ITV

Category: Over The Top Services

  • Disney+ Hotstar signs 13 sponsors for IPL 2022

    Disney+ Hotstar signs 13 sponsors for IPL 2022

    Mumbai: Streaming major Disney+ Hotstar has roped in 13 sponsors for the 15th edition of the Tata IPL 2022. Dream11 has come onboard as the ‘co-presenting’ sponsor, with Tata and Cred as the ‘co-powered by’ sponsors. Swiggy, Pristyn Care, Zepto, Ather Energy, Niyo, Parle Agro, Spotify, Livspace, L’Oreal and Spinny have been signed-on as associate sponsors.

    Tata IPL is scheduled to commence on 26 March and the tournament will be broadcast live on Disney+ Hotstar and the Star Sports Network.

    “In the next few weeks, the entire nation will be gripped by T20 fever with the commencement of Tata IPL,” said Disney Star head – ad sales Nitin Bawankule. “There is heightened interest from advertisers across categories for the upcoming season of Tata IPL owing to the addition of new teams and rejig in the pre-existing squads, thus an opportunity for them to reach out to a new set of audiences. The advertiser sentiment is extremely positive, all key features including Super 4s, Super 6s, Fall of Wickets and Milestones have sold out on our platform already. We look forward to delivering an impactful T20 season for our advertisers.”

    “Disney+ Hotstar presents brands with the opportunity to reach highly engaged, affluent audiences across India through its sharp targeting options on live sports, an industry first. The platform has a host of innovative advertising and branded content solutions for businesses to reach out to, engage with their audiences more effectively, and tell their brand stories on live cricket like never before,” said the statement.

  • Animation and VFX company ReDefine expands to Kolkata

    Animation and VFX company ReDefine expands to Kolkata

    Mumbai: Global animation and visual effects company ReDefine has launched its new office in Kolkata, West Bengal. This office will initially be hiring mid to senior-level artists also giving them an option to work from home, the company said.

    Launched in 2019, ReDefine provides creative visual effects and animation services focused on expanding international markets as well as independent filmmakers everywhere. It supports studios producing film, television, and animation content.

    ReDefine is currently providing VFX services to the upcoming TV series based on the video game “Halo” as well as several Hollywood and Bollywood projects including “Brahmastra,” written and directed by Ayan Mukherjee and starring Amitabh Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt.

    “We are expanding our footprint in the eastern region of India and are very excited about it,” said ReDefine managing director Rohan Desai. “We pride ourselves in our extensive experience and market-leading technology. We have noticed that there is an untapped talent pool in West Bengal that is waiting to be unleashed and trained. As we explore newer geographies, we want to harness this undiscovered talent to bring in new perspectives and dimensions to our services.”

    The growing global demand for premium content, resulting majorly from the incredible success of the over-the-top (OTT) media, has caused increased demand from content creators for high-quality VFX and animation services.

    “We have worked with some of the most renowned production houses in Hollywood and hope that this office will provide added support and increase the capacity of our future national and international projects.” added Desai.

  • Netflix to acquire Finnish mobile game developer Next Games

    Netflix to acquire Finnish mobile game developer Next Games

    Mumbai: Streaming giant Netflix has entered into an agreement to acquire mobile games developer and publisher Next Games based in Helsinki, Finland. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2022, subject to customary closing conditions.

    “Next Games has a seasoned management team, strong track record with mobile games based on entertainment franchises, and solid operational capabilities,” stated Netflix vice president games Mike Verdu. “We are excited for Next Games to join Netflix as a core studio in a strategic region and key talent market, expanding our internal game studio capabilities. While we’re just getting started in games, I am confident that together with Next Games we will be able to build a portfolio of world class games that will delight our members around the world.”

    Founded in 2013 and led by Teemu Huuhtanen, Next Games creates and operates engaging mobile games with an authentic and social fan experience at the heart. The company’s strategy is to develop games on popular entertainment IP with fans across the globe, including “Stranger Things: Puzzle Tales,” a story-driven puzzle role playing game (RPG) inspired by one of Netflix’s most watched series. The company had approximately 120 employees at the end of 2021 and reported sales of approximately €27.2 million in 2020, with 95 per cent of revenues generated from in-game purchases in 2020.

    “We have had an unwavering focus to execute on our vision: to become the partner of choice for global entertainment businesses and craft authentic and long-lasting interactive entertainment based on the world’s most beloved franchises,” said Next Games chief executive officer Teemu Huuhtanen. “Joining forces with the world’s largest streaming service, Netflix, presents an opportunity for a logical and exciting continuation of our strategy to craft interactive experiences for the world to enjoy. Our close collaboration with Netflix on ‘Stranger Things: Puzzle Tales’ has already proven that together we create a strong partnership. This is a unique opportunity to level-up the studio on all fronts and continue on our mission together.”

  • Armani Exchange, Jio World Drive team up for India debut of A|X Press Play

    Armani Exchange, Jio World Drive team up for India debut of A|X Press Play

    Mumbai: Jio World Drive, along with international luxury retail brand Armani Exchange has announced the India debut of A|X Press Play which brings together music and gaming on one platform.

    The two-day weekend fiesta on 5 and 6 March gives people a chance to experience the best of music, game ceaselessly and binge on some mouth watering food and beverages at the same time.

    Starting from 11 a.m onwards, A|X Play has over 30+ games including all-time favourites such as “Pac-Man,” “Contra,” “Mario,” “Mortal Combat,” “Street Fighter,” “Big Hammer,” “Stick Catcher,” “Foosball,” “Air Hockey,” “Nerf Shooting,” and “Basketball.” Gamers can experience the atmosphere of an esports arena with nail biting Fifa tournaments on Playstation 5. 

    The celebration will be heightened with latest techno music by Indian and international DJs like DJ Ana Lilia and DJ Shaan taking over the dance floor. Also lined up are live performances by stand up artists and YouTube sensations.  

  • Clean OTT to launch world’s first female-focused global streaming platform

    Clean OTT to launch world’s first female-focused global streaming platform

    Mumbai: Entertainment entrepreneur Karnesh Ssharma on Tuesday announced the launch of Clean OTT, the world’s only female oriented original-content streaming platform scheduled for the first quarter of 2023.

    India based Karnesh, who recently announced a $54 million content deal with Amazon Prime and Netflix for his production company Clean Slate Filmz, will set new benchmark in the Indian entertainment industry by providing a roster of cut-through content placing female actors, directors and producers at its heart and givingIndia, the world’s largest film export, a central role to play in challenging global gender stereotypes, said the statement.

    Clean OTT will be driven by an annual subscription SVOD model and will initially launch in India before expanding to markets such as the UK, USA, Canada, and the UAE – all of which celebrate a significant diaspora community. The content, though frequently localised in its production, is strategically chosen to have a resonance with worldwide audiences,demonstrating the popularity of local stories internationally and how such narratives are transient in nature, it added.

    “i have always believed in the power of storytelling to move hearts and minds and I am conscious of the responsibility that entertainment platforms have in producing and promoting stories that do not endorse bias,” said Karnesh Ssharma. “For centuries patriarchy has governed storytelling, and as a man, I have always felt men play an equal part in shifting the narrative, conversation, and power shifts. When the voices of women are heard it teaches us new perspectives which, as an audience and filmmaker, are just as compelling and interesting.”

    Speaking about the importance of market segmentation for its content strategy, Karnesh added, “We believe there is a unique opportunity to expand content. For example, women make up 50% of viewership in India yet most of the content is male focused or represents women in a secondary fashion. We are confident the Clean OTT narratives will appeal to everyone as we provide a platform free of prejudice. This will give women a voice that can be enjoyed by any demographic around the world and for those who are part of our productions, a path for career progression.”

    The Clean OTT content will comprise international and regional projects across films, web series, and docu-series. The company will include originally curated and produced works by Clean and pre-selected projects that meet the Clean OTT messaging framework by other producers from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. The library will showcase the credentials of an experienced team of directors, scriptwriters, actors, and producers associated with Clean Slate Filmz, as well as giving rise to emerging talent, the statement said.

    Clean OTT will be available across web platforms, mobile apps, subscription platforms and other content aggregators around the world.

  • Witzeal onboards Naveen Goswami as head of innovation

    Witzeal onboards Naveen Goswami as head of innovation

    Mumbai: Witzeal, a new age gaming technology company on Tuesday announced the appointment of Naveen Goswami as head of innovation. With this appointment, Witzeal is determined to strengthen its leadership team and bring about revolutionising change and innovation to the players of Big Cash, thereby providing a remarkable gaming experience to its user base.  

    “Innovation is an imperative module for growth of any company, and we are constantly working towards honing our innovation skill and team,” said Witzeal CEO and founder Ankur Singh. “We are delighted to welcome Naveen on board and look forward to taking Witzeal to greater heights with his expertise and knowledge. His extensive experience in establishing technologies and various teams in different organisations will contribute to the quality of our services and the overall zeal of the team,”

    In this role,Goswami will play a pivotal role in driving new product innovation and development at Witzeal with an aim to bring a qualitative difference to Witzeal’s gaming platform over the years of growth to come. Additionally, he shall be responsible to oversee and implement changes in approaches, methods, products, and processes to enhance competitiveness and improve overall gaming experience, said the statement. 

    The gaming industry in India is growing at an exponential rate and is estimated to reach $3.9 billion by 2025, making it one of the most profitable sectors in the country. Witzeal has and continues to focus on innovation to foster a holistic growth in this sunrise sector and Goswami’s expertise will help the brand to cater to a wider ecosystem, said the company. 

    Goswami is a visionary technology leader and a strategist with over 18 years of experience with proficiency in identifying new revenue enhancement initiatives, designing customer experience journeys. His technical area of expertise is microservices, cloud computing, security, infrastructure automation, auto scaling, virtualisation, disaster recovery, monitoring and management. He has a diverse background in technology, having worked with companies such as ShepHertz, VMware, Digital River, Ericsson, and others on ideation, design, implementation, and deployment of large products on Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and Microsoft Azure to centralise massive volumes of data for analytic purposes and to migrate Data Warehouses to the cloud.

    “In today’s booming online gaming sector, creative use of technology and data can work wonders. I’m excited to be able to put my skills to the test by managing the product Innovation team and securing Big Cash’s and its players’ rapid growth,” stated Naveen Goswami on his new role.

  • Nielsen, Experian expand agreement to enhance identity demographics

    Nielsen, Experian expand agreement to enhance identity demographics

    Mumbai: Nielsen and Experian have announced an expanded strategic initiative to enhance identity data in the United States for digital measurement of the open web. Experian marketing data assets will enhance the Nielsen Identity System by providing persistent IDs for open web measurement, increasing coverage and interoperability by supporting audience measurement across screens and devices that are consistent and comparable.

    Forthcoming cookie deprecation is fundamentally changing the advertising ecosystem. Combined with the deterioration of other digital identifiers, there’s greater emphasis on people-first measurement approaches to accurately count and deduplicate audiences across platforms as well as report on a person’s characteristics, thus addressing advertising waste and fraud.

    Integrating Experian marketing data assets into the Nielsen ID System will further strengthen Nielsen’s ability to match person-level data to devices, increasing the scale and accuracy of demographic distribution for reported impressions for Nielsen’s Audience Measurement and Outcomes products.

    Advertisers and publishers can use Nielsen Digital Ad Ratings (DAR) with more confidence knowing the solution leverages a variety of best-in-class data sources that are aimed towards appropriately assigning and deduplicating audience demographics across devices, content and ad exposure. This initiative builds on the two companies’ longstanding relationship where Nielsen is already leveraging demographic data from Experian in Connected TV DAR services.

    As part of the Nielsen ID System, the Nielsen ID Graph links billions of first and third party signals which are calibrated against, and validated by, Nielsen’s people-based panels and truth sets. This joint initiative will further position Nielsen to scale its ID Resolution System and deliver deduplicated audiences across linear and digital platforms as part of NielsenOne, its cross-media measurement solution.

    “This expanded agreement with Experian immediately enriches Nielsen’s Identity System in the US, and showcases our commitment to independent measurement and marketplace interoperability,” said Nielsen chief data and research officer Mainak Mazumdar. “This is an important milestone as we continue to evolve our technologies and methodologies as we move toward NielsenOne, underpinning a strong digital measurement capability which helps with the vision of a true cross-platform that measures across all screens.”

    “Experian’s goal is to enable privacy-forward identity in the marketing ecosystem, helping brands build smarter audience strategies and powering more robust cross-platform measurement,” said Experian Marketing Services SVP – strategy and partnerships Aimee Irwin. “We are excited to expand our longstanding strategic partnership with Nielsen, bringing addressability at scale through connectivity and interoperability across the ever evolving identity landscape.”

  • Eight months into launch, Zee5 Global surges forward in the US

    Eight months into launch, Zee5 Global surges forward in the US

    Mumbai: Eight months into launch, Zee5 Global has bolstered its presence in the US market, with a record rise in subscription revenue and engagement among the South Asian populace, the platform announced on Monday.

    The streaming platform revealed the US is now the second-largest market for Zee5 after India and the largest contributor to the platform’s international subscription revenue and viewership. It has recorded a growth of 15 per cent month on month in its viewers and subscriptions on the back of a wide array of original shows catering to the South Asian communities. The US now drives over 40 per cent of its international subscriptions, it said in a statement.

    While Hindi continues to be the driver, the platform has seen double-digit growth in other language content, including Bengali, Telugu, Punjabi, and Tamil across states. Telugu content for instance has seen strong traction, especially in Colorado, North Carolina, Missouri, and Texas. Bengali content on the other hand has done well in Kansas, Louisiana, Connecticut, and New York.

    “I am very glad to see the strong response to Zee5 in the US, especially within such a short span of time,” said Zee Entertainment’s president digital businesses and platforms Amit Goenka. “The US is a high priority market for us and material to our International Strategy, and this early momentum inspires much confidence as we plan for the days ahead.”

    Zee5 Global chief business officer Archana Anand said, “As the only standalone destination for South Asian content in the US, Zee5 Global has grown at an exponential rate in the last eight months and surpassed every milestone. By bringing in the biggest stories and stars from the region as well as ensuring new content every minute and as it releases in India, we will continue to delight our viewers here with the very latest content from back home in the language of their choice.”

    The OTT platform is currently catering to key South Asian language-speaking communities, including those from Pakistan and Bangladesh with over 170,000 hours of content. It launched as many as 51 new Originals across languages in 2021 and plans to double its original content releases this year.

  • Dell partners with Voot to launch Dell XPS Youniverse Creators

    Dell partners with Voot to launch Dell XPS Youniverse Creators

    Mumbai: Dell Technologies and OTT streaming service Voot are coming together to launch Dell XPS Youniverse Creators.

    The show will focus on creators, who excel in various art forms, coming together in a creative residency to collaborate and create masterpieces using the Dell XPS. Dell XPS Youniverse Creators will be hosted by musician and actor Monica Dogra.

    “The aim of the series is to propel the youth to introspect about what inspires them by capturing a creator’s journey of diving deep into their creations and themselves,” said the statement.

    The show will revolve around 10 artists from different worlds who come together to create five masterpieces. The format of the show is such that in each episode two creators will collaborate and merge their creative templates to co-create a masterpiece. The participants will work on their creation using the Dell XPS laptop.

    The series will feature creators from a plethora of backgrounds – art, photography, music, filmmaking and dance to name a few. The creators include award winning chef Amninder Sahu and documentary photographer Hashim Badani, graffiti Artist Hanif Kureshi and spatial artist Asim Waqif, stylist and content creator Kayaan Contractor and spoken word poet Priya Malik, theatrical pianist Sahil Vasudeva and animator Sidhant Gandhi, actor and movement practitioner Faria Abdullah and visual artist Vimal Chandran.

    “At Voot we strive to ink partnerships with brands that share our vision,” said Viacom18 Digital Ventures head – AVOD (Voot) Chanpreet Arora.  “Dell XPS Youniverse Creators is a category disruptive format that aims to inspire the creative industry at large. The concept to propel young minds to get inspired by creators and their journey sets the show apart from others, creating a one-of-its-kind experience for our users. We are excited about this collaboration with Dell and look forward to bringing more such creative content to Voot.”

    “Dell has a great lineup of XPS laptops which are future facing and especially designed for the  young creators,” said Dell Technologies marketing director (consumer) Mayuri Saikia.  “Light but mighty, these sleek machines made from premium material, have a 4-sided InfinityEdge Display with 100 per cent Adobe RGB color gamut for an immersive screen experience, higher battery life and powered by the latest 11th Gen Intel core processors which propel creation.”  

    She further added, “This Youniverse campaign with Voot is a 5-episodic ode to the creators, shows how Dell XPS has been a clear partner when the ideas are taking shape. It’s a deep dive into their youniverse or process of creating before the eureka of a big creation. Reaching the young, creative, aspiring minds who are inspired by a mix of content was important to us. Which is why we always have a strong social leg. Our products are clear enablers in this journey and celebrate their process.”

  • We’ve renewed most shows for next seasons: SonyLIV’s Ashish Golwalkar

    We’ve renewed most shows for next seasons: SonyLIV’s Ashish Golwalkar

    Mumbai: SonyLIV is planning a strong content slate for 2022 with the returning seasons of its popular franchises such as “Undekhi,” “Scam,” “Maharani,” “Gullak,” “Rocket Boys,” “Avrodh” and more. The OTT streaming service is also planning to release new series helmed by filmmakers Vikas Bahl, Imtiaz Ali and Subhash Kapoor.

    “This financial year is looking very exciting for us and we’re planning a strong content slate from the beginning of March this year to the end of March next year,” said Sony Pictures Networks India head content – Sony Entertainment Television and digital business Ashish Golwalkar. “Most of our shows have, fortunately, done well for us so they’re coming back for a second season. Some of them are genre defining shows such as ‘Scam’ and ‘Rocket Boys’. We’ve also renewed all our shows with Applause Entertainment including ‘Scam’, ‘Your Honor’, ‘Undekhi’ and ‘Avrodh’. All the shows that TVF have done for us are also returning including ‘Gullak’, ‘College Romance’, ‘Cubicle’, ‘Shantit Kranti’, ‘Girls Hostel’. So, we’ve renewed most of our shows for subsequent seasons.” 

    According to Golwalkar, the platform looks at 30-day viewership metrics, social media chatter and other indicators to take the call to renew a show for a new season. The video-on-demand platform’s latest show “Undekhi” was recommissioned almost immediately after the pandemic and will begin streaming on 4 March. Many of the shows that were launched in 2020 are looking at a delayed release due to the disruption of the pandemic.

    “’Undekhi’ was one our first shows that we dropped and the subscriber base then and the subscriber base today have a huge difference,” observed Golwalkar. “While I don’t think we are trend setters in any way, I can say that we’re very committed to our content lens and create shows that are engaging, slightly cerebral and very native in their appeal. We are also committed to our mission of telling stories of India.” By no means are we trend setters in any way. All I can say is that we are very committed to our content lens. We create shows that are engaging, slightly cerebral and very native. We are committed to our mission of telling stories of India.  

    On the regional piece, Golkwalkar said, “’Shantit Kranti’ season one did very well for us and you can expect a season 2. This year you’ll see at least five to six very good Marathi shows from us coming on SonyLIV.” 

    The platform is also strengthening its regional content library by acquiring popular South language films. “Increasingly the way people consume content is changing and they’re becoming language agnostic. And we believe that there is a lot of scope to explore content within the regional languages of India,” he added.  

    Its highly anticipated “Scam 2003: The Curious Case of Abdul Kareen Telgi” is also expected to release on the platform this year. “We’ve almost finished the writing and we’ll begin shooting by the end of March,” said Applause Entertainment head of content Deepak Segal. “The only detail we can share is that Scam 2003 is not a continuation of season one but is a completely new story,” revealed Golwalkar.

    “We look for longevity in our shows where we know that something like ‘Rocket Boys’ will be relevant even 50 years from now,” said Golwalkar.