ITV

Category: Software

  • Star India claims solid engagement levels on its cricket portal

    Star India claims solid engagement levels on its cricket portal

    MUMBAI: Star India, which recently launched Starsports.com, says that the site has recorded the highest time spent by users on any sports website per visit.

    Cricket fans, the broadcaster says, spent as much as 19 minutes per visit and viewed 342 years-equivalent of video in the first month of launch.

    The average time spent per visit in December, as per Comscore, despite the site being active for only five days that month, was 17.8 minutes and increased to 19 minutes in the first month.

    The 5.5 million unique viewers to the site across devices are enough to fill 83 `Eden Gardens‘ that, according to BCCI, has a capacity of 66,349. Starsports.com crossed 100,000 concurrent users consuming video during the third one-day international between India and England.

    The cricket timeline allows users to pull out past matches, view top moments, play around with the scorecard, while all the while enjoying unmatched video streaming.

    Star India COO Sanjay Gupta said, “Sports content in India has not seen much innovation across mediums. We want to change that and give fans the control to engage even more deeply with their favourite content. Through the world‘s first cricket timeline, viewers can pick the exact moments they want to see, during or after the live match.”

    “In fact we want to seamlessly integrate data and video throughout the site so that it‘s an unmatched viewing experience. We are excited about this leap and the response so far, and look forward to scaling it up further,” Gupta said.

    The broadcaster said every feature of the site aims to engage the consumer – from the video timeline to the reinvented commentary section that focusses on the action ball-by-ball, while pulling in real-time conversations on social media. The site boasts of a video scorecard bringing alive the statistics with video clips, analytics and graphics.

  • Free streaming gaining ground in the US

    Free streaming gaining ground in the US

    MUMBAI: New options are emerging in the consumer television landscape in the US though traditional pay TV operators and broadcaster networks still dominate, according to The NPD Group, a global information company.

    The new options include subscription video on demand (SVOD), electronic sell-through (EST) and free TV streaming.

    While SVOD drives the most online TV streams by far, the incidence of consumers who used SVOD and free streaming in 2012 was relatively equal.

    According to NPD‘s “Free Streaming TV” report, 12 per cent of US TV watchers reported streaming TV shows for free during the prior three months, compared to 14 per cent who watched a TV show via SVOD.

    NPD senior VP of industry analysis Russ Crupnick said, “Over half of the viewers for streaming TV are between the ages of 18 and 34, so the YouTube generation is evolving from short-form and user-generated content to TV shows and, like YouTube, they can watch where and when they want. Despite the attention lavished on tablets and phones, an astonishing 83 percent of free TV streaming programs are viewed on a computer.”

    Nearly all broadcast and cable TV networks offer free streaming of their programming via the Internet; however, based on NPD‘s latest information, consumer usage of free-streaming TV sites varies. Hulu.com dominated free streaming TV, accounting for 43 per cent of total streams during 2012.

    After Hulu, the five broadcast network sites (CBS.com, ABC.com, FOX.com, NBC.com, and CWTV.com) accounted for another 30 per cent of total streams. Four cable TV sites — abcfamily.com, comedycentral.com, MTV.com, and A&ETV.com — round out the top-ten free streaming TV sites. NPD‘s research shows that streaming consumers are very satisfied overall with the experience.

    All of the top 10 free streaming sites have strong consumer feedback with 75 per cent or more of each of these site‘s users reporting that they intend to return to the site in the future.

    Hulu.com, in particular, has very committed users, given that two-thirds say they “definitely” will return to the site.

    These free sites generally perform well on convenience and site organisation. Most of them also perform well on current release availability; however, Fox.com streamers rate the site much lower on this measure, due to the fact that Fox generally delays availability of its programming. “The consumer response to program availability on Fox, speaks to the often-controversial question of whether the audience detects shows that are windowed,” Crupnick added.

    Based on NPD‘s findings, the shift toward internet video distribution drives a more complex and diverse set of content and purchase and rental options to consumers. With it comes a more diverse set of direct and indirect competitors among movie studios and TV networks, as well as their TV and digital distribution partners.

    According to Crupnick, “from the consumer perspective, it is important to monitor the habits and perceptions of the audience as all of these distribution models evolve, which will help align programming to the target audience and inform whether consumers are responding positively to the experience these options provide.”

  • Netflix, Queen Latifah’s Flavor Unit Entertainment in multi-year agreement

    Netflix, Queen Latifah’s Flavor Unit Entertainment in multi-year agreement

    MUMBAI: OTT service provider Netflix and Flavor Unit Entertainment, the production company owned by actress Queen Latifah and Shakim Compere, have announced an exclusive licensing agreement for movies in the US.

    In the first-look deal, Netflix will have its pick of movies that will debut on its internet television subscription service shortly after their theatrical release from the company that made films like ‘Bringing Down the House‘ and ‘Beauty Shop‘.

    Beginning later this year Netflix members can exclusively enjoy Flavor Unit titles including the thriller, ‘House of Bodies‘, starring Terrence Howard and Peter Fonda and ‘Percentage‘ starring Ving Rhames, Cam‘ron and Macy Gray.

    Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos said, “We are delighted to work with Queen Latifah to be the exclusive destination for what are sure to be relevant, entertaining movies. Queen Latifah has a long track record of creating hits and Flavor Unit Entertainment is a fresh and exciting voice in the industry.”

    Queen Latifah said, “Netflix is such a strong brand and the perfect place to showcase our projects”.

  • Times Group channels hop on to OneAlliance bouquet

    Times Group channels hop on to OneAlliance bouquet

    MUMBAI: MSM Discovery (MSMD), the distribution joint venture between Sony‘s Multi Screen Media (MSM) and Discovery Communications, has entered into a multi-year distribution deal with Times Television Network (TTN) to strengthen its TheOneAlliance bouquet.

    The move comes close on the heels of IndiaCast-DisneyUTV JV that further consolidated the Indian television distribution space. The consolidation will help broadcasters to grow their pay-TV business as India moves towards digitisation of cable TV networks.

    The news and entertainment channels of TTN – Times Now, Movies Now, ET Now and zoOm – will now be exclusively distributed in India for collection of subscription revenue over the cable (analogue and digital), DTH, IPTV and HITS platforms as a part of TheOneAlliance bouquet. The deal between TTN and MSMD comes into effect from 6 February.

    The channels were earlier distributed by Prime Connect, the distribution joint venture between Times Group and media entrepreneur Yogesh Radhakrishnan.

    In a related development, Radhakrishnan has moved the Delhi High Court. The matter came up for hearing even today and will now resume on Monday.

    “The channels have terminated their distribution contract with Prime Connect and moved on to TheOneAlliance bouquet. This has weakened the JV and even made it redundant in that sense as it has no Times Group channels,” an industry source said on condition of anonymity.

    TTN will, however, undertake the marketing and channel penetration plans independently.

    Strengthening the OneAlliance bouquet

    The addition of TTN channels will strengthen TheOneAlliance’s English news offering which will include Times Now and TV Today Network’s Headlines Today. The bouquet will also have a business news channel in ET Now.

    The English movie channel offering will also get a boost with the addition of Movies Now as the bouquet already has Sony Pix. Further, zoOm will combine well with Hindi movie channel Max.

    MSMD President Rajesh Kaul says that the addition TTN channels will take the bouquet strength to 28 from 24 and more importantly will maintain the quality of the bouquet.

    “These are top channels in their respective categories and adding them will certainly strengthen the bouquet,” avers Kaul.
    Kaul said the immediate priority is to increase the penetration of TTN channels and monetise it in metro markets where these channels are well distributed.

    TTN MD and CEO Sunil Lulla said, “The Times Group and Multi Screen Media share a similar perspective on the broadcast industry and together we are poised to help grow the industry by ushering in transparency, value creation across the chain and by building strong brands.”

    TTN said its channels reach over 100 million viewers in 30 million urban Indian households.

    “As part of TheOneAlliance bouquet our channels will benefit from penetration in more homes and availability on a wider choice of packages. TTN and MSMD will together be able to effect realisation of a fair share of subscription revenue as well as grow ARPUs (Average Revenue per User) of our premium content offerings,” added Lulla.

    MSM CEO Man Jit Singh said, “TheOneAlliance is a robust distribution force and offers the best of entertainment to viewers. Addition of the TTN channels will further strengthen the bouquet and together we can ride the digitisation wave to maximize the true potential of the business.”

    MSMD already distributes 24 channels across genres including Hindi General Entertainment, Sports, Movies, Factual Entertainment, News, Bollywood, Reality, Action, Animation, Adventure and Lifestyle. Apart from MSM and Discovery channels, TheOneAlliance also distributes TV Today Network and Neo Sports broadcast network channels.

  • Russian telco signs three-year capacity deal with SES

    Russian telco signs three-year capacity deal with SES

    MUMBAI: Russia‘s leading mobile operators JSC VimpelCom (TM Beeline) has signed a three-year capacity deal with SES for additional capacity on NSS-9 satellite to deliver high-quality data services in the Russian Far East.

    The additional capacity onSES‘ NSS-9 satellite will be used to provide data services to VimpelCom‘s corporate clients based in the Kamchatka, Magadan and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky regions, and also enable VimpelCom to optimise the use of satellite capacity for their 3G network in the Russian Far East and East Siberia region. In total, VimpelCom now contracts multiple transponders on the NSS-9 satellite.

    “VimpelCom uses satellite capacity to connect the nodes of its transmission network in the absence of ground infrastructure. Thanks to satellites, the company can deploy 3G networks and provide high-quality services to users in remote regions of the Russian Far East. We are happy to have such a reliable partner as SES,” said VimpelCom VP of Technical Services Igor Parfenov.

    “VimpelCom operates in some of the harshest areas of Russia, which are best served by satellites. The high-powered NSS-9 satellite and its comprehensive coverage over Russia has enabled SES to support VimpelCom as it continues to roll out 3G networks and provide data services in the eastern regions of Russia,” said SES Asia SVP Deepak Mathur, who is also responsible for data and mobility services.

  • Gaana.com pumps up music content via YRF, Magnasound and Unisys

    Gaana.com pumps up music content via YRF, Magnasound and Unisys

    MUMBAI: Gaana.com, Times Internet Limited‘s (TIL) digital music platform, has partnered Yash Raj Films, Magnasound, and Unisys Infosolutions to bolster its music library.

    The three partnerships will together add over 50,000 songs across categories, from major blockbuster movies like Jab Tak Hai Jaan and Ek Tha Tiger, to a variety of Punjabi hits like Aak Chak, Gal Sun and Tusi Bewafa, to the best of 1990s Indipop like Daler Mehndi and Baba Sehgal.

    Gaana.com head Avinash Mudaliar claimed that Gaana.com app has seen 200,000 downloads two weeks since it was launched on iOS, Android, Blackberry, and Nokia/Samsung phones.

    “On iPhone, we had 58,153 downloads. On Android, 69,456 downloads. On Nokia and Samsung phones, we had 69,674 downloads. On Blackberry devices, we had 5,115 downloads,” he disclosed.

    Mudaliar said that the company is working towards improving the stability of apps and adding new features.

    “On iPhone, the latest version (awaiting approval) will have AirPlay enabled, so you can stream music from your phone to your home devices. And on Android, the latest release adds a lot of stability, and some other incremental features,” he added.

  • Eclat launches online sports channel for Korean pro leagues

    Eclat launches online sports channel for Korean pro leagues

    MUMBAI: Eclat Entertainment has partnered YouTube to launch an online channel, Spotv, that will offer major Korean professional sports.

    The channel includes video content from Korean sports leagues Korean Baseball Organization (KBO), K-league soccer, and the Korean Basketball League, as well as international soccer leagues.

    The Spotv channel will feature over 4,000 hours of live sports event coverage and also include video-on-demand access to full length matches and highlights.

    This will make coverage of Korean sports leagues available to fans worldwide, who can watch the videos on their desktop computer, mobile phone, connected TV, or YouTube-enabled gaming device.

    “With the opening of this channel, fans of Korean sports both inside and outside of Korea now have control over how and when they access their favorite teams‘ matches,” said YouTube Sports Partnerships Asia Pacific Director John Vamvakitis. “The Spotv channel on YouTube is a leading example of how great sports content will be digitally distributed to fans, and we‘re excited to partner with Eclat in making this a reality.”

  • Videocond2h’s Amit Dhanuka joins IndiaCast as SVP for intl biz

    Videocond2h’s Amit Dhanuka joins IndiaCast as SVP for intl biz

    MUMBAI: IndiaCast Media Distribution, a joint venture between TV18 and Viacom18, has appointed Amit Dhanuka as senior vice president for their international business division.

    Based in Mumbai, Dhanuka will oversee Asia Pacific business, international syndication, outbound ad sales as well as content and commercial affairs.

    Prior to joining IndiaCast, Dhanuka was with Videocon D2H where he drove the content strategy, packaging and VAS. He comes with over 12 years of experience in media and entertainment. He has also worked with Sony Pictures Television International, E- City and the Zee Group.

    IndiaCast COO Gaurav Gandhi said, “We are delighted to have Amit on board with us. Given his diverse experience both on the content and commercial side in media and broadcast, we are confident that he will play a very key role as we take our international business to the next level.”

    Dhanuka said, “IndiaCast has made a tremendous mark since its launch and I hope to build on that. I look forward to working with the team and bring in a new perspective for the growth of this fast growing organisation.”

  • Airtel Digital TV Q3 operating profit up amid strong subscriber growth

    Airtel Digital TV Q3 operating profit up amid strong subscriber growth

    MUMBAI: Airtel Digital TV, Bharti Airtel‘s direct-to-home (DTH) arm, continued to post operating profit for the second straight quarter amid healthy net subscription additions and a rise in ARPUs while churn rate has improved.

    The operating profit was at Rs 147 million in the fiscal third-quarter ended 31 December, up from Rs 33 million in the trailing three-month period.

    Airtel Digital TV added net 439,000 subscribers compared to a weak earlier quarter in which it grew just 55,000 new customers.

    “Digitisation and the festive season helped us grow our subscriber base in the third quarter. We expect this quarter (beginning January) to be good. Some of the gains from digitisation (38 cities by 31 March as mandated by government), though, will be captured in April,” Airtel Digital TV chief executive officer Shashi Arora told Indiantelevision.com.

    Airtel Digital TV‘s subscriber base grew 6 per cent to total 7.9 million.

    The company narrowed its fiscal third quarter loss before tax and interest to Rs 1.83 billion from Rs 2.23 billion in the earlier quarter. Revenue grew 29 per cent to Rs 4.28 billion from Rs 3.94 billion.

    A striking feature this quarter has been how Airtel Digital TV has lifted its average revenue per user (ARPU) while at the same time improving its churn rate. ARPU increased 5 per cent to Rs 186 from Rs 177 in the previous quarter. The monthly churn decreased to 1.3 per cent in the third quarter from 1.9 per cent.

    The improvement in ARPU has been achieved through product innovations, pricing corrections and upselling.

    “Our HD (high definition) contribution is relatively higher than the other DTH companies. This has led to a rise in ARPUs for us,” said Arora.

    Dish TV, India‘s largest DTH operator by subscribers, marginally increased its ARPU to Rs 160 from Rs 159 in the trailing quarter.

    During the quarter ended 31 December, Airtel Digital TV incurred a capital expenditure of Rs 1.35 billion in digital TV services.

  • Netflix makes first episode of ‘House of Cards’ available to non-members for one month

    Netflix makes first episode of ‘House of Cards’ available to non-members for one month

    MUMBAI: OTT service provider Netflix has made available to everyone in its territories the first episode of the drama series ‘House of Cards‘ to enjoy for one month.

    Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos said, “The creative team in front of and behind the camera have delivered a riveting 13-chapter narrative that we‘re proud to present to Netflix members today. By offering the first episode for free, including to non-members, we are opening up this fascinating world for everyone to see and are confident they‘ll want more.”

    Current Netflix members are now able to watch the entire 13-episode first season of the drama series, in territories where Netflix is available – U.S., Canada, U.K., Ireland, Latin America, Brazil and the Nordics.

    From director David Fincher ‘The Social Network‘, who directed the first two episode ‘House of Cards‘ is based on the BBC miniseries of the same name. This political drama starring Kevin Spacey Robin Wright and Kate Mara slithers beneath the curtain and through the back halls of greed, sex, love and corruption in modern Washington D.C.

    The show explores power, ambition and the American way. Francis Underwood (Spacey) is the House Majority Whip. Underwood is the politician‘s politician – masterful, beguiling, charismatic and ruthless. He and his equally ambitious wife Claire (Wright) stop at nothing to ensure their ascendancy.