GECs

Zee TV rejigs show strategy; adds comedy

Published

6 years ago

July 14, 2020

MUMBAI: After a hiatus of nearly three months, television shows finally went on the floors in Mumbai and new episodes started airing from 13 July. GECs are leaving no stones unturned to create the buzz in the market and gain back their viewer interest.

Zee Entertainment has announced its content comeback via a partnership with its brand partners. Zee collaborated with leading brands – Nestle Maggi, Amul Lassi, PepsiCo, Red Label, Cadbury Dairy Milk, ITC Dark Fantasy to gear up the nation for 13 July, the date of its daily content comeback on Zee TV. ZEEL chief consumer officer Prathyusha Agarwal says that the idea of the teaser was not to mention Zee. According to her the campaign wouldn’t have gone viral if a brand would have mentioned the name of the channel. The idea was to get multiplier reach and audience through a teaser-cum-reveal campaign.

Agarwal notes that TV consumption has increased by 35 per cent and the channel did a predictive analysis with Nielsen to identify where it is going to settle across genres. The biggest variable that is dictating currently is people sitting at home and people going out for work. It gave the channel a fair idea about the available audience. From being a 'woman as a unit' it changed to 'family as a unit' and brought more people together and this, for her, was the big behavioural change that got established with Covid2019.

“We had a Zoom call with our viewers as it was important for us to know how our viewers are feeling. It was not just about what they are viewing but also about what kind of content they are missing. Attitudes and behaviours have changed. Earlier, the day consumption chart looked like one big hump during primetime. But with Covid2019, people are spending more time at home. So there is a non-primetime hump and then there is a primetime one. So, there are more audiences to cater," she shares.

Given these changes, ZEEL has reworked on its Fixed Point Chart (FPC) strategy to understand how it will handle primetime and non-primetime viewers. "Shifts between genres have happened and supply dictated the demand. With fresh content coming in, the channel is looking at all the genres especially comedy. The channel is trying to introduce the element of comedy in shows through characters and changes in script,” she adds.

Apart from that, she highlights that there will be no change in programming order. The channel is focusing on creating a larger bank of episodes if there are any stop starts. There is also no change in the inventory choices, it is tailor-made as per the brand.

While talking about advertisers' response to the new normal, she says, “In the month of April, everyone was wondering what to do next; we didn’t have advertisers. They were also not able to meet the demand on ground. But July is looking very promising. Fill rates are completely back to normal. As the demand has increased significantly in July, I believe advertisers are also keen to meet the demand.”

The Media Ant co-founder Samir Chaudhary thinks that there will be more advertisements in the non-primetime slot now. Because of the non-travelled behaviour, viewership patterns will remain the same, but the timing will be scattered.

He adds that inventories will remain the same but more slots will be filled. He says, “Many FMCG brands are eager to advertise as IPL and other events did not happen. But they will be looking more at news channels than GECs because in the past few months the reach has predominantly come from news. However, they will be looking at other segments to advertise.”

Agarwal further explains that there are different kinds of market. One is where people are not able to use a certain product or they are careful about its usage and for those customers it is critical for brands to create demand. In this situation they are finding ways to trigger demand. The biggest and active advertisers are FMCG and CPG because people are consuming it a lot more than any other category.

She adds, “There are decades where nothing happens and then there are weeks where decades happens. In these categories you have brand loyalty that will never change. But during Covid2019 for e.g., you have ten consumption occasions. Consumers were forced to sample other brands and other product options. Hence, it became critical for brands to get back the share. If there is great product and good pricing, consumers are likely to go back. In our business consumers belong to the overdrive consumption category. It is important to get an early mover advantage to gain share.”

Chaudhary shares that advertising rates will come down by 30-40 per cent and channels will have to incentivise the rates for advertisers to come on board. He adds that as user sentiment has changed, people are buying fewer products so advertisers will get less profit.

He also notes that most of the brands will go with their core messaging but they might twist their ideas to incorporate pandemic in it. Brands are choosing digital mediums for long ad formats but 30-second or short-form advertisements will continue on television.

For Zee TV, out-of-home medium acted as an announcer media, after which campaigns were released on other digital mediums. Agarwal believes that social media has a good number of audiences and platforms like WhatsApp or Telegram can make things viral quicker than word of mouth. The channel adopts a twin strategy for most of its content.

Zee TV’s singing reality show Sa re ga ma also started production last week. The channel is adopting a hybrid production model to ensure safety and security. According to Agarwal, most of the post-production work is happening remotely. This move has helped it to bring content robustly.

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GECs

Sun TV posts steady revenue, profit dips amid rising costs

Published

2 weeks ago

February 7, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

CHENNAI: It appears there is still plenty of Sun to go around in the Indian broadcasting landscape, even if a few clouds have drifted across the financial horizon. Sun TV Network Limited, the Chennai-based behemoth that dominates airwaves across seven languages, has tuned into a steady frequency for the quarter ending 31 December 2025. While the numbers show a resilient revenue stream, the company’s latest broadcast reveals a few static-filled spots in its profit margins.

For the quarter in question, Sun TV’s total income climbed by approximately 3.31 per cent, reaching Rs 958.39 crores compared to Rs 927.66 crores in the same period last year. Revenue from operations also saw a healthy bump, rising 4.32 per cent to Rs 827.87 crores.

The real star of the show, however, was domestic subscription revenue, which surged by 8.86 per cent to Rs 472.99 crores. This growth highlights the enduring appetite for Sun’s diverse content, which spans everything from daily soaps in Tamil and Telugu to its burgeoning OTT platform, Sun NXT.

Despite the revenue growth, the picture quality of the profits was slightly blurred by rising costs. Eitda for the quarter stood at Rs 409.79 crores, a dip from the Rs 432.14 crores recorded in the corresponding 2024 quarter.

The profit after tax followed a similar downward trend, settling at Rs 316.44 crores against the previous year’s Rs 347.17 crores. Advertisers also seemed to have switched channels slightly, with advertisement revenues sliding to Rs 291.94 crores from Rs 332.17 crores.

Sun TV isn’t just playing on home turf; its sporting ambitions are becoming increasingly global. The network now owns three major cricket franchises: SunRisers Hyderabad in the IPL, SunRisers Eastern Cape in SA20, and SunRisers Leeds Limited in The Hundred (UK).

The foray into British cricket saw the company acquire a 100 per cent stake in Northern Superchargers Limited (now SunRisers Leeds) for approximately £100 million. While these franchises brought in Rs 14.61 crores this quarter, they also incurred corresponding costs of Rs 19.89 crores. Over the nine-month period, however, the cricket business is a major player, contributing Rs 487.64 crores in income.

The company’s bottom line took a minor hit from exceptional items, including a Rs 4.23 crore charge related to India’s new Labour Codes, which consolidated 29 existing labour laws. Additionally, the consolidated results reflect the amalgamation of Kal Radio Limited with Udaya FM, a move that became effective in May 2025 and required a restatement of previous figures.

To keep investors from reaching for the remote, the Board has declared an interim dividend of 50 per cent, that’s Rs 2.50 per equity share. This comes on top of earlier dividends of 100 per cent (Rs 5.00) and 75 per cent (Rs 3.75) declared in August and November 2025, respectively.

With a massive cash reserve and a dominant position in the South Indian market, Sun TV continues to shine, even if the current quarter required a bit of fine-tuning. For now, shareholders can sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.

GECs

SPNI hires Pradeep M with responsibility for standards and practices in the south

Published

2 weeks ago

February 3, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Sony Pictures Networks India has hired Pradeep M to handle standards and practices for its southern market, bolstering its compliance bench as content rules tighten across platforms.

Pradeep, who has nearly 13 years in the entertainment media industry, takes on responsibility for content standards in a region that is both linguistically diverse and regulatorily sensitive. His brief spans television, OTT, sports and digital platforms.

He specialises in content review and compliance across shows, commercials, on-air promotions and international feeds, ensuring alignment with broadcast, OTT and advertising codes. He has also handled brand approvals and sponsorship integrations for heavily regulated categories—including online gaming, cryptocurrency, NFTs and lottery brands—offering guidance shaped by fast-evolving rules.

Before Sony, Pradeep worked at Jiostar as assistant manager for content regulation from November 2024 to January 2026. Earlier, he spent nearly seven years at Viacom18 Media, rising from senior executive to assistant manager in content regulation between 2018 and 2024. There he served as a key compliance touchpoint for the network.

His career began on the creative side. Between 2013 and 2018, he worked as executive producer on feature films and television shows, gaining hands-on exposure to production. He also had a stint as a non-fiction show director at Star TV Network in 2017. That mix of creative and regulatory experience gives him a dual lens—how content is made and how it must be managed.

As regulators, platforms and advertisers all tighten the screws, broadcasters are investing more in gatekeepers who can keep creativity within the lines. Sony’s latest hire shows where the industry is heading: in the streaming age, compliance is content’s quiet co-star.

GECs

Colors Gujarati rolls out two new shows from 2nd February

Published

2 weeks ago

February 2, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Colors Gujarati has unveiled two new prime-time shows as part of its push to strengthen culturally rooted storytelling for regional audiences. The channel will premiere the devotional saga Gangasati–Paanbai at 7.30 pm, followed by the romantic family drama Manmelo at 9.30 pm from February 2.

Inspired by Gujarat’s spiritual and literary heritage, Gangasati–Paanbai: Shyam Dhun No Navo Adhyay draws from the timeless bhajans and poetry of saint-poetesses Gangasati and Paanbai, weaving devotion and human values into a contemporary narrative aimed at younger viewers.

In contrast, Manmelo explores love and responsibility across social divides, tracing the lives of three middle-class sisters whose relationships with three affluent brothers reshape their futures. The show delves into ambition, emotional conflict and the realities of married life, offering a layered family drama.

A Colors Gujarati spokesperson said the new launches reflect the channel’s commitment to authentic Gujarati entertainment that blends cultural values with modern storytelling.