SINGAPORE: CEOs from five Singapore media companies will be pairing up with international mentors to help them expand their business beyond local shores.

This will enable them to tap global expertise in fields as diverse as entertainment and media law, merchandising and licensing, intellectual property exploitation, as well as capital financing.

The one-year pilot scheme, called the Business Executive Mentorship Programme, is organised by the Media Development Authority.

MDA says the move comes "at a time when local media companies have reached their next stage of growth."

The five selected companies - from the TV, animation and publishing sectors - are CR Media, Mediafreaks, Scrawl Studios, Upside Down Concepts and Verite Productions.

They have been matched with the following international experts respectively: David Mansfield, Executive Director of Ingenious Media plc; Liz Kalodner, Executive Vice President & General Manager of CBS Consumer Products; Jon R. Peisinger, President of Creative Branding Systems ; Stephen Scharf, Partner, O'Melveny & Myers LLP; and Andrew Craissati, Chief Executive of Transpac Media Ltd.

MDA says the matching was done based on submitted business plans of the local enterprises and mutual indication of interest between both mentor and mentee to work together. - CNA/de