MxMIndia

Category: MEDIA

  • It's literally 'aisa mauka aur kahaan milega' as stakeholders go all out to promote IPL 5 starting next week

    Five days to return of IPL mega-carnival

     

    By Tuhina Anand

     

    The annual IPL event is no less than a carnival or a circus and the TVC featuring the two kids with the Eena Meena Deeka song playing in the background aptly sums it. As the countdown begins for the circus to visit our cities or beam in to our TV sets, we take a look at the various marketing activities planned around the IPL.

     

    Once touted as the biggest property for marketers, the game lost some sheen because of the negative coverage it got in its last avatar. Fully aware of the situation, those involved with the IPL have now gone all out to woo audience and it’s no surprise that lately, especially in the last two weeks, one has seen and heard a lot about IPL on various medium.

     

    Eena Meena Deeka- Carnival- Ye IPL Hai Boss
    [youtube width=”400″ height=”200″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2lDDabuGLs[/youtube]

    Rohit Gupta, President, Multi Screen Media (MSM), the official broadcaster of DLF IPL, talking about the inventory sold on MAX said: “We are in the process of closing deals and it’s been a regular sellout process. The start was a bit slow, but once our marketing campaign kicked off we have managed to rope in most of the key brands. In fact, we have not dropped our rate which is Rs5.5 lakh for a 10-second spot.”

     

    Mr Gupta, in fact, is confident that the rates will go up once the game begins and more audience comes in to watch the matches.

     

    Talking about the campaign, Gaurav Seth, Senior VP, Marketing and Communications, MAX, said: “We have reached the end phase of a very long campaign that was kickstarted on February 23 with Aisa Mauka Aur Kaha Milega and April 4 will see the culmination of all the activities we had undertaken as the IPL begins. As for sustenance, we will take a call on the basis of the viewership and address the issue accordingly.”

     

    [youtube width=”400″ height=”200″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXQsIgN_530[/youtube]

    Some of the activities that MAX has undertaken include a partnership with Radio Mirchi for 40 stations across India which will include radio spots, RJ mentions, and IPL contests. For OOH, they have taken over 700 units across 70 towns including billboards, bus shelters and various other innovative OOH panels. The print engagement includes both English and vernacular newspapers. They are also engaging the audience through mobile and FB along with BTL activation. It is learnt that the budget earmarked for IPL 5 is almost Rs30 crore.

     

    Mr Seth said: “We are reaching out to our audience with one million printed schedules which will be distributed through multiple outlets. We have planned flash mobs across 10 IPL towns. The mobs will give info on IPL by disruption and the sequences will be uploaded on YouTube which we hope will go the viral route.”

     

    “This is the 5th year of IPL so people know what it is. The challenge is to create something that is innovative and appeals to the consumers. Aisa Mauka is perfect as it talks about IPL being an opportunity to bond with family and friends. It invites people to enjoy the IPL experience,” he added, on marketing IPL which has definitely been a mega exercise.

     

    [youtube width=”400″ height=”200″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkBVlfisg88[/youtube]

    Extraaa Innings T20 2012 on MAX has also come out with a special video featuring its presenters on the theme of Aisa Mauka Aur Kaha Milega.

     

    Here’s a look at some of the marketing initiatives taken by various IPL teams:

     

    Mumbai Indians

    Mumbai Indians has taken the digital route to connect with its close to 2.5 million fans. The unique marketing campaign by O&M is being digitally driven on Facebook’s MI fan page ‘MIPaltan’. The campaign ‘Players become Friends’ is aimed at increasing the interactivity quotient between the players and the fans in the digital space. The fans can get to be friends with Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh, Rohit Sharma, Munaf Patel and other team players and know about their real lives, practice sessions and much more.

    https://www.facebook.com/mumbaiindians?sk=app_358303457535779

     

    MI has also unveiled its new website www.mumbaiindians.com, which offers a fresh view for the fans to know more about the team. The new website presents dynamic online tools, easy navigation and is rich in its contents. The fresh look and feel of the website, designed in keeping with international standards, echoes the value which best epitomizes the team – ‘Play Like One’.

     

    Mumbai Indians has recently signed a brand alliance with Walt Disney India, which marks the first time Mickey Mouse will be associated with cricket. The Mumbai Indians Disney merchandise is available for sale in India.

     

    Delhi Daredevils

    Delhi Daredevils, in its bid to engage its fans, signed four remarkable flagbearers of daredevilry as Delhi Daredevils Superfans. These include India’s only IronMan athlete, Anuradha Vaidyanathan; the youngest Indian climber to summit three peaks beyond 8000m, including Mount Everest, Arjun Vajpai; India’s only ultramarathon runner Arun Bhardwaj and the only Indian woman to ski her way to South Pole, Reena Kaushal Dharmshaktu.

     

    It also launched the team’s Hindi website, making it the first IPL franchise to create an online destination for cricket fans who would like to follow the game in the language. The English website too had been redesigned. Also on anvil is the launch of mobile version of the website. Smartphone users can download a mobile App to get scores and updates. DD also launched its new official song titled ‘Munday Dilli Ke’ to herald the coming season of DLF Indian Premier League.

     

    Chennai Super Kings

    CSK took its ‘Whistle podu’ further by launching a brand new participative cheer video. Titled ‘Chennai Super Kings ku Raise Your Hands’ this video too is a tribute to the unwavering fan support that the team enjoys. The one-minute video captures a fan formation that gathers momentum, with supporters joining in to form a Mexican wave cheering their favourite team. The video was uploaded on YouTube late evening on March 25, and in less than 12 hours it had already generated over 10,000 views.

     

    In another unique initiative, Washington Apple have partnered with CSK as ‘Official Fruit’ for the upcoming IPL season. South India is India’s largest market for Washington Apples and Chennai, in particular, is the key port of entry and distribution hub and also a key market for the company, hence the association.

     

    Kolkata Knight Riders

    Venky Mysore, MD & CEO of KKR on the marketing initiatives said: “KKR recently unveiled its new marketing campaign, ‘New Dawn, New Knights’. The campaign is about the new team that we have formed and its new attitude and intensity. It signifies the new winning spirit that has been brought in by our new players and the new coach. All of these go a long way in ensuring a new beginning.”

     

    He also said that their digital community exceeds 700,000 and before the start of the latest season of IPL, they are confident of reaching a million. The marketing would be mostly done through merchandising on the digital platform as well as through ticketing. “Contrary to public perception, we don’t go out and buy media, because we don’t need to. We have a brand that we constantly work on. Part of how we do that is to ensure the team is doing well, and we also try to be a part of mutually beneficial associations that can be leveraged. Hence, we develop marketing programmes that allow brands associated with us to activate themselves. For instance, we created a lot of content with our sponsors on digital and electronic media last year which they utilized advantageously,” Mr Mysore said.

     

    KKR is working to create new revenue streams like merchandising and licensing. Since various third party reports indicate that KKR is the most valuable brand franchise, they are looking at ways to strike licensing agreements to monetize on the same. As a result of multiple merchandising deals, they have made available a number of branded KKR merchandise like T-shirts, hats, head bands, fridge magnets, pens, ties and so on.

     

    “The market segment that IPL attracts is very different from that of a Test and One Day format of the game. I think it depends on the product. If you look at toothpaste today, you have hundreds of brands, but it all depends on how you package it and how you market it. So the challenge for us is to keep working on the product, its packaging and delivery, and if we do a good job, then we would be successful as a franchise,” he added.

     

    Rajasthan Royals

    Rajasthan Royals has again tied up with Sanskar School for their annual inter-school Kanni Thahryamal Tournament to develop, nurture and motivate young talent at the grassroots level. Various Rajasthan Royals players, including Rahul Dravid, scouted for talent at the tournament and. RR also supported the Ambuja Jaipur Marathon 2012 as Official Fitness Partner.

     

    They recently unveiled the pink-coloured training jersey dedicated to the city of Jaipur, the team’s home. On the digital front, the focus is on interactivity and their fan zone on the website encourages fans to express themselves through content, videos, images, forums or polls. Points are awarded based on interactivity on the website which can be redeemed for exclusive memorabilia and merchandise.

     

    UltraTech Cement Limited is the team’s Principal Sponsor for IPL 5. The cement brand has been associated with the squad since 2008.

     

    Kings XI Punjab

    This IPL team hosts the Kings XI Punjab Cup, a tournament organized to provide a platform for young guns to showcase their talent. Through this annual tournament, KXIP aims to nurture talent at the grass root level by giving them an opportunity to display their talent.

     

    Kings XI Punjab has initiated an activity with Institute of Fashion technology at Punjab University. As a part of the initiative, the aspirants were given an opportunity to design their favourite local team’s merchandise. The chosen designs have been used in the merchandising of Kings XI Punjab.

     

    The team associated with Indraprastha All India Sports Foundation to launch the one-of-a-kind reality show ‘Cricket Champs’. This reality show is being powered by Kings XI Punjab and a number of players from the franchisee are also part of the proceedings. This pan-India initiative is featuring on UTV.

     

    Deccan Chargers

    Emirates International has come on board as the Team Sponsor for Deccan Chargers. DC also kick-started its Blue Campaign in Hyderabad with ‘its gotta be blue’ line celebrating food, music and cricket. Some Tollywood films have also associated with Deccan Chargers for promotional campaigns. DC is also taking the digital route to connect and interact with its fans in a better way.

     

    Royal Challengers Bangalore

    RCB launched its new website earlier this month, which is aimed at making navigation easier for its fans. The site has new collection of photos, videos and other downloads for its followers. Most of the initiatives are on the RCB site.

     

    Pune Warriors

    This IPL team has been focusing on interacting with its fans with its website. In keeping with the name, the site has sections like ‘Our Warriors’ which give information about the players, War news and Warrior Club Updates. The Bhartiya Nrityanganas or the cheer queens with the Indian flavour will be encouraging the team on field. The team has also associated with Bookmyshow for buying tickets for the games.

     

  • Mumbai Indians, Pune Warriors Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Daredevils are doing good business according to bookmyshow, the online agent for five IPL teams

    IPL 5: Online ticket sales picking up pace

    By Ameya Chumbhale

     

    If ticket sales of the fifth edition of the Indian Premier League are anything to go by, India is certainly not cricket fatigued.

     

    Mumbai Indians, which began its online sales on March 1, claims to have sold close to a third of its tickets already. Some of these tickets are priced as high as Rs40,000 – the most expensive among all teams.

     

    Pune Warriors (PWI) and IPL winners Chennai Super Kings (CSK), as well as Delhi Daredevils are also doing good business, said bookmyshow’s chief executive officer Ashish Hemrajani. Bookmyshow is the online agent for five IPL teams, including Mumbai Indians (MI).

     

    Online sales are critical to the success of the IPL as stadium sales usually commence only a few days before the match. “Last year, we sold close to 60per cent of our ticket inventory online through thermal printing which enables us not to have restriction on quota for online sales. This means the system allows us to print tickets similar to international practices and also allows the Mumbai Indians fans to choose their own seats,” said an MI spokesperson.

     

    Hemrajani says bookmyshow has already sold 50,000 tickets this year. “Mumbai and Pune are doing really well, while ticket sales of Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab have picked up over the last two days,” he added.

     

    The inaugural match on April 4, between the CSK and MI in Chennai, is sold out. Chandrabhan, general manager, marketing at Chennai SuperKings said online tickets for the second and third matches are also sold out. CSK has kept 60 per cent tickets for on-ground sales as “Chennai is known for fans queuing up to buy (movie and cricket match) tickets,” he added.

     

    Since the first IPL season, on-ground ticket sales and television viewership have moved in tandem, say media planners. “Both went up for the first three years of IPL, and both came down last year. The link is very strong between the two,” said Ajit Varghese, managing director (South Asia), media agency Maxus and Motivator.

     

    Multi Screen Media, the company that operates Sony Max, which broadcasts IPL matches, has signed six sponsors till date. Among them are Vodafone, Pepsi, Hyundai, Idea and Tata Photon. It had nine sponsors last year. MSM, according to sources who did not want to be named, has sold only about 50-60 per cent of the ad inventory until now as against 75-80 per cent around the same time in 2011.

     

    According to industry sources, MSM is charging around Rs5 lakh per 10 seconds and they expect it to rise if television viewership goes up in the first seven to eight matches.

    MSM president Rohit Gupta confirmed that the company had signed six to seven sponsors and some of them have come on board for deals valued at over Rs40 crore.

    “We have sold nearly 70 per cent of the ad inventory and expect it to reach 80 per cent before going into the tournament,” said Mr Gupta who is confident of filling up the ad spots, as it will take only a sponsor or two more to do so.

    Generally, associate sponsors get a certain percentage of the ad inventory as a part of the deal.

     

    Source: The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2012, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

     

  • Hemal Jhaveri, Business Head of Star Gold, on acquisition strategies, cost versus profitability, and more.

    Monetising big ticket movies isn’t easy: Hemal Jhaveri, Star Gold

    Movies on TV are, no doubt, a hot business now especially for general entertainment channels who often do premiers of big-ticket movies to spur GRPs and in the process move ahead of the competition. Recently Star has acquired the rights of Kahani and Dabangg 2 while Zee has acquired Don 2.

     

    Last year Star acquired the Viacom library as a strategy to become the largest player as far as the sheer number of movies is concerned. Now the network enjoys a rich library of movies that it showcases across channels.

     

    MxM India’s Rishi Vora speaks to Hemal Jhaveri, Business Head of Star Gold on acquisition strategies, cost versus profitability issue and much more.

     

    Q: What is Star India’s strategy as far as acquisition of movies is concerned?

    We have been very aggressive on movie acquisitions. In fact, Star Gold, where we do a lot of premiers, is in the forefront of movie acquisitions. In the recent past we’ve acquired movies like Singham, Ra.One, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara and Rockstar, to name a few.

     

    Q: Do you normally sign deals even before the movie goes on ground for the shoot?

    It is Dabangg 2 that we signed before the shooting began. A few acquisitions we’ve done – some of them are under production. While the stars do matter, what we do as a practice is put a strict content lens on it, so we try to minimise the risks in that fashion.

     

    Once you buy a movie it has to deliver the same amount of returns over seven to 11 years. That’s the length of time we look at while acquiring movies. So it’s clearly beyond the premier game. If a great movie comes our way and we feel that it’s not apt for the television audience, we will not go for it.

     

    Q: In case of Dabangg 2 – you’ve acquired that at a significant price. So, why make that kind of an investment when you don’t really know if it’ll deliver?

    It’s Dabangg 2. It’s Salman Khan.

     

    Q: That’s the only factor?

    Yes. See, Dabangg 2 is a great franchise to earn. After acquisition of the Viacom slate where we have Dabangg and now Dabangg 2 – we’ve acquired the whole Viacom library. All of their 500 movies are ours.

     

    Q: When did this acquisition take place?

    We acquired that in December last year. With this, it just makes us the largest movies library in the country.

     

    Q: Huge monies are spent on movie acquisitions at times. Dabangg 2 in this case. Is it a risk worth taking?

    It depends on what you’re buying and at what price.

     

    Q: 3 Idiots got acquired in about Rs 30 crore by the network which owns the rights. They’ve milked it well and the buzz is it has made about Rs 200 crore or even more.

    Yes, 3 Idiots did very well from the standpoint that it made a lot of money.

     

    Q: The buzz is that Dabangg 2 has been acquired for Rs 50 crore.

    I will not like to make a comment on that. The cost of acquisition is higher than 3 Idiots considering the latter was acquired some three to four years ago. And the fact that inflation plays its part.

     

    Q: What is your view on ROI for advertisers who buy spots on big-ticket movies that premier on TV?

    Well, I can only talk about Star Gold and the advertiser response we get. Singham rated 8.7 TVR, Bodyguard set the new record at 10 TVR and Ra.One was 6.7. All of these movies have done well on the ratings front.

     

    From the standpoint of an advertiser, these movies are a fantastic platform. So it’s really a win-win situation.

     

    Advertisers need to look at it from a portfolio approach and not just a single movie. There are movies which may or may not do well on TV. It’s not easy monetising big-ticket movies. The cost continues to go up. The cost of movies has gone up close to 30 per cent since the last two or three years. Advertisers should look at the portfolio of movies and the duration period till we own the rights. We have movies to which we own the rights for 11 years.

     

    Q: But if you keep playing the same movie again and again, how much will you be monetising on that anyway?

    We’re in the business of repeats. First and foremost there are not many movies that get made, and out of the movies that are released, there are only a few that do well. So the universe of movies keeps getting smaller and smaller. For example this year there are going to be only two Salman Khan movies and one Aamir Khan movie from what I gather.

     

    Q: But what I’m saying is that if you’re running a movie say for the 20th time, the revenue in terms of ad sales on that 20th run will not be much.

    Not really. Say a channel which does 140 to 150 GRPs, there are a good set of audiences that come on to the channel. So yes, we may have movies running many times on the channel. What we attempt to do is make enough profits. And the revenue that eventually gets generated is not bad.

     

    Q: What movies are we going to see from Star this year?

    The movies for 2012-13 which we have acquired are Bol Bachchan, Kahani which will be aired soon, and Housefull 2.

     

    Q: When was the acquisition done for Kahani?

    Kahani we acquired four months ago. I can’t tell you exactly when it’ll be aired on TV.

     

  • The account, worth upwards of Rs20 Crores, will be handled by MPG Delhi

    Sleepwell appoints MPG as its media AOR

    By A Correspondent

     

    MPG India, a flagship brand of Havas Media, has been appointed as the media AOR for Sleepwell.

     

    The account, worth upwards of Rs20 Crores, will be handled by MPG Delhi. On MPG’s appointment, Manoj Sharma, Head of Marketing, Sleepwell said: “We are happy to partner with MPG. We found their approach very thorough and insightful. Their strategic thinking is driven by MPG proprietary tools which provide a holistic communication perspective. Most importantly, their extremely passionate and enthusiastic team made us choose them as our media partners.”

     

    Commenting on the win, Anita Nayyar, CEO of MPG South Asia said: “It is a great privilege to be working with Sleepwell. One of the key factors that helped us win this business was our strategic approach to communication using our proprietary tools. It’s a great win for MPG to kick-start the second quarter.”

     

    Sleepwell is a flagship brand of Sheela Group, it is ISO 9001 certified as well.

     

    For the records, Sleepwell was erstwhile with Motivator (Group M).

     

  • As the Indian Premier League begins today, the MSL Group has taken a step back and given the game, the quickie format and the hype around it a good, hard look.

    Brand IPL needs to play innings of its life: MSL Group report

    By A Correspondent

     

    MSL Group’s executive report on the Indian Premier League, its ups and downs and the viability of continuing, concludes that if Brand IPL has to remain a smash hit, it must work its strategy carefully.

     

    When it began, the league made a splash and wowed India with the razzle-dazzle of intensively commercial cricket. Then came the slide downwards with slackening viewer interest leading to falling ratings, followed by the scandal that surrounded allegations of favouritism and money-laundering.

     

    “There’s no denying that Brand IPL is on choppy waters. It will have to steer clear of fresh controversies, reflect on mistakes and rectify the damage as much as it can. Most importantly, it needs to win back the confidence of stakeholders. As Season 5 unfolds from April 4, 2012, the BCCI will need a stronger game plan to rejuvenate the brand,” says the report.

     

    Quoting media sources including reports from MxMIndia, the MSL report mentions instances of prominent sponsors pulling out, questionable ownership patterns, and the big one – runaway costs. “Keeping the wage bill in check and managing revenues will mean the difference between survival and falling by the wayside,” says the report.

     

    Brand IPL has other problems too, such as controversies galore, falling TRPs, and overly high ad rates. Yet, the report concludes, “There must be something right with a sports property that, despite a fall in valuation, is worth more than $3.5 billion. By its second year, the IPL was thought to be the fifth largest sports brand, just smaller than FIFA and bigger than Wimbledon and F1.”

     

    An integrated communications approach, the sheer advertising benefit of being on the IPL bandwagon, the fact that sports sponsorships do work well, and the Indian cricket fan’s conveniently short memory are opportunities in the IPL’s favour, the report remarks.

     

    In fact, while other sports such as hockey and wrestling are trying to emulate cricket’s league success, the fact is that India has been loyal to cricket for far too long, and grabbing those eyeballs will be a “massive challenge”.

     

    The full report can be read here:

    http://www.slideshare.net/mslgroup/indian-premier-league-still-a-smash-hit-for-advertisers

     

    Image courtesy: http://www.facebook.com/IPLSTARS

  • Contests2win.com is one of the oldest and most recognized Internet Brands of India

    Rohit Nair is COO of C2W

    By A Correspondent

     

    Contests2win.com India Pvt. Ltd announced the appointment of Rohit Nair as the COO of the company. Previously, Rohit was the co-founder of ‘QuizWorks’ – one of India’s premier quizzing Companies.

     

    Alok Kejriwal, Founder of Contests2win said: “c2w has changed rapidly over the past 12 years. From being a Company set up to replace the Indian ‘contest postcard’, to becoming the first Internet Company from India to set up shop in China, we have come a long way. In this age and time, we see a brand new, global opportunity beckoning us. We own a great brand; have over 2 million registered users; possess over 10,000 pieces of original content, and enjoy blue chip, global brand relationships.”

     

    “Rohit and I have known each other for some time and we both share a common, unique vision for c2w – that will unveil itself in the months to come. I am thrilled to have Rohit on board and believe him to be truly capable of leading c2w into its new chapter of future wins,” he added.

     

    Rohit Nair said: “As an entrepreneur who has built one of India’s leading quiz companies, I am now ready for my next big career challenge. Contests2win provides the ideal platform to demonstrate how consumers and engrossing content can create an unparalleled dimension in engagement. As COO, I assume responsibility of the complete business and will strive to make c2w an outstanding example of how delightful global brands can be built out of India!”

     

    Contests2win.com is one of the oldest and most recognized Internet Brands of India. Best remembered as a Company that created a media industry around contests and prizes, c2w (as the brand is better known) also famously survived the gruesome 1999-2001 Internet meltdown and emerged as a winner. c2w is responsible for introducing almost all the Fortune 500 brands to the Internet in India and making millions of Indian Internet users win prizes ranging from Movie tickets to cars.

     

  • In a multi agency pitch, Jabong.com has awarded its Media Mandates to Mindshare North.

    Mindshare wins media mandate for Jabong

    By A Correspondent

     

    Mindshare North has won the media consulting and deployment duties of Jabong.com, following a multi-agency pitch, which took place in Delhi.

     

    “We are aware that we need sustained communication, delivered creatively in order to become the single “go-to” destination in our customer’s mind, when thinking fashion and lifestyle. Therefore the priority was to align with agencies that would be able to deliver that promise. Mindshare was certainly a strong runner right from the start, and we have finally decided to go with them for media deployment advice,” commented Manu Kumar Jain, Managing Director, Jabong.com.

     

    Says Rahul Thappa – Client Leader for Mindshare North India, on the win, “This win underscores our understanding of the e-tailing market consumer which we as Mindshare have been evolving over the last couple of years. We’re quite excited and proud to have been entrusted with helping to grow Jabong.com’s business model in India using our consumer and media knowledge and we’re looking forward to a long and fruitful association with Jabong.com in the years to follow.”

     

    The pitch to Jabong.com was led by Saket Sinha, Partner – Client Leadership and his team at Mindshare. The team’s grasp of consumer insights in the space of e-tailing coupled with targeting recommendations based on information from both proprietary studies such as TGI and that from external industry research helped Jabong.com understand the India market a lot better and swung the decision in favour of Mindshare Delhi.

     

  • As IPL 5's opening encounter happens tonight, we asked media experts for their forecast

    Will IPL 5 ratings match those of earlier seasons?

     

    By Johnson Napier

     

    The Indian cricket team’s performance over the last year has left much to be desired. Having suffered humiliation at the hands of several opponents and having failed to pep up ratings with their cricketing prowess, it was a telling sign that all was not going well for the men in blue who were crowned World Champions just about a year ago. Had such a downfall in form gripped any other country, it would have attracted the wrath of the fans that would’ve boycotted the sport by staying away from the game even if it meant empty stands (in stadiums) or viewership ratings on television taking a plunge.

     

    But that is precisely what is different about India, especially the bond that its people share with their favourite sport – cricket. Lose or win, big score or small score, there will always be a legion of fans who will continue to stand by the sport (and their idols), and be there in good times and in bad. This probably even sums up BCCI’s recent move in selling the broadcast rights of Indian cricket to Star Group for a staggering Rs 3,851 crore for a period from 2012-2018. One can only empathise with the broadcaster who now requires to come with a foolproof strategy that would see it recover revenues and also arouse curiosity levels amongst advertisers. But that is for later. For now, all eyes are on the most-anticipated tournament – IPL, that kicks off from April 4, 2012.

     

    Not wanting to take sides and given the string of ups and downs surrounding cricket in the recent past, experts are opting to play it safe and are predicting viewership ratings to be at par or slightly lower than the past year. In a sense, this augurs well for the wellbeing and popularity of the sport given the uprising it has faced in the recent past particularly with brands many of whom have opted to stay away from the event given the high costs being quoted for a 10-second ad. Also, the fact that a few franchise owners were left in the lurch awaiting divine intervention from the BCCI and with big players not being picked up by stake owners during the bidding process didn’t help solve matters either. And so while an average rating of 3.5 was what IPL managed to throw up in its fourth season, experts predict a somewhat similar rating for the fifth instalment too.

     

    Avg. Viewership of all IPL Seasons
    Tournament Number of Matches Avg. TVR
    IPL Season 1 59 4.81
    IPL Season 2 59 4.17
    IPL Season 3 60 4.65
    IPL Season 4 74 3.5

     

     

    Viewership of first match of all IPL Seasons
    Tournament First Match TVR
    IPL Season 1 L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/RCB-BG 7.19
    IPL Season 2 L/T DLF IPL2 T20 MI/CSK-CT 5.09
    IPL Season 3 L/T DLF IPL3 T20 KKR/DC-NM 5.86
    IPL Season 4 L/T DLF IPL4 T20 CSK/KKR-CH 7.14

    (Source: TAM Peoplemeter System / Market: All India / TG: CS 4+)

    * In IPL 1 one match was abandoned due to rain

    * In IPL 2 two matches were abandoned due to rain

    * In IPL 4 one match was abandoned due to rain

     

    According to data from TAM Sports for season 4, the inaugural match between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders had notched up a 7.14 TVR in the all India market for CS4+ (refer table for data). The number was much higher than what the previous seasons had managed to notch up. But despite the number of matches being increased to 74, the tournament managed an average TVR of 3.5. For season 5, while the tournament average is touted to stay the same the opening day numbers are estimated to be below par than the previous year. Asserts Anita Nayyar, CEO India & South Asia at Havas Media: “There is some commonality in the average ratings that season 5 is expected to throw up from the previous year but where for the opening day numbers are concerned, it could fetch a TVR of 5 or so.” Elaborating on why the numbers would not be as high as the previous years she said, “If you see, there has been an overdose of cricket in the past one year leading it to be a cricket-heavy year for team India. This has resulted in some form of fatigue setting in amongst the masses. The fact that a host of advertisers have opted to stay away from the event this year further signals the plight of the event in the days to come. But one could look forward to the event garnering an average rating of 3-3.5.”

     

    Echoing a similar sentiment, Nandini Dias, COO – Lodestar UM said that this year could be one of the bad years for the event where ratings are concerned. “The average ratings have been slipping over the years and would hover around the 3-3.5 mark this year. But what is more concerning this year is the way the advertisers have been treated despite trends suggesting an expected downfall in ratings. With such exorbitant rates, most advertisers have preferred to stay away from the event.” On the opening day numbers to be expected from the event, Dias said, “The buzz around the event this year has been surprisingly low and much of this may have to do with India’s dismal performance in the year gone by. I expect lower opening day numbers compared to last year given the low decibels around the event. Even the sale of tickets is low-profile with many preferring to stay away from making a purchase.”

     

    So while a dip in numbers is what is forecast, it would be interesting to see how the broadcasters play up the viewership numbers game as there is a slight change in the opening day schedule of the event. While in previous years, the opening ceremony was followed by a match on the same day, this year the organizers have split the two for separate days. Explains Jai Lala, Principal Partner – The Exchange, Mindshare: “Last year and in the previous years the opening ceremony was followed by a match being played on the same day and the number as such was high but this year there would be a difference in the numbers as the opening ceremony and the match have been separated from each other. So just the ratings from the opening day of the match per se, I would say it would be marginally low but as suggested that is due to the splitting of events. We’ll have to watch how the broadcaster plays up the numbers.” In fact according to Lala, “Season 5 may have an upper hand where the average ratings are concerned as one, there was no World Cup like last year that resulted in fatigue amongst viewers and also the fact that a lot of teams were in a sense rehashed last year resulting in small drop in ratings. But that shouldn’t be the case this time around; hopefully the ratings could be better than what was last year.”

     

    Preferring to stay optimistic, Neelkamal Sharma, COO – Buying of Madison Media Group is hopeful of the event managing a good opening in terms of ratings. And his supposition stems from the fact that the “general public’s mood being low due to economic slowdown/ scams/inflation etc hence they may look forward to watch something more entertaining and something that will drive away their attention from regular news.” As for the average numbers per se, he expects the numbers to be somewhat similar to last year +/-5-10 per cent.

     

    Having faced the heat last year for reporting a drop in viewership numbers that was backed by an unwarranted hike in ad rates, MSM would probably have to come up with some magic formula that would see them gain their way into the hearts of the viewers and naysayers too. It may help that the reach numbers for the tournament are estimated to be 8-10 per cent higher than last year due to rise in C&S households but the question is: will the viewer cling on to see the event complete the journey in its entirety or will he (or she) quit midway resulting in depleting numbers than previous years? The ball, for now, is in MSM’s court.

     

    Image courtesy http://www.facebook.com/IPLSTARS

  • Sports fans can catch all the DLF IPL action real-time on their mobiles even when they are on the move.

    Watch IPL on mobile through Apalya

    Apalya Technologies, specializing in mobile video streaming delivering more than 150 plus million minutes and the leading mobile TV service provider for all telecom service providers will provide exclusive, mobile, video streaming for all the matches of the 5th edition of the IPL. This will be the 4th consecutive year for Apalya for IPL Streaming.

     

    Apalya Technologies, this year again, through its platform will enable sports fans to catch all the DLF IPL action real-time on their mobiles even when they are ‘on-the-move’. Subscribers will be able to watch it on the mobile through their existing mobile service providers, as Apalya has tied-up with all the leading telecom partners in India to enable the DLF IPL Mobile stream on the existing Mobile TV service. To avail this, subscribers can SMS TV to 58888.

     

    Speaking about this alliance, Vamshi Krishna Reddy, Co-founder & CEO, Apalya Technologies said, “We are happy to announce that we are yet again the Official Mobile Streaming Partner for IPL 2012.  This year we aim to cross 10 million subscribers with IPL V and expect the viewing minutes to more than double. Thanks to the evolving 3G network, better and stable 2.5G network coupled with advanced smart phone proliferation in the market, mobile TV has been a big success among consumers who are always on the go.”

     

    With emerging technologies and growing mobile video viewing habits, India records over 200 million video views a month on mobile devices and Apalya is all set to capitalize the opportunity to tap the interest of the youth, allowing them mobile video viewing for various popular events. During the World Cup season in April 2011, Apalya generated 17 TB of streaming and with close to 50 minutes of usage per user for the 6 matches India played. Currently, Apalya powers mobile TV for all the major telecom service providers in India and has also launched its services with leading operators in Sri Lanka & Indonesia.

     

  • Bollywood music channel 9XM has crossed the 1 million fans milestone on the channel's Facebook community.

    A million Likes on 9XM Facebook page

    By A Correspondent

     

    Bollywood music channel 9XM has crossed the 1 million fans milestone on the channel’s Facebook community – www.facebook.com/9xm.in. The winning combination of super-hit Bollywood music, humour, animation, e-commerce and innovative content has catapulted 9XM to the 1 million fans club on Facebook.

     

    The colossal fan base on 9XM’s Facebook Community was achieved in just over a year’s time, by making it the one-stop destination for Bollywood news, humor and gossip presented in the true 9XM style. From the latest movie reviews to hot gossips on film stars and their parties to Bollywood fashion – it’s all there on the 9XM Facebook Community. The fans regularly voice their opinions, likes and dislikes on all the happenings in Bollywood, making the page the most preferred Bollywood hangout.

     

    Commenting on the achievement, Ms. Vibha Gosher VP-Digital 9X Media Group said “We are extremely thrilled to get over a million thumps ups from Bollywood Music Fans on 9XM’s Community on Facebook. Besides the 1 Million Fans that we have on the page, 9XM is showing unprecedented buzz amongst users. While all the Indian music channels on Facebook see 2-3% average level of buzz, 9XM sees more than 9%. When we talk about the engagement and user’s interest in the brand, 9XM towers above the others in the genre. The content on the 9XM community is 16% ‘Share-able’, whereas the top performing brands on this space have merely 10-13% viability. It produces minimum 1 mention every 22 minutes about the brand on the internet ecosystem. This is extremely motivating and reaffirms our commitment to connect and engage with our viewers and fans across all possible platforms.”

     

    9XM, the flagship channel of 9X Media Pvt. Ltd has a robust digital presence in India and has introduced many innovative concepts on the internet. 9XM is India’s first Music Channel to stream its content live on its website – www.9xm.in – and is available across various mobile TV platforms.

     

    In the recent past, 9XM in partnership with Hungama.com, has launched an online Bollywood Music Store – ‘9XM.Hungama.com’ and 9XM Radio – the on-the-move radio for Bollywood Songs, Celebrity interviews, Bade& Chote’s Bakwaas, etc. These services are available on web, WAP and IVR platforms.

     

    9XM also offers Caller Tunes, giving the viewers an instant opportunity to set caller tunes of the latest Bollywood songs aired on the channel. 9XM has launched ‘Mezza 9X’ the Ecommerce portal by the network selling quirky merchandise.

     

    9XM has also launched many games and applications for the iPad and iPhone users. Fans of 9XM’s animated characters can select and download their favourite games like the Angry 9XM Heroes, Silly Chicken and Talking Silly Chicken (India’s first talking application) from the IOS App store.

     

  • 'Chhota Bheem movie: Dholakpur to Kathmandu' garners highest TVR in Kids Genre in 2012

    Pogo achieves highest GRP in kids genre

    By A Correspondent

     

    After holding the number 1 title in kids’ genre over the past 6 months (*Source: Tam, All India, Kids 4-14, Weekly GRP), Pogo has achieved the highest GRP of 174 in almost the last 6 years in the kids’ genre (Cartoon Network earned 181 GRP’s in week 21 of 2006).

     

    Also, the premier of the movie Chhota Bheem: Dholakpur to Kathmandu delivered a TVR of 2.4, the highest of any movie or show in 2012. This combination of GRP and TVR has led to POGO dominating the viewership pie with 25.6per cent relative share.

     

    Monica Tata, General Manager, Entertainment Networks, South Asia, Turner International India Pvt. Ltd. said: “We are elated with Pogo’s increasingly better performance, and the irrefutable contribution of Chhota Bheem in making the channel reach such a milestone. The response received from our viewers is nothing but an encouragement to continue to provide quality and engaging content so as to surpass these accomplishments.”

     

    Pogo, a multi-genre channel created exclusively for kids in India, was launched successfully by Turner on January 1, 2004 and is distributed by Media Pro Enterprise India Pvt. Ltd. POGO is available in over 24 million cable & satellite homes.

     

  • Border War LOC, the sequel of Border War Face off (a patriotic attempt from Jump) is out

    Border War Face Off gets one million downloads on Nokia

    By A Correspondent

     

    Border War Face-off, an arcade game made on patriotic lines by Jump Games (a part of Reliance Entertainment Digital and a leading developer and distributor of mobile games) was released in October 2011 across all leading operators like Vodafone, Docomo, Reliance, Idea, and others.

     

    The game is to save Mother India from enemies’ invasion by playing a courageous soldier defending our borders from an enemy invasion. This game is Jump’s own IP and is extremely popular among the youth gamers. The figures have been good from the very beginning but in mid-February Jump decided to ad wrap this game and put it up on Nokia OVS stores and by mid-March the game had over one million downloads.

     

    Since then Jump’s social website pages have been flooded with user requests to add innovations to the game. After the over whelming success of Border War Face Off and persistent user request Jump has now come up with the sequel called Border War-LOC.

     

    Border War Line of Control is the modern day rendition of an arcade classic. The gamer, as an Indian soldier, will have to protect the Indian borders with a new age weapon, Super Cannon.

     

    The various features of the game are:

    • A classic arcade game with very vivid and crystal clear graphics
    • A huge diversity in the type of enemies
    • Easy to use controls

     

    Speaking about this particular launch of the game, Chaitanya Prabhu, Business Head India, Jump Games said: “The game ideation started around august last year. We wanted to create games which are suitable for Indian audience and tap the Indian mentality, sensitivity and lifestyle. The game Border war, as the name suggests is based on patriotic lines with some great visual graphics. Jump has always believed in the motto of Think Global – Play Local. Now seeing the over whelming response of Border War -Face Off we have made a sequel to the same called Border War -LOC. It has a very engaging game play and we are expecting a similar or better response for the same.”

     

    The game, priced at Rs 50, will be available on all leading operators like Vodafone, BSNL, Idea, Docomo.

     

    Jump Games is a leading International developer and publisher of mobile games, apps and content. It is an integral part of Reliance Entertainment (Digital Business). Jump’s foray and expertise lies into the media and entertainment space.

     

    Jump’s experience and expertise in creating innovative and cutting-edge gaming content reflects in its client roster, which sports some of the best brands from across the world – Codemasters, GLU, Playboy Hands On / Connect 2 Media, Honest Entertainment (Fido Dido), Coca-Cola, Cartoon Network, and Konami to name a few.

     

    The company develops content across leading wireless platforms and its catalogue includes leading titles like Ben 10: Battle of the Omnitrix, Bloons, Putt-Putt Golf 3D, ICC World Cup, Ashes Cricket.

     

    Distributed across the US, Europe, South Africa, Australia, the Middle East, and Asia, Jump’s content can be accessed through 80 leading networks across 40 countries as well as global AppStores.