ITV

Tag: CNN International

  • CNN International goes ‘beyond borders’, adorns new logo

    CNN International goes ‘beyond borders’, adorns new logo

    MUMBAI: As part of its two-year network expansion plan, CNN International has unveiled a new logo, backed with refreshed channel sound and graphics and a new tagline that says “go beyond borders”.

    This is for the first time that the network slogan has undergone a chnge since 2001. Formerly, the network’s slogan was “be the first to know”.

    It is pertinent to note here that the new brand positioning is launching simultaneous to the premiere of the network’s flagship property, Amanpour.

    According to the network, “go beyond borders” is an articulation of CNN International’s shared values and commitment to delivering intelligent news in a connected world. The tagline was put together by CNN’s in-house global marketing and creative teams in conjunction with the Boston-based agency Tooth+Nail.

    Said CNN International EVP and managing director Tony Maddox, “Our viewers go beyond borders every day, seeking out intelligent newsgathering on multiple platforms and this tagline will speak directly to their aspirations.”

    Meanwhile, as part of its repositioning spree, CNN International will launch a new programming slate with a total of eight new shows by year-end.

    “2009 has been a defining year for CNN International, with the introduction of an ambitious new programming line-up following on from an expansion of our newsgathering operation as we put original content and multiple perspectives at the heart of our output. A new tagline is the logical next step to cement our brand promise for today’s news consumers,” Maddox added.

  • ‘Asia contributes 25-28 per cent of our ad revenues out of which 10 per cent comes from India’ : Jonathan Davies – CNN International exceutive VP ad sales

    ‘Asia contributes 25-28 per cent of our ad revenues out of which 10 per cent comes from India’ : Jonathan Davies – CNN International exceutive VP ad sales

     As the television landscape in India gets more fragmented, channels try to come up with customised solutions for clients by trying to understand their business requirements better. Such is the case with CNN International.

     

    CNN says that more revenue is coming out of India, particularly with local companies going global. The tie up with IBN has also been a big help in this regard.

     

    Indiantelevision.com’s Ashwin Pinto caught up with CNN International executive VP ad sales Jonathan Davies to find out more about the international news network’s prospects in India.

     

    Excerpts:

    How has CNN International fared over the last couple of years?
    We have fared strongly. In the last five years, we have recorded double digit growth. There aren’t many channels operating in mature markets that have seen this kind of growth level.

     

    There are three key drivers for us. Our digital businesses have grown rapidly. The website has been able to monetise eyeballs; we are also seeing growth in developing markets like in Asia, Africa and Middle East; the area of sponsored content has also grown in terms of collaborative partnerships.

    In terms of CNN’s overall ad pie how much do Asia and India contribute?
    About 25-28 per cent of our revenue comes from Asia, out of which India contributes 10 per cent. This has seen a huge growth over the last five years. India used to contribute two per cent of the revenue from Asia.

     

    In the Asian market, CNN International is seeing quick growth in Japan and Korea.

    How has the tie-up with IBN helped CNN in India?
    It increases the profile of the CNN brand among the Indian advertisers. The IBN deal was not designed to be a huge revenue earner but to establish brand saliency. Advertisers in India have become more familiar and comfortable with CNN as a result of our alliance with IBN.

     

    As more Indian companies want to be present on the world stage, they require a global platform to reach out. We can provide the global platform. Already you have a situation where the Tatas have bought out Jaguar and Land Rover. The more this happens, the more CNN will benefit in the coming years.

     

    Besides manufacturing and consulting, Indian companies in sectors like BPOs are moving up the value chain globally. We are looking to tap these sectors.

    Which are the key advertiser categories for India?
    Tourism is one of the key categories. We are also looking to tap conglomerates like ABG. Airlines are also important as they are looking to go global. However, India is still an under-developed market for us. But through the CNN IBN tie up, we are laying the foundations for a market that will take off in the coming years.

     

    India will follow a similar pattern like the Gulf States. Over the five years Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Qatar and Bahrain have seen huge growth in terms of clients.

    Apart from travel and tourism, which are the categories that are emerging in Asia?
    The financial segment, consumer electronics and airlines like Singapore Airlines are growing.
    ‘India is still an under-developed market for us, but through the CNN IBN tie up we are laying the foundations for a market‘

    The Indian market is getting more fragmented with a plethora of launches in the news space and other genres. How has this impacted CNN?
    Fragmentation works in our favour. With the marketplace getting more confusing, clients tend to go to those places that they know and trust – like CNN. Our levels of churn have gone down. Rolex has been with us for 11 years. Cathay Pacific has been with us for 15 years. We also add new clients in different parts of the world, which is encouraging for the future. Trust is becoming an increasingly valuable commodity for brands. I am not just talking about news channels here. It also applies to governments and the financial sector, among others.

    Besides the ‘Eye On India’ initiative, is CNN International looking at more local Indian content that would allow you to attract more advertisers in the sub-continent?
    It is not necessarily that we will do only those stories that gets revenue for us. We highly place value on interesting stories. India is an interesting country. We have invested in more newsgathering resources in India. We have got people in Chennai. Now that we have more people in India we can generate more stories from this country.

     

    Currently we are doing an Eye On initiative. This will focus on in-depth stories from India. Investment companies will tie up with us for this initiative.

    One major initiative from CNN International was the launch of the Task Group late last year. What was its purpose?
    The travel and tourism sector is important for us. The aim is to offer expertise to any client in that industry. We give them the tools and ammunition to make their campaigns more effective. We work in a consultancy role so that a travel board can explain to their state about why they are taking marketing steps. They can explain that an ad showing beaches will create economic growth. We help film commercials for tourism organisations.

     

    We have worked with the Indian ministry of tourism. We helped them expand their business and offerings in other regions. In the latter part of 2006, we had in an initiative to promote India around the world in association with India’s ministry of tourism, produced a series of six advertorials.

     

    The vignettes aired for several months. We look at a country and understand the dynamics of their business. We then help them market it better.

    From a brand building perspective how important was CNN’s eco-tourism event in India in December?
    The environment has been the key theme in CNN programming for many years. Countries wanted to know more about eco tourism and it’s potential. Our event helped educate state tourism ministers on what eco tourism is all about.

     

    Horizons 2007 was organised in conjunction with ministry of tourism. We got local and international experts offering their views. Next year we will be doing an initiative around the infrastructure business, which is related to tourism. The event will also be held in India.

    Could you shed light on innovations done with clients that go beyond the 30-second ad spot?
    With Nokia we did an initiative that spanned different platforms. Phones of our journalists had a Nokia widget, which could be tracked on our site as they traveled across the world. Journalists submitted blogs from their locations. This was a marrying of technology with our editorial interests. We have worked with Suzlon to embed their brand in our environmental solutions content. The perception and understanding of this company has gone up as a result.

     

    We have a show called Principal Voices, which is sponsored by Shell. It looks at developmental issues around the world. We bring experts whether it is education or environment or in other areas from around the world to have a debate.

    How has CNN changed in regards to perception among clients?
    If you go back to a little over a decade, people felt that CNN offered an American view of the world. Research shows that perception about CNN has changed. It is now seen as a channel that offers a global perspective. We offer programming from around the world. While our CNN US network is a strong resource, we use it only when relevant like the US Elections. Clients see that global issues like credit crunch and food crises are tackled in an objective manner with multiple perspectives, which attracts viewers.

    Is CNN packaged with the other Turner channels or is it sold separately?
    No, we work with our sister channels in other areas but not in advertising. That is because the CNN audience is very different from the audience of the other Turner channels. The news audience tends to be more upscale. Other Turner channels get clients who are more mass market focussed.
    Does CNN do roadshows, events for clients?
    Yes, we do. However we try to make it more client-specific as opposed to exposing them to the whole world of CNN. We are introspective. We look at our business offerings and see how clients can benefit from being associated with us. We try to show people what we can do as opposed to telling them about our capabilities.
     

    We did an initiative with the Clinton global Initiative a few years back. We did a film on this and invited clients to watch CNN in action and see the kind of people that the CNN brand can bring together. Clients met Bill Clinton, which was a good endorsement for CNN.
    Now social media sites like Youtube and Facebook are competing with traditional media for eyeballs and ad revenue. How is CNN adapting to this?
    We launched ireport.com earlier this year. It is a separately managed organisation, which allows any viewer from around the world to upload video programming. This is a viewer-moderated initiative. They can discuss key issues. The best ones that are done by citizen journalists are put on CNN.

  • Scot Safon is CNN Worldwide executive VP, CMO

    MUMBAI: Scot Safon has been promoted to CNN Worldwide executive VP, chief marketing officer. Safon will oversee branding; consumer and trade advertising; and marketing and promotion of the CNN portfolio of networks and businesses, including CNN/US, Headline News, CNN International and CNN.com., and their news and information programming, personalities and events. He is based in Atlanta at CNN world headquarters and reports to Walton.

    CNN Worldwide president Jim Walton says, “Our marketing and promotion efforts reflect a quality, intelligence and point of view that set CNN apart. As a creative executive, Scot sets the tone for that work. But he is equally important to me and to our organization as a strategist and leader. His influence and impact are felt, and welcomed, throughout CNN. I’m pleased to acknowledge his contributions to our continuing success.”

    Formerly senior vice president of marketing and promotion, Safon joined CNN in 2002. He and his marketing and promotions teams executed award-winning campaigns supporting the debut of CNN’s The Situation Room, Anderson Cooper 360°, the re-launch earlier this year of CNN.com and CNN’s continuing election coverage.

  • CNN International announces slew senior editorial appointments

    MUMBAI: CNN International has announced several senior international editorial and operational appointments, starting with Ellana Lee who has promoted to managing editor Asia Pacific.

    In this role she will oversee all of the programming and newsgathering resources in the region including the studio operations in Hong Kong. Lee has been at CNN for over 10 years and has extensive news and feature programming experience as well as having for worked for CNN in New York covering business and finance news. 

    Phil O’Sullivan has been named executive producer to be based in Hong Kong. He will be responsible for the daily programming and newsgathering production and planning from CNN’s Hong Kong bureau, which also acts as the network’s Asia-Pacific headquarters. O’Sullivan joined CNN from Television New Zealand in 2000, states an official release.

    Parisa Khosravi will step into the role of senior VP international newsgathering, responsible for CNN’s entire international newsgathering operation that includes more than 60 correspondents, 26 bureaus and the Atlanta-based international desk. A 20-year veteran of CNN, Khosravi has played a central and lead role in the planning and coverage of the most significant international stories of the past two decades: the death of Pope John Paul II, the Asian Tsunami, both Gulf Wars, the fall of the Berlin Wall, genocide in Rwanda, the Israeli and Palestinian conflict, Tiananmen Square, the war in the Balkans, the end of apartheid and the international reaction to the 11 September 2001 attacks.

    Will King becomes CNN International senior operations director overseeing all of the strategic, non-editorial operations across CNN’s international newsgathering and production centers. Prior to this appointment, King was director of operations for international newsgathering. Based in CNN’s world headquarters in Atlanta, King has been with CNN since its launch in 1980, when he began as an associate editor.

  • ‘CNN is an American-owned news channel, but we are not America-centric’ : Rena Golden – CNN International senior vice president

    ‘CNN is an American-owned news channel, but we are not America-centric’ : Rena Golden – CNN International senior vice president

    A little girl from a small town in Bihar who migrated from India to the US when she was just six years old, Rena Golden is today at the very top rung of the hierarchy at global news major CNN International. As senior vice president, she visited India this week to announce the latest edition of “Eye on India”, focussed this time on the youth power of the country.

    Credited by her colleagues with amazing skills, journalistic and managerial, driving the world’s largest news broadcasting company CNN from just an all-American channel (“I joined 21 years ago when people used to call CNN Chicken Noodle News!”), to an international one reaching 2 billion viewers across 200 countries, she still retains a disarming level of simplicity.

    It is perhaps natural that an American of Indian origin would also be the head of CNN’s Diversity Committee, ensuring that community parity is maintained not just within the organisation but also in the dissemination of news.

    Golden, who studied in two universities in North Carolina, graduating in English with Honours (“My father wanted me to be a doctor, but I wanted to study English”) and started working with CNN from 1985, spoke to Indiantelevision.com’s Sujit Chakraborty on the present status and future plans of CNN.

    Excerpts:

    You have a large hand in shaping the strategic direction of CNN. What is the most significant area you are looking into at the moment?
    I think it is expansion of news beyond the television sphere. We are on the Internet, mobile phones… I think what CNN is interested in becoming is your news source, on whatever platform it may be… your phone, your Blackberry… We want to become your news information source and travel with you, wherever you are.

    CNN’s news website is a tremendous success which attracts a billion users every year. And CNN International has just launched its news service on mobile phone. We are also looking at video on demand and IPTV… we want to be platform agnostic.

    How is IPTV doing in America… there is content available on that platform here in India as well, but the problem is we do not have downloading technology or bandwidth?
    I think even now in the US market the bandwidth is still not there, but the market is growing in South Korea, in Hong Kong and in some of the Nordic countries in Europe, where we can stream the CNN news channel completely on mobile phones. We are still not there on that platform in the US, but I think the important thing is to have your foot in all the areas. CNN is known for that and one of the areas we are looking at is (improving) technology in news gathering.

    That is my second question, in fact. You also deal with the technology of news gathering?
    Yes, for instance, earlier, when we would go for coverage, say in India or the war in Iraq, we would have to travel with 30 suitcases of equipment. Now, thanks to CNN working with Sony, with Panasonic, and other organisations, we have cameras that fit in a suitcase, which you can take as your carry-on luggage.

    When we went to North Korea, we could move in easily and cover news in a much easier manner, which is often cheaper.

    What are the latest innovations and what are the next technological frontiers in news gathering and dissemination?
    Things are getting smaller and smaller… we are looking at shooting footage on a mobile phone. Only last week, we used a Nokia mobile phone and went “live” on CNN. You don’t have to book satellite space. You can just dial into the CNN offices in Hong Kong or Atlanta, and stream news live, so technology is getting smaller and mobile.

    CNN has more than once made public its ambitions to go regional and local. But at least in the context of the Indian subcontinent it has not happened. And now with the explosion in television news in the country, it looks like it never will. I can see your CNNj in Japan, then Turkish and Korean CNN, so why not in India?
    OK, what we have done in India goes beyond what we have done in some of the other regions. We have partnered with IBN and additionally, we have CNN International which covers India not just for Indians but for the rest of the world. Our partnership with CNN-IBN is less than a year old but it has emerged as the number one news channel in this country. That partnership is as strong as what we have in some other regions, say in Turkey where we have tied up with a media channel that broadcasts CNN in Turkish.

    I think there are different models for different markets and the model that we have for the Indian market… Wow! I mean we couldn’t have imagined this. There could be a partnership with some Hindi channel… I am not ruling that out, but what we need is as strong a partner as we have in CNN-IBN.

    We do not have anything to announce here (in terms of a regional channel) so far. We believe in having local partners and we would not do that in India and open a Hindi channel for instance, without a strong local partner. Local partners understand the country much better… So what you see, this partnership with CNN-IBN, is one of our proudest achievements.

    Chris Cramer had told us last year that BBC has a certain Mark Tully factor advantage in India. For the first time though, now both CNN and BBC can be said to running neck-and-neck. It’s been a long while coming but don’t you think it has come too late in the day because of the way Indian news channels have captured virtually all the mind space?
    Sixty years… not just Mark Tully… I think it is a huge association.

    I think also right from the days when we were ruled by the British there was some association, so what do you feel you are looking at here to change that?
    This is the only market where BBC leads the CNN. I think you just put your finger on that. India has a long historic association with Britain and BBC, especially BBC radio, which was here decades before CNN even came to the market. I respect the BBC, no doubt about that.

    But where CNN excels is in breaking news… that’s our DNA, the DNA of CNN-IBN. We also don’t have a British style of presentation, a British view of the world. We have journalists from 50 different nationalities covering news for us. Don’t get me wrong, I have a lot of respect for BBC, but I think CNN has very successfully differentiated itself.

    Unlike a few years ago, when even a major train accident here would not be covered on BBC or CNN, there is a lot of India on these channels now. But I also feel that there are documentaries that need to be made on India. What are the kinds of documentaries you think CNN ought to do on India in the near future? Do you have a kind of road map for that?
    I am glad you brought up that question. CNN has a documentary division, and one recent documentary was on Britain’s Muslim population. We also have a couple of them from Iraq and from Africa, etc. We are also doing documentaries with foreign filmmakers. We have partnered with a filmmaker from Sierra Leon who has done five or six films on the major issues of Africa. That gives us the opportunity to get into some of the under-reported stories of the world. So we are looking at filmmakers to partner with for making documentaries.

    But having said that, the important thing to remember is that we are not a documentary organisation, not a documentary channel. Our first and foremost work is 24-hour news. We believe in context, not only what’s happened but why it has happened.

    Everyone knows now India is changing, especially in the economic and knowledge sectors. What are the specific areas of change that excite you the most and why?
    I think it is the influence that Indians are now having in the diaspora… and not just the diaspora, because many Indians are also coming back home. India’s influence outside India is a story that really excites me.

    In the US, Indians are doing a lot of things. There are Indians heading technology companies, there are a couple of Indian filmmakers in Hollywood, and of course there are those in medicine and engineering. But one area where Indians are not there in the US is politics, which I think is important for us.

    The other thing, which is the topic of this edition of Eye on India, is the Indian youth. There is no other country in the world where 50 per cent of the population in under the age of 25.
    ‘In the early days of the Iraq war, the media was not as critical as it should have been and a lot of American society regrets that‘

    Looking at the global picture, is there a region-wise break-up of how it all reports back to Atlanta? How does it work?
    Well, we have an Asian production hub in Hong Kong and a hub in Europe and the headquarters is in Atlanta, but we as an organisation are very decentralised. In India, we have 15 people in the bureau, but we cover India primarily by people who have been journalists in India. It is not just Atlanta dictating what stories are to be done, it’s journalists here saying that ‘these are the stories on the front pages of the newspapers today. We think these are the stories that need to be told about India’. It is people who are working in this country, living, breathing India that drives our India coverage (and likewise, across the globe). That is what makes CNN so unique.

    And speaking of regions, can you offer how revenues stack up in percentage terms?
    Our revenue increase over last year is 22 per cent. Which is very good, very, very strong growth.
    A lot has changed in the last 5-7 years. A global news perspective is not solely in the hands of the likes of the CNN and BBC anymore. The impact of Al Jazeera has been well documented. Now the French have also launched their own global news channel. How is CNN changing to meet the challenges of a world view that is no more ruled from a western Anglo-Saxon perspective?
    Let me put this clearly. CNN International is American owned, and we are proud of our American ownership, but CNN International is not America-centric. It would be crazy for us to be broadcasting internationally but from an American perspective. From the business point of view, that would be ridiculous.

    But I think competition always makes us stronger, because competition means we have to be always ahead. We welcome competition. We have been there for 25 years and there is vast acceptance, because CNN’s journalism is top notch. And we feel there is enough room for others as well.
    And we have been talking about ethics and so forth, so what are the checks and balances that are in place to make sure that stories are fair and accurate?
    First of all, we have the standard-practice guidebook, which, of course, all news organisations have, which all CNN journalists have to abide by. Obviously, the journalist reporting knows the story best, but that story is vetted by many people. Along the way there are many different people who touch that story and fact-check it before it actually goes on air. We are much more interested in getting a story right than getting it ‘first’. We are the Breaking News leader, but we would not be that if our objectivity failed.

    Yes, but say you hire me from India and I, for that matter no one, can be totally objective… maybe I am slightly with the BJP or the Congress or whatever, so a tinge of bias creeps in. So how do you correct that? At the desk level?
    Yes, there is always the issue of being subjective, but there are things like hard facts that cannot be changed. That is why we lay so much emphasis on attribution. If you watch the news channel you will sometimes find that one person has been quoted but the other one has not been… this happens sometimes even if the journalist wants to be objective. It’s in their DNA, but it happens, so we tell them, ‘Hey, that guy’s quotes are not there, so go get it’.

    There have been occasions when a story has been held back for a week to make sure that all the players have got the chance to comment. I can’t tell you how much CNN lives and dies by its credibility factor.
    We’ll pick up on a touchy issue, with American media in particular – “embedded” journalism. Isn’t the way the whole Iraq story has developed a severe indictment on the way the media reported on it from the very beginning? What’s the point of the truth coming out now, when all that is left is death and destruction?
    Well, I think the media had not been as critical as it should have been in the early days (of the Iraq war). Not only the media, there are many politicians and different segments of American society that regrets not having been more critical (at the outset). I think that a lot has changed.

    Because and after the massive Iraq fiasco?
    Because of the war in Iraq and other reasons, because of the political season in general, but I do think that a lot of that has changed. I do think the media has got a lot proper.

    Veering off from your day job, as it were, you are on the advisory board of the Atlanta Woman magazine. Tell us something about the magazine and your area of interest in this.
    I am no longer on the board, but this is a local magazine from Atlanta focussing on the businesswomen. I think as a person involved with international news, I am always interested in what’s happening outside my world. And as a mother, as a wife and as a citizen of Atlanta, Georgia, I also have my responsibility of giving something back to my community.

    As the head of the CNN committee on diversity, what are the crucial diversity issues you face and how do you resolve them?
    The diversity issue we face overall is to maintain the diversity of coverage, to be sensitive to diverse cultures. With American, Latin American, African, or Indian people, all working together in the newsroom, it can be tremendously exciting but there is a lot of opportunity of misunderstanding. And what we encourage is a very open communication in our newsrooms, where people can talk to each other honestly, without feeling they are being attacked. But it’s really difficult to work with such diversity of cultures. It’s a tough challenge.

    Sure, but the question is, how do you resolve that?
    We resolve that by getting people to get together and discuss issues together. And we also give people opportunity to take their issues up without putting their names. If somebody wants to talk to me about a report that he or she feels has been unfair to a particular group of people, they can send me an unsigned note.

    We also hold functions where I may not be there but my managers are there. Transparency is the most important thing.

    You are in charge of talent scouting too. What do you think of the talent pool in India in your line of work and how do you plan tapping that pool?
    Well, I’ll tell you what kind of talent we are looking at. There is a lot of talent here. For CNN International, the presenter has to be a really strong journalist, people who know how to write, and more importantly, people who can speak extempore without a script. There are times, during Breaking News stories, when people have to work for four hours at a stretch in front of the camera without a script. These are people who have to have a fairly strong recall, they have to know the history, the culture, and feel confident enough to express themselves without the written script.

    There are people who differ with me and say, ‘No, an anchor is very different from a reporter. They have to look good, have a good voice, look polished all the time… and it’s the reporter who has to be out there and do the story. No. I can’t afford to do that in CNN International.

    Our anchors are the ones who are on the field as much as possible. Because to my mind, there is no difference between an anchor and a reporter. In the case of Lebanon issue last year, for example, I had three or four anchors going from Atlanta reporting alongside CNN reporters.

  • CNN : Food for thought

    MUMBAI: CNN International show ‘Global office’ sees the innovative business show setting its sights on one of the few industries that can boast of year on year growth: the food and drinks business. In this episode, CNN’s Kristie Lu Stout looks at the one of the fastest growing sectors of the food industry, the reinvention of a centuries-old beverage company, and one man who is looking to preach his culinary gospel beyond his home shores.

    Eating healthily has turned organic farming into a hugely lucrative industry, with global sales of organic food approaching US$ 40 billion a year. Global office looks at how major supermarket chains are taking advantage of the organic trend and assesses whether it is driven by altruistic goals or pure profit.

    From there the show visits the headquarters of the largest beverage company in the world. Diageo is the world’s leading premium drinks manufacturer, whose brands include Smirnoff, Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Baileys and Crown Royale, and Global office spends time with CEO Paul Walsh to discuss the delicate balancing act that is marketing the company’s alcoholic brands, and promoting sensible drinking.

    After five cookbooks, three hot restaurants and a globally syndicated cooking show, Australian celebrity chef Bill Granger is ready to take the world by storm. Bill is now looking to expand his brand beyond the shores of his home country; and he’s set his sights on the country where his passion for food began: Japan. But will diners there be enraptured by Bill’s creations? Global office finds out.

    Airtimes: India

    Sat, February 17 at 1400 and 2000
    Sun, February 18 at 0100 and 1800
    Mon, February 19 at 1200
    Thurs, February 22 at 2000
    Fri, February 23 at 1200

  • Ericsson, Turner to develop international mobile services

    Ericsson, Turner to develop international mobile services

    MUMBAI: Ericsson and Turner Broadcasting System International have formed a collaboration under which the users of mobile services and mobile operators will benefit from the companies’ leading positions in mobility and global multimedia content.

    The two parties are collaborating to develop Turner’s internet, broadcast news and entertainment content – including CNN International, Cartoon Network and Adult Swim material – for mobile multimedia environments. The offering combines the delivery of Turner news and entertainment content with hosting and content management technology, developed by Ericsson.

    The first of these jointly developed services will launch in Europe on 12 February 2007 at the 3GSM World Congress trade fair in Barcelona, bringing a new CNN Mobile service to the users initially in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

    The initial product launch – CNN Mobile – and subsequent launches in this collaboration will make technologically advanced multimedia content available to users in two ways. Firstly, mobile operators will be able to deliver simple access to Turner content through their own branded portals; additionally, end users will have access to content such as the CNN Mobile site directly on their mobile devices.

    Turner Broadcasting senior VP, digital media Casey Harwood says, “With this deal, we will have for the first time a full portfolio of solutions – from SMS through to mobile television – that will scale and easily move across the world. This partnership is a logical fit where the customer and mobile operators benefit through Turner focussing on providing innovative news and entertainment content to its global audience and Ericsson providing the technology behind it.”

    Ericsson senior VP, head of multimedia Jan Wäreby says, “Our service-provider customers throughout the world will greatly benefit from our partnership with Turner Broadcasting, as they will be able to provide popular mobile multimedia content from Turner’s vast catalogue and greatly enhance the multimedia experience for the consumer.

    The CNN Mobile product will be the first example of a true ’off-deck’ portal for mobile users, providing a state-of-the-art news service. A searchable archive of 14 days and over 2000 stories will sit with breaking news alerts and video news updates through the hourly updated ’World News Now’. Available to CNN users in EMEA and Latin America subscription free, the service will be accessible through CNNmobile.com in all mobile browsers or through operator portals where deals are in place.

    The mobile services being developed include intelligent software that enables devices to show only the actual content that is appropriate to the particular handset, resulting in a richer user experience. The services will be rolled out to further territories and both Turner and Ericsson have committed to further product launches throughout 2007.

    The partnership also extends beyond content development, and will have on screen elements on CNN International in a campaign that positions Ericsson as the global leading communications technology company.

  • CNN International head Chris Cramer announces retirement

    CNN International head Chris Cramer announces retirement

    MUMBAI: Chris Cramer, who has headed CNN International’s operations for the last 11 years, is retiring effective 31 March.

    “I shall be saying farewell over the next few months in Atlanta, London and Hong Kong and hope we can raise a glass somewhere along the way,” the CNNI managing director said Wednesday in an e-mail to staffers across the globe.

    “In April I will have been at the helm of CNN International for 11 years — and I believe it’s time to retire from the company and look for the next challenge.

    “2006 was a record year for the international services, record distribution for CNNI and CNN en Espanol, and record revenues for all of our overseas businesses, including CNNI.com. Each unit is now profitable. It was also a fabulous year for our global journalism with accolades and awards for staff and services alike. Thankfully we also managed to keep our folks safe wherever they were working and led the industry in safety and training for all those who work in the field.”

    Cramer joined CNN in 1996 from BBC, where he had worked for 25 years, five of them as head of newsgathering.

    CNN is still to name Cramer’s successor.

  • CNN Intl announces changes in news gathering operations

    CNN Intl announces changes in news gathering operations

    MUMBAI: News broadcaster CNN International has announced a number of appointments within its international newsgathering operations in Asia-Pacific and Europe, Midlle East and Africa.

    CNN International MD Chris Cramer says, “I am particularly delighted to have been able to make such a large number of strategically important changes from within the CNN family. This is a testament to the depth and expertise of the staff we have working at CNN”.

    CNN Asia-Pacific managing editor, Jill Dougherty, will now be based in Washington D.C. and will be the US affairs editor, reporting for CNN International. She brings with her a unique global perspective having served as CNN’s Bureau Chief in Moscow for many years and previously, was a CNN White House correspondent travelling widely with former U.S. presidents.

    Taking Dougherty’s place is CNN International’s executive producer in Asia-Pacific, Ellana Lee. As acting managing editor for CNN Asia-Pacific, Ellana will oversee both the newsgathering and programming output from CNN’s Hong Kong production base as well as work closely with advertising sales and distribution.

    Aneesh Raman has been appointed as CNN’s Middle East correspondent and will be based in Cairo. This new title reflects his role in reporting from across the Middle East. Previously based in Baghdad, Aneesh has reported from numerous places in the past few months including Iran, Syria and Lebanon.

    CNN’s Jerusalem correspondent, John Vause will now cover China. He is based in Bejing. He has been CNN’s Jerusalem’s correspondent since October 2003, reporting from the frontlines on Israel’s war with Hezbollah, the Israeli pullout from Gaza and extensively covered the war in Iraq, being the only international TV reporter to visit the destroyed safe house of Al Qaeda leader, Abu Musab al Zarqawi.

    Atika Shubert, currently CNN’s correspondent in Tokyo responsible for the global news network’s coverage of Japan, moves to Jerusalem and joins the team led by Bureau Chief, Kevin Flower and correspondent, Ben Wedeman. Atika has covered several major news stories in Japan, including the recent election of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the birth of the new prince, the controversial deployment of Japan’s Self Defense Forces to Iraq, among other significant stories.

    Joining CNN is Frederik Pleitgen who takes up the position as CNN’s Berlin correspondent. Frederik comes to CNN from German network broadcaster ZDF where he was the political editor.

  • CNN International unveils tourism advertorials to promote India

    MUMBAI: More vacationers are likely to choose to wile away their holidays in India rather than other popular tourist countries. CNN International, in an initiative to promote India all around the world in association with the India’s ministry of tourism (MOT), has produced a series of six 60/45/30-seconds advertorials.

    CNNI had commissioned Bang Productions Singapore Pte Ltd to produce the series for MOT. The six films, which was unveiled at overseas marketing meet organised by MOT in the Delhi earlier. The vignettes are now being aired on CNN International on a world-wide basis, which kicked off on 22 September and will run uptill March 2007.

    India’s travel and tourism market has been valued at US$42 billion in 2005. The vignettes are based on six pillars that include health, modern Art, Golfing Holidays, Hip Hotels, Fashion & Shopping and Heritage in India. The current promotion has more clearly defined these pillars which are in keeping with the viewing audience of CNN International. 

    The objective of the campaign is to increase the flow of tourists into India from September till end February-early March. The produced advertorials will be running alongside the Incredible India commercial, produced by Bharat Bala Production, according to an official release.

    Turner South Asia advertising sales VP Monica Tata said, “India has a lot to offer to the world and through these brilliantly shot six vignettes, we hoped to capture the true essence of a ‘new age India’. We believe that these series of vignettes focus on India as a modern, upmarket, contemporary and unique place. CNN International believes in partnering with clients to offer them the solutions they need across the world.”

    “This is in response to the long standing relationship that CNN enjoys with the Ministry of Tourism in India. The ministry has been using CNN to promote Indian tourism globally. The six advertorials are a reflection of the different facets of Indian tourism,” Tata further added.

    All the segments have been shot on film and not on Digi-beta or video. The vignettes are based on six pillars and they include:

    Health: This segment is hosted by Deepak Chopra MD, acknowledged as one of the world’s greatest leaders in the field of mind body medicine. Deepak Chopra carries the film beautifully from the prayers being offered at the Ghats (shore) of Rishikesh to the Oberoi Wildflower Hall spa (one of the world’s best) ayurveda, meditation and yoga resorts. India is whole – it is holy and it is healing. The vignette depicts the spiritual side of Incredible India.

    Modern Art: This segment has been hosted by the international photographer, Frederic Lagrange from New York. The film was shot at various locations in Delhi, including the National Gallery of Modern Art, Garhi Artists Studio and Jantar Mantar. The film also has shots of famous Indian artist, Anjolie Ela Menon. Frederic talks about art and how it is omnipresent in India, on the streets, through movie hoardings, in galleries, through canvases of famous Indian artistes etc.

    Golfing Holidays: This vignette has been hosted by India’s top professional golfer, Jeev Milka Singh – the current winner of the China Open Golf Championship, and was filmed at Delhi Golf Club, the DLF Golf and Country Club in Gurgaon to promote ‘Golf Tourism’ in India. It has some beautiful shots of the monuments at the Delhi Golf course, one of the only golf courses in Asia meandering through ancient monuments.

    Hip Hotels: This advertorial was shot at the Lake Palace Hotel and Devigarh Fort Palace in Udaipur, and it was hosted by renowned investment guru and author – Dr Mark Mobius from Franklin Templeton Investments. Both hotels have earned a reputation to be one of the world’s best.

    Fashion & Shopping: This advertorial was hosted by the US supermodel and actress, Saira Mohan. The segment was shot in Delhi during the India Fashion week, showcasing Indian designers like Tarun Tahiliani, the depth and vision of Indian fashion, jewellery & handicrafts and other fashion/shopping locations around Delhi.

    Heritage: This segment was hosted by the renowned Indian Sufi singer, Zila Khan, daughter of late Ustad Vilayat Khan. The film was shot at Taj Mahal in Agra, Fatehpur Sikri, a city made by emperor, Akbar in the late 15th and early 16th century and Agra Fort.