ITV

Category: iWorld

  • TO THE NEW Digital appoints Dave Maan as EVP

    TO THE NEW Digital appoints Dave Maan as EVP

    MUMBAI: TO THE NEW Digital has appointed Dave Maan as executive vice oresident for its video solutions.

     

    With an experience of 20 years in software engineering, Maan has worked with companies like Altran, Ericsson, Hewlett Packard, Alcatel, Schlumberger and Sapient.

     

    Maan is an established industry expert in digital video, OTT and multi-screen convergence space supplemented by his digital experience in mobile ad platforms, digital marketing technologies, CDN-Cloud and predictive mobile data analytics.

     

    At TO THE NEW Digital, Maan will be responsible for contributing to the overall strategy and managing the delivery quality of products and services to the clients. He would primarily work towards increasing service offerings for Video Streaming Solutions and VideoReady (an end-to-end OTT Video solution).

     

    “We are excited to have Dave in our leadership team. His global experience will be an asset as we continue to grow our services breadth. I welcome him aboard,” said TO THE NEW Digital CEO Deepak Mittal.

     

    Maan added, “I am excited to join TO THE NEW Digital and work with the exceptional team. I look forward to utilise my experience for creating exciting new experiences for clients and contributing to the growth of the company.”

  • Times Internet hires Gulshan Verma as chief revenue officer

    Times Internet hires Gulshan Verma as chief revenue officer

    MUMBAI: Times Internet has appointed Gulshan Verma as chief revenue officer (CRO).

     

    As CRO, Verma will be responsible for the strategic definition, direction, and management of the company’s cumulative revenue opportunities.

     

    Verma has worked in media and more specifically digital media companies across Europe, North America and Asia for the past decade.

     

    Before joining Times Internet, he worked with Outbrain, where he was responsible for managing the company’s business for India and South East Asia. Prior to that, he was CRO of Komli Media. He has also worked for companies such as Yahoo!, McKinsey & Co and IMG.

     

    Verma also holds two patents in search monetisation.

     

    Times Internet CEO Satyan Gajwani said, “I’m excited to welcome Gulshan Verma as chief revenue officer, Times Internet. I’m optimistic that with his direction, we’ll see our revenues grow faster than ever before.”

     

    “I am looking forward to contributing and adding value to the team. Times Internet can be among top three ‘must buy’ digital players in India due to its combination of unique assets and scale,” added Verma.

  • ‘Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon’ culminates on Hotstar after 8 episodes

    ‘Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon’ culminates on Hotstar after 8 episodes

    MUMBAI: Star Plus’ popular show Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon, which was renamed as Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon Ek Jashn on the network’s OTT platform Hotstar, is now reaching its climax after eight episodes. 

     

    The Hotstar original series, which was launched on 24 November,  ended on 15 December.

     

    It may be recalled that on Star Plus, the show went off air almost three years ago.

     

    As reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, the show took the lead characters’ Arnav (Barun Sobti) and Khushi’s (Sanaya Irani) story forward, picking up from where the serial ended on the channel.

     

    Also read: After IPKKND, five other television shows OTT can bring back!

     

    Produced by Entertainment Mafia, the show was brought back on Hotstar with eight 10-minute episodes, showing a day in the life of the protagonists, set three years into their marriage.

     

    A source close to the channel informed this website, “The show has done phenomenally well for Hotstar. It became one of the biggest hit in terms of original content. It had also done well for the channel on social media. On Twitter, the show trended at least four to five times.”

     

    The source added, “The first season of Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon Ek Jashn is over but going forward, the network may come up with more such seasons. While nothing has been decided as yet, but looking at the response, there might be a second season in the offing soon.”

     

    Speaking about the per episode expenditure on digital, another sources says, “The per episode expenditure is almost similar to television for this show. On Hotstar, there were only eight episodes but on television, big shows see 200-300 episodes being made. However, on digital the cost remains more or less the same.”

     

    Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon was among the top rated show on Star Plus in 2011-12 before it went off air in November 2012. The show was also immensely popular among international viewers.

     

    According to the source, the show on also garnered an exceptional response from advertisers.

     

    It now remains to be seen if Star brings a second season of the show on its OTT platform.

  • TVF launches mockumentary titled ‘Not Fit’

    TVF launches mockumentary titled ‘Not Fit’

    MUMBAI: The Viral Fever (TVF) founded by Arunabh Kumar, has released an original mockumentary series titled Not Fit. The trailer and the first episode of the web series was aired on 16 December, 2015 on TVF Play. The series is created by Dice Media.

     

    The new series follows the path of the popular web series Pitchers, which was a success. The series is written and directed by Sudev Nair and is a tongue-in-cheek look at the world of aspiring actors and the weird and wonderful environment they inhabit.

     

    Talking about the new series, Kumar says, “The fabulous team of Dice Media led by Ashwin Suresh and Anirudh Pandita along with Sudev Nair have been able to create an original series that is akin to our TVF mantra and we are happy to have them as our partners.”

     

    “We are extremely proud to have created Not Fit, soon after the tremendous success of our previous videos,Ban Ban, and Neta Sabki Leta. We are working hard to bring more engaging and entertaining content to young Indian audiences and look forward to collaborating with Arunabh and his team,” added Dice Media co-founder Ashwin Suresh.

     

    Speaking about the new initiative Dice Media co-founder Anirudh Pandita said, “We’re happy to partner with TVF on this series. We believe the company has the right audience for this show and this partnership allows us to showcase our content to them. The two brands have a common mission, which makes us natural partners as we push the envelope when it comes to content formats in India.”

     

    The prequel of to the series is already out on YouTube.

  • Ronnie Screwvala’s Unilazer pumps Rs 7 crore in MeraDoctor

    Ronnie Screwvala’s Unilazer pumps Rs 7 crore in MeraDoctor

    MUMBAI: MeraDoctor, a platform for virtual consultations between doctors and patients, has closed a Rs 7-crore Pre-Series A financing round led by Ronnie Screwvala’s Unilazer Ventures.

     

    MeraDoctor, which was launched earlier this year, has so far helped over 300,000 people connect with carefully screened doctors across India through a simple chat interface. Most health platforms create a big bazaar experience in which neither patients nor doctors are comfortable. Instead, as a doctor-led company, MeraDoctor builds trust and loyalty by smoothly connecting patients with reputable physicians only, and ensures that both sides have a high-quality experience.

     

    MeraDoctor CEO & co-founder Dr. Ajay Nair says, “We’re honoured to have partnered with Ronnie Screwvala and some of the country’s best entrepreneurs and investors to take MeraDoctor to the next stage. Within the country’s rapidly evolving healthcare industry, our focus is clear – we make it easy for everyone in India to have high quality health conversations on their phone. In just a few months after launching our app for live messaging with doctors, we’ve helped over 300,000 people connect with quality care.”

     

    The new investment will help MeraDoctor extend its technology platform, scale up its doctor base, add to its technology and management teams.

     

    Screwvala’s Unilazer Ventures led the round, with participation from existing investor early-stage fund IndiaQuotient. Previous investors in the company include Aaavishkaar and Accion Venture Lab.

     

    “MeraDoctor’s leadership team is unique in combining a deep understanding of healthcare with a fine-tuned sense of customer needs and a relentless drive to build a large, enduring business. Mobile adoption is disrupting the way healthcare is being delivered. The very large untapped market and the team’s deep healthcare experience is a winning combination. I’m delighted to support their vision and contribute as best I can, as Ajay and Gautam tackle one of the biggest opportunities in India today,” adds  Screwvala.

  • Disney & Alibaba to launch OTT service in China

    Disney & Alibaba to launch OTT service in China

    MUMBAI: The Walt Disney Company has inked a multi-year licensing deal with Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group to bring its digital subscription service DisneyLife to China via Alibaba’s online shopping site Tmall.

     

    The Mickey Mouse-shaped device is priced at $125 for a one-year subscription and requires an Internet connection.

     

    DisneyLife will provide Alibaba customers in China with an all-encompassing and immersive family friendly digital experience. The content will include Disney and Pixar’s movies, animation series, games, e-books, songs, travel services and Disney theme parks and resorts information.

     

    Subscribers can access Disney merchandise and can also obtain information about, and plan a visit to Hong Kong Disneyland as well as Shanghai Disney Resort when it opens in 2016. In addition to the DisneyLife experience, shoppers can access other Alibaba products and services.

     

    The Walt Disney Company, Greater China managing director Luke Kang said, “For nearly a century, Disney’s focus on quality storytelling and innovation has delivered audiences around the world the best stories, shared moments and extraordinary experiences. Disney and Alibaba share an ambition to exceed our audience’s expectations. DisneyLife directly connects us to China’s digital population and provides millions of kids and families the ability to explore and engage with Disney.”

     

    “As we deliver on our goal to meet the needs of a consumers’ daily life, DisneyLife, launched by Ali Digital Entertainment Business Unit together with Disney, will provide the only holistic and trusted family friendly digital destination in China,” added Alibaba Digital Entertainment Business Unit general manager and Youku Tudou business group co-president of Wei Ming.

  • YouTube Rewind: What India watched in 2015

    YouTube Rewind: What India watched in 2015

    MUMBAI: 2015 has been an exciting year on YouTube in India. One saw more and more people consuming content on digital platforms, with YouTube leading the pack. YouTube has garnered a huge fan following not only in terms of the audience but also amongst original content creators in India. While YouTubers like All India Bakchod (AIB) and The Viral Fever (TVF) rose to superstardom, an array of new players also joined in to professionally create videos for YouTube. Even big screen celebrities were seen more open to experimenting with artists online.

     

    As per YouTube Rewind, the top trending YouTube video in India in 2015 was AIB: ‘Every Bollywood Party Song feat. Irrfan,’ followed by ‘Chhota Bheem – aur – Krishna Jodi No. #1.’

     

    In spite of the huge surge in original digital content from YouTubers, it is mainstream media, which still commands YouTube viewership. As per the data, six out of 10 in the list of top most trending videos on YouTube  belong to mainstream media, including television and film.

     

    The data also sheds light on the fact that in 2015, comedy ruled in India. This is evident as five out of top 10 most viewed videos on YouTube were of the comedy genre. 

     

    Grabbing the first spot is the amusing comic music video by AIB: ‘Every Bollywood Party Song feat. Irrfan,’ which redefined comedy and gave the video a very refreshing twist. AIB’s ‘Honest Indian Weddings (Part 1),’ ‘PK movie Spoof,’ TVF’s ‘Barely Speaking with Arnub | Arvind Kejriwal’ are amongst the other top trending comedy videos, which were placed in the list of top 10.

     

    2015 was also a good year for music with Honey Singh’s ‘Dheere Dheere Se Meri Zindagi video song (OFFICIAL),’ ‘Chittiyaan Kalaiyaan Video Song’ and ‘Badshah – DJ Waley Babu’ being the top most trending music video locally.

  • Turner launches Oh!K in Hong Kong with PCCW

    Turner launches Oh!K in Hong Kong with PCCW

    MUMBAI: Turner has joined hands with PCCW to launch a new 24 hour linear channel, Oh!K in Hong Kong on now TV.

     

    The channel will be available from 12 January, 2016 and will air a slew of Korean entertainment, premium drama series as well as variety and music programming across a number of platforms.

     

    Additionally, MBC shows will also be available through now TV’s SVOD service, Oh!K On Demand, as well as via PCCW’s newly-launched OTT service Viu. Another part of the Turner-PCCW agreement is the delivery of MBC shows on now TV’s upcoming free-to-air channel, launching in April 2016.

     

    Oh!K will be part of now TV’s Asia Entertainment Package, and available with English and Traditional Chinese subtitles and Korean audio.

     

    Turner Southeast Asia managing director and senior vice president Phil Nelson said, “This is an outstanding multi-platform partnership. In its short history, Oh!K has grown significantly with the addition of Hong Kong to our distribution roadmap. Likewise, our content partnership with MBC has allowed new audiences – across all platforms – exposure to a truly impressive and exclusive line-up of Korean content.”

     

    The current MBC shows available include Glamorous Temptation and Sweet Mob Family, and Korean variety show Infinite Challenge, which will be aired in the same week as its original telecast. In January, Hong Kong viewers will be treated to She Was Pretty.

     

    MBC director of global business Hyuk Jae Choi added, “This announcement is great news for fans of our content in Hong Kong. We know that they crave MBC dramas and variety shows in both Chinese and English, as soon as possible after their original Korean broadcast, and on platforms beyond just the TV screen. Through Turner, PCCW and MBC, this has become a reality.”

  • TyC Sports hops on to YuppTV’s OTT platform

    TyC Sports hops on to YuppTV’s OTT platform

    NEW DELHI: Argentina based TyC Sports has signed with YuppTV for the new over the top (OTT) TV service targeting Argentines living outside the country.

     

    Whether it is World Cup, UEFA Champions, EPL, La Liga or even MLS the long “o” vowel sound of “Goal” is the signature of soccer, football or fútbol no matter all over the world. “We knew we had to have TyC Sports on our platform to make this a truly nostalgic offering that would bring the entire family around the TV to watch their favourite teams from Argentina, whether it is Boca, River, Colón or Godoy Cruz,” said YuppTV SVP and general manager for the Americas Damon Johnson.

     

    “We are thrilled to be a part of YuppTV platform. We are hoping to reach more Argentines wherever they are located in the Americas and offer the best sports programming ‘live’ and ‘Catch-up’ through the YuppTV app,” said TyC Sports affiliate sales and new business manager Hernán Chiofalo.

     

    YuppTV Argentina continues their development of a platform that allows users to watch content from their home country via their smart TV, streaming media player, game console, Blu-ray player, laptop, smart phone or tablet.

     

    “We are focused on choice and convenience for our customers. We want our customers to be able to watch live and ‘catch-up’ TV on their TV and not only via a PC. We don’t want our customers to sign contracts and we don’t want our customers waiting for the cable guy or figuring out where to hang a satellite dish. We won’t subject our customers to credit checks and since we are legitimate providers we don’t subject our customers to the viruses that come from those pirated websites. Instead, we want our customers to watch their channels from Argentina from the screen they prefer and watch it live or via our 10 days of recorded ‘catch-up’ TV,” said Johnson.

     

    When asked about other channels, Johnson said, “We will announce the other channels soon. TyC Sports is an anchor channel and we wanted to announce them first and give them the exposure they deserve. Our goal is to bring authentic and native Argentine channels to the platform.”

     

    Speaking on when the service would be available to customers Johnson added, “We are really eager to roll this out as soon as possible. We are about to complete our beta test, which has allowed us to perfect some of the details that makes this a high quality network offering. We hope to announce that date in the very near future.”

  • Focus on data brings remarkable growth to Aircel in Karnataka

    Focus on data brings remarkable growth to Aircel in Karnataka

    MUMBAI: As a result of strong focus on data driven products and services, Aircel, one of India’s leading telecom operators, has become the fastest growing telecom operator in Karnataka in the last quarter ending September 2015.

    Aircel grew in gross revenue by a good 3.1% while the industry de-grew by 0.9% with data contributing a whopping 27% to the overall revenue. Aircel has been buoyant in its Karnataka operations and the company’s  growth is attributed to the success of innovative data products and services such as Combo 196, Free Basic Internet for all, Unlimited 3G Packs starting at Rs 9 to name a few.

     Aircel Karnataka circle business head Kanwarbir Singh said, “Karnataka is one of the key markets for us and we have grown remarkably in the market. We provide the best ‘value for money’ products to our customers to suit their needs. There has been a dramatic increase in the sales of smartphones and this has led to a widespread need of data, especially for the youth. We’re confident that our products will not only greatly ease the pockets of our new customers, but also help to fuel internet adoption in the country for those who still aren’t online. It is a known fact that with each passing day, the need of our customers to have access to seamless data connectivity on their mobile phones is increasing manifold. With increasing frequency and hours of time spend on being online; there is a customer fear of probable bill shock due to perception of high charges. Unlimited 3G packs starting at as low as Rs 9, erases all such worries and gives confidence to use 3G and Stay Online. We are extremely committed to the Karnataka circle and will constantly strive to provide simple and innovative products and services to our customers”

     Also, in its aggressive mode to spearhead the data growth in the country, Aircel, recently launched an affordable range of industry first Unlimited 3G packs ranging from Rs.9 to Rs.397 for all its customers. With this trend setting move, Aircel hopes to encourage its existing and potential customers to stay connected online with Aircel.

    Aircel’s industry first offers of unlimited 2G/3G data packs of Rs.9, Rs.84, Rs.249 and Rs. 397 are intended to redefine the way mobile internet is consumed in India. With an USSD recharge of Rs.9 per day, subscribers can enjoy 100MB 3G and thereafter unlimited 2G for a day. Subscribers can also enjoy 1GB, 3GB and 7.5GB of unlimited 3G/2G data for Rs.84, Rs.249 and Rs. 397 respectively.

    The 1GB, 3GB & 7.5GB ETOP packs, with validity of 10 days, 30 days and 15 days, are in line with the growing data consumption.

    Aircel Karnataka circle marketing head Karthik .V  said, “We have witnessed an increasing demand for data especially for entertainment and productivity purposes. Being a data focused company, constantly innovating with data products is the only way to stay relevant for our consumers. Aircel sees a huge opportunity to get more first time internet users on board as well as help graduate existing data users to faster technologies like 3G.”