IN the commercial world, its usual for a new player to play catch up.
But if there is something that the new television "company" ù Fiji Broadcasting Corporation is proud of, it is the fact that it has raised the benchmark in the television industry.
"We have revolutionised the television industry in Fiji," FBC chief executive Riyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said.
"We are the leading media organisation in the country. "We are making new standards, we are proactive, we want others to follow."
Four years, after he took over the leading role of the company, Mr Sayed-Khaiyum is proud of how far the company has come and how fast it has grown.
This despite "spiteful" comments and opposition to the new direction the national broadcaster was taking.
But the sweeping changes, the considerable investment in accommodating the new direction, Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said were necessary if FBC was to ever get out of its doldrums. And the investment is justified considering the achievements to date.
"We have to spend money to make money," he said.
"People are taking notice of us, we are getting the attention and we are getting the business."
While it launched its television network a few months ago, FBC TV last week launched its own news program. Interestingly, keeping up with Mr Sayed-Khaiyum's policy of "looking within" first, the news readers are all FBC staff members.The news reader on week days is Mr Sayed-Khaiyum's personal assistant Jacqueline Speight. Genevieve Sukhdeo is in the events department but also reads the weather report while Amrita Priyadarshani who works in the marketing department read the news during the weekends. Journalist Roland Koroi reads the sports news.
Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said if there were employees who could do the work and for extra income ù why not?
FBC journalists who were previously only specialised in radio journalism are now TV journalists as well. While the task is not easy, Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said they had been able to adapt and undergone considerable training.
One of the "high standards" set by FBC TV, include its virtual set, which the CEO said was one of the best in the South Pacific and even better than what some TV stations in New Zealand and Australia have.
Another is its coverage of the country.
"Some people in rural areas are watching television for the first time because of FBC TV," Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said. He estimated that they have over 90 per cent of the country covered.
Fiji being a poor country, in the sense that Fijians don't travel much abroad, Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said they had and would bring in programs from around the world, including France, Middle East, Korea, Japan, India and even Turkey.
The programs which don't come cheap, are selected based on needs of the viewers such as soap programs for the housewives or blockbuster movies during the weekend for families.
The objective is simple ù all the people of Fiji must benefit. While it has a few local programs already airing, Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said more would come in the near future.
But are all these changes translating into better returns? When 90 per cent of its programs are sponsored, when business houses fight for shows, then they are.
These changes, Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said would not have been achieved, however, if his staff members were not united in the commitment to keeping Fijians connected.