MUMBAI: The News Corp owned Star TV UK has got all its channels onto Sky Digital’s on demand service and has become the first Asian broadcaster to do so. With this, Star’s programmes will be available ‘on demand’ to Sky customers at no additional cost.
More than 3.4 million homes have their set top boxes connected to the broadband to enjoy this catch up service.
Four channels are available in the Star TV pack- Star Plus, Star Gold, Life Ok and Star Jalsha.
MUMBAI: Zee’s entertainment channel, Lamhe, has found a place on Freeview in the Greater Manchester area as a part of the basic digital terrestrial service. Estimates put the reach of the channel at 1.2 million and increasing the reach of Zee Lamhe to 13 million homes in UK.
Lamhe was launched earlier this year to showcase good quality south Asian entertainment such as drama, classics and Bollywood, lifestyle, cookery and travel. The FTA channel is also available on Sky Digital.
Speaking to media247, Zee FTA channels business head Archana Kanade said, “Lamhe has been going from strength to strength in a short period of time since it started broadcasting earlier this year in June. The channel offers a distinct viewing experience by offering content that is not available anywhere else and it is outperforming other GEC channels that have been in the market for longer and beating them at certain slots since being BARB rated. Over 10% of Manchester’s population is South Asian, with Freeview being a popular platform here. It is great that an even wider audience will now be able to enjoy the unique offerings of Lamhe.”
Lamhe broadcasts old shows that it feels is of quality that can engage UK viewers. Freeview is UK’s only FTA digital terrestrial TV service.
NEW DELHI: In the last few years, online shopping has become big. It has been a blessing in disguise for people in the small town India who got an access to many brands which were almost unreachable for them earlier. With its new television campaign titled “Ayega, Ghar Baithe Payega”, ecommerce portal for fashion and lifestyle brands Myntra.com is stressing on the convenience that online shopping gives. The theme of the campaign is “Real Life Mein Aisa Hota Hai Kya”.
The commercial was first launched on Myntra.com’s social media platforms Youtube and Facebook before being aired across major TV channels starting 30 November.
The TVC establishes Myntra.com as the online fashion destination and positions it as one of the country’s most comprehensive online fashion stores. Demystifying the inbuilt inertias of shopping online, Myntra.com’s latest ad gives an innovative treatment to educate and captivate the audience on the perks of online shopping over offline.
The ad showcases a mammoth parcel being carried across crowded streets by a large number of Myntra delivery boys. The parcel gets ferried across the river, over the bridge and through tiny lanes to reach its final destination. The parcel upon arrival unveils the numerous fashion apparel and accessory options that Myntra.com offers its customers, reiterating its position as the one-stop-shop for fashion. The catchy background score picks pace through the journey and conveys advantages of shopping with Myntra.com in a simple, realistic manner.
Shot in Panjim, Goa, the film was directed by Nikhil Rao and produced by Jamic Films. The campaign was conceptualised by Agnello Dias from Taproot Agency.
NEW DELHI : While lawyers dismantle many restrictions on political money, the rules affecting Morning Edition and Downton Abbey still stand tall. A federal court in San Francisco says public radio and TV stations cannot carry paid political ads.
The 8-3 decision Monday by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a ruling last April by a smaller panel of the court. NPR and PBS both joined the case as friends of the court.
The court upheld the decades-old bar against political ads on public broadcasting stations, even as other restrictions have vanished over the years. One long-gone rule held that funders could only be listed by name.
The case just decided – Minority Television Project vs. FCC – began as a bid to take any commercial advertising. Among the arguments rejected by the appeals court, the TV station invoked the Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling of 2010, which allowed corporations to spend freely advocating for or against candidates..
Two dissenting judges argued that the station did not get a fair shake because “judges like public radio and television, while pretty much nobody likes commercials.”
MUMBAI: Since last three years, on the New Year’s Eve, Star plus has been honoring the biggest entertainers from television, films, music, theatre and sports. It has not just been popular but also gives a chance to start the year with a good omen. And thus, encouraged by the success of the previous three seasons, 92.7 BIG FM in association with Star Plus is presenting the fourth edition of BIG Star Entertainment Awards.
This awards ceremony is completely ‘for the people and by the people’ and gives the audiences an opportunity to nominate and vote for their favourite entertainers across fields. This year, the awards promises to be an intensely exciting affair, giving the audience not only a larger than life experience in terms of entertainment and glam quotient but will also herald the most unforgettable New Year extravaganza on Star Plus on 31 December.
92.7 BIG FM and Star Plus will keep audiences informed of the nominations and conduct a mass voting drive where thousands of people are expected to participate and vote for their favorite entertainers. The dazzling awards ceremony to be held on the 18 December promises to be a star studded affair which will feature the finest of Bollywood and TV entertainers delivering their best performances.
Speaking about the awards, 92.7 BIG FM business head Ashwin Padmanabhan exults: “We are proud to launch the fourth edition of BIG STAR Entertainment Awards this year. The platform offers people a chance to choose their favorite ‘superstar’ from different fields of entertainment. We thank our partners Star Plus for coming together with us on this property yet again.”
The BIG Star Entertainment Awards 2013 will be promoted across multimedia platforms which include radio, television, outdoor and digital.
MUMBAI: A dance reality show Let’s Dance is giving an opportunity to dance enthusiasts to participate in pairs. The show would soon be launched on the Malayalam TV channel, Amrita TV. The participants should be in the age group of 18-30 and can be husband-wife, sisters, brothers, brother-sister, friends, or any two people who share a good chemistry and have a knack for dancing.
Each pair will have a choreographer and they will go through several elimination rounds. The show is inviting contestants from across India as well as the gulf. The judging panel will consist of known choreographers and celebrities.
Previously, the channel has hosted two other dance shows – Super Dancer and Super Dancer Junior – that were quite popular with the masses. Even this time around, the channel is making sure to create the right buzz. Many different dance forms will be a part of the show including classical, contemporary, Bollywood, hip-hop, jazz, kalarippayattu, salsa, samba and musical theatre styles.
According to the channel sources, Let’s Dance will have good quality set with LED walls, bright lights and amazing sound systems.
The auditions for the show will begin on 14 December in Kerala and the last date for submission of entries is 13 December.
MUMBAI: In the last two months, Fremantle Media International (FMI) has closed more than 1,200 hours of programming sales in Asia. On the first day of the Asia TV Forum, the company announced that the deals include many titles from its recently launched Mipcom slate as well as the first ever sale of an Australian drama to a free-to-air channel in the Philippines.
The competitive reality docu-series, The Fashion Fund featuring Anna Wintour, has been sold to two broadcasters in Thailand: free-to-air channel Workpoint TV and pay TV operator TrueVisions. TrueVisions has also acquired the new Hulu original series Behind the Mask, the one-off feature documentary I Am Steve McQueen and the eye-opening factual special, Asteroids: Doomsday or Payday?
Solar Entertainment in the Philippines has bought series one to three of Winners and Losers, making it the first ever free-to-air Philippine network to broadcast an Australian drama. It has also acquired The Fashion Fund, David E. Kelley (Ally McBeal, Boston Legal) medical drama Monday Mornings and Web Therapy series three starring Lisa Kudrow.
The Asia team has made light work of racking up deals across Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and The Philippines, packaging some 580 hours alone for Mediacorp’s on-demand platform Toggle.sg. Leading shows across all genres, from entertainment and lifestyle to drama and kids, have also been snapped up by a variety of free-to-air, pay TV and cable channels.
Looks like it is a good time for the Asian market.
MUMBAI: Percept’s corporate communication head Sangeeta Chacko was conferred with the esteemed ‘Outstanding International Business Communicator 2013 Award’ by the National Organisation of Commerce and Industry (NOCI) in Thailand.
The award recognised her dynamic and proactive role in conceptualising and leading a wide spectrum of communication activities including ATL & BTL stakeholder communication, advertising, PR, brand marketing, business development, digital & social media marketing and corporate social responsibility (CSR). It also recognised and honoured her multifaceted and innovative styles in communication designs, platforms and methodologies.
The National Organisation of Commerce and Industry (NOCI) instituted the first edition of the ‘Outstanding International Awards’ in the APAC region with an aim to felicitate excellence in business and outstanding contribution made by individuals and institutions towards Society and National Welfare. The award recognised the international influence and impact the recipients demonstrated via their exemplary work across the fields of Business, Leadership, Communications, Health, Education, Tourism, Entrepreneurship, Banking and Social Causes.
The Jury panel comprised senior stalwarts from various industrial fields renowned for their contribution towards the economic, professional and educational fields in India and overseas. The awards are a testimony towards the proactive attitude, innovation, contribution and global perspective reflected by the recipient towards business and economy.
MUMBAI: There’s some change at the top in the Star group of channels. Star Utsav, a sister channel of Star Plus, has got a new business head. Pratik Seal, who was working as Star Network’s second general entertainment channel (GEC), Life OK’s marketing head, will now take up the role of Star Utsav’s business head.
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Seal, who has already started working in the new role since last week, is reporting to Star Plus general manager Gaurav Banerjee. An official announcement about this would be made soon.
Prior to joining Star Network, Seal was heading the marketing functions at Micromax. He has a total experience of 15 years.
Seal, who started his career in 1998, has experience in brand management, strategic planning, advertising and communication, key account management, product development insights, media planning, event management and public relations.
Seal started as an account executive with Basic4 Advertising. After spending two years with the company, he moved to Ties2Family.com as an assistant manager, marketing and then worked as senior account executive with FCB Ulka.
After spending about two years with FCB Ulka, Seal joined Lowe Lintas as a senior brand services manager. Within three years, he was promoted to the position of senior brand services director. He later joined Vodafone as senior manager, marketing in April 2006. In December 2007, he joined as the senior manager – marketing in Samsung and then in Micromax as marketing head in April, 2010.
BENGALURU: Titan’s urban youth brand Fastrack announced the launch of a new category – helmets in Bengaluru. The new range will see 24 different variants for ‘guys and girls’ in different colours and graphics, making them a style-essential for its TG. Titan plans to include a range of bicycle headgear and accessories in the near future.
Fastrack, which was launched in 1998, has seen revenue growth of more than fifty times from Rs 30 crore to Rs 770 crore, hence making it the largest fashion accessories brand in the country, claim Titan officials. By the end of this fiscal in March 2014, the company expects revenue of just Rs 8 to 10 crores from the helmet stream and about Rs 50 crore during FY-2014-15.
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We are looking at revenue of about Rs 500 crore from this stream over the next five years, says Titan managing director Bhaskar Bhatt
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The company says that the present size of the organised helmet market which constitutes about 45 per cent of the overall market is Rs 400 crore in India and is estimated to grow to about Rs 1500 crore over the next five years. “We are looking at revenue of about Rs 500 crore from this stream over the next five years,” reveals Titan managing director Bhaskar Bhatt to www.indiantelevision.com.
“India has one of the highest numbers of two-wheelers in the world. With unorganised players currently driving the helmet business, the category has a large potential in the market. We are trying to buck the trend – even if a person doesn’t want to buy a helmet, she or he will buy it because it’s from Fastrack, because we believe that it is not the helmet that the person will buy, but brand Fastrack,” Bhatt further adds.
For the present Fastrack helmets will be sold through the 147 Fastrack stores across the country. Titan plans to increase the number of Fastrack outlets to 200 by 31 March, 2014. The company also plans to sell helmets online through its own portal as well as other fashion online retailers such as Myntra, Jabong, etc., in the near future.
“We are looking at outdoor promotions over the next few months. We’ll probably launch a multimedia campaign including TVCs sometime in the near future,” informs Titan Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Ronnie Talati. Lowe Lintas handles the creative duties and Maxus the media buying for Fastrack.
Company sources peg the outdoor Fastrack helmets campaign at about Rs 2 crores till the end of this fiscal, and then depending upon the response, will chalk out a campaign for the next year.
“Being in the business of youth fashion accessories, helmets were a natural extension for us after watches, sunglasses and bags. Many of today’s youth use protective gear to make bold fashion statements. The youth being the dominant consumers for the category, launching the helmets range under the Fastrack umbrella would help keep a firm grip on the capricious youth market,” adds Talati.