Ladscape

Myanmar Media Landscape 2021 byMananya

 SurakitphanichkulMarch 25, 2021 From 2020 to 2021, the outbreak of Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the coup in Myanmar (which began in the morning of 1st February 2021) caused significant effects on media markets. Some businesses were disrupted due to lockdowns, and some were controlled and suspended by the Myanmar military. It is expected that the pandemic and the coup will negatively impact businesses throughout 2021. However, some media markets have been unaffected and even benefited from this as they launch their contents remotely through the digital channels. These are the top 6 Myanmar sources of media information that have an effect on consumer’s purchasing decisions in Myanmar media landscape in 2021 (reference: Deloitte’s Myanmar Consumer Survey 2020) Friends & relatives TV Billboards In-store promotions Social media Events Anyway, it’s such a short time. There are now 4 mobile providers operating in the country of Myanmar (that was formerly known as Burma): MPT, Ooredoo, Telenor, and MyTel by MNTC. The number of mobile users in Myanmar decreased by 616 thousand (-0.9%) between January 2020 and January 2021. Due to deactivation of sim card because improper registration. The media landscape has changed since social media has quickly grown. With the rapid growth of Social Media, the traditional media businesses such as newspapers and radio are also expanding their own media to online platforms to maintain customers and grow more audiences. Even though the online media grows their popularity among capital cities, there are many people in rural areas who still consume news and entertainment by using offline media. Such as TV, print media (newspaper and magazines), and radio. Nevertheless, the new media has changed Myanmar audiences’ behaviours of consuming entertainment and data in many ways. Due to the military coup in February 2021, phone and internet connections were disrupted in the main city like Yangon, Naypyidaw, and some other parts of the country. The internet connectivity fell to 16% from the ordinary level. The internet shutdown happened hours after Twitter and Instagram have been blocked. Facebook had been banned a day earlier. Also, the state media including TV channels, radios, and local phone services have been cut off. The Myanmar Times and 7 Day News have stopped all media operations until now and The Voice stopped their print operations only but still publish news on online media channels. Many users avoided the restrictions on using social media by using virtual private networks (VPNs). According to the Arabnews, the offline messaging app, Bridgefy, was downloaded more than 600,000 times in a few hours in Myanmar. Now the mobile internet is banned but using the internet via wifi is still available. Myanmar people from Thailand buy international roaming sims and donate to protestors in Myanmar, so that they can share what is happening on the streets. Social media and the internet has become an important part of people’s lives and daily routines. Hence, understanding customers’ behavior and interests could help businesses to understand their customers and know how to better communicate with them. In this article, we will cover the overview of the media landscape and the trends in Myanmar. Top5 Traditional Media In Myanmar TRADITIONAL MEDIA IN MYANMAR Top 5 traditional media in Myanmar Television (TV) Print Media Radio Billboard & Car Wrap Sponsorship: Event sponsorship is a great opportunity for brands to connect with targeted audiences, and that is especially important in Myanmar. Even though the new media has bloomed, offline media still has a huge effect on most of the people in Myanmar, especially television, radio, and printed media. TV According to the survey by Nielsen and MMRD Research Services, COVID-19 and the State of Myanmar Media, September 2020, viewers have been spending more time in front of their televisions during the lockdown and economic depression. In the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic from March to April, TV viewership went up about 22 percent according to the report. Viewership increased across all daily show time ranges. Viewers tended to watch more increasing from 3.5 hours to 4.6 hours per day MRTV-4 and Myawaddy TV (MWD) are the two television channels in Myanmar that are still on