TeleChimp | TV Journalism

If you were in Singapore’s main shopping belt, Orchard Road last Saturday and saw the thunder of a New York Police Department (NYPD) procession do not worry!

This unusual observation was the first procession of AXN, which has 26 cars in partnership with Harley Owners Group (Singapore Chapter) and regional exhibitions sponsor Chevrolet to promote the Blue Bloods, the new series of the chain of prime American police.

The on-the-ground motorcade stunt was the culmination of an extensive online and on-air campaign, featuring NYPD sightings across Asia reported by a fictitious AXN News Network (ANN). A series of on-air promos, first seeded on social media sites Facebook and Twitter, kicked off with ANN first reporting a spike in crime rates in New York City as a result of huge contingents of NYPD cops headed to Southeast Asia.

This was followed by other reports of ‘Men in Blue’ sightings in locations, such as Singapore’s Chinatown, Kuala Lumpur’s Petronas Twin Towers, Manila’s Makati City, and even Chevrolet showrooms – demonstrating the ingenious and seamless integration of a sponsor into an on-air promo. Sharp-eyed tourists and residents also submitted numerous videos of the ‘Men in Blue’.

A team of tall, strapping cops made their presence felt as they wandered along the busy thoroughfare giving out packets of tissue, to drive home the public service message that “it is time to clean up the streets”. The public, though initially perplexed, were soon posing for shots happily with the cops.

AXN, Southeast Asia’s No. 1 international general entertainment channel, is proud to be the first in Asia to premiere Blue Bloods on 21 February 2011. A drama about a multi-generational family of cops dedicated to New York City law enforcement, Blue Bloods marks multi-award winning Tom Selleck’s (Magnum P.I., Jesse Stone) return to primetime TV. The stellar cast of young and seasoned actors includes Donnie Wahlberg (Righteous Kill, Band of Brothers), Broadway luminary Len Cairou (Damages, The West Wing) and Bridget Moynahan.

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Action/adventure channel AXN will launch a high-definition version in south-east Asia from May. Carriage on two unnamed platforms has already been secured.

SPE Networks is rolling out the HDTV version in south-east Asia following its launch in South Korea in March 2009. In South Korea, AXN HD is available on DTH platform, SkyLife, as well as all three IPTV platforms – Korea Telecom’s Qook TV, LG Dacom’s myLGtv and SK Broadband’s broad&tv.

Ricky Ow, Senior Vice President and General Manager, SPE Networks, Asia, said: “With the HD wave gathering momentum in Southeast Asia, and the rewarding results we received in Korea, we believe the time is right to expand AXN HD’s presence in this region. Besides the two major platform deals, we are also negotiating for additional carriage so that more viewers will get to experience AXN’s brand of high impact action and top-notch entertainment in the best visual quality.”

AXN HD’s programming includes NCIS: Los Angeles, CSI, CSI: NY and CSI: Miami.

The AXN brand was started by SPE in Asia before expanding to Latin America and Europe.

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