MxMIndia

Category: TV

  • The TVCs will inspire people to put aside their differences and come together to celebrate their love for the game

    Three more IPL-linked TVCs unveiled

    By A Correspondent

     

    Sony MAX and SIX unveiled their TVC’s for the Pepsi IPL 2015 campaign ‘India ka Tyohaar’.

     

    In addition to the campaign ‘India ka Tyohaar’ launched in February this year, the channel unveiled three more thought provoking TVC’s which will inspire people to put aside their differences and come together to celebrate their love for the game.

     

    The television commercials showcase diverse situations with an underlying theme that Pepsi IPL has the power to break down barriers and unite people to join in the glory of the game. The first commercial seeks to break traditional social norms by depicting a progressive mother-in-law who invites her daughter-in-law to enjoy watching the game of cricket together with the family rather than serving food to the family. The second commercial depicts a rude and elderly shopkeeper touched by a five-year old’s selfless act of kindness. All the commercials are tied with the single thread of love and bonding, despite differences, which is what the IPL is all about.

     

    The TVC’s are conceptualized by ad man Sonal Dabral of DDB Mudra and directed by Anupam Mishra of Crazy Few Films.

     

  • &TV plans to commission locally produced content

    Zee Europe celebrates 20 years with launch of &TV

    By A Correspondent

     

    ZEE Europe celebrated the completion of 20 years of Zee TV in Europe recently with a special gala, where it announced the launch of &TV, a brand new entertainment channel. The celebration was attended by Punit Goenka, MD & CEO, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) and Rajesh Iyer, Business Head, &TV. Actor Shah Rukh Khan also attended the event.

     

    Derived from the conjunction ‘&’, the channel stands for binding people, ideologies and philosophies. The content of the channel is contemporary and contextual, depicting the progressiveness of the viewers. &TV will ‘celebrate the spirit of living’ through its content offering. Shah Rukh Khan hosts the channels’ flagship show India Poochega – Sabse Shaana Kaun. Like the host, the format of the game show challenges conventions, whereby the common man dons the role of the ‘Asker’, as well as that of the ‘Contestant’. While the Askers pose the questions, the Contestants demonstrate their street-smartness to win the coveted prize money.

     

    Commenting on the 20 years celebration, Punit Goenka, MD & CEO, ZEEL, said, “We are proud to be a medium through which Indians living abroad have stayed connected to their roots back home all these years and we will continue to entertain and engage audiences with a unique blend of high-quality and innovative programming”. On the launch of the new channel &TV he said, “&TV will offer a more substantial viewing experience to an audience that is always seeking fresh and relevant content. We are certain that with the launch of &TV, we will capitalize on further such opportunities to build a robust entertainment bouquet and march ahead towards achieving the global ambitions set for the company.”

     

    Neeraj Dhingra, ZEE Europe CEO, said, “Zee TV has been a pioneer in bringing great Asian entertainment to the UK and fostering the cultural ties with India. We are certain that with the launch of the contemporary channel &TV, these ties will strengthen. The channel promises multi-dimensional content and a strong line-up of entertainment and reality shows, and we are beyond excited to have Shah Rukh Khan as the host of our flagship entertainment programme. We are certain that the audience will enjoy seeing a different side of their superstar!”

     

  • With this partnership, Al Jazeera English will now be accessible on all major D2H platforms

    AL Jazeera English now available on Airtel D2H

    By A Correspondent

     

    Al Jazeera English has signed a distribution agreement with Airtel Digital TV thereby expanding its distribution network in India. The channel will be available on the Airtel Digital TV’s Channel No. 321. With this partnership, Al Jazeera English will now be accessible on all major D2H platforms such as Dish TV, Tata Sky, Reliance and Airtel Digital TV in India.

     

    Abdulla Al Najjar, Executive Director, Marketing and Distribution, Al Jazeera Media Network, said: “We are very pleased with this agreement. We have a strategic commitment to employ new avenues and platforms for audiences across the world to access our content. We look forward to delivering Al Jazeera English’s ground-breaking content for audiences across India with such partnerships.”

     

    Al Jazeera English’s association with Airtel Digital TV will allow them to cater to its users on the network. Viewers will now be able to access Al Jazeera’s award winning news and programme content from around the world at a click of a button. Globally, Al Jazeera English is available in over 260 million households across 130 countries.

     

    Launched in November 2011 in India, Al Jazeera English is known for its belief in the shared humanity of the global community, and as a result keeps real people at the centre of the story.

     

  • After kabaddi, Star may be considering having a championship league for 'seven stones'

    Star Sports to consider Lagori/Pitto league

    By A Correspondent

     

    After the stupendous success of the kabaddi league, Star Sports is considering having a championship on the seven stones game that is very popular across the country. So goes the cooler conversation in media circles.

     

    Lagori, dikori, lagoori, lingocha or pitto is widely played in many parts of India. According to Wikipedia, it’s a game played between two teams in an unlimited area involving a ball and a pile of flat stones. A member of one team (the seekers) throws a soft ball at a pile of stones to knock them over. The seekers then try to restore the pile of stones while the opposing team (the hitters) throws the ball at them. If the ball touches a seeker, he is out and his team continues without him. But a team member can always safeguard himself by touching the opposite team member before the ball hits him.

     

    Meanwhile, it is learnt that Sony Six is also planning a similar tournament. Click here to read the rest of this report.

     

  • One of SONY KIX’s flagship offerings would be the Pepsi IPL, which begins from April 8 this year and will be telecast on the channel in English, Tamil & Telugu

    After Six, Sony out with second sports channel – KIX

    By A Correspondent

     

    Multi-Screen Media (MSM) announced the launch of the new sports channel named SONY KIX, which is set to broadcast the best in sports and entertainment in India. The channel is MSM’s second foray in sports after SONY SIX.

     

    As part of its line-up, KIX will air the Pepsi IPL, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), Australian Open Tennis Championship, National Football League (NFL), Rugby World Cup 2015, premier fight sports properties such as Glory World Series and CSI Boxing alongside some marquee events in football and rugby.

     

    NP Singh

    Speaking at the launch of KIX, NP Singh, CEO, MSM commented, “Sports has always been a core focus for us right from our early days. Our entertainment and movie channels such as SET, MAX and PIX have also, over the years, broadcast some of the landmark sports events both in India and internationally. While the resounding success of SIX in less than 3 years was a deciding factor to launch KIX, there was also this need to cater to the clear demand seen in the market for largely, alternative sports programming.  KIX promises to be a great addition to our mix of channels and will go on to complement SIX in more ways than one with exciting and iconic properties such as Pepsi IPL, UFC and NFL among many others.”

     

    One of SONY KIX’s flagship offerings would be the Pepsi IPL, which begins from April 8 this year and will be telecast on the channel in English, Tamil & Telugu. The telecast will be in conjunction with that of SIX and MAX, which will show the tournament in English and Hindi, respectively.

     

    Prasana Krishnan, Business Head, SONY SIX said, “SONY KIX will not only be an extension of our sports portfolio but it also serves as an opportunity for us to expand the sports viewership in the country. We have already acquired and have a very strong portfolio of rights including to some of the major sports hitherto unseen on Indian television. We will continue to build on this and expand our range of offerings. ”

     

  • Amagi enables new ad revenue stream for NDTV

    NDTV chooses Amagi Storm to localize advertising in the Middle East

    By A Correspondent

     

    Amagi has announced that NDTV 24×7 will use its STORM regionalization platform to insert regional ads in the Middle East on the channel’s Asia-Pacific satellite feed.

     

    “NDTV is expanding its viewership base amongst the vast expatriate population in the Middle East. We were looking for ways to provide local advertisers in the region access to our clearly segmented viewership. Post evaluation of multiple vendor platforms, Amagi’s ad-insertion solution emerged as the perfect choice as it allowed us to regionalize our channel in the Middle East without creating new, expensive satellite feeds,” said Dinesh Singh, CTO, NDTV.

     

    “Content regionalization and monetization have been a growing need for TV networks globally. Amagi’s STORM IRD series integrates ad and content insertion capability with traditional IRD functionality thereby making it easy for TV networks to regionalize their satellite feeds. Amagi’s STORM platform is deployed across more than 4,000 headends and is a time-tested & reliable solution. We are excited to have India’s leading news network, NDTV on board as our valued client,” commented KA Srinivasan, co-founder, Amagi.

     

    For NDTV, Amagi inserts unique content watermarks on advertisements that need to be replaced in the Middle East. These watermarked content assets are transmitted over the satellite as per the channel playlist. The local ads that need to be played out only in the Middle East region and associated local playlists are transmitted through a trickle satellite bandwidth to be stored in Amagi’s STORMLite IRDs deployed at NDTV’s headends in the region. When the STORMLite IRD receives the watermarked content assets, basis the local playlists, it replaces the watermarked content with local ads which are already stored in the device.

     

    “For a live news channel such as ours, the Amagi watermark triggers turned out to be a much more reliable content trigger mechanism than SCTE-35 and DTMTF cue-tones. With Amagi, we monetized our channel in the Middle East including the Aston bands without affecting existing workflow and systems. The solution was easy to implement and we are very satisfied with the final outcome. The ad-insertions have been flawless and we are confident that the regional advertisers will benefit from geo-targeting” said Prashant Rawat, Head of Broadcast Operations, NDTV.

     

  • Shailesh Kapoor lists five expectations from BARC for it to emerge as not just India's unanimous TV currency, but also an industry favourite for years to come

    Shailesh Kapoor: Expectations from BARC on the Eve of its Debut

    By Shailesh Kapoor

     

    Finally, it’s happening. After two exciting years that were forever pregnant with possibilities, the first BARC (Broadcast Audience Research Council) ratings will be out later this month. While the original announcement on formation of BARC dates back to 2008, the lawsuit NDTV filed against TAM in 2012 was perhaps the momentum trigger, whose results we will begin to experience soon.

     

    So far, broadcasters, who are stakeholders in BARC via IBF, have been unanimous that BARC ratings should be the only operating TV currency in India in the future. We have seen with the new IRS in 2013 that things can take an ugly turn when the actual data is out, but chances of that happening in TV ratings is significantly lower, because of the nature of the industry and broadcasters’ wholehearted endorsement of BARC thus far.

     

    Yet, a lot will be expected from BARC once the ratings begin to roll out. Here are five of my expectations (in no particular order) from BARC for it to emerge as not just India’s unanimous TV currency, but also an industry favourite for years to come.

     

    1. Don’t let the pressure get to you: There are bound to high-pressure situations once ratings roll out. Broadcasters who are at the wrong end of the proverbial stick are bound to create stress in your lives, demanding explanations. There are bound to be comparisons to the TAM ratings, however unwarranted they may be statistically. Just take firm stands in such situations, and the rules of engagement will be set for the future.

     

    2. Stick to data reporting, don’t offer advisory services: Stick to reporting and do not offer advisory services at any time. The moment you begin to guide channels on what they can do to increase their viewership (TAM has done that for a while through S Group), you are essentially losing your status of a data reporter operating at an arm’s length. It is much like a critic who hobnobs with the studios during the week and then reviews their films on the Friday that follows.

     

    3. Offer an ‘elite audience’ service soon: The area of measuring the ‘elite audience’, the small fraction of wealthy India that many premium products target, remains an unfinished agenda. It may not be on your agenda any time soon, but do keep it on the task list. There is a large piece of the ad revenue pie that the television industry is potentially losing to print because TV ratings do not have meaningful measurement in this audience segment.

     

    4. Price and package innovatively: Remember, there are not just broadcasters and media agencies, but many other types of firms who would be served well with your data. This includes content producers, insights firms, digital agencies, film studios, etc. Be innovative in pricing, so that affordability is ensured without dilution of value. Get your data into the bloodstream of the media industry, not just in the broadcaster and planning world.

     

    5. Open up data bureaus soon, very soon: Do not delay the “licensing” (is there a better word?) of data to approved data bureaus, who can create their own products around the data, offering them as standalone services to the relevant target audience, e.g. a category of channels or advertisers. In the digital world today, third-party ideas that build on your data can be game-changers. The possibilities can be endless. Just open the gates!

     

  • Top politicians, actors, sportspersons etc are in running for the annual awards instituted by news channel

    India TV Yuva Awards to happen on April 18

    By A Correspondent

     

    Union ministers Smriti Irani and Kiren Rijiju, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, AAP leaders Kumar Vishwas and Alka Lamba, Congress leaders Deepender Singh Hooda and Mausam Noor, and Apna Dal MP Anupriya Patel are in the running as youth icons nominated for second edition of the India TV Yuva Awards to be presented on April 18 in New Delhi.

     

    The India TV Yuva awards are presented to youth icons who have demonstrated exemplary leadership in their respective fields. The awards are in six categories: politics, sports, music, films, television and business. The awards were instituted in 2013 to honour the most promising young faces of the nation.

     

    In the sports category, those in the running among men include Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan (all cricketers) and Vijay Kumar (Olympian shooter), while among women, it’s:  Saina Nehwal (badminton), Deepika Pallikal (squash), P V Sindhu (badminton)  and Geeta Phogat (wrestler) in the nominations.

     

    Among Bollywood youth icons, those nominated include Arjun Kapoor, Siddharth Malhotra, Sushant Singh Rajput and Varun Dhawan in the male category, while Anushka Sharma, Sonam Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinha and Parineeti Chopra have been nominated among female actors

     

    In the small screen category, Mohit Raina, Gautam Gulati, Rajat Tokas and Ashish Sharma have been nominated among male actors, Digangana Suryavanshi, Drashti Dhami, Pooja Gaur and Sanaya Irani figure among female TV actors nominated as youth icons.

     

    Singers Arijit Singh, Javed Ali, Benny Dayal, Joi Barua and Papon have been nominated in music category (male), while Shilpa Rao, Kanika Kapoor, Monali Thakur and Palak Muchhal have been nominated as female icons in music.

     

    In the business section, Rahul Sharma (Micromax), Kunal Behl (Snapdeal), Bhavish Aggarwal (Ola!) and Peyush Bansal (Lenskart) have been nominated among male icons while Avani Davda (Tata Starbucks), Priya Nair (Hindustan Unilever), Neha Kirpal (India Art Fair) and Radhika Ghai Aggarwal (ShopClues) are in the running in female category.

     

    The nominations have been made through a stringent process involving recommendations by the editorial board, followed by a stratified research by a research partner C-Voter and subsequently decided upon by a jury led by Sarod maestro Ustaad Amjad Ali Khan.  The jury included  adman-lyricist Prasoon Joshi, Vandana Luthra, Prof Pushpesh Pant and India TV Chairman and Editor-in-ChiefRajat Sharma.

     

    Speaking on the awards, Ritu Dhawan, Managing Director & CEO of India TV said: “Yuva Awards is a humble attempt by India TV to encourage the spirit of excellence and inspire fellow Indians.”

     

    The event will be executed by Wizcraft International. Dainik Bhaskar and Pioneer Publicity corporation are partners to the initiative that is sponsored by Vimal Pan Masala, Dr Ortho and No Scars.

     

  • The new identity will aim to target new audiences while appealing to the changing palate of the movie viewing audiences

    Zee Cinema unveils new brand identity

    By A Correspondent

     

    Celebrating its 21st anniversary this month, Zee Cinema is set to unveil a brand new identity with a more vibrant, colorful and contemporary look. The new identity will aim to target new audiences while appealing to the changing palate of the movie viewing audiences.

     

    Designed and developed by Supere Studio from Argentina, the refreshed packaging is derived from an extensive qualitative research and analysis mapping the consumer behavior and their consumption pattern. One of the key insight that emerged out of this research was the matter in which cinema is consumed in India. Movies are considered as dream factories that immerse its audiences by making them part of a larger than life phenomenon. Taking a cue from such insights that are in sync with the channel’s core proposition of ‘Movies.Masti.Magic.’, the refreshed brand identity introduces the magical element of a portal that creates an aura of fantasy that resonate the thoughts of millions. Appealing to a wider spectrum of audiences, the refreshed identity exhibits a vibrant and dynamic animation that captures the true essence of masti.

     

    Keeping intact the brand’s key components of yellow and green colors, the new sleek logo of the channel has reversed the dominance of yellow along with the fresher flavor of green. The added color scheme of the new packaging exudes dynamism with an interesting splash of colors – red and blue – which amplifies the variety showcased on the channel.

     

    Speaking on the new identity, Ruchir Tiwari, Deputy Business Head, Hindi Movie Channels, ZEEL stated,  “Acknowledging with gratitude the adulation that our audiences have showered upon us over the years, Zee Cinema is now entering an exciting phase in its 21st year. Perceived as the trusted and most preferred Hindi movies destination, the channel is considered an important family member by its viewers. Just as cinema has changed over time, audiences preference have also shifted in accordance with cultural tastes and trends and Zee Cinema has, always, evolved to keep in sync with these changing scenarios. Keeping this in mind, we have refreshed and modernized the identity while retaining the inherent equity held in the current look and feel. The revamped packaging is designed to heighten the movie viewing experience for our audiences all around the globe.”

     

  • ZeeQ is taking a step further by revamping the look, feel and positioning of the channel

    ZeeQ changes avatar; introduces new programming line-up

    By A Correspondent

     

    ZeeQ has unveiled its new avatar and will seek to entertain and engage children with an eclectic mix of comedy, action and art & craft shows.

     

    Responding to the demand for differentiated content, ZeeQ has prepared locally-produced shows like Bandbudh aur Budbak, Pyaar Mohabbat Happy Lucky and The Art Room that offer a balanced mix of entertainment and learning. For some adrenaline rush, the channel has action-packed shows like Burka Avenger, He Man, Shaktiman packaged together in the Mega Action Band. This band will be offered in Telugu as well, in addition to Hindi and English.

     

    Ashwin Sashital

    Ashwin Sashital, Brand and Communications Head, ZeeQ, said: “ZeeQ is taking a step further by revamping the look, feel and positioning of the channel. The challenge lies in expanding the audience base, something we believe can be done with the new line-up. We plan to keep our audience engaged and entertained with exciting new stories, creative activities and action-packed adventures. We look forward to a great start with our rebranding campaign.”

     

  • What was to be achieved was a behavioural shift, hence it went beyond the 30 sec format of advertising

    Tata Sky’s an-ad-a-day approach casts its spell on the viewers

    By A Correspondent

     

    With the aim to achieve maximum reach, Tata Sky has launched a unique offering – Daily Recharge which allows consumers to recharge their DTH subscription just at Rs. 8 daily and get all their desired channels on that day.

     

    The consumer in towns and villages are value conscious. This consumer in most regions still perceives the DTH category as premium and expensive, as compared to the local cable. Tata Sky’s Daily recharge in this case tackles this barrier by providing an entry to the world of quality television viewing at a price lesser than any MSO or DTH player in the world. Not only in small towns and villages, also the urban metros, Daily Recharge will become a huge incentive for consumers to shift from Analog to digital, thereby adding to the cause of digitization.

     

    For such a unique product the campaign too had to be innovative. What was to be achieved was a behavioural shift, hence it went beyond the 30 sec format of advertising as it would have left the consumers with a new piece of information but would have failed at engaging them. The challenge was to amplify the everyday usage of the brand and thus the benefits associated with it.

     

    Thus the product was launched with a unique love story that promotes everyday usage in an interesting manner. The promise: “Daily milenge toh pyaar to hoga hi” is a simple expression of the product benefit and the brand promise. To further reinforce daily usage the campaign evolves over multiple episodes. Set in a small town in Kashmir, the multiple episodes slowly unravels how the product works and intelligently amplifies the benefits of Daily Recharge, through Mannu (Prit Kamani) and Neelu (Himani Sisodiya) the protagonists of the love story.

     

    Sukesh Nayak

    Sukesh Nayak, Executive Creative Director, O&M Advertising said: “The product was innovative so the creative idea had to be innovative. For daily recharge we came up with an idea of daily love story. Every day the love story unfolds itself with a new film on national television. The campaign is interactive. The boy and girl update their social profile on daily basis as the story unfolds. People also end up helping the boy decide what to do next every single day to take the love story forward through an immersive digital experience.”

     

    Commenting on Tata Sky’s new campaign launched with the IPL, Malay Dikshit, Chief Communications Officer, Tata Sky said: “For the first time, we have advertised during the IPL as it provides the continuity needed by the daily format of this campaign. The brand promise of ‘Daily milenge toh pyaar toh hoga hi” is a simple expression to stay connected with the viewers on a daily basis with our convenient offering. The brand needed to reach out and communicate to a set of audience that are spread across various geographies of the country and still have an affinity with the existing subscribers. O&M has beautifully brought alive this journey with the help of this addictive love story.”

     

  • The 2015 edition of the IIFA Weekend and Awards will be aired on Colors. Star Plus aired the show for 10 consecutive years

    Colors acquire IIFA telecast rights from Star Plus

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hindi general entertainment channel Colors has announced a partnership with Wizcraft International Entertainment acquiring complete broadcast rights to the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards 2015, to be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in June this year.  The rights were held by Star Plus for a decade with the edition of the 2014 edition being done by Star Plus for the 10th year running.

     

    The channel will collaborate with IIFA to combine programming and marketing efforts to mount this year’s IIFA on a wider canvas reaching out to more viewers around 135 countries across all screens – TV, Mobile and PC.

     

    Raj Nayak
    Sabbas Joseph

    Commenting on the acquisition, Raj Nayak, CEO, Colors said: “With the inclusion of IIFA Awards to our bouquet of offerings, Colors will now curate exceptional entertainment offerings capturing best of Indian film industry. IIFA Weekend will be beamed not only on Colors India but also on our international feeds including Rishtey bringing quality entertainment to our viewers’ fingertips.”

     

    Elaborating on this year’s IIFA Awards, Sabbas Joseph, Director, Wizcraft International Entertainment said, “Our association with Colors for the IIFA Weekend and Awards furthers our promise of providing the best entertainment avenues to viewers across the globe.”