ITV

Category: GECs

  • 79% Indians look for best deals while shopping

    79% Indians look for best deals while shopping

    MUMBAI: A majority (79 per cent) of Indians would rather ‘spend time looking for a good deal,’ while only 21 per cent would rather ‘pay more to make a quick/efficient purchase.’ The findings reflect a new poll of 18,503 online respondents conducted by Ipsos OTX.

     

    “Indian consumers lately show both impulsive and compulsive buying behaviour. But at the same time they are dealaholics and hardcore value for money seekers. No wonder why sale/ discount offer periods record the highest revenue both for online and offline retailers,” said Ipsos India head of marketing Biswarup Banerjee.

     

    Those with a lower household income (82 per cent) are most likely to spend time looking for a good deal. Even those with middle (80 per cent) and high (74 per cent) levels of income, however, would take the time to find a better price. Similarly, those with a low level of education (100 per cent) are more likely than those with a medium (80 per cent) or high (79 per cent) level. Women (80 per cent) are more likely than men (78 per cent) to go hunting for a sale.

     

    The countries with the highest proportions of those indicating they would rather spend time looking for good deals are from: Hungary (94 per cent), Spain (94 per cent), Great Britain (93 per cent), Argentina (92 per cent), Belgium (91 per cent), France (91 per cent) and Germany (91 per cent). This group of deal-chasers is followed by: Australia (90 per cent), Italy (90 per cent), Mexico (90 per cent), Japan (88 per cent), South Africa (87 per cent), Canada (86 per cent), Poland (86 per cent), the United States (85 per cent), China (81 per cent), Russia (81 per cent) and South Korea (81 per cent). The lower group includes: India (79 per cent), Brazil (76 per cent), Saudi Arabia (76 per cent), Norway (75 per cent), Sweden (75 per cent), Turkey (74 per cent) and Indonesia (58 per cent).

  • Q W Naqvi joins as India TV editorial director

    Q W Naqvi joins as India TV editorial director

    MUMBAI: India TV today confirmed the appointment of QW Naqvi as its editorial director. QW Naqvi has been a known face for a long time on Aaj Tak where he put in his papers last year.

     

    A professional with a 360 degree view of the industry, Naqvi as part of the top management at TV Today created editorial workflow templates for optimal resource utilisation. Naqvi will be responsible to take India TV to the next level. He will be reporting to chairman and editor-in-chief Rajat Sharma.

     

    Starting his career in 1980 as trainee journalist (Hindi) with The Times of India Group, he has served at Navbharat Times, and later “Ravivar”, where he served as chief reporter. Before moving to Aaj Tak, he was part of the team that started Hindi daily – Chauthi Duniya. At “Chauthi Duniya,” the first Hindi weekly broadsheet, his innovations with layout design gained him the reputation as the man with defining ideas.

     

    Welcoming Naqvi on board, Sharma said, “Naqvi  is a hugely respected professional, with his experience, knowledge and enigma we definitely see India TV growing faster than ever in its quest to reign supreme in the Hindi News Genre and beyond.”

     

    “With elections round the corner, I think we are on the way, to create a right mix for our viewers and advertisers alike,” he added.

     

    Commenting on his appointment, Naqvi said, “This opportunity comes as a huge prospect for me to contribute towards furthering India TV’s charge for cementing its leadership position in the news genre.”

  • Have talent, will become animation hub

    Have talent, will become animation hub

    MUMBAI: The state-wide agitation over Telangana notwithstanding, the Andhra Pradesh government is pulling out all stops to make Hyderabad a media, animation and gaming hub.

     

    And not without reason, for, of the approximately $70 billion worth global animation industry, India’s contribution is around $ 900 million, with Hyderabad alone accounting for nearly $ 550 million.

    The Rs 350-crore GAME City project is in the last leg of finalising tenders, informs Madani

     

    So, after sponsoring the participation of Hyderabad-based animation companies at the recently concluded MIPCOM 2013, Information Technology and Communications Department deputy director (promotion) Syed Shawket Hussain Madani also made a pitch about how Hyderabad has a large talent pool that just needs the right push.

     

    Enlisting the challenges facing the animation industry, Madani said: “Infrastructure, which is dedicated to the media pool, is one challenge. The second important thing is to nurture the talent pool that specialises in 2D and 3D. The third challenge is to make gaming a part of the curriculum while the fourth is the policies relating to the animation industry,” and added that the AP government is coming up with a Gaming Animation Media Entertainment (GAME) City to tackle these obstacles.

     

    About the Rs 350-crore GAME City project funded by the state government, Madani informed: “We are in fact in the last leg of finalising tenders, which will be out by this month end.”

     

    Spanning more than 38 acre, GAME City will have an incubation space constructed over 8 lakh sq ft and various other facilities including a sound and acoustic studio, auditorium and shade studio. “We will give free bandwidth to the occupants for the first three years. Also considering that the software required for making animation series is expensive, the government has decided to buy the software and load it on the common server, which can be used by various companies located within GAME City,” said Madani.

     

    With plans to complete the 27,000 square feet incubation centre in the next two months, “Tenders for this are already out,” said Madani. The AP government is looking at big names to be part of the GAME City project. “Though Electronic Arts and Walt Disney already have their presence in Hyderabad, we want more such names to be part of this GAME city,” he said.

     

    As part of the larger project, a delegation was recently formed, comprising members from the AP government, industry and associations as well as architects and teachers from various institutes. “The team went to Dubai, Manchester, Amsterdam and South Korea to understand the needs of the animation industry and ensure that GAME City is well equipped,” said Madani.

     

    Additionally, the government is in the process of holding meetings with BBC and Al Jazeera among a host of other channels to set up businesses in Hyderabad. “We are negotiating with the University of Manchester for its specific programme that promotes animation in 2D and 3D. We have already signed a memorandum of understanding with Netherlands to set up an educational joint venture for making available its educational content to universities in Hyderabad,” informed Madani.

     

    Not only Hyderabad’s animation industry but also the work force stands to gain from these measures, which are expected to generate jobs for nearly 40,000 people. “This GAME city will complement the existing media and entertainment industry of Hyderabad,” concluded Madani.

     

    This is all very well but naysayers peg the fortunes (or otherwise) of the project on the upcoming elections. “The project sounds interesting and will be helpful to us. But, everything depends on the upcoming elections. If there is change in power, I am unsure if the project will see the light of the day,” said a Hyderabad-based CEO of an animation company who did not wish to be named.

  • Google faces Pakistani hackers in Malaysia

    Google faces Pakistani hackers in Malaysia

    NEW DELHI: The Google’s homepage for Malaysia was allegedly hacked by Pakistani hackers earlier this week.

     

    The page became inaccessible after falling victim to the hacker’s attack by “Team MadLEETS”.  At the bottom of the page the slogan of “Pakistan Zindabad” appeared, which is the nationalist slogan of Pakistan meaning long live Pakistan.

     

    “There’s not much reason behind it, only to prove that security is just an illusion. It does not exist,” said team leader Leet in a statement to a website. “We have no political intentions whatsoever.”

     

    This is not the first time that Google’s Malaysian home page had been hacked; the page was also breached in July. The Leet has been involved in numerous such incidents of DNS poisoning.

     

    But in a statement, Google said: “For a short period, some users visiting google.com.my were redirected to a different website; Google services for the google.com.my domain were not hacked. We have been in contact with the organisation responsible for managing this domain name and the issue should be resolved.”

  • Nielsen: Global ad spend up in first half of 2013

    Nielsen: Global ad spend up in first half of 2013

    MUMBAI: Global ad spend has hiked 2.8 per cent on a year-over-year basis for the first half of 2013, according to Nielsen’s Global AdView Pulse report, which finds that marketers in Latin America had the highest increase in spending for the period.

     

    For the second quarter of 2013, expenditures grew 3.5 per cent.

     

    All regions contributed to the global growth, except Europe, where there was a six per cent decline for the period from January to June. Latin America was booming, with gains of 13.1 per cent to $13.5 billion. There was a quarterly growth of 3.9 per cent in the Middle East and Africa. The Asia Pacific had growth of 6.4 per cent and North America of 2.7 per cent.

     

    Within Latin America, Argentina contributed significantly to the growth in the region, with a nearly 30 per cent increase in ad spending. Indonesia, China and the Philippines all contributed double-digit growth in the Asia Pacific for the first half of the year, with expenditures reaching $51 billion. In Europe, ad spending was up in Norway (2.5 per cent), Switzerland (0.6 per cent) and Greece (7.4 per cent), though all other countries in the region saw a decline.

  • Rajan Srinivasan bids adieu to Web18

    Rajan Srinivasan bids adieu to Web18

    MUMBAI: Rajan Srinivasan has decided to move on from his role as CEO, IBNLive. During his stint with Web18, Srinivasan managed a variety of mandates including head of sales for moneycontrol, head of sales and marketing for Web18 and CEO, IBNLive.

     

    He has been part of the core team that has helped build some of country’s leading digital brands like moneycontrol.com and IBNLive.com.
    Rajan Srinivasan is proud of what Web18 achieved over the past many years with it

     

    Speaking on this development, Web 18 CEO Lakshmi Narasimhan said: “Rajan has been with our web business for over eight years and has been a pillar of strength for our business. He has taken on every challenge we have thrown at him and has come out tops. He has been an integral part of our team and has made a big difference to us in many ways. I would like to wish him the very best in all his future endeavours.”

     

    Rajan Srinivasan added: “I am proud of what we achieved over the past many years at Web18. I am more than grateful for the immense support I’ve received from the Network18 team, our customers and our partners. Clearly, this is a rather emotional and tough call but I am happy to know that the Web18 suite of products are well positioned as well as future ready and wish them every success.”

     

     Srinivasan has over eighteen years of experience in the media industry, including nine in the digital space. Prior to joining Network18 in 2003, he had stints with the Indian Express, Sony Entertainment Television and BBC World.

  • Now ‘Mahabharat’ on Star Pravah

    Now ‘Mahabharat’ on Star Pravah

    MUMBAI: Marathi GEC viewers are set to be taken back into time. Marathi viewers will soon be introduced to two popular mythological shows for the first time. Come 21 October, between 6:00 pm and 7:00 pm, a new slot has been created on Star Pravah called Mahaparv that will start airing two of Star India’s biggest properties in this genre – Star Plus’s magnum opus Mahabharat and Life OK’s Devon Ke Dev… Mahadev. The difference being both the shows will be telecast, dubbed in Marathi.
    Jayesh Patil is confident that the two shows will work wonders for the Marathi GEC genre

    “The Marathi space has been missing this genre and these two shows are the network’s prime properties. The whole idea behind spending so much is that the whole network gets to share it,” explains Star Pravah programming head Jayesh Patil, pointing out that the astronomical costs involved in producing such shows was the very reason they hadn’t been tapped so far by the Marathi GEC space.

    Mahaparv will also serve as an experiment in how well (or otherwise) mythology is received by the Marathi audience. The question however remains whether Marathi GECs will be willing to spend several times more on original mythological shows.

    “We are spending a lot on dubbing to establish them. Once the market is open for mythology, we can shell out more,” replies Patil, adding that there’s a lot of scope for showcasing mythological tales from Marathi literature. As it is, each episode of either of the two shows takes nearly a day for dubbing in Marathi, with costs ranging between Rs 1.5 to Rs 2 lakh per episode, according to industry sources.

    According to Patil, 6:00 -7:00 pm is a good time to air these shows however Madison Media COO Karthik Lakshminarayan feels prime time would have been more suitable.
    Karthik Lakshminarayan believes that a good slew of advertisers would soon come on board

    So will these shows work for the Marathi audience? Life OK GM Ajit Thakur believes that mythological shows are universal so they will work everywhere. Mahadev has already been aired on the Star network’s Kannada, Oriya, Malayalam and Tamil channels, he points out.

    Lakshminarayan however feels Mahadev might fare better in the Marathi space. “Mahabharat has been treated like a movie and Marathi audiences are unused to such grandeur on TV shows. In terms of set and costumes, it may just be a bit too much for them,” he opines.

    Star Pravah is in the midst of negotiations to get advertisers on board and Lakshminarayan feels that shouldn’t be a problem considering both the shows are established.

    Will this time travel work for the Marathi audiences?

  • Waahid A Khan conferred with Indian Entrepreneur style icon award at Las Vegas

    Waahid A Khan conferred with Indian Entrepreneur style icon award at Las Vegas

    NEW DELHI: Young media entrepreneur Waahid A Khan has been awarded the Indian Entrepreneur style icon of the Year in the field of broadcasting and commerce at the prestigious 4th Annual Fashion Extravaganza Entertainment Award.

     

    The award was given in a gala but exclusive event at Nevada, Las Vegas.

     

    “Firstly, I feel proud to be an Indian and elated to be honoured globally on a International platform. I also want to thank Akshaya Patra Foundation who has been doing a phenomenal job in the field of charity and I would also want to personally extend my support to this noble cause,” said Khan.

     

    Earlier this year, Khan who has made a significant contribution in the field of Journalism and media was awarded Lion’s favourite Entrepreneur of the Year.

     

    Khan has been a name to reckon with in journalism and media since the past 14 years. From a media person to a successful businessman, Waahiid Ali Khan’s journey is very inspiring and encouraging.

     

    He has till now established many media houses with his intelligence, confidence and sheer knowledge of the industry. He successfully established two media houses Live India news channel in Hindi and Mi Marathi channel in Marathi. He has also made a huge contribution in the success of two other prominent news channels – P7 Hindi News Channel and India TV Hindi News Channel – since their incorporation.

     

    This entrepreneur is now Consulting Editorial Director with Sahana group and is spearheading his forthcoming Marathi News Channel and Web Portal Jai Maharashtra.

  • Is crime genre the fuel running Sony?

    Is crime genre the fuel running Sony?

    MUMBAI: Once upon a time, it ruled the roost but a look at recent TAM ratings tells another story. Why is it that a pioneer like Sony is currently languishing among the bottom three GECs? According to media experts, the answer lies in the kind of content the channel is airing.

     

    A majority of them feel fiction is critical to a GEC, which is exactly what Sony lacks. “Without focusing on any fiction-based shows, a GEC cannot survive. In other words, daily soap operas are the bread and butter for a GEC,” says a producer who didn’t wish to be named.

     

    Yes, Sony had hit shows like Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin and Boogie Woogie (reality) but that’s in the past. Over the last couple of years, the channel has failed to gain traction as far as fiction is concerned.

     

    Many may counter this saying Sony has two shows which can beat fiction-based ones by a huge margin: Crime Patrol and CID. The duo is among the channel’s longest running shows. To give statistics, CID garnered 7,048 TVTs in week 40 of TAM TV ratings while Crime Petrol registered 3,882 TVTs.

     

    Says BPN (Brand Programming Network) CEO Suresh Balakrishna: “CID and Crime Petrol have been airing for years and it won’t be wrong to say that the shows own this genre. A viewer expects to see crime shows on Sony, they have owned that genre and nobody has got into the genre the way the channel has.”

     

    Some experts agree that the way Star Plus is known for its fictional shows and Colors for its reality shows, viewers tend to expect crime from Sony. Others feel to focus on one particular genre, say crime, can definitely give the channel the required padding but GECs’ bread and butter is fiction shows.

     

    “I think the biggest problem that Sony is facing is to do with its image. It has never had fiction which has done well whereas non-fiction has worked brilliantly for the channel. Ideally, they should go back to the old model of non-fiction,” suggests a city-based media planner, adding: “It is not suffering as far as distribution is concerned or marketing is. The problem lies in the content. If it changes the content mix, the channel will definitely be able to garner better GVTs. But of course, that would mean investing a lot of time, ideas and energy. But if they invest, then it may work out.”

     

    Focusing on the content, planners state the example of Channel V which changed its strategy from being music to a fiction. Correspondingly, Sab TV till six years back had a mix bag of shows whereas now it is known for its comedy shows.

     

    However, a soap opera director begs to differ: “Sony has done lot of experiments. And I am getting a positive feeling for Desh ki Beti…Nandini and I think it will be able to click with the audience.” Yet, he is quick to point out that the channel hasn’t done anything like Jassi in a long time and even Bade Achche Lagte Hai isn’t working anymore.

     

    Says Sunshine Productions’ Sudhir Sharma: “Sony is known for semi-urban sensibilities shows such as Jassi and Bade Achche Lage Hai and in this space, the channel must explore. It will be good for them.”

     

    The channel is betting big on the recently launched Kaun Banega Crorepati 7 but TAM ratings haven’t been too encouraging. Whether Sony should get its act together on fiction shows or continue to concentrate on non-fiction (crime) is something the channel will have to work out.

     

    In the meantime, the recent revamp and maybe Boogie Woogie, which is returning to the channel after a decade-long gap, may just help Sony get its groove back…

  • Sony adds colour with two new shows

    Sony adds colour with two new shows

    MUMBAI: So what if it’s currently yo-yoing among the bottom three as far as TAM ratings go? Sony Entertainment Television is leaving no stone unturned to regain lost ground.

    Earlier this week, the GEC has launched a new show titled Desh Ki Beti Nandini with another one, Bhoot Aya, preparing to air every Sunday, at 11:00 pm, starting 13 October.

    Desh Ki Beti…, produced by Rashmi Telefilms, traces the journey of a typical Indian woman from the confines of her home to the limelight of politics and is a comment on how every Indian woman is a delicate mix of softness and strength.

    In sharp contrast, the upcoming Bhoot Aya, produced by Akashdeep Sabir and Sheeba’s Cinetek Telefilms, explores the dark forces through real-life, spine-chilling encounters of ordinary people.

    Speaking about the marketing campaign for Desh Ki Beti… , SET senior vice president, head – marketing Seth says: “Nandini’s rise to, the promise of the show is that one day, she is going to run the country and that is something we have showcased in all our communications. Whether it was in music, promos or it’s been the visual imagery in print or outdoor. It shows the journey and definitely gives that hope and umeed to say that an empowered, confident and intelligent woman has no feelings.”
    We will dominate that slot through the power of our idea and our concept, says a confident Gaurav Seth

    Seth adds that in a bid to get people to understand the concept, the channel asked them the question: “Do you believe, ek ladki joh ghar chala sakti hai.. desh bhi chala sakti hai?”

    As regards the non-fiction show, Seth says: “Firstly, we have tied up with the Indian paranormal society, which in a sense we refer to as ghost hunters. They go out and validate whether it is a fraud or for real. We are marketing it in a very interesting manner using this scary super-natural spooky zone to promote it. We have press ads which are going to show on the day of launch.”

    Independent experts have been roped in who will relate how these things happen to the audience and the channel is confident the show is going to really scare people. It has even created five to six television spots for the purpose of promoting the show.

    This apart, Sony’s official page, which boasted around 460,399 likes at the time of writing this article, will be used to promote the new shows. Asked why no exclusive pages have been devoted to the programs, Seth reasons: “We have stopped creating individual character pages. We are pushing Nandini as a show and concept across all social media.”

    What about competition considering Desh Ki Beti will air at 9:00 pm? “It all lies in the concept. There’s always going to be competition at any given slot across multiple channels. And I don’t think competition is something we are really worried about. We will dominate that slot through the power of our idea and power of our concept,” Seth shoots back confidently.

    With one of Sony’s best and longest running crime shows, Crime Petrol, having been cut down to accommodate Bhoot Aya, isn’t the channel worried about viewership? “We are just making a three-day thing to a two-day thing. There won’t be a problem in that. We want to introduce some novelty and some differentiation,” quips Seth.

    Meanwhile, asked if the new shows will help Sony reclaim its number three position or higher, a media planner says: “We cannot be wrong in saying that, Sony has been very experimentative in nature. I see some positive vibes from Nandini, the storyline and concept is relevant in today’s time. As far as Bhoot Aya is concerned, the concept is not something unusual. Already there are shows like this; people want to see something different. I don’t know what different the channel plans to show viewers, but this non-fiction piece will definitely fail viewership.”