ITV

Category: People

  • Uday Shankar gets appointed as FICCI president

    Uday Shankar gets appointed as FICCI president

    MUMBAI: Here’s another stripe he’s adding to the numerous ones he has got during his fascinating career. Disney Star India chairperson and Walt Disney Co Asia Pacific president  Uday Shankar will take over as FICCI president–elect for 2020-21  during the lobbying body’s ninety third AGM on 11, 12, and 14 December 2020. He will succeed Apollo Hospitals managing director Sangeeta Reddy. 

    In the process, he will become the first ever media and entertainment industry executive to lead the national chamber . Prior to this he was chairman of FICCI’s media & entertainment committee, apart from being president of the Indian Broadcasting Foundation. 

    Uday currently leads Disney’s direct-to-consumer business in over 30 countries and has been behind the tremendous success Star India has achieved in entertainment and sports broadcasting, apart from the streaming service Disney +Hotstar. 

    Uday has also been a vociferous advocate of the entertainment and broadcasting sector, speaking out at times against regulation which has slowed down the TV ecosystem. He has been at the forefront of landmark initiatives in television broadcasting, such as self-regulation of content and digitisation of the broadcasting sector. He holds an M. Phil in economic history.

  • Zakka Jacob elevated as managing editor, CNN News18

    Zakka Jacob elevated as managing editor, CNN News18

    NEW DELHI: CNN-News18, a leading English News channel has a new managing editor – Zakka Jacob –previously the executive editor of the channel. 

    Network18 has elevated Jacob stating that he will now lead the editorial strategy of CNN News18.     

    The appointment of Jacob marks a generational shift for CNN News18, one in which one of the oldest channels is being run by the youngest crew in its genre. The average age of the newsroom he leads is well under 40 and is not only geared up to challenge some of the more established names, but also to shake up the genre with new ideas, formats and programs.     

    A seasoned media professional with over 18 years of experience in the industry, Jacob has been hosting channel’s flagship show Brass Tacks. With his inimitable approach and calm demeanor, he has earned the ‘thinking man’s anchor’ moniker in the television news industry. In his spell with CNN-News18, he has managed to carve a niche in the crowded and noisy primetime, which is dominated by loud talking panelists and shouting matches that pass off as debates.

  • Mumbai police arrest Republic TV editor in chief Arnab Goswami

    Mumbai police arrest Republic TV editor in chief Arnab Goswami

    MUMBAI: Republic TV founder & editor in chief Arnab Goswami was picked up from his residence early this morning by the Mumbai police. According to Republic TV, 10 policemen entered Goswami’s residence and pushed him around, before taking him away.

    According to the media firm, the police had no summons or arrest warrants at the time of his arrest.

    Zee News reported that Arnab has been arrested in connection with an old abetment to suicide case of a 53-year-old interior designer. A Mumbai police official said that an architect and his mother committed suicide in 2018 over alleged non-payment of dues by Republic TV. Arnab, it says, has been arrested under Section 306 and Section 34 of IPC.

    Reports are that Arnab will be taken to Raigad for questioning.

    Republic TV has alleged that the cops “blocked Republic executive editor Niranjan Narayanswamy and senior associate editor Sanjay Pathak from entering his residence. Eught police vehicles and at least 40-50 Police personnel are in the building premises of Arnab, many armed. When Niranjan said that it is his right to report, he was thrown out of the building and the Mumbai police wanted his phone.”

    Republic TV has alleged that Mumbai police chief Param Bir Singh is carried out a vendetta campaign against the channel.

    I&B  minister Prakash Javadekar has spoken out against the treatment being meted out to Arnab. 

  • Locally nuanced shows help to bring in relevance from an Indian context: ZEEL’s Kartik Mahadev

    Locally nuanced shows help to bring in relevance from an Indian context: ZEEL’s Kartik Mahadev

    MUMBAI: Hollywood has always enjoyed a passionate fanbase in India which only grows by leaps and bounds with each passing year. Today, Hollywood movies aren’t just for the English-speaking audiences living in metros as we see movie enthusiasts in Bharat and India with the same level of passion and connectedness as the global fan following. The &flix study, ‘Hollywood is for everyone,’ explores how Hollywood enjoys a universal appeal in India, and gives an insight into the lifestyles and mindsets of movie buffs. 

    ZEEL premium channels business head Kartik Mahadev said that the research has helped the channel to curate its offerings like &flix’s fastest to television premieres, which reduce the theatre-to-TV wait time by half, along with the multi-language block ‘Flix for all’.

    The study also disclosed that Hollywood’s entertainment quotient fares better than Bollywood / regional? Does this mean brands indulge more in premium content?

    Mahadev highlighted that Hollywood viewers are brand conscious and in-sync with the latest trends. They seek new experiences and crave adventure. Said he: “For these consumers seeking a badge-value with something aspirational, Hollywood forms the ultimate getaway. With its sophisticated visual effects, unique concepts and aspirational characters, today Hollywood’s fandom in India cuts across languages and cultures and is not just limited to the English-speaking consumers in the metros.”

    The &flix study also revealed that 80 per cent Hollywood enthusiasts admitted that brands placed in the movies / intermittent TV ads influence their purchases. Mahadev revealed that for its customers, English content on television provides youth-focused brands and premium brands the opportunity to associate with a premium subscriber base.

    “Recently, for the premiere of Jumanji: The Next Level on &flix and a simulcast in Hindi on Zee Cinema, we successfully reached a wider audience by providing access through language. Some of the most reputable brands came on board as partner for the property on &flix such as Kia Motors, Ariel, Amazon, Airtel 4G, Xiaomi, Protinex and ITC, along with Bingo Potato chips, Hyundai Creta, Behrouz Biryani, Bharat Matrimony and Cinthol onboard for the Hindi simulcast. The premiere garnered an overwhelming response, taking it to the next level with a whopping 34 million reach, making it one of the biggest premieres in the last 12 months,” he shared.

    Since its launch two years ago, &flix has challenged the English movie genre codes in addressing fan experience on television. According to Mahadev, ‘Ticket to Hollywood’ broadens access to Hollywood movies across the country, bringing movies closer to fans while creating value for brands who want to engage with the ardent audience across regions. The pan-network property will see Hollywood’s latest and top-rated movies dubbed in regional languages premiere across Zee channels like &PrivéHD, Zee Café, &Pictures, Zee Thirai, Zee Cinemalu, Zee Punjabi, Zee Biskope, Zee Talkies, Zee Picchar, Zee Sarthak and Zee Bangla Cinema. In addition, the channel’s flagship property ‘Flix superheroes’ featuring the latest superhero hits will begin airing in November.

    For the launch of ‘Ticket to Hollywood’ the channel has adopted a robust 360-degree campaign approach across platforms like DTH, digital, TV and trade. The network has leveraged social media to drive communication around the premiere of Bloodshot in the essence of the languages across markets. High-impact promo films across Zee movie channels further brought the biggest festive offering on television alive.

    Mahadev added, "We have Colgate onboard as the presenting sponsor for the premiere of Bloodshot across 11 of our ZEE channels. Moreover, with the premiere across Zee English cluster we are thrilled to deliver value to not just our discerning viewers but also our customers and are pleased to have brands like Venky’s Purotein, HUL (Lifeboy), KIA, TVS, Amazon, Sprite and Kelvinator onboard for the premiere.

    English GECs have always faced the ‘acquired’ versus ‘original local content’ dichotomy. It is believed that English GEC channels can earn higher ad revenue from their original programs. But the question arises why the channels have not yet experimented with local content.

    Mahadev opined that original programming with locally nuanced shows does help bring in relevance from an Indian context. While marquee international shows bring the best of the world to its viewers, locally produced content allows the broadcasters to add a new dimension from the Indian point of view. Said he: “Being the pioneers when it comes to original programming with India’s first-ever English fiction show Bombay Talking, Zee Café brought in relevance with content that is locally nuanced for the Indian viewer. What followed was the introduction of successful properties such as Look Who’s Talking with Niranjan, Not Just Supper Stars and Starry Nights that truly added a unique flavour to Zee Café’s wide repertoire of content.”

    He pointed to Zee Café's recently launched first-ever original production Dance With Me featuring celebrity dance experts Shakti Mohan and Mukti Mohan. The show adds to the merriment of the festive season coupled with a unique and interactive format via exciting weekly hook step challenges. The series is co-powered by Loreal Paris extraordinary oil serum & Jeevansaathi.com, cosmetic partner Dazzler Eterna with special partners Yamaha Fascino 125 Fi and Only Natural Diamonds.

  • Times Network’s Jaya Chaudhury joins Bloomberg Media

    Times Network’s Jaya Chaudhury joins Bloomberg Media

    NEW DELHI: Bloomberg Media has appointed Jaya Chaudhry as its head of media sales. Based out of New Delhi, she will be responsible for managing the India market and focus on growing revenues across Bloomberg’s media offerings. 

    Chaudhry will oversee strategy, sales, and spearhead custom-led solutions for key Bloomberg Media offerings in India including digital, TV, print and events.  

    With an experience of over 15 years in the media industry, Chaudhry’s expertise lies in sales, business development, strategy and customer-led solutions.

    Prior to Bloomberg, she was with Times Network as general manager and regional head of sponsorships for the news cluster. She has also had stints at Condenast, BBC  Worldwide, and NDTV Convergence, where she was instrumental in handling growth in revenues, new business development and team management.

  • Centre appoints Yashvardhan Kumar Sinha as new CIC

    Centre appoints Yashvardhan Kumar Sinha as new CIC

    MUMBAI: Former diplomat and central information commissioner Yashvardhan Kumar Sinha has reportedly been appointed as the country’s next chief information commissioner (CIC), two months after the position fell vacant.

    Media reported that 155 applications were received for the post of CIC.

    The decision to appoint Sinha was taken after a meeting of the selection panel headed by prime minister Narendra Modi on 24 October. However, Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, who is also a member of the panel, has submitted a dissent note.

    The Opposition leader was against the shortlisting process, alleging a failure to follow the Supreme Court’s transparency guidelines, issued in a February 2019 case brought by RTI (Right to Information) activist Anjali Bhardwaj. Chowdhury also objected to the fact that journalist Uday Mahurkar had been shortlisted for a commissioner position although he was not on the list of applicants.

    Sinha was sworn in as information commissioner on 1 January 2019. He is a former diplomat who was appointed as high commissioner of India to the United Kingdom and Sri Lanka.

    The commission is the highest appellate authority under the right to information act, and consists of a panel including chief and up to ten commissioners. The commission has been headless twice this year, due to a two month delay in appointing the last chief Bimal Julka, and another two month period since he retired at the end of August. The commission has not functioned at full strength for almost four years, and currently has only five commissioners.

  • Pawan Soni quits National Geographic

    Pawan Soni quits National Geographic

    NEW DELHI: Pawan Soni, VP, head of programming & marketing has moved on from National Geographic. 

    At Nat Geo, Soni was responsible for overall P&L and building the network's content and marketing strategy along with overall business affairs. He spearheaded many campaigns involving various ministries dealing with central and state-level ministers while managing political sensitivities. He identified opportunities, led and built teams, improved business process flows and supervised daily operations.

    Prior to that, Soni was AVP at Fox International Channel, followed by a two year run as commercial head at Fox Networks Group Asia. He spent over 9 years at the group.

    Prior to joining Fox Channels, he worked with J Walter Thompson and Promodome Communications in his 15 year-long career.

  • Discovery marketing head Vednarayan Sirdeshpande quits

    Discovery marketing head Vednarayan Sirdeshpande quits

    KOLKATA: Discovery marketing head Vednarayan Sirdeshpande has called it quits at the network. He will exit the company at the end of this month.

    Back in 2016, Sirdeshpande started his journey with the broadcaster as marketing and audience development director. He was elevated as original content and marketing director in 2017. Finally, he was promoted to marketing head in 2019.

    At Discovery, he led brand marketing, IP creation and digital marketing across all network brands. Along with developing 50+ hours of long form, short form original production for premium network brands, he also executed several marketing campaigns, like the widely popular Man vs Wild with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Into the Wild with superstar Rajinikanth.

    During his career, Sirdeshpande has worked with reputed brands and advertising agencies including Amazon, Mondelez International, and Ogilvy.

    He has a successful track record in developing brand strategies, heading content development, media management and creation, and delivery of best in class 360 degree campaigns.

  • Rajiv Mathrani quits Star Sports

    Rajiv Mathrani quits Star Sports

    NEW DELHI: Rajiv Mathrani has decided to move on from Star Sports. He was serving as EVP & head, Star Sports marketing.

    Sources close to the development have confirmed the news.

    The news comes right after the high profile exit of Star Sports CEO Gautam Thakar.

    Mathrani joined Star Network in 2018, prior to which he was serving as chief brand and online officer at Airtel between 2015 and 2018. He has also worked at Pepsico between 2010 and 2015. During this stint, Mathrani worked on snacks category, beverages and innovation. He also worked on the Asia, middle east and Africa region.

    Mathrani has over two decades of experience and has also worked at Marico, Citibank and GSK.

    Along with Mathrani, two other top executives have also called it quits. Ashok Namboodiri who was working as executive vice president, business head – regional sports network and Rupali Fernandes executive vice president – emerging sports have put down their papers. While Namboodiri joined the network in 2016, Fernandes was associated with it for nearly two decades.
  • On Uday Shankar’s exit from Disney+Star, a retrospective on his rise

    On Uday Shankar’s exit from Disney+Star, a retrospective on his rise

    MUMBAI: Back in 2007, when Uday Shankar was picked out of nowhere to lead Star India, the organisation was a minnow. It had been a leader in the Hindi GEC space through its channel Star Plus, but it slipped from that pedestal following aggressive moves by competitors like Zee TV, and Sony. It had a small presence in regional languages; its channel portfolio was limited. Long-running teams and senior managers had left the network, for whatever reasons.

    Most professionals asked: “Who Uday?” with the emphasis on the fact that they did not consider him much of an entity when one asked them about his appointment.

    When he leaves the organization on 31 December, he will be leaving behind a massive beast present in almost every Indian language, which is a front runner in general entertainment, drives the sports and sports broadcasting agenda in India, is a pay TV powerhouse, has a globally recognised OTT streaming service Hotstar, that is the envy of gold standard streamer Netflix.

    To add to that the Star India network also has brilliant pedigree attached to its brand – the name Disney, which is the world’s biggest media firm.

    And industry is still asking: “Who? Uday?”

    This time, the emphasis is on the shock that they feel about his decision to leave Disney Star India, having made his mark as a media and entertainment industry leader.

    Read more news on Uday Shankar

    Many expected him to leave on the back of the merger announcement a year and a half ago. Of course, the expectation was that there would be a clash between the rigorous process and the system driven approach that Disney is known for and the entrepreneurial, back-of-the envelope, seat-of-the pants culture that the Murdochs encouraged in Star India and which Uday had gotten used to. But because he stayed put – even as his deputy Sanjay Gupta, digital head Ajit Mohan, strategy and marketing head Gayatri Yadav left – one thought he had managed to meld into the new culture; that he would stay.

    Uday filled the executive gaps quickly by bringing in K Madhavan to look after the TV business, a new Hotstar boss in Sunil Rayan, and everyone thought he was padding up to take Disney Star India into its next innings.

    His announcement comes at a time when the IPL is having its best year yet with higher viewership than ever before; that too in times of dire stress thanks to Covid2019. The IPL is something which has been very close to his heart; hence he bid the seemingly ridiculously high amount he did when he acquired its rights. Yes, revenues may be a little stifled this year thanks to the clampdown on spends by advertisers. But by any yardstick, Uday and his team have done a fairly good job in bringing in the financial numbers they have.

    The channels he runs are in fine fettle – being top of the rung in almost every genre. Yes, there are rumblings that the broadcast sector is a legacy business; digital is going to make it look antiquated. Yes, Covid2019 and subsequent lockdowns have totally upended business and revenue generation plans and accelerated digital adoption.

    Read more news on Disney & Star India

    The wrongly held perception is that we are counting down to traditional television’s inevitable demise. Which is where many are wrong-stepping themselves, at least in the Indian scenario. If one were to look at the demographics of India, television still has a lot many homes to penetrate. Will these homes leapfrog to broadband and streaming TV? Unlikely. Most experts have said no. VoD is here to stay, but the lean-back comfort that TV provides cannot be wished away.

    Uday showed he has the appetite and the aptitude to think big, to think scale.He built a team from ground up. The team listened to him, opposed him, and together they charted the growth of Star. He managed to convince the Murdochs to consolidate management of Star’s India operations into India from Hong Kong, saving them hundreds of millions of dollars in the process. He also convinced them to grant him the independence of Star Sports’ future in India by buying out ESPN’s interest in ESPN-Star, the 50:50 joint venture between the two. He then went about on his sports pursuits, acquiring cricket rights across BCCI, ICC and that of almost every sport and setting up local leagues for football, kabaddi, tennis, badminton and what have you.

    He gave the programming vertical the respect it deserves by labelling it as content; he allowed the setting up of a writer’s room in Star, he encouraged the concept of a show runner, something the broadcast sector was loathe to define. He was willing to take risks on content, on branding the network. His channel campaigns were like the broad brush of a painter who knows his craft, and they hit a chord with all of us. At one time he coalesced the messaging around Star India with the messaging of a new India with the tag line Nai Soch (new thinking).

    He chiseled the Star network into one which is deeply connected to the Indian ethos with stories and shows that talked about uplifting the Indian woman. He brought in a new narrative and seriousness through series such as Satyamev Jayate, TedX talks. Yes, they possibly did not help lift Star’s TRPs but they showed that it cared, and cares. He made many friend in high places, even with rivals. Zee TV’s Punit Goenka and he were opponents in business, but they often exchanged notes as though they were friends.

    Amongst Uday’s biggest initiatives was to give shape to Star India’s digital initiatives after failing on different versions online. With the right teams, technology and investment, he nurtured and grew the streamer, Hotstar,  into one which is driving the local streaming  agenda in India today.

    Uday raged against excessive regulation in the broadcast sector, when all his earlier efforts at diplomacy failed with the industry watchdog Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.

    What does Uday’s departure signal? Nothing much. Except that he is itching to do something different. Like he has been vaunt to do throughout his career – giving up a cushy print media job to do TV, saying ta-ta to news TV to do general entertainment television and running a network. Now giving up a prime executive position to turn entrepreneur.

    Most of the executives who left Disney Star India have left to join either digital or investment oriented ventures. It was not as if they were unhappy with what they had going at Star India. They left for better opportunities – Sanjay as Google India MD, Ajit as Facebook India boss and Gayatri as chief marketing officer at Sequoia Capital. As is Uday himself.

    Uday, in the press statement issued on his departure announcement said that he is going to partner with a bunch of global investors and pioneers to mentor startups and entrepreneurs “as they set out to create transformational solutions that will have a positive impact on countless lives.”

    Rajesh Kamat – the former CEO of Viacom18 – had in the past taken a similar tack, by partnering with Paul Aiello to run media investment funds. But they were focused on media. Going by Uday’s statement, his remit will be wider.

    The release also announced that Uday will work closely with Disney direct to consumer & international segment chairman Rebecca Campbell to find his successor. He has three months to do that. Going by the legacy he is leaving behind, finding someone who can match his energy and chutzpah might be a tall order.