MxMIndia

Tag: Hotstar

  • It's our third 'big story' on Republic, but then it's perhaps one of the biggest media launches in the last decade

    Can Republic TV kill Competition?

     

     By Pradyuman Maheshwari [updated]

    For a television channel that’s determined to fight for the need for transparency in public life and government, its launch date appears to be a closely guarded secret. But now it’s confirmed: Tomorrow, May 6. Why a Saturday, one may ask. Because that’s the first day of the week (Week #19 of 2017) as per BARC measurement. And Goswami, as he must, keeps a close watch on his viewership numbers.

    Before we had  confirmation on the date, we did have word from the Star India Corporate’s PR agency that Republic TV would start streaming on the OTT platform with effect from tomorrow. No time stated.

    Having said that, Republic is on a roll in terms of marketing across media. It has a healthy set of advertisers: Vivo, Jio, Renault, Hike, Yes Bank, Microsoft, Ravin, Nestaway, Future Group, Havell’s, Gionee, Lloyd, Raymond and Ola. Star India, we are told by sources, will continue to be an advertiser, though its logo is missing from today’s Mint ad.

    We asked ChromeDM, specialists in research on connectivity to give us a report on the availability of Republic TV, for, distribution along with content and revenues will eventually speak about the success of the channel.

    And this is what Pankaj Krishna, Founder & CEO, Chrome DM said: “Currently, on an average, an English News Channels has an availability of 45.1% among Urban Homes in India. With its soft launch, Republic has 18.4% Urban India availability (as per Chrome OTS or Opportunity to See, 3rd May 2017). In Mega Cities, Republic is currently available in 32% of the Households.”

    Note this is for data as of May 3. A distribution industry expert we spoke with said that the availability will leapfrog once the channel goes on air, as even though the deal is inked, some discerning networks do not like to air test signals. So the expert we spoke with said the ChromeDM data as of now may not be the right measure to look at right now.

    However, MxMIndia is a neutral observer and it’s important that you know facts as they are. Also, according to the ad, distribution deals have been inked with all platforms. Other than Hotstar, Republic will be available on Jio, Ditto and we are sure other platforms too.

    “There’s a buzz around Republic TV, and even if deals aren’t inked, viewers will want to watch it and will ask for it… at least for the first few weeks. Moreover, it’s free-to-air, so the pull factor increases,” said one distribution network owner.

    A media buyer and marketer we spoke with requested to speak on anonymity. Here’s what both echoed.

    1. That the buzz around Arnab Goswami has increased after he quit his previous employer.
    2. The legal notice which Goswami spoke about making an emotional appeal touched a chord, and there is a certain amount of sympathy for him.
    3. The issues with Pakistan are raging, and that’s a topic Goswami is passionate about
    4. There are enough inefficiencies across the country which Goswami will definitely dwell on

    Meanwhile, other channels are also getting their act together. Both India Today and CNN-IBN have launched shows at 7pm and also relooked at the rest of the primetime programming. Extension of primetime to 7pm will expand the viewership in all.

    As per BARC ratings for Week 17 (April 22 to 28), Times Now was the leader followed by India Today, CNN-News18, NDTV 24×7 and BBC World News. NewsX and WION didn’t figure in the Top 5. This data is for urban and rural viewership from amongst males of 22 years and above.

    MxMIndia also spoke to industry captains and while all of them wish Republic TV and Arnab Goswami the very best, they do acknowledge that it’s not going to be an easy ask. There are comparisons made to how CNN-IBN (now CNN-News18) scored a march over NDTV 24×7 when Rajdeep Sardesai started the channel, but those were early in the history of English news television in India. Times Now didn’t exist and Headlines Today (now India Today) was near-inconsequential.

    And what is our view? Well, who doesn’t like a David outwits/ outshines/ kills Goliath story. We all love it. But then we are going to be as neutral as it’s possible. We report on the business regardless who gives us business.

    However, there are issues which are beyond just R&R… in this case ratings and revenues. It’s the kind of journalism we will see on Republic TV. And hence across all channels. Will channels talking about the noise be contributing to the noise in their own way? Will the new style of television journalism – nationalism and raising questions against it – actually damage situation on the ground, even though the viewership of English news channels is limited.

    It’s our third ‘Big Story’ on Republic. Or fourth? We’ve lost count. But, then, it’s possibly one of the biggest media launches in the last decade.

    The last question to ourselves (and as in the headline): Do we see Republic TV killing Competition?

    Our response: We don’t know. Yes, we do care and we will be delighted to report on the numbers. We will await the BARC ratings over the next few weeks quite how in the old Hindi films the old parents would wait for the ‘daakiya’ for an update.

    Our normal end-line would’ve been: May the best channel win.

    But here, we will say: May good (and smart) journalism win.

    Now don’t say who cares!

     

     

  • Sarabhai vs Sarabhai is based on the life of a hilarious Gujarati family living in Mumbai

    ‘Sarabhai vs Sarabhai’ makes a comeback on Hotstar

     

     

    Hotstar has announced the return of cult comedy show Sarabhai vs Sarabhai,for its viewers this May. A show that still enjoys active fandom several years after it went off air, and one that’s often been hailed as being well ahead of its time, Sarabhai vs Sarabhai will return exclusively on Hotstar as a part of the Hotstar Originals bouquet.

     

    The show will take a seven-year leap and will return with the entire original cast featuring Satish Shah, Ratna Pathak Shah, Sumeet Raghavan, Rupali Ganguly, Deven Bhojani and Rajesh Kumar as well some new characters. Produced by Hats Off Productions’ Jamnadas (JD)Majethia and Aatish Kapadia, the 10-part series will be part of Hotstar Originals.

     

    “From Maya’s haughty retorts to Rosesh’s epic poetry, every component that made Sarabhai vs Sarabhai timeless, will very much remain the hallmark of this series. That said, there’s much more hilarity and some brand new characters to look forward to. The wisecracky, intelligent soul of the show, will return exactly as our fans remember it, with more laughs and new stories”, said JD Majethia, founder of Hats Off Productions.

     

    “With Hotstar Originals, our intent is to bring to audiences, inspired content that goes on to define its specific genre, be it On Air with AIB, Tanhaiyaan or Cineplay,” added Ajit Mohan, CEO of Hotstar.

     

  • The campaign has been conceptualised by Creativeland Asia

    Hotstar ready for 2017 edition of IPL with latest campaign

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hotstar, Star India’s video-on-demand platform, has launched its Vivo IPL 2017 commercial a 60-second film, to be followed by shorter films as the campaign progresses. The campaign has been conceptualised by independent agency Creativeland Asia.

     

    The film, set to a track composed by SnehaKhanwalkar and performed by rapper Naezy, opens with people from different walks of life in a typical Indian city, getting their game face on. What’s different, however, is that as opposed to the years where IPL meant life grinding to a halt, we see fans going about their lives, while effortlessly catching all the unpredictable and hot IPL cricket action.

     

    Commenting on the film, Ajit Mohan, CEO of Hotstar shared: “With Hotstar, the old narrative of cities turning into ghost towns during IPL is passé. The audience’s lives have gotten busier and thanks to IPL on mobile with Hotstar, there is no longer any need to make a trade-off between your passion for cricket and going on with daily life. The action on the field can heat up at any time and Hotstar is your ally for not missing a single hot moment, no matter where you are. Na life rukegi, na game rukega.”

     

    Added Sajan Raj Kurup, Founder and Creative Chairman, Creativeland Asia: “This has been an unbelievably action packed project from the word go. The insight was that Hotstar allows you to go about your life while still catching all the IPL action live. So, no matter what you’re doing – working, studying or travelling, with Hotstar you’re constantly in a state of readiness to catch every bit of every hot match. The fielding stance is a great metaphor for readiness. We used this metaphor to show people around the city being ready for every ball of the IPL.  From the script idea to the composition of the music/lyrics and shooting from road to road with a smallish feature-film crew, this is perhaps the most anecdotal project we have done in recent times.”

     

    Now one needs to see which anthem gets more popular: Sony’s 10 SaalAapkeNaam or the one created by Hotstar.

     

  • The two will collaborate to create audience segmentation and targeting that should boost Hotstar as an advertising medium

    Hotstar buys minority stake in Zapr. Will it kill independence of analytics firm?

    By A Correspondent

     

    Leading OTT platform from the Star India stable Hotstar and Zapr Media Labs, a Bengaluru-based media tech company, have announced a strategic partnership to drive the next wave of mobile audience analytics in India. This includes a minority stake that Star India will pick up in Zapr, a digital analytics firm set up by three IIM passouts in 2012. IIM Ahmedabad, not a newbie outpost. The two companies will work together to create a deep understanding of mobile audiences that can be leveraged by brands to create personalised communication and offers, notes a communique. However, we feel that it’s a kind of a self-goal as by selling stake to a broadcast/digital major, it loses its independence. For instance, will you really trust the data that is put out by a player which is trying to attract revenues?

     

    Ajit Mohan

    Now let’s hear what the Ajit Mohan, CEO, Hotstar said in a commmunique: “In the transition from the broadcast world to the digital world, advertisers got a data bonanza but in the process had to give up the ability to engage consumers who are actually paying attention to what they are saying. Hotstar has the opportunity to build the world’s first platform on digital where consumers are engaged and immersed while at the same time delivering deep audience understanding that allows brands to talk to individuals rather than segments. We believe that we have a shot at creating the world’s premier truly personalized advertising service, which benefits both brands and consumers.”

     

    Added Sandipan Mondal, Co-founder and CEO, Zapr Media Labs:“We are excited to partner with Hotstar and Star on our journey to build a world-class media-tech company out of India. Over the past few years, Zapr has grown into one of the world’s largest media consumption repositories and audience cross-targeting platforms and this partnership further reinforces the incredible response we have received from our partners across brands, agencies and broadcasters. We look forward to accelerating the pace of our research and development, growing our product portfolio and building a deeper and long lasting relationship with the larger media and advertising industry.”

     

  • Latest Disney, Disney.Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm movies to be available via SVOD on Hotstar in India

    Hotstar unveils exclusive content deal with Disney India

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hotstar has announced a new studio partnership with Disney India to augment its Premium service. It has inked a multi-year SVOD deal with Disney India to showcase the studio’s biggest hits exclusively on Hotstar Premium in India which includes movies like Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Disney’s The Jungle Book and Moana, Marvel’s Captain America: Civil War and Doctor Strange, Disney. Pixar’s Finding Dory amongst others.

     

    In addition, Hotstar premium subscribers will also have access to popular movies and classics from Disney’s library including Disney.Pixar’s Ratatouille, Brave, Toy Story 3; Disney’s The Lion King, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest as well as popular American TV series from ABC Studios such as Castle and Desperate Housewives. Hotstar subscriberswill be able to access this content conveniently through Disney, Marvel and ABC Studios branded sections on the homepage of Hotstar.

     

    Said Ajit Mohan, CEO, Hotstar: “Over the last six months, we have established Premium as an exciting new service for an Indian audience that is interested in international stories. The deal with Disney is in line with our strategy of bringing the best of new shows and movies from around theworld to our Premium subscribers. This partnership signals our continuing strategy: we will invest deeply and widely with the best story tellers in the world to ensure that Premium continues as the standout streaming service in the country.”

     

    “Our movies have met with much success in theatres this year. This deal is important for us asit enables us to offer our movies across Disney, Marvel, Star Wars and Pixar brands and our ABC Studios’ TV shows to our audience wherever they are. Hotstar Premium is an ideal home for our content and it gives subscribers across the country, the chance to revisit their loved stories,” said Amrita Pandey, Vice President, Studios, Disney India.

     

  • The network promises to take Rio Olympic viewing to a notch higher

    Star India’s 50-day countdown to Rio begins!

    By A Correspondent

     

    The countdown to the biggest multi-sport event, the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, has begun. Forty-nine days to go. August 5 is the date when all the action begins at Brazil and this time the world will witness the biggest ever Olympic contingent from India.

     

    To make the viewing experience of these games even better, Star India is expanding its coverage by dedicating eight channels on a 24×7 basis, broadcasted in two languages – English and Hindi. Star Sports and Hotstar, together, will broadcast 3000-plus hours of live content from the Olympics, facilitating fans to catch every medal live.

     

    Speaking at a press conference, Nitin Kukreja, CEO, Star Sports, said, “Star Sports has been at the forefront of establishing a multi-sport culture in India. While cricket continues to reach new heights, Indian sports fans have already shown their love for kabaddi and football. The Olympics are the pinnacle of a multi-sport event, and as India prepares to send its largest ever contingent, Star Sports is leaving no stone unturned to provide the most comprehensive access to Indian sports fans.”

     

    Since, ‘digital’ is the buzzword these, how can Hotstar, Star’s video sharing platform be behind! It will roll out the coverage of Olympics with 14 live feeds consistently and up to 36 concurrent feeds at peak on the Olympics video player, available to users on demand through the event. “While Hotstar is covering Olympics for the first time, we are excited that we are bringing an all-round coverage of the Olympics for the Indian digital user that will be the best in the word. Like in our coverage of other sporting events, our focus will be not just making every moment of the Olympics available to the fans but also provide them the ability to create personalised, interactive experiences that allow them to follow and watch what is of unique interest to them,” said Ajit Mohan, CEO, Hotstar.

     

    Apart from live feeds, it will introduce an interactive, data rich Olympic player on the web where users will have the option to switch between the 14 live feeds, have access to day-wise listing of events and medals tally, and the ability to personalise the experience by following specific countries and sports disciplines.

     

    Star Sports, on the other hand, has set up an elite panel of international and Indian Olympians as well as sports experts who will share analyse and connect with viewers as live action unfolds. The eminent panel includes Ian Thorpe, Prakash Pafukone, Anjali Bhagwat, Viren Rasquinha and Rehan Poncha. Paula Malai Ali will be the presenter in English and Divya Jaitley will be the presenter in Hindi.

     

  • Country's leading online video streaming platform for premium content also holds the exclusive digital rights to LIVE broadcast of ICC World Twenty20 2016

    Hotstar partners T20 World Cup as Associate Sponsor

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hotstar has extended its partnership with ICC World Twenty20 2016 through a sponsorship agreement with cricket’s international governing body, the ICC, for the 2016 edition of its mega event. The agreement makes Hotstar an associate sponsor of the tournament and ensures on-ground visibility for the platform at all venues for the entire duration of the month-long tournament.

     

    In addition to the sponsorship agreement, Hotstar also holds the exclusive digital rights for the live broadcast of the ICC World Twenty20 2016.

     

    Ajit Mohan, President & Head, Hotstar, said, “We are delighted to have deepened our association with the ICC World Twenty20 2016. With the sponsorship, we are reinforcing our commitment to our users and delivering on the promise that whenever there is cricket, Hotstar is the place to follow the game. Continuing on our efforts over the last one year, we are focused on creating a delightful proposition for cricket fans.’”

     

    ICC Chief Executive, David Richardson said, “We are delighted that Hotstar has decided to strengthen its support of cricket and relationship with the ICC as a global partner of the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016.

     

    “Through the media rights partnership, Star India reaches out to a global television audience, which is further expanded via its digital platform, Hotstar. With the extension of the relationship to include sponsorship, Hotstar will now have the opportunity to engage and interact with the in-stadia cricket enthusiasts.”

     

    As the momentum builds ahead of the ICC World Twenty20 2016, Hotstar will launch a series of campaigns to further drive up the anticipation among cricket lovers for this eagerly-awaited event.

     

  • We pinched ourselves. Did we read right? Is this the same Star India CEO who is always propah in his ways?

    What the fur! All India Bakchod gets Uday Shankar cheeky in his communiqué

    By A Correspondent

    Five years back, when our editor asked him to do a high five for Impact magazine, he was very hesitant on how it would impact his image. But those were early days still in his captaincy of Star India. Now, after having established itself as the #1 media professional in the country and as a gamechanger with the strides he has taken in sports broadcast, the former news journalist (and at heart still one), has been dramatically (and pleasantly) kewl in a press release we received on Tuesday.

    The communiqué was about how comedy entity All India Bakchod (referred to AIB to prevent the mouthing of an expletive in its name… chod, if you will still didn’t get it). And this is how Shankar’s quote read: “”I am told that based on extensive, exhaustive research, AIB are considered mildly entertaining and we should give them a show on our network. I have complete faith that we will regret this in the months to come.”

    We pinched ourselves. Did we read right? Is this the same Star India CEO who is always propah in his ways?

    The quote from Ajit Mohan, Head of Hotstar, was equally irreverent. “We are sort of excited to bring AIB’s brand of mature humor to our platform. This may be the start of a new era of quality content in India, I am told. Janta hamein maaf karein,” it said.

    Not surpisingly some copy-and-paste journos jointly simply Control-C-V-ed the release.

    We didn’t. We are MxMIndia.

    Okay, dudes, and if you notice we are trying to get effing hip and mother-effing happening without using Hindi gaalis like MCBC, but English expletives which make us sound very evolved.

    No, let’s leave all the smart talk to You Shanx and his boys and babes. Yo man!