ITV

Category: Over The Top Services

  • Star India’s ambitious foray into content with Hotstar Specials

    Star India’s ambitious foray into content with Hotstar Specials

    MUMBAI: Star India, the nation’s storyteller and its most innovative content company across TV, Films & Sports, is ready with its next big leap in content on the back of its OTT, Hotstar. The company today announced the launch of Hotstar Specials, a bold and ambitious content foray featuring shows from India’s most acclaimed storytellers. 

    “Star has always challenged conventions and been at the forefront of content reinvention in India" said Sanjay Gupta, MD, Star India. “With the mobile phone leading an explosion in the number of screens in the country, we feel that our content also needs to reinvent and boldly move forward. With Hotstar Specials we hope to create the biggest Indian stories delivered to a billion screens. To bring this vision alive, we are proud to partner with a stellar line up of talent who are headlining our first set of Hotstar Specials"

    For its first set ofHotstar Specials, Star India has partnered with the best storytellers of India including Shekhar Kapur, Neeraj Pandey, Kabir Khan, NikkhilAdvani, Ram Madhvani, Venkat Prabhu, Sudhir Mishra, Tigmanshu Dhulia, NageshKukunoor, Mahesh Manjrekar, Vishal Furia, Rohan Sippy, Debbie Rao, Sharad Devarajan and Salman Khan!

    Hotstar Specials will feature an extensive variety of Indian stories, mounted on a big scale, unconstrained by format. The company's ambition is not to make this a narrow or niche play but to explode into the consciousness of the country in an unprecedented way.  

    Hotstar Specials will enable makers to tell their most passionate stories and provide them unmatched reach. The stories will provide a burst of variety across genres and formats and will be available in seven languages for viewers to consume them in a language of their choice. They will leverage the unprecedented reach of Hotstar to reach the length and breadth of the country and also reach global audiences.  With 350 million downloads and over 150mn monthly active users,  Hotstar is the country’s biggest OTT, significantly bigger than its closest competitors. The launch of Hotstar Specials is yet another moment of disruption for Hotstar, which has been at the forefront of change in the space of digital content in India.

  • CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED FILM SONI TO RELEASE ON NETFLIX ON JANUARY 18, 2019

    CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED FILM SONI TO RELEASE ON NETFLIX ON JANUARY 18, 2019

    MUMBAI: Ivan Ayr’s directorial debut, Soni, a crime drama chronicling the life of two policewomen is set to get its digital release on Netflix. After being screened at prestigious festivals such as the 75th Venice Film Festival, the Mumbai Film Festival and the BFI London Film Festival, the title will be available exclusively on Netflix, to 130 million members across 190 countries, on January 18, 2019.

    The story revolves around Soni, a young policewoman, and her superintendent, Kalpana, who have collectively taken on a growing crisis of violent crimes against women in the capital city of Delhi. Their alliance suffers a setback when Soni is transferred out for alleged misconduct on duty.

    In this drama, Ayr explores, observes and unveils the daily grind, dynamics and hierarchies that lie within society. The strong characters and compelling narrative brought to life by Geetika Vidya Ohlyan (Soni) and Saloni Batra (Kalpana) have earned the film love and praise from both critics and movie enthusiasts. Soni has received stellar reviews from around the world with The Hollywood Reporter calling it “the ideal vehicle to explore a wide variety of issues related to gender battles in contemporary Indian society”, and Variety tagging it as an “indie Indian gem”.

    Ivan Ayr said, “I am excited that my film Soni will premiere on Netflix, which is accessible to millions of people around the world. We live in a society that has accepted to adjust and bear patriarchal norms and gender biases, and I believe that the release of the film on a global service like Netflix will help the voices of my characters reach a large and diverse audience base eloquently.

  • Hotstar pulls down Hardik Pandya, KL Rahul’s ‘Koffee with Karan’ episode

    Hotstar pulls down Hardik Pandya, KL Rahul’s ‘Koffee with Karan’ episode

    MUMBAI: Koffee with Karan season 6’s latest episode, which featured Indian cricketers Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul was the most talked about episode on social media. The duo has not just been criticised on social media but has also displeased the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) by making sexist remarks on the show.

    The episode was aired last Sunday on Star World and was available on Star’s OTT platform Hotstar. However, currently all the other episodes of Koffee with Karan are available except for the one that featured Pandya and Rahul.

    The cricketers have now been served with a notice, where they have to give an explanation and based on the explanation, they might be banned from playing cricket. CoA member Diana Edulji has already sought legal opinion and will be talking to BCCI top brass over the possible ban.

    After receiving the notice, Pandya apologised tweeting, "After reflecting on my comments on Koffee with Karan, I would like to apologise to everyone concerned who I may have hurt in any way. Honestly, I got a bit carried away with the nature of the show. In no way did I mean to disrespect or hurt anyone's sentiments. Respect." Rahul hasn’t given any public statement with regard to his involvement in the show

  • Amazon.in announces Amazon Great Indian Sale

    Amazon.in announces Amazon Great Indian Sale

    MUMBAI: The ‘Amazon Great Indian Sale’ is back offering big savings from January 20 to 23, 2019! Prime members get 12 hours exclusive early access starting 12 noon on January 19, 2019. With great deals on popular brands, fast delivery and easy returns, customers can shop from over 170 million products across hundreds of categories on Amazon.in.

    “As the most trusted and visited ecommerce destination, we are geared up to serve our customers with blockbuster deals from lakhs of sellers. The Amazon Great Indian Sale will have great deals across a wide range of products including Smartphones, Consumer Electronics, Fashion, Home & Kitchen, Large Appliances, Daily Essentials and more. With No-cost EMI on Debit & Credit cards and Bajaj Finserv Cards, fast delivery & installation of appliances, exchange of mobile phones & large appliances, instant bank discounts and lots more, customers can look forward to an exciting sale on Amazon.in,” said Manish Tiwary, Vice President – Category Management, Amazon India.

    Customers shopping during the Great Indian Sale can save more by getting extra 10% instant discount with HDFC Bank Debit & Credit cards and EMI. Customers can shop for more than 10 crore products with no-cost EMI using Bajaj Finserv EMI card and select Debit & Credit Cards.

    Customers shopping during the Great Indian Sale can look forward to big savings on some of the biggest brands such as Apple, OnePlus, Xiaomi, Honor, Realme, Samsung, 10.or, Puma, Red Tape, Bata, MotherCare, Vero Moda, Fastrack, Joyalukkas, Timex, Skybags, Arrow, LG, Voltas, BPL, HP, Canon, Hot Wheels, Pampers, Surf Excel, Lakme, Philips, Prestige, Usha, Bombay Dyeing and more. Special offers will be available on Amazon Brands – Amazonbasics, Solimo, Symbol, Myx, Vedaka, Presto among others. Customers can also get up to INR 3,000 off on Amazon Devices including Amazon Echo, FireTV Stick and Kindle eReaders.

    Customers can avail special offers on a range of unique, authentic handloom and handicraft products from across the country such as Ikat, Banarasi, Tant sarees and leather shoes from Agra during the sale. Customers will also get to explore a range of products like office stationary and grocery items showcased by women entrepreneurs under Amazon Saheli.

  • Amazon Prime Video unveils trailer of ‘Four More Shots Please’

    Amazon Prime Video unveils trailer of ‘Four More Shots Please’

    MUMBAI: Amazon Prime Video is all ready to expand the Indian original content library at the beginning of the year only. Adding more spice to the existing library, the international OTT player is ready to launch a new series Four More Shots Please. The trailer of the 10-part series, which will start streaming on the platform on 25 January, has been unveiled.

    “At Prime Video we are focused on serving a wide and diverse set of customers their daily dose of entertainment on our service. From reality shows for millennials to comedy for all, hard-hitting heartland story in Mirzapur to a psychological thriller in Breathe, we have something for everyone on Prime Video. We are excited to start this year with a female-centric, genre-defining, aspirational show that will take viewers on a larger than life journey into the urban women’s world.  Let the celebrations begin – Four More Shots Please!” Amazon Prime Video India content director and head Vijay Subramaniam said.

    The series has been created by Rangita Pritish Nandy, produced by Pritish Nandy Communications and directed by Anu Menon. The new Prime Original casts a spotlight on the strong bond of female friendship that serves as a lifeline for young women in urban India as they adapt, flourish and rebel in a rapidly evolving societal culture with changing gender roles. Helmed by a predominantly women cast and crew, the show has been written by Devika Bhagat, with dialogues from Ishita Moitra.

    In the over-crowded Indian OTT market, the two rivals Amazon Prime Video and Netflix are heavily investing in local originals to woo consumers. Moreover, Amazon Prime Video comes bundled with the other facilities from Prime service which has brought it huge number of users. According to a recent study by technology research firm Comparitech, India has been found the cheapest place to watch Amazon Prime Video in a list of 28 countries.

  • 5 Reasons why Amazon Prime Original Series Four More Shots Please! trailer is unmissable!

    5 Reasons why Amazon Prime Original Series Four More Shots Please! trailer is unmissable!

    MUMBAI: As 2019 draws in, Amazon Prime Video gears up for the release of another Prime Original series Four More Shots Please! Questioning stereotypical gender norms, the narrative follows the life-journey of four modern Indian women caught in urban and cultural transition. . Today, the makers have dropped the official trailer of the show and it surely has left the audience thrilled!

    Have you watched it yet? If not then we have a list of reasons why the trailer is worth catching up on!

    1. Friendship, love, intimacy, diverse sexual orientations, sexual fantasy, fun, freedom, impulse, etc. the trailer takes us through every possible metropolitan-associated life-moment, we could think of.

    2. Did anyone just say Milind Soman? Yes, the actor returns to the silver screen and looks quite delish in the trailer. He will be seen sharing screen space with four gorgeous ladies – Sayani Gupti, Kriti Kulhari, Bani J and Maanvi Garoo.

    3. Love your girl gang? This is a series dedicated to celebrating female friendship!  If the trailer is any indication, the series will be loaded with relatable moments and laugh out loud candidness.

    4. A tall dark handsome guy juggling bottles at a bar-counter looks attractive, doesn’t he? Actor Prateik Babbar marks his digital debut with a promising on-screen avatar and looks charming as ever.

    5. The evergreen Simone Singh returns to the screen with another magnetic character and is surely setting some serious beauty goals in the trailer.

    Catch all the unaltered drama and sass with Amazon Prime Original Series Four More Shots, Please! launching exclusively on Amazon Prime Video this January.

  • ZEE5 ASSOCIATES WITH CLOUDWALKER

    ZEE5 ASSOCIATES WITH CLOUDWALKER

    MUMBAI: ZEE5, India’s fastest growing digital entertainment platform, announced its partnership with CloudWalker, a leading online Smart TV brand from India. CloudWalker emphasizes on creating digital content solutions with the power of internet on large format screens. Equipped with a self-developed, Made-In-India content discovery and curation engine, CloudWalker Smart TVs will enable users to discover great content and have an amazing digital entertainment experience from the ZEE5 app in a seamless and hassle-free manner, on the big screen.

    According to the association, ZEE5 app will be live on CloudWalker’s flagship Smart TV range, “Cloud TV’ available on leading online platforms.  ZEE5 will be featuring on the homepage of all CloudWalker Smart TVs.

    Manish Aggarwal, Business Head ZEE5 India said, “Escalating technology in smart TVs enables us to empower and interact with our consumers. CloudWalker brings limitless digital content streaming in living rooms. This association will help more users to log onto ZEE5 and enjoy the eclectic choice of content. Additionally, this also takes a step forward to our aim of being present on all Smart TVs and connected devices by the end of this year.”

    Jagdish Rajpurohit, President, CloudWalker said, “At CloudWalker, we believe that great digital content merits to be discovered and so we connect the viewers with India’s largest selection of digital content for streaming on TVs. Our goal is to digitalize entertainment across all the living rooms and enable our customers to have a fantastic user-experience. We are hoping that partnership with ZEE5 amplifies our influence.”

    In the past few months, ZEE5 has forged several alliances with a view to bring its subscribers the best across the spectrum of digital experiences. With the recent association with VEWD, Xiaomi MiTV, Samsung and now with LG Smart TV, the platform is taking a step forward to strengthen its subscriber reach.

    With over 3500 films, 500+ TV shows, 4000+ music videos, 35+ theatre plays and 90+ LIVE TV Channels across 12 languages, ZEE5truly presents a blend of unrivalled content offering for its viewers across the nation. With ZEE5, the global content of Zindagi as a brand, which was widely appreciated across the country, has also been brought back for its loyal viewers.

  • Start the New Year with a high voltage of entertainment on Amazon Prime Video!

    Start the New Year with a high voltage of entertainment on Amazon Prime Video!

    MUMBAI: Amazon Prime Video enters the New Year with a power-packed lineup of entertainment across Indian and International titles for its prime members. With the onset of 2019, Prime Video adds Punjabi movies to its content library, thereby adding another language after English, Hindi, Marathi, Kannada, Bengali, Tamil and Telugu. With this launch, catch the digital premiere of Punjabi blockbuster Banjaara: The Truck Driver soon after its theatrical release only on Amazon Prime Video. This is not it! In regional titles, Prime members can also stream the recent Kannada blockbuster Orange and the coming-of-age story of friendship in the Bengali release Generation Ami immediately after their theatrical releases. Amazon Prime Video also brings to its prime members a recently released multi-starrer, big banner movie – Thugs of Hindostan, making a digital premiere right after its run in the theatres exclusively on Prime Video. And adding to an indulgent Bollywood evening with friends and family, viewers can also stream the soulful tale of Mauji and Mamta in Varun-Dhawan-Anushka Sharma starrer Sui Dhaaga: Made in India on Amazon Prime Video.

    For an impeccable dose of comedy, watch an all-time favourite NBA stars Kyrie Irving, Shaquille O’Neal and Chris Webber in one frame in Uncle Drew – an American sports comedy film and Game Night. Crime drama Luther that stars superstar Idris Elba is back with another thrilling season. And of course, there’s something in store for Prime’s youngest fans with all-new adventures of their favorite talking moose and flying squirrel in Rocky & Bullwinkle.

  • SonyLIV records 596 million interactions for KBC Play Along

    SonyLIV records 596 million interactions for KBC Play Along

    MUMBAI: In yet another pioneering initiative, SonyLIV’s Play Along has garnered a landmark 596 million interactions for the 10th season of the reality show. The user engagement initiative has registered 8.2 million users with total time spent of over 47 million hours. Tapping almost 360 million smart-phone users, KBC Play Along was SonyLIV’s effort to bring the audience closer to its most favourite reality show, within the comfort of their homes.

    If the consumption patterns are to go by, Play Along got a thumbs up from the audience right from day one of the show hosted by Mr. Amitabh Bachchan. Given the proliferation of internet users amongst youth, almost 76.7% players who glued onto the feature were between 18-40 years, primarily the millennials. However, the momentum wasn’t confined to the urban netizens only. KBC Play Along saw phenomenal response across the country within the Hindi belt – Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh accounting for 54.5% of the players.

    Much like FIFA 2018, SonyLIV continued to bust myths about digital engagement with Play Along which fetched as high as 69.8% participation from beyond 6 metros along with a remarkable rise in female viewership. KBC Play Along not only spiked SonyLIV subscriptions notches higher but also increased KBC led app downloads by 7.3 million.

  • Shout! Factory TV creates linear OTT feed with Amagi CLOUDPORT

    Shout! Factory TV creates linear OTT feed with Amagi CLOUDPORT

    MUMBAI: Amagi, one of the global leaders in cloud-based technology for TV and OTT broadcasters, announced that Shout! Factory TV has selected its award-winning Amagi CLOUDPORT channel playout platform to manage playout for its linear TV channel and deliver its feed to Xumo and Twitch platforms in the US.

    Shout! Factory TV is a next-generation digital channel offering cult and classic TV and film that shapes today’s pop culture. The network has a library of over 2,000 hours of programming that includes TV shows such as Mystery Science Theater 3000, Father Knows Best, and Super Sentai; films such as Sophie’s Choice, Rock N Roll High School, and Kentucky Fried Movie; animation including Goode Family; comedy specials from Steve Martin and Kathy Griffin, variety shows such as The Dick Cavett Show, and original programming such as Backlot, among others.

    Shout! Factory senior vice president-digital Gene Pao said, “For a rapidly expanding digital channel such as ours, we need a broadcast technology partner who can understand and respond to our unique needs. Amagi, through its high-quality cloud broadcast technology, gives us the distinct advantage to manage our content, playout, and delivery to multiple vMVPD platforms as per our business needs with a very short time-to-market. We are now able to deploy a cable TV–like quality and reliable TV experience for our viewers.”

    As a result of CLOUDPORT implementation, Shout! Factory TV is able to move all of its content to a secure AWS public cloud instance, create playlists, add dynamic graphics, manage schedules, playout and monitor the channel – all through a simple yet advanced remote web interface. A true cloud playout, Amagi CLOUDPORT gives the flexibility to spin up new channels and deliver them to leading vMVPD platforms such as Xumo and Twitch.

    Amagi CEO Deepakjit Singh said, “Digital channels are aggressively pushing the envelope in creating best-in-class viewer experience. We are proud to partner with Shout! Factory TV to launch their linear TV channels on digital platforms.”

    “We have been at the forefront of broadcast technology innovation and driving cloud adoption among traditional broadcasters in recent years. So, it’s equally delightful to be able to ride the next wave of broadcast revolution in supporting new-age digital channels like Shout! Factory TV caters to diverse audience needs,” added Deepakjit Singh.