MxMIndia

Tag: Zee Entertainment

  • Q&A with Pradeep Hejmadi, Biz Head, Zee TV as the 22-year-old GEC goes in for a brand refresh with a new identity and viewer proposition

    Zee TV will always stand for Ummeed

     

    If there’s one man in the broadcast sector who knows what works to generate a good, consistent score on the ratings roster, it’s the Pradeep Hejmadi, Business Head of Zee TV. Mr Hejmadi led the all-important S-Group at TAM, the audience measurement firm currently the sole player providing us TV viewership data.

     

    Having joined the Zee Entertainment flagship channel as Business Head, Mr Hejmadi got onto the act of building a new brand identity and packaging for the channel along with his marketing head Sorbojeet Chatterjee and the rest of the team. On Sunday evening, at the annual ‘Zee Rishtey Awards’ show, Zee Entertainment Managing Director and CEO Punit Goenka unveiled an all-new brand packaging that resonates with the channel’s core ethos, while staying relevant to the changing palate of its loyal audiences. The Zee logo turned to a deeper more in-your-face shade of blue and the look-and-feel got vibrant and younger. From the proposition of ‘Ummeed se saje Zindagi’, the new tagline of the channel changed to: ‘Har Lamha Nayi Ummeed’.

     

    Readers of MxMIndia would’ve read the news of the branding on December 15. But, now let’s hear the story from Pradeep Hejmadi himself. Excerpts from an exclusive interview with Pradeep Hejmadi:

     

    Zee TV has been doing very well in the crop of Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs).  Of the various fictions that took off in 2014, Zee shows had the best launch ratings. So, as they say, if it ain’t broke, why fix it? Why this relaunch? And would you say this is a repositioning as well?

    Our successful fiction launches this year and the consistent growth of our fiction programming speaks of a very special relationship we have closely cultivated with our audiences – one that has only evolved and strengthened over the years. It has grown due to our ability, as a broadcaster, to innovate and keep pace with the changing times and expectations. What we’re going in for is a brand refresh exercise and not a relaunch. Zee TV’s core proposition of ‘Ummeed se saje Zindagi’ was about a celebration and vindication of a woman’s emerging beliefs and a reflection of her changing hopes, dreams and optimism. In that sense, Zee TV will always stand for ‘Ummeed’. It is the articulation that will change to reflect the changing times.

     

    Today, with India poised for distinct growth, there is a feeling of ‘a new hope, every moment’. So, Zee TV adds another layer to its core proposition, making it even more relevant to everyday life scenarios that its viewers are faced with. Zee TV’s new slogan ‘Har Lamha Nayi Ummeed’ captures the prevalent spirit amongst the people and our brand philosophy as also our content will reflect the same.

     

    Would this also mean a renewed content focus?

    Our core proposition isn’t changing. As I said earlier, Zee TV will always stand for ‘Ummeed’ and our content has been a reflection of  this universal life truth. The brand refresh exercise is aimed at arriving at a more ‘here and now’ rendition of our core proposition, making it more relatable in our day-to-day lives. Naturally, our content will mirror the same.

     

    Can you take us through the entire exercise? What were the findings on the earlier look-and-feel and the logo and what it is now?

    The brand refresh exercise has been about dialling up a few aspects of our brand identity – it always stood and will continue to stand for Ummeed. It’s just about taking it to the next level and making the packaging more vibrant, assertive and dynamic.

     

    In terms of ratings and revenues, are there any specific targets of this exercise?

    None.  If there is a currency for affection, we’re gunning for it!

     

    Did the entire mood of ‘achche din aane waale hain’  influence your line of ‘Ummeed’ ?

    No. ‘Acche Din …’ is a more recent campaign. Zee TV adopted ‘Ummeed’ as its core proposition way back in 2011.

     

    The problem with words like ‘hope’ is they build an expectation and if the hopes are belied and not met with, then there is disappointment. Is that something that you factored in or does this have no real bearing on the repositioning?

    Expectations are raised when promises are made. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with fuelling hope. That’s what makes the world go round.

     

    When Zee was launched way back in 1992, it had a simple, snappy line of ‘Yeh Hai Zee TV’. Do you think stuff like the tag line or the brand’s promise work with viewers, because a GEC is a GEC is a GEC after all?

    Contextually, it was perfectly right to have a slogan like ‘Yeh Hai Zee TV’ because we were pioneers in 1992, paving the way for satellite television in India. Now, over a period of time, where Zee, as a broadcaster, has etched a distinct brand identity in the minds of the audience, our current positioning is a reflection of the way our content is treated and the impact it has on our audience.

     

    A version of this appeared in dna of brands dated December 15, 2014

     

  • The session on 'Television 3.1' on day 1 of FICCI Frames saw the panelists assess the future of the broadcast industry

    #FF14 Day 1: Seamless content delivery across multiple platforms the way forward

    By a correspondent

     

    With so much being written and said of the emergence of multiple platforms and content delivery mechanisms in India, it was only apt to gather opinion from those that are driving the change to get a firsthand feel of the effects being spotted. The session on ‘Television 3.1’ on day 1 of FICCI Frames saw the panelists assess the future of the broadcast industry, in terms of content, marketing and distribution strategies in the era of convergence and multiplatform delivery mechanisms.

     

    The panelists comprised speakers like Tarun Katial, CEO, Reliance Broadcast, Vikram Chandra, CEO, NDTV Group, Mathieu Bejot, Executive Director, TV France International, Bharat Ranga, Chief Content and Creative Officer, ZEE Entertainment, Ashok Mansukhani, President, MSO Alliance and Todd Miller, CEO, Celestial Tiger Entertainment. The session was moderated by Janine Stein, Editorial Director, Content Asia.

     

    Vikram Chandra began by highlighting how 4G and smartphones will be the next big change agents in the Indian media landscape. “The recent months have witnessed a lot of people moving to the second screen to access content of their choice and with the access becoming more fast and affordable, smartphones will be the next big thing where content consumption is concerned,” he said.

     

    For Todd Miller, what will drive India in the months ahead will be the explosion of HD technology. Assisting that would be content from China that would be finding its way around the world, including India.

     

    Providing a different perspective, Bharat Ranga said that the way his network functioned it was a matter of tackling markets on a ‘meta’ level. Meta-national approach by companies that caters to market-specific conditions will drive the growth for broadcasters. Also, it will be essential for broadcasters to have a consumerist understanding of data and not marketing understanding. With the emergence of new platforms, Ranga noted that the industry will see the emergence of budding talents who will be able to bring in a different perspective.

     

    Ashok Mansukhani proposed that each stakeholder should be able to make money from the digitization exercise but that the consumer should have the final say. He said that the phase 3 and 4 of digitization will see a lot of players going fiber. While that will boost output, it is essential that the distribution rights of such an exercise are retained with the distributor, he noted.

     

    Tarun Katial said that India was ready to see content as the core subject that can be created for various platforms. The ability to have good investment strength and also the right mix of talent and content will help companies achieve the goal faster, he noted. Mr Katial added that while earlier ‘Content was King and Distribution was God’, the phrase has now changed to ‘Content is king and Technology is God’. Going forward, it is important that broadcasters have a hold on the IPs as that is what will matter in the future. And while much of the content at Reliance is being rented, Mr Katial added that very soon they will be working on producing content that would be their own.

     

  • The Jaipur Literature Festival has announced Zee Entertainment as the new title sponsor for the 2014 edition that takes place next week – January 17-21. Over 20,000 people are expected to attend each day of the five-day fest

    Zee is title sponsor of Jaipur Lit Fest

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Jaipur Literature Festival has announced Zee Entertainment as the new title sponsor for the 2014 edition of the fest which takes place next week – January 17-21, 2014.

     

    The festival, which is now in its seventh edition, will host a cross-section of top literary talent including Jonathan Franzen, Jumpha Lahiri, Amartya Sen, Harold Varmus, Tash Aw, Samantha Shannon and Reza Aslan.

     

    Subhash Chandra

    Said Subhash Chandra, Chairman, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited, in a communiqué: “Literature, as they rightly say, preserves our cultural ideals, customs and morals. ZEE has been the cultural ambassador of our nation to the rest of the world for over two decades. Our traditions and rich culture, weaved into our content, reaches over 700+ million viewers across the globe. Our brand positioning – Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, resonates this effort of ours, to unify the diverse cultures and traditions across the world into one Family. Celebrating this legacy further, we are extremely proud to associate with Jaipur Literature Festival.”

     

    Punit Goenka

    Punit Goenka, MD & CEO, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited, added: “The Zee Jaipur Literature Festival association further strengthens our endeavour in creating compelling and engaging story telling for our viewers.”

     

    Sanjoy K. Roy, Producer of the ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Zee Entertainment as title sponsor to the Jaipur Literature Festival. Their support will allow us to keep the Festival open to all, whilst bringing a wealth of world class talent to Jaipur each year.”

     

    The directors of the Jaipur Literature Festivals are William Dalrymple and Namita Gokhale and the festival is produced by Sanjoy K Roy (seen often on television news around the time of the Tarun Tejpal episode) and Sheuli Sethi of Teamwork Productions.

     

    The title sponsor of the festival last year was infrastructure company DSC and Tata Steel, Airtel and a host of others backed the event. In fact DSC has had a long association with festival as is with other literary initiatives. While the literature festival attracts a galaxy of writers and thinkers, the 2013 edition saw a controversy initially over the participation of Salman Rushdie in the proceedings and later over the remarks of sociologist Ashis Nandy on OBCs and SC/STs.

     

    Over 20,000 people are expected to attend on each day of the five-day festival. Decidedly, the biggest in the business. While there have been figures quoted of the sponsorship amount being in the region of Rs 5 crore, according to the grapevine, the actual amount could be even less than half that, with Zee putting its weight behind the promotion of the festival across media.

     

  • Q&A with the Marketing Head (National Channels) at Zee Entertainment on why he’s betting big on the &pictures airing even after the film doing so well on Zee

    Jaldi 5 with Akash Chawla: Extreme reactions on digital is name of the game

    By A Correspondent

     

    After the stupendous success of the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Chennai Express on Zee TV, the film will now share on the Zee group’s recently launched film channel &pictures on November 23 at 8pm. The channel is pulling all stops to make this premiere an even bigger success than Zee TV with a digital innovation to promote the airing.  An interactive voice response (IVR) system has been created where people can get call a toll-free number (18001035515) and get a reminder on the movie on their phones in Shah Rukh Khan’s voice. The channel is promoting the film in a big way in the digital media. The movie is going to be promoted is via the blogging community. Four lucky bloggers will be selected to relive the journey Shah Rukh and Deepika did from Mumbai to Rameshwaram. The bloggers will tweet and post their travel experience with the  &pictures hashtag on Twitter and build a buzz for the upcoming premiere. In addition, an aggressive marketing strategy has been initiated on traditional media like, TV, radio, print, OOH and cable. Akash Chawla, Marketing Head (National Channels) at Zee Entertainment took time to respond to our questions.

     

    01. Given that it’s coming close on the heels of Chennai Express scoring an all-time high on Zee, wouldn’t there be a pressure on achieving similar ratings?

    Zee is a 20-year-old GEC and Chennai Express is the biggest blockbuster ever in the history of the box-office. It premiered on Zee TV within three months of its theatrical release. Considering the above, Zee definitely had an advantage over &pictures. Having said that, there are still 70 percent of our viewers in the Hindi-speaking markets who hadn’t seen the movie then and hence would now become a target on &pictures. Plus there’s a lot of repeat value for such movies. Hence we’re definitely expecting high returns as being demonstrated by the push that’s been given.

     

    02. The decision to promote the film’s telecast via the digital and specifically the travel blogger route is interesting. But since the number of those connected digitally who will watch a film like Chennai Express is limited, why such an emphasis on digital?

    62 million of the 82 million Facebook users in India are connected via mobile. 40 percent of the Google searches happen via mobiles. We believe in small towns especially after brands like Micromax and Karbonn have reduced the prices of smartphones and have special tariffs by the operators, the mobile phone has become a compulsory medium replacing a bicycle. People who consume the digital media are one of our biggest targets and &pictures is utilizing this base to the fullest.

     

    03. Perhaps reaching out via smartphones as against via bloggers would’ve been more appropriate?

    As I said, &pictures is going to make maximum use of this base!

     

    04. In many ways, your move to promote to consumers via the digital route as against just newspapers etc is an indicator that the traditional media is not as indispensable as it used to be (for promotions). True?

    When one is talking to the masses at large, especially in a category like a video content like ours, audio visual media is of primary essence. Therefore conversion on TV still plays a pertinent role. Newspapers play the role of creating appointment and building scale if right format is taken. The digital route provides a targeted surround and reaches the right consumers.  When it comes to all TG, the blend of digital and traditional gives maximum impact.

     

    05. It’s tricky dealing with the digital media fraternity given that it’s unorganised and may not always be as ‘influenceable’ as the organised media. For instance, while there were mixed reviews from critics in the newspapers, digitally, we saw extremes. Some lampooned the film while a few gushed. Given this, isn’t too much dependance on digital promotions tricky? Almost like playing with fire?

    Extreme reactions on digital media is the name of the game. In fact, we saw extreme reactions when Zee Cinema aired Himmatwala. The film didn’t do that well on the box-office. But it didn’t mean that it did bad on television as well or had negative viewing. (The film fetched 5561 TVTs on Zee Cinema). While we all play with fire, today we can’t escape the fact that digital media has become an integral part such that we can’t ignore it. In our view, innovations on digital front have always been appreciated and have yielded results. Therefore while we’re playing with fire, we’ll kindle the flames in the right direction.

     

  • Mr Ramgarhia was until recently Commercial Head at Colors

    Zee Entertainment appoints Romil Ramgarhia as Commercial Head

    By A Correspondent

     

    Romil Ramgarhia

    Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) has announced the appointment of Romil Ramgarhia as Commercial Head. He will report to Punit Goenka, MD and CEO, ZEEL, and the entire commercial team at ZEEL will report to Mr Ramgarhia.

     

    Speaking on his appointment, Mr Goenka said: “I am glad to have Romil join the Zee family, and I am confident that his rich experience will bring in immense value to the organization”.

     

    Commenting on his new role, Mr Ramgarhia said: “It is always an honour to join a global brand like Zee. I have personally been an admirer of the pioneering steps taken by this organization in the last 20 years.”

     

    Mr Ramgarhia, who joined Zee on September 13, was until recently Commercial Head, Colors and other than Viacom 18, he has worked with Bharti Airtel, Asian Paints and ACC Ltd.

     

  • The movie channel space is set to hot up with &pictures buying rights for Besharam, Ghanchakkar & Zanjeer along with Chennai Express

    &pictures also acquires Besharam, Ghanchakkar & Zanjeer!

    By A Correspondent

     

    Soon after the report on MxMIndia that Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd has acquired the much-awaited Shah Rukh Khan film ‘Chennai Express’ for its proposed channel &pictures, ZEEL has now announced some more new films for the soon-to-be-launched channel.

     

    It has got the Ranbir Kapoor-starrer ‘Besharam’ produced by Reliance Entertainment, the Priyanka Chopra- and Ram Charan-starrer ‘Zanjeer’ and UTV’s Vidya Balan–Emraan Hashmi-starrer ‘Ghanchakkar’, &pictures is being billed as India’s first interactive movie channel

     

  • Zee Entertainment pays Rs 40 crore plus for satellite rights of Shah Rukh Khan starrer Chennai Express for its upcoming channel '& Pictures'

    Zee pays Rs 40+ cr for Chennai Express for its upcoming channel ‘& Pictures’

    By Nandini Raghavendra

     

    Zee Entertainment has secured the satellite rights of soon-to-be-released Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Chennai Express for a new movie channel it is launching next month under the bouquet ‘&’. The movie, which also stars Deepika Padukone, will be aired on ‘& Pictures’, the first channel to be launched in the new bouquet.

     

    “The price is Rs 40 crore plus for seven years, with a link to box-office performance of the film but it is a win-win situation for both the channel and the producer,” said Jayantilal Gada, who does all the buying of film rights for the Zee group.

     

    While the Zee network already runs four Hindi film channels – Zee Cinema, Zee Premier, Zee Action and Zee Classic – and holds the rights to over 4,000 Hindi films, ‘& Pictures’ will primarily run on a premiere model with big new release titles, according to people close to the development.

     

    ‘&Pictures’ launch will be a precursor to the Rs 4,000-crore media conglomerate’s plans to add multi-genres to the network through different bouquets. For now, the Subhash Chandra-owned Zee has a huge bouquet with channels across genres as well as regional plus a sports bouquet under the Ten brand name.

     

    Zee’s new strategy follows Star Network, which launched its second general entertainment channel (GEC) ‘Life OK’ around two years ago, followed by ‘Movies OK’. It is said to be looking to extend the brand to other genres. Viacom, which runs the GEC Colors, is also looking to launch a second GEC, which it currently runs in the UK under the name ‘Rishtey’.

     

    The satellite rights of Chennai Express had seen a lot of buzz with industry sources saying deals had fallen through with other networks on price issues.

     

    The deal links the film’s satellite price to the box office collections. If Chennai Express crosses the cut-off amount, which is said to be around Rs 130 crore, then for every Rs 10 crore net collection after that, the producers get an additional Rs 2 crore. The producers of the film – Shah Rukh Khan and Siddharth Roy Kapur of UTV Motion Pictures – declined to comment.

     

    Satellite rights form a crucial component of a film’s revenue, contributing 30-35% of its total recovery. For broadcasters, movies generate critical gross rating points (GRPs). With almost all broadcasters vying to acquire rights of the top stars, price wars are not unheard of in the industry, with rights of films still on the production floors being signed up. Almost all films starring top stars such as Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan and Salman Khan have fetched satellite rights between Rs 40 and 45 crore.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2013, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • The media network has launches a new brand positioning, 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' or 'The World is my Family'.

    Zee unveils new corporate brand identity

    By A Correspondent

     

    Media and entertainment conglomerate Zee Entertainment Enterprises has unveiled its new corporate brand identity and positioning. “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”, inspired by the core message “The World is my Family”, is the new positioning, which has been creatively integrated and crafted with the brand logo.

     

    Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam is the ancient Indian dictum on shared humanity, promoting a world where there is unity, harmony, and respect for every individual irrespective of caste and creed. The concept originated in the MahaUpanishad in a shloka and it means – “Only small men discriminate saying: One is a relative; the other is a stranger. For those who live magnanimously the entire world constitutes but a family.”

     

    Punit Goenka

    Speaking on the new brand positioning, Punit Goenka, MD & CEO, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (Zee) said, “Zee as a brand has earned global recognition over the last 20 years. Proud of its Indian heritage Zee is a cultural ambassador uniting millions of people in India and across the world through entertainment. It is a matter of immense joy to see this beautiful family of viewers, shareholders, partners and other stakeholders grow stronger. By imbibing this philosophy, we not only cherish their presence, but also welcome the world to be a part of this family”.

     

    The positioning and identity have also been extended to cover the group’s news and digital business verticals under one umbrella brand, called Zee Media.

     

    Ambi Parameswaran

    Ambi Parameswaran, ED & CEO of Draftfcb Ulka Mumbai, the creative agency behind the new positioning route, commented, “Zee is not just another brand for our agency and our relationship with the Zee runs deep. We believe Zee is a true pioneer and a trailblazer in the media & entertainment arena. Today, it is a force to reckon with on the global stage as well. The company is rooted in true Indian values of philanthropy and spirituality. The new identity and the global positioning line try to embody this in a succinct manner.”

     

  • Professor John Philip Jones, Author and Brand Guru was of the opinion that like in India, even theUS did not make the best use of internet advertising. However, he felt that the medium would continue to grow in both parts of the world

    Ads must be rational: Prof John Philip Jones

    By A Correspondent

     

    The internet would be the third largest medium in the world by 2020 after television and direct mail, said Professor John Philip Jones, Author and Brand Guru at the last day of Goafest 2012.

     

    The last day, which saw another good and powerful line up of speakers at Goafest 2012, commenced with Professor Jones talking about ‘Adding Drive to Magical Ideas’ and about the need for brands to use right strategies and right data to make advertising more effective.

     

    Interestingly, Professor Jones was of the opinion that like in India, even the US did not make the best use of internet advertising. However, he felt that the medium would continue to grow in both parts of the world.

     

    In the Q&A session moderated by Mr Rajesh Jejurikar, President, Zee Entertainment, Professor Jones said that while it is good for advertisements to have emotional contents, there has to be some elements of rationality in the advertisement to make it more effective to reach out to the consumers.

     

    Mr Simon Wardle, Chief Strategy Offer, Octagon spoke on ‘Passion Drivers and the Magic of Why’, citing the example of passion for sports which varies from country to country, for instance, the passion for cricket in India and the passion for football in another.  He said that in order to understand the consumers’ passion, brands will have to think like the consumer. He gave the example of ‘Mars’, a chocolate bar that didn’t change the colour of its wrapper since the 1930s, but during the Football World Cup a few years ago, it ran a campaign and tweaked the wrapper giving hope to its consumers that their country would win the World Cup after many years. He also said that it is not the sport that the consumer is loyal to, but the team and brands must understand this.

     

    Mr Rishad Tobaccowalla, Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer, Vivaki spoke on the future of creativity and the different mediums available today. He highlighted the abundance of opportunities in creativity within mobile itself, be through sound, picture, or even video. He was of the view that the real test of a brand is when consumers remember a brand for its creative, even after a period of time.

     

    Click here to view all Goafest 2012 stories