Category: News Broadcasting

Zee TV to launch ‘Johny Aala Re’ on 5 June

MUMBAI: After establishing its second position in the Hindi general entertainment (GEC) space, Subhash Chandra’s Zee TV is now trying to replace a weak link in its scheme of things – the Monday to Wednesday 10 pm slot earlier occupied by Kam Ya Zyaada.

The Manoj Bajpai-hosted game show, which has been taken off air due to its failure on the ratings front, is being replaced by a comedy programme, driven by none other than the much sought after Bollywood comedian Johny Lever.

To be aired three days a week from Monday to Wednesday at 10 pm, the half an hour show Johny Aala Re is packaged with segments such as stand up comedy, spoofs and mimicry performed by Lever, as well as celebrity guests and outside talent making brief appearances.

A tough fight is awaiting Johny Lever in the 10 pm slot, as Johny Aala Re will be locking horns with Star Plus’ seasoned player Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii and also two new shows from the Sony stable. Aroona Irani’s Vaidehi, which will air on Mondays at 10 pm will launch on 5 June and Man Main Hai Vishwas, which is reportedly being launched on 13 June, will be telecast on Tuesdays at 10 pm.

“We will introduce new one hour weeklies in the 10 to 11 pm band in June. That will culminate our initiative of providing new and fresh programming for our viewers,” SET India COO NP Singh had told Indiantelevision.com some time back.

Commenting on the launch of the new family entertainment show, Zee TV programming head Ashvini Yardi said, “Johny Aala Re is laughter personified. Johny Lever is a comedian par excellence. We have also lined up some lively celebrities that go with the flavour of the show. Johny will meet them in his own comical manner, ensuring that the audiences are in splits, rolling in the aisles.”

Zee TV will be putting big efforts to promote the big ticket show, says Zee TV marketing head Tarun Mehra. The channel has made a programming association with MTV, apart from banking on its news channel Zee News to promote the property on air.

“As part of the promotions, we have tied up with MTV Networks to invite Johny Lever as the first star on their newly launched show TV Star of the Month. Apart from this, Zee News will also do an extensive interview with the star,” says Mehra.

In tune with the show, another marketing strategy adopted by the channel is the distribution of joke books. The books will be distributed through on-ground activities starting 3 June.

On the lines of a drive-in movie, the sets have an on-street ambience with a live audience casually sitting on the tops of cars. Besides the stand up comedy segment, Johny most often takes the guise of popular personalities, from politicians to film stars. In a separate segment titled, Main Bhi Johny, the common man is selected to showcase his talent in booths set up on the streets. Besides, fixed segments such as these, there are a few floating segments such as a parody of songs
and topical spoofs.

On completion of 25 years in the film industry and currently, taking a break from films, this is Johny Lever’s first TV show and several inputs for the script come directly from him, to add his own personal touch, states an official release. Produced by Akashdeep and Sheeba’s Cinetek Telefilms Private Limited, this is King-Com’s first ever series on television.

When queried about the number of episodes shot, Akashdeep stated that only a few had been shot, in order to keep to more contemporary issues.

May 31, 2006
NDTV Profit launches new show ‘World Business’ with John Defterious as host

MUMBAI: NDTV Profit is launching a new business news programme called World Business, to be hosted by CNN Business News former anchor and editor John Defterious.

Presented by NDTV Profit and UK based Fact Based Communications (FBC), the programme will profile world business leaders and feature in depth analyses of business trends world wide.
The first episode of World Business will be telecast on 3 June at 10 pm with a repeat telecast on 4 June at 8 am.

World Business will be targeted at C-class executives, senior managers, government officials and leading opinion formers in India and globally.

This weekly half-hour business programme will include segments such as Tech Watch, a feature which looks at how companies are utilising technology to maintain competitiveness in today’s day and age. The other unique regular feature will be the segment Business of Sport, profiling the money and business strategies behind sports.

The World Business team comprises business correspondents, reporters and contributors from across Europe, Asia, the US, Middle East and Africa.

NDTV Profit managing editor Vikram Chandra said, “NDTV has always sought to provide quality content programming for its viewers. Bringing one of the most widely watched global business shows on our platform is in keeping with our channel’s commitment to offer more value, in depth analysis and the latest in international business news.”

May 31, 2006
Disney ties up with CinemaNow to offer films online

MUMBAI: CinemaNow, which provides on-demand movies online, has announced an agreement with Buena Vista Home Entertainment. CinemaNow will offer select movies on a download-to-own basis through its website (www.cinemanow.com).

Buena Vista Home Entertainment will also offer select new movies beginning with Glory Road on 6 June, which will coincide with the timing of its home entertainment window. This agreement will also allow on-demand viewers to move their content onto approved portable devices for a broader digital experience.

Movies initially offered on a download-to-own basis will include Flightplan, The Insider. Additional movies available the same day as their DVD release will include Eight Below on 20 June and Annapolis on 27 June. Customers can purchase and download a legal, permanent copy of a Buena Vista Home Entertainment movie for unlimited playback on the download device.

CinemaNow president Bruce Eisen says, “We are very proud to have been selected by Buena Vista Home Entertainment as an Internet company to distribute its movies on a download-to-own basis.

“Buena Vista Home Entertainment not only produces and distributes some of the highest quality movies in the world, but they have also been a leading force in the adoption of new distribution platforms and we are excited that they recognize CinemaNow as a leader in this emerging space.”

May 31, 2006
Zee TV to launch ‘Johny Aala Re’ on 5 June

MUMBAI: After establishing its second position in the Hindi general entertainment (GEC) space, Subhash Chandra’s Zee TV is now trying to replace a weak link in its scheme of things – the Monday to Wednesday 10 pm slot earlier occupied by Kam Ya Zyaada.

Kam Ya Zyaada, which has been taken off the air due to its failure on the ratings front, is being replaced by a comedy show, driven by none other than the much sought after Bollywood comedian Johny Lever.

To be aired three days a week from Monday to Wednesday at 10 pm, the half an hour show Johny Aala Re is packaged with segments such as stand up comedy, spoofs and mimicry performed by Lever, as well as celebrity guests and outside talent making brief appearances.

A tough fight is awaiting Johny Lever in the 10 pm slot, as Johny Aala Re will be locking horns with Star Plus’ seasoned player Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii and Sony’s two new show Vaidehi, which also goes on air on 5 June at 10 pm. “We will introduce new one hour weeklies in the 10 to 11 pm band in June. That will culminate our initiative of providing new and fresh programming for our viewers,” SET India COO NP Singh had told Indiantelevision.com some time back.

Commenting on the launch of the new family entertainment show, Zee TV programming head Ashvini Yardi said, “Johny Aala Re is laughter personified. Johny Lever is a comedian par excellence. We have also lined up some lively celebrities that go with the flavour of the show. Johny will meet them in his own comical manner, ensuring that the audiences are in splits, rolling in the aisles.”

Zee TV will be putting in the due effort to promote the big ticket show, says Zee TV marketing head Tarun Mehra. The channel has made a programming association with MTV, apart from banking on its news channel Zee News to promote the property on air.

“As part of the promotions, we have tied up with MTV Networks to invite Johny Lever as the first star on their newly launched show TV Star of the Month. Apart from this, Zee News will also do an extensive interview with the star,” says Mehra.

In tune with the show, another marketing strategy has been adopted by the channel is the distribution of joke books. The books will be distributed through on-ground activities starting 3 June.

On the lines of a drive-in movie, the sets have an on-street ambience with a live audience casually sitting on the tops of cars. Besides the stand up comedy segment, Johny most often takes the guise of popular personalities, from politicians to film stars. In a separate segment titled, Main Bhi Johny, the common man is selected to showcase his talent in booths set up on the streets. Besides, fixed segments such as these, there are a few floating segments such as a parody of songs
and topical spoofs.

On completion of 25 years in the film industry and currently, taking a break from films, this is Johny Lever’s first TV show and several inputs for the script come directly from him, to add his own personal touch, states an official release. Produced by Akashdeep and Sheeba’s Cinetek Telefilms Private Limited, this is King-Com’s first ever series on television

When queried about the number of episodes shot, Akashdeep stated that only a few episodes had been shot, in order to keep to more contemporary issues and not play on issues that have become stale.

May 31, 2006
Star One plans revival in Mumbai

MUMBAI: After striking a truce with Mumbai’s cable operators and gaining prime band occupancy on their networks, Star One is making all efforts to regain lost ground.

In order to refresh the memories of the Mumbai viewer, Star One has slotted a series of marathons and re-cap episodes of its key properties including The Great Indian Laughter Challenge Dwitiya (TGILCD), India Calling, D.O.N, Yeh Dil Chahe More and Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka.

“Due to a disagreement with the cable trade in Mumbai, we were absent from the prime band. It crippled the channel’s growth in a big way. Now we have reached a settlement and are back on the prime band. Mumbai has always been an important market for the channel, delivering almost 30 per cent of the Hindi Speaking Market (HSM) ratings. Now we look forward to regaining our position,” states Star India EVP marketing Ajay Vidyasagar.

Speaking on the impact that Mumbai’s absence from the picture made on the newly launched shows such as Kya Hoga… and Heart Beat, Vidyasagar says, “Those brands didn’t get an opportunity to connect with the Mumbai viewers.” On the revival of the channel, he counts on TGILCD to play a key role. “This property will be the lead vehicle for us to drive audiences in Mumbai back to the channel.”

On the marketing and promotion front, the channel will be triggering a multimedia campaign covering print, radio, outdoors and internet. “We will begin with a print campaign tomorrow (1 June) leading up to the finals of TGILCD. This will be followed by a series of radio activities. Celebrities such as Hrithik Roshan and Diya Mirza will also come on board for promotions. We are planning extensive ground events to promote TGILCD,” says Vidyasagar.

On the latest introduction Heart Beat not figuring in the recap exercise, Vidyasagar explains, “It is a bit tough to get into a wild bunch of repeats. We don’t want to offer an over dose of the strategy.”

When queried on the fate of those upcoming shows including Sixer, which were put on hold post the cable disturbance, Vidyasagar said they were put on hold due to creative reasons. “There weren’t too many shows, which we put on hold. Yes, due to certain creative reasons, we have delayed certain shows. It will require certain time to recraft those shows,” he says.

As already reported by Indiantelevision.com, Star One was pushed into the hyper band since January as Star India was asking for an increase in payout from cable TV operators. Star was blamed by the association of distributors and last mile operators in Mumbai for forcing the second bouquet comprising channels like Star One and Walt Disney on cable operators.

Opposition was also against Tata Sky, in which Star is a 20 per cent joint venture partner, for approaching housing societies with the proposal of offering residents a central dish antenna through which it could connect individual installations and offer direct-to-home (DTH) service.

May 31, 2006
Zee, other ethnic channels in the US form an association

MUMBAI: Zee TV in the US along with other ethnic broadcasters have formed an association named the Ethnic Broadcasters of America (EBA) trade association.

The organisation aims to provide ad sales and other business support to companies operating ethnic television networks in North America. Board members include American Desi TV chairman and CEO Vimal Verma, B4U US head Hari Srinivas, TV Asia VP Jaideep Jankiram, Zee TV USA country head S. Venkatasubramamian.

Media reports indicate that Reach Media president Elie A. Kawkabani serves as chairman of the EBA’s Board of Directors.

Reports add that it took two years for EBA to get underway. The organisation was the idea of Kawkabani. US satellite operator Echostar is the official corporate sponsor of the organisation. EBA will offer an environment where ethnic channels can work together to improve business.

May 31, 2006
PBS Kids selects first-ever live host of new preschool block

MUMBAI: PBS Kids has its first-ever live host — Chicago-based performer, teacher and mom Lori Holton Nash — for its new preschool destination, which will launch on 4 September.

As the new host, Nash and an animated sidekick will guide kids through a two-hour programming block for preschoolers. The new block will feature four PBS Kids programs age- appropriately grouped including PBS Kids’ two new series — Curious George, emphasising science, math and engineering and narrated by Emmy-winning actor William H. Macy, and It’s a Big Big World, highlighting science and geography — alongside existing shows like Clifford The Big Dog and Dragon Tales.

“Based on research PBS conducted with parents we identified valuable content that parents feel is missing from children’s media today, including positive real adult role models and opportunities to connect lessons learned from programming to kids’ lives. PBS Kids new preschool destination will meet parents’ needs by introducing Lori, a host who has a passion for children and a unique and engaging teaching style that incorporates humor, music, movement and storytelling,” said PBS Kids Next Generation Media senior vice president Lesli Rotenberg.

After an extensive nationwide talent search, PBS Kids named Nash as the host of its new preschool block to inspire and entertain kids in a playful setting designed to spark kids’ imaginations, give them a greater sense of discovery and build their excitement for learning about the world around them. In addition to her on-air and online presence, she will make appearances at various events across the country, visiting local PBS member stations and participating in children’s events.

“I’m extremely excited to be named PBS Kids’ first-ever host. Performing and educating is not just what I do, it’s who I am and I look forward to reaching out to children across the country through the most trusted kids content source, PBS Kids. I grew up watching PBS’ children’s programs and today, I am raising my own kids as PBS Kids,” said Nash.

In addition to Nash’s broadcast debut, the new block will feature the premiere of Curious George. Produced by Imagine Entertainment, WGBH Boston and Universal Studios Family Productions, and based on the best-selling Curious George books. The series encourages inquiry and curiosity, promotes hands-on exploration, and shows parents and caregivers how to support children’s science and math-related play.

PBS Kids new hosted preschool destination is one part of PBS Kids Next Generation Media, a broad-based initiative to define public television’s role in the changing digital children’s media landscape.

In addition to the launch of the new preschool environment, PBS recently announced a new 24/7 early elementary school digital broadcast service, PBS Kdis Go! Channel, scheduled to launch in October 2006 and delivered to the community through local PBS stations, which will meet the educational and developmental needs of this underserved audience.

May 30, 2006
Cellcast’s Bid2Win receives 1mn bids in first week

MUMBAI: Cellcast Interactive India Pvt. Ltd., a global interactive digital broadcaster, has claimed that its TV show, Bid2Win launched earlier this month, collected over a million bids in its opening week.

The show is broadcast every evening on Sony, Sahara One, Zoom and Zee Punjabi by using an interactive reverse auction system, Bid2Win. It enables viewers to purchase high-value items such as LCD TVs, iPods, home theatre systems, digital cameras and laptops, at a nominal amount by submitting the lowest unique bid via SMS and IVR.

An official release suggests that, such the show has helped open up the market for premium mobile services in India, thus, Cellcast’s popular format has subsequently been launched in many markets across the Middle East and China.

Commenting on the successful launch of the show in India, Cellcast plc CEO Andrew Wilson says, “Until now, the market for live interactive programming, which has been so successful in other parts of the world, has been constrained in India by extremely low tariffs. With Bid2Win, Cellcast has shown that subscribers are willing to pay for premium mobile services, particularly if they have a strong TV tie-in. With the world’s fastest growing mobile subscriber base and a vibrant multi-platform television industry, India is now ready for the full range of interactive products that Cellcast has proven in other markets.”

Capitalising on its success in India, Cellcast plans to roll-out Bid2Win to other Indian television networks across the globe over the next three months. “Broadcasters can now expand their content offerings to the Indian diaspora beyond the current staple of movies, drama and music and enjoy new revenue streams at the same time,” added Wilson.

Commenting on future growth potential, Cellcast Interactive India CEO Pankaj Thakar says, “We have an exciting range of new products and shows which we expect to launch in India over the next six months. These include Golden Goal, a virtual soccer show to be aired during World Cup; a new virtual cricket show Beat Them All; an interactive astrology show, Interactive Astro; an exciting game similar to Tambola, Go Bingo; the numbers quiz Qeno; a celebrity-based quiz show, The Challenge; an interactive shopping show, Shop-o-holic; an interactive show based on Bollywood, Bollywood Dhamaka and Insomnia, the interactive gameshow enjoying international success.”

May 30, 2006
TNS to launch online access panels in Malaysia and Thailand

MUMBAI: TNS is launching its 6th dimension online access panels in Malaysia and Thailand. The panels, which will be introduced in August and September this year, will cover the major cities in each country, where internet usage is now at significant levels and growing fast.

TNS regional director for Asia Pacific access panels Mark Walton said, “Since we launched our 6th dimension initiative in Asia Pacific last year, we have seen rapid growth in the use of our online services, with over 500 projects conducted in the past 12 months. This not only allows us to offer research solutions faster and more cost-effectively, but ensures that the well-managed panels and questionnaires deliver consistently top-quality research. The adoption of online services in Malaysia and Thailand is a natural development for TNS and our clients – and more markets will follow in 2007 as we extend our services further in the emerging markets.”

With the introduction of the new panels, TNS will offer 6th dimension services in nine markets across Asia Pacific to include: Australia, China, Hong Kong, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand, incorporating over 800,000 active panel members.

TNS launched 6th dimension online panels in February 2005 across six countries in Europe: France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Spain and the UK and operates 6th dimension online panels in the US.

Walton added, “As with all of our 6th dimension panels, the new panels in Malaysia and Thailand will be supported by an extensive programme of validations and research-on-research, demonstrating that the panels offer representative samples of the online population in each market, with high quality results and insights.”

May 30, 2006
Aventail Expands India Distribution with Select Technologies

Select Technologies to Support Aventail’s Growing SSL VPNs sales and support

Bangalore, 30th May, 2006 – Leading SSL VPN product company Aventail Corporation (www.aventail.com) is expanding its distribution in India through a new agreement with Select Technologies, a leading solution provider in the country with more than 5,000 customers. Select Technologies will provide sales and support to Aventail’s growing clientele, which includes Wipro, Tesco, Marico, iGATE, ING Vyasa, and i-flex, both directly and through their large channel partner network across India. Together, Aventail, Select, and system integrators will offer a three-level support system.

“With security being the top priority for enterprise and SMB customers, an affordable solution with top class security features and protection is the requirement today,” said Mr. Sunil Pillai; Business Head, Select Technologies. “Aventail’s leading technology coupled with Select’s expertise in providing innovative, cutting-edge solutions for Information Protection and Management domain make this relationship a strong one,” he added.

“Select has a good history of making brands successful in India , and they have the required experience and expertise to carry Aventail in their portfolio,” said Mr. Ajay Kumar, Country Sales Manager for Aventail in India . “Aventail is leading the market in providing enterprises secure remote access, and Select’s strong channel network will help us increase our penetration and customer base across India.”

Aventail’s SSL VPN is a scalable, enterprise class, clientless solution based on Aventail’s proven Smart SSL VPN platform. Aventail’s clustering and high availability support with load-balancing is an ideal solution for hundreds or thousands of users. The secure application platform is designed to provide practical, easy-to-use anywhere access to Web, client/server, and file shares from any device combined with simple manageability and usability. All of this makes it a clear alternative to IPSec-based VPNs. Many of Aventail’s customers worldwide are replacing legacy IPSec solutions with the Aventail SSL VPN in order to have one solution for all remote access scenarios.

About Select Technologies

Select Technologies is a 100% wholly owned subsidiary of WeP Peripherals Limited (WeP). Select Technologies provides innovative Information Protection & Management Solutions and Services to Large Enterprises, Corporates and SMEs and is a ‘One Stop Solution House’ for market leading Information Protection and Management solutions. Select specializes in providing innovative and effective world class solutions through a strong and dedicated team of qualified and trained professionals to provide support services and training to partners and end users. Select conducts business through more than 238 NSI, RSI, Solution Providers & channel partners across the country focused on Information Protection and Management business and sustains relationship with over 5000 customers. Headquartered in Bangalore, Select has offices across the metros and major cities of the country. For more information, please visit: www.select-technologies.net
About Aventail
Aventail is the best-of-breed remote-access company. Aventail delivered the first SSL VPN solution in 1997 and today is a market leader, delivering the easiest to use and control remote-access solution. Aventail Smart SSL VPN appliances provide users with transparent, clientless access to more applications from more devices via any network environment. For network managers, Aventail delivers a single secure access gateway for all users, internal and external, to all network resources with complete security. With more than two million end users around the globe, Aventail is the SSL VPN of choice among mid to large-sized organizations worldwide, Some of Aventail’s customers in India include Wipro, Tesco, Marico, iGATE, ING Vyasa, i-flex, Times of India and ITC. For more information, go to www.aventail.com.

Aventail, Aventail ST, Aventail Smart Access, Aventail Smart Tunneling, Aventail EPC, Aventail OnDemand, Aventail Connect, Aventail Secure Collaboration, Aventail EX-2500, EX-1500, Aventail EX-750, and their respective logos are trademarks, registered trademarks, or service marks of Aventail Corporation. Other product and company names mentioned are the property of their respective owners and are mentioned for identification purposes only.

Note: The information in Aventail press releases is accurate and current only as of the date posted. Aventail does not update the information once the release has been issued. To the extent any press release contains information that is not historical fact, that information is considered forward-looking. Aventail’s results may differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements.

May 30, 2006