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  • Disney Star India shortlisted for IBC2024 Innovation Awards

    Disney Star India shortlisted for IBC2024 Innovation Awards

    MUMBAI: Disney Star India is in the running for this year’s IBC2024 Innovation Awards which are to be held on 15 September at 18 hours. The category for which it has been shortlisted is the social impact award for its work with India Signing Hands through which it brought the IPL 2024 coverage to almost 67 million hard of hearing and 34 million visually impaired fans on Star Sports.

    Late last month, the IBC announced the finalists for the IBC Innovation Awards which celebrate and honour collaborative initiatives leading to ground-breaking solutions that address real-world media, entertainment and technology industry challenges. This year’s awards bring together under one roof IBC’s innovation and social impact awards to create a unified celebration of industry advances, with five categories now being judged: content creation, content distribution, content everywhere, social Impact, and environment & sustainability.

    “This year’s entries once again showcased the global reach and appeal of the IBC Innovation Awards with projects of the highest quality received from six continents,” said chair of the 2024 IBC Innovation Awards jury Fergal Ringrose. “Meanwhile, constantly evolving delivery methods and audience consumption patterns demand that content producers around the globe must innovate dynamically in order to stay relevant and competitive in the modern media and entertainment technology ecosystem. I would like to sincerely thank our panel of judges for their diligence and ability to adapt, as we brought our three content categories together with environment and sustainability and social impact this year for our new-look IBC Innovation Awards.”

    Former news anchor Sasha Qadri is set to host the awards in the auditorium complex at the RAI on Sunday.

    This year’s finalists in the Content Creation category include:

    * The National Football League (US), ESPN, Disney/Pixar and Beyond Sports for creating the first fully animated, real-time NFL alternative broadcast set in the Toy Story universe.

    * Olympic Broadcasting Services and partners for live broadcast production with more than 200 smartphones contributing video for the Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony and a sea-based 5G network for sailing competitions in Marseille.

    * Aspire for working with Vislink and FocalPoint VR to develop a virtual reality over RF wireless solution for the inaugural season of Aspire’s Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League (A2RL).

    The organisations named as finalists in Content Distribution are:

    * Claro for creating a new approach to pay TV in Brazil, integrating streaming channels and applications, delivering entertainment to consumers with a complete pay TV offer.

    * NBCUniversal Operations and Technology for its pioneering project to transform the way its TV channels are delivered to consumers worldwide.

    * The National Hockey League (Canada and US) in partnership with Verizon, AWS, Zixi, Vizrt and Evertz, for producing a 5G and Edge compute framework for assembly, control and delivery of live broadcast.

    The Content Everywhere finalists are:

    * LaLiga for working with Play Anywhere and Ease Live to enable true fan interactivity for itself and its worldwide broadcast and streaming partners.    

    *Red Bull Media House for bringing together real-time GPS tracking, data management and advanced visualisation to transform viewing experience across live broadcast, web widgets and AR mobile app.

    * Franceinfo (France Télévisions) for working with PimpMyCompany to aggregate text/audio/video/photo messages from various platforms and broadcasting them live on air.

    Apart from Disney Star, the  Social Impact finalists are:

    * CultureQ for a new technology platform developed by indigenous-owned tech company Kiwa Digital that enables indigenous peoples globally to revitalise their language and culture at scale, while retaining sovereignty

    * Sesame Workshop for its Watch Play Learn Distribution Hub which allows government agencies and aid organisations to preview and request videos for children in crisis settings.

    The Environment & Sustainability finalists are:

    * France Télévisions for reducing CO2 emissions by 300 tons via a pioneering 100% glass-to-glass cloud production and private 5G network.

    * GreeningofStreaming for addressing growing industry concerns about the energy impact of the streaming sector, with international reach and over 30 member organisations.

    * Anton/Bauer for Salt-E Dog which harnesses the power of sodium chemistry to enable sustainable television production practices.

    The Innovation Awards ceremony will also feature the presentation of the IBC International Honour for Excellence, which goes to an individual or organisation that has made an outstanding impact in the industry, and the best technical paper, with all papers being presented at the 2024 IBC Conference that runs 13-15 September in the auditorium complex of the RAI.

  • Gaurav Banerjee to lead SPNI from August

    Gaurav Banerjee to lead SPNI from August

    MUMBAI: After some amount of speculation about whether Disney Star India head honcho Gaurav Banerjee would be hopping over onto Sony Pictures Networks India as big boss, today the company sent out a release confirming Banerjee (or GB as he is known) as the professional to lead SPNI on or before 26 August, pending regulatory approvals. He succeeds the extremely affable and low profile NP Singh who  successfully headed the M&E major for around 25 years.

    NP is slated to take on the role of non-executive chairman to support the transition until the end of the fiscal year.

    Says GB: “I am deeply honoured to take on the role of MD & CEO at SPNI. Under N.P. Singh’s remarkable leadership, SPNI has achieved tremendous success and innovation in the entertainment industry. I am excited to lead talented teams as we explore new frontiers in original programming, enhance our viewers’ experiences, drive our distribution footprint across India, and significantly boost our revenues. Together, we will set new benchmarks in entertainment and deliver exceptional value to our audiences and stakeholders.

    “Adds NP: “I am immensely proud of the success and innovation SPNI has achieved. I am confident that Gaurav will elevate SPNI’s impressive portfolio to new heights. His visionary approach will undoubtedly continue our legacy of excellence and creativity. I look forward to supporting him and our talented team as we further our impact in content creation, audience engagement, and digital media initiatives. And most importantly, I would like to thank the entire SPNI team for being the fulcrum of our growth and success.

    “Chairman of global television studios  & president & COO of Sony Pictures Entertainment Ravi Ahuja adds: “N.P. Singh’s leadership has been instrumental in shaping SPNI into the powerhouse it is today. I am confident that Gaurav Banerjee, with his proven track record and visionary approach, will continue to drive SPNI’s success. Gaurav’s expertise in content creation and strategic leadership will undoubtedly lead SPNI into an exciting new chapter of growth and achievement. We are thrilled to have him at the helm and look forward to the continued success of SPNI under his leadership.

    “More about GB

    With an illustrious career spanning over two decades, Gaurav Banerjee brings a wealth of experience in content creation and strategic leadership. He previously held the positions of head of content for Hindi entertainment & Disney+ Hotstar and business head for Star Bharat, Hindi & English movies, kids & infotainment, and regional (East). In these roles, Gaurav not only oversaw content curation across multiple languages but also spearheaded original series and films that resonated deeply with diverse audiences, earning him a reputation as an innovative and forward-thinking leader.

    Gaurav’s strategic vision and innovative approach consistently positioned top shows like Anupama, Ghum Hai Kisi Ke Pyaar Mein, and Imlie at the forefront of viewership ratings. He was vital in producing award-winning streaming originals such as the Emmy-nominated Aarya, Special Ops, The Freelancer, and The Night Manager for Disney+ Hotstar.

    Gaurav’s media journey started as an assistant producer and anchor at Aaj Tak. From there he moved to Star News, where he started producing and anchoring prime time news shows. Gaurav holds a master’s degree in filmmaking and TV production from Jamia Milia Islamia University and an undergraduate in history from St Stephens, Delhi.

  • Disney Star India cracks down on illegal streaming website

    Disney Star India cracks down on illegal streaming website

    MUMBAI: There’s reason to celebrate at Disney Star India. The media behemoth’s anti-piracy cell – led by Major Ashok Yadav – has – with the help of the Ahmedabad police – managed to crack down on a clutch of betting websites which were illegally running ICC T20 World Cup cricket streams.

    “What’s alarming is the number of betting websites that have popped up this time during this World Cup and they are running live match video streams simultaneously. These guys at magicwin.games, magicwin.com were streaming the matches and encouraging youngsters to place bets,” said Yadav “We filed an FIR and asked help from the cybercrime cell in Ahmedabad and it has since been blocked from running the video streams. It’s to the police commissioner’s credit that it was brought down in 10 days and the pirate arrested.”

    The cybercrime cell led by Lavina Sinha along with ACP Hardik Mankadiya have named three accused Divyanshu Patel, Shubham Patel and Harsh Patel, According to both Sinha and Mankadiya, the match video feed was being provided to Divyanshu from a cable operator in Pakistan who goes by the name of Azhar, while Shubham – who is based in Canada – would bring in customers from overseas. The police have arrested Divyanshu, who is a website developer from Mehsana district in Gujarat, and another member of the ring Omkumar Goswami whose job was to open bank accounts in which the betting money was deposited. Laptops, routers, encoders, personal servers have all been recovered from Divyanshu’s premises. Additionally, an international lookout notice has been issued against Shubham Patel.

    “Servers were running in Winnipeg, Russia, Germany to keep this operation going,” said Mankadiya.

    For the police, the larger crime of illegal betting is something that they are further chasing.

    Investigations are currently ongoing around the fintech company that was involved in the UPI transactions for betting transfers while also looking into the media agency which had placed billboards throughout Ahmedabad promoting magicwin.

    “Celebrities like Vidyut Jamal were endorsing magicwin without really knowing what they were doing,” said Mankadiya.

    “We hope the new advertising regulations will help make these celebs more aware and be careful about what they are promoting,” said a media professional.

    Shall we say Amen to that!

  • Disney-Star India’s ICC World Cup telecast sets new records

    Disney-Star India’s ICC World Cup telecast sets new records

    Mumbai: India’s main strike bowler Mohammed Shami was breathing fire as he charged in and bowled an unplayable delivery to New Zealand tailender Lockie Ferguson which the latter edged to KL Rahul behind the stumps. In the process, he set a record by capturing seven wickets for 57 runs, the most by any Indian bowler. And a roar went up in Mumbai’s Wankhede stadium where the semi-final of the ICC One Day World Cup was being played out. The Indian cricket side led by Rohit Sharma had got through to the finals of the championship, which many a pundit had predicted it would, by bowling out a fighting New Zealand side for 327 runs against their total of 397 for four.

    Even as Shami was running amock on the field of play, executives at Disney Star India’s offices were also celebrating. Its streaming service Disney+Hotstar had a notched up a record by registering  53 million concurrent viewers at peak. A world record, it beat the earlier 44 million concurrent viewership record that Disney + Hotstar had set during the match between India and South Africa.  

    The peak concurrency for the India-New Zealand semi-final fluctuated between 50 million and 53 million as Bumrah scalped Glenn Phillis, Kuldeep outfoxed Mark Chapman, Mohammed Siraj snapped up Mitchell Santner, and Shami got the better of the centurion Daryl Mitchell, Tim Southee and Lockie Ferguson to take India into the finals.

    Thankfully, for India’s leading broadcast and streaming network the match ran its course which more than allowed it to fulfill its obligations to its on-air advertising and sponsor partners. Some of the earlier fixtures that the very dominating Indian side had played had ended early and Disney Star India had then reportedly chosen to make good some of the air time to its advertiser partners.

    For Disney Star India, the ICC World Cup should prove a matchwinner in terms of revenues. With India now in the finals, which is to be held on 19 November in Ahmedabad, new viewership records are likely to be set. Programming around the finals and India’s chances on lifting the trophy is likely to be pumped up, advertising inventory created – which could sell at a premium. It’s quite possible that more advertisers could snap up FCT on the channel which again will sell at a premium.

    Speaking at an ICC conference Cricket Matters on 14 November in Mumbai’s St Regis Hotel, its sports head Sanjog Gupta was pleased as punch.

    “We have had 450 million viewers on TV in just the first 34 matches, of the ICC one Day World Cup” he said. “That’s more viewers than the top three entertainment channels combined on the sports event.  We had a peak concurrency of 80 million  on our TV channels  in the 12 languages we telecast and 44 million on our streaming service. We have generated a buoyancy in the festive season with advertising spending up 40 per cent. 45-50 new category advertisers have come on to the World Cup. We have had a 20 per cent growth in terms of time spent viewing by viewers over 2019. ”

    Not just Gupta, but even Disney Star country manager and president K Madhavan had a beaming wide smile on his face at the semi-final’s post-match presentation. Madhavan presented the man of the match award to Shami.

    The success of the ICC World Cup event should result in some soul searching in Burbank, the Walt Disney Co’s hq.  The company has been looking for a partner for its India business ever since CEO Bob Iger earlier this year expressed that the low ARPUs, weak advertising, heavy subscriber churn and skyrocketing sports rights costs were eroding the company’s bottom line. Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio has been reported to be among the front runners for the partnership.

    Iger apparently seemed to have softened his stance – compared to earlier in the year – during the mouse house’s fourth-quarter earnings call for FY2023 on 8 November 2023 when questioned about what he intended to do with the India business.

    “…in India, our linear business actually does quite well. Yes, it’s making money. But we know that other parts of that business are challenged for us and for others. And we are looking, I’ll call it, extensively,” Iger had responded.  “I know I’ve said this before, it always gets me in trouble. But we’re considering our options there. We have an opportunity to strengthen our hand. It is now maybe the most populous country in the world or maybe just still second to China and about to pass them. We’d like to stay in that market. But we’re also looking to see whether we can strengthen our hand obviously, improve the bottom line.”

    With the World Cup shaping up the way it has for Disney Star India in terms of viewership and new advertisers, some of that may hopefully end up showing up in the shape of a much better bottom line. And hopefully keep Iger and investors in a better frame of mind.

  • KCCL signs subscription agreement under NTO 3.0

    KCCL signs subscription agreement under NTO 3.0

    Mumbai : The interconnection subscription agreement with the broadcasters was signed by MSO Kerala Communicators Cable Ltd (KCCL) in accordance with the Trai-mandated NTO 3.0 after UCN.

    Now that the Trai’s new rate order has been modified, KCCL has joined a growing group of MSOs, including Siti Cable, KAL Cables, Tamil Nadu Arasu Cable TV, and Thamizhaga Cable TV, that have agreed to negotiate interconnection agreements with the broadcasters.

    Even as the legal dispute between cable operators represented by the AIDCF (All India Digital Cable Federation) and the broadcasters continues in the Kerala High Court, there now appears to be a rift within the cable fraternity in its fight against the broadcasters regarding signing the interconnection agreements under the NTO 3.0.

    Den, Fastway Transmissions, GTPL Hathway, Hathway Digital, and other MSOs are among those that are still engaged in this conflict with the broadcasters.

    Leading three broadcasters (Sony, Disney Star India, and Zee Entertainment) cut off their signals to nearly ten MSOs on February 19 who are AIDCF members.

    Broadcasters are justifying the increase in price after a four-year hiatus. Cable operators, on the other hand, claim that the price increase is exorbitant and will raise consumers’ monthly cable bill. They have also filed numerous petitions against the amended tariff regime in the country’s high courts.

    AIDCF claims that despite the fact that the case is in court, these major broadcasters disconnected their signals.

    Meanwhile, AIDCF has warned advertisers, media planners, and ad agencies, against advertising on Disney-Star, Sony and Zee, because their recent actions have “deprived more than 25 million households across India from watching their channels since Saturday, 18 February 2023.

    The federation claimed that the 25 million homes account for nearly 35 per cent of the pay TV market in India.

    “Are you still getting the reach that you have paid for? Your advertisements are not reaching more than 200 million consumers across all states and Union Territories in India for the past three days. More than 46 billion minutes of viewing time are being lost per day across India on the largest cable networks in India including GTPL, DEN, Hathway, Fastway, In Cable, NXT Digital, Asianet, KCCL, UCN and many more. These networks cater to large audiences in HSM as well as South with dominant presence in Punjab/Haryana/ Chandigarh HP, UP Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, West Bengal Odisha, Madhya Pradesh/Chhattisgarh, Bihar/Jharkhand, North-East, AP Telangana, Kamataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, etc,” said a release by AIDCF.

    The industry body warns the advertisers to take an informed decision when they advertise on any of the channels including Star Plus, Zee TV, Sony.

  • DD Free Dish announces Sony Pal & Colors Rishtey to go live effective 1 December

    DD Free Dish announces Sony Pal & Colors Rishtey to go live effective 1 December

    Mumbai: Prasar Bharti’s free direct-to-home (DTH) platform announced the return of two general entertainment channels, Sony Pal and Colors Rishtey, effective from 1 December. The free-to-air platform has unveiled the comeback news of big media giants via a tweet shared on 21 November.

     

     

    Colors Rishtey and Sony Pal won the 63rd e-auction process, which was conducted on 18 November 2022.

    Recently, the public broadcaster has invited applications for allotment of vacant MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 slots of DD Free Dish platform on a pro-rata basis for the period from 1 December 2022 to 31 March 2023.

    In April 2022, four big broadcasters—Zee Entertainment Enterprises, Viacom18 Network, Sony Pictures Networks, and Disney Star India—withdrew their flagship channels from bouquets. The decision came in January 2020, when the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) announced NTO 2.0, which capped a bouquet channel price at Rs 12 instead of Rs 19 (as per the first NTO).

    In order to increase their advertising revenue and gross rating points (GRPs), the broadcasters decided to rejoin the DD Free Dish platform, as it has a lesser number (176+) of TV channels to compete with than private DTH (500+) services.

    Earlier, when the big players decided to quit the platform, they were completely aware that they had taken on the risk of losing subscribers and ad revenue through that move. Broadcasters knew that if they did not bring back their channels on the platform, then they may have to shut down these channels, as at present, free users are shifting to DD Free Dish for free entertainment and paid DTHs are moving towards OTT streaming apps.

  • Sony-Zee merger marks the start of consolidation in the TV industry: Ashish Bhasin

    Sony-Zee merger marks the start of consolidation in the TV industry: Ashish Bhasin

    Mumbai: Recently, the shareholders of Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) gave their approval for the proposed merger with Sony. RD&X Network co-founder & chairman Ashish Bhasin feels that this is the first step of consolidation in the TV industry.

    “I think that in the coming three to five years you will see more major players being born through consolidation with deeper pockets and more muscle. They will join Disney-Star India, Sony-Zee, Warner Bros. Discovery and others. On OTT as well, there will certainly be consolidation. OTT will run through a similar cycle to TV. TV saw lots of smaller players. Now consolidation is happening. In OTT, I expect something similar, though, with a lag in the timeline. Furthermore, as 5G expands and consumers begin to cut the cord, the line between what is TV and what is OTT will blur. I am certain that consolidation will be the rule. All the big players will look for more and more consolidation opportunities.”

    He further pointed out that mediums that do not go in for consolidation will always struggle. He gives the outdoor industry as an example. “The strength to invest is not there. Bettering the quality of the medium will not happen till there are fewer but larger, consolidated players, with a longer-term vision. Not consolidating will be a handicap for the medium. Print is reasonably consolidated in some ways. And print is slightly different as many organisations have a long history. Some were set up before our independence. It plays a role that is beyond commercial. So the journey there will be different. But apart from print, consolidation will be important moving forward in every medium.”

    Talking about the ramifications of the Sony-Zee merger, he noted that this is the beginning of consolidation in the Indian TV industry. “There will be fewer, bigger, consolidated players. The reason for this is that content is becoming more and more expensive in games. Distribution does not come easy and cheap. The Sony-Zee merger is probably the first step towards that. Consolidation will happen across genres and languages.” He added that there are many regional channels and smaller channels that may be acquired. Also, with OTT becoming important, there is scope for better consolidation there and with digital in general.

    A larger player means more content investment, which will have a positive impact on ad revenue growth. “A very strong entity will be created. Between the two of them, excluding sports, they have a market share of closer to 25 per cent. That gives them the opportunity to get better content. This will also result in better distribution. If that happens, viewership will improve and so will ad revenues. Ultimately, ad revenues are a function of supply and demand. If they create stickiness through better content, then ad revenues will also go up. Zee and Sony are very experienced players. So together they will become an even more formidable combination.”

    He agrees that they will get better bargaining power both on the content side and the advertising side. Furthermore, they can engage in more innovations and experiments. “But it is not just about power. There will be a combination of many benefits. They will be able to do better, bigger packages, deals across genres.” He also noted that stronger consolidated players can result in better deals and gave the example of cricket rights being sold for a huge upside (IPL, ICC).

    On the OTT front, he believes that the merger provides the entity with a greater opportunity to acquire better content. “A merger of this size will give clout in multiple areas, not just in one silo.” In terms of cultural synergy, he noted that in any merger and acquisition, one of the key targets is how do you integrate? Culture is a key part. “Acquiring organisations are geared up to make sure that this area is addressed. Each organisation has a different DNA. The challenge of the leadership is retaining the essence of the DNA while at the same time getting them to work in one direction. This is an on-going exercise. I am sure that Sony-Zee have already thought of it and they already have a plan.”

    Speaking about the Warner Bros.-Discovery merger, he said that it is important to measure potential impact not against the universe but within the niche that it is playing within. “Every merger handled well has a positive impact. If an advertiser only targets kids and the merger creates a big leader, say in kids, then it is a very different scenario for both the entity and that advertiser.”

  • Anuradha Aggarwal joins Amazon as CMO and director of user growth

    Anuradha Aggarwal joins Amazon as CMO and director of user growth

    Mumbai: Anuradha Agarwal has joined Amazon as CMO and director of user growth, according to her LinkedIn profile update. She was previously associated with Disney Star India as cluster head of kids, infotainment and English channels.

    In a career spanning almost two decades, Aggarwal has experience across FMCG, telecom and broadcast sectors in India and South Asia. Prior to joining Star TV Network, she was associated with Marico as chief marketing officer. She has also had stints at Mondelez International, Vodafone India (Vodafone Idea), and Unilever.

    She is an alumnus of Sri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi University and PGDBM in marketing management from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.

  • Disney Star India head of ad sales Nitin Bawankule moves on

    Disney Star India head of ad sales Nitin Bawankule moves on

    Mumbai: Disney Star India head of ad sales Nitin Bawankule has decided to move on from the company, highly placed sources have confirmed to IndianTelevision.com on Thursday. He has been associated with the company since October 2019.

    At Disney Star India, Bawankule was responsible for ad sales for linear entertainment and sports channels and OTT platform Disney+ Hotstar.

    He was previously associated with Google as country director for Google Cloud in India. In a career spanning more than 27 years, Bawankule has been associated with companies such as Dell, Motorola India, Whirlpool India and Godrej Appliances.

    He is an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.