ITV

Tag: Ad cap

  • Ad cap violation by 141 TV channels even as case to come up in September

    Ad cap violation by 141 TV channels even as case to come up in September

    NEW DELHI: Even as the advertising cap case is to come up for further hearing before the Delhi High Court on 8 September, a study shows that a total of 141 television channels comprising 36 news and current affairs channels and 105 non-news channels, continue to telecast more than 12 minutes of advertising and commercials per hour in violation of the set rules.

     

    The study shows that while the highest of these is 22.66 minutes by India TV and the lowest is 12.04 minutes, there are at least 17 news and 19 non-news channels clocking more than 15 minutes per hour. 

     

    While asking the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) not to take any coercive action against any channel pending hearing of the case, the Court had asked all channels and TRAI to keep a record of the advertising time consumed including commercials. 

     

    The petition had been filed by the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) and some channels challenging the TRAI decision to implement the directive of 12 minutes contained in the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995. The Information and Broadcasting Ministry and TRAI are the respondents in the petition.

     

    Interestingly, I&B Minister Arun Jaitley had in January this year said that he was not in favour of any ad cap in the print or electronic media.

     

    In the petition, the news channels have taken the plea that they are free to air and therefore do not get any subscription fee from the viewers as the GEC channels do.

     

    TRAI says that the information is based on the data submitted by the broadcasters and TRAI bears no responsibility for the figures given. 

     

    According to information available to TRAI, the rest of the news channels are carrying less than 12 minutes of average duration per hour of advertisements (Commercial & Self promotional) during peak hours (7 – 10 PM) from 30 March to 29 June.

     

    Among the news channels, the lowest is Mathrubhumi News with 12.42 minutes and among the GEC channels, the highest is 18.69 by B4U Movies and the lowest is 12.04 by Jaya Max.

  • No plans to remove 12 mins ad cap for TV channels: TRAI sources

    No plans to remove 12 mins ad cap for TV channels: TRAI sources

    NEW DELHI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is not considering any move to do away with the advertising cap of 12 minutes per hour for all television channels.

     

    A TRAI source told Indiantelevision.com that even otherwise, a notification issued by the Authority can only be amended through another notification after the issuance of a consultation paper and consultation with stakeholders.

     

    When his attention was drawn to the reported statement of a union minister to the effect that the ad cap served no purpose, the source said that TRAI had not received any instructions in this regard and would in any case take its own decision. He also drew attention to the fact that the matter was pending in court.

     

    Meanwhile, the National Cable & Telecommunication Association and the Malwa Cable Operator Sangh have urged the Authority not to consider a blanket rolling back of its own decision – Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) Regulations 2012 – of an ad cap of 12 minutes per hour for all TV channels.

     

    In separate but similar letters to TRAI chairman R S Sharma, the two bodies have said that it is imperative to appreciate the difference between those channels, which charge subscriptions and those that are free to air (FTA) before any decision is taken.

     

    In their letters, Vikki Choudhary and Rahul Rawat who head the two organisations respectively have said it is important to categorise TV channels into three groups – FTA channels, FTV (Free To View) channels and Pay TV channels.

     

    The FTA and the FTV channels do not charge any subscription while Pay TV Channels charge a monthly subscription fee from consumers, collected through the Distribution Platform Operators (DPOs).

     

    They have therefore said there should be no advertisement duration permitted on these Pay TV channels. The duo pointed out that this is also an international norm and a logical way of doing the TV channel broadcast business worldwide.

  • Headlines Today becomes India Today; group to pump 10% of budget in marketing

    Headlines Today becomes India Today; group to pump 10% of budget in marketing

    NEW DELHI: Emphasising that the launch of the ‘India Today’ news channel was being treated as a fresh channel launch and not a re-branding of Headlines Today, spokespersons from the channel said that it sports a completely new look as compared to any other news channel in the country.

     

    Speaking about the key reason for changing the brand name of the channel, India Today group CEO Ashish Bagga told Indiantelevision.com that research had shown that the brand recall value of India Today was much higher than that of Headlines Today and therefore it was being promoted as a new news channel.

     

    The channel will also be promoted through television commercials, newspaper and web advertisements and outdoor publicity. In addition, the channel will also be eyeing media partnerships with events like the Indian International Film Academy (IIFA) Awards or premieres of important films.

     

    Bagga informed that approximately five to ten per cent of the channel’s total budget would be spent on marketing it. 

     

    He considered this the biggest initiative by the India Today Group in the last forty years.

     

    Bagga also said that the channel was not visible on all DTH platforms including Doordarshan’s FreeDish.

     

    With 40 niche magazines in its kitty, the group had already connected with viewers and readers all over the country.

     

    When asked if a research had been conducted before the channel’s launch, he said research was conducted on two levels. On a qualitative level, the aim had been to gauge what people were seeing and what they wanted in news channels. Secondly, an Eye-7 test had been conducted whereby special kind of glasses were worn to gauge eye movements and also check if the viewer had any problem in seeing a channel, which carries more than one box of written matter apart from the visuals. 

     

    Talking about the channel’s branding and content, India Today Group synergy and creative officer Kalli Purie said that the new channel had a lot more depth.

     

    Purie said that the India Today magazine had set a standard that other print publications were attempting to emulate, and the aim was to bring the same standard to television news reporting. 

     

    The new look of the channel not only has a headline at the top and bottom of the screen, but also on the left of the news presenter, which is in the form of a box making it legible even from a distance. She denied that this would be make the screen look cluttered and said it had been tested amongst viewers who had liked the format.

     

    Speaking on whether there would be any changes in content, Purie said that the Group had around forty print magazines and the experience would be used for formatting shows on niche programmes on automobiles, luxury items, celebs, and so on. 

     

    Unlike most channels, the content presentation on the India Today news channel would not follow a linear pattern but would be multi-layered. 

     

    When queried on the involvement of senior journalists like Rajdeep Sardesai and Karan Thapar, Purie said that they were already established and credible names in the news world, who didn’t believe in beating around the bush but in getting the real news out. 

     

    “Their contribution will be immense in formatting various programmes,” she added.   

     

    She also confirmed that the show On The Couch with Koel would continue on the channel.

     

    While Bagga refrained to comment on the ad cap matter as it was in court, he opined that the group did not agree with the government on cross-media investments. 

     

    “No single group dominates in media fragmentation,” he said. 

     

    At the same time, he said that the group had no intention to enter FM Phase III for more radio channels.

     

    Referring to Music Today, he said that the aim had been to bring out recordings of non-film music. “While all music is now available on digital platforms, we have no intention of entering that sphere,” he added.

     

  • Ad Cap: 140 channels fail to follow TRAI directive in Feb 2015

    Ad Cap: 140 channels fail to follow TRAI directive in Feb 2015

    NEW DELHI: Failing to follow the 12-minute ad cap directive laid down by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), as many as 101 general entertainment television channels and 39 news channels aired more than 12 minutes of advertisements per hour between 23 February and 1 March this year. Of these, six news channels aired more than 20 minutes of ads per hour. 

     

    Apart from these 140 channels, the other channels followed the directive of 12 minutes of ad cap per hour, according to TRAI.

     

    The directive restricting the ad cap to 12 minutes an hour by TRAI is already under challenge in the Delhi High Court, where TRAI has given a commitment that it will not take any coercive action against the channels till the outcome of the case.

     

    However, the channels had, after consultations with TRAI and government officials, agreed to the ad cap of 12 minutes from October 2013.

     

    According to a chart placed on its website by TRAI, the average duration per hour of Advertisements (Commercial & Self promotional) in Pay Non-news channels during peak hours (7 – 10 pm) for the period 23 February to 1 March went up to more than 20 minutes per hour in as many as six cases.

     

    TRAI had on 22 March, 2013 passed a regulation mandating broadcasters to restrict the duration of advertisements on their channels to a maximum of 12 minutes in any given clock-hour as prescribed in the existing rules, alleging that most TV channels are in ‘brazen breach’ of the existing rules on advertising time.

     

    In order to monitor and ensure compliance of these regulations, broadcasters were also mandated to report the duration of advertisements carried on their channels to the TRAI on a quarterly basis in a prescribed proforma.

     

    TRAI issued the Standards of Quality of Service (Duration of Advertisements in Television Channels) (Amendment) Regulations 2013, and said this was being done as the regulations set out in the Cable Television Networks Rules 1994 were being violated.

     

    TRAI said it had studied the issue of duration of advertisements being carried in TV channels and the data obtained from the Information and Broadcasting Ministry and that collected from the broadcasters before coming to its decision.

     

    The duration of advertisements being carried in TV channels is closely related to the quality of viewing experience of the consumers, which is akin to the quality of service being offered by the service providers to the consumers, and the regulation has been issued to ensure the quality of service and protect the interests of the consumers.

     

    The amended regulation clearly defines TRAI’s power to intervene to protect the interests of the subscribers or for ensuring compliance of the provisions of these regulations. It says that through an order of 9 January, 2004, the Central Government under Section 11(1)(d) of TRAI Act entrusted some additional functions to TRAI including the function to recommend the parameters for regulating maximum time for advertisements in pay channels as well as other channels. TRAI says the advertisements carried on by the broadcaster in their programme are a quality of service issue as they interfere with the uninterrupted broadcast of a programme and intrusion of advertisements during the telecast of a programme adversely affects the viewing experience of the consumer.

     

    The principal regulations were issued on 14 May, 2012 but had met with severe criticism from the television channels and their representative bodies. The regulations were challenged by some of the broadcasters in the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) and thereafter TRAI issued an amended Regulation on 27 August on which responses were called for and open house consultations also held.

     

    TRAI has also said that ‘it is important to note that the provisions in these regulations do not attempt to disturb the time limit fixed by the government regarding duration of advertisement i.e. 12 minutes per hour. As discussed earlier, TRAI is responsible to ensure that quality of service to consumer is not compromised and hence these regulations.’

     

    Click here for the full list of channels, which telecast over 12 minutes per hour of self-promotional or other advertisements during prime time

  • “Ad cap should have been restricted to only pay channels”: Yogesh Radhakrishnan

    “Ad cap should have been restricted to only pay channels”: Yogesh Radhakrishnan

    A veteran in the cable TV industry, someone who dabbled in the sector almost three decades back, Yogesh Radhakrishnan, now the MD and CEO of Pioneer Channel Factory, has seen the sector grow from the scratch.

     

    Known for setting up businesses, Radhakrishnan has been the man behind building IndusInd Media and Communication Limited, ETC and ETC Punjabi, rejuvenating Zee Cinema, setting up Zee Middle East, launching the first HD movies channel with Times Television Network – Movies Now and the first HD music channel – MTunes.

     

    Radhakrishnan, who has seen the sector emerge from a mere video-tape business to entering the digital era, talks to Indiantelevision.com’s Seema Singh about the emergence of cable TV in India, the first satellite channel, the emerging music sector and more…

     

    Excerpts:

     

    How did you get into the cable industry? How was the sector then? Why did you move out of it?

     

    In an era when the only form of entertainment was Doordarshan, I was fascinated how it could capture loyal viewership despite old, dusted black and white movies they telecast. I sensed that if people were given the option of better quality of movies on their own TV sets without the hassle of VCR or cassette which was prohibitively expensive there would be a huge demand for it. Thus was born the idea of launching cable TV in India. However re distribution of home video cassettes was illegal so in the year 1988, I pioneered the launch of India’s first copyrighted cable content with my three other partners under the brand name Cable Master. This gave the entire cable TV trade a flip and a legal straw to hold on to as the Government was yet to announce licensing policy for cable TV operators.

    In the next stage of evolution from cable to satellite TV, in the year 1992, we were all geared to launch a channel but lost out the lone transponder on Asiasat 1 to Zee. Those were the days  of quotas and licence raj and we had to partner with an established business house to do business in India.

     

    At that time the Hinduja group was on the verge of launching IndusInd, and so we partnered with them to create a media division and that is how the IndusInd Media Communications was created as a joint venture.

    Incable emerged to be the largest consolidator at that time to bring in the economies of scale in a city like Mumbai which had more than 8000 cable operators. We were the biggest players across most of the states in the country.

    Under IndusInd, we launched India’s first cable channel In Mumbai and a 24 hour movie channel CVO.

    Recognising the strength of ground distribution that our company had, we got many offers for joint ventures from the likes of HBO, Time Warner Cable, TCI etc. A huge multi million dollars offer from Rupert Murdoch didn’t go through due to valuation differences between the Hinduja’s and News Corp.

     

    In 1997, the cable industry got into a turmoil and that was the day I decided to move out of cable.

     

    You went on to launching ETC which you later sold to Zee? What’s the story behind that? How did Movies Now and the distribution venture with BCCL happen?

    In the year 1998, the concept of a 24 hour music channel was a need I saw and that is when I launched ETC, a channel focusing on new releases, as has been established nowadays the exposure of songs on TV plays a big role in the box office success of a film. ETC became the number one Hindi music channel followed by MTV, which was then a Hinglish channel.

     

    ETC was the second listed company after Zee and after the successful launch of the channel, we also pioneered the daily live telecast by securing the rights to the telecast of Gurbani from the Golden temple and thus ETC Punjabi was born which went on to become the No.1 Punjabi channel and continues to be in that position till date in its other avatar PTC Punjabi.

     

    After music and Punjabi channels, we saw the gap for 24 hour Hindi news channel, and that is how ETC News was conceived even before Aaj Tak was launched. But Technology wasn’t in place at that time a camera cost Rs 20 lakh, which today is close to Rs 50,000. Editing equipment, bandwidth for news feeds had to be sourced from DD, all in all, it was an expensive proposition. Hence, a 24 hour news channel had to be put on hold.

     

    Subsequently in 2002 when we got a good offer from Subhash Chandra, we sold ETC Networks to Zee.

     

    And then my association with Zee began, which was also an exciting time. I was a partner with Zee Middle East. Subsequently, I went on to build a strong company in Zee Middle East, which till date is one of the strongest markets for ZEEL.

     

    In 2008, I sold back my equity to Zee and wanted to return back to India where the action really was. Former Times Television Network CEO English channels Ajay Trigunayat, was in Dubai then. We got together with our project to launch India’s first ever English Movie channel in HD.

     

    I had discussions with BCCL MD Vineet Jain and a JV was formed in 2010 to launch four channels and then we further got into launching a distribution venture together called Prime Connect.

     

    Movies Now was one of most successful TV channel launch. It went on to becoming the No. 1 channel in the first week of its launch. Finally, in 2012, I exited the company by selling my equity back to BCCL.
     

     

    Then you moved on to setting up Pioneer Channel Factory? How is MTunes doing?
     

    Following the trend of people wanting to go to multiplexes for the pleasure of enjoying quality production of Hindi cinema and their desire to watch songs in its full glory, I set out to launch MTunes, india’s first Bollywood music channel in HD on the premise of Bollywood music like never seen before. Our songs were carefully selected to ensure they lived up to the channel premise.
     

    Acknowledgement from advertisers came as we got many campaigns exclusively on our channel due to its HD premise. Today, MTunes delivers far greater HD audiences than English movie, entertainment or even sports for that matter.

     

    Our second music channel Music Express resonates well with the industry, we package music with Glamour and Gupshup. Bhakti Sagar is our foray into the spiritual space.

     

    How will digitisation help the music channel industry?

    In analogue what was important was opportunity to see (OTS). In digital, all the channels are blocked in one category. The advantage for us is that we are in HD and so we got the advantage of the four million eyeballs. Our reach is good in HD and we are also available on SD. So for our advertisers it is a win win situation.

     

    How big is the music channel industry currently?

     

    If you take 14 music channels on an average, advertising and promo put together, we would be around Rs 700-Rs 900 crore.

     

    Unless and until you can differentiate yourself, you will not be able to grow majorly. If you see the broadcast business, be it GEC, sports or music, it’s very unfortunate that you are operating in the world’s cheapest advertising market (CPT) and cheapest pay TV market and this growth is slow.

     

    What is your take on music channels turning into youth general entertainment channel? Are you looking at foraying in the youth space?
     

    No way. It is a lovely genre to be in and is growing. Youth programming will drive this market to a large extent.

     

    But I don’t look at great economics that really works in any GEC space, unless and until there is good subscription that one is getting. If you strip off the subscription from all these channels and make them play pure advertising driven GECs I think each of them will lose money.
     

     

    Where do you see the music channel industry heading, considering music is easily available, you think there is still a market for music channels?

    Linear television will always have its market. Music will continue to be in a market where there is a television population which is very huge. There are a lot of people who watch content online and for them we are present online. There is still a large market and it will continue to be that way.

     

    Television is larger than life, especially music channels like MTunes which is very current and new and which plays new music and promos and that is what people look forward to rather than online where you need to make searches for content, while here content just keeps flowing.

     

    Why did music and news channels not follow 10+2 ad cap?
     

     

    US is such a free market and FCC is very strict in terms of regulation, but they do not have an advertising cap. Why should the government intervene on how much of advertising air time one should carry. For a moment Pay channels could be directed but definitely not the FTA channels. And that’s what we argued in the court. In short people will not watch your channel, if you put too much of advertising. So why is it that the government wants to intervene with channels and that too for free to air channels. We are not charging customers any money, its free.

     

    If we put in excess advertising, anyways our ratings will fall as no one would watch the channel, and that would affect our business.

     

    Ad cap should have been restricted to only pay channels, as India is the only country, where the pay channels are getting paid from both subscription and advertising.

    Government needs to create level playing field. Currently as independent networks, it is a difficult situation.

     

    How do you think music channels can start generating more revenue?
     

    Carriage is the biggest drainer. Network channels have the advantage of either not paying carriage or less carriage. Advertising is stuck in the low rate game. Cartelization is a good experiment that we all can get into in order to get decent rates. But, with the plethora of channels available, advertisers have a lot of options.

    It’s not just the music channels, but with new GEC launches, competition is getting tough even in the GEC space.

     

  • Zee will continue to follow 12 mins ad cap: Punit Goenka

    Zee will continue to follow 12 mins ad cap: Punit Goenka

    MUMBAI: Reacting to the statement that the Information and Broadcasting minister Arun Jaitley was not in favour of the 12 minute ad cap for television channels, Zeel MD and CEO Punit Goenka has said that though he was happy with the views of the minister, his company Zee will continue to follow the ad cap.
     
     
    Speaking to Indiantelevision.com, Goenka said, “It is a good move for news and music channels but Zee will continue to follow the ad cap.”
     
     
    “The ministry comes up with such statements and many fall for the trap,” he added.
     
     
    On the current inventory system for news and niche channels, Goenka believes that if ad cap is not followed, the channels will continue to work on minimalistic rates.
     
     
    It may be recalled that Jaitley had said that while the government was not inclined to interfere in the content or the business of media entities, he was not in favour of a cap on advertising for TV or print media. He said that essentially, ad cap conflicts with fundamental rights.
     
     
    The ad cap law brought in by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has been legally challenged and the matter is pending in court. As was reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, the Delhi High Court today adjourned the petition by the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) and others challenging the advertising cap of 12 minutes per hour sought to be imposed by the government to 24 March.
  • Ad cap case adjourned to 24 March

    Ad cap case adjourned to 24 March

    NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court today adjourned the petition by the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) and others challenging the advertising cap of 12 minutes per hour sought to be imposed by the government to 24 March.

     

    The bench was unable to hear the case today in view of the pendency of large number of part-heard matters.

     

    The assurance given by TRAI to not take any action against any channel pending the petition, will continue and the Court has, at the regulator’s instance, directed that all channels to keep a record of the advertisements run by them. It can be noted that the ad cap case was adjourned to 21 January, 2015 when it last came up for hearing on 20 November, 2014.

     

    During the hearing on 25 September, NBA counsel Nisha Bhambani had sought adjournment in view of the senior counsel S Ganesh not being in Delhi.

     

    Earlier on 15 July, the Court had adjourned the case as the final hearing of the bunch of petitions challenging the ad cap sort to be imposed by TRAI as the authority had not finalised its rejoinder.

     

    The case had been previously heard in the High Court on 17 December, 2013 and 13 March, 2014.

      

    The NBA had challenged the ad cap rule, contending that TRAI does not have jurisdiction to regulate commercial airtime on television channels.

     

    Apart from the NBA, the petition have been filed by Sarthak Entertainment, Pioneer Channel Factory, E24 Glamoru, Sun TV Network, TV Vision, B4U Broadband, 9X Media, Kalaignar, Celebrities Management, Eanadu Television and Raj Television.

     

    The news and regional broadcasters fear that the capping of commercial airtime will curtail their ad revenues. They also argue that the ad cap must be brought only after the benefits of cable TV digitisation start kicking in.

  • Ad cap conflicts with fundamental rights: Arun Jaitley

    Ad cap conflicts with fundamental rights: Arun Jaitley

     

    NEW DELHI: Reiterating that the government is not inclined to interfere in the content or the business of media entities, Information and Broadcasting minister Arun Jaitley has said he is not in favour of a cap on advertising for TV or print media. 

    In the first J S Verma Memorial Lecture, Jaitley wondered how a 12-minute cap could be reconciled with the fundamental right of freedom of speech.

    “It will be music to the years of media persons. My ministry, a couple of years ago, came out with a statutory law that no channel will telecast advertisements beyond so many minutes. I have been struggling, in my own mind, since then as to how this meets the challenge of Article 19(1)A,” Jaitley said. 

    The ad cap law brought in by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has been legally challenged and the matter is pending in court. 

    Jaitley was also in favour of increasing FDI in media from the current cap of 26 per cent, saying when foreign newspapers were anyway available online in India, there was no point opposing the move. He said, “The debate over whether foreign media should be allowed to establish in the country and the extent of foreign equity has been made irrelevant by technology. Today, sitting here, I can access any newspaper in the world over internet.” 

    Referring to the financial pressure on modern media, he said, “The financial model of most media organizations is becoming challenging. The cost of news distribution has become huge. Cost of circulation is high. Most are unable to sustain. This is leading to consolidations and mergers. Those with deep pockets are acquiring media.” 

     

    The minister said that the media, in the spirit of fairness, must carry a disclaimer with respect to news where there was a conflict of interest. 

    Jaitley said financial pressure on media affected the quality of news and its credibility. Because of this, media houses spend less and less on news collection, hire less reporters who are not paid well, he said.

     

    He stressed on the challenge posed by digital media to the traditional forms of news dissemination and pointed out how newspapers and magazines abroad were shutting down in favour of digital platforms. He, however, said that the revenue model for digital media was not clear and it was still evolving. 

     

    He also raised the issue of cross-media ownership and said in his concluding remarks that it was an issue that needed to be debated. “Most jurisdictions world over ban cross-holdings in the media. Can all mediums be vested with one person? How is larger public interest going to be impacted by this? It should be debated,” Jaitley said.

  • Govt. plans no change in regulating advertisements on private television

    Govt. plans no change in regulating advertisements on private television

    NEW DELHI: Even as a legal debate continues on the ad cap of 12 minutes to the hour, the Government feels the existing mechanism available in the Information and Broadcasting Ministry is ‘adequate’ to regulate advertisements on private TV channels

    There is no proposal under consideration of the Government to amend Section 6 of the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995 in this regard, Ministry sources told indiantelevision.com.

    While replying to a question during the last Parliament session, Minister of State for I&B Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore had said no study had been brought to the notice of the Ministry with regard to the efficacy of self-regulation vis-a-vis legislative regulation.

    However, advertisements telecast by private satellite TV channels are regulated under the provisions of Advertising Code as contained in the Cable Television Network Rules, 1994 framed under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995.

    Besides this as a part of self-regulatory process, Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), established in 1985, undertakes self-regulation of advertisements. ASCI has a Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) to consider complaints in respect of advertisements.

    The sources said the self-regulation mechanism put in place by the industry, however, does not replace the existing regulatory function of the Government.

     

  • 2014: The year that changed landscape of distribution

    2014: The year that changed landscape of distribution

    2014 has been the most exciting and an eventful year for us in the Media and Distribution Industry. The phrase “There is never a dull moment” is so apt to define the year of 2014 that changed the landscape of distribution so significantly and posed challenges like never before. The year started on a promising note for the Industry with the impact of digitisation settling down and the benefits of this shift starting to roll in. Reduction in carriage fees and an upswing in subscription revenues indicated change, yet the industry continued to grapple with implementation of packaging at the retail level.

    Value chain as a whole moved towards a more structured form, with constituents at each level moving from an adhoc/ flat fee commercial arrangement to CPS model. Subscription flow from LCO to MSO which was significantly low in analog era started growing. Wider choice at the subscriber end also helped growth in ARPUs.

    One of the biggest changes that shall significantly impact the distribution model is BARC becoming a reality. It is set to redefine the way all of us look at distribution. Expansion in LC1 markets and forthcoming BARC measurement is pushing every broadcaster expand visibility to the deepest, darkest corners of the country. Such is the scope of expansion that it will require any organisation 24-30 months to plan, execute and brace one of the biggest change in the history of distribution.

    DTH industry saw a major shift this year in their outlook towards the business. Almost all of them moved away from the customer acquisition mode to better profitability. While the story of subscriber acquisition was not exceptionally different over the previous year, DTH companies managed churn, HD and ARPU increasingly well.    

    No other year has seen a bigger storm than 2014 in the Regulatory environment. There were so many storming changes that touched every stakeholder in the distribution chain. TRAI came out with regulatory changes like Disaggregation, DAS phase III and IV, Commercial establishments and Ad-Cap. The new regulatory environment posed new challenges such as keeping partners together, protecting bottomline revenue and remaining relevant in the new regime. Postponement of digitisation in phase III & IV caused recalibration of business plans by all stakeholders. TRAI’s regulatory change for commercial establishments affected an entire revenue stream of broadcasters and the matter continues to be fiercely litigated.

    Going into 2015, we strongly believe the industry will undergo some paradigm shifts in the way we do business. Implementation of RIOs in cable will see packaging in cable become a reality. Digital platforms hence shall compete effectively. Carriage fee, a big cost for broadcasters will get reduced to miniscule or only exist for FTA channels. HD and broadband in cable will see a big swing to drive revenues significantly for the cable companies. More interesting deals like DEN-Snapdeal shall emerge. DTH players shall equally bring about next level of offers to bring more value to the subscribers such as OTT, 4K boxes, TV Everywhere, and Binge viewing being offered to the consumers.

    For us here at IndiaCast UTV, the year 2014 was equally exciting. In face of compelling challenges, we en-cashed on the opportunities to attain significant growth. There is ample evidence that we are moving forward and in the right direction. In light of disaggregation, IndiaCast UTV was successfully appointed as the authorised agent for TV 18, Disney UTV and ETPL and the broadcasters reposed full faith in the our team. Transcending these regulatory changes, we emerged stronger than ever.

    On the DTH front, we saw all our renewals happening during the year. We had to up our ante and attain a fair share for the unmatched content that the network stands for. It was tough convincing the platforms but eventually they saw sense in the value we bring to the table. We are proud to say that we were able to stitch our multi-year content deals with all the DTH platforms at a healthy growth rate. On the visibility front, we embarked upon the biggest challenge to put in place an entire LC1 team and collectively put in thousands of manpower hours to expand our reach across the length and breadth of the country. Our ratings in the past few months are a testimony to the efforts of the affiliate team who seeded our channels in a number of new networks across smaller markets.

    The year also saw us successfully launching and distributing the third Hindi GEC “EPIC” which expanded the GEC space by offering a season based formats based on Indian Mythology and folklore. Viacom18 gave a myriad of entertainment options with Colors being the frontrunner in Hindi GEC space, launch of new Hindi GEC “Rishtey”, MTV Indies creating a new space in Music genre and by launching “24” – India’s first international non-reality format show with international standard production quality. TV 18 maintained its leadership position and added a business news channel in Gujarati called CNBC Bajar to its portfolio. The regional offering was strengthened by launching four news channels under the ETV banner – Kannada, Bangla, Gujarati and Haryana.

    This year has seen IndiaCast UTV coming of age, adding stability and propelled us to achieve more. We are confident of setting new benchmarks for ourselves and for the industry and embark on a larger journey which will see us coming out stronger than ever before. We are looking forward to an exciting and eventful 2015.

     

     (These are purely personal views of IndiaCast UTV Media Distribution EVP Amit Arora and indiantelevision.com does not necessarily subscribe to these views)