Chairman's Statement

(extracted from Annual Report 2007)

DEAR SHAREHOLDERS

I am pleased to present the Annual Report 2007 for ASTRO ALL ASIA NETWORKS plc or ASTRO as it will be referred to in the rest of this Report. Over the past year we continued to build on our core competencies, with improved performance in our key operating units. Our Astro pay-TV subscriber base grew to 2.016 million residential subscribers as at the end of the financial year ended 31 January 2007. Our radio networks in Malaysia remain market leaders in terms of listenership and share of customers' advertising expenditure, with a weekly listenership of about 11 million listeners.

We made significant progress in our content development efforts as we launched the Astro Entertainment Network (AEN), a collection of over 20 TV channels with locally-packaged proprietary content for broadcast on our Astro platforms in Asia. These channels are the driver for both acquisition of new customers and viewership among existing ones. I am confident that we will benefit from our increasing knowledge and experience of producing and marketing original content as we seek to develop business opportunities in other Asian markets, including India, China and Indonesia.

Progress has been made over the past year in expanding our businesses into overseas markets where we can leverage our core skills and capabilities. In April 2007, we announced a joint-venture with the Sun Group in India, one of the country's leading media groups. The planned Direct-To-Home (DTH) satellite TV venture will allow us to participate in the fast-growing Indian consumer market. In China, through our alliance with local partners, we have launched an airtime marketing venture, initially focusing on radio syndication, with the possibility of expanding into other media platforms across the country.

Within the region, we are working to formalise our participation in the pay-TV business in Indonesia. Progress has been slower and more difficult than we had expected. Nonetheless, we remain committed to this market. We currently produce five channels in Bahasa Indonesia using home-grown talent and production teams, over and above procuring local and international content from third parties.

The successful launch of the MEASAT-3 satellite, which includes transponders designed and tailored to our specific requirements, has put us back on track. With the expanded capacity, we can now offer a wider array of entertainment and information services for our customers. We have migrated all channels broadcast in Malaysia to the new satellite and will progressively deploy the new capacity throughout 2007 and beyond.

Notwithstanding the anticipated start-up losses arising from our investments in certain overseas ventures, the Group's financial performance for the year was satisfactory. Strong results from our domestic operations continue to underpin our healthy balance sheet and will support our regional expansion efforts. Nevertheless, we are attentive to the dividend expectations of our shareholders. With that in mind, and after taking into account our capital funding requirements for existing and new businesses, the Board has proposed a final tax-exempt dividend of 3.0 sen per share. Including our earlier interim dividends of 4.0 sen per share, the total dividend for the year is 7.0 sen per share. This dividend represents a payout of 42% on the underlying earnings of existing domestic operations and is consistent with the Board's commitment to a progressive dividend policy.

The Group remains committed to the community in the regions we operate. This commitment is delivered in a variety of ways, and we continue to seek innovative ways to expand our outreach. Support in cash and kind was provided to the victims of the devastating floods in the southern Malaysian state of Johor and surrounding areas. The Astro Scholarship Fund, launched in 2006, continues to attract an overwhelming response from outstanding students interested to pursue careers in media and the arts. From providing logistics and production support to the Force of Nature charity concert for Indonesian earthquake victims to establishing the Krishen Jit Astro Fund in partnership with the Five Arts Centre in Malaysia, ASTRO has been at the forefront in supporting worthy causes, whilst promoting the creative arts and young talent.

The Board continues to adopt a proactive approach to business management. It seeks to ensure effective organisation of the Group's separate business units and operating entities, while administering the overall direction, business strategies and performance as a whole.

With this in mind, a number of senior management appointments has been announced in recent months. We are pleased to have on board Robert Odendaal, who joined as Chief Executive Officer of ASTRO from 1 February 2007. With his extensive experience in international pay-TV markets, Robert is well-placed to lead our expansion efforts into new markets, as well as provide guidance for our flagship Malaysian TV business now led by Rohana Rozhan. Her previous role is now filled by Grant Ferguson, as Chief Financial Officer. Grant has many years of financial and management experience in Asia, much of which has been gained from working with a number of the region's leading business groups. The Board is confident that we have a management team with strong complementary skills capable of leading the Group into the future.

In his new capacity as Executive Deputy Chairman, Ralph Marshall will provide strategic guidance and thought leadership to our management team, particularly on our overseas expansion efforts. Last year also saw Tan Poh Ching retiring from his position as a Non-Executive Director. On behalf of my fellow directors, I would like to thank him for his invaluable contribution to the Group over the years. We wish him every success in his future endeavours. The Board now comprises five directors, three of whom are independent.

It now only remains for me to express the Board's appreciation for the support from all our staff, customers, business partners, media colleagues and shareholders who have contributed in many ways toward the success of the Group over the past year. I would also like to extend my thanks to the various Malaysian Government ministries for their continuing support to our efforts to develop a Malaysian-based, Asian-focused and world-class media business.

We are encouraged by the Malaysian government's continuing efforts to promote economic growth, raise disposable incomes, encourage home-ownership and foster a business-friendly climate for local and foreign investors. These activities, along with the growing demand for infotainmemt services from the rapidly growing population in our target regional markets, augur well for our businesses.

Dato' Haji Badri Haji Masri
Chairman
30 May 2007