ITV

Tag: ETV Bangla

  • ETV Kannada and ETV Bangla to launch new shows

    ETV Kannada and ETV Bangla to launch new shows

    MUMBAI: Ringing in the new financial year are two regional general entertainment channels (GECs) under the belt of Network18 – ETV Kannada and ETV Bangla.

     

    Treating its audience on the Bengali New Year is ETV Bangla. The channel has come up with a dedicated afternoon time band called ‘Duronto Dupur’ which goes on air from 15 April.

     

    Four new shows will feature in the time band between 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm from Monday to Saturday. This includes two fiction shows Gouridaan– a remake of Balika Vadhu and  Shesh Theke Shuru. Two non- fiction lineup includes a mythological show Durgesh Nandini and a neighbourhood based game show Parar Shera Bouthan hosted by Bigg Boss Bangla winner Anik Dar. Prior to this, the slot had reruns of the evening programmes.

     

    Marketing for these shows have already begun in West Bengal. The channel is banking heavily on OOH, by putting hoardings and banners in markets, railway stations, bus back panels, rickshaw back panels, ferry branding and bus shelters. Also a 15 day radio campaign with an average of 72 slots across four channels has been devised.

     

    On the other hand, viewers of ETV Kannada will be treated to a buffet of five new shows in the next three months.  This includes two fiction and three non-fiction shows, of which one will be a mythological programme, named Srinivasa Kalyana, which is based on the tale of Lord Balaji.

     

     “Kannada is a good market for us to introduce this show. We wanted to make the show perfect and which is why we delayed it a bit. It is looking brilliant,” says Viacom 18 executive vice president Ravish Kumar who handles ETV Kannada, Bangla and Oriya.

     

    The timings and launch dates for the Kannada shows are still undecided but will be within three months.

  • ETV Bangla earmarks Rs 150 mn capital expenditure for its Bengali news channel

    ETV Bangla earmarks Rs 150 mn capital expenditure for its Bengali news channel

    KOLKATA: Earlier in January, Indiantelevision.com reported how the Bengali general entertainment channel ETV Bangla of the Network 18 group is looking at a news foray. The latest word is the Network has earmarked a capital expenditure of Rs 150 mln for launching a 24-hour Bengali news and current affairs channel.

     

    The channel would be launched by March 15 and will have a team of 200 professionals, including journalists and technical staffs, said one of the editors of ETV.

     

    The programming for the news channel will be uplinked from Hyderabad for the time being. By the end of the year, the company plans to set up a transmission system in Kolkata to be able to uplink directly. The company has already received a license from government authorities.

     

    Dhrubajyoti Pramanik, formerly with ABP Ananda – a 24-hour news channel from the house of Kolkata headquartered ABP Group, will is joining as the Editor of ET’s Bengali news channel. “He is likely to join the organisation from 1 March,” said a reliable source from ETV.

     

    An official from ETV Bangla said, “We had the set up and infrastructure for running a 24-hour news channel and now we will be using it. To run the news channel, around 200 people would be required.”

     

    ETV Bangla, which airs three news bulletins at present, will no longer telecast news once the news channel is launched. ETV Bangla will strictly become a general entertainment channel (GEC) going forward, the official said.

     

    Recently Viacom18, the 50:50 joint venture between US-based Viacom and India’s Network 18 Group, completed its acquisition in ETV Bangla. It should be noted that ETV Bangla, a part of the ETV Network  group of channels, was launched in 1999.

  • TV 18 completes ETV channel acquisition

    TV 18 completes ETV channel acquisition

    MUMBAI: A year ago, one of India’s leading media companies announced that it was acquiring the regional broadcast network; yesterday it informed the stock exchange that it had completed the transaction. We are referring to  TV18 Broadcast, a subsidiary of Network 18, which sent a note out to the Bombay stock exchange that it had successfully completed the acquisition of the Ramoji Rao promoted  ETV network with effect from 22 January 2014.

     

    The channels  were acquired at a price of Rs 2,053 crore according to the Share Purchase Agreement which is well within the budget of Rs 2,100 crore that was approved by its board last year. The deal resulted in it acquiring 100 per cent of regional Hindi news channels ETV Uttar Pradesh, ETV Madhya  Pradesh,  ETV Rajasthan, ETV Bihar and ETV Urdu and 50 per cent in ETV Marathi, ETV Kannada, ETV Bangla, ETV Gujarati and ETV Oriya. The Telugu news and GEC channels ETV Telugu and ETV Telugu News will, however, see TV18 owning only 24.50 per cent equity. 

     

    Excepting for the two Telugu channels, TV18 will have complete board and management control over all the other channels. Additionally, it will be holding the 50 per cent stake in the five regional GECs as an asset held for sale. The interest in these channels, its filing with the BSE states, will transferred to an associate company. Sources indicate that the channels are most likely  going to  be added to its Viacom18 joint venture or another company in the group. This will help it keep separate identities for TV18 Broadcast as a news channel enterprise, and GECs under Viacom18, if  the transfer does happen under it.

     

    The deal cements TV 18 and Viacom 18’s presence in the regional space. When contacted, Network 18 group CEO B Sai Kumar, he said that the deal had been waiting to come through and more details would have to wait a while.

     

    With one more transaction out of the way, Network18 can now focus on expanding its portfolio further through a Gujarati business news channel in the next few months as announced by Sai Kumar barely a week ago, clearly signalling that things are turning around at the group which was once ailing, thanks to its heavy debt burden.

  • Is ETV Bangla looking at a news foray?

    Is ETV Bangla looking at a news foray?

    Kolkata: Is Bengali infotainment channel ETV Bangla ready to shed its current avatar and spawn a 24 hour Bengali news channel? The buzz in Kolkata is that indeed it is. And this change will reportedly happen in the next two months, if sources are to be believed. More than 100 professionals – including journalists and techies – are expected to be recruited for the news foray. Apparently, the company has already got a news uplinking licence; and the new pay TV channel will be given a moniker which includes the words “ETV Bangla” in it. 

     

    An ETV Bangla executive  explains that it already has the set up to run a 24 hours news channel, and the deadline that has been drawn up for its launch is 15 March 2014. Says he: “ETV Bangla currently employs 135 people. So for the news channel some employees would be common and the rest we will hire.  We will also make further investments.” 

     

    He further adds that the news channel’s reporting stance will be to give updates and analyse developments in an objective and unbiased manner. Uplinking will take place from either Hyderabad or Noida where Network18 has uplinking facilities. 

     

    He points out that it is quite likely that ETV Bangla will be converted into a complete GEC, and the three news bulletins under the brand Aamar Bangla running on it will be dropped, once the news service becomes operational. Currently, ETV Bangla airs Aamar Bangla from 7 am to 7:30 am, 7:30 am to 8 am and from 4 pm to 4.30 pm. 

     

    Viacom18 executive vice-president Ravish Kumar refused to confirm or deny that any such moves were underway at ETV Bangla. 

     

    It should be noted that ETV Bangla, part of the ETV Network, was launched in Kolkata in 1999 and it currently takes a rice plate approach for airing a variety of programs – including cultural events, family dramas, movies, debates, children’s programs, tourism, and the occasional news bulletins.

     

    Some of the original programmes telecast on the channel include: Prathamar Rannaghar,  Jhalak Dikhlaja Bangla, Ranga Mathaye Chiruni, Bigg Boss Bangla and Sadhok Bamakhyapa among others.

     

    Only time will tell if ETV Bangla will be reincarnated once again. We will be watching the channel closely for further developments. 

     

  • DD Bangla, among other Bengali channels to live telecast Durga immersions

    DD Bangla, among other Bengali channels to live telecast Durga immersions

    KOLKATA: India’s national broadcaster, Doordarshan is likely to live telecast Durga Visarjan (immersion of Goddess Durga) on DD Bangla from 6:15 pm today.

     

    While other regional Bengali channels like 24 Ghanta, Akash Bangla, Star Ananda, Tara News, ETV Bangla, Channel 10, Ne Bangla and Kolkata TV among various other channels apart from covering news will live telecast the Durga Visarjan from Kolkata and other parts of West Bengal from noon till late evening.

     

    Biswa Majumdar, editor-in-chief, Northeast Bangla (Ne Bangla), a Bengali language 24×7 news channel, said: “We will show live Visarjans from noon till late evening. Most of the channels would be busy in covering the immersion as most of the idols will be immersed today as tomorrow is Eid.”

     

    Covering teary eyed devotees bidding an emotional farewell as idols of goddess Durga and her four children – Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ganesha and Kartik – be to immersed in ponds, lakes and rivers of West Bengal is a touching experience, said a cameraman.

     

    We will invite singers in our studios. We will also go to some celebrity puja and be a part of their home experience, said another reporter.

     

    Married women would be decked in the ritualistic red-and-white sarees marking the event with the customary “Sindoor Khela” or smearing each other and the idols with red vermillion to prepare the goddess and her clan for their long journey home, as dhaaks (traditional drums) plays in the background.

     

    There will be festive look on the banks of the Ganges and other water bodies, with spirited chants of “Bolo Durga Mai Ki Jai” adding to the fervour.

  • ‘Zee’s largest bouquet makes it the best prepared network for digitalisation’ : Joy Chakraborthy – Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd President, Head – Revenue

    ‘Zee’s largest bouquet makes it the best prepared network for digitalisation’ : Joy Chakraborthy – Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd President, Head – Revenue

     Zee is on an upsurge, driven by its flagship Hindi general entertainment channel. Kicking in ad revenues for the fiscal has not just been Zee TV but also the two regional channels – Zee Marathi and Zee Bangla – who together will make Rs 2 billion. And despite less aggressive movie buying, Zee Cinema will see a 25 per cent jump to rake in Rs 2 billion.

     

    As revenue head for Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd, Joy Chakraborthy takes credit for it. His role extends to the regional general entertainment channels (except south) which reside in sister company Zee News Ltd. The sports side of ZEEL’s business, however, doesn’t fall under his supervision.

     

    “I handle the power brands where effort to returns are high,” he says.

     

    Joy also takes pride in continuously doing price-correction deals. Even then Zee is under-priced and there is scope for growth, he says.

     

    In an exclusive interview with Indiantelevision.com’s Sibabrata Das, Joy talks of how Star Plus’ loss in GRPs has been pocketed largely by Zee TV and its regional channels. He also elaborates on Zee’s plans to pile up a huge bouquet so that it stays as the best network prepared for the digital era.

     

    Excerpts:

    How much of an ad revenue growth will ZEEL see in the current fiscal and is this still disproportionate to the rise in GRPs of the network?
    There will be a 65 per cent robust ad sales growth for the channels that are handled by me. Advertisers like to invest in channels which are growing. Zee TV, Zee Marathi and Zee Bangla particularly gained, as the leader channels in these segments (Star Plus, ETV Marathi and ETV Bangla) were falling sharply.

     

    The revenue has grown disproportionate to the GRP growth. The pricing, though, needs correction. We feel we are under-priced. With every new deal, we have corrected the price upwards.

    Are the channels that fall under you (ZEEL channels except sports, and the regional GECs barring the south languages) going to post a revenue of Rs 12.5 billion during the fiscal?
    Since we are a listed company, I can’t reveal the figures of the specific channels.

    As Zee TV is the predominant revenue earner, isn’t ZEEL in as risky a position as Star India is with the dominance of Star Plus?
    Zee TV accounts for 65 per cent of ad revenues that the channels under me generate. But that is how the network business will look like in India. Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs) make bulk of the ad revenue business.

    Zee Next was launched as a flanking channel in the GEC space, but it doesn’t seem to have worked at all?
    Zee Next has a problem. We are doing introspection on what went right or wrong. We will be ready with a plan within 5-7 weeks. Besides, distribution is an issue. But we feel it is not right to pay this kind of carriage fee and spoil the market.

    What is the purpose of launching a flanking channel without aggressively distributing it when in the marketplace there is a scramble for space on choked cable networks?
    Strategically, it is important to have a second GEC as a de-risk business model. The GECs are sitting on Rs 20 billion of ad revenues. In as large a size as this, we can’t put all our eggs in one basket. If viewers want something outside Zee TV, we are offering a different kind of programming in Zee Next. With fragmentation happening, our plan also is to try and grab whatever audiences we can with the concept of a family channel for all age groups.

     

    But we still have to be realistic on the carriage fees. Otherwise, it will affect the business model of the whole network; we are, after all, not a single channel company. We have to take a business rather than an emotional call.

     

    The channel will take time to build. Any GEC with less than 130 GRPs will continue to bleed – and we have been seeing that. But with a new plan in place, we will sort out the distribution and other issues that need to be corrected.
    ‘The loss of GRPs by Star Plus has been made up by Zee TV and its regional channels. Zee Marathi and Zee Bangla are doubling their previous year’s revenues to touch Rs 1 billion each‘

    Isn’t growth of GEC as a category slowing down?
    The GRPs of GEC channels as a category have grown by 6 per cent. Revenue from GECs, on the other hand, have jumped 22 per cent. What is happening is that the GRPs of GECs are getting reorganised. Star Plus, for instance, has seen a fall in GRPs while we have gained.

    Could you elaborate?
    The loss of GRPs by Star Plus has been made up by Zee TV and the regional channels. Our regional channels are operating in the most important primary markets. Zee Marathi and Zee Bangla have particularly grown.

    One reason for the growth of these two channels, according to you, is because the leader ETV is falling. But what sort of ad growth are both of them going to post this fiscal?
    Zee Marathi and Zee Bangla are doubling their previous year’s ad revenues. They will end up making around Rs 1 billion each. The ad rates of regional channels, though getting corrected, are still very low.

    After rolling out Zee Talkies to addess the Marathi market, are you planning to launch a Bengali movie channel?
    We will be launching a Bengali movie channel as it will help us create a wider bouquet in that local market. We have created a GEC, a news and a movie channel in the Marathi market. We will be repeating this combination in the Bengali market. Regional movie channels work for sales as well as help boost distribution.

    Like Kalanithi Maran’s Sun network, are you looking at packing in regional music channels as well?
    We don’t see music channels being viable in these markets.

    Doesn’t Zee have such plans for Gujarat?
    Zee Gujarati didn’t see much growth. Almost 99 per cent of the Gujarati viewership is covered by Hindi GECs and movies. It is not a viable market for india, but has an international distribution story.

    Though Zee Cinema is the second biggest channel in the network, it has been less aggressive in movie buying this fiscal. Will this hurt the revenues?
    For the movie channel category as a whole, GRPs have fallen. But Zee Cinema’s revenue for the fiscal would be Rs 2 billion, up 25 per cent. We are selling better, using all time bands.
    As revenue head, why haven’t the sports, news and southern language channels come to you?
    I am handling the power brands where effort to returns are high. The sports business is cricket-centric and needs dedicated attention. So Ten Sports is handling the ad sales. I already have too much on my plate as the network revenue head.
    Will subscription revenues be sluggish, driven by slowdown in international business and foreign exchange loss?
    Domestic subscription will grow by 30 per cent – and we see the situation improving in next fiscal. The Star bouquet is strong, but we have been catching up this year. We have more pull channels than anybody else – Zee TV, Zee Cinema, Zee Cafe, Zee Marathi, Zee Bangla, Zee Talkies and Zee Studio. International distribution is outside my ambit and I can’t comment on that.
    There is a buzz in the market that the TV18 group channels including CNBC TV18 will soon move to Star DEN?
    There is still time for some channels to move out, if at all. We will soon be making an announcement of more channels in our bouquet to make it stronger.

    Are you referring to Ten Sports moving out from SET Discovery (now MSM Discovery) to Zee Turner?
    I can’t comment on this.

    Zee has the largest bouquet of channels. With carriage fee on the up, how does it impact the business at the net level?
    Since we have a large bouquet, this at one level affects us in carriage deals. But on subscription ground, it helps make our bouquet stronger. We have presence in all genres except kids. The net effect in the long term is beneficial once digitalisation happens. We are the best prepared network for digitalisation.

    What is being done to beef up Zee’s English genre channels?
    Zee Cafe is airing new American shows and has a very loyal viewership. It will grow in ad revenues by 45 per cent this fiscal. Zee Studio’s perception as a repeat channel is changing. The sub-titling has helped us, we will be seeing 37 per cent growth, and it completes our bouquet.

    What is your revenue forecast for the next fiscal?
    Keeping in mind the fragmentation scenario, our target will be to post 30 per cent growth in both ad sales and domestic subscription. It will be a challenging year and we hope that the newcomers don’t spoil the ad sales and distribution market with price cutting and high carriage deals.

    Do you see BARC (Broadcast Audience Research Council) taking off any time now?
    It is a good initiative as it represents an association of broadcasters and advertisers. TV as a medium is very research-focused. The sector is also grossly under-priced. BARC is at an initial stage of progress but the intention is there to set it rolling.
  • ETV Bangla to become pay channel in Kolkata CAS areas

    ETV Bangla to become pay channel in Kolkata CAS areas

     MUMBAI: v, a free-to-air channel owned by Ushodaya Enterprises, is to be converted to an encrypted (pay) channel in the areas covered by Conditional Access System (Cas) in Kolkata from 1 March.

    The Bengali entertainment channel had gone pay in other parts of the country from 1 February and has been priced at Rs 10 as reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com.

    The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India today issued an order to this effect, thus updating recent press releases placing the details of maximum retail prices fixed by the broadcasters in respect of CAS areas on the basis of the reporting done by them in terms of clause 7 (ii) of the Tariff Order of August 31 last.

    A press release said that the change had been made as the Authority had been informed when it issued its Tariff Order that the channel which was then encrypted would be made free-to-air in some of the notified areas.

    Earlier last month, two channels for children – the Pogo channel distributed by Zee Turner Limited and Toon Disney in English and in Tamil distributed by Star India – were made free-to-air channels in the areas covered by CAS in Chennai.

    Trai has accordingly updated its list of channels with the charge per channel.

    Even as demand is yet to pick up for Cas set top boxes offered by various MSOs (multi-system operators) with the more affluent residents in South Delhi preferring the DTH (Direct to Home) option, cable operators have begun charging Rs 77 plus taxes to those who are receiving FTA channels through cable. Some operators have added additional cable channels which carry films from Bollywood.

    The Zee Group had offered its Galaxee box and the Incablenet has offered its box for a special offer of Rs 1800 and Rs 1500 respectively, covering the box and around 100 channels for the whole of 2007, if consumers make up their minds within the month of January 2007. However, consumers preferred to take to the DTH systems offered by the Star-Tata owned Tata Sky or Zee-owned Dish TV both of which have also been offering attractive packages.

  • ETV channels to go pay, price at Rs 10

    ETV channels to go pay, price at Rs 10

    MUMBAI: Eenadu Television is taking its Bengali general entertainment channel pay with effect from 1 February. The other channels in the network will also go pay in a phased manner.

    ETV Bangla will be priced at Rs 10 a month per subscriber. “Our Bengali channel is going pay from 1 February. The other channels in the network will follow suit,” a senior ETV executive confirms.
    ETV Kannada and ETV Marathi are likely to go pay by March. All the ETV channels will be priced similarly at Rs 10.

    In the Cas (conditional access system) areas of Mumbai and Kolkata, ETV has not yet decided whether it should stay free-to-air (FTA). “We haven’t taken a call yet whether ETV Bangla will be FTA in the Cas notified areas of Kolkata. Similarly, we have to decide about ETV Marathi in the Cas region of Mumbai when we take the channel pay,” the executive said.

    Last year ETV had taken its Telugu channels – ETV Telugu and ETV2 – pay and priced it together at Rs 10. ETV has a bouquet of 12 regional channels including ETV Oriya, Gujarati, Urdu, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.

    Private investment firm Blackstone Group recently announced it would pump in $ 275 million (approximately Rs 12.38 billion) to acquire a stake in Ushodaya Enterprises Limited (UEL), the holding company that manages Ramoji Rao’s media assets. UEL owns Eenadu, the third largest newspaper, and ETV, the fourth largest private television broadcasting network in the country.

  • NGC, ETV announce content partnership

    NGC, ETV announce content partnership

    MUMBAI: The National Geographic Channel (NGC) and regional network ETV have announced a content partnership.

    NGC will provide content to ETV, which will air five days a week (Monday-Friday) in a half hour evening slot. From today 13 November viewers of ETV Telugu, ETV Oriya, ETV Kannada, ETV Bangla, ETV Gujarati, ETV Marathi, ETV UP, ETV MP, ETV Rajasthan and ETV Bihar will be able to catch NGC’s programmes in their native language. The regional language versions of the programs will be provided by NGC to ETV Network.

    The new partnership with ETV is a step further in NGC’s strategy to reach out to a wider audience across the country. The programmes being aired on ETV will cover a wide range of topics. The alliance will be kick started with NGC’s series Most Amazing Moments” that will premier across the ETV network from today. This partnership also underlines ETV’s mission to provide its viewers with quality international programming to enhance the viewer experience.

    NGC India VP marketing Rajesh Sheshadri, “National Geographic Channel is synonym for smart, innovative and interesting programmes that invite viewers to Think again. Reaching a wider audience to expose them to our superior content has been a goal we have been constantly working towards.

    “Partnership with a leading channel like ETV that reaches to millions of viewers through their bouquet of regional channels is an excellent opportunity to further our reach. I am confident that viewers in these states will appreciate our unique programmes and will look forward to their daily dose of the best of National Geographic Channel programmes in their native language.”

    ETV Network VP – operations Bapineedu said, “Quality entertainment in the language of our viewer’s choice is one of the key contributors to our success. Our programs depict the culture with which our viewers are able to connect and it is this spirit of empathy with individual cultures/languages that has helped us to reach to millions of viewers. Through this partnership with National Geographic Channel we endeavor to further enhance our viewer’s experience by exposing them to never before seen international programmes in their native language.”