ITV

Category: AXN

  • AXN off to a strong start in Korea

    MUMBAI: The action oriented AXN says that it got off to a great start in Korea, achieving the top position among retransmission channels over the weekend. It started broadcasting on SkyLife Channel 333 from 15 July 2005.

    Miller rides into AXN’s launch event in Korea

    At the launch event Sony Pictures Television International senior VP and MD Asia Todd Miller made an entry on his mountain bike to clearly epitomise the personality of the AXN brand, as well as the attitude and spirit of an AXN viewer – adventurous, irreverent, edgy, daring and exciting. Korean subtitling has been provided on the channel.

    AXN ranked number one among the retransmission channels, and also achieved an overall ranking of 16th, out of over 80 channels on the SkyLife platform (excluding terrestrial stations), marking it the most successful launch of a retransmission channel in Korea.

    Miler says, “AXN is thrilled to broadcast into Korea with our partner SkyLife. AXN is a channel full of energy, life, excitement. We are committed to bringing top quality action and adventure programming that will deliver what we call ‘The Buzz’ to Korean viewers. We at AXN also deeply appreciate the Korean Broadcasting Commission’s retransmission license to AXN as the first international general entertainment channel to retransmit into Korea.”

    SkyLife CEO Dongkoo Suhr said, “We are pleased to have such a high-quality channel as AXN join our family in SkyLife, we are confident the addition of this exciting new channel will cement our position as the leading Korean digital satellite broadcasting company and we hope to see this partnership help boost the Korean broadcasting industry to new levels.”

  • AXN appoints Hanmer&Partners as PR agency

    AXN appoints Hanmer&Partners as PR agency

    MUMBAI: Action oriented AXN has appointed Hanmer&Partners as its press relations and communications agency, ending a productive relationship with Good Relations which lasted over three years.
     
     
    Queried as to the reason for the switch, Sony assistant VP marketing Rohit Bhandari, who manages AXN in India, pointed out that there was too much changing of senior personnel who were handling the account.
     

    Bhandari added that one factor in Hanmer&Partners’ favour was that they do not handle many media accounts. “They mainly handle corporate accounts and FMCG clients. This gives us confidence that they will be able to bring a fresh perspective into how a story is to be presented for a television channel.

    “They can also come up with innovative ideas regarding how the salient features of a story can be presented to the media so that people in the industry look forward to reading about what we are doing. There are deliverables that we expect from Hanmer and Partners. For instance when we organise an Xtreme ground event next year it is their job to use the right media channels to send out the message.”
     
     
    “They also have to decide on publications that somone like Gregory Ho (AXN VP marketing and creative services) should be giving interviews to. It is not simply a case of inviting all the media outlets.”

    Bhandari added that the large size of Hanmer&Partners ensures a great degree of stability. Perfect Relations was one the agencies that pitched for AXN’s account. Bhandari pointed out that Perfect already handles channels like Discovery. “So if we had hired them the danger was that we may get ideas that have already been used before.”

  • AXN ‘Amazing Race Asia’ announces teams

    MUMBAI: Asia’s very own, The Amazing Race Asia, reveals the ten teams selected to race around Asia and beyond for the grand US hundred thousand dollar prize. The inaugural The Amazing Race Asia, is slated for broadcast on Thursday, 9 November 2006, 11 pm, exclusively on AXN! Come join the ten pairs of adventurous and gutsy residents of Asia as they take part in the first-ever Asian edition of the four-time Emmy award winning reality-competition series, The Amazing Race!

    The Amazing Race Asia reached a broad spectrum of people from various Asia countries, cultures and different walks of life since the call for participation that was made in February 2006. Some begged, some bragged, some even cried, just to attract the eyes of the selection committee. It was a tough process, but after much deliberation, a diverse group of contestants living in different parts of Asia, of various backgrounds and life experiences were thrown into the mix to outrun, outsmart and conquer in the race.

    AXN has produced the award winning series Amazing Race within Asia. This is a multimillion dollar series that is produced by AXN Asia and has teams from across Asia competing. It is the first localized production of such a monumental scale and stature.

    The teams will be traveling around Asia and beyond where language barriers, time constraints and foreign environments become too hot to handle.

    Out of more than ten thousand applications from all over Asia an Indian team comprising of hunky male models Prashant Raj Sachdev & Sahil Shroff were chosen and they will compete against 9 teams from Asia to win that coveted prize of fame and money!

    In a time where reality shows with international formats within India and relayed only in India are the talk of the town, Prashant and Sahil have gone where no other Indian has gone before, competing on an international platform to international as well as Indian audiences.

    Host Allan Wu says, “The producers definitely took the time and did their homework to select the most diverse, entertaining, and controversial batch of contestants for our first season. Expect to see the usual tantrums and arguments between teams and teammates. Furthermore, expect to see clashes that you’ve never even seen on the US-version. Our contestants are from all over the region and not just one country so you are definitely going to see some major drama and rivalries.”

    The Amazing Race Asia is an AXN original production. Ricky Ow, General Manager of SPE Networks – Asia says, “The participants are the key drivers of any challenge-reality show with the humor and drama that they create onscreen. Viewers will definitely not be disappointed by our selection of the contestants. They are a colorful and vibrant mix that will truly make The Amazing Race Asia an exceptional and really unique first-of-its-kind viewing experience for Asia viewers.”

    The Amazing Race Asia promises to be a highly entertaining program not to be missed!

    The Amazing Race Asia will be broadcast exclusively on AXN on the 9 November 2006.

    TEAM PROFILE

    Prashant and Sahil have been close buddies for the past five years from the commercial, movie and fashion capital of India, Mumbai. Anyone who takes a glance at these two will be tempted to do a second take and probably think of them as Bollywood hunks. Both are models on the fashion runway but that does not necessarily mean they lead boring lives punctuated with shoot after shoot or endless catwalks.

    They hold other jobs as well. Prashant organizes events and Sahil works for his family’s business – and along the way, they find time to regularly work out in the gym and take interest in their active social lives as well. When Prashant first met Sahil’s sister five years ago, she kept telling him how similar he was to her brother. When both Prashant and Sahil finally met, they hit it off immediately and have been close friends since then.

    While both acknowledge having similar traits and characteristics which led to a strong friendship, they gave insights to the differences in their personalities.

    Sahil is more outgoing and spontaneous which is a trait much admired by Prashant. “I would rather do fifty things in a day,” says Sahil, “than do twenty.” Prashant, on the other hand, is more laid back and more patient. He would rather see things through before making a decision. Sahil describes Prashant as being “more accommodating”, and sees that trait as a good thing.

    Prashant underscores the fact that the both of them balance each other out, saying. “The thing that I lack, he excels in.”

    What they believe will stretch them far during the Race are compatibility and mutual understanding that they possess as close buddies. The ability to perform better under stress seems to be another secret that they believe will crown them the glory in the Race. They foresee one of them having the ability to maintain the calm and some measure of equilibrium when stress sets in.

    Mental grit apart, having two guys in a team may prove to be an advantage when strength could be the ultimate factor in tackling physical challenges.

    As the only team representing their country, national pride may just be the fuel needed to drive them towards their goal in winning The Amazing Race Asia.

  • AXN will weave fear, fright and magic next month

    MUMBAI: Action channel AXN is keeping the thrill seekers firmly in its sights. Ready to roll are three new series – Fear Factor, Scariest Places on Earth and David Blaine.

    A thorough screening of all episodes on the three shows has been conducted to ensure and edit any objectionable scenes which may hurt viewer sensibilities.

    Fear Factor premieres on 6 February at 9:00 PM People’s most primal fears are pushed to the limit in a game format. In each episode three women and three men must perform challenging and life threatening stunts demanding co-ordination of mind and body. If they complete their tasks, they advance. Succumbing to fear means elimination. The contestant who wins the final challenge takes home $50,000. Stunts could include jumping from one moving train to another, climbing from a moving boat to a helicopter.

    Next in line is The Scariest Places on Earth premiering on Thursday Feb 7 at 9:00 PM The aim is to make viewers jump out of their seats with fright. Hosted by actress Linda Blair (of The Exorcist fame), the show dares brave families to spend an evening alone in legendary sites known for their hauntingly disturbing histories. One family will be challenged to stay the night at a creepy ancient monastery in Italy, where monks reportedly committed horrible deeds in the adjoining town. Another family will stay in New Orlean’s historic Magnolia Lane plantation believed to be haunted by ghosts from the American Civil War. Strategically placed cameras capture each family’s terrifying and very real experiences. The challenge is whether or not families have what it takes to last the night.

    On 3, 10, 17 February at 9:00 pm magician David Blaine astounds people on the street with his own brand of magic. Blaine claims to be a master of the art of illusions. He uses the art of sorcery in street corners like injecting card tricks, coin feints or levitation stunts. A highlight is David Blaine – Frozen in Time on 17 Feb at 9 pm, when Blaine performs his death-defying encapsulation in a block of ice. Defying hypothermia and proving that mind is power over matter, he braves the paralyzing cold for three days.

    Speaking on this senior marketing manager, Sony Entertainment Rohit Bhandari said: “This year is going to be an action-packed one where AXN viewers in India can expect something different and exciting every month. Fear Factor, David Blaine and Scariest Places on Earth have the right mix of action and adventure to continue our successful and popular programming formula, giving viewers in India, and region-wide, more opportunities to get the buzz from AXN.”