ITV

Category: Television

  • BBC launches a digital version of ‘Top Of The Pops’ magazine

    MUMBAI: UK publisher BBC Magazines has launched an online edition of its Top Of The Pops magazine in conjunction with Zinio Systems.

    The company says that Top of the Pops is the UK’s number one teen entertainment title selling almost 120,000 copies every four weeks (ABC Jan-Jun 06) and this digital edition marks another significant step in the title’s digital strategy designed to capture teen interest in new media and technology.

    The digital edition will offer an enhanced and more interactive reading experience in tandem with the newsstand version offering extras such as Rich Media exclusives of the Pussycat Dolls and Neyo music videos. As well as offering increased reach, advertisers will be afforded the unique opportunity of enhancing their print creative like never before with live linking to web addresses and auto-play audio/visual content.

    Following the first complimentary edition, readers can sign up for an annual subscription to the digital edition for just ?9.99. Subscribers to the digital version will have the unique opportunity of receiving the online version of the magazine five days before it hits the newsstands. In a market where the immediacy of gossip is so crucial, this will be seen as particularly attractive to the average teenager.

    BBC Magazines Teen Group associate publisher Duncan Gray says: “We’re really excited to be the first teen title to enter this side of the digital marketplace. We see this digital edition as a complimentary purchase that offers up a whole new way for readers to enjoy the magazine by incorporating a range of interactive features.

    “Our readers love the celebrity interviews, fashion, gossip, cringes and real life stories and the digital edition enables us to deliver this directly to their inbox and bring elements of them to life with enhanced interactive content such as embedded music videos and film and TV trailers.”

    Readers can also receive details on downloading the digital edition through the magazine’s website and it will also be promoted through its recently launched email newsletter which has already attracted over 3000 members. Zinio will be promoting the magazine on www.zinio.com and through it’s vast digital database aiming at international sales.

  • Synovate Business Consulting & Orbis International to host fundraising events across Asia Pacific

    MUMBAI: Synovate Business Consulting, a division of global market research company, Synovate, has tied up with Orbis International – a non-profit humanitarian organisation that strives to eliminate avoidable blindness in the developing world.

    They have joined hands primarily to organise fund-raising events across the Asia-Pacific region, the funds generated will go towards curing blindness among the poor.
    In India, two fund-raisers are on the anvil. A charity dinner will be held in New Delhi on 7 September. While in Mumbai, a special screening of a play by National Center for Performing Arts (NCPA) – ‘The Liar’ – will be held on 10 September. The play is directed by eminent actor, director and stage artist – Naseeruddin Shah. All proceeds will be donated to Orbis, informs an official release.

    Synovate Business Consulting, a division of Synovate, provides business intelligence and growth strategy consulting across 22 Asia Pacific markets. Synovate, the market research arm of Aegis Group plc, generates consumer insights that drive competitive marketing solutions. The network provides clients with cohesive global support and a comprehensive suite of research solutions.

  • Warner creates digital production venture to make content for broadband, mobile

    MUMBAI: The Warner Bros. Television Group (WBTG) is establishing a new digital production venture Studio 2.0.

    This will work with creative talent and advertisers to create original live-action and animated short-form programming for broadband and wireless devices.

    WBTVG has tapped producer and senior advertising executive Rich Rosenthal to head Studio 2.0. These announcements were made by WBTG president Bruce Rosenblum. The venture will be overseen by WBTG executive VP Craig Hunegs.

    Studio 2.0 will provide a creative platform for the Television Group’s established as well as up-and-coming talent to produce content of varying lengths – from multiple-episode series to one-offs. Rosenthal will actively align Studio 2.0 with advertisers seeking early identification and involvement with original programming. They will develop projects through independent creative resources as well as through the various in-place Warner Bros. Television Group production arms.

    Studio 2.0 will look to license the programming to online sites, portals and wireless providers in collaboration with the recently formed Warner Bros. Digital Distribution.

    Rosenblum says, “What has become eminently clear is that our advertising partners in our traditional television businesses are anxious to work in collaboration with the creative community to develop original digital content.

    “At our core, we are a content creation company and Studio 2.0 is a natural, yet extraordinarily exciting, extension of our television production businesses. We are confident that Rich and Studio 2.0 will successfully provide advertisers with cutting edge tools that will integrate their brands with inventive digital content in fresh, impactful and meaningful ways.

    “At the same time, Studio 2.0 will present our creative partners in our television production divisions with a vibrant platform to express their vision in expanding digital arenas and allow us to collaborate with Simon Kenny (President, Warner Bros. Digital Distribution) and his team on terrific content for digital distribution.”

    Hunegs says, “Rich’s breadth of advertising experience, both as a creative and production exec, and the wide array of advertisers, brands and companies for which he has created, make him the ideal choice to run Studio 2.0. It is a coup to have him join us”.

    Time Warner Global Marketing, the cross-divisional client partnerships arm of Time Warner, will work closely with Rosenthal and Time Warner advertising clients.

  • Zee Telefilms signs Moving Pictures for Bollywood show

    MUMBAI: New Delhi-headquartered production house Moving Pictures India Ltd has bagged a show on Zee Network. The company will do a non-fiction show around the Bollywood industry, titled B News for Zee Music.

    One of the promoters of Moving Pictures India, Sancheta Ganpati Raju said that B News was going to be a key project for the company as Zee Telefilms is there on the other end. The half-an-hour show, which will be telecast twice a week, will run 104 episodes as per the deal.

    “B News is going to be a crucial assignment for us. Our effort is to come up with an innovative non-fiction show around Bollywood. The show will hit the airwaves two months from now. But the final schedule will be announced by the channel later,” says Raju.
    Moving Pictures’ current television projects include the page 3 show Popcorn on Zoom as well as Subah Savere, a breakfast show on Doordarshan.
     

  • Hong Kong Asia – Film Financing Forum calls for entries

    MUMBAI: The next Hong Kong Asia – Film Financing Forum (HAF), scheduled for 20 – 23 March 2007, is now accepting submissions. The deadline for sending in the project is 31 October 2006.

    The upcoming edition of HAF will be organised by the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society (HKIFF), with assistance from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and the Hong Kong, Kowloon & New Territories Motion Picture Industry Association Ltd. (MPIA).
    The HAF is a key financing forum held concurrently with Hong Kong Filmart – the Asian film, television, and multi-media business platform. In 2006 the HAF awarded six prizes to filmmakers judged to have outstanding projects by the advisory board. Prizes totalled over HK$400,000 in cash and HK$200,000 in in-kind support, informs an official release.

    The HAF aims to connect Asian filmmaking talent with upcoming theatrical film projects with financiers, producers, funding organisations, distributors and buyers in order to foster international co-production ventures. The HAF is a unique opportunity for filmmakers to present and discuss their projects individually with an array of potential partners in its three days, the release adds.
    Filmmakers from across Asia who have participated in past HAF events include Pen-ek Ratanaruang, Tsai Ming-Liang, Kore-Eda Hirokazu, Nonzee Nimibutr, Jira Maligool, Jiang Wen, Lou Ye, Miike Takashi, Stanley Kwan, Ann Hui, Iwai Shunji, Peter Chan, and Ning Hao, who commented, “HAF is an excellent platform for film directors to offer their scripts for consideration to interested companies, allowing both parties to meet and communicate.” The HAF was instrumental in the production of Ning’s Crazy Stone, and was considered an invaluable resource by the director. Ratanaruang’s Invisible Waves and Tsai’s The Wayward Cloud each went on to screen in competition at Berlin, and Maligool’s The Tin Mine was Thailand’s official entry for Academy Award consideration.

    Completed HAF projects have gone on to screen at the world’s most prestigious international film festivals, among them Cannes, Venice, Berlin, Toronto, Locarno, Pusan, and Deauville. The HAF international partners include CineMart and Hubert Bals Fund of Rotterdam, Pusan Promotion Plan, Paris Cinéma, and the Rome Film Festival.

    The HAF’s international advisory board includes a host of respected industry professionals. Among them are Ido Abram (The Netherlands), Terence Chang (USA), Roger Garcia (USA), Oh Jung Wan (South Korea), Jerome Paillard (France), Liz Wrenn (UK), Daniel Yun (Singapore), Aihara Hiromi (Japan), Mingmonkol Sonakul (Thailand), Tian Zhuang Zhuang (Chinese mainland), and many more.
     

  • Karnataka MSO Amogh Broadband plans expansion

    MUMBAI: Amogh Broadband Services, a multi-system operator (MSO) owned by Karnataka chief minister D Kumaraswamy’s wife Anitha and a group of entrepreneurs, is on a major expansion spree.

    The promoters have recently bought out the 26 per cent stake held by Pratap Wadhwa who heads Hinduja-owned Incablenet in Bangalore. Plans are now afoot to launch digital cable TV service in Bangalore by 15 October while expanding analogue business into the other bigger towns of Karnataka.

    “Wadhwa has offloaded his stake in Amogh Broadband. We are investing heavily on expanding our cable network,” says Amogh Broadband director M V Prasad Babu.
    The set-top boxes (STBs) will be supplied by Bharat Electronics Ltd. (BEL) and is expected to be priced at Rs 2,200 (excluding taxes). The company is also in advanced negotiations with a vendor from Taiwan for the high-end STBs.

    The conditional access system (CAS) platform is being provided by Norway’s Conax. The subscriber management system (SMS) solutions will be from Hyderabad-based MagnaQuest. “We will have one digital headend in Bangalore,” says Babu.
    Amogh has a control room for analogue cable in Bangalore, Hasan and Mandya. “We offer 103 television channels on our analogue cable and are spread over three districts. We plan to have 150 channels on our digital system,” Babu says.

    The MSO has tied up with Railtel to spread its reach throughout the state. “In the first phase, we will expand our network in these three districts. Then we will look at the other regions of Karnataka,” says Babu.

    Amogh also plans to launch broadband services for its subscribers. “We had tied up with Spectranet and Dishnet and were offering broadband. But we have stopped this now and are planning to soon have our own broadband service through the ethernet. We will only be targeting retail customers,” says Babu.

    The promoters of Amogh are also launching a general entertainment and news channel, Kannada Kasturi, through a separate company, Kasturi Media Pvt Ltd.

  • Bennett Media Worldwide announces programming line up at Mipcom 2006

    MUMBAI: Bennett Media Worldwide (BMW), the Bennett Group’s global distribution operation, has announced at Mipcom 2006, their programming slate for global broadcasters. It will feature three all-new high-defintion series, including Playing In Paradise, Beyond the List and Oh, No! It’s Kato!
    Said BMW president Paul Rich, “The Bennett Group reflects our company’s new industry positioning as a full-fledged, fully-integrated entertainment studio, with all areas of production and distribution all under one corporate ‘roof.’ Through Bennett Group’s four distinct divisions, we have the capacity to take a project from concept through every phase of production and post-production, as well as domestic and international distribution.”

    “Our new high-def line-up further underscores our company as the production leader in this burgeoning format,” said Bennett Productions president Casey Bennett. “We are recognized as a pioneer in the production of HD programming having created and produced high-def series and specials as far back as 1998. Today, Bennett Productions is widely regarded for our HD productions which are backed by complete surround sound audio.”

    The new-to-Mipcom Bennett Media Worldwide slate includes:

    Playing In Paradise – Viewers experience a new dimension of exotic travel as top bikini models guide the audience through the world’s most desirable locations from the Bahamas to Thailand.

    Beyond the List – It covers the hippest threads, cars, gadgets and what it takes to get a sneak peek into the world’s most exclusive lifestyles where only a recognized face or name on the list gains entrance.

    Oh, No! It’s Kato!- After being rejected by Hollywood, Kato Kaelin takes his quick wit and sharp tongue to hot spots around the world in Oh, No! It’s Kato! From crashing the sidelines for the inside story at the Lingerie Bowl to sneaking into the Spring Break bikini pageant in Cancun, viewers are able to join Kato on his mission-possible journeys where the perfect mix of comedy and adventure drive each episode, informs an official release.

    In addition to Bennett Media Worldwide, the newly established Bennett Group, housed at its West Los Angeles headquarters, encompasses: Bennett Productions, the content development and production division that includes state-of-the-art in-house soundstages; Bennett Music, a newly-created producer and supplier of both production and original music that is also home to complete recording studios as well as recording, mixing and mastering facilities utilizing the most current in digital recording technology; and Bennett HD/LA, one of the few fully-HD post-production facilities in Los Angeles.
     

  • Zee Sports gears up for DLF Cup tri series

    MUMBAI: Zee Sports will air the DLF Cup cricket ti series involving India, Australia and the West Indies exclusively. The event takes place in Malaysia from 12 -24 September. Real estate major DLF will be the presenting sponsor of the tri series.
    The channel will be conducting its studio show, Cricket Café from the stadium in Kuala Lumpur. Zee is also handling the production of the matches in Kuala Lumpur. For commentary it has roped in the likes of Tony Greig, Ian Bishop, Arun Lal, L Sivaramakrishnan, Jeff Thomson, Justin Langer and Kapil Dev. It will also make a Hindi feed available both on DTH and cable.

    Schedule of the India –Australia –West Indies DLF Cup live and excluisve on Zee Sports
    West Indies vs. Australia    Sep 12     1st session    11:30     2nd session    16:10
    India vs. West Indies     Sep 14     1st session    11:30     2nd Session
        16:10
    India vs. Australia     Sep 18     1st Session     11:30    2nd Session     16:10
    India vs. West Indies     Sep 20     1st Session
        11:30     2nd Session     16:10
    India vs. Australia     Sep 22     1st Session    11:30    2nd Session    16:10

    Finals     Sep 24    1st Session    11:30

        2nd Session     16:10

     Zee shall be showing these matches live on its UK/Europe, Middle East and South Africa beams, thus expanding its international subscriber base. Zee has been able to conclude deals with broadcasters internationally, in markets such as Singapore, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and others like Echostar in the US, Fox Sports in Australia, Astro in Malaysia, Hong Kong Cable in Hong Kong to name a few. Live commentary of these matches will also be carried by All India Radio.
     
    “We will be airing a 10 episode series that takes a look at the reality shoot at the training sessions at Goa and the finale. This is just the beginning. We will soon be lauching a hunt called Diva Quest, which will be a hunt for a face for Zoom” added Anand.

    L’Oreal Consumer Products Division (India) director Philippe Raffray added “L’Oreal Paris endeavors to make women around the world more beautiful. Which is why this association with Elite, one of the most prestigious modeling networks, and Zoom, India’s glamorous lifestyle channel, creates a unique showcase for contemporary Indian beauty.”

  • Star Movies to present a recap of ‘Lost’ tomorrow

    MUMBAI: Fans of the action adventure show Lost which airs on Star Movies can catch up if they have missed certain episodes.

    On 7 September 7th at 9 pm the channel presents Lost: Revelation. This offers a recap of the first season and what has happened so far in the second season in a one-hour package. This special episode offers viewers a fresh perspective of the show.

    For the uninitiated the show deals with survivors of a plane crash who are stranded on an island. Viewers will discover the complete story of the grueling first 48 days on the island for the fuselage survivors and tailies after the crash of Oceanic flight 815.

    The channel says that since the beginning, Lost has mystified and intrigued viewers with its characters and storytelling. The first season dealt with the fuselage survivors, the hatch and a failed attempt to get off the island. Season two continues these stories and also introduces viewers to the survivors of the tail section.
    Lost: Revelation puts these two seasons together in a linear fashion that provides an illuminating view on one compelling story. See the sequence of the aftermath of the failed raft attempt, the opening of the hatch, how the tail section and fuselage survivors lived separately and the unwitting intersections of their lives, and how both groups ultimately collided in one catastrophic moment.
     

  • Breakthrough Animation forays into multi-platform programming

    MUMBAI: Breakthrough Animation Inc., a Canadian animation production company, announced at Mipcom 2006 that it will create cutting-edge multi-platform vignettes for three of its most popular animated series, Atomic Betty, Miss BG and Captain Flamingo.

    As announced by Breakthrough Animation Inc., executive producer and managing partner Kevin Gillis, the company is creating high-quality, original programming to ensure that they remains at the forefront of the industry as audiences gravitate toward diversified platforms for entertainment.

    Breakthrough Entertainment will distribute the content to broadcasters and Breakthrough New Media will distribute the mobile content to telecommunication companies and content aggregators for the mobile market, informed an official release.

    The vignettes developed for Atomic Betty will be a combination of humourous, space-based science facts, blooper reels, animated interviews and music videos. Along the lines of the original series, Miss BG’s vignettes will highlight her unconventional perspective on the world, her family and friends. While Captain Flamingo disseminates 101 ways to attain superhero savvy by revealing a sneak-peek into his extraordinary talents.

    “As audiences move toward accessing their content beyond the traditional television broadcast platform we want to provide unique programming for these new mediums. Traditional television content was intended to be viewed on an all-encompassing wide screen format to bring the audience into the program’s world. The advent of portable personal devices has created the opportunity for a one-on-one experience between our characters and our audience. Produced for the mobile screen, we have designed our multi-platform programming to provide distinctive content for these mediums because we believe global audiences will be looking for an original viewing experience that differentiates it from re-purposed fare,” said Gillis.

    Atomic Betty is a co-production between Atomic Cartoons, Breakthrough Animation Inc., and TeleImages Kids, the comedy-adventure animated series has already been licensed worldwide to major broadcasters in over 120 territories. Atomic Betty follows the adventures of Betty, whose double life as “Galactic Guardian and Defender of the Cosmos” takes her on a whirlwind journey through space. Extensive merchandising and licensing deals have been signed including Penguin Books for publishing and Hallmark for greeting cards.

    Miss BG is adapted from the acclaimed “Gudule & les Bébés” book collection authored by Fanny Joly and illustrated by Roser Capdevilla. Miss BG is a co-production between Ellipsanime, Breakthrough Animation, TVO, TFO (Canada) and France 5. Aimed at kids aged 5-8, the 3-D animated TV series centers around the world of Miss BG.

    Captain Flamingo is a co-production between Breakthrough Animation, Heroic Film Company, Atomic Cartoons and Pasi Animation, the animated hit is an original production for YTV Canada. Captain Flamingo follows the adventures of Milo Powell who, tired of being overlooked by big kids, dons his terrycloth cape as Captain Flamingo and saves the day for kids everywhere.