Category: ICC WORLD CUP

Greymatter Entertainment – a 360 degree media company offering end-to-end creative solutions and production services for broadcast, celluloid and digital platforms – is debuting at this year’s MIPCOM with a host of new and innovative formats.

For a company which produces content across genres, including reality, music, travel, lifestyle, game show and documentary, participating in the world’s largest content market is possibly a natural next step. Says Greymatter Entertainment owner Rahul Sarangi, “MIPCOM helps you network with global content buyers. The market is also a platform for companies with new formats.”

So what’s on offer at the fest? “We will launch a factual documentary titled ‘Tribes of the World’, an award winning show ‘Bikini Café’, a never-seen before music reality format named ‘Remix’ and a series about unconditional love christened ‘Thanks Maa’,” Sarangi answers.

For the uninitiated, Tribes of the World is a factual documentary which explores the unexplored and unseen faces of tribal India. Bikini Café is about testing one’s entrepreneurial skills of owning a shack while Thanks Maa gives mothers a chance to relive their dreams.

Elaborating on his plans, Sarangi says: “We are looking at co-producing interesting formats/content under the genres we specialise. As far as selling is concerned, one of our music formats ‘Remix’ has been sold to a few markets and is distributed by Global Agency. We have also recently concluded a very successful co- production deal with Novovision on 52 x 30 min non-dialogue humour episodes for the global market.”

What does Greymatter expect to achieve at MIPCOM 2013? “As you would be aware, Indian broadcasters don‘t give rights to producers, but we have figured that if we have a global partner, then we can retain rights and make it a global success. We believe most of our formats are very differentiated yet palatable to the global audience,” explains Sarangi, adding: “We expect to strike some interesting co-production, distribution or strategic partnership with global companies that suit our profile.”

On the subject of markets, Sarangi says the company is open to any market, from America and Europe to the Middle East and Asia, as long as it shares Greymatter’s sensibilities. The firm will concentrate on platforms like IPTV, mobile and free to air.

Ask any traveller the meaning of a journey and he/she is likely to say it’s something where you never know how far you’ve reached till you go back to where it started.

Indeed, this is the very core of what they call wanderlust, and who better to know it than travelxp HD, India’s first high definition travel channel.

Presently, the channel stands strong as a premium lifestyle with 400+ hours of original HD travel content – shot across 35+ countries and growing, expanding at 150 hours each year, and covering all genres of the travel space. Shot in English, with hosts from across the globe, the channel boasts a truly international look and feel. Exactly what draws it to this year’s MIPCOM.

travelxp now in its third year at MIPCOM, feels that exhibiting in a market like MIPCOM has added to its learning. The channel has not only tapped market demands and understood buyer requisites, but has also understood the latest trends, practices and technology which in turn have laid the guidelines for content that the channel creates in the future.

Says travelxp HD director Nisha Chothani: “An international platform like MIPCOM is the year‘s most anticipated global market for entertainment content across all mediums. Our content finds the perfect fit with the needs of travel content buyers across the globe. It provides us an opportunity to reach out to our buyers, leading to ground-breaking partnerships.”

So what’s the channel offering at MIPCOM 2013? It will launch five new shows including Quest, City Breaks, Bliss, Food Highway and World Spas for participants this year.

Apart from these, travelxp HD will also present shows like XP Guide, Xplore World, Xplore India, Great Indian Hotels, Great World Hotels, Foodicted, Strictly Street, Heritage, Landmark, Best from the Rest, Bada Weekend, Hills and Valleys, and Divine Destination at the content sale market. “With this, we are looking forward to cracking deals and partnerships with our buyers. Also, networking with content buyers and aggregators across the globe will be an add-on,” says Chothani.

And it’s not just travelxp HD, the entire travel industry stands to benefit from MIPCOM. “Travel content caters to a large international audience due to its geographical spread. MIPCOM provides us a platform with immense selling opportunity; it helps us to reach out to around 4,400 buyers from 100 countries across the globe. Travel content demand is growing globally, platforms like MIPCOM help two ends meet, thereby leading to the growth of the genre,” elaborates Chothani.

Meanwhile, travelxp HD shows will be accessible to viewers on various multi-media platforms from DTH systems to in-flight screens, TV networks to IPTV networks, VOD to AVOD systems and websites to mobiles.

The channel claims its content finds resonance with travel connoisseurs the world over.

other states may do well to borrow a leaf from the Andhra Pradesh government, which is partly sponsoring the participation of Hyderabad’s animation industry at this year’s Mipcom.

More specifically, the AP government is funding the stand fees for two Hyderabad-based companies – Green Gold Animation and Discreet Art.

“The government is partly funding our participation at the event. And this goes up to 50 per cent of the total stand fee. It can go up beyond 50 per cent depending on the response we get,” informs Green Gold Animation vice president -business development Govinda Talluri.

Creator of the popular animated character, Chhota Bheem, Green Gold Animation, has been participating in Mipcom since 2007. “Though we didn’t go in 2011-2012, this year, since the Andhra Pradesh government decided to support the companies based in Hyderabad for events like Mipcom, we, along with Discreet Arts and 20 (approximately) people from the AVCGI association will represent AP at Mipcom this year,” adds Talluri.

AVCGI or Animation, VFX, Comic & Gaming Industry of AP is a recently formed association by the animation industry in Hyderabad with the aim of garnering support from the AP government for its proper functioning.

Apart from Chhota Bheem, which is Green Gold’s biggest property, it will also take other animated characters Mighty Raju and Arjun to Mipcom. “We plan to come up with a theatrical for Mighty Raju by next year and so, will use Mipcom to create a buzz about the movie. Also Arjun, a show that we have created for Disney, will form part of our offering to buyers,” says Talluri. 

For all these years, Green Gold catered to Indian and South East Asian markets and recently sold its content to USA and Canada. The major is now aiming at European countries like France, Germany, Spain and South America. “This is not an exhaustive list, we want to reach out to as many markets as possible,” adds Talluri.

Enthused by the government’s support, Green Gold aims to present its library of 8,500 minutes of original content to a global audience. “Also, with our 174-episode Chhota Bheem being sold to eight countries, we would definitely want to expand our reach and get noticed,” says Talluri.

With the largest content sale market cum conference just 15 days away, the company is busy scheduling meetings with buyers. “Though a few meetings have already been fixed, we are also pitching in for more buyers,” he says. The company will primarily target television as the preferred platform. “Once we are there, getting to other platforms will not be difficult,” he rounds off.

Reliance Entertainment Digital CEO Manish Agarwal is pretty excited about his company’s date with MipCom this year.  Says he:  “We want to understand the market and its offering and how relevant it is for the digital business. We are always in search of some interesting and innovative content.” 

For Agarwal, who is into content publishing, participation in Mipcom is likely to become an integral part of doing business, though his company is participating in it for the first time.

“It gives us an opportunity to explore the large variety of content which we need for the various platforms like BigFlix, Zapak etc. We will obviously focus on networking with more content providers and aggregators across the globe,” says he.

 Reliance Entertainment Digital which launched its over the top (OTT) service BigFlix last year is sorted in terms of Indian programming and now wants add on international content in more genres and languages.

 “We want to expand our offerings to the consumer. Participating in Mipcom will help us explore more opportunities,” he says.

 Agarwal says that an increasing group of young Indian consumers is gorging on digitised content on hand held devices and on their PCs. “It is essential for Indian service providers to experiment with new type of content across genres and content-types. And it is just not that Indians will consume only trailers or paparazzi content, they will also look at different content and so we want to explore with a variety of content,” he highlights.

 The focus this year at Mipcom he emphasises will be on acquiring entertainment content – especially that which originates from English speaking nations or with English subtitles.

“This will be entertainment for English speaking audiences, entertainment for masses and for kids. This is the reason we are going not only for Mipcom, but also for Mip Junior,” he informs.

For those visiting Mipcom to sell gaming content, expect the Reliance Entertainment representative at your stall. “We will also look at gaming content or gaming IPs on which games can be created. So we are aiming at kids entertainment both in gaming and VOD content which caters to everyone or in niche segments in the country,” says he. “In terms of gaming IPs, since we are present across the globe, we will go for any IP which is popular. So we will be hunting for any IP across different markets in order to get a license to create mobile games

 The OTT service which delivers its content online to connected devices – a la NetFlix in the US – is looking at stacking up its video-on-demand (VOD) menu. “This can subsume movies-on-demand, TV-serials-on-demand and animations-on-demand. And for gaming again we are looking at the mobile platforms.”

And the company is shopping cheque book in hand. So sellers will indeed be kept busy by this emerging digital giant from India.

MUMBAI: Discovery has anounced at Mipcom that from the fourth quarter of 2008 and continuing throughout 2009, Science Channel will roll out a full slate of original programming designed to appeal to a worldwide audience of science enthusiasts.

The US-based Science Channel announced Brink, its first original series, is available for international broadcaster distribution.

Designed as the next-generation source of interactive science information on television and on the web, Brink immerses viewers on the frontlines of cutting-edge breakthroughs in technology, research, inventions, discoveries and the mysteries of the scientific world.

The series explores people who are on the brink of changing our lives, and will also include content generated from scientists, organisations, universities and viewers from around the world.

Discovery Enterprises International senior VP Caleb Weinstein says, “Only Discovery Communications can offer this type of high quality science programming to international broadcasters. This innovative new format allows for complete regional customization”

Discovery’s Emerging Networks senior VP programming Deborah Adler Myers says, “Brink is the first of many exciting new series in our new development pipeline and something only a dedicated service like Science Channel can create.

“Brink is a thought-provoking and engaging series that connects viewers with incredible science and technology stories from around the world.”

Guiding viewers through the unusual mix of science information and eureka moments on the show is host Josh Zepps. The series looks to provide viewers with a clear understanding of the impact and relevance science has in our lives today, and offers significant insights into how science may profoundly change our lives tomorrow.

Each half-hour episode combines short-form reports on the latest global science news with vital interviews with prominent scientists. BRINK’s innovative format will also include unusual segments covering a range of subjects from peculiar, avant-garde research to “backyard inventors” who are pushing the limits of science in their own way – such as building their own space craft.

In the US the show‘s reach extends beyond the border of television with a comprehensive, fully integrated presence on sciencechannel.com. Here viewers can watch extended interviews, interact via science blogs, upload and view user generated videos, talk to Zepps and other correspondents, take quizzes and explore additional research materials.