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T MNC Asuransi Indonesia, part of local media conglomerate MNC Group, plans to launch casualty insurance to specifically protect event organizers and production houses against losses resulting from cancelations, a senior executive said.

The company's president director Victor Sandjaja said that the company was currently developing casualty insurance to help the media, production houses and promoters avoid losses due to event cancelations.

 'We see an opportunity to develop an insurance product for event cancelations here in Indonesia as we can see that the need is there,' he said during a press briefing in Jakarta on Friday.

With a growing middle class and large young population, Indonesia has become a huge market for many world class artists. The number of music events featuring foreign artists has doubled over the last three years, from 58 shows in 2009 to 183 shows last year, data from the Jakarta Culture and Tourism Agency shows.

Not only for world class musical performances, Indonesia is also a big market for international sports matches, especially soccer, which is among the most popular sports in the country.

However, despite market enthusiasm and confirmed schedules, the cancelation of some concerts and shows is inevitable. A number of international sports and musical shows in Jakarta have been cancelled. Recently, American rock band Aerosmith, for example, cancelled their concert, which was due this month, through a letter sent by the management Mitch Schneider Organization (MSO). The local promoter Ismaya Live claimed that about 85 percent of 15,000 tickets had been sold.

Given the fact that the number of international events is growing while cancelations are becoming an issue for the showbiz industry in the country, the founder of promoter Java Musikindo Adrie Subono said that he was open to any insurance product for promoters in the country. He admitted that he usually used insurance services from Hong Kong and Australian firms for the concerts he handled.

'When the concert is canceled by the artist, the artist returns all payments made by the promoter, but not if the cancellation is made by the promoter. In both cases, however, the production costs of the promoter usually would not be returned,' he added.

Victor expected that his company could officially launch its casualty insurance product for promoters and production house clients this year.

PT MNC Asuransi Indonesia booked a 272.43 percent increase in premium income to Rp 82.05 billion (US$8.20 million) this year from Rp 22.03 billion, of which 46 percent was from motor vehicles insurance. This year, it targets to earn Rp 150 billion in premium income with motor vehicles insurance expected to be the biggest contributor. (koi)