Tag: BBC

Zee Café brings another set of gripping British drama under their BBC First block – ‘Doctor Foster S2’ and ‘Unforgotten’

MUMBAI: When it comes to British dramas, you know you are in for a compelling story that keeps you on the edge! Here are two such gripping British sagas that stay true to it’s promise. Zee Café, one of the leading English general entertainment channels in India, in association with BBC Worldwide is set to bring two of the latest award-winning dramas Unforgotten Season 1 and Doctor Foster Season 2 as a part of the second edition of its successful property BBC First. Filled with fury, deceit and some teardrops, the shows will enthral viewers and keep them hooked as they air on weekdays at 10 PM.

Unforgotten, the crime drama series is a masterpiece featuring two sharp police detectives in an exhilarating hunt as they dig out cold cases that involve historical disappearances and murders. DCI Cassie Stuart (Nicola Walker) and DI Sunny Khan (Sanjeev Bhaskar) break any stereotypes for detectives as they are both brilliant and compassionate. Together, they embark on a mission to unravel the secrets buried for years together! Speaking about the success of the show, the Indian-origin actor Sanjeev Bhaskar says, “I was incredibly pleased and proud at having been involved in the first series. It’s rare to get such a consensus of critics and audience as well. I’m over the moon that people embraced it in the way they did.” Starting 28th August, 2018, Unforgotten will air every Tuesday at 10PM exclusively on Zee Café!

A case of infidelity and a woman’s rage that brings the whole world down – Doctor Foster Season 1 was nothing short of dramatic explosions showcasing the award-winning actress Suranne Jones who won a BAFTA for her role as the protagonist in the series. Speaking about her character in Doctor Foster she says, “She’s not particularly likeable. It’s not a case of, “Let’s all root for Gemma because her horrible husband is having an affair.” I think the great thing about Doctor Foster is that they are ambiguous characters.”

Taking a two-year leap, Doctor Foster Season 2 kickstarts with the city’s top doctor Gemma Foster (Suranne Jones) and her teenage son Tom leading a happy life. However, things turn topsy-turvy as Gemma’s ex-husband Simon (Bertie Carvel) along with his partner Kate come back into the picture. With hatred and anger brewing between these ex-lovers, the series follows the new dimension to this estranged relationship as they happen to reunite for a night of passion. What’s more? The season culminates in the most appalling climax that further adds to the! Come 30th August, 2018, Doctor Foster S2 will air every Thursday at 10PM exclusively on Zee Café!

August 24, 2018
SonyLIV expands its English entertainment library for premium subscribers

SonyLIV, the premium Video on Demand (VOD) service by Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN) announced the addition of a slew of new international English shows and movies to its already extensive library of content in the genre. Premium subscribers can now experience more action, drama and adventure with the perfect line-up of English movies and series to binge watch on SonyLIV.

The new content catalogue includes crowd favourites like Total Wipeout (Seasons 02-06), Line of Duty (Seasons 1-3) and Fear Factor (Season 1). Besides these unique shows, SonyLIV will showcase movies like ‘The Secret Sharer’ – an adaptation of a short story by Joseph Conrad, ‘Anti- Social’ – a crime thriller featuring Meghan Markle, ‘The Rehearsal’ – a drama special, where a first-year acting student stumbles upon a sex scandal in his girlfriend’s family and is tempted to use it as a year-end show to impress his teacher, amongst others.

‘Line of Duty’, a BBC police procedural series has consistently ranked as one of the best cop shows of all time. It was included in the list of the Top 50 BBC shows of all-time in 2014 and – featured in the list of the 80 best BBC shows of all time in 2016.

The programme line-up also features ‘X Company’ (Seasons 01-03) a Canadian spy thriller. Set in the thrilling and dangerous world of WWII, it follows the stories of five recruits, whose ordinary lives are completely changed when they are selected to train as agents in an ultra-secret facility.

Viewers can subscribe and gain access to the exclusive range of new shows and movies on SonyLIV along with the existing selection of blockbusters like The Girl on the Train, Hitch, Terminator 3, The Help, Lincoln and many more.

May 12, 2018
BBC admits struggling to compete with Netflix, Amazon

MUMBAI: Even a broadcaster and ancient brand like the BCC cannot escape the threat of the new digital transformation and change in audience habit. In its second annual report, the British broadcaster admitted that it is facing a crisis as the viewing habits of younger audiences change.

The kids of today find on-demand content more appealing. 82 per cent of children in the UK prefer YouTube for on-demand content, 50 per cent log into Netflix and only 29 per cent use BBC iPlayer. The report says children spend more time each week online than watching TV.

“At the same time, maintaining the reach and time that audiences spend with our output is equally difficult, when they have so many other choices at their disposal,” BBC said in the report.

The report estimates 16 to 24 year-olds spend more time with Netflix in a week than with all of BBC TV including the BBC iPlayer.

Against this context, BBC wants to keep its commitment to the highest production and editorial standards. It will sustain investment in new and original British output, made all over the UK. “We will take creative risks and keep the right balance between new series and returning favourites,” BBC said.

“Major new entrants such as Amazon and Netflix have meant that the global media market is increasingly dominated by a small number of US-based media giants with extraordinary creative and financial firepower,” BBC fears.

BBC’s urgent challenge is to develop new ways to grow its income to keep pace with rich competitors like Amazon, Netflix whose money supply seems to have no end.

Also Read:

Netflix announces new Indian original film ‘Lust Stories’

BBC launches news in Indian languages, ties up with Eenadu and India News

March 29, 2018
BBC News invests in VR documentary series

MUMBAI: Hotly tipped as one of the digital trends to look out for in 2018, virtual reality (VR) has made significant steps towards becoming a more integrated offering from BBC News. The BBC is investing in bringing its award-winning journalism to audiences seeking new experiences by launching a VR documentary series.

Produced by BBC News and the BBC VR Hub, Damming the Nile comprises a two-part VR documentary, a half-hour programme on BBC World News and a radio documentary on BBC World Service, as well as video and text on BBC.com. BBC VR Hub is a studio spearheading the VR production at the BBC and exploring how VR can create real audience impact.

With VR at the heart of the production, the documentary follows BBC Africa Correspondent, Alastair Leithead, on a captivating journey along the Nile, exploring the politics and potential impact of Ethiopia’s $4.7 billion hydroelectric dam. Audiences are put in a correspondent’s shoes – through Ethiopia and Sudan, coming to an end at the mouth of the river Nile in Egypt – provoking an unmatched, emotional experience.

To support the viewing of Damming the Nile, the BBC has launched an app on the Oculus Store, where Samsung Gear VR users can access an array of BBC VR content across news, factual and entertainment.

BBC News digital development director James Montgomery said, “We’re committed to looking at ways in which to engage audiences with news, and – for the right project – VR can be an impactful and memorable way of doing our journalism. As an international broadcaster, it’s important for us to develop our storytelling and editing expertise to keep abreast of these rapidly improving technologies.”

Leithead said, “Damming the Nile is a fascinating series exploring the geopolitical struggle for regional power and influence surrounding the world’s longest river. It shows that virtual reality can be used to give a new perspective on world affairs and engage new audiences with world-class BBC News reporting. There’s nothing more exciting than taking the audience on an immersive journey with you.”

The VR series allows audiences to fly high above the river Nile and its waterfalls, explore ancient Sudanese pyramids and take in the spectacular views of Egyptian temples from a hot air balloon before coming back down to earth in chaotic Cairo. Damming the Nile allows audiences to gain a whole new perspective on the conflict surrounding the world’s longest river.

Damming the Nile will be available on the BBC VR Oculus app, bbc.com, BBC News Facebook and BBC News YouTube from 21 February.

February 23, 2018
Ad spend on connected TV globally slated to grow in 2018

NEW DELHI: A new report has found that connected TV advertising is growing and 29 per cent of global advertisers and agencies plan to increase their connected TV advertising spend in 2018.

In fact, 65 per cent of the respondents said they will maintain their current spend suggesting they were satisfied with connected TV performance to date and only 6 per cent planned to decrease their connected TV spend in the year ahead, according to a recent survey by US-based Videology Inc commissioned through Advertiser Perceptions.

Explaining the phenomenon, Videology said data-based TV options are evolving every year and it expected more dollars will be shifted from traditional linear TV to advanced TV strategies in the months and years ahead as these strategies provide the ability to bring data and measurement to the entire marketing funnel when part of a holistic, cross-screen video approach.

What’s connected TV? According to BBC, a connected TV uses a consumer’s broadband internet connection to bring the kind of video content one gets on a computer (including on-demand services) but back where it belongs—on the TV. A consumer can sit back and watch the best of both the internet and television from the comfort of one’s living room. Some connected TV services allow consumers to use the electronic programme guide or EPG to scroll back in time to see if there are any shows from the past seven days that one has missed and would like to catch up on.

Though the Videology survey didn’t mention specific markets, it’s still unclear how such a trend would play out in India. Still, for the records, SonyLIV, an OTT platform that combines streaming of linear TV programmes and on video-on-demand service in India, had said it got separate advertisers for its streaming services involving some sporting programmes, which were different from the ones who advertised on Sony’s traditional TV channels in India.

Videology also added that its Q4 2017 TV and Video Market At-A-Glance Report had revealed that since 2015, there has been a 175 per cent increase in the amount of ad requests for connected TV in the Videology platform. The report also found that the amount of impressions running exclusively on connected TV grew 230 per cent from last quarter.

According to Videology, the idea of “cross-screen” is key as “agnostic” video planning is another trend uncovered in the Q4 Video Market At-A-Glance report. In Q4, 97 per cent of campaigns run on the Videology platform ran on multiple screens, with 60 per cent of those including a connected TV component.

As cross-screen strategies continue to grow, and to include connected TV alongside digital video, mobile, and linear TV, advertisers can expect to drive greater results, Videology said, adding there were still a few hurdles to overcome.

In the Advertiser Perceptions research, 51 per cent of respondents cited consistent cross-screen measurement as their biggest challenge in regard to TV and video advertising, while 44 per cent said they were challenged with how to best leverage data, and over 1/3 said their biggest challenge was “lack of clarity/understanding of what’s available and how to execute.”

“As we move towards an industry turning point for data-enabled, advanced TV advertising, there is still room for improvement in terms of data, measurement and education, and many in the ecosystem (like Videology) have built solutions to do just that. In the meantime, increased adoption of connected TV and other advanced TV channels is a step in the right direction,” Videology said in a blog.

Videology Inc. is a company specialising in TV and video advertising. The company’s global technology helps marketers and media companies manage, measure and optimise digital video and TV advertising to drive greater results in today’s converged media landscape.

February 7, 2018
Experience space with BBC’s new VR experience

MUMBAI: The BBC is giving you a chance fly. Home – A VR Spacewalk is an interactive virtual reality (VR) experience launched today for the HTC Vive and the Oculus Rift, and is available to download for free via the Steam Store and the Oculus Store.

Inspired by the NASA training programs used by British astronaut Tim Peake, Home – A VR Spacewalk enables would-be astronauts to embark on a spacewalk 250 miles above the Earth’s surface, something only 217 people have ever done in reality. They are tasked with making a repair on the outside of the International Space Station (ISS), before being confronted with a terrifying emergency situation.

Peake said: “Exploring space is something that motivates a lot of young people to enter careers in science and technology. This is a really exciting time because the new generation will have unprecedented opportunities to really fly into space. The HomeVirtual Reality experience brings that opportunity even closer, in a very authentic and accessible way.”

To mark the launch, a series of 360-degree films have been produced using footage from the experience. Viewers are able to look around as they float above the earth, while astronauts Dr Helen Patricia Sharman, Luca Parmitano and Ron Garan recount their real-life experiences of visiting space.

BBC Studios and director of Home– A VR Spacewalk head of interactive and virtual reality Tom Burton said, “Home represents the very best of the BBC, bringing brilliant creative together with cutting edge technologies to create an experience you wouldn’t get anywhere else. Making this experience available to those who have the devices will give people a taste of what it must be like to visit the ISS and walk in space for real.”

Zillah Watson, head of content commissioning for the BBC’s recently launched VR Hub, says, “Home is an extraordinary piece of content that enables viewers to get as close an experience as possible to what it must really be like to visit space. In the future, we’ll be looking to use the lessons we’ve learned in making fantastic pieces of content like this to develop even more impressive, immersive and inspiring experiences for audiences.”

December 15, 2017
Louis Boswell appointed CASBAA CEO

MUMBAI: CASBAA Association has appointed Louis Boswell, senior media and digital business leader in Asia, as the chief executive officer (CEO). Boswell will begin his tenure on 1 January 2018, succeeding outgoing CEO Christopher Slaughter.

As CEO for CASBAA, Boswell will serve as the content distribution industry’s leading advocate with industry leaders and policymakers throughout Asia-Pacific. In addition to driving the programs and initiatives of the association, Boswell will work with business heads of the member organisations to shape the increasingly rapid evolution of the industry in the region.

“Louis is one of the most well respected senior commercial executives in the content distribution industry in Asia. We are proud to have him leading our association. Louis’s track record of leadership and insight make him an ideal fit to work strategically with in-country business and government leaders to address the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead as the industry continues to invest, innovate and evolve at an unprecedented pace”, said Chair of the CASBAA board of directors and 21st Century Fox senior vice president Joe Welch.

“I am thrilled to be joining CASBAA”, Boswell commented. “The industry is changing and it is paramount that its representative body keeps up and is reflective of those changes. I believe the need for CASBAA is greater now than it ever has been and I look forward to making sure that we lead the industry from the front as we confront those changes.”

“Louis is a true professional, able to listen, rationalise differing viewpoints and then drive execution”, said Henry Tan of ASTRO who worked closely with Boswell on the AETN All Asia Networks joint venture. “He will make an excellent head of the association.”

Boswell’s background in Asia includes senior positions at Discovery, ESPN Star Sports, BBC, AETN All Asia Networks and, most recently, as the general manager, Asia for Da Vinci. His experience includes leading businesses in Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and all of the major markets in Southeast Asia.

November 30, 2017
GUEST COLUMN: From Juggle To Juggernaut: Localising content for India

There is an unassailable advantage in being the first to do something – there is so much to do that one is spoilt for choices. Opportunities lie aplenty and the emotional response is that of a kid at a candy store. All of us, in the local factual entertainment space, are that kid staring at a world full of temptations and wondering not ‘what to do’ but ‘what ALL to do’.

In many ways, we enjoy this beautiful predicament only because we are blessed to be here at a very opportune time. Television has come a long way from showing the world in graceful grayscale to this universe of 8K video, immersive 3D and augmented reality. From a box in the village enjoying divine status to being carelessly stuffed into jeans pockets, the medium itself has morphed from a product for mass consumption to a service available en-masse with the ability to deliver packets of content with extraordinary precision. The very dynamics of ‘what ALL can be made’ from a stand-point of both feasibility and viability has grown exponentially such that ‘local factual content’ is a business reality in an industry that made its bones by constantly reinventing the meaning of ‘massy’.

The ground rules for factual entertainment were laid decades ago with media mammoths like Discovery, National Geographic and BBC introducing a world that was still not flat and borders were both political and geographical. One may argue that ‘what ALL to do’ is an exaggeration given their long shadow of achievements. Yet, when one takes the eye away from the keyhole that introduced us to factual entertainment and takes a step back, one realises that the door is no longer there! The wide furrow that seemed never ending is but a rut with the entire planet waiting to be tilled and that the narrative even in content has shifted from globalisation to localisation. From trying to stretch and squeeze the world into one commandment, we are thankfully exploring several narratives to experience the world.

It is this shift, in the very fabric of factual entertainment, which has made a channel like Epic a reality. Where an ever-increasing audience is eager to participate in an exploration of their own country in their own language. The urge is to discover an India they grew up seeing through a filter designed for a global audience from a lens crafted especially for them. The journey of factual entertainment has evolved from concept to context.

And in this bountiful harvest available to the local content producer flutters the original question – what is the Indian context? It is as much a cipher as it is rhetorical. The debates, points of views and nitpicking can be endless. It is a minefield that the producer will have to navigate at every step of his creation. But perhaps, it is in this exploration that those who prefer the journey to the destination will revel?

What to create in an Indian context of factual entertainment is an endless potluck and many will indulge; however, give form to this creation is a question that requires us to take a pause and think. The pitfall of making it to the party late is that there is a lot to catch up. From craft and technology to training of personnel in them: the worldview of the producer is fraught with tough decisions and scarce resources especially since the market is global and the competition is with the very Goliaths who invented the game. It is a delicate scenario but with the silver lining that ‘necessity is after the mother of invention’ and jugaad is very much an Indian patent.

For the optimistic local factual entertainment industry, the words ’What next?’ are sweet chimes that may sound the death knell. In a world where exponential progress arrives regularly by leapfrogging off the shoulders of giants, will this beautiful bubble be recorded in history as one of soap or silk?

( The author is a programming head of Epic Channel. The views expressed are personal and Indian television.com need not necessarily subscribe to them. )

November 22, 2017
WittyFeed brings Httpool on board as sales partner

MUMBAI: Httpool has appointed WittyFeed as its partner to monetise the website’s display ad inventories and be its exclusive representative for India.

This partnership is in line with both Httpool and WittyFeed’s vision of providing clutter-breaking experience for users and offering innovative ad formats for digital marketing campaigns. Httpool will not only help WittyFeed monetise the existing website traffic, but also bring on board creative-rich media formats which will drive more engagements from users.

Httpool, an international media-tech company, employs the most advanced proprietary and licensed technologies to offer the broadest range of ad network products and ad tech solutions across display, video, engagement, social and performance channels, on all devices.

Httpool exclusively represents Twitter in India and 22 markets across Europe and Asia. It represents LinkedIn, BBC, AOL, Spotify and other select global and local publishers across 30+ central and eastern European and Asian markets. Httpool was recently acquired by Sony via IMS – Latin America, giving it market reach and access to 50+ markets.

Founded in 2014, WittyFeed started its journey with a hundred thousand users and now has a strong user base of a billion and garners close to 100+ million unique users every month. With over 50+ million site visits month on month, WittyFeed has set a new benchmark in March 2017 with 420+ million page views and 2.5 billion ad impressions.

WIttyFeed co-founder and CEO Vinay Singhal said, “We are glad that Httpool’s acumen in the Indian digital industry and the network would help us get better advertisement formats and fill-rate. We are quite excited with this association and look forward to it.”

Httpool India managing partner Amit Gupta added, “WittyFeed, being one of the largest content marketing platforms, experiences a lot of traction from varied target groups belonging to diverse fields, making it an ultimate destination for advertisers. We are delighted to partner with WittyFeed and look forward to taking this association to newer horizons.”

November 17, 2017
BBC launches news in Indian languages, ties up with Eenadu and India News

MUMBAI: BBC has launched news services in four Indian languages – Marathi, Gujarati, Telugu and Punjabi as it expanded business in the country for which BBC director-general Anthony William “Tony” Hall has arrived. BBC Duniya, a nightly television news bulletin in Hindi, has also been relaunched; it will be telecast on India News.

The Punjabi service will initially be online and on social media and include video coverage. BBC, in its blurb, advertised Punjabi as the eleventh most spoken language in the world, used by 100 million people — the highest in Pakistan. Among the popular Punjabis, it stated, are the former Indian prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh, seven Indian army chiefs and six Air Force chiefs.

Formally opening a BBC bureau in Delhi, BBC’s largest outside the UK, the D-G said that the audience in India had trusted the BBC for decades for bringing them independent and impartial news, and millions would get the chance to access BBC in their own languages, IBNS reported. Expanding the news bureau in Delhi and opening two television studios is a part of the UK Government’s Rs 25 billion (GBP 291 million) investment in India.

BBC, which has now partnered India News and Eenadu TV, was already held in great regard across India, and BBC News was being offered to new audience, especially the next generation. BBC has recruited 150 smart journalists from across the country, the D-G added.

The new services would also be available online and on social media, with BBC Prapancham, a Telugu TV bulletin which will be aired on Eenadu TV (Telangana) and Eenadu TV (Andhra Pradesh).

Eenadu TV Network CEO K Bapineedu said, that the BBC initiative to produce international stories in the Telugu language to be aired on ETV Network will add value to their endeavour of reaching the Telugu audience with the highest reach and authenticity.

India News operator-owner iTV Network founder-promoter Kartikeya Sharma said that BBC was famed for its unbiased and well-researched content which would be reaching its viewers in a format and language they could comprehend.

October 3, 2017