MxMIndia

Tag: Nickelodeon

  • Viacom18 Consumer Products signs another exciting promotional licensing deal this year after SpongeBob SquarePants with Domino's

    Nickelodeon takes the licensing route for Motu Patlu

    By A Correspondent

     

    Viacom18 Consumer Products has signed up with Prataap Snacks Pvt. Ltd., makers of Yellow Diamond Rings to launch three new flavors of corn rings – Masala, Chilli Cheese and Tomato with exclusive Motu Patlu toys such as spinners, charms, sling-shooters, snakes and ladders and much more. Strategically choosing to take up the promotional licensing route for growth, Viacom18’s Consumer Products Business is leveraging the popular Nick toons by taking them beyond television and bringing them closer to their target audience.

     

    Speaking about this association with the snacks brand, Saugato Bhowmik, Head – Consumer Products, Viacom18 Media Pvt. Ltd., said, “Nickelodeon’s rich and diverse portfolio of characters provides us with great opportunities to connect with the consumer in new and exciting ways. Motu Patlu have topped the charts and also conquered the hearts of children across the nation with their fun antics and make for the perfect character for this kind of promotional licensing. We are happy to partner with Prataap Snacks to help our young audiences to play with their favourite characters while enjoying their snack time- the perfect combination.”

     

    Expressing delight at the association, Anoop Kumar Shreevaastava, Vice President Branding of Prataap Snacks Pvt. Ltd. said, “Yellow Diamond has continuously brought innovative and high quality products to the kids segment and we are excited to partner with Nickelodeon – a powerhouse of innovation in kids media. Motu Patlu are great characters that complement Yellow Diamond Rings perfectly and add an element of joyful surprise for our young consumers fond of our corn rings.”

     

    Nickelodeon’s association with Yellow Diamond Rings will be promoted extensively through television, digital, print and in-store branding.

     

  • Viacom 18 ties up with Amagi for micro-targeting TVCs via DART, HUL to run different TV ads on Nickelodeon for various regions

    HUL to run region-specific ads on Nickelodeon as Viacom18 ties up with Amagi for micro-targeting

    By A Correspondent

     

    Viacom18 and Amagi Media have announced an alliance to increase advertising effectiveness on television using the latter’s technological prowess.

     

    Using Amagi’s DART technology platform, Viacom18 will enable Hindustan Unilever to simultaneously run different television advertisements in different regions on Nickelodeon. This innovation will allow HUL to micro-target its communication in each region. Amagi calls this “creative-versioning” where different television creative in terms of product variant or a different creative rendition of the same advertiser is played in different regions on the same channel simultaneously. Creative versioning addresses critical needs of both broadcasters and advertisers seeking to optimize their Return on Investment (ROI) from the television spot. Given the TRAI’s recent 12 minute ruling on advertising, broadcasters and advertisers have been seeking ways to optimize their Return on Investment and stretch the time within the limited inventory.

     

    Sudhanshu Vats
    Srinivasan K.A

    Said Sudhanshu Vats, Group CEO, Viacom 18: “As a leading broadcaster, Viacom 18 has been pioneering several innovations and has been at the forefront of providing newer platforms for improved customer deliveries. This initiative further builds on our strategic thrust of sharper segmentation. We are pleased to partner with Amagi and Hindustan Unilever on this unique concept of micro-targeting.”

     

    Srinivasan K.A, Co-Founder, Amagi Media added: “We are happy that we have been chosen as the partner to enable this innovation. This is the first time worldwide in television advertising that a single spot bought nationally has been used to communicate different brand messages in different regions. Such micro-targeting is going to be the future of television advertising.”

     

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  • To mark the new episodes of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Nickelodeon has partnered with Toy Triangle to bring in an exclusive toy range targeted towards boys

    Nickelodeon targets Rs 250cr fm merchandising this yr

    By Ananya Saha

     

    Sandeep Dahiya

    Nickelodeon, the children’s channel from Viacom 18, began its merchandising journey five years ago. Merchandising became a critical part for Nick India to engage and interact with its young audience. While in the recent financial year-end, merchandising only contributed to high single-digit percentage towards the revenue, Nick India managed collective net retail sales of Rs 120-130 crore (of which 8-20% go towards paying royalties), according to Sandeep Dahiya, SVP & Business Head – Consumer Products, Viacom18.

     

    This financial year, Mr Dahiya hopes to garner revenues of Rs 250 crore through merchandising. And he is hopeful to achieve the target, given that Nick has partnered with Toy Triangle to bring an exclusive toy range of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles targeted towards young boys in India. The range will debut on May 1 at Hamleys. Post two weeks, it will be available at various big-box retailers and large format stores such as Shopper’s Stop, Hypercity and Reliance Timeout.

     

    The launch will be supported by a 360-degree marketing campaign across the nation. Mr Dahiya reasoned, “We could not have timed the launch better. The series has registered some great ratings across US, UK, Canada and Australia, and is now set to launch in India in early May, coinciding with the launch of the toy range.” He added that beginning with toys, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will soon expand into other key categories – stationery, back-to-school, publishing and apparel.

     

    Syed Adil Qamar, Country Head, India, Toy Triangle says, “We are delighted to partner with Nickelodeon India on such a huge property, which is already creating waves internationally. We have already received an overwhelming response from retail buyers who believe that TMNT will re-invigorate the toy aisle in the action.”

     

  • Nick Jr is being positioned as an ecosystem for pre-school kids and their moms.. Balle balle to that!

    Tot’s the way ahead for Nick Jr

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    Most parents are faced with a slightly amusing scenario almost every other day in their lives when their kid is stuck between choosing what programme to watch from an array of kids channels that are blasted across to them. From toddlers to tweens to even teens, children across different age categories have a tough time trying to watch an entertainment channel that amuses them the most. While some may blame this on the innumerable offerings that are available today, others may reason that the quality of content is so superior that it makes the task of staying loyal to one channel more demanding.

     

    While in any other space (under the realm of television), players would think twice before venturing with a new channel if the space is too cluttered, that is not the case with the kids genre that saw the launch of a new and challenging entrant in the form of Nick Jr. Said to be the third such launch from the Nickelodeon stable, Nick Jr. is being positioned as an eco-system for pre-school kids and their moms. With world-class content on-air, backed by a comprehensive consumer products range at retail, Nick Jr. aims to become the preferred destination for kids from the age group of 2-6 years and their moms.

     

    With history by its side, Nick Jr. is known to be successfully beamed around 125 countries and across 25 different languages with the tag of being a kid-friendly channel that airs safe and edutaining shows. The content is so devised keeping in mind curriculum goals and a child’s growing needs – be it motor, cognitive, creative or technical skills. In fact properties like Dora the Explorer, Go Diego Go, Team Umizoomi, Bubble-Guppies and Blues Clues, amongst many others, Nick-Jr shows are well-researched and proven to aid learning amongst pre-school kids.

     

    Nina Elavia Jaipuria

    Sharing her excitement with MxMIndia on the latest entrant and on the positioning being adopted, Nina Elavia Jaipuria, EVP & Business Head – Kids Cluster, Viacom18, said: “It just isn’t education per se as that would be very boring and that’s what children do anyways at school. The focus for us is edutainment – a combination of entertainment and education. The focus is a result of the multiple choices that are available for parents and children today.” Given her own example, Ms Jaipuria added, ” As a parent, I can tell you that there are some choices that a parent has to make for their children and as one moves forward one realises that there is a time for everything – both education as well as entertainment. Today, in most houses television has become inevitable and is on switch-on mode for most part of the day. At such times, kids become passive viewers to a lot of content that adults watch. So to bring back the focus on development for children through entertainment was what our objective is.”

     

    According to Ms Jaipuria, “There is too much pressure on kids today to perform well be it at school dance, sports etc. As a result of which they get stressed out easily. So the focus here is development of the child which is not rigorous in nature but which is helpful for the growth of kids.”

     

    Along with most experts who agree that the edutainment segment is still unexplored and in a nascent stage in India, Jaipuria too has a similar sentiment to share. Says Ms Jaipuria: “The whole concept of parents wanting their kids to be competitive has been there from the start but what has changed today is the offering. We didn’t have much choices or offerings when we were young but that aspect has changed today. So while edutainment offering is in a nascent stage in India the need was always there. Today there is content available that is bridging that gap.”

     

    Packing a punch

    To begin with, the channel would be airing content daily between 6am to 7pm in the evening and would be followed by Nick Teens. Elaborating on the channel’s approach to content, “The content would primarily be in English and no other language as yet. That’s because in India, English is an aspirational language. Most parents want their kids to learn English whether from SEC A, B, C or D it doesn’t matter. We will play our content only in English so that it helps create another language skill for children,” she explained.

     

    On whether the channel will be open to incorporating indigenous content, Mr Jaipuria said, “We don’t plan to launch Indianised shows as yet on Nick Jr. as the shows are very well researched and need a lot of pipeline time as well. Since we have Nickoledean as our mother brand we know that we have invested in three more shows as we go along – they take years to make and we are waiting for them to launch in the US and then bring them here. Having said that, we know that kids are universal in their appeal and therefore every content targeted towards them works today. You do not have to make desi content to cater to local needs; at least not for this genre.”

     

    Sandeep Dahiya

    Sharing his plans on the retail front, Sandeep Dahiya, SVP, Consumer Products – Viacom18, said, “Given the line-up of iconic characters on Nick Jr., we’re ready to give wings to kids’ imagination, through a product range that’s comprehensive as well as interactive. As part of our plan to create an eco-system around Nick Jr., we will not only further strengthen the Dora the Explorer franchise, but also bring to life some of our other internationally acclaimed properties like Go Diego Go, Bubble Guppies, Blues Clues and Team Umizoomi, in categories that are both, conventional as well as unconventional.”

     

    While the kids genre is increasingly being viewed as being cluttered, that may not necessarily be the case, feels Ms Jaipuria. In fact, according to her the kids genre contributes around 8 per cent to the overall television pie and is second only to GECs in India. The space has also being seeing good response from advertisers with the ad spends pegged at around Rs 250-300 crore. According to Jaipuria, what will further incentivize players to do well is the digitization wave that will bode well for all players. “With digitization having come in, there is a lot of segmentation that is now possible for us to do. Digitisation has enabled us to segment and provide offerings to viewers in a manner where business also makes sense for us. I guess it’s a wave of digitisation that we rode on with Nick Jr. particularly,” she said.

     

    As for launching the channel in a slowdown phase, Ms Jaipuria said, “Slowdown has had no effect on our channels so far. In the past six years that I have been here, we have launched three channels and each one of them has being throwing up good viewership numbers so far. In fact we’ll be launching more Indian content as we move along.”

     

    On solid ground

    With its plans around content firmly in place, the channel would be complementing the offline initiative with a little help from online too. Added Ms Jaipuria: “We will be focusing on digital around Nick Jr. And will especially be targeting the mothers. As we’ve said, mothers will be a very important subset while we promote this channel. Also, I am imagining that it will be the mother that will lead the channel on to the digital platform; and mothers today are present on the website – let’s get real about that fact. There are a lot of activities that the mother can do with the child on our digital platform.” According to Jaipuria, the idea is to stay ahead of the curve as kids today are becoming screenagers and they want to consume content across various screens. “We want to make sure that we are present across various screens and therefore the idea of engaging outside of television,” she affirmed.

     

    When asked about the viewership numbers expected from the newest entrant, Jaipuria expressed a feeling of caution as she said, “It is difficult to predict what viewership Nick Jr. will throw up because the slicing of TAM doesn’t even capture this segment; the whole rating system starts from the age group 4. So I do not know they will manage to capture our TG. Ideally Nick Jr. will be like any other niche channel that not necessarily depends on GRPs but has a whole lot of connect with the TG audience. We are trying to figure out if TAM can do anything about the slicing of the kids genre but till then we will live with what we have.”

     

    Presenting a robust outlook for the various channels under Nickelodeon, Ms Japuria sounded content as she said, “Sonic has a 3 per cent market share and is riding high on digital. If you know the kids category you will know that it is a very slow category as you have to build loyalty with children over a period of time. They are so in love with their favourite character that it takes time for them to like another. As for Nickoledean, it occupies anywhere between 18-22 per cent market share and competes for the top spot. With digitisation taking off, we expect our market share to only grow further.”

     

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    MxMIndia spoke to top media agency captains on the launch of Nick Jr 

     

    Mohit Joshi, MD, MPG India

    Yes, definitely there is scope for more kids channels in India. Kids consume a lot of television and are most loyal viewers of shows – ‘appointment viewing’ in the true sense happens in this TG. On a personal note, my daughter is very upset that ‘CBeebies’ is not available anymore. Point being made – this TG is hungry for more content and ‘good’ content.

     

    Also, we as parents and as media experts, would love to have an edutainment channel option in this country.

     

    Shashi SinhaShashi Sinha, CEO – Lodestar UM & IPG Mediabrands

    I have not seen the content on the new channel and would therefore not be in a position to comment much on it but the fact is that the kids genre is at an exciting phase in India. With edutainment as their core focus, the channel has made a good segmentation move that will ensure that kids come and watch their channel. Moreover, more than half of India’s population is young and anything that is catered to or centered around them will eventually do well in the long run.

     

  • Sandeep Dahiya, Sr. Vice President – Consumer Products & Communications, Viacom18 Media, on merchandising helps bring alive popular characters for a kiddie channel like Nickelodeon

    Jaldi 5 with Sandeep Dahiya: Kids’ merchandise market still at start line

    It’s been a few weeks since kid brand Nickelodeon India, that has a diverse portfolio in the kid’s consumer market with its popular toons, introduced its own sub-brands in the Indian market under Nick Explore, Nick Sports and Nick Action. The first edition from this kitty was ‘Nick Explore’ that has been initiated in an association with Mexus Education.

     

    MxM India quizzed Sandeep Dahiya, Sr. Vice President – Consumer Products & Communications, Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd on this ambitious new licensing venture and what consumers can look forward to in the future.

     

    01. What does the current kids toys and merchandising market look like in India? Is there scope for broadcast players to make it big in this space?

    The landscape is large and the opportunity to expand is immense. However, we’re all still at the ‘start’ line. Compared to the developed markets where over 90% of the retail is organized, in India, it’s the other way round – with just about 7-8% being organized. However, the good news is that the rate of growth of the organized part is outgrowing the unorganized part…and that is a great indicator for everyone.

     

    Broadcast players have been able to build platforms that bring alive these characters and create a fantasyland around them. Kids love fantasies and the licensed products, help them live their fantasies – be it school bags, shoes, books, bicycles, playsets, dolls and accessories, amongst other things.

     

    02. How is the ‘Nick Explore’ venture doing for Nickelodeon?

    Nickelodeon has always tried to engage kids of all age groups with merchandise that is unique, interactive and entertaining. This collaboration also marks our entry into a new domain – both from a brand as well as a category perspective. The ‘Nick Explore’ range of kits, developed by Mexus Education, will help unlock the creative potential in older kids, while exposing them to basics of science in a manner that’s fun and interactive.

     

    03. Mexus Education is the partner that you have tied up with for Explore. Who are the other players that you have approached with your concepts?

    Let me put it like this: Mexus Education was the perfect partner, given their expertise at product development and distribution strength. We are in talks with other players for similar concepts, but it’s too early to talk about it.

     

    04. Apart from edutainment, which are the other categories that kids have a liking towards and something which you are contemplating venturing into?

    Expansion into newer categories and concepts is an on-going process and there are quite a few of them that we’re pursuing.

     

    So what can one expect from Nick Sports and Action next?

    An exciting range of toys and play-sets that would keep the kids engaged, active and outdoors.

     

    05. What are your promotional plans so as to enable this venture gain a pan-India appeal?

    It is being supported by both above- as well as below-the-line initiatives. We have been supported by all large formats in giving us significant retail presence. The new product range will be promoted through online initiatives.

     

  • It's Children's Day, and a cross-section of stakeholders help us in this genre check of kiddie TV

    TV for Children: Growing, and how!

    Representational photograph (Kids participating in laughter therapy session in in Mumbai… Photograph by Fotocorp)

     

     

    By Ananya Saha

     

    There was a time, not so long ago in the 1990’s, when the Sunday slot of Mahabharata and animated series meant family viewing or kids genre. Kids were allowed to watch TV with parental permission. And today, kids genre in television media is the third largest after Hindi GECs at 27.6 per cent and Hindi movies at 11.9 per cent according to the FICCI-KPMG 2012 report.

     

    Anita Nayyar

    Acoording to Anita Nayyar, CEO, Havas Media, India & South Asia, the advent of Discovery Channel in 1999 saw a segment of kids watch it for education or interest. “Star World in 2004 had programmes like ‘Full House’ starring kids, but it was really post-2006 when kids became dominant. Their growing viewing needs and dedicated channels for them were addressed by various slots on various channels and some dedicated channels like Cartoon Network, Pogo, Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, Hungama, etc,” she points out. However, there is no denying the fact that there is not enough programming and print magazines for the young adult making them an underserved audience.

     

    Nina Elavia Jaipuria, EVP and Business Head, Sonic and Nickelodeon India concurs, adding, “In terms of getting their daily dose of entertainment, this TG needs to flirt with options available across multiple platforms – be it TV, online or print.”

     

    Sashwati Banerjee

    Apart from television content, on the print content, Sashwati Banerjee, Managing Director, Sesame Workshop Initiatives India PLC added, “Books / print is another matter. This is not a generation that is growing up with print awareness and it is reflected by the recent ASeR report which showcases that children in Grade 5 are reading at Grade 2 level. There is a serious crisis in education, and reading, comprehending and fluency are critical indicators to children’s lifelong learning. There is a large number of publishers in India, but very few publish children’s books and a still smaller number specialize in publishing children’s books. Recent reports have indicated that ebooks have a higher growth potential. However, wider access is still an issue as these books require high end mobile devices (cell phones and tablets) to access and use.”

     

    Nina Elavia Jaipuria

    Catering to infants to kids upto eight-years, Galli Galli Sim Sim has evolved in multiple ways since it’s inception in 2006. It evolved the format from the classicSesame Streetmagazine style to a more narrative ‘block style’ based on research that children in India are more used to stories or narration. Considering that access to television is limited, Galli Galli Sim Sim produced a radio programme, that is being aired by 10 community radio stations to reach populations with critical messages around health, hygiene, literacy and girl child education.

     

    Talking about Nicklodean and Sonic, Ms Jaipuria, said that Nickelodeon reaches out to 11 million kids pan India. “With media spends on kids channels approximately in the range of Rs 270cr, It is slated to grow further due to a slew of new channel launches in FY 13, she asserted. She also said that with the launch of Sonic in 2011, the investments in the kids genre has grown.

     

    According to a recent E&Y study the children’s genre has emerged as the largest viewership segment after India’s general entertainment channel (GEC) sector. The segment comprised 18.3 per cent of the viewership among 4-14 year olds in 2011, as compared to 16.9 per cent in 2010. The study also states that advertising revenue generated by the children’s genre totalled Rs 2.4 billion in 2011, up from Rs 2 billion in 2010. This is attributed to the growth in the viewership in the children’s genre from 43 million in 2010 to 48 million in 2011. This segment focuses on its target audience through a total of 14 channels in the age groups of 2-4 years and 4-14 years, comprising the majority of the market, as well as 14-18 years.

     

    The market for kids programming is huge, and the audience in this segment is growing. No wonder then that this November Zee launched ZeeQ, a 24×7 edutainment channel for kids aged 4-to-14-years. There are talks and suggestions of a DD Kids given Doordarshan’s reach. Kids seem to be pampered in the true sense and it is positive pampering.

     

    Even as the category sees more entrants trying to woo the young audience, in terms of advertising pie, this genre ranks after general entertainment and sports. “We’ve seen a range of products and services making the kid the hero – from financial like insurance say an ICICI Smart Kids with the kid at the dinosaur museum or Bank of India with the kid putting his piggy bank in the locker to a flipkart.com with kid avatars of the elders contemplating a buy; simply because they are either targets or influencers and their starring role has the potential for breaking clutter. We’d estimate the kids ad-market between Rs.200crores to Rs.260crores. The pioneer in using kids to demonstrate pester power was Maruti Suzuki’s Esteem report card commercial,” elaborated Ms Nayyar.

     

    With evolving societal structure as well as keenness on kid’s development for the future, Ms Nayyar predicts that “edutainment” will be the biggest driver in the category growth. Kids today are also more exposed .They are more amenable to instruction through entertainment. According to her, the vehicles that will drive the growth will be television, print and online, with online gaining lead.

     

    “Word-of-mouth in this category has really been underestimated but here is a core audience for this marketing phenomenon,” said Ms Nayyar.

     

    Challenges

    Content creators and television channels for kids are increasingly experimenting with applications for cellphones and low-cost tablets and migrating content from a traditional linear medium such as TV to non-linear mediums to expand access to populations that need it the most as well as to enhance and enrich learning experiences for children. Notwithstanding the fact that the advent of digitization in India will be a key driver to the growth of the genre in the near future, mobile devices rather than the television set will be the primary driver to engage children in the future. “We’re seeing this change in theUSas well,” said Banerjee.

     

    But the genre is facing very many challenges even as it looks at growth. As Ms Jaipuria points out:

    – The kid’s category is still hugely under-indexed despite the category contributing 8% to viewership on an All India Level at 4+ age group. TV adsales are under 2% for this genre. Hence investments in the business are under pressure.

    – The fragmentation in the kid’s category is increasing by the day with over a dozen players existing currently. This makes it possible for the broadcasters to offer differentiated content across genres and platforms.

    – Kids as an audience are a tough bunch to target. They do not consume print and outdoor as primary consumers. A large chunk of the marketing investment is on BTL activities such as School Contact Programmes, Retail activation, direct consumer contact using multiple on-round vehicles which have an extremely high cost per contact.

    – Distribution and carriage remains a challenge for this category.

     

    Also, as Ms Banerjee explains, children today are “exposed to all kinds of programming especially in single TV homes. There is also extremely low awareness amongst parents on what children should view and what they should not. There is an imperative need to provide rating guidelines as well as awareness on how media affects children.”

     

    While the experts believe that the greatest challenge is the creation of original content, or even good adaptation, quality is a major issue. There needs to be a very clear understanding  of the sub-slice segment categories to contain the spill to international programmes, CDs and the online world as also increase the share of viewership of the media vehicle.

     

    Says Ms Nayyar: “A lot of content and marketing is done and created for the Sec A and B but we miss a whole other India which invests heavily to educate its kids to give them another destiny. Here, affordable print with in-school promotions with reach beyond the creamy layer would create a whole new bottomline. Also, regional is a huge emerging market; again content with localization and language are opportunities and challenges. Content as always will be both the game player and game changer!”

     

    The growth might also come from other content and entertainment avenues such as gaming. The only challenge is to tap into the potential with the right content.

     

  • Nickelodeon's first theatrical release, Keymon & Nani In Space Adventure, will be in cinemas across four cities on November 9

    Nickelodeon’s Keymon Ache to hit big screen

    By A Correspondent

     

    Keymon Ache, Nickelodeon India’s local, non-mythological production that was launched in India last year, is soon slated to make its theatrical debut. After capturing the hearts & minds of kids on television, he will now make his debut on the silver screen with his movie – Keymon Ache & Nani in Space Adventure – A Viacom18 Motion Pictures Release. Set to release on November 9th this year, the movie will trace the adventures of Keymon along with his buddy Rohan. Produced in association with DQ Entertainment International, the movie will see a four-city theatrical release across Mumbai, Pune, Delhi and Bangalore in leading multiplexes.

     

    National Award winner Usha Uthup has lent her voice to the catchy songs in the film and the background music for the show has been composed by popular music director Sandesh Shandiliya.

     

    Speaking about Keymon’s Bollywood debut, Nina Elavia Jaipuria, EVP and Business Head, Sonic and Nickelodeon India said, “Taking Keymon Ache’s popularity a step further, Nickelodeon is taking his entertainment quotient to the silver screen. We hope to connect with our audience and reach out to them wherever they are through multiple touch points, thus tangibilizing and creating awareness for Keymon Ache. Nickelodeon will ensure kids and parents enjoy their Diwali holidays at the movies.”
    Keymon & Nani in Space Adventure will see Keymon with his buddy Rohan jetting off to Goa to meet his Nani, a fierce lady who knows karate and many languages. The character design of ‘Nani’ is inspired from Usha Uthup herself! A relaxing trip turns into an adventurous one as Keymon, Rohan and Nani encounter some unexpected enemies. What follows is a series of extraordinary events with Keymon & Rohan having to rescue Nani and have an alien adventure of a lifetime!

     

    Taking the brand a step further, Keymon Ache will be supported with an extensive merchandise launch, starting November 2012. The channel will launch the 1st ever Keymon Ache consumer products range for kids 4years+, that will include apparel, footwear, puzzles and DVDs. Keymon footwear is being launched in association with Wiesner Worldwide Kreations, ranged between Rs 199 and Rs 1099. To create further excitement for Keymon fans, Reliance Footprints and Maya Gitanjali will run a retail-based contest called ‘Star with the Super Star’. Winners of the contest get an opportunity to catch the premiere of the movie with Keymon Ache!

     

    Adds Sandeep Dahiya, Sr. Vice President – Consumer Products & Communications, Viacom18 Media Pvt. Ltd., “Keymon Ache has been a frontrunner ever since it was launched on Nickelodeon and it’s only natural that we extend his presence beyond television. The launch of ‘Keymon Ache’ merchandise will further strengthen our existing product lines around ‘Dora the Explorer’, ‘SpongeBob SqaurePants’ & ‘Ninja Hattori’, which has an existing presence in over 50 categories in India.”

     

    On ground, the channel has partnered with ‘Gelato’, where a Keymon Special Black Currant flavour will be available across all Gelato outlets in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Pune. Kids can also participate in a simple contest being held at these outlets and stand a chance to win Nickelodeon merchandise, which will be handed to them by Keymon himself! On the digital space, a customized Keymon microsite will keep Gen Y glued through games and movie videos. After the fantastic response received for the game ‘Keymon goes fishing’ last year, the channel is introducing 2 new Keymon games on the microsite www.keymon.in. A contest on Nickelodeon’s Facebook fanpage (www.facebook.com/nickindia) will give kids a chance to win movie tickets with their nani’s along with goodie bags!

     

    After a successful 1st season of Keymon Ache, Nickelodeon launched season 2 on October 29th this year. The show had premiered in May 2011 and is India’s first local, non-mythological contemporary show. The show enjoys huge fan following not only in India but also across the globe. From what was just a funny dude on TV, Keymon went on to ruling kids’ hearts, achieving a 1.11 TVR in its first week of launch. Within a year, Keymon Ache had made its presence felt in the print, online and outdoor media, making it the biggest multiplatform summer launch in the category in 2011.

     

    Keymon’s debut on the 70mm screen has the ingredients of a masala blockbuster for the whole family – magic, comedy and action!

     

  • Nickelodeon has joined hands with Mexus Education to launch edutainment toys under 'Nick Explore', and the channel will also launch toys under 'Nick Sports' & 'Nick Action' soon

    Nickelodeon launches edutainment toys

    By A Correspondent

     

    Nickelodeon India has a diverse portfolio in the kid’s consumer market with its popular toons and is now set to introduce its own sub brands in the Indian market – Nick Explore, Nick Sports and Nick Action. The first edition from this kitty is ‘Nick Explore’ in association with Mexus Education, one of the leading providers of hands-on educational toys for kids.

     

    The Nick Explore range of hands-on-learning toys and instructive games exposes kids to the fundamentals of science & technology thus increasing their imagination and analytical skills. These edutainment toys are targeted at 8 years and above, with 24 different models and priced from Rs. 199 to 2499. Nick Explore includes toys like rocking chairs, quad bikes, 360 degree cannons, walking robots, retro planes, earthquake meters and many more. The components in all the toys are interchangeable, re-usable and comes with infinite possibilities of making new models and machines. The range will be available at Hamleys, Landmark, Reliance Time Out, Shoppers Stop, Beanstalk and several toy stores across the country.

     

    ‘Nick Explore’ promises to be fun while it encourages active play & high engagement value amongst children. The toys give kids an opportunity to develop a constructive mindset, increase creativity, logical thinking and are DIY (Do-It-Yourself) too; so children get an opportunity to engineer the toy themselves, right from scratch!

     

    Speaking on the launch of Nickelodeon’s sub brands, Sandeep Dahiya, Sr. Vice President – Consumer Products & Communications, Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd said, “This collaboration marks our entry into a new domain – both from a brand as well as a category perspective. The ‘Nick Explore’ range of kits, developed by Mexus Education, will help unlock the creative potential in older kids, while exposing them to basics of science in a manner that’s fun and interactive.”

     

    Rohit Jain, Managing Director – Mexus Education added, “We are delighted to launch our latest innovative designer toys as Nick Explore. This is in continuation with our efforts of making learning enjoyable for kids. Nick Explore series will give a new dimension to the way kids perceive toys and studies by delivering the rare mix of analytical skills and creativity. Now kids can make new designs everyday and experiment with their ideas to make real machines and life size models with world class quality components in Nick Explore products.”

     

    Nickelodeon’s association with Mexus Education will include a 360-degree marketing promotion that will include on-air promotion, on-ground activities, digital and radio that will help in consumer engagement. The new product range will be promoted through various social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter as well as on the Nick India website. There will also be contests and retail promotions planned around the range.

     

  • Nickelodeon’s recently launched new show Motu Patlu in its bid to get kids hooked onto its second home-grown animated show has started its on-ground initiatives and promotional campaign.

    Nickelodeon’s Motu Patlu engage kids through innovative promotions

    By A Correspondent

     

    Nickelodeon’s recently launched new show Motu Patlu in its bid to get kids hooked onto its second home-grown animated show has started its on-ground initiatives and promotional campaign.

     

    Apart from Motu Patlu being the top priority for promotions on the network, the campaign will ensure optimal reach though an extensive media bouquet that includes various on-ground activities and strategic promotional partnerships.

     

    The retail sector sees a huge increase in consumers in the festive season of Dussehra and Diwali. The campaign will make most of this though its partner Pantaloons and be actively present across 18 Pantaloons outlets in Mumbai and Delhi to ensure maximum brand visibility.

     

    In an attempt to be present everywhere kids are, Nickelodeon has also tied-up with exclusive gaming outlet – Timezone. Here kids can participate in the Motu Patlu contest through the Kiosk’s at Timezone and also sample the show, while they win cool Motu Patlu merchandise.

     

    Making the consumer ‘Eat, Drink, Sleep’ the brand has been taken literally, as Motu Patlu’s Signature dish Chole Bhature will be available and promoted across Bombay Blue outlets in Mumbai. Kids can also engage with the interactive Motu Patlu tray mats at all the outlets. Promotions will also be a part of the on-going Nickelodeon workshops at Hobby Ideas where kids will be exposed to the unique flavour of the show while they participate in ‘Art Jam’ workshops and bring out their creative side by making Motu Patlu chocolate boxes and more. The activity spans across 5 cities and over 7 centres.

     

    Commenting on the innovative marketing strategy, Nina Elavia Jaipuria, Executive Vice President & Business Head, Sonic and Nickelodeon India says, “This experiential marketing campaign brings alive Motu Patlu, engaging kids through innovative initiatives at multiple touch-points. Our unconventional campaign connects with kids and reaches out to them wherever they are. Thus, tangibilizing and creating awareness for Motu Patlu.”

     

    It was essential that the campaign focused on the width as well as depth through its media. Hence, while a lot of efforts have been made to target the urban kids, the smaller towns are not too far behind. Nickelodeon has planned engagements through Van Activations in over 30 towns like Lucknow, Kanpur, Allahabad, Varanasi, Agra, Mathura, etc. in Uttar Pradesh and Gwalior, Khandwa, Indore, Ratlam, Bhopal, Jabalpur, etc. in Madhya Pradesh. Kids can enjoy Motu Patlu games and watch the episodes while wining Nickelodeon merchandise. The Van Activation has been designed to give kids the right flavour of the show and make show and its characters familiar with the kids.

     

    To ensure the right connect with the tech-savvy generation Nickelodeon has also launched Motu Patlu’s official website – Motupatlu.in. The site will host a strong content mix that includes numerous Motu Patlu games, contests, download-ables and a lot more. In addition, motupatlu.in will also be promoted through a comprehensive digital campaign that entails banners on kid gaming websites, video banners and innovative rich media banners that allows the users to interact on the banner itself. The show will also be promoted on Nick India’s official page on Facebook (www.facebook.com/nickindia) and on twitter @nicktvindia.

     

    As a part of the ATL promotions, Motu Patlu will also be promoted across various General Entertainment Channels and print advertisements in leading comics. Adding yet another innovation to this home-grown animated show, Nickelodeon has roped in legendary lyricist Gulzar to create a title track composed by acclaimed musician Sandesh Shandiliya and sung by renowned singer Sukhwinder Singh. The title track of the awesome twosome’s jodi will be played on all radio stations across Mumbai and Delhi and several other cities in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.

     

    Motu is aired every day at 6.30pm on Nickelodeon.

     

  • MxMIndia spoke to Nina Elavia Jaipuria, EVP & Business Head, Sonic & Nickelodeon (India), on the importance of an online presence, and how one kids' channel can differentiate itself from the others

    Need to change to be at par with Gen Y: Nina Jaipuria

    Nina Jaipuria

    By Meghna Sharma

     

    Gone are the days when children had to wait for morning or evening slots to watch their favourite cartoon characters. Today, they just have to browse through the various kiddie channels available to catch their favourite shows and characters anytime.

     

    The children’s genre has grown manifold in the past few years with more and more channels launching and bringing international as well as local shows to the Indian living room.

     

    So, how does one stay ahead in this race? And the answer is as simple as – move with the times. There is no doubt that the world is moving online. And the latest addition to the digital world are children who have grown up on ipads and smart phones. Hence, kids channels alone cannot survive on television alone. Most of them have a very active online avatar to attract their target audience.

     

    MxMIndia spoke to Nina Elavia Jaipuria, EVP & Business Head, Sonic & Nickelodeon (India) to find out why is it important for a channel in the kids genre to be online today, and how their channels are different from the rest.

     

    Why is it important for a channel to have an online presence today?

    There are a couple of reasons why one should be present in the digital platform. Firstly and foremost, it helps one to engage with its audience beyond television. It also helps the brand to enhance its presence. It gives a touch-feel-play experience so helps the audience know what the brand is all about. And lastly, it makes it a two-way communication wherein the brand can have a dialogue with its TG and know their likes and dislikes which further helps the channel to know and alter according to what the audience wants.

     

    For us, staying ahead is important and therefore, an online presence helps us create a ‘cool’ imagine among our TG. One has to keep on changing with time if they want to stay at par with Gen Y which is online almost 24/7.

     

    How can a channel benefit from this?

    In the past few years, the traffic online has increased and a majority of them are kids/youth. Therefore, an online presence gives us an idea about what children prefer today. Which indeed helps us to create a strong community based on their likes and dislikes. For a channel, it is important to have this two-way communication rather than seeing it as competition.

     

    What online activities does your channel indulge in? What is your online budget?

    Apart from various (100+) games and videos, we have a lot of contests on occasions like Friendship Day, Fathers Day etc wherein children can win gift vouchers. We also have e-cards as well as paint and print app. For the youth channel – Sonic – we have created a special section ‘TechnoSonic’ which features futuristic gadgets which interests a certain age-group. Also, we have a strong presence on social media where we want to build a strong online community!

     

    Most of our marketing budget is spent on BLT activities like school or mall activities. However, online presence is also very important for us. Thus, an appropriate amount is spent on the digital space as well.

     

    There have been debates about the need for kids’ channels to be more responsible about the content they show. What is your take?

    Yes, I do believe that broadcasters need to be careful about what is shown as children’s minds are easily influenced at that tender age. Therefore, we also believe in gaining the trust of ‘gatekeepers’ ie parents. Most of our children have a moral message like good’s win over evil. Even the language used is very safe.

     

    Even online, we monitor what is posted on our websites. For instance, if an offensive word is found, we delete it immediately. And regular offenders are even blocked.