ITV

Category: People

  • TTN ropes in Vivek Srivastava to head English Entertainment cluster

    TTN ropes in Vivek Srivastava to head English Entertainment cluster

    MUMBAI: Times Television Network (TTN) has got on-board Colors commercial and digital head Vivek Srivastava to fill in the place left vacant since April this year when Ajay Trigunayat moved on from the network.

     

    In his new role, Srivastava will be senior VP and heading the English Entertainment Cluster (Movies Now and Romedy Now). He will take charge from today (1 October 2014) and report to TTN MD and CEO MK Anand.

     

    Srivastava had put down his papers two months back at Colors, confirms sources close to the development.

     

    Speaking on the announcement, Anand said: “Vivek’s experience in the broadcast sector combined with our aggressive approach to drive growth for the network will add great value to our business. The experience and calibre he brings to the table, we believe, will set new benchmarks for our channels.”

     

    Commenting on his new role, Srivastava said: “I look forward to being a part of such a dynamic and motivated environment at the TTN. I’ll be working closely with the team at TTN to drive high viewership performance across the English Entertainment Cluster. I look forward to an enriching experience.”

     

    He had been with Colors since its inception in January 2008. He started as a research head for the channel and was later part of its international team before taking up the mantle of digital strategy.

     

    Moreover, last year, he was given additional responsibility of Colors’ commercial business. Prior to that, he was with TAM Media Research, where he last served as director of the S Group. He has also worked with IMRB International.

  • Bharat Ranga bids adieu to ZEEL

    Bharat Ranga bids adieu to ZEEL

    MUMBAI: After serving Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) for close to 16 years, the network’s chief content and creative officer Bharat Ranga has decided to move on. Ranga, who put down his papers on 23 September, according to a source in the network will serve his last day on 7 October 2014.

     

    Being a part of ZEEL since 1998, he took over the content role in April 2012 where he was managing content business for all domestic entertainment channels of the network.

     

    He is the man who can be credited for the launch of &pictures, labelled as India’s first interactive movie channel.

     

    Prior to that, he was the executive director – international operations, leading and managing international business of the company. Before joining ZEEL, he was with Times of India.

     

    A commerce graduate from the University of Rajasthan, Ranga has done his MBA from the University of Ajmer and an Advanced Management Program from Wharton Business School.

     

    A letter was sent out by ZEEL MD and CEO Punit Goenka today morning to the team in the network to announce Ranga’s resignation. The letter read:

     

    “We wish to inform that Mr Bharat Ranga has decided to pursue his career beyond ZEE. With deep regret, we have accepted his decision and will always wish him the very best for his future endeavours.

     

    Bharat has been with the organisation since 1998 and he has had a long checkered career with us. Bharat moved across functions and domains seamlessly, from sales to business head roles to being the International Business Head and then, the Chief Creative and Content Head for the organisation. During his tenure, Bharat has been instrumental in creating value and building opportunities for the organisation.

     

    During his career span with the ZEE, Bharat has contributed to the overall growth of the organisation by leveraging new revenue opportunities, bringing about path breaking content, starting new streams of content through new channel launches and transcending the business beyond geographies; to name a few. Bharat had the capability to move with ease in managing the environment and challenges. We wish to sincerely thank him and put on record his valuable contribution made to the organisation.

     

    Bharat’s last day with the organisation will be 7 October 2014. All those verticals and functions which reported to Mr. Bharat Ranga will now report to the undersigned until further advised.

     

    We wish Bharat the very best for his future endeavor and the team continued success for future.”

     

    Best Wishes

     

    Punit Goenka

     

    MD & CEO

  • DD appoints Tauquir Zaidi as ad sales head

    DD appoints Tauquir Zaidi as ad sales head

    MUMBAI: The public broadcaster has added another executive to strengthen its advertising and sales division. Tauquir Zaidi has been appointed as network sales head.

     

    The move is in coherence with its aim to roll out its full fledged professional advertising and sales team. Zaidi will be based in New Delhi.

     

    He said, “Most of us have grown watching DD and the programs are still fresh in our minds. Serials like Buniyad, Mahabharat, Humlog, Nukkad and so many others are still a cult of this industry. This is the only organisation that believes in ‘finite fiction’ without falling into the trap of TVTs. Today all GECs start a fiction without planning its end /climax. The length of the serial depends on the ratings it gets, which does no justice to the story. Call of the hour is to put an effective strategy and recruit right team to implement those strategies.”

     

    He will be first developing a promotional strategy to identify core target markets and setting measurable goals to multiply revenue. According to him, the success of an organisation is to implement a well-thought marketing plan by providing feasible solutions to clients.

     

    Zaidi has over 17 years of experience in the field of ad sales with companies such as Star India, NDTV and Times Television Network

  • Keshet International hires Lucy Roberts as sales manager, CEE

    Keshet International hires Lucy Roberts as sales manager, CEE

    MUMBAI: Keshet International has appointed former BBC Worldwide sales executive Lucy Roberts, to the newly created role of sales manager central and eastern Europe. Roberts will report into sales director CEE & CIS (as well as Africa & Middle East, India, Ireland/UK, Canada and pan-regional broadcasters)  Cynthia Kennedy, to grow KI’s business in the region where she will be responsible for both format and finished tape sales.

     

    Roberts has more than eight years experience in TV distribution having represented the BBC’s diverse formats slate across CEE, Africa, Benelux and Italy and most recently, the entire finished programme catalogue to Russia, Ukraine and the Baltics. During her tenure Roberts sold the entertainment franchise Dancing With the Stars into four new territories including a Nigeria/Ghana co-pro. She also closed deals for several high-end finished dramas such as The Musketeers, Da Vinci’s Demons and Atlantis to an array of broadcasters including Ren TV and TV3 in Russia and 1+1 and Inter in Ukraine. Prior to her the role at the BBC, Lucy was at ITV Global Entertainment from 2006 – 2008.

     

    Keshet International General manager distribution Keren Shahar said, “We are delighted to welcome Lucy to the team, it represents a reunion for her and Cynthia – together, I’m sure they will be a force to be reckoned with! Roberts’ experience in finished programming sales will be particularly valuable to us as we grow this area of our portfolio.”

     

    Roberts added, “Keshet is renowned for being one of the most dynamic, innovative format creators in the world right now and I am really excited to be joining the team at a time when the company is growing and the catalogue is going from strength to strength.”

  • Vinay Tewari joins Headlines Today as managing editor

    Vinay Tewari joins Headlines Today as managing editor

    MUMBAI: Taking charge of TV Today Network’s English news channel Headlines Today as the new managing editor is Vinay Tewari.

     

    Confirming the news to indiantelevision.com, Tewari said that he would be joining the organisation from 1 October. His role would be to build the brand of Headlines Today. He will report to India Today Group chief creative officer and India Today Group digital chief operating officer Kalli Purie.

     

    Tewari will take charge of a position that was vacated by Nalin Mehta early this year. Prior to this, he was with Network 18 as managing editor of CNN-IBN. He was also assigned the responsibility of IBN7.

     

    This will be his second stint with the company. He was earlier Hindi channel Aaj Tak’s Delhi bureau head and also had the responsibility of bringing synergy between the Hindi and English news channel.

     

    He had started his two decade long career in 1993 with the Pioneer before moving to The Times of India. 

  • Essel Vision Productions gets Hindi fiction head in Sukriti Saxena

    Essel Vision Productions gets Hindi fiction head in Sukriti Saxena

    MUMBAI: With an aim to strengthen its content, Essel Vision Productions Limited (EVPL) appointed Sukriti Saxena as Hindi fiction head. She will be responsible for the overall Hindi fiction content. Saxena will report to EVPL business head Akash Chawla.

     

    “A lot of quality creative work is what can be expected from EVPL. Sukriti has proven credentials in the Hindi fiction space and a go-getter attitude that we want our core team members to have. She has been given the clear mandate to make this place a creative hub buzzing with ideas based on insights,” said Chawla.

     

    A graduate in Journalism and Mass Communication, Saxena has over eight years experience in the media and entertainment business. Her last assignment was at Balaji Telefilms as its creative director.

     

    She has also worked with Wizcraft International Entertainment, Sphere Origin and Lowe Lintas. She has been instrumental in shaping up shows such as Pavitra Rishta, Kumkum Bhagya, Saat Phere, Shree amongst others.

     

    Strong operations and creative background and management track record with an innate understanding of market undercurrents and sentiments, she specialises in setting up and running television shows. She has exposure to detailed business planning, strategy formulation and execution with specialised experience in a wide spectrum of areas holding overall responsibility in marketing, live events, celebrity management, television and film production.

     

  • Aamir Khan to take centerstage at MipCom

    Aamir Khan to take centerstage at MipCom

    MUMBAI: MipCom has announced that Indian actor-director-producer Aamir Khan will take to the stage for the inaugural MIP MegaSession, entitled ‘The Future of Factual.’ 

     

    Organised by Reed MIDEM, the MipCom entertainment content tradeshow takes place in Cannes from 13 to 16 October.

     

    Scheduled for 14 October, the first ever MIP MegaSession will gather leading players driving the next generation of online and linear factual programming on the main stage of the Grand Auditorium to discuss where the genre is heading.

     

    Khan has starred in dozens of Hindi movies, including some of the highest-grossing Bollywood hits of all time. He is also a writer, director and producer, his credits including the colonial story ‘Lagaan’, which was nominated for a Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.

     

    Since May 2012, Khan has fronted the Hindi talk show ‘Satyamev Jayate’ (Truth Alone Prevails), broadcast on the Star channels and the Doordarshan network. The show has had a deep impact on Indian society and its ruling classes, highlighting sensitive social issues such as female foeticide, rape, child sexual abuse, dowry customs, honour killings, domestic violence and wider environmental issues.  ‘Satyamev Jayate’ has been watched by some 700 million people, and is also a major hit with online viewers and has a huge following on social media.

     

    The third season of the show will soon go on air taking forward the philosophy that anything is possible (‘Mumkin hai’).

     

    Khan will be in conversation with Oscar-nominated writer, director and producer Morgan Spurlock, when he will expand upon what drove him to produce the show under his banner, how it has struck such a resounding chord in India, and whether its format can be replicated in other countries.

     

    Khan’s session in France was coordinated by Indiantelevision.com group founder, CEO and editor in chief Anil Wanvari, who represents Reed Midem’s content markets Mipcom and MipTV in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh and music market Midem in India, and Reed Exhibitions Singapore based market Asia Television Forum in India.

     

    Other global media business and entertainment leaders who are slated to speak at this year’s MipCom include Simon Cowell, 21st Century Fox’s  James Murdoch, CBS’s Armando Nunez and David Stapf, and Chief Content Officer of Netflix, Ted Sarandos.

  • ITV Network appoints Manish Chettri as senior VP and national head SKOPE

    ITV Network appoints Manish Chettri as senior VP and national head SKOPE

    MUMBAI: ITV Network, which runs the English news channel NewsX and a clutch of channels under India News, has appointed Manish Chettri as senior vice president and national head SKOPE.

     

    He will be responsible for creating concepts both in the B2B and B2C space as well as contribute to the channels’ leadership position and revenue mix. Working closely with the marketing team, he will be responsible in the creation of new intellectual properties, format selling, syndications, partnerships and delivering additional solutions to existing and new advertisers.

     

    He was earlier with Network18 as VP and national head B2B initiatives for CNBC TV18. Chettri has also worked with companies such as Hindustan Times, Times Internet, Confederation of Indian Industry, Mudra Communications and CIM India.

     

    ITV Network MD Kartikeya Sharma said, “Manish brings to ITV network a rich combination of sales and strategic marketing that makes him ideal to scale and lead our sales force, for experiential advertising which will undoubtedly enhance ITV Network’s win velocity. Manish’s proven track record in B2B and B2C relationship building and focused revenue generation will help us build on our forward momentum and enable ITV Network to sustain this rapid growth. We look forward to leveraging Manish’s sales leadership to realise the exciting opportunity we see in front of us.”

     

    ITV Network group CEO RK Arora reposes faith in Chettri adding value to the network and help its objective of being India’s most profitable TV network. He said, “Manish is a phenomenal addition to our leadership team and brings a tremendous wealth of experience with him. His customer-focus and in-depth experience in IP creation, B2B events, strategic alliances, brand building and sales, will strengthen ITV Network’s commitment and its objective of becoming India’s largest TV news network. I am confident that Manish will take ITV network to greater heights than it’s ever known.”

     

     “I am excited to join ITV Network at this pivotal time,” Chettri said. “The battle for maximising revenue in the broadcasting industry is going through a sea of change wherein companies are looking at alternate forms of revenue apart from the traditional advertising sales. I look forward to using my experience to further enhance ITV Network’s performance, profitability and growth.”

  • CNN-IBN elevates Radhakrishnan Nair to managing editor

    CNN-IBN elevates Radhakrishnan Nair to managing editor

    MUMBAI: Radhakrishnan Nair has been elevated as the managing editor of CNN-IBN. He will fill in the post left vacant by Vinay Tewari a few days ago.

     

    Nair has a career spanning 25 years in the field. He started off with UNI in Kerala. His television stint began in 1995 with TV18, then moved to CNBC-TV18 and has been with CNN-IBN since 2005.

     

    Until now, he was news director for the English news channel. Nair is a chemistry graduate and a gold medalist in Journalism from the Indian Institute of Journalism in Trivandrum and has done Masters in Communication and Journalism from Kerala University.

     

    Nair has spent 12 years with TV18 producing various business shows and leading the input-output desk at CNBC. He has also produced programmes for DD, BBC and Sony as well as Asia’s first business channel ABNI.

  • Sanjay Dua appointed as NewsX CEO and ITV Network chief revenue officer

    Sanjay Dua appointed as NewsX CEO and ITV Network chief revenue officer

    MUMBAI: After elevating RK Arora to ITV Network group CEO, another appointment has been made in the now growing network. Sanjay Dua, who formerly headed Network18’s web operations, has joined as NewsX CEO and ITV Network chief revenue officer.

     

    He will report to Arora. His new responsibilities include providing strategic direction, creating new opportunities in the market and making a roadmap for the business of NewsX as well as revenue management for the entire network.

     

    Prior to this, Dua was Network18 CEO news media and handled ad sales for CNBC-TV18, CNBC Awaaz, CNN-IBN, IBN7, IBN Lokmat and History TV18. This apart, he has also worked with Walt Disney, Bennett Coleman & Co, ESPN, Sahara, Hallmark and Zee News.

     

    Speaking on his appointment, ITV Network managing director Kartikeya Sharma said, “Sanjay is a seasoned and trusted leader who consistently delivers results.  He is uniquely qualified to drive strategic monetisation and product prioritization. Sanjay’s profound experience of working with clients has provided him with a keen understanding of the challenges and opportunities in the current media environment. Sanjay has the vision, tenacity and integrity to ensure that ITV Network will quickly become India’s most profitable and largest TV news network.”

     

    Arora said, “Having someone of Sanjay’s caliber leading our monetisation effort is well-timed for the company and will directly benefit our advertisers and clients. With his outstanding track record, result-oriented approach and deep understanding of the advertising ecosystem, the future is looking robust and exciting for us.”

     

    Speaking on his new stint at the network, Dua said, ‘I am delighted to join the ITV Network as it moves into the next exciting phase of development. I have watched ITV Network’s impressive strides through innovative programming and in building a unique content network that is clearly unmatched in the marketplace. The company is in a perfect position to dramatically expand in the market and I’m thrilled to take on this role and be a part of the ITV Network team.”