MxMIndia

Category: ETC

  • Games are serious business when it comes to Amit Chaudhary of Exelixi, as he talks about his 'neighbourhood toy store with international standards'

    Jaldi 5 with Amit Chaudhary: Toy Story, no Child’s Play

    On November 9, Simba India, a subsidiary of toy giant Simba Dickie Groupin association with Exelixi Management Company from India, launched a large format toy shop at the Oberoi Mall in suburban Mumbai. Amit Chaudhary, Founder Exelixi Management is bullish about the business in this interview with MxMIndia.

     

    01. It’s interesting that you have opened a toy store in Mumbai at a time when children are increasingly taking to electronic toys – Xboxes, PSPs and the like – or on the computer and tablets. Wouldn’t an investment in that direction have been wiser?

    I don’t see electronic games outside the purview of Toys & Games. It is one of the categories just like Outdoor Games, Wooden Toys, or Remote Control Cars. Children, and parents as well, are still looking for options in non-electronic games and we are happy to bring some really world-class toys in those categories to Indian customers. Yes, electronics is an emerging and an important category, and we are not ignoring it. You will see that reflected in the product mix in our stores as we grow.

     

    02. How much of a focus are you keeping on electronics, given that it is such a rage?

    We feel we have a good understanding of our customers, and the product mix in our stores is a result of studying the market for almost two years at the ground level. The share of electronic games will reflect that understanding.

     

    03. As the footprint of Simba stores is increasing in India, what does your marketing plan look like?

    We are a neighbourhood toy store with international standards. Our products, their quality, and the service levels in our store are the best marketing tools that we have to connect with our customers. We have a good mix of ATL and BTL campaigns lined up over the next 18 months for our stores. While share of ATL will increase as the store footprint expands, our spend on BTL will continue to remain significant. We want to be relevant to our customers and the best way to connect with them is to do so at the local level. All of our stores have a very aggressive activity calendar geared towards kids, and we intend to keep it that way even as we expand.

     

    04. Are you looking at tying up with schools or TV channels etc?

    Yes, we are keen to tie up with playschools, nurseries, crèches, children activity centers, and TV channels as well. A number of discussions are underway on that front. It will be premature to make any specific comments on this topic as of now.

     

    05. In a price-conscious country such as India, how do you compete against smaller stores stocking cheaper though sub-standard and even counterfeit products?

    It’s a myth that Indian customers always prefer cheaper stuff. Especially when it comes to their children. Indian parents want to provide their children the best that is available in the market, of course within their budget. It is another myth that the low quality toy products available today in the market are cheaper than branded products. Our pricing is very aggressive and there are enough instances where our high quality products are substantially cheaper than the counterfeit and sub-standard products available in the market. With us our customers can come and shop knowing that they get an International shopping experience, products at a very competitive price, and the confidence that they are buying some of the safest products in the world for their kids.

     

    06. How has the response been thus far… being a part of a mall of course ensures sure footfalls. Any more stores on the anvil in Mumbai?

    We are very happy with the response so far. Our visitor books are full of customers who have thanked us for opening the store! What more can we ask for? We will definitely open more stores in Mumbai. In fact, you can expect at least one more store in the area before the end of this year.

     

  • In response to increasing incidences of ordinary people's freedom being curtailed, Mumbai-based daily Mid-Day has announced its People's Freedom Charter, to combat draconian and ambiguous laws. Mid-Day Editor Sachin Kalbag explains why this was necessary

    Jaldi 5 with Sachin Kalbag: Upholding civil liberties…

    The arrest and eventual release of a young lady living in Palghar in suburban Mumbai thanks to a Facebook post as also her friend who ‘liked’ it sent shockwaves across India’s urban set who happily post their comments on social networks and microblogs. Leading English daily Mid-Day has announced a People’s Freedom Charter in defending the citizen’s right to free speech. MxMIndia interviewed Mid-Day executive editor Sachin Kalbag and asked him on what the paper hopes to achieve with the Charter.

     

    01. How do propose to ensure your Charter reaches its logical conclusion… as in ensure that students are not found to be on the wrong side of the law for exercising their rights, as stated by you?

    There will be no “conclusion” to this process. This is the first step in a long journey to defend freedom of speech. MiD DAY will, stridently and on a sustained basis, defend the freedom of speech of India’s citizens. It will mean that we give stories pertaining to this issue wide play. Of course, due to constraints of space in the print medium, we cannot be talking only of freedom of speech-related stories, or even all stories pertaining to the topic. But yes, it will be a large focus area.

     

    2. One of the biggest problems is the interpretation of how any speech or action will affect law and order and the social fabric. Don’t you think that what’s needed is public opinion against age-old laws and getting them changed eventually through the Executive or the Judiciary?

    In a true democracy, freedom of speech must be absolute. It is something we do not have right now because Article 19(2) of the Constitution puts “Reasonable Restrictions” on freedom of speech. Those restrictions are the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence. If you read between the lines, practically anything can constitute as an offence (I calling someone ugly, or, for that matter, saying Sachin Tendulkar is an ordinary batsman). This is where the arbitrariness of “reasonable restrictions” needs to be highlighted. Another example of arbitrary interpretation and application of law is Section 66(A) of the Information Technology (Amendment) Act, 2008. Once again, anything can constitute as “offensive” and I could lodge a complaint with the police against you because I found your email or your Facebook post offensive. This is what we need to be guarding against. As right-minded citizens, we must oppose this arbitrariness. We should stand up against laws that can be used to settle scores or wrongfully applied.

     

    Through our Freedom Charter, we want to build public opinion in this regard. Ultimately, it is Parliament (the lawmaking body) which will have to debate and pass laws that do leave nothing to arbitrary interpretation. It is a tough challenge, but someone needs to be a catalyst.

     

    03. It’s been seen that not just the government, but also otherwise well-meaning, educated and well-read individuals do not take very kindly to criticism, especially when it’s on social media (and Twitter)?

    Not taking kindly to criticism is a universal trait. Who wakes up in the morning and says, “Come on, world, criticize me.”? The point is not about criticism, but my freedom as a citizen to speak my mind without any fear. If the person on the receiving side feels that the critic has no basis for what he or she said, the “affected party” can sue the critic for defamation so that the critic can prove whether his allegations are accurate or not. There are these laws that give the affected party a platform for redressal. But we cannot sit on a high horse and say, “No one can criticize me,” or “No one will oppose me because I am the government and I know what is best for the country.”

     

    04. Your report mentions that the Charter will be the guiding principle in your paper’s reportage. Could you give an example of how this will happen?

    We will ensure in reportage that civil liberties are upheld at all costs. You will see this in all our stories.

     

    05. This also means that in case of a situation where you or your paper are subjected to criticism, you’ll take it in the right spirit?

    Of course, we will take in the right spirit. We are an irreverent, anti-establishment, ideologically neutral newspaper. No matter what we do, our stories offend someone or the other. We believe that as a responsible newspaper, we will investigate our stories thoroughly, and that we will not carry stories without proper documentation to prove we are right. If in that process someone is offended, so be it. We are ready to defend our stand. And if we are wrong, we shall apologize and take steps to ensure that we do not repeat our mistakes. But at no point in time shall we say that, “We will not carry the story because it will offend someone.”

     

    Interviewed by Ananya Saha

     

  • Naresh Gupta, CSO, Managing Partner at Bang in the Middle, talks to MxM India about expanding to a new market, Kolkata

    Jaldi 5 with Naresh Gupta: ‘Growth from new geographies beyond Indian borders’

    The six-month-old creative agency Bang In the Middle has recently opened its office in Kolkata. For the new territory it has appointed Meenakshi Sen as Managing Partner on board. Led by Prathap Suthan and Naresh Gupta, the agency has big plans.

     

    Naresh Gupta, CSO, Managing Partner at Bang in the Middle, talks to MxM India about the new market.

     

    01. How big is the Kolkata market for Bang in the Middle, and what scope does it present to a new agency?

    We expect Kolkata to be a significant contributor to our operations. Kolkata is a fairly challenging market for most agencies, and will be a big challenge for a new start up agency. We believe that there are brands in Kolkata who have traditionally looked at the few large agencies to be interested in our offering

     

    02. What clients is the Kolkata office going to cater to?

    We are currently in conversation with a host of clients; we should be able to announce the clients shortly.

     

    03. What are the unique challenges that Kolkata as a market presents?

    Every market is a challenge, Kolkata is a unique challenge. Kolkata is not a large market say like Mumbai, but is a fairly significant market with its own demands. Kolkata has a host of heritage and new age brands from across categories and they do need modern cutting edge advise on the whole gamut of communication.

     

    04. How different will your approach be here?

    We marry the traditional with new age. We leverage our understanding of mainline brand building and then also craft the new media strategy to offer our brands a singular brand proposition that is truly media agnostic. We expect to offer the same services to our clients in Kolkata.

     

    05. After Gurgaon and Kolkata, what is the next stop for Bang in the Middle?

    There are new opportunities we are exploring. The new phase of growth will come from new geographies beyond Indian borders and from newer ideas!

     

    As told to Ananya Saha

     

  • AXN India is gearing up for full-on thrills spanning the entertainment spectrum. The star of the broadened content lineup is The Apprentice Asia. MxM India spoke to AXN's Sunil Punjabi on the whys and hows

    Jaldi 5 with Sunil Punjabi: Action, drama, entertainment

    Sony Pictures Television Networks Asia is geared up for its next original production, The Apprentice Asia, which will premiere on AXN across 21 countries in Asia in the first half of 2013. Call for participation for the India region began on November 15. We asked Sunil Punjabi, Business Head, AXN India Networks, why the channel needs The Apprentice.

     

    01. Programmes like The Apprentice and reality shows in the same genre have not done very well in India earlier. And this series will premiere across Asia. What was the rationale behind bringing the show on board?

    As far as The Apprentice and other reality shows are concerned, programmes that have some amount of interactivity built in tend to do better than plain shows that go on air. We ourselves did India’s Minute to Win It two years ago, and we built in a fairly large amount of interactivity. With the amount of interactivity and local presence, content offtake is higher because the viewer also starts engaging with the programme. Hence, engagement at the consumer level with localization is going to be the big differentiating factor for such shows.

     

    For The Apprentice at the Asia level, participants will be taking part from India in the selection process. It is where we believe local flavour comes in. Apprentice Asia should see better traction on the ground.

     

    02. How is AXN planning to create buzz around the show?

    We have pushed in the online campaign, apart from opening for entries on November 15. We are doing a lot of ground activation, contacting some 150-odd corporates across six cities with the aim of reaching working people one-on-one.

     

    We will reveal more plans as we come close to the airing of the show.

     

    03. Does The Apprentice or Minute to Win It gel with the programming of AXN, which essentially is Action TV?

    We have always been a thrill channel, and thrill can be action or drama. Or even dance. If you look at our top shows like So You Think You Can Dance, it is all about excitement. It is a very high-energy show and it gets the eyeballs, apart from other top-rated high-drama series like CSI and CIS, Leverage, Supernatural and Amazing Race. These are content blocks with lots of thrill built in, and that is the positioning that we’ve always maintained.

     

    India’s Minute To Win It – every activity that you look is based on the excitement. For that matter, Apprentice is going to be one challenging task. If you see the US and UK versions, every task that participants go through is time-based and there is heavy involvement in these episodes. And that is how it fits into AXN.

     

    04. Is AXN aiming to include all genres in its programming, and thus moving away from the original concept of an action channel?

    We have broadened the perspective. We have broadened the content line-up because at the end of the day we believe that there is a lot of International content, which can be brought to the India viewer. Apprentice has never been done in India, it has been done only in the US and UK. Actually, we are looking at an Indian version of Amazing Race soon. These are high-intensity formats.

     

    We believe that consumers want different types of content. The revised positioning of AXN is based on the consumer feedback that we have got over a period of time saying that they need more programmes that are high-energy.

     

    05. Apart from The Apprentice, which other non-action shows is AXN targeting?

    Amazing Race will start in January. There is Voice 4, which is slated for March. A strong drama series of Steven Seagal called True Justice 2 will be coming up also in January. It is a 12-part one-hour series that we are launching as part of Big Thrill Fridays, which is positioned around fresh and as-close-to-US-launch content. There is a new series of Leverage, a modern-day Robinhood series, which will begin in the month of Feb-March. An original production of Sony Pictures, Hannibal, will debut in March. It is an original AXN US production.

     

    It is a fairly good mix of high-drama, high-action, high-energy entertainment.

     

    As told to Ananya Saha

     

  • Apurva Purohit, CEO, Radio City 91.1 FM explains the rationale between 'Women at Work', Radio City's networking initiative for working women

    Jaldi 5 with Apurva Purohit: ‘Great networking with fantastic women’

    The lack of networking is also seen by women themselves as one of the top three impediments in their progress. Leading radio station netword Radio City decided to make building connections between women easier by launching a forum where the women can all come and spend time with one another. Apurva Purohit, CEO, Radio City 91.1 FM explains the rationale of starting ‘Women at Work’.

     

    01. Do tell us more on Women at Work all about?

    Women at Work is a platform where women from all walks of life can come together and optimize their networking time to further their professional and personal growth. It is a networking forum where the members use the platform to connect and explore possible opportunities related to their profession/ business.

     

    02. And how did Radio City get down to developing this forum?

    As an organization, Radio City has quite a few women leaders, who fulfil their responsibilities equally or sometimes better than their counterparts. While it is a fact that men have several occasions to interact with each other through formal or informal networks, women don’t have such opportunities. Whilst multi-tasking with their responsibilities at work and at home, there is no room left for after-office networking. Women also often do not find a support group to seek solutions to their problems or enough networking opportunities to excel professionally. The senior women at Radio City thus decided to create an opportunity for women to interact and this was in fact the driving factor behind developing this online forum.

     

    03. How many forums is ‘Women at Work’ planning to hold, and in which cities?

    Our first on-the-ground networking session was held in Mumbai a few months ago and witnessed participation from nearly 100 women. It was amazing to experience the energy it created, through re-forging old connections and building new ones. Many women who attended the forum shared intimate parts of their lives with each other, and this turn helped them forge important relations. The next on-ground forum is being held in Delhi on December 1, and we are looking forward to some great networking with some more fantastic women. Though we are all virtually connected with each other, we plan to conduct one such on-ground meeting in different cities once every quarter.

     

    04. So how many women have become members of Women at Work?

    The forum has more than 800 users from across the globe and many more joining in daily. In fact, we have started receiving proposals from like-minded women from the US to start an international chapter too.

     

    05. What can one expect from the Women at Work forum?

    Apart from building connections, the members of the forum can look forward to sharing successes and learnings from each other. The forum has been created with the motive of building a bridge, an umbrella where working women across different cross sections can come together and talk about anything related to our work lives – from bad bosses to office spouses, from stilettos to mojitos, from babies to boyfriends!

     

    Interviewed by Ananya Saha

     

  • Amith Prabhu, co-chair PRAXIS 2012, reviews the conference that was held last week and what he would tell the industry captains who didn't turn up

    Jaldi 5 with Amith Prabhu: PRAXIS brought together seniors & juniors in the PR and corp comm community

    He’s made the fullest use of the time zone difference between the United States and India. So when he’s not on his desk at his day job at PR major Edelman in Chicago, he was busy coordinating PR conference PRAXIS 2012 and dreaming up what else the Promise Foundation should do. MxM India caught up with PRAXIS co-chair Amith Prabhu a day before he was heading back to the US and asked him a few leading questions.

     

    01.   As you look back, and given the standards that you had set for yourself, how would you rate PRAXIS 2012? And vis-a-vis other PR conferences that happen through the year?

    We, the organising committee of 12 at-larges and specifically Shane Jacob and I as summit co-chairs are very pleased with the way PRAXIS 2012  turned out to be. It surpassed all our expectations. When we had conceptualised the event we had thought of a small compact conference but over the months it grew to become bigger than we had imagined. And the final outcome was there for all to see. As many as 260 delegates including 35 top-class speakers and a full-house despite an experimental schedule. Everyone in the audience and backstage took ownership and that was evident even when there were glitches and all were supportive.

     

    It would not be fair to compare with other PR conferences because our intentions were unique – bringing together the seniors and the youngsters of the core Indian PR consulting and corporate communications community. We achieved this with aplomb and the fact that we are proud of is punctuality throughout the two days.

     

    02.   While there was representation from most firms, and most CEOs were also present, the big guns from a few agencies were conspicuous by their absence: Dilip Cherian of Perfect Relations, N S Rajan of Ketchum Sampark, Weber Shandwick’s Shiv Reddy/Atul Ahluwalia, Ameer Ismail of LinOpnion. Any reasons for their absence?

    We had invited 30 PR firms of all sizes when we set out on this mission and we had an instant response from over 25 of these wherein 15 had confirmed their presence right at the start. Around 9-10 had expressed their support but had scheduling conflicts. Of the four firms mentioned above we tried hard to connect with them but were not successful. Mr Cherian had responded favourably but was unable to make it. The CEO of his firm was a panelist but had to drop out at the last moment due to a personal emergency. We are confident that we will be able to have all of them not just attend but also be on panels at the next edition.

     

    What would you tell them given that they didn’t turn up?

    I would tell them that we missed their presence and their insights and they cannot afford to miss a humble attempt put together completely by volunteers next year around. It is also possible that several people were apprehensive of a brand new event by a group of youngsters and would consider being part of it in the future. We are a completely independent not-for-profit venture and our focus is to collect people and give them a forum to learn and share.

     

    03.   It was in effect just a one-day event, though spread over two days. Given that people are spending a fair bit of time and money to get here, do you think there’s need to pack in more?

    We packed in as much as 24 hours could permit… 6 panels, 3 networking sessions, 2 keynotes and 1 concert was quite a bit. We planned the timings around flights to and from Chennai so those who wanted to spend just one night could make it. But we have feedback that people are open to an additional day and we will consider that when we plan the second edition.

     

    04.   Chennai agencies and corporate communications professionals didn’t appear to be exploiting the opportunity?

    The summit was promoted and marketed completely on social networks. It is possible that several firms in Chennai were either not aware of the intensity of this endeavour or chose to wait and watch. Honestly, there is nothing to exploit other than being there and having a good time. Hopefully, in the future there will be greater participation from professionals in the vicinity.

     

    05.   Was Pondicherry a good venue? Isn’t there too much of anxiety of storms?

    The idea is to offer delegates a destination that is unique and has tourist appeal. Our gut feel told us that Pondicherry would have a uniqueness that very few venues could offer. The concern was not so much about storms but about distance from the Chennai airport which was well taken by most despite the long drive, thanks to the decent roads.

     

    Where will it be next year? Dates finalized? Venue?

    The idea is to take the summit across zones and keep it moving. We have begun in the South. We intend planning the second one in the North or the West. We will decide dates and venue based on feedback received from the delegates which we are evaluating. We hope to announce the same soon on MxMIndia. All that we can say is that it will certainly be bigger and better.

     

  • It will be a month of mandatory digitization in the three metros of Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata. MxMIndia spoke to Joydip Kapadia, Business Head, Television Street Maps on the progress made so far

    Jaldi 5 with Joydip Kapadia: As we approach a month of digitization, Mum, Del nearly 95%, Cal: 80%

    It will be a month of mandatory digitization in the three metros of Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata. MxMIndia spoke to Joydip Kapadia, Business Head, Television Street Maps on the progress made so far

     

    01. According to Television Street Maps estimates, how much digitization has actually been achieved in Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata?

    We cannot comment on the exact numbers as there is too much of flux in these markets between DAS, DTH, Analogue. Hence, we would prefer to give a range estimate as follows: Mumbai and Delhi together are tending towards the 95% mark. Kolkata is trailing with less than 80%.

     

    02. Evidently, a lot of the process is work in progress… how many of the set-top boxes have been installed in the month of November alone?

    Yes. The pace of seeding has been pretty impressive with just under 35 lakh boxes seeded in November. Delhi leads the pack with more than 15 lakhs seedings. Followed by Kolkata with more than 12 lakh boxes. Mumbai was earlier seeded well and has added another 4.5 lakhs boxes in November.

     

    03. Do you see many switchovers from cable to DTH given the confusion?

    In the early part of 2012, we had seen a far greater enthusiasm with DTH expecting a large gain from cable. In a few cases, that expectation was as high as 30% of the total analog base within these metros would switch to DTH. However, the reality has been a little different. Cable has not lost as many homes as many on the DTH side had expected.

     

    04. How has the roll-out of Channel Packs been by the cable MSOs?

    While all major players have now introduced their packs, we have a few observations:-

     

    1. The packs have been rolled out – but not so much to end consumers. Cable Pack sales in the truest sense, in our estimate, is still 8-9 months away.

    2. There are fewer packs per cable operator vis-a-vis their DTH counterparts. This is bound to increase in days to come.

    3. The first approach seems to be National packs even for operators who are expected eventually to move to Regional/ Local packs.

    4. The systems at the MSO end are still not fully/ seamlessly integrated. Hence we are finding strange discrepancies of channels available on packs even when those are not being relayed by the MSO’s headend. We expect some of these teething issues to be ironed out in days to come.

     

    05. Any broad lessons as we embark on Phase 2 of digitization?

    a. The two back-to-back deadlines for Mumbai-Delhi-Kolkata could be avoided in the second phase. If individual MSOs/ Cable operators are known to expedite box seeding closer to the deadline, we need a more effective push for all key players to start seeding in time rather than at the 11th hour.

    b. DTH cannot assume that it will gain automatically due to the flux. They cannot assume that just heavy advertising and price promos will do the trick. Extensive ground efforts/ initiatives will be needed.

    c. The seduction and mating rituals between distributor companies and MSOs should start much in advance. Waiting for the last minute will only mean signal disruption to consumers.

    d. Distributor Companies would have to insist on getting subscriber visibility from the SMS of Regional Operators within the 38 cities as part of their deals. Succumbing to quick wins of minimum guarantee/ fixed deals would again put broadcasters in the same spot where their fortunes remain disconnected from number of subscribers.

     

  • Sandeep Dahiya, Sr. Vice President – Consumer Products & Communications, Viacom18 Media, on merchandising helps bring alive popular characters for a kiddie channel like Nickelodeon

    Jaldi 5 with Sandeep Dahiya: Kids’ merchandise market still at start line

    It’s been a few weeks since kid brand Nickelodeon India, that has a diverse portfolio in the kid’s consumer market with its popular toons, introduced its own sub-brands in the Indian market under Nick Explore, Nick Sports and Nick Action. The first edition from this kitty was ‘Nick Explore’ that has been initiated in an association with Mexus Education.

     

    MxM India quizzed Sandeep Dahiya, Sr. Vice President – Consumer Products & Communications, Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd on this ambitious new licensing venture and what consumers can look forward to in the future.

     

    01. What does the current kids toys and merchandising market look like in India? Is there scope for broadcast players to make it big in this space?

    The landscape is large and the opportunity to expand is immense. However, we’re all still at the ‘start’ line. Compared to the developed markets where over 90% of the retail is organized, in India, it’s the other way round – with just about 7-8% being organized. However, the good news is that the rate of growth of the organized part is outgrowing the unorganized part…and that is a great indicator for everyone.

     

    Broadcast players have been able to build platforms that bring alive these characters and create a fantasyland around them. Kids love fantasies and the licensed products, help them live their fantasies – be it school bags, shoes, books, bicycles, playsets, dolls and accessories, amongst other things.

     

    02. How is the ‘Nick Explore’ venture doing for Nickelodeon?

    Nickelodeon has always tried to engage kids of all age groups with merchandise that is unique, interactive and entertaining. This collaboration also marks our entry into a new domain – both from a brand as well as a category perspective. The ‘Nick Explore’ range of kits, developed by Mexus Education, will help unlock the creative potential in older kids, while exposing them to basics of science in a manner that’s fun and interactive.

     

    03. Mexus Education is the partner that you have tied up with for Explore. Who are the other players that you have approached with your concepts?

    Let me put it like this: Mexus Education was the perfect partner, given their expertise at product development and distribution strength. We are in talks with other players for similar concepts, but it’s too early to talk about it.

     

    04. Apart from edutainment, which are the other categories that kids have a liking towards and something which you are contemplating venturing into?

    Expansion into newer categories and concepts is an on-going process and there are quite a few of them that we’re pursuing.

     

    So what can one expect from Nick Sports and Action next?

    An exciting range of toys and play-sets that would keep the kids engaged, active and outdoors.

     

    05. What are your promotional plans so as to enable this venture gain a pan-India appeal?

    It is being supported by both above- as well as below-the-line initiatives. We have been supported by all large formats in giving us significant retail presence. The new product range will be promoted through online initiatives.

     

  • Former Airtel DTH and Media CMO Sugato Banerji is gung-ho about taking charge as COO of What’s-On-India. Here he shares his views on digitization, the DTH business and why he thinks the opportunities at his new workplace are very challenging

    Jaldi 5 with Sugato Banerji: Digitization has opened up opportunities for service providers

    What’s-on-India, TV Search & EPG (Electronic Program Guide) technology company, took a leap forward with the the appointment of Sugato Banerji as its Chief Operating Officer. Mr Banerji was until recently CMO at Airtel DTH & Media.

     

    A graduate from IIM Bangalore and a chemical engineer from IIT-BHU, Mr Banerji has worked with advertising (Ogilvy, JWT and Lowe), internet (Aptech), banking/finance (Visa, Stanchart) before being CMO at Airtel for the last five years. He started his 23-plus-year career at Xerox in sales.

     

    Mr Banerji spoke to MxMIndia hours after his appointment was announced:

     

    01. And we thought the action was happening in DTH, given digitization?

    It’s a misconception that DTH is the only category that will grow and thrive in the digitization programme. Globally in highly penetrated C&S countries where DTH has been existing for 20 years, it has been able to garner only between 40-45% of the total C&S share. It is expected that with the seriousness of the government to pursue TV digitization being demonstrated by adhering to the extended timeline given for Phase 1, more and more action will shift to the MSO who control large chunks of the next 38 cities.

     

    There is a clear message the MSOs and LCOs have taken home and we are already seeing MSOs, both big and small in the Phase 2 cities gearing up as fast as they can for digitization.

     

    And as the digitization takes root, there will be an entirely new ecosystem of various service providers who will participate in the category. Allied service providers have a window of massive opportunity akin to how VAS service providers, billing systems, domestic centered call centres, network companies, passive infrastructure companies have worked with telecom majors to drive telecom category growth and efficencies.

     

    We at Whats-On-India strongly believe that the momentum will continue on digitization giving as opportunity to grow because every set top box will need the core Whats-On-India product – the programme information, programme synopses and series information necessary for the electronic programme guide to be functional.

     

    The critical consumer change cable digitization will bring in is the fact that there will be 500+ channels available to chose from as declared by the regulator and the introduction of multiple tariff plans by the MSOs. Let’s talk about the proliferation of the channels available to the viewer once the home is digitized. The plethora of choices and competing programmes would make it difficult to choose the right one. One could miss a fabulous programme and end up surfing aimlessly. Content discovery will become more and more complex. This is precisely where our sophisticated TV search applications come in.

     

    Now look at the tariff plan regime change that will start in the digitized homes. The operators will need to know the best programmes to recommend, the most appropriate channel mix to promote. The unique ARPU enhancer and the Pack Builder products will be crucial tools for the operators to start building usage and revenue enhancement programmes around the customer base they digitize.

     

    So, the action is far, far wider and diverse than just the DTH operators. I wanted to be a part of this exciting time in the bigger digitized TV category, that’s why I am here.

     

    If there’s one thing that you would like the DTH business to be able to redo, what would it be?

    The DTH industry has grown rapidly in the period 2008-2011 largely led by the entry of four more competitors. This increased distribution reach and heightened consumer awareness due to big budget ad spends by the 6 DTH operators in the private sector. The intensity of competition brought several short-cut methods to grow customer acquisition. On an already subsidized set top box, DTH operators kept adding irrational freebies on two sides simultaneously – higher and higher margins for the retailers and more and more free months/channels with each purchase for the customer.

     

    This has led to massive churn by consumers in the lower end who merely swapped a 6-month-old box with another box of a different or same brand at a lower price than earlier, with the retailer selling the roof top accessories to another customer. A win-win for the customer, the unscrupulous retailer and a lose-lose all the way for the DTH operator. The DTH industry should have avoided this shooting at its own feet. It is paying a heavy price for this, even today.

     

    02. From an ex-DTH marketer’s point of view, are you happy with the way the digitization process is going?

    Digitization is moving forward surely albeit slower than we would like. This has to be understood in the context of the deep-rooted analogue cable industry’s revenue distribution. Local cable operators (LCOs) are the owners of the customer in an analogue regime. They share 20-30% of their revenue with the MSOs. There is rampant under declaration of subscriber numbers. MSOs therefore are forced to depend on carriage fees as a source of revenue. There are many politically well-connected entities running analogue cable.

     

    With digitization, the LCOs share will come down drastically to 30-35% of the total subscription revenue. This will impact 60,000 LCOs, controlling about 80 million analogue homes. Who would want their income to drop nearly 3 times? So there is bound to be resistance. However, the government has done a considerable bit to ensure the timelines are adhered to as close to the original deadlines as possible. The broadcasters and the government both have run extensive on air campaigns for consumer awareness. Additionally, the broadcasters are switching off analogue feeds, the MIB officials are undertaking head end visits to audit compliance of switching off analogue signals. The first phase was easy with only 7 million homes to be digitized. Phase 2 will be the real test as 22 million homes need to be digitized in less than 4 months. It’s a tall order and while we want the digitization deadlines not to be extended, given the enormity of the task, there is likely to be some slippage. But overall are we happy? Well, the answer in a single line is somewhat happy. The government has demonstrated seriousness with the first phase and one sincerely hopes the GoI adheres to the rest of the deadlines without extensions.

     

    03. The change also means moving back to Mumbai. Happy about that? You can’t take Mumbai too far away from a true blue Mumbaikar, huh?

    Haha! Well from the BPO capital of the world and glitzy buildings portraying the epitome of India shining where BMWs often outnumber motorcycles in a traffic signal, to amchi Mumbai with its incredible all-round buzz, efficient public transport systems available 24×7, loads of interesting cultural and gastronomic opportunities to spend leisure time on ! Well apart from the joys of winter I won’t really miss much because I truly think the Whats-On-India role is intensely exciting. Plus this is the hub of the media and entertainment industry in India so professionally it’s an exciting city to be in. Immensely glad to be back here.

     

    04. What’s-On-India is unique in many ways. It’s a technology company which facilitates information processing. Is that what you will be driving further?

    What’s-On-India is uniquely positioned to drive change in the way digital TV distribution companies will operate in India going forward. While technology is the facilitator, the real product we have is a transparent search service that pools in information from multiple sources including the viewer’s preferences, his profile, his social network and other sources to present a comprehensive personalized recommendation of the best programmes. As more and more connected TVs, connected wireless devices get bought, the consumption of TV content will dramatically increase in these devices. Catch Up TV, Recorder devices, side loaded content, peripheral content all will start quickly. This is where search and content discovery will help simplify the viewer’s choices of what to watch when. What’s-On-India is right there in the middle of this pitch ready to score.

     

    There are ground-level  analyses and reports we provide to broadcasters from 2000 head ends for aiding  distribution as well as consultancy for broadcasters to improve their products placement. This comes under our TV Street Maps division which we recently acquired.

     

    We are already present in the Middle East catering to the Arabic electronic programme guide market through a recent acquisition in Jordan where we have already been working with two large operators.

     

    I would be working to expand our client both at the operator side and broadcaster side  roster in India as well as deepen the existing relationships in light of digitization, consolidate the ME operations while  work at judiciously expanding our footprint.

     

    05. So what’s the immediate action point for you? What’s the new thing one can expect?

    India is the focus because this is where the immediate opportunity lies. So my task would be to get cracking with deepening our relationship with the large DTH operators like Airtel, D2H, Reliance, Tata Sky and in parallel working with the MSOs and broadcasters. I will work on getting a more structured client management approach with the sales team so that we can cover more clients and get faster closures of deals. In the next 90 days we want to sign up lots more clients and build a robust revenue stream that will allow us to start building deeper product penetration with each client.

     

    In summary what I would be doing is consolidating and deepening the large relationships while expanind the client roster at the medium to small end.

     

    You are an accomplished marketing professional having spent some quality time in the internet space, banking, finance and telecom and who has cut his teeth in advertising. Do we see a greater marketing offensive coming up at Whats-On-India?

    What’s-On-India has a strong brand recall in the relevant segment we operate in for being a quality driven innovative organization. We need to enhance this further by becoming the thought leaders in the domain. I see a lot of scope of What’s-On-India becoming the benchmark in the category of search and viewer analytics in the TV space.

     

    We have a B2C website that is getting revamped by among the world’s top notch digital design firms. This will be ready soon and we will need to market that effectively using cost-efficient ideas. The team is already working on them as I speak.

     

    We will be launching a slew of more sophisticated products to enhance the capability of the entire product suite we have. So on the product and B2C front there is a lot we will do.  Plus the whole effort of overseas market entry and growth.

     

    That’s a lot for any marketing man to work on…  it’s exciting.

     

  • Aditya Sinha quit DNA as editor-in-chief last week amidst rumours that the move had linkages with the Zee News controversy. While he denies the coincidence theory, do read the between the lines to figure what could be the reason

    Jaldi 5 with Aditya Sinha, former editor-in-chief, DNA: Coincidence that quitting timed with Zee News controversy

    When Aditya Sinha announced his decision to quit DNA as editor-in-chief last week, the move surprised especially since he was rumoured to be getting along well with Zee group chief Subhash Chandra. On Saturday, he tweeted: To those who asked: I have resigned DNA to focus on writing novels. First book being reworked, second just started. For wishes, many thanks.”

     

    When asked to reconfirm this, he told MxMIndia that he had submitted his resignation on December 6 and has moved on from immediate effect. “I have been hanging around, however, merely to drag out my goodbyes,” he said.

     

    On when his first book is going to be published, he corrected us. “My first book, non-fiction, was published in late 1995. My first novel will be published once we find a publisher, so I cannot currently give you a date,” he said. Indeed: Death of Dreams: A Terrorist’s Tale was a book on a Kashmir youth’s ascent as the head of a terror outfit.  He also wrote a biography of Dr Farooq Abdullah in 1996 and as he mentioned in a column in the DNA, he has ghostwritten a 1994 book by Salman Khurshid.

     

    When asked on his replacement, Mr Sinha also informed us that: “Ravi Joshi, the recently appointed Mumbai RE, suddenly finds himself incharge. Bhaskar Das may find an alternative if he can convince someone from his old place of employment to join.”

     

    It may be remembered that DNA has seen a rehaul of its A-team in the recent past, and Mr Sinha’s exit completes that. CEO K U Rao moved out last month to join parent Zee group as CEO of WWIL (SitiCable). In September, it hired Sorbojeet Chatterjee, as Vice-President – Marketing from Neo Sports (and marketing head at the TV Today network prior to that). Earlier, it appointed Varun Kohli, chief monetizing officer with Mogae Media, to head revenue (as Executive VP – Sales).

     

    Since there has been much speculation about Mr Sinha’s reasons for quitting, given that it comes in the wake of the controversies around the arrest of two senior Zee News executives and his strong defence in his column last week, we asked him a few questions. While he denies the coincidence theory, do read the between the lines to figure what could be the real reason:

     

    01. Your resignation happens at a time when the Zee group is embroiled in a controversy, with the chairman Subhash Chandra also subjected to questioning and the pressure on the arrested editors to name him. Coincidence?

     

    Coincidence.

    a. Couldn’t you have pushed your decision to some other time?

    It could have been done at some other time, but why should I follow other people’s timelines?

    b. Your decision to move is also untimely because DNA’s CEO has moved to Zee and the new regime under Dr Bhaskar Das is just about settling in. Couldn’t you have stayed on more?

    Please see answer to 1a.

     

    02. You’ve been very candid in your columns. Last week saw you defend Zee and present the group’s standpoint? Could your resignation also be construed as that you are against carrying pro-Zee reports, or should one say: compelled to carry?

    I have never been compelled to carry reports. If a family member is accused of something, it is natural for a person to speak of their point of view, not to condemn them. I believe in what I write, and no one has ever forced me to hew to a particular line.

     

    a. Just to clear the air on the Zee-Jindal controversy. Since you would know the real story, and since one knows that you will not fudge things:

    – Are the Zee editors really innocent?

    – Was there no quid pro quo?

    Innocence or guilt, I do believe, are established by courts of law. And whatever the Zee News Editors may be, it is laughable to think that my resignation is a quid pro quo for them.

     

    03. Your highs and lows as Editor-in-Chief of DNA? Something that you would’ve not liked to see happening if you had to relive your tenure.

    My two-plus years as an Editor-in-Chief  have been great. Each day was a learning experience. The greatest satisfaction was when colleagues did work that was notable, which was often. Of course, it is a stress-filled job and each morning begins with some irritation or other. The only lows were realizing that people working in the company did not even read your newspaper! It shows you that most non-journalists in the media industry have zero passion for their jobs.

     

    04. We’ve heard that the paper is going through a redesign? And the edit page may be back?

    The paper is going through a slight redesign because Bhaskar Das wants to change the look-and-feel of the paper to a template that is familiar to us all. He is keen on an edit page, so I guess my departure strengthens his hands in some ways.

     

    05. What next after your books? Writing isn’t really a financially rewarding vocation. Are you going to continue to stay on in Mumbai?

    I honestly don’t know what the future holds. If I could, I would write books for the rest of my existence. Mumbai is an expensive place to live, but I do like living here.

     

  • Star Jalsha boss Kevin Vaz on what viewers can expect from the new Jalsha Movies, and why the channel is already a winner in the buzzing Bengal television market

    Jaldi 5 with Kevin Vaz: Blockbusters to boom Bengal

    Having gained an unmatchable reach and popularity with its brand Star Jalsha in Bengal, Star India is also set for the launch of a new movie channel titled Jalsha Movies. The launch is in line with Star Jalsha’s philosophy of Chalo Paltai (let’s change) that aims at delighting viewers through contemporary stories from their surroundings.

     Kevin Vaz, President and General Manager – Star Jalsha and President – Ad Sales at Star India Pvt Ltd tells MxMIndia what viewers can expect from the new offering and why the channel is already a winner in the already buzzing Bengal television market.

     

    01. The third Bengali movie channel, and the second launch in close succession. From the sales point of view, is Bengal the new ‘hot’ market?

    I can’t comment on it being a hot market, but Bengal is definitely growing very fast. It has become a Priority One market for most brands today be it across telecom, consumer durables, FMCG etc. Most importantly, it is not the national clients but the retail business that is growing rapidly here. So whether it is jewellery stores or saree shops or biscuit manufacturers… a lot of local interest is gaining prominence here.

     

    As for the launch, Bengal is a huge consumer of Bengali cinema irrespective of the channel that it gets played on. Star Jalsha has always been offering quality movies to its audiences and has achieved a TVR as high as 12. Keeping these trends in mind we thought it was right time for us to launch a Bengali movie channel. According to us, there is nobody right now offering blockbuster movies regularly and that is what Jalsha Movies will stand for.

     

    02. Star Jalsha has been a huge success whereas at least one of the channels from a well-pedigreed media company has shut down. What’s the secret of the success with Jalsha?

    When we launched Star Jalsha, we were very clear that we had to be different. In fact within a few weeks of its launch it was a clear leader and has been so for the last four years with our GRPs totalling 500 compared to our closest competitor at 400 GRPs or so. More importantly we attained that position by redefining the market and the storyline that we do. With such a benchmark, we said that we clearly expect Star Jalsha to be leaders within the channel. I see that we have the necessary content that will help us deliver that promise.

     

    a. How fast do you hope to be on top of the pack?

    If we get into something we clearly look at become leaders at once. So the answer is: as early as possible.

     

    03. We see that you’ve stitched up quite a few alliances with film companies.  Will we also see any international/Indian movies dubbed in Bengali in future?

    We’ve got a great library of Bengali movies and the reason to launch a regional channel is for people to consume it in their own language. So we will be going ahead only with Bengali movies as of now.

     

    04. How has the response been from advertisers and media agencies?

    We’ve got a great response from them. Vivel has already come aboard as the channel partner. Going forward you will see a whole lot of clients who will be associated with us. In fact, most of these advertisers have seen Jalsha operate in the last four years and know the kind of mileage we offer to them. So most of them are excited enough to partner with us from day one of operations.

     

    A market like Kolkata is counted in as part of the extended HSM. Do you think with three Bengali movie channels, the Hindi movie channels will get impacted?

    I wouldn’t like to call Bengal as an extended Hindi Speaking Market and has rather reached a stage where it holds its own. At one point in time it was considered an add-on market but for most brands it has become a priority market. Also, if one were to see Star Jalsha delivers higher ratings than any other Hindi GEC or channel by a distance. So to reach out to the masses is our number one priority. If I may add here, Bengal is witnessing a huge surge in retail advertising and more and more brands are hopping on to be a part of the association with us.

     

    05. Tell us more about Vivel being the Channel Partner? The performance of this partnership could open the floodgates for many more?

    As I said, Vivel has come on board as the channel partner but it’s not we have closed our doors to the others. Probably as the numbers start to trickle in people will want to make bigger commitment to the channel. That will be an ongoing effort but a few brands have come based on faith and seeing potential in what we have to offer them. Jalsha has a very strong equity in the market with its advertisers and it is purely on that front that many have partnered with us.

     

  • Ajay Trigunayat, CEO, English Entertainment Channels, Times Television Network tells MxMIndia what the year held for the network and plans for 2013

    Jaldi 5 with Ajay Trigunayat: ‘The aim is to set new benchmarks in 2013’

    Where brands or media properties are struggling to stay afloat through this tough economic crisis, two-year-old movie channel Movies Now has no such bitter experiences to share. After a roaring 2011, the channel – that completed its second anniversary this week, has an interesting tale to tell about its performance in 2012 as well.

    Ajay Trigunayat, CEO, English Entertainment Channels, Times Television Network tells MxMIndia what the year held for the network and plans for 2013.

     

    01. How would you analyse the year 2012, which also marks completion of two years for Movies Now in India?

    A lot has happened in the last two years:

    • The category has expanded exponentially with Movies Now witnessing a 50% jump in viewership reaching out to 56 million viewers per week.
    • In the past twelve months, we have effectively consolidated our leadership position, dominating the category with a phenomenal 30% in comparison to Star Movies (28%), Sony PIX (17%) and HBO (14%). (Source: TAM, CS 15+, 8 metros, wk 52 ’10 – wk 39 ’12)

     

    02. Could you share some of the highpoints for the network in India this year?

    • We have led the category since our launch & 2011-2012 has seen immense growth in terms of Reach, TSV, Audience Engagement & consequently Revenue.
    • In 2012, we built on the library-led movie concept by offering the viewers a plethora of blockbusters packaged as captivating properties celebrating the Best of Hollywood Icons – Best of Cameron, Best of Leo, Best of Spielberg and lots more.
    • Movies Now constantly keeps innovatively engaging with its fans and followers in the social media sphere. In the two years, the channel has jumped to the top spot with 2.3 mn fans on Facebook. In comparison, decade old players, Star Movies & HBO, stand at 1.4 mn & 1.5 mn respectively. Movies Now is in the top 5 leading brands on Facebook in India (in the media category) & in the top 3 fastest growing pages on Facebook in India (in the media category). The channel maintains a strong fan-following on Twitter with a lead of 13000+ followers.
    • Movies Now has significantly overshot international benchmarks in terms of the Brand Awareness & Brand Preference in just 2 years of its launch (Source: Millward Brown Study)

     

    03. Have you witnessed a spike in viewership and revenues over 2011? Could you elaborate the growth story through statistics…

    • Out of the top rated 100 English Movies in the last 2 years, 52% aired on Movies Now as compared to 32% on Star Movies, 14% on Sony PIX and 2% on HBO. (Source: TAM, CS 15+, 8 metros, wk 52 ’10 – wk 39 ’12)
    • Movies Now has also attained an astonishing 31 minutes of time spent per viewer which is a testimony of the audience stickiness on the channel. Star Movies stands at 27 mins, PIX at 21 mins & HBO at 20 mins (Source: TAM CS 15+, 8 metros, wk 52 ’10 – wk 39 ’12)
    • Consequently, Movies Now doubled the effective rate to ‘3600 per 10 seconds and seen an increase 60% in terms of revenue as compared to last year.
    • Movies Now achieved a phenomenal 30% channel share in comparison to Star Movies (28%), Sony PIX (17%) and HBO (14%). (Source: TAM, CS 15+, 8 metros, wk 52 ’10 – wk 39 ’12)

     

    04. What was the year like for the Movies genre in India – growth and challenges?

    • Our biggest challenge is the perception of our channel being niche. With Reach of 56 million viewers and TSV of 55 minutes per week which is almost the size of any possible European country, I don’t really think Movies Now can be called niche.
    • The English Movie Channel Category has been under-monetized. It would also be a challenge to leverage the urban affluent English movie viewing into the advertising revenue it deserves.

     

     05. What would be your focus for 2013 in the sphere of movie/content acquisition?

    • The idea is to consolidate our library further and bring in the Best Blockbusters for our viewers.
    • Starting January we present :

    > Sons of Guns: Brings the Bad Boys of Hollywood that will showcase movies like Ocean’s eleven, Bad Boys, etc.

    > Grand Masters: Legends of Shaolin featuring Jet Li, Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee along with the master of Bruce Lee himself in IP Man 2.

    > Badge of Courage: Line-up of some special movies this Republic Day like Iron Man, True Lies, Knight and Day, Quantum of Solace, Demolition Man and Robocop

    > Crack it Up: Rib-tickling comedies like Dude where’s my car, Austin Powers, Hangover, Aliens in the attic, Harold and Kumar, Not Another Date Movie and a lot more.

    • February:

    > Gods of Hollywood with the Best of Hollywood Icons like Bond, Spiderman, Rocky Balboa and many more.

    > For the first time on Indian Television, Movies Now will premiere the much talked about movie, ‘The Grey’ starring Liam Neeson.

    > Best of family adventure movies like Harry Potter, Narnia, Percy Jackson in Adventure Diaries

    > Valentine’s Day also has a special line-up including Monster-in-law, Date Night, I Love You, Beth Cooper..

    • In March, we will bring the complete Star Wars movie franchise which will be customized for the Indian audience in a big way. One of the property’s that has been appreciated well comes back with a bang with Shaolin Masters 4.