But expats lose a sense of place by ignoring local TV
BACK in the 1980s and 90s the steady trickle of expats would receive their daily fix of news and entertainment exclusively on local TV.
It was all a far cry from today with most new arrivals connected to the same channels they watched back home and have little or no time for Cyprus broadcasting.
“That is because I don’t think local stations make any effort at all to cater for immigrants to Cyprus,” says Dr Mike Hajimichael of the University of Nicosia.
“The blame lies with the TV stations. They don’t make any effort to attract foreign audiences, and they don’t make programmes for them or even about them, which is really surprising when it is reckoned that one in three people in Cyprus are from abroad – equating to about 200,000 possible viewers.
“The only time you will ever see Russians or Sri Lankans on Cyprus TV is when they are the butt of a joke in local sit-coms,” he added.
Sandra Hale, 70, lives in Larnaca bay, she moved to Cyprus in 1987, long before the internet and home satellites.
“Actually there were many programmes aimed at new arrivals to Cyprus, such as Greek by radio and English news. Even up until a few years ago all we watched was CyBC television, listened to BFBS Radio and rented videos,” she said.
“Even though the choice was limited, the advantage then was of course that we all knew what was going on here; we knew the politicians and the local shows, heard the language and could really get a feel for this country.”
But with international channels beaming in non-stop sports, films and light entertainment via satellite, local television has largely failed to make an impact on the growing numbers of new expats arriving in Cyprus.
One satellite dealer is so savvy on the international broadcasting scene that he can list just about every private and state TV station on air today.
“People want satellite dishes, Bulgaria, Russia are really popular. We do Polish packages which have everything on them, Asian networks, Indian, you name it – we can get you it,” he said.
“Many people don’t even bother buying a TV aerial; they go straight for satellite or cable services like Prime Tel or MiVision, which also give both local and foreign channels.”
The exodus of many viewers to satellite and internet TV now includes a growing number of locals, who are being offered an array of Athens-based TV stations via Nova and Prime Tel.
A spokesman for CyTA, which runs the popular MiVision service, confirmed that foreign subscribers make up a large percentage of their customer base, and a recent BBC survey suggest that more people across the EU are starting to watch less terrestrial TV as the online and digital boom grows.
The Russian market is proving to be increasingly profitable for local satellite installers, many of whom cannot keep up with demand.
Tatiana Socrates from Russian Wave Radio in Limassol says that most immigrants from Russia have no time for local broadcasting.
“There are around 65,000 Russians on the island, most don’t speak much Greek or English so the majority watch Russian TV on the internet or satellite. For many it is like being at home to hear Russian radio and watch Russian TV…with the sunshine of course,” she said.
It’s not all doom and gloom for the terrestrial TV market though, as unlike Germany and Italy which dub foreign shows, broadcasters here prefer to transmit many programmes in their original language, meaning that they still attract some foreign viewers.
“Cyprus channels do show programmes that appeal to English speakers,” says Maria Mavromatis from AGB Neilsen TV Research. “Unlike most countries that dub into their native languages, you can watch shows like Lost, Dexter, CSI Miami or Desperate Housewives.”
However, the bizarre twist for broadcasters such as CyBC and Sigma, that have actively harnessed the power of the internet and satellite, is that they are now enjoying a dramatic increase in Greek-speaking audiences from places such as the UK, Greece and even as far a field as Australia.
“CyBC has always been very popular abroad, thousands from the diaspora watch and listen online, just like English residents in Cyprus watch the BBC,” a CyBC spokesman told the Sunday Mail.
It is predicted by media analysts that the domestic TV scene will change again soon, with Cyprus now slated to adopt digital terrestrial TV broadcasting using “digi boxes”, which should be available and running by the end of 2011.
The new “digi boxes” will be installed in every home and will offer viewers local, national and international channels radio and TV channels without the need for dishes, internet or phone lines.
