MxMIndia

Category: TV

  • KBC 9 will have new lifelines, thrilling gamification and an array of technological advancements in a concisely packaged limited episode season

    Stage set for Season 9 of KBC

    By A Correspondent

     

    Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan is back with Season 9 of Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) which starts today (August 28) on Sony Entertainment Television (SET).

     

    KBC 9 will have new lifelines, thrilling gamification and an array of technological advancements in a concisely packaged limited episode season. The Phone-a-Friend lifeline will be revamped this season to video-a-friend. Additionally, an aptly titled new life-line Jodidaar has been introduced – wherein the participant can bring along a partner to join him/her on the coveted hot seat. The jackpot question will be for Rs 7 crore. Interestingly, the live-sized cheques will be replaced with digital currency transferred directly into the winner’s account via Axis Bank.

     

    Produced by Big Synergy, Kaun Banega Crorepati 9 has a host of sponsors in Vivo, Jio, Chings, Datsun, Raymond, Axis Bank, Akash Tutorial, Big Bazar and Quick Heal.

     

    Said NP Singh, CEO, Sony Pictures Networks India on the show: “This show has always exemplified attainment via the power of knowledge. Guided by insights, KBC is back to Indian television in its 9th season, in a new avatar that showcases some game-changing innovations.

     

    Added Danish Khan, EVP and Business Head at Sony Entertainment Television (SET): “One of the most relevant shows for India, Sony Entertainment Television is happy to present a fast-paced, thrilling, technologically upgraded season 9 of KBC with the most popular host in the television world, Mr. Amitabh Bachchan.”

     

  • The campaign focuses on the editorial assets of the channel

    BTVI unveils new campaign

    By A Correspondent

     

    Business news channel Business Television India (BTVI) has refreshed its brand identity.  Along with a new logo, BTVI has unveiled a refreshed brand campaign focused on the benefit that the channel brings to the viewers through anchor expertise. The campaign focuses on the editorial assets of the channel, notes a communique.

     

    On refreshing the brand a year after launch, Megha Tata, COO, BTVI, said: “We continue to focus on our differentiated content and we are increasing our market share substantially. Through this logo refresh and brand campaign, BTVI aims to provide most credible information to our viewers. We will continue to reach out to recognised authorities of their field, whose thoughts and opinions matter to millions who follow them.”

     

    Added Siddharth Zarabi, Executive Editor, BTVI: “At a time when the viewer is being overwhelmed with a deluge of information – much of which is not relevant, complex and consumes too much time of the viewer, BTVI has a simple proposition that aims to inform and empower viewers. ‘Keep it simple’ is our theme and over the past year our programming goes to the heart of every story, declutters it and magnifies what is relevant and valuable. Our senior editorial team is delivering consistent programming that spans the entire gamut from wealth creation through shows like Call BTVI, Financial Planner among others to shows that address larger themes like ‘mission-no-emission’. As we move forward to inform and empower the Indian business TV viewer, we will unveil more programming that is relevant and timely”.

     

  • 650 Schools across 20 cities to be taken over by Nickelodeon's Best Friensdshake Forever contest

    Nickelodeon launches an immersive ‘School Contact Programme’ for kids

     

     

    Nickelodeon has upped the fun and entertainment quotient for kids by launching its latest campaign ‘Nickelodeon Best Friensdshake Forever’ and ‘Sonic School with Toons’ contest. The campaign will be brought alive on-ground by a high decibel school contact programme across 650 schools spanning over 20 cities, notes a communique.

     

    Said Nina Elavia Jaipuria, Business Head, Kids’ Entertainment Cluster, Viacom 18 Media: “Nickelodeon believes in actively engaging with kids outside of television by providing them with an immersive platform to interact with their favourite toons. Our robust school contact programme allows us to connect with kids and curate memorable experiences for them, thus forging an unbreakable bond.   It is a result of such marquee initiatives that nickelodeon and its adorable toons continue to play an eminent role in every child’s daily life.”

     

  • Pathak comes with an experience of more than 16 years in the programming industry

    Viacom’s Ranjit Pathak joins 93.5 Red FM as National Programming Head

    By A Correspondent

     

    Red FM has appointed Ranjit Pathak as the National Programming Head. Phatak, who was leading the creative and strategic vision of MTV programming at Viacom 18, will now lead the programming for Red FM network based out of Mumbai. Commenting on the switch,Pathak said:”I am very excited to get aboard on Red FM. For me this also acts as a platform of change, moving from a TV background to Radio where I feel there is a huge potential for this media. As for contributing to Red FM’s programming, I plan to stick to the basics of Bajaate Raho and build from that.”

     

    With the new hire in the leadership team, Nisha Narayanan COO, Red FM added:”Ranjit has had an illustrious career in the television industry. Having worked on brands like MTV and Bindass, his vast knowledge and experience about the variety of audience specifically the youth will act as a major catalyst in amplifying our Bajaate Raho proposition through interesting, innovating and youthful content on air. We aim to push the envelope further with his induction to the team.”

  • The English news channel commits itself to "help Indians align with the nation's growth wave and make the most of opportunities"

    ET Now to move beyond business in the nightlies

    By A Correspondent

     

    Times Network has announced that its business news channel ET Now will now go beyond regular stockmarket and business news in the nightlies.

     

    Commenting on the occasion, M K Anand, MD & CEO, TIMES NETWORK said, “ET Now has consistently led the business news category and is a frontrunner amongst English news channels. I think we are perfectly poised to evolve from just competitive leadership to purpose-driven leadership. As a channel and brand, I believe we can do much more than what we have been doing so far. It is now our aim to become the driver and catalyst for India’s growth and in making sure that Indians benefit from  that growth.”

     

    Commenting on the occasion, Sandeep Gurumurthi, Managing Editor, ET NOW said, “For ET NOW, this movement is historic. As media entities, besides generating value for our stakeholders, our responsibility is to inform, engage, educate and inspire our viewers. Today every Indian has a strong belief in India’s promising future, more than their own and India’s growth story is not a single story but strongly shaped and influenced by economics, politics, governance and technology et al. We want to empower our viewers with this all-round knowledge which will enable them to see the opportunities around and help them hitch their success to India’s.”

     

    MxMIndia wasn’t present at the roundtable held to announce the new initiative. So we leaned on an Economic Times report for some additional info. And this is what it noted: “A brand-new flagship show, India Development Debate (IDD) at 9 pm on week days, will laud progress and question anyone and anything that denies Indians the chance to Rise With India.“

     

    Now given the aggressive and most often adversarial role that flagship Times Now adopts, the fact that the proposed 9pm show will “question anyone and anything that denies Indians the chance to Rise With India” could well mean more debates and noise every night.

     

  • The India TV sports show "Cricket Ki Baat" will now have Sehwag on its expert panel

    Virender Sehwag to bat for India TV

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Nawab of Najafgarh is set to start an all new innings for India TV. Yes Virender Sehwag will star in Hindi news channel’s sports show “Cricket Ki Baat” on its expert panel.

     

    Welcoming Sehwag on board, India TV MD Ritu Dhawan said: “We look forward to the fireworks the man is packaged with. We can’t be surer that with him on the panel, we have done the best possible job for our discerning audiences in terms of providing them with lively cricketing opinions.”

     

    Said Sehwag on beginning of his new innings: “I am delighted to associate with India TV as Cricket Expert. It is everyone’s dream to work for the channel that is led by India’s foremost News Personality Mr. Rajat Sharma. I have always strived to further India’s pride through my Cricket & this wasn’t possible without my fans. I am sure that I will be able to present my viewpoint on the nitty-gritties of the game to each of my fan with utmost honesty. I hope that my innings with India TV will prove to be a very successful and a memorable one.”

     

  • Nickelodeon, to amplify the skills of every such Gen Y kid, launched a fun-filled campaign called the ‘Nickelodeon Gurucool’

    Teacher’s Day becomes fun with the Nickelodeon Gurucool campaign

     

     

    Nickelodeon has decided to celebrate Teacher’s Day this year with a fun twist by identifying the guru inside every child and making them the heroes.

     

    The present generation of kids are masters of technology, social media and the latest trends. They train their parents and grandparents to use gadgets and social media platforms. Nickelodeon, to amplify the skills of every such Gen Y kid, launched a fun-filled campaign called the ‘Nickelodeon Gurucool’. The campaign saw a range of fun videos encouraging parents and teachers to learn from kids, quirky GIFs and posts on social media. The celebration continued with ‘Motu Patlu in Dragonworld’ movie which saw Motu and Patlu train dragons and encourage kids to be brave.

     

  • These are two questions that the industry has been asking since Star's winning IPL bid

    Has Star overstretched with Rs 16,347.50 cr bid? Why did Sony not make a global bid?

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    Star India Chairman and CEO Uday Shankar is known to think big and take big risks in his broadcast business. Even his rivals concede that the former news journalist has given a new definition to scale.

    But is a bid of Rs 16,347.5 crore for global television and digital rights for the Indian Premier League for 2018 to 2022 too big to chew. Has Star overstretched itself. Ever since the announcement was made on the afternoon of Monday, September 4, these are the questions that many mediapersons have been asking.

    The Rs 16.3+kcr bid for 300 matches of the IPL would mean the need to recover Rs 54 crore match and this is a big, big ask, some of the naysayers have been saying. However, not everyone is in agreement with this fear. Said one observer: Cricket is a religion in this country and with the Indian diaspora across the world. Over the years, the format has got exciting, the players have improved, so the consumption of the sport has increased. And hence there will be takers to reach this growing community.

    According to media agency professionals we spoke with, the rates for ad spots around the IPL will leapfrog. And so will the access rates via Hotstar, Star India’s digital platform. Their worry is whether advertisers will pay the extra dollar just because Star has to recover its monies.

    According to Vinit Karnik, Business Head, ESP Properties at media agency network GroupM, Star India hasn’t overstretched itself on the bid. Karnik also observed that the recovery of the commitment by Star will be done in not just advertising revenues but also via digital which is going to grow rapidly in the next few years and via distribution.

     

     

    “This is a historic moment for Indian sports industry as BCCI has demonstrated highest media rights sales in the history of world cricket. These media rights numbers are now comparable to the best of sports around the world. IPL once again proves to be the best sporting league that build exponential value for all stakeholders,” Karnik said in a statement.

    Earlier, there were 14 bids were received, earlier in the morning from beIN IP Ltd., Star India Pvt. Ltd., Followon Interactive Media Pvt. Ltd, Sony Pictures Networks Pvt. Ltd., Times Internet Ltd, Supersport International (Pty) Ltd., Reliance Jio Digital Services Pvt. Ltd., Gulf DTH FZ LLC, Econet Media Ltd., Facebook Inc., DAZN / Perform Group, Yupp TV, Airtel and BAM Tech.

    Said Uday Shankar, Chairman and CEO, Star India: ”We are honoured to be selected as IPL’s Global Media Rights Partner and we thank BCCI for conducting such a transparent process. The Vivo Indian Premier League is undoubtedly one of the most exciting sporting leagues in the world and this acquisition of media rights reaffirms our commitment to serve cricket fans and make cricket even bigger than it is. We are delighted that in Star, IPL has found its natural home. We look forward to bringing this exciting format to our audiences across the world in a quality that all our viewers are accustomed to both on television as well as on digital on Hotstar.”

    Elaborating on Star India’s commitment to sports, Shankar added: “At Star India, we believe that Indian sports have barely scratched the surface of its potential. Both the viewership of sports and more importantly participation in sports is something that we would like to grow substantially over the next few years. The acquisition of these rights is symbolic of our commitment to not just cricket but to the growth of a wider sports culture in the country.”

    Another question that has been raised by some A&M professionals is why Sony didn’t make a global bid after having made a fairly ambitious bid of Rs 11,050 crore for television rights alone. This some feel is an aberration from Sony’s aggression in the past.

    A media agency professional said that while the loss of IPL rights is a significant loss for Sony Pictures Network, all is not lost yet for the network which has made sizeable investments in sports in the recent past. The India rights are scheduled to come well ahead of IPL 2018, and Sony will definitely make a huge bid for that, the professional who requested anonymity noted.

    Perhaps. We’ll wait and watch. In the meantime, it’s sunny days ahead for Star India.

  • India's youngest lifestyle channel has planned exciting line up of new and old programming to #LiveTheGoodTimes

    NDTV Good Times turns 10; unveils new programming

    By A Correspondent

     

    Lifestyle channel NDTV Good Times turned 10 on September 7. Said Smeeta Chakrabarti, CEO, NDTV Lifestyle: “Turning a decade old is big news for us! To celebrate the occasion, the channel has planned an exciting line up of new shows and fresh seasons of hit shows, starting with My Yellow Table with popular Chef Kunal Kapur. Also planned is an exciting contest to gratify our viewers who could win fabulous luxury experiences.”

     

    Expressing her joy on turning 10, Arati Singh, Channel Head, NDTV Good Times added: “We have been pioneers of Indian lifestyle entertainment. Our focus has always been to provide an immersive Good Times experience through 360 degree multiplatform content. NDTV Good Times inspires its viewers to #LiveYoung and #LiveIndian.”

     

  • Channel to go live on September 24

    Zee to launch &Prive HD wef Sep 24

    By A Correspondent

     

    Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) is all set to strengthen its position in the English cinema cluster with the launch of its premium HD offering - &Privé HD. The channel will go live across HD DTH platforms on September 24.

     

    Speaking about the launch, Punit Misra, CEO, ZEEL said:”We are proud to present &Privé HD to our viewers who feel the other side of cinema; audiences who have a mind of their own, who chart their own path and take the road untaken. Like the name suggests, through &Privé we wish to become your personal space for quality cinema. In the last two years, there has been a remarkable growth in the viewership of premium English movies on the HD platform. With the launch of &Privé, we wish to further accelerate this and delight our consumers. The & brand talks to the contemporary Indian who has a progressive outlook and is experimental with his/her choices. We are confident that the &Privé brand extension, with its brilliantly curated content, will find a place in the hearts of the non-conformist, discerning viewer.”

     

    Added Aparna Bhosle, Business Cluster Head – Premium and FTA GEC Channels, ZEEL: “The curated list of movies that will be aired on the channel have multiple layers and a certain depth – something that we have realized appeals to a section of non-conformist cinema enthusiasts in India. &Privé HD will boast of a line-up of movies that will cut across genres and will hopefully remain etched in the minds of our consumers, making them truly experience ‘The Other Side’ of cinema.”

     

    Speaking on the marketing strategy, Prathyusha Agarwal, CMO, ZEEL said: “For our free-thinking audience who have a fierce aversion to follow, &Privé HD will fuel the drive to think and feel different. Keeping in line with their evolved design sensibilities, the Brand & Broadcast Design delivers a signature luxury visual experience that is inspired by international magazine style and semiotics. Our communication campaign is an ode to our TG who venture beyond the obvious, celebrating those who feel the other side.”

     

  • Production company to facilitate all global production requirements for ZEE and international markets

    Zee Studios International launched in Canada

    By A Correspondent

     

    Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) achieved another milestone by becoming the first Indian broadcaster to set up a production company, Zee Studios International in Canada. This also marks Zees entry into global production for mainstream audiences which will facilitate production requirement for Zees international markets. The production company, located at Vancouver, British Columbia, will be headed by Subhadarshi Tripathy who will be supported by a local team. Tripathy will jointly report to ZEEL MD & CEO, Punit Goenka and CEO – International Broadcast Business, Amit Goenka.

    Commenting on the new initiative, Amit Goenka, CEO – International Broadcast Business, ZEEL said, “Canada is known as a large production hub for various Hollywood companies, as the country offers the requisite infrastructure, talent pool, scenic locales as well as a favourable Government incentive scheme. After a series of discussions with the Government of British Columbia, Canada, we were invited to set up a production company in Vancouver. Our endeavour through this venture is to produce global content for mainstream audiences across various international markets as well as take care of our domestic requirements. Canada has grown to become a priority market for us and through such initiatives, we plan to increase our presence in this country. We thank the local government bodies for their cooperation and support in helping us establish this business.”

     

     

  • Colors and Nickelodeon themed studios will provide a real-life experience of the world of TV to kids

    KidZania Delhi partners Colors & Nickelodeon

    By A Correspondent

     

    Viacom18 has partnered with KidZania Delhi and as a part of the partnership, KidZania Delhi will have a Nickelodeon and Colors-themed TV studio.

     

    Speaking about the collaboration with KidZania, Raj Nayak, COO, Viacom18 said: “At Viacom18, we believe that creating experiences through multiple touchpoints goes a long way in fostering an engaged relationship with consumers. This partnership with KidZania brings a perfect opportunity for us to collaborate with like-minded partners and creating a platform for children to experience different aspects of the media & entertainment industry.”

     

    Speaking about creating an experience for kids, Nina Elavia Jaipuria, Head – Kids Entertainment Cluster, Viacom18 said: “Nickelodeon has always endeavored to engage with kids by providing them unique and immersive experiences that are unparalleled.  This partnership is another step towards inspiring kids with an inimitable curated platform that facilitates learning, development as well as play.  The Nickelodeon studio will now allow kids to be a part of their favoruite ‘Nicktoons’ life thus building an everlasting bond with them.”

     

    Added Sanjeev Kumar, CEO KidZania India, on the partnership: “We are delighted to partner with Viacom18 for Colorsand Nickelodeon studios, which will bring an exclusive experience for kids and we look forward to expanding this partnership in the future.”

     

    As part of building an ecosystem, KidZania will also have Voot Kids, the kids content destination from Viacom18’s OTT service.