MxMIndia

Category: TV

  • While the stronghold of the women on the remote continues, the dominance of female fiction characters on television has been challenged, writes Shailesh Kapoor

    Shailesh Kapoor: Male Characters Set To Rule Hindi GECs?

    By Shailesh Kapoor

     

    It’s been a category dominated by female viewers and female fiction characters. Hindi General Entertainment Channels (GECs) have behaved more like Hindi Female Entertainment Channels for more than a decade now.

     

    The stronghold of the women on the remote continues. But the other type of female dominance – that of female fiction characters – has been challenged. As per the latest Ormax Characters India Loves report (May 2014), for the first time since we started tracking character popularity in 2009, the top 10 fiction characters list has more male characters than female characters!

     

    Three years ago, this would have been unthinkable. The contribution of male characters has traditionally been a token one, rarely crossing two out of ten. In the last two years, three out of ten seemed more gettable, but the female dominance remained. Last month, the balance finally tilted, with five male characters in the Top 10 and ten in the Top 20. And remember, we are talking only of fiction characters. The top 5 non-fiction ‘characters’ are all men in the same period of tracking.

     

    What has led to this turnaround and what could be its possible implications? A significant part of the answer lies in the list of popular characters. The five male characters who made it to the top 10 list in May are Jethalal (Taarak Mehta), Maharana Pratap, Akbar (Jodha Akbar), Krishna (Mahabharat) and Inspector Daya (CID). The list offers a good mix of history, mythology, comedy and action-thriller genres.

     

    Contrast this to the female characters in the top 10: Jodha (Jodha Akbar), Sandhya (Diya Aur Baati Hum), Ishita (Yeh Hai Mohabbatein), Anandi (Balika Vadhu) and Gopi (Saath Nibhaana Saathiya). Lack of genre variety is striking. Most of these characters, and others in the top 20 list, are women on a journey, facing challenges on the way. It’s a template that was created starting with Tulsi in 2000, and then redefined with Anandi in 2008. Over years, this template has been exploited to create hundreds of daily serials and characters.

     

    The idea of a woman’s struggle-heavy journey and her eventual victory is a powerful one for female audiences, and shall remain so in the years to come. The problem is, of course, in the same-ness of execution. It’s as if the idea is so powerful that nobody seems to care about the quality of its depiction anymore.

     

    The only female characters in the Top 30 who do not fit this template is Daya (Taarak Mehta) and Dadi Sa (Balika Vadhu). Everyone else is on a ‘journey’, all the time. And while the destinations may be different, the routes are strikingly similar.

     

    Beginning to feel disenchanted by content that is highly relevant but unimaginative, female audiences have increasingly started preferring male characters. Mahadev’s dreamboat looks, Akbar’s attitude and Krishna’s life lessons are the new cool.

     

    GECs would do well to act on both fronts. For one, they should capitalize on the growing interest in male characters by creating some differentiated ones. Amitabh Bachchan’s Yudh is well-timed in this regard. Two, they should consider pushing the envelope regarding female characters. We need women who take the road less travelled in their journeys, while remaining relevant to the mass audiences at large.

     

    Up for the challenge?

     

    TV Trails is a weekly column written by Shailesh Kapoor, founder and CEO of media insights firm Ormax Media. He spent nine years in the television industry before turning entrepreneur. The views expressed here are his own. He can be reached at his Twitter handle @shaileshkapoor

     

  • Parineeti will be the new face for the brand and will feature in their upcoming brand campaign that focuses on Indian values

    Parineeti Chopra is brand ambassador of Videocon d2h

    By A Correspondent

     

    Videocon d2h has announced the addition of Bollywood actor Parineeti Chopra as brand ambassador. Parineeti will be the new face for the brand and will feature in their upcoming brand campaign that focuses on Indian values.

     

    Through the new campaign, Videocon d2h will showcase their innovative and technologically advanced Unlimited Asli HD Recorder & the new Radio Frequency Remote with earphones which assures convenience and comfort for television viewing.

     

    Sharing his views on the campaign, Saurabh Dhoot, Director, Videocon said, “Indian values epitomize our society. They are a part of our lifestyle and culture. Our new brand campaign featuring Parineeti captures some of these sentiments of Indian values and integrates it with our product deliverables. We believe Parineeti is the most appropriate choice to communicate our brand values. With all these unique features, one can attend to others, without missing the action on TV.”

     

    Commenting on the new brand campaign, Anil Khera, CEO, Videocon d2h, said, “With Videocon d2h, now you can pause your TV, record unlimited content, which means you won’t have a problem being interrupted anymore. We are happy to have Parineeti as a part of the Videocon d2h family.  In addition to her acting talent, her connect with the Indian masses will definitely help us reach out to our customers. Our main focus is to enhance the customers’ television viewing experience.”

     

    The campaign highlights the solution Videocon d2h will provide their customers with this new product that gives the option of Recording, Pause Live TV, rewind-forward.

     

    Videocon d2h currently offers 500 channels and services which includes 27 Asli “HD” channels and services and a host of regional channels.

     

  • T-SeND is the first such study on STB usage in digital homes!

    What’s-ON conducts study to plot behaviour changes post digitization

    By A Correspondent

     

    Asia’s leading EPG specialist company, What’s-ON, recently concluded a multi-city study in India to understand the way viewers search channels, discover new programmes and reach the channel they want to watch. The study, called as TSeND (Television Search Navigation & Discovery) is a path-breaking and comprehensive research study conducted to understand how viewers interact with digital TV using the set-top box (STB) post the cable digitization in major Indian cities.

     

    The in-depth study was conceptualized and designed by TV Street Maps, a division of What’s-ON that specializes in TV Channel Distribution Monitoring. Hansa Research was brought in to do the field survey across DAS1&DAS2 towns.

     

    TRAI plans to implement Digital Addressable System (DAS) for the cable industry in 4 phases out of which DAS1 & DAS2 have been implemented successfully in November 2012 and April 2013 respectively. This covers the top 40 cities in India. Implementation of DAS in these towns simply means analog signals get completely switched off in them and being replaced by Digital TV delivered via a STB.

     

    Post the first 2 phases of Cable digitization, millions of Indian homes in metro cities had to suddenly watch their staple daily TV content using the STB and navigating with an additional new remote control. The other complexity was in the way Digitization played out on the ground level – every operator’s STB and remote controls were different, the STB menus were varied, the way the channels were organized in every operator’s menu were different (i.e. the channel line-ups) – all leading to non-uniform viewing habits and practices at the viewers level.

     

    Given this massive switch at the TV Households level, there were many unanswered questions within the TV industry that perplexed the operators, broadcasters and distributors alike. Some of them were – How is the set-top box (STB) changing viewer behavior from their analog days? How are viewers locating and landing on their favorite channels and programs now that the STB has a structured menu as well as 4-5 times more channels? What are the factors affecting viewer navigation across channels and how much of it depends on viewer demography, operator’s offerings and various channel genres? Do viewers remember channel numbers to reach their preferred channel or use the STB channel guide?

     

    The T-SeND study proved to be a goldmine of insights. Some of the revelations of the T-SeND study are:

    :: There is a correlation between the operator STB menu and the way a viewer reaches a channel. The more complicated the STB menu, the more viewers dread using the remote forcing them to remember channel numbers and randomly surf channels.

     

    :: About 86 per cent of viewers across DAS1&2 towns were aware of EPG (Electronic Program Guide) features. However, substantial variations were observed across towns; where Delhi being the most aware with 99 per cent versus 70 per cent EPG awareness in Kolkata.

     

    :: About a quarter of Cable & Satellite homes in DAS1 & DAS2 homes have noticed advertisements on the EPG menu.

     

    :: Younger viewers seem more evolved in interacting with operator menu to reach channels. They displayed greater depth of the STB menu usage.

     

    :: Almost half of viewers or 46 per cent to be precise, were not aware of channel packs they are subscribed to; with viewers in metropolitanareas being least aware.

     

    This study puts the viewer at the center and the insights will help redefine strategies relating to all aspects in the broadcast value chain like channel marketing, distribution, placement, etc. It will also help Cable & DTH companies to understand the impact of some of their VAS and STB offerings on their subscriber constituencies.

     

  • A quick Q&A with Ajit Thakur, Star India General Manager and Business Head of Life OK, on the channel being the #3 Hindi GEC as per TAM numbers

    Jaldi 5 with Ajit Thakur: Loads to fix & learn before we set our eyes on #1

    There was much cheer last week when Life OK took the #3 slot amongst Hindi GECs in the weekly TAM ratings. But we held back and said that we should wait for another week before interviewing Ajit Thakur, Star India General Manager and Business Head of the channel. The weekly numbers that came out yesterday saw Life OK ahead yet again. MxMIndia spoke with Mr Thakur, hours after it was known that Life OK was the #3 Hindi GEC for the second consecutive week as per TAM numbers.

     

    01.When we met you in December you said Life OK would be No 1 channel in the next 18 months and exact 6 months since then, Life is more than OK. What has worked for the channel for it to be the no 3?

    Firstly, we have not consciously chased rankings. When I said we want to be the No 1 GEC, we wanted to be No 1, and everything else in the middle didn’t matter. No 1 both in terms of perception and market share. What we had gone about doing in the past six months was to up the game. For instance, one of the things we focussed on was to bring in some scale on the channel. In January we started with Life OK Screen Awards and then we did a couple of more events, the recent being Life OK Now Awards which are a television and film monthly awards. Second, we are continuing to work on our disruption agenda. When we last met, we had just launched Tumhari Paakhi and Hatim, both come from very different schools of thought, one is a fantasy tale, targeting kids, while Tumhari Paakhi is an adaptation of a Sarat Chandra novel. Yes we have some originals, there are some ever-lasting characters, we picked those characters and turned them into now what is one of the better shows on TV. It is a drama but not a saas bahu show. In fact as we speak, we are shooting in Singapore….

     

    02. What would you attribute the current rise to, especially in the last two weeks? Savdhaan India turning into an hour?

    There are about 4-5 shows have contributed to it, which is a good thing, right? It is not a one-show wonder. Savdhaan India’s extended hours has worked for sure, Tumhari Paakhi has grown, another shows called Ek Boond Ishq at 8.30 pm has grown, and we have also had Shapath and the Life OK Now awards on weekends. But what worked well for us and not just individual shows was that while everyone was waiting to do their highpoints in the week post-IPL, we went and tried everything in the last week of IPL because I believe there is enough scope for GECs despite cricket. The last week ratings that came in were of the IPL finale week. Everyone fell and postponed their high points while we went and did all of them in that week!

     

    So if you don’t want to watch cricket, we are the channel which is giving you enough and more! I think this is what worked for us first and then the momentum continued. Going forward, while today we are ahead and tomorrow somebody else could be ahead of us, the important thing is if you look at the past 18 months, the channel that has steadily grown and recruited viewers and continued to do that by not showing same kind of content is Life OK. Everything else is going up and down, but we have continuously and steadily grown.

     

    03. You still don’t have too much have on the reality front. You have tried it in the past on Life OK but nothing has turned out to be as big as what some of the others have.

    Yes, partly conscious, partly not conscious. We did try a couple of things like Bachelorette India and Sacch Ka Saamna at launch but both didn’t work as well as we would have liked them to. But at the same time we have not done the tried and tested, singing and dancing which everybody has and that is the conscious past of Life OK’s DNA that we won’t do the regular stuff. I am comfortable in saying that we are growing, we are young, we are learning from our mistakes.

     

    03a. Any format that you would like to do or would like to licence in the near future?

    No International formats, we don’t find anything interesting. This festival season we will be doing our first big talent reality show. Though it is very early to talk about it, what I can tell you is that it will be a creation of genre and we are going to get a mega star on board and that the show will be shot out of India.

     

    04. You have got to No 3, the key thing now is to maintain the lead. How do you plan to ensure that?

    According to me, there are three highlights of where we are today. First and foremost is that being the younger No 3, we will try harder to retain the humility we have shown. We will continue to be resilient and stay focussed.

     

    Second, we will keep breaking rules, that’s our DNA. Everybody does singing-and-dancing, we will do something else, everybody does saas bahu, we will do something else, and we will try and change the rules of content and marketing.

     

    The third and one of the most important things we learnt when we started out was that many of the established producers and writers were engaged with the top channels. We said we will build our own talent pool. In the past two-and-a-half years, we have worked with loads of new people. Half my heads of department have never done TV before, one person has come from publishing, another from research and marketing. We will continue engaging with new people and work with new producers, get new people in and give them a chance. But we also have some of the big producers coming in. Our next big shows is by Ekta Kapoor, the no 1 talent in Television. We have 3-4 from other big producers, but at the same time we will continue working with new talent.

     

    04a. Does that mean that you will now be spending more on production, up from the relatively low spends you’ve done so far?

    Our spends were moderate, not low. But remember, I am just talking about fiction, we are not going to spend a lot on non-fiction. I think the return on investment on non-fiction is very questionable. Even the best products are not making money.

     

    05. Back to your earlier statement of wanting to be No 1 by June 2015. You are #3 already, but you are just 12 months away from your target?

    The top slots keep yo-yoing but the one to beat is Star Plus. It has set high benchmarks, so, yes, we would like to set our eyes on it. But we still have a lot of our own problems to fix and have some learnings. Once we figure things out in the next six months, we will take a shot at it. Right now, I am not looking at Star Plus.

     

  • How does an Indian, who has virtually no interest in nation-vs.-nation football for four years, become an ardent fan of a soccer-playing national team, wonders Shailesh Kapoor

    Shailesh Kapoor: FIFA World Cup: Patriotism With A Twist

    By Shailesh Kapoor

     

    The Football World Cup kicked off last night in Brazil. The month-long tournament is the only sporting event besides the Olympics that truly unites sports fans across the world. All other sports have their catchment areas, but soccer is the world’s favorite sport by a safe distance.

     

    All that being said, the craze for the FIFA World Cup in India amuses me every four years. Yes, football is the second most popular sport in India after cricket. Both television ratings and consumer research show that besides WWE-style wrestling entertainment, no other sport has the potential to challenge football’s number two position over the next decade in India.

     

    So my amusement is not so much about the following or viewership of the World Cup. That is logical and even expected. My amusement is about following of specific teams.

     

    Every four years, we see news footage and newspaper stories about fans of certain teams, often the ‘third-world’ teams such as Brazil and Argentina, gathering at public places in India to watch World Cup games. These “fans” can give local fans of the respective nations a run for their money. They wear the team colours, know their team inside out and some even carry the nation’s flag on them.

     

    How does an Indian, who has virtually no interest in nation-vs-nation football for four years, become an ardent fan of a soccer-playing national team? There is no rational explanation to this bizarre phenomenon. But we are not the most rational country in the world, are we?

     

    I have two hypotheses. The first one says that the choice to support a team is to spice up the viewing of the World Cup. So you first take the decision “I must watch the Football World Cup”. The reasons for that could range from entertainment to social expectations. You then wonder: “Now that I’m watching the World Cup, I must decide whom I am supporting”. Making a favorite team choice is critical because it would create higher engagement with the tournament, and also create volatile water cooler conversations at office.

     

    The second hypothesis is about the choice of the team itself. Most Indians tend to go for Brazil traditionally, for the strong third-world or brown-skin connect, I believe. Argentina has been a strong second favorite. The post-colonial effect ensures most European teams are ignored, though the ones that are not-so-British (such as Spain) have found some traction over time.

     

    These choices having been made, the real amusement lies in the journey over the month of the World Cup. From being a forced fan to a natural fan can be some transition. But we Indians can make that transition within days, even hours. From “I choose to support Brazil” to “I love Brazil” to “Brazil BrazilBrazil” is a quick turnaround.

     

    And if your chosen team indeed loses, you can behave as if the world has come crashing down. Though I suspect the hurt would last far shorter than that of India losing the final of a Cricket World Cup, a la 2003.

     

    So, be prepared for bleary-eyed colleagues in your office for the next one month, behave like they were born and brought up in Argentina (or Brazil), and that Maradona (or Pele) is the biggest influence on their lives. And if you spot some foreign-looking flags on the streets, just remind yourself that you are still in India!

     

    TV Trails is a weekly column written by Shailesh Kapoor, founder and CEO of media insights firm Ormax Media. He spent nine years in the television industry before turning entrepreneur. The views expressed here are his own. He can be reached at his Twitter handle @shaileshkapoor

     

  • ET Now's '5 Year celebration' reloads with the Theme of 'Five years of excellence

    Biz channel ET Now turns 5

    By a correspondent

     

    Leading business news channel ET Now has completed five years of meaningful existence in India. The channel has carved a niche for itself over the years with superior coverage and analysis of markets, business and economy. ET Now’s ‘5 Year celebration’ reloads with the Theme of ‘Five years of excellence.

     

    Extending their wishes, noted industry captains had the following messages to share: “ET Now is not only the default channel but also the go-to channel, when you know something is happening out there and you want to get a grip of it”, said KV Kamath – Chairman, ICICI Bank. NR Narayana Murthy, Chairman, Infosys had the following to share: “Congratulations to ET Now for completing five wonderful years. ET Now has scaled up using innovation, hardwork and some extraordinary ideas. They have reporters who are enthusiastic, energetic, hungry, inquisitive and very persuasive. Their anchors ask deep, proactive questions and bring out the best in the interviews.”

     

    “My congratulations and best wishes to ET Now on its fifth anniversary. In an increasingly cluttered media landscape, the channel stands apart for its insight, initiative and integrity while covering Indian business and the economy. With the country poised yet again at a crossroad, I look forward to watching the channel as it unveils the next chapter in the story of a nation on the move,” observed Anand Mahindra, Chairman & MD, Mahindra & Mahindra.

     

    To drive consumer engagement, the channel arranged a contest titled ‘YOU WISH.YOUWIN’ that invited the viewers to share their messages on Facebook, Twitter and Google + using #FiveYearsOfExcellence. The best entries received till 17th June were entitled to win some cool gifts.

     

    On the programming front, the theme of ‘5’ was brought alive through a set of 5 fund managers; CEO’s and  economists that appeared on various shows from morning till evening.

     

     

     

  • Taj Television is India’s largest distribution agency and has a powerful repertoire of over 47 leading television channels

    It’s ‘Wah, Taj!’ for Zee & Turner group channels, new co to distribute Zindagi

    By A Correspondent

     

    Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEE) added another feather to its cap by bringing on board India’s largest distribution network, Taj Television India Pvt. Ltd. (Taj Television). Taj Television is India’s largest distribution agency and has a powerful repertoire of over 47 leading television channels. This includes well-known brands belonging to ZEE, Zee Media Corporation Limited and Turner International India Private Limited. Taj Television distributes channels which are leaders in 15 out of the 19 markets and has nine leadership channels across eight genres.

     

    Punit Goenka

    Punit Goenka, Managing Director and CEO, ZEE commented, “I am pleased to announce that Taj Television, which earlier was distributing Ten Sports channels, will now distribute all the channels of Zee Entertainment and Zee Media Corporation, while also representing Turner channels as its authorized agent. I would like to thank all our DTH and Cable partners who have been part of our growth journey and look forward to their continued support to Taj Television. Arun Kapoor, who has successfully led Mediapro for the last three years, would continue to provide leadership to Taj Television. Rajesh Sethi would continue to be the CEO for Sports broadcasting network of ZEE.”

     

    Arun K Kapoor, CEO, Taj Television, said “ZEE has been the pioneer in Indian television and has the experience and leadership capability to shape the future of pay revenues in India. With Taj Television being created as the distribution entity for the network, we bring together the best of television channels to our customers. We are confident that the new channel Zindagi will really connect with the viewers and help grow Taj Television offering even stronger. We are committed to quality and achieving leadership through fair and transparent business practices.”

     

    Atul Das, President, Taj Television, said “With digitization having been completed in Phase I and Phase II cities in India, we now look forward to its implementation in rest of the country. Taj Television would aim to create a harmonious relationship within the ecosystem and create value for all stakeholders. With a leading portfolio of television channels, both in the national and regional space and with a powerful portfolio of sports programming, we are excited about the future of pay revenues in the country.”

     

    Taj Television distributes ZEE’s well-known brands like Zee TV, Zee Cinema, &pictures, Ten Sports, Zee Cafe, Zee Studio, Zing and a powerful repertoire of regional language channels including Zee Marathi, Zee Bangla, Zee Telugu, Zee Kannada and Zee Tamizh, besides the HD channels like Zee TV HD, Zee Cinema HD, Zee Studio HD and Ten HD. Taj Television also distributes channels of Zee Media Corporation, the largest news network in India with two national and eight regional channels. These channels are available across the country.Taj is also distributing the leading channels in the kid’s space and English movie segment, including HBO, Cartoon Network, Pogo, CNN and Warner Brothers as an authorized agent of Turner International.

     

  • What’s the big issue about criticism, especially when it comes with a constructive solution-oriented approach, asks Shailesh Kapoor

    Shailesh Kapoor: In A Politely Incorrect Industry, Can You Call A Spade A Spade?

    By Shailesh Kapoor

     

    Those who attend movie trial shows would relate to the predicament I’m about to share. Have you seen a movie at a trial, sat tortuously through it wondering what they were thinking when they were making it, and thenfaced with with the question you would pay anything to avoid: “How did you like it?”

     

    Seasoned industry folk have mastered the art of responding to such questions. They would tend to say all the good things first, and then point out the big issue as an appendage: “But I just felt that if you spend some time explaining the story, the film would work better.”

     

    This infectious living-in-a-bubble-at-launch-time disease has fast passed onto the television industry as well. Whenever a new show goes on air, I try and sample it for a couple of episodes, purely out of a disciplined habit inculcated over more than a decade. Seventy-eighty percent such experiences are excruciatingly boring. Mediocre writing and direction is rampant, and there’s only that odd show that stands out as being smartly made.

     

    Whenever I liked something new, I used to make it a point to call or message my friends at the relevant channel about how it made me feel. Silence meant ‘not liked’, not ‘haven’t watched yet’.

     

    But of late, this formula has stopped working. Imagine that you get a message from a channel friend, who has put his heart and soul into a new project, at 8.45pm, only 15 minutes before the new project goes on air for the first time ever. His message is brimming with excitement, requesting you to watch and give your feedback, because “it really matters”.

     

    This scenario forces me to reply at 9.30 or 10pm, whatever the end time is. And my option to reply with my true thoughts (which could be “your team has killed the spirit of the concept you tested with us” or “sack the director now! NOW!”) can be limiting at times.

     

    Hence, out of no choice, and actually with a baggage of guilt, I started behaving like the filmi guy at the trial, who would slip in the big negative as an inconsequential by-the-way. But the more I thought of this behaviour, I found it dishonest on every count, both to the client and to myself.

     

    What’s the big issue about criticism, especially when it comes with a constructive solution-oriented approach? Can Indians stop being less touchy and more objective about their work? Can they not get that just because they have produced or marketed something, it need not blow everybody’s mind?

     

    We have all been on the other side at some point or the other. Listening to appreciation about our labor of love can be a high, while criticism, especially when coming from trusted parties, can deflate you. But the ratings or the box office will deflate you anyway within a week. A bubble is never a stable place to live in.So, at some point of time in the recent past, I decided to shed the fear and the inhibition, and decide to say it like it is.

     

    I would urge others in the business to consider liberating themselves of the responsibility of being polite and dishonest, within and outside the organization. You will discover how it can empower you from within. Not to speak of the respect you are likely to win over time!

     

    TV Trails is a weekly column written by Shailesh Kapoor, founder and CEO of media insights firm Ormax Media. He spent nine years in the television industry before turning entrepreneur. The views expressed here are his own. He can be reached at his Twitter handle @shaileshkapoor

     

     

  • The launch of the app coincides with the most awaited football series of the year – FIFA World Cup 2014

    Tata Sky unveils popular app around FIFA WC

    By A Correspondent

     

    DTH player Tata Sky has launched its popular application Everywhere TV on PCs (laptops and desktops) on the eve of FIFA 2014. The Tata Sky ad campaign, announcing the launch of the app coincides with the most awaited football series of the year – FIFA World Cup 2014, which can also be viewed live on Tata Sky Mobile app.

     

    The campaign speaks to at all the football fans in India who don’t have a second TV at home and could end up disturbing their family members by watching FIFA on the common TV in the middle of the night. It shows how football fans can now enjoy their favourite matches on their laptop, anywhere, without disturbing anyone else.

     

    One of the ad films features a husband watching the match on his laptop, sitting in the bathroom to avoid disturbing his wife. Only when he cannot contain his ecstatic appeals on the football match, does the clueless wife get up and locate him. Similarly the other ad film shows a surprised mother coyly walking into her teenage son’s room, when she hears the boy celebrating a ‘Go…go…Goal’ sitting in the cupboard of his room.

     

    Vikram Mehra, Chief Commercial Officer, Tata Sky said, “The Everywhere TV service launch has been timed just before the football World Cup, to ensure that home laptop doubles up as the 2nd TV at home, thus allowing youngsters to watch late night football matches on their laptops with headphones without disturbing their entire family.”

     

    Sukesh Nayak, Executive Creative Director, Ogilvy& Mather also commented on the ad campaign, “If one observes a typical football fan we see that he is not the one to hide his excitement, whether it is his happiness at a goal scored or his anger against a wrong move. Taking this insight we created messaging for Tata Sky Mobile App that lets you watch the live telecast of FIFA World Cup on laptop and other devices. The message was very simple; you could hide and see football but your excitement will still give you away.”

     

  • The objective of the campaign is to get people to visit HBOPremium.com website and subscribe to HBO Premium channels or directly through DTH or digital cable operators

    HBO Premium unveils campaign for uninterrupted viewing

    By A Correspondent

     

    HBO South Asia has announced a new campaign to promote HBO’s belief that nothing should come in the way of entertainment. The HBO Premium Channels campaign is launched with the aim of ensuring that audiences have an uninterrupted ad-free viewing experience. The objective of the campaign is to get people to visit HBOPremium.com website and subscribe to HBO Premium channels or directly through DTH or digital cable operators.

     

    Announcing the launch of the new multi-media campaign, Monica Tata, Managing Director, South Asia for HBO India Pvt Ltd said, “Both the HBO Premium channels maximize the entertainment experience by airing HBO Original content and blockbuster movies 100 per cent break-free. We have initiated a multimedia campaign developed by DDB Mudra to promote the visibility and popularity of this unique proposition of HBO Defined and HBO Hits across platforms including print, cinema, TV, digital and social media. Our aim is to spoil our viewers with the very best non-stop, high quality programming, thus providing an unparalleled viewing experience.”

     

    Speaking about the creative strategy behind the campaign, Anurag Tandon, Senior Vice President, DDB Mudra, said, “Content promotion on a channel has a very formulaic approach. The usual strategy is to build intrigue through teaser like edits by using existing footage of the content that needs to be promoted. We wanted to break away from this traditional approach and leverage the USP of uninterrupted original HD quality content in a way that goes beyond just claims and announcements of the product offering. Thus came about our creative proposition of ‘addictive viewing experience’ dramatized through two TV spots showing the consumers going through the experience. We believe it is imperative for a content brand to build the ideology of viewing experience in addition to the promise of fresh content for the consumers to feel compelled to subscribe”.

     

    The TVCs will be run on the HBO premium.com webpage and will include visitor engagement and interaction through gamification of elements from the TVCs.

     

  • The network bags rights for the UEFA Champions League & UEFA Europa League for a period of 3 Seasons till 2018

    Ten Sports extends broadcast rights for UEFA CL

    By a correspondent

     

    Ten Sports has bagged the rights for the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League for the next cycle of 3 Seasons starting 2015-16. Ten Sports who are also the incumbent broadcast rights holders for the properties have been broadcasting these premier football competitions since 2006-07. UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League rights had become the most key football property up for acquisition and Ten Sports Network re-affirms its commitment to promoting quality football through this major acquisition after beating other rival broadcasters to secure these rights.

     

    The new deal between UEFA and Ten Sports beginning from the 2015-16 season covers exclusive broadcast rights for the Indian Subcontinent which includes India, Pakistan, Sri-Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Maldives and Afghanistan. Ten Sports will broadcast these properties across all its platforms including premium HD offerings and live streaming of matches on tensports.com. Ten Sports will broadcast 145 matches of UEFA Champions League and 205 matches of UEFA Europa League every season. Apart from these matches, Ten Sports will also broadcast the annual UEFA Super Cup, the curtain raiser at the beginning of the European Season played between the winners of the UEFA Champions League & UEFA Europa League.

     

    Rajesh Sethi, CEO, TEN Sports, said “We are delighted to extend our partnership with UEFA and have the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League on the Ten Sports Network. Over the last decade, the UEFA Champions League & UEFA Europa League have found a home in the Indian Subcontinent at Ten Sports. Over the next 4 seasons we will continue to build on the quality programming we offer around these marquee properties and strive to innovate to increase viewership and audience interest and engagement around these properties.”

     

  • If you are an investor sitting out of New York or London; to my mind, your only window to the Indian economy or market is Bloomberg TV India, says Vivek Law, Editor, Bloomberg TV India in an interview

    Bloomberg TV India is the only channel reaching out to global investors: Vivek Law

    It’s that time of the year where all business media entities get hyperactive. Yes, it’s Budget time. And this year’s edition is going to be extra special given that it’s the BJP-led Narendra Modi government’s maiden fiscal discourse. After all of the promises of ‘Achche Din Aane Waale Hain’, there is much anticipation from Corporate India.

     

    Bloomberg TV India has got its act together for the Budget that is scheduled to be presented on July 10. We caught up with Vivek Law, Editor, Bloomberg TV India on his plans for the channel’s coverage of the Union Budget 2014-15.  Excerpts from an interview:

     

    Before we get on to discussing plans for the Budget, tell us more about the channel is doing.

    Well,  we’re probably the only business channel which is relayed across the world. We’re live on the Bloomberg terminal. All the 400,000-odd subscribers of the Bloomberg terminal actually get to see the video that’s the TV version of the channel on the terminal. In addition to that, we feel in the last two to three years; especially in the build up to the elections our global TV network has been carrying a lot of dedicated Indian content. Also, we known that the Indian stockmarket is pretty much driven by FII investments. And it’s the global investors who’ve been very keen and interested in knowing what’s going on in India. They’ve already put in hundreds of billions of dollars and intend to put in more which is why we are at the levels where we are. Their interest in India has only grown. If you are an investor sitting out of New York or London; to my mind, your only window to the Indian economy or market is Bloomberg TV India.

     

    Yes, even though you are essentially a business channel, we saw a fair bit of elections coverage on your channel.

    Even though we’re a business channel, we had a daily one-hour programme which was called Political Capital. I know we’re not a general channel so our coverage was very distinct from what the others were covering. We were very sharply focused in terms of what the global investor would want to know in terms of the Indian elections.

     

    Your theme for the Budget programming ‘Will they walk the talk? is interestingly worded?

    This theme was chosen because there’s been a lot of expectation built up in the stockmarket in terms of the fact that this government is going to turn things around and is going to lift the economy out of the slumber. The message is: Wait for the Budget and the Budget will be the first document we’ll present in terms of giving a direction of what we want to do. So there’s a lot of interest as far as the global community is concerned. We’re also very clear that given the global interest, that’s where our actual strength lies… in terms of reaching out to investors internationally from across our studios all over the world. That would be the sharper focus we’d go with this time.

     

    But does the theme mean that you will take a critical view of what could possibly happen.

    The point we are trying to make is there have been enormous expectations right from September when Narendra Modi was formerly anointed as the PM candidate. If you see the market from then, it has jumped 20% and there’s a huge amount of expectations built in the markets especially with global investors. Here’s a person whose entire campaign was actually around the economy. He talked of inflation, lifting economic growth and jobs. In fact, we called it ‘Economy Election’ on our channel. Perhaps for the first time, he’s brought economic issues to the centrestage in many years. Therefore, there are great expectations built in. And there are various concerns in terms of whether he’ll be able to deliver all that he promised? It’s not that he’s going to be able to do everything in just one budget but the expectation factor is huge. That’s why we want to raise the question that a: how much is he going to be able to do? And b: What’s the kind of road map he’s going to be able to present?

     

    Any specific highlights and differentiators of the Budget telecast on Bloomberg TV India?

    I gave you the biggest differentiator. It’s not that we won’t give you what the others are doing. But there are two very important differentiators from what I expect others to do. A large part of our run-up to the programming is where the post-Budget will be in the whole personal finance space that’s an area I’ve been personally involved with. There’s a reason for that. It’s a fact that the Indian retail investor has been pretty much sitting out of the markets in the last few years. He or she has not been participating at all. In fact the redemption figures of both insurance and mutual funds testify. Now what we’re beginning to see is some of them coming back. It’s a very small amount; it’s still just a trickle. So again from the wider audience perspective, in terms of investing in equities there’s a lot of interest as well. I know we’re not a mass channel but at the same time we have a large number of viewers from the aspirational segment who’d want to be investing. That will be one of our major pillars in terms of the personal finance space. The second is we also intend to do a lot of programming around the youth. A large part of Modi’s following really seems to have come from the younger lot. Hence some of our programming will be going to campuses and trying to get a sense from the youth in terms of what are their expectations and once the Budget is presented, what do they think about it? This is in addition to the Indian stockmarket gurus and the stockmarket chiefs which we of course will do, but if you ask me honestly, that’s something everyone will do.

     

    In terms of show packaging, what can one expect?

    All our packaging and graphics are completely in sync with what Bloomberg does globally. If you watch our channel here and you watch Bloomberg Asia or Europe or America, they are identical. I’m not so sure I can give you more details at this point but what I can you is it will be a much fresher look on Budget Day for us.

     

    Is that going to change post-Budget Day or will it be only for Budget Day?

    It will change post-Budget day. We’ll introduce it around Budget Day or around that time. But that will be a permanent change. It won’t be something that’s just for one day.