

Organised by a group of friends who call themselves StandUpFor.SG, the objective of the event was to forge stronger community ties.

The group, comprising some 12 members, was formed last July. Its members hope to organise more of such events.

Wally Tham, member of StandUpFor.SG, said: “StandUp has struck a chord with some folks who believe that it’s okay to want to see more happiness and spread some joy. Sometimes, some can get cynical about these things and folks just need to fix stuff. Sometimes, trusting and being happy together is a small way of fixing stuff.”

Thecla Loh, a participant at the picnic, said: “I’ve learnt a word here and it’s ‘gotong royong’ – to come together and share and create things. Share the memories of Singapore, our happiness which we actually have a lot in Singapore. It’s wonderful just meeting random strangers and sharing about Singapore and happiness.”

Francis Goh, who was also a participant, said: “It’s all about the community and getting to know the people around you. We live in an urban setting and what’s lost is the ability to make conversations with people around you and I think that’s precious about this event. You get to meet new people.” 

- CNA/xq

200 gather for picnic at Hong Lim Park

Consumer confidence in Singapore remains stable in Q1 2013: survey

SINGAPORE: Consumer confidence in Singapore has remained stable throughout the first quarter of 2013, according to the latest Consumer Confidence Index by Nielsen.

The global information and measurement company said this signals that Singapore consumers are feeling slightly more upbeat about their job prospects, personal finances and the future recovery of the economy.

Singapore consumer confidence index was at 96 points in the first quarter of 2013 – a one-point increase from the previous quarter.

It has remained at the same level year-on-year.

Singapore now ranks eighth among 14 Asia Pacific economies in terms of consumer confidence – ahead of Australia, Vietnam, New Zealand, Taiwan, Japan and Korea.

Consumers in Indonesia are the most confident in Asia and globally with 122 points.

Singapore also falls slightly below the Asia Pacific average index of 101 points.

Though, the region continues to lead the ranks globally as the most confident region.

Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan saw double-digit confidence increases.

Globally, consumer confidence increased two points to 93.

Singapore consumers are also more optimistic about the economy and job prospects.

With regard to job prospects, almost one in two said prospects are excellent or good.

This is up three percentage points from 46 per cent a quarter earlier.

Singaporeans surveyed also had a more positive outlook on their personal finances this quarter.

More than half of those surveyed considered their personal finances over the next 12 months to be good or excellent.

Continuing the trend seen throughout last year, men in Singapore had a more positive outlook of their personal finances compared to women in the first quarter of this year.

Forty-two per cent of men said their personal finances over the next 12 months would be good or excellent, compared to 29 per cent of women.

They were also more upbeat about  spending – 35 per cent indicated that the next 12 months will be a good time to buy things they need or want, up two percentage points from the last quarter.

Those surveyed said they had more spare cash to spend in this quarter, up three percentage points to 10 per cent from the last quarter.

The majority of Singaporeans surveyed continue to channel spare cash into saving – this is up six percentage points from the previous quarter to 64 per cent.

Those who intend to invest their spare cash in shares of stock or mutual funds also increased by three points to 27 per cent.

Though, men were more likely than women to invest their spare cash in shares of stock or mutual funds and women were more likely to save their spare cash compared to men.

Consumer confidence in Singapore remains stable in Q1 2013: survey

Singapore"s Far East to open resorts in Bintan and Bali

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Far East Hospitality, a management firm under Singapore’s largest private property developer, the Far East Organization, plans to open two resorts in Bintan, Riau Islands and Bali as part of the company’s expansion into Indonesia.

Far East Hospitality head of field sales Marina Buenaventura said that its new resort in the Bali was under construction while its portfolio in Bintan was entering the finalization stage.

“We expect to start operations at our Bali resort-style hotel in the middle of 2015 while the one in Bintan would open by the end of 2015,” Marina said in Jakarta on Monday.

She said that the firm was going to introduce its chic and exclusive boutique hotels under the Quincy brand at both tourist destinations.

“Quincy is the perfect accommodation for people who are looking for privacy and exclusivity. The hotel is accessible only with guestroom keycards even in the restaurant and lobby,” she said.

The firm plans to build more than 200 rooms and suites in each Quincy to cater to the increasing demand from the leisure traveler market in Bali and Bintan.

In Bali, she said the hotel would be located in the Jimbaran area and would have a sunset view. In the long-term, she said that they had plans to open hotels in major cities such as Jakarta and Medan, North Sumatra and second tier cities including Yogyakarta and Makassar, South Sulawesi, in the future.

The firm is expecting to introduce their other brands such as Village and Oasia in Indonesia.

Apart from Indonesia, Far East Hospitality is targeting to expand its footprint by tapping into Southeast Asia and Australia’s economic development over the next few years.

It is plotting property expansion in Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Australia while back in its home country, Far East will add two more hotels: Village Hotel Katong and Amoy Hotel.

Currently, it operates the largest hospitality portfolio in Singapore comprising eight hotels and nine serviced residences with a combined inventory of more than 3,400 units in addition to the Sri Tiara residences in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

With the property sector experiencing robust growth, the company also plans to enter the serviced residences market.

“We are always open to those opportunities. Our business development team is exploring the feasibility of the serviced residences business. We now have representatives in Jakarta,” she went on. Strong economic performance and the increasing middle class have made Indonesia attractive to for foreign hotel firms.

Singapore"s Far East to open resorts in Bintan and Bali

Singapore court to reconsider Indian death row convict"s case

SINGAPORE: The Singapore high court will hear arguments from lawyers of an Indian national and a Malaysian on death row under a revised law that gives judges discretion to impose either death penalty or life imprisonment on certain categories of murder.

Indian national Bijukumar Remadevi Nair Gopinathan was sentenced for killing a Filipino prostitute in a Singapore hotel in 2010.

As per the previous provisions, the law stipulated mandatory death sentence for all categories of murder, The Straits Times said.

Similarly, Malaysian Jabing Kho was sentenced to death for the murder of a Chinese national in 2008.

The two are first from the death row to have their cases heard by the high court under the revised law.

With the beginning of review of the law in July 2011, hangings for the condemned prisoners were put on hold.

As of October last year, 34 prisoners were given a lifeline under the revised law, the daily said.

Amid no objection from the prosecution, lawyers for these two convicts applied separately to the Court of Appeal yesterday for their cases to be sent back for re-sentencing.

The high court will hear their arguments on whether they should be handed the death sentenced penalty at a later date, and the decision is open for appeal.

Death penalty under the revised law is only mandatory for Section 300 (a) under the revised law, compared to being mandatory for any categories of murder previously.

Bijukumar, 37, was sentenced to death for the murder of Roselyn Reyes Pascua, 30, in a hotel in 2010 under Section 300 (a) and (c).

However in September last year, his conviction under Section 300 (a) was quashed by the Court of Appeal.

Kho, 26, had killed 40-year old Chinese national Cao Ruyin while robbing him in 2008. He was convicted in 2010 and his appeal was dismissed in 2011.

Singapore court to reconsider Indian death row convict"s case

Concorde Hotel Singapore Promotes Nigel Tan to F&B Operations Manager - eTravelBlackboard

Concorde Hotel Singapore today announced the appointment of Mr. Nigel Tan as the FB Operations Manager for the Hotel. In his new role, Nigel will oversee the Hotel’s Food and Beverage Operations including Banquets and all FB Outlets, reporting to the Executive Assistant Manager.

With over 15 years of experience in the industry, Nigel joined Concorde Hotel Singapore as Restaurant Manager on 1 July 2009 and was tasked to oversee the daily operations of Spices Cafe.

“Nigel has played a successful role as Restaurant Manager of Spices Cafe for the past 4 years, showcasing his dedication to customer service through leadership,” said Mr. Leo Llambi, General Manager of Concorde Hotel Singapore.

Prior to joining Concorde Hotel Singapore, Nigel was with the Furama Riverfront Hotel Singapore as Restaurant Manager.

Concorde Hotel Singapore Promotes Nigel Tan to F&B Operations Manager - eTravelBlackboard

CommunicAsia2013 and EnterpriseIT2013 to be held on 18-21 June 2013

CommunicAsia and EnterpriseIT event to be held from June 18-21, 2013 at the Marina Bay Sands Singapore, to showcase the latest technologies and trends for the communication’s ecosystem.

This year, the show has evolved with special emphasis on the latest developments and insights across the entire ICT value chain. The show will feature an array of technologies such as mobile broadband and applications, developments in LTE/4G, as well as Over-the-Top (OTT), and more.

BroadcastAsia will also feature groundbreaking technologies and products across the broadcasting, pro-audio, film ,and TV industries.

India’s ICT Sector Booming

According to the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), the IT industry in India has been one of the most significant growth contributors for the Indian economy, contributing substantially to an increase in GDP of almost 8% in 2012. Of this, the IT services exports segment grew by 19%, accounting for exports of $40 bn.

Emerging technologies-cloud computing, mobility, social media, and big data/analytics are unleashing new opportunities for the industry. By 2015, the IT sector is expected to generate revenues of $130 bn which will create a transformational impact on the overall economy. IT spending is expected to significantly increase in verticals like automotive and healthcare while the government with its focus on e-governance, will continue to be a major spender.

CommunicAsia provides tremendous opportunity for Indian Exhibitors
joining the event for the 4th consecutive year, the Telecom Equipment Services Export Promotion Council (TEPC)-set up by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Ministry of Communications IT, Government of India to promote and develop the export of telecom equipment and services-will be leading companies such as Adishwar, Alphion India, Birla Ericsson, Cohesive Technologies, Elitecore, Indus Net Technologies, Inventum, Junotele Solutions, Kenstel Communications, Maksat, Matrix Comsec, Neosoft Technologies, Nexge Technologies, Telimart Systems, and Vox Valley. Other individual Indian exhibitors at CommunicAsia2013 include Deeya Energy India, NDOT Technologies and Tata Communications.

Speakers from India include Mr Mandar Thakur, COO from Times Music, Mr Vijay Anand, distinguished technologist and global CTO – Machine to Machine of Logica (part of CGI), and Mr Anthony Thomas, CIO of Vodafone India, amongst others, will be exchanging their experiences at CommunicAsia2013 Summit. They will be shedding light on pertinent industry topics at the panel discussions on Content Delivery Network (CDN), M2M, and “Empowering the Customer”.

Last year’s edition received tremendous response with over 50,000 attendees from around the globe. Around 71 companies and more than 1,400 attendees from India attended CommunicAsia, EnterpriseIT and BroadcastAsia.

CommunicAsia2013 and EnterpriseIT2013 to be held on 18-21 June 2013