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Category: People

  • Filmart kicks off, new addition is Hong Kong Music Fair

    Filmart kicks off, new addition is Hong Kong Music Fair

    MUMBAI: The 10 edition of Hong Kong International Film & TV Market (Filmart) kicked off today (20 March). This edition also introduces the launch of The Hong Kong Music Fair, in collaboration with IFPI Hong Kong. Filmart is on till 23 March.

    The Hong Kong Music Fair will offer a dedicated pavilion for music industry professionals and players to explore business opportunities on new media applications, copyright trading, technology transfer and cross-media partnerships.

    Over 60 companies specialising in records production and distribution as well as artist management have taken part in this year’s premier Hong Kong Music Fair launch.
    Filmart offers a wide variety of products and services, spanning from film, animation, digital entertainment, audio-visual equipment, post production and music productions, at the four-day event.

    Over 400 exhibitors from 28 countries and regions presenting their most creative programmes have converged on Hong Kong Filmart, considered Asia’s world entertainment market. The exibihtion is recognised as the cross-media platform for industry players to network, exchange and trade in this part of Asia.

    Over 4,000 buyers have registered on-line to visit the show, informs an official statement. Exhibitor attendance this year includes the first time exhibitors from Turkey, the Bahamas and Iran.

    The Filmart exhibition will also inculde animation and digital entertainment pavilion to showcase their animation,online games and edutainment software as well as their digital post production facilities and services.

    The Hong Kong – Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) will be held concurrently with Filmart for the third year.

    HAF, co-organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and Hong Kong & New Territories Motion Picture Industry Association Ltd (MPIA), is aimed at serving as a match making platform for the film industry, helping commercially viable and promising film projects in Hong Kong and Asia locate financial and business support through joint ventures or co-productions.

    Over 160 film screenings and international premieres will be arranged for trade visitors.

  • Fun Technologies acquires WorldWinner for $23 million

    Fun Technologies acquires WorldWinner for $23 million

    MUMBAI: Fun Technologies Inc. has announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, SkillJam Technologies Corporation has acquired WorldWinner.com, Inc. for $23 million. This acquisition further consolidates the company’s leadership position in the fast-growing casual gaming market.

    Based in Newton, Massachusetts, WorldWinner is a privately held company that specialises in online skill games. It hosts more than 10 million games and awards millions of dollars in prizes every month, with games in five categories: Card (Bridge, Spades), Word (Word Mojo), Arcade (SwapIt, Blockwerx), Strategy (Skillgammon, Cubis) and Sports (Pool, Polar Bowler). An average of 350,000 games are played on WorldWinner daily. For the 12 months, WorldWinner’s unaudited financial statements showed revenue of $10.67 million.

    SkillJam is a multi-channel provider of skill-gaming technology and solutions. It develops and distributes private-label gaming solutions for a broad network of partner destination sites in the US and abroad, including AOL, MSN’s Zone.com, Virgin Games and Lycos. Through its skill-gaming website SkillJam.com, SkillJam offers a wide range of skill games to its over nine million registered users. SkillJam games are also offered over the internet, through wireless applications (mobile) and iTV (interactive television), and on stand-alone kiosks.

    Over the short term, WorldWinner’s products will continue to be offered on its website, http://www.worldwinner.com, but there will be some level of integration in the future with the SkillJam property.

    Fun Technologies CEO Lorne Abony said, “The acquisition of WorldWinner is a significant strategic achievement for Fun Technologies. WorldWinner was until now our largest competitor and by consolidating the two businesses we will achieve significant operating efficiencies, leverage and synergies. Skill-gaming is in its infancy and we believe it makes tremendous sense to consolidate the sector in its early stages to capture market share, increase supplier concentration, enhance distribution and acquire customers at low cost per acquisition. The synergies that exist in merging SkillJam and WorldWinner are enormous, as the businesses are complementary in every way.”

    Fun Technologies president Rick Weil added that acquiring WorldWinner means leveraging economies of scale and significantly growing revenue. Further, Weil stated, “We will acquire millions of new non-overlapping customers, increase our liquidity and offer customers a variety of new online games. We also intend to move quickly to take advantage of the cost synergies which exist in redundant operations.”

    WorldWinner president and CEO Stephen Killeen said, “We are proud to be a part of this merger with Fun Technologies. The consolidation of the two organizations will result in a global skill-gaming powerhouse.”

  • Dentsu survey estimates economic impact in Japan from Fifa World Cup

    Dentsu survey estimates economic impact in Japan from Fifa World Cup

    MUMBAI: Just how huge soccer is in Japan can be gauged from this piece of news! Dentsu president Tateo Mataki has announced the results of an independent quantitative survey conducted by its Center For Consumer Studies (CCS) regarding the impact of the 2006 Fifa World Cup Germany to be held from 9 June to – 9 July, 2006 on Japan’s domestic consumer economy.

    In addition to further stimulating already buoyant sales of DVD recorders and thin-screen televisions, which are making deep inroads into the household market, the event is strongly expected to provide a broad-based economic impact in Japan across many areas of the economy including manufacture of parts and components, distribution and service industries.

    According to the survey estimates, the event will directly bolster household consumer expenditures in Japan by ¥ 224.1 billion ($ 1.95 billion), including ¥ 93.1 billion spent on such digital consumer appliances and services as thin-screen televisions, DVD recorders, personal computers, and subscription-based BS/CS broadcasting services. The impact on expenditures for food and beverage is estimated at ¥ 41.4 billion, while spending on related goods is expected to increase by ¥ 42.7 billion.

    If the Japanese national team were to make it through to the semi-finals or final, the excitement induced across the entire country would further magnify the economic impact. In such a case, the total economic impact would grow to ¥ 546.1 billion, or ¥ 70.2 billion more than otherwise.

    Although a direct comparison with this year’s tournament and other sporting events is not possible owing to the different host countries involved and changes in calculation methodology, Dentsu and Institutes For Social Engineering jointly produced estimates of the economic impact from the 2002 Fifa World Cup which was held in Korea and Japan.

    According to those estimates, domestic consumption was bolstered by ¥ 848 billion including ¥ 705 billion in household consumer expenditures. The total economic impact induced by tournament-related consumption was estimated at ¥ 1,864.0 billion in 2002.

  • ‘The Apprentice’ fans in the US to receive text messages

    ‘The Apprentice’ fans in the US to receive text messages

    MUMBAI: US broadcaster NBC has announced that fans of its business based reality show The Apprentice will be able to sign up for exclusive text message alerts to be sent directly to their cell phones from the candidates themselves during the show.

    This initiative kicks off from today 20 March. NBC.com will offer weekly Apprentice alerts to subscribers, giving viewers the inside track to the unfolding onscreen action. Subscribers will receive up to five text messages from different candidates synchronised with the broadcast itself.

    As the drama intensifies on screen – and boardroom battles rage – candidates will send out messages detailing their thoughts, strategies and decisions as the episode develops.

    In India the show airs on Star World. Viewers can register at www.NBC.com/apprentice or text the word “APP” to the shortcode “62288” (NBCTV). On this week’s episode teams are given their fourth task – to design billboards launching the new face of Post Grape Nuts Trail Mix Crunch Cereal.

    The winning team – determined by Post executives who judge the teams based on originality, brand image and overall campaigns – cooks alongside world-renowned chef Jean-George at his signature restaurant in the Trump International.

  • IAMAI appoints Anupam Mittal as chairman, Subho Ray as president

    IAMAI appoints Anupam Mittal as chairman, Subho Ray as president

    MUMBAI: The Governing Council of the Internet & Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) has announced a change of guard at the association with effect from 1 April, 2006.

    People Group chairman and managing director Anupam Mittal has been appointed as the chairman and CII ex-director IT and telecom Dr. Subho Ray as the president of IAMAI.

    While Mittal takes over from Neville Taraporewalla, Dr. Ray takes over the mandate from Preeti Desai.

    The association also announced the appointments of ebay India CEO Avnish Bajaj as vice chairman and Times Internet CFO Ravi Ramu as its treasurer.

    Commenting on the new role as the chairman of IAMAI, Mittal said, “Under the able guidance of Neville and Preeti, IAMAI has played a significant role in organising and bringing together the internet and the mobile industry towards a common vision and agenda. IAMAI now enters its third year as an association and it is important to recognise how much has been achieved in the last two years. The association has gone from an idea to the most credible authority on the Internet and Mobile VAS industries in this country. The foundations have been laid to collectively build one of the leading digital and networked economies of the world.”

    Mittal outlined the three areas that IAMAI will work towards in the coming months:

    Play the role of a thought leader (research, events, networking) to further spur Internet usage and ecommerce growth in India
    Generate awareness amongst consumers and government of the economic as well as social benefits of broad based Internet usage
    Proactively address challenges and hurdles that can hamper the growth of what is perhaps one of the most transformational opportunities of our time
    “I am honored to be nominated for this position and am looking forward to working with and learning from pioneers such as Dr. Subho Ray, Ravi Ramu and Avnish Bajaj,” he added.

    Dr. Ray added, “Ecommerce and MCommerce and mobile content are some of the most exciting sectors today in India. Proliferation of Internet and Internet access through mobile communications has the potential to bring a wide range of financial transactions to an entirely new customer base. IAMAI will play a crucial role in channelising the digital economy’s effort and communicate its true potential for social and economic development. We will continue our concerted efforts of bringing 100 million Indians online by 2007 and empower society and businesses to benefit from the time and cost savings offered by the Internet.”

  • Tim Bowen is Sony BMG Music Entertainment COO

    Tim Bowen is Sony BMG Music Entertainment COO

    MUMBAI: Tim Bowen has been named chief operating officer of Sony BMG Music Entertainment. The announcement was made by the company’s CEO Rolf Schmidt-Holtz. Bowen will be based in New York and will report to Schmidt-Holtz.

    Bowen will work closely with Schmidt-Holtz in overseeing all aspects of the global music company’s operations. This will include direct responsibility for Sony BMG’s international operations, as well as the company’s global digital business, strategic marketing, legacy,

    masterworks and sales enterprise divisions. Bowen will also direct the company’s expanding audio-visual and TV interests on a worldwide basis and oversee human resources.

    “Tim brings to this role a deep understanding of both the creative and
    business aspects of the music industry. He has extensive experience with both of the companies that came together to form Sony BMG, and the dedication, passion and vision that are necessary to lead the joint venture into the future. He is clearly the right choice for this key post, and it is a true pleasure to announce his appointment,” said Schmidt-Holtz.

    “I’m delighted to have been given this opportunity. With a dynamic roster of current artists, a catalogue that includes an incredible number of legendary recordings, and impressive capabilities in the areas of marketing, distribution and digital initiatives, we have everything we need to establish Sony BMG as the clear leader in the global marketplace. I look forward to continuing my close working relationship with Rolf, as well as with managing directors from around the world and the entire Sony BMG team, as we realise the full potential of the joint venture,” added Bowen.

    Most recently Bowen served as chairman, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, for Sony BMG Music Entertainment International, a post he had held since February of 2004. He joined BMG in 2002 when he was appointed COO, BMG Europe by Schmidt-Holtz and carried out a number of international assignments before he was appointed chairman, BMG UK and Ireland in 2003. In the role of chairman he handled the operations of BMG and Zomba in the UK and Ireland and SYCO, Sony’s TV production company with Simon Cowell.

    Prior to joining BMG, Bowen worked for Universal Music International as senior vice president of marketing and business affairs and following the merger of Polygram and Universal Music he became executive vice president of Universal Music International.

  • Cable war erupts in Mumbai

    Cable war erupts in Mumbai

    Mumbai is facing a round of cable rivalry and war. Reportedly, underworld kingpin Chhota Rajan has reportedly being threatening the former minister of state Ramdas Kadam and his brother Sadanand Kadam who run a cable network, Sai Cable Network, affiliated with the InCable breakaway, Win Cable, in the Dahisar-Borivali-Kandivli area in northern Mumbai, which almost has a monopoly in the locality. They have reportedly been asked to forego their stake in Sai Cable Network and merge it with Seven Star Cable network which is said to be run by Rajan front man Kashi-Pashi.

    Another incident was reported from the Sion-King Circle area in north Mumbai. The Hinduja run cable network, InCableNet,set up a head-end in the area and roped in a Chhota Rajan frontman to operate from there. This apparently has ruffled the feathers of sub operators affiliated with InCableNet in the locality who have switched over to InCable arch rival Siticable. These operators – about 32 of them – used to take a signal feed from another Hinduja headend located in the suburb of Mahim.

    A Hinduja spokesperson agreed that InCable had set up a new headend but it was done to improve the signal available to suboperators and also to be in a position to offer them southern Indian language channels on the prime band which cable TV subscribers had been demanding. Siticable officials, however, dismissed the report of any shifting loyalties saying that everything was normal in the locality.

    The lucrative cable trade which commands a lot of revenues and huge profits has always been plagued by disputes and wars. It has since the beginning of cable TV in India been influenced by politicians and the underworld. It however had appeared united when all the cable TV networks in Mumbai blacked out ESPN-Star Sports a couple of months ago. The unity has since fractured and the bickering amongst the cable TV operators is once again become public.

    The trade will become more lucrative with the introduction of broadband internet access. Everyone wants to grab their share of the pie which is worth around Rs 45 billion as of now.

  • Mideast firm Spacetoon targets October launch of kids channel in India

    Mideast firm Spacetoon targets October launch of kids channel in India

    MUMBAI: Jeddah-based Spacetoon is eyeing the kids channel space in India. The company is contemplating launching a 24-hour animation kids channel around September – October this year.

    However, at present it is not clear whether the channel will be launched independently or in association with an Indian company.

    Spacetoon Media Group is headed by Fayez Weiss Al Sabbagh and is a mammoth kids’ entertainment brand for animation content in the Middle East.

    Spacetoon TV caters to kids in the age group of 2 – 12 years. Late last year, the company had inked a deal with Sahara One Television for a branded kids block called Sahara One – Spacetoon Hour. Talks are also on with a couple of players in the South for a branded Spacetoon block, which is likely to launch around May – June. The popular properties under its belt include Crush Gear and Me & My Brother, amongst others.

    Speaking to Indiantelevision.com, Spacetoon India CEO Rajiv Sangari said, “Through these branded blocks we are looking at testing our content in the Indian market. We have big plans for the company and are not just looking at the television business. Spacetoon is a vertically integrated company and we have a presence in merchandising, licensing, publishing, retail and the theme parks business. We are looking at launching all these divisions in India.”

    Spacetoon is also in the process of acquiring animation content from across the world. As far as local content is concerned, the company will be looking at acquiring content from Indian production houses and will also be producing the same for the Indian market. “We are acquiring a lot of content for the India region, so that when we launch, we launch with a bang,” he said.

    On Spacetoon TV, every hour has been symbolised with a planet. The planets are categorised into the following: Movies, Education, History, Science, Action, Adventure, Sport, Comedy, Girls and Bon Bon (for younger kids).

    Spacetoon has been active in the Middle East for the last 20 years but launched its channel Spacetoon TV in March 2000. The channel transmits to over 130 million viewers in more than 22 countries throughout the Middle East, North Africa, Indonesia and Korea.

    Spacetoon kids TV is in English and Arabic and plans are underway to launch a second kids’ channel in the Middle East called Space Power in July this year, which will cater to the tweens.

    The company is also planning to launch two to three theme parks in India and the Middle East in the next couple of years.

    Sangari said, “We are looking at replicating this model in India in a step by step process.”

    Through a sister concern, Spacetoon also has a presence in animation production in the Middle East. “We are also venturing into animation training colleges in India. Spacetoon has taken over an animation college in Toronto called DaVinci through which we will be having an affiliation in India. Here, we have partnered with a college, which has a presence Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kolkata. The plan is to set up animation training colleges for Indian students,” said Sangari.

    Sangari also informed that the merchandising division will be scaled up towards the end of April, which is when the Spacetoon block on Sahara One will be given a major push. “We launched the block in a very preliminary manner but will re-launch the toys and merchandising around our properties in a big way in April. We are also looking at organizing large scale events for Crush Gears across major metros,” he said.

    Spacetoon is the leader in kids publication and merchandising products in Middle East through its group company. It is also in the process of creating a “Space Toon Galaxy” in Dubai, which will form part of the Dubai Land Theme Park development.

    Plans on the retail front are also underway in the Middle East. “We are in the process of creating exclusive retail malls only for kids, which will have all major brands catering to kids under one roof. We will be looking at creating the same in India too once our television plans are underway,” Sangari said.

    Last year, Spacetoon Media Group entered into partnerships with Mondo TV, Orbit Satellite Television and Radio Network for the supply of a wide range of children’s programs such as films, educational programs, history and science documentaries, as well as action, adventure, sports and comedy shows.

  • Caracol, Funky Formats to showacse interactive telenovela at MIPTV

    Caracol, Funky Formats to showacse interactive telenovela at MIPTV

    MUMBAI: Colombian broadcaster Caracol Television and Funky Formats have come put with an interactive telenovela Second Sin.

    The format will air on Caracol later this year. The parties will offer the format to broadcasters at the television event MIPTV which takes place in Cannes next month.

    Caracol VP content and production Cristina Palacio, says, “In Latin America, this concept represents an evolution in our long history of telenovelas. But in the US and other markets, there’s an added advantage, since broadcasters can introduce a brand new telenovela script to a mainstream audience through a construct which is already well-established: reality TV. Everyone already understands how that works, so it’s the perfect introduction.”

    Funky Formats creative director Richard Martin says, “While there have been attempts at producing interactive dramas before, Second Sin is the first full-scale entertainment production of its kind. Without giving too much away, let’s say that the story line of Second Sin has something in common with Desperate Housewives, Lost and even Greek tragedy. It’s primetime entertainment—and in our view, American Idol meets Betty la fea.”

  • GRB Worldwide signs deal with BSkyB

    GRB Worldwide signs deal with BSkyB

    MUMBAI: Marking its first time to distribute product for a UK broadcaster, GRB Worldwide, the international acquisition, development, and financing wing of GRB Entertainment, has announced that it has signed an agreement.

    GRB Worldwide will have worldwide distribution rights (excluding the UK) to 14 hours of programming which originally aired on BSkyB¹s entertainment channel Sky One.

    GRB Worldwide president Gavin Reardon says, “The profile of BSkyB and its Sky One programming is commercially sound and exactly the kind of product that will work on channels all around the world. We are delighted with these new associations and look forward to a long-term relationship.”

    The titles in the initial agreement include Secret World Of Magic. Top magicians and mates Pete Firman and Alistair Cook embark upon a magical mystery tour of the globe, traveling from Las Vegas, Los Angeles and New York City to Spain, France and Argentina. They meet heroes of magic, reveal secrets behind the world¹s best tricks, and wow the locals with their unique brand of entertainment and distinctive, anarchic style.

    Unsolved Crimes follows British journalist Sam Kiley hot on the trail of America¹s most high profile unsolved cases: The Black Dahlia, The Thief Who Escaped by Parachute, The Exploding Pizza Man, and the Atlanta Murders. Each multilayered story is loaded with fascinating characters and grand intrigue as Kiley aims for results where law enforcement failed.

    Myths And Monsters is hosted by Lawrence
    Blair an adventurer, explorer and anthropologist, It delves into the connection between our most cherished myths and legends. He reveals that the ordinary everyday world we inhabit is but a thin layer over a deeper, hidden, supernatural & mythical world.