ITV

Tag: Fashion TV

  • Seven free Fashion TV 4K UHD channels available in India

    MUMBAI: Fashion TV has launched a 4K revolution in the country and surrounding regions by starting transmission of first seven FTA 4K UHD (Ultra-HD) television channels after NASA’s scientific content channel.

    The new channels can also be seen in China, Pakistan, the Middle East, East Africa and South East Asia, Ultra News reported.

    The channels utilise new video compression technology called HEVC or H.265 to reduce the amount of bandwidth needed for transmitting UHD content.

    The new channels however cannot be watched using most of the satellite receivers and available STBs. 4K satellite receivers with HEVC support in India at present costs around Rs 4,500, compared to Rs 1,000-1,300 for HD receivers with MPEG-4 support. But, cheaper HEVC models with 4K support could be purchased from e-commerce websites.

    The seven channels are being telecast from Apstar 7 satellite, which has been placed over India. The channels cater to different areas of fashion, such as films, make-up, photoshoots, men’s fashion, ‘midnite secrets’ and events.

    In India, a majority of the Ku-band channels are encrypted, and viewers need smart cards from DTH providers such as Dish TV and Tata Sky. Some services such as DD’s FreeDish and ABS are transmitted without encryption.

  • We are actively looking to work with regional channels – Helios Media MD Divya Radhakrishnan

    We are actively looking to work with regional channels – Helios Media MD Divya Radhakrishnan

    1 November 2016 was celebrated with much pomp by the folks at Helios Media. Five years of successful operation in a business (which has seen many come and go in shorter periods) was a good enough reason to party till late into the night with clients, media and friends on the terrace of its expansive office in Mumbai’s Andheri East suburb. High Five was the motto for the evening, and everyone was greeted as such.

    Started by media vet Divya Radhakrishnan (on 1/11/11) who was later joined by former Zoom business head Bala Iyengar – who is now a partner in the business, Helios Media today has gained a good reputation for itself as a company that delivers. Over the years, it has helped in the monetization of channels such as MTunesHD, Fashion TV, Epic TV, FoodFood, Living Foodz, FataFati, Green TV, Fakht TV, Spin TV among many other.

    With a staff strength of 55 (most of them involved in ad-sales branded content), Radhakrishnan states that the company has attained a level of stability and is looking at revving up its gross billings to the triple digit crore mark. She has been bringing in professionals and delegating responsibility to the team she leads. “I am basically a gardener,” she says, looking at the terrace lawn that her office looks on to on the top floor of an office complex in the suburb of Andheri east.

    Indiantelevision.com’s Papri Das got into a tete-a-tete with Radhakrishnan to get her insight into what has been achieved so far and where she sees Helios Media going. Excerpts:

    Helios Media is often viewed  as an outsourced ad sales wings for channels. What is the company’s positioning in the market currently?

    Clients initially approached us for the monetizing aspect of our services and were pleasantly surprised by the bouquet of services we offer, which has grown over the years. We are currently not only into pure play ad sales. We have a tendency to typecast things and put things boxes in our country. Therefore, to launch something new that doesn’t fit into the general notions of mainstream, to carving its own niche is a long journey.

    Our aim is to highlight these services and solutions as part of the entire mix, which in turn helps the revenue grow, and is not just considered as an afterthought. Therefore, the thought ‘Beyond Obvious’ came into being, and it has been our brand positioning since the past three years. We didn’t chance upon the concept overnight, we studied cases, researched extensively, interviewed people from the industry, and found the need gaps and oriented a team on this mantra.

    What value addition is there for channels to let Helios Media handle their revenue monetisation? Are you able to fetch them premium rates for their inventories?

    Hypothetically speaking, say I have a channel going at 20 GRP which sells at an effective rate of Rs 1000, now what will I sell a channel with 5 GRP for? Rs 50, if you apply a simple sales principle. But, Helios Media has the confidence to sell it almost close to Rs 1000. We do that with right positioning of the content and brand akin-ness.

    I have often been asked how I can fetch premium rates for clients when we don’t control bulk inventories in the market across different media platforms. Our proposition isn’t to sell inventories in packages, we treat each channel differently, and a different specialist handles its sales. Just because the channels have outsourced their sales, it doesn’t mean that their inventory ‘sort of’ goes to a supermarket shelf.  We target brands based on the brand akin-ness with the channel, and given that we serve niche channels, there is no question of overlapping their sales needs.

    For example, when we launched MTunes, we researched extensively with Ormax to understand what was lacking in the music scene, to hit the sweet spot that brands wanted to target and the channel could offer. It is interesting to know that we managed to get several brands involved at the content level, and explore innovative solutions through deals with the channel, as we worked around the restrictions of the music IPs having separate owners.

    How do you go about selecting the channels to partner with?

    Call us picky but we are very particular about the channels that we choose to sell for. If you look at our client bouquet, each one of them is a specialty channel, which needs to be positioned uniquely in the market, otherwise it won’t sell well. You can’t sell a channel such as BTVi on simply the standard unit of trade, that is, GRP. You have to sell the brand positioning, for which you need to get under the skin of the content. Therefore, a lot on how we choose clients is based on their basic understanding of this, how comfortable they are with acknowledging our inputs and working according to it.

    While it is easier for us to do that for a channel we were involved with from its inception such as MTunes and Living Foodz, we have also brought in clients well into their life cycle – Food Food, Fakht Marathi, etc.

    In the past five years, Helios Media hasn’t aggressively chased new clients and taken time to add a new channel to its portfolio. Is this a conscious decision?

    Ours is a very people heavy business. It has to make logical sense to me to expand my team to add new channels to sell. It doesn’t seem cost-effective or time-efficient for us to add a bouquet of 50 to 60 channels and build an enterprise. Where we see expansion is in the increase in revenue and value of our clients, because it directly links to growth in our own value.

    We have a channel portfolio of eight now. But, there were almost 80-odd broadcasters who approached us as prospective clients, but many a times we decided not to work with them. It is because most of them lacked the depth of understanding of the media concessionaire businesses. From broadcasters going ‘I want to launch a channel one day’ to people with content who hadn’t done up the lining to folks who simply don’t understand the distribution ecosystem: there are examples of such broadcasters galore.

    Helios Media is often compared to media agencies, and its performance judged on new clients and account wins. Do you find that unfair?

    Frankly, it doesn’t bother me how many crore of account I handle as compared to others, as long as I know how my business’ bottom line works.

    Media agencies work on two and half per cent commission basis from the client’s marketing spends whereas we work on revenue-sharing. Therefore, when I say we have done business of X amount of billing, Helios Media’s earning is a substantial part of that net billing we have done for our clients. We are in a different sphere altogether. Their commission is linked to the clients spends, while ours its directly linked to revenue. A brand can cut down on its spends, but our fortune is tied to the client’s fortune. Thus, evaluating Helios Media’s business and performance on number of new accounts or total strength of account is absurd.

    Since the launch of Brand Chef, how has this new vertical been performing for the company?

    We have recently spun a new division called Brand Chef which is about consultancy for food brands. From celebrity chefs, food bloggers, popular digital stars with cooking content, we have a wide range of content solutions for brands that work directly with this division. Clients range from Go Cheese, HUL, Marico, and many more. If I were to give an estimate of how successful this division has been for us, it is almost 50 per cent of our top line revenue. We see immense potential in the food sector. We have plans to launch social media strategy for clients specifically in the food sector.

    What prospects do you see in regional market?

    We are actively looking to work with regional channels. Regional market pricing is always higher from an advertiser’s standpoint, because it has very little spillover. Also, the industry is slowly getting over the myth that Hindi is the national language. You move outside Mumbai and go to Pune, people respond to you in Marathi. Therefore, brands need to stop putting an overemphasis on the so called ‘HSM- or Hindi speaking Market.’

    We are in talks with a regional client who is seeking our help to decide on what format they should launch in GEC, movies or something else? There is another network seeking our consultancy on which language they should go into. So, we are currently doing market prospect planning as well.

  • We are actively looking to work with regional channels – Helios Media MD Divya Radhakrishnan

    We are actively looking to work with regional channels – Helios Media MD Divya Radhakrishnan

    1 November 2016 was celebrated with much pomp by the folks at Helios Media. Five years of successful operation in a business (which has seen many come and go in shorter periods) was a good enough reason to party till late into the night with clients, media and friends on the terrace of its expansive office in Mumbai’s Andheri East suburb. High Five was the motto for the evening, and everyone was greeted as such.

    Started by media vet Divya Radhakrishnan (on 1/11/11) who was later joined by former Zoom business head Bala Iyengar – who is now a partner in the business, Helios Media today has gained a good reputation for itself as a company that delivers. Over the years, it has helped in the monetization of channels such as MTunesHD, Fashion TV, Epic TV, FoodFood, Living Foodz, FataFati, Green TV, Fakht TV, Spin TV among many other.

    With a staff strength of 55 (most of them involved in ad-sales branded content), Radhakrishnan states that the company has attained a level of stability and is looking at revving up its gross billings to the triple digit crore mark. She has been bringing in professionals and delegating responsibility to the team she leads. “I am basically a gardener,” she says, looking at the terrace lawn that her office looks on to on the top floor of an office complex in the suburb of Andheri east.

    Indiantelevision.com’s Papri Das got into a tete-a-tete with Radhakrishnan to get her insight into what has been achieved so far and where she sees Helios Media going. Excerpts:

    Helios Media is often viewed  as an outsourced ad sales wings for channels. What is the company’s positioning in the market currently?

    Clients initially approached us for the monetizing aspect of our services and were pleasantly surprised by the bouquet of services we offer, which has grown over the years. We are currently not only into pure play ad sales. We have a tendency to typecast things and put things boxes in our country. Therefore, to launch something new that doesn’t fit into the general notions of mainstream, to carving its own niche is a long journey.

    Our aim is to highlight these services and solutions as part of the entire mix, which in turn helps the revenue grow, and is not just considered as an afterthought. Therefore, the thought ‘Beyond Obvious’ came into being, and it has been our brand positioning since the past three years. We didn’t chance upon the concept overnight, we studied cases, researched extensively, interviewed people from the industry, and found the need gaps and oriented a team on this mantra.

    What value addition is there for channels to let Helios Media handle their revenue monetisation? Are you able to fetch them premium rates for their inventories?

    Hypothetically speaking, say I have a channel going at 20 GRP which sells at an effective rate of Rs 1000, now what will I sell a channel with 5 GRP for? Rs 50, if you apply a simple sales principle. But, Helios Media has the confidence to sell it almost close to Rs 1000. We do that with right positioning of the content and brand akin-ness.

    I have often been asked how I can fetch premium rates for clients when we don’t control bulk inventories in the market across different media platforms. Our proposition isn’t to sell inventories in packages, we treat each channel differently, and a different specialist handles its sales. Just because the channels have outsourced their sales, it doesn’t mean that their inventory ‘sort of’ goes to a supermarket shelf.  We target brands based on the brand akin-ness with the channel, and given that we serve niche channels, there is no question of overlapping their sales needs.

    For example, when we launched MTunes, we researched extensively with Ormax to understand what was lacking in the music scene, to hit the sweet spot that brands wanted to target and the channel could offer. It is interesting to know that we managed to get several brands involved at the content level, and explore innovative solutions through deals with the channel, as we worked around the restrictions of the music IPs having separate owners.

    How do you go about selecting the channels to partner with?

    Call us picky but we are very particular about the channels that we choose to sell for. If you look at our client bouquet, each one of them is a specialty channel, which needs to be positioned uniquely in the market, otherwise it won’t sell well. You can’t sell a channel such as BTVi on simply the standard unit of trade, that is, GRP. You have to sell the brand positioning, for which you need to get under the skin of the content. Therefore, a lot on how we choose clients is based on their basic understanding of this, how comfortable they are with acknowledging our inputs and working according to it.

    While it is easier for us to do that for a channel we were involved with from its inception such as MTunes and Living Foodz, we have also brought in clients well into their life cycle – Food Food, Fakht Marathi, etc.

    In the past five years, Helios Media hasn’t aggressively chased new clients and taken time to add a new channel to its portfolio. Is this a conscious decision?

    Ours is a very people heavy business. It has to make logical sense to me to expand my team to add new channels to sell. It doesn’t seem cost-effective or time-efficient for us to add a bouquet of 50 to 60 channels and build an enterprise. Where we see expansion is in the increase in revenue and value of our clients, because it directly links to growth in our own value.

    We have a channel portfolio of eight now. But, there were almost 80-odd broadcasters who approached us as prospective clients, but many a times we decided not to work with them. It is because most of them lacked the depth of understanding of the media concessionaire businesses. From broadcasters going ‘I want to launch a channel one day’ to people with content who hadn’t done up the lining to folks who simply don’t understand the distribution ecosystem: there are examples of such broadcasters galore.

    Helios Media is often compared to media agencies, and its performance judged on new clients and account wins. Do you find that unfair?

    Frankly, it doesn’t bother me how many crore of account I handle as compared to others, as long as I know how my business’ bottom line works.

    Media agencies work on two and half per cent commission basis from the client’s marketing spends whereas we work on revenue-sharing. Therefore, when I say we have done business of X amount of billing, Helios Media’s earning is a substantial part of that net billing we have done for our clients. We are in a different sphere altogether. Their commission is linked to the clients spends, while ours its directly linked to revenue. A brand can cut down on its spends, but our fortune is tied to the client’s fortune. Thus, evaluating Helios Media’s business and performance on number of new accounts or total strength of account is absurd.

    Since the launch of Brand Chef, how has this new vertical been performing for the company?

    We have recently spun a new division called Brand Chef which is about consultancy for food brands. From celebrity chefs, food bloggers, popular digital stars with cooking content, we have a wide range of content solutions for brands that work directly with this division. Clients range from Go Cheese, HUL, Marico, and many more. If I were to give an estimate of how successful this division has been for us, it is almost 50 per cent of our top line revenue. We see immense potential in the food sector. We have plans to launch social media strategy for clients specifically in the food sector.

    What prospects do you see in regional market?

    We are actively looking to work with regional channels. Regional market pricing is always higher from an advertiser’s standpoint, because it has very little spillover. Also, the industry is slowly getting over the myth that Hindi is the national language. You move outside Mumbai and go to Pune, people respond to you in Marathi. Therefore, brands need to stop putting an overemphasis on the so called ‘HSM- or Hindi speaking Market.’

    We are in talks with a regional client who is seeking our help to decide on what format they should launch in GEC, movies or something else? There is another network seeking our consultancy on which language they should go into. So, we are currently doing market prospect planning as well.

  • Helios Media elevates Shrutish Maharaj as chief sales officer

    Helios Media elevates Shrutish Maharaj as chief sales officer

    MUMBAI: Helios Media has promoted Shrutish Maharaj as chief sales officer. 

    He has been a part of the company’s core team since its inception four years ago.

     

    In the new role, Maharaj will be responsible for spearheading the revenue and content marketing functions at Helios. He has about 12 years of experience and has earlier worked with organisations like India Today Group, HT Media Ltd, Network 18, UTV News ltd and Times Group in various capacities.

     

    Maharaj said, “The last four years haven’t been the easiest but surely most exciting and enriching. We have created benchmarks and then recreated them. We are constantly redefining the way people approach media sales and it’s most satisfying to see larger networks counting on us as experts of specialty products. We have built this team of handpicked people for whom sales is a passion; more than just a career and I would say our people are our biggest assets. I am definitely thrilled at this development and am geared up for all the challenges and opportunities coming our way this year.”

     

    Helios Media currently handles revenue mandate for MTunes HD, Living Foodz, Epic TV, Music F Fatafati, food vertical of Femina (WWM Group), Fashion TV in exclusive capacity.

     

    Apart from the above he will also lead Brand Chef, which is an indigenous initiative by Helios connecting the brand, consumer and content in the food domain.

     

    Commenting on Maharaj’s appointment, Helios Media managing director Divya Radhakrishnan said, “I am glad that the reins are now in the right hands and Shrutish will continue to make us proud. His organisational pride of wearing the Helios Spirit on his sleeve has been heartening and also infectious.”

     

    Helios Media COO Bala Iyengar added, “Shrutish is a perfect example of what it takes to sprint your way to this coveted position, which was waiting for him to occupy. The right persona that a rapidly growing organization likes ours is what Shrutish has worked towards developing and successfully at that.”

  • Helios Media bags YouTube channel – SanjeevKapoorKhazana

    Helios Media bags YouTube channel – SanjeevKapoorKhazana

     MUMBAI: Helios Media, the specialty services company for the broadcast sector is back in the news with another announcement. Helios has expanded its services and will now include digital media monetization. The venture has begun with bagging the mandate of representing Sanjeevkapoorkhazana, the largest non-Bollywood YouTube channel in India, that has so far generated 85 million views. Helios will work in embedding brand’s messaging within the content of the channel.

     

     Speaking on the assignment, Chef Sanjeev Kapoor said, “Sanjeevkapoor.com was one of the first websites to make its presence in the country. Being a pioneer in the space, it is quite evident that our YouTube channel has garnered a huge subscriber base of 2.7 lakh. Our popular videos generate as much as 1 million plus views. This therefore becomes a great destination for brands to not only reach a large consumer base but also to capture the most appropriate mind-space. Helios Media has been partnering us on monetising FoodFood for a year now and I believe in their understanding of the space and the skill to position brands in the right environment which will help SanjeevKapoorKhazana realise its full potential in terms of revenue maximization.”

     

    Helios Media has augmented its existing team with a central digital team in Mumbai under Kirtan Mankad who has earlier worked with UTV, Zoom and Hungama.

     

    Helios Media MD Divya Radhakrishnan commented, “Helios Media’s focus is on selling brands and not just commodities by appropriate positioning and working with brand custodians to provide seamless solutions that go beyond regular commercial advertising. We strongly believe that TV has grown beyond just providing reach and its content has the power to influence. Therefore it is important for commercial messaging to chase the content irrespective of the screen it comes on. It’s because of this approach that the SanjeevKapoorKhazana mandate came our way and we are delighted to be entrusted with this responsibility by Chef Sanjeev Kapoor.”

     

    This expansion adds to Helios’s existing portfolio of MTunes HD, Channel X, FoodFood and Fashion TV.

  • FTV to hot up things with enhancement agenda in India

    FTV to hot up things with enhancement agenda in India

    MUMBAI: Iconic global fashion broadcaster, Fashion TV, founded by Michel Adam, has new plans on its agenda for India.

    The broadcasting and operations of the channel including programming, licensing & merchandising have been entrusted to Trinity Dreamworks who have extended the revenue and brand management mandates to Helios Media.

    Founder of FashionTV and mastermind behind the global fashion revolution on TV, Michel Adam said, “FTV the brand has been growing from strength to strength across the globe as THE fashion destination be it our broadcast brand or various categories we are into under the “F” brand. With the surge in Indians consuming global brands, it’s only natural that we affirm our presence in the market with renewed vigour”   

    The brand’s commitment to India is underlined by the growing off-air presence. FBars have been successfully entertaining guests in Mumbai and Bengaluru for a few years now, the first ever FResidence in India is progressing rapidly in Pune, with discussions in advanced stages for 40 FCafes around the country in the next 3 years. Apparels and accessories under the FAccessories label are in the pipeline and the FVodka might soon be at a bar near you.

    Commenting on the India programming agenda, Trinity Dreamworks’ Vishal Gurnani said, “The Indian Fashion industry is growing phenomenally. The markets are flooded with the best of brands from all over the world indicating growing awareness and consumption. Fashion TV in India has contributed towards enhancing the viewer’s knowledge and experience in the world of fashion, for over a decade. It is now time for us to enhance positioning of the channel itself so we can continue to satiate the viewer’s increasing love for fashion.”

    On the assignment, Helios Media MD Divya Radhakrishnan said, “Being entrusted to represent and partner the world’s biggest Fashion brand is an appreciation of our ability at Helios to position channels as brands and not commodities. With MTunes HD and FoodFood, we have exhibited how this takes the agenda beyond merely selling inventory. The teams across our offices are ready to offer advertisers the opportunity to associate and integrate with the #1 global Fashion destination.”

    Adding further momentum to the overall vision, Helios Media will undertake the Revenue and Brand Management of FashionTV India. While a team of handpicked media sales experts has been assembled to represent the channel among advertisers and media agencies, another team of Brand specialists will ensure that FashionTV India becomes the single destination for anything that is ‘Fashion’ in India. Covering everything from fashion trends, to glamorous lifestyles and global events, the channel will be the mecca for the swish set of the country and the guide for those aspiring to add a touch of glamour in their lives. If the viewer identifies with the tagline “I Love Fashion”, then this is where they will be found.

  • Fashion TV celebrates Rio Carnival 2007

    Fashion TV celebrates Rio Carnival 2007

    MUMBAI: Fashion TV will air the fashion event – Rio Carnival.

    Over 300 million homes in 202 countries will catch the Samba fever, as the channel will be bringing all the action from the event on 18 February 2007.

    The worldwide live broadcast on Fashion TV is in cooperation with Globo TV, Brazil’s largest TV company and the global distribution is provided by RRSat Global Communications Network. The production includes over 60 cameras covering the one kilometer sambardrome.

    Over 50 satellites and thousands of cable systems, leading mobile phone operators and IPTV and wireless networks will broadcast for the first time the rio carnival. In 2007, the carnival is a truly multi media global event over all the media combined.

    The Rio Carnival is a celebration of beauty, music and life. It is a parade of thousands of sexy performers in costumes, dancing to the rhythm of Brazilian music.
    TThe Rio Carnival Parade starts on 18 February 2007 and goes on till sunlight the next day. Each samba school, consisting of 5000 dancers, has about 60 to 75 minutes to make it through the run- way, called the Sambodromo. There are two days of 13 parades. Six of the best 13 samba schools march on Sunday and seven march on Monday. The Rio Samba Parade is a competition between the samba schools. Only one grand champion of the year will be awarded at the end of the carnival.

    The spectacle filmed by more then 30 cameras will be transmitted live on the nights of: February 18th to February 19th and on February 19th to February 20th 2007. in north and south America, the rio carnival can be seen live on ftv from the early evening onwards.

    On the following days of Rio Carnival, Wednesday 21st to Sunday the 25th, Fashion TV will again present at Midnight all night long…the Best of Rio 2007, including exclusive reports: the parade & costume preparation, backstage images, fancy VIP parties & celebrity interviews.

    Already available is The Best of Rio Carnival History. Fashion TV invites viewers every night at Midnight as it focusses everyday on one year of Rio carnival and as the countdown goes on, we will be discovering the best of Rio 2004 on 15 February, the best of Rio 2005 on 16 February and the best of Rio 2006 on 17 February.

  • StarHub spices up as Fashion TV hits the runway

    StarHub spices up as Fashion TV hits the runway

    MUMBAI: Singaporean pay-TV operator, StarHub will launch Fashion TV – the international channel dedicated to fashion, beauty and style – on StarHub Digital Cable. The channel will make its debut on 13 November 2006.

    The info-communication company had recently launched a slew of new channels on its digital platform, including Star Chinese Channel, Vihay TV, Sky News, Channel [V] International, Foxcrime, Boomerang and National Geographic Wild.

    Fashion TV will be made available on the Digital-only Add-on Tier, and customers with a digital or DVR set-top box will be able to enjoy Fashion TV for a monthly subscription of $8 ($8.40 with GST), which includes the complimentary use of their first digital set-top box.

    StarHub VP cable TV services Patrick Lim says, “The customers we serve have a diverse spectrum of interests, and we aim to meet the needs and desires of all of them by offering a more comprehensive range of channels. This is certainly something local consumers can continue to expect from us.

    “While there are many excellent fashion publications available in Singapore, we believe that a market exists for a global fashion channel that combines music and stunning visuals to offer viewers the ultimate fashion experience. Fashion TV brings the ritz, glamour and excitement of fashion shows ‘live’ to audiences.”

    Fashion TV CEO and president Michel Adam Lisowski says, “As the definitive fashion channel, Fashion TV has been very well received in Asia, and we are confident that the refreshing, uniquely sophisticated content on the channel will not only win over keen fashion buffs, but also the general Singapore audience who appreciates beauty and style.”

    Fashion TV is the fashionista’s ticket to all the hottest fashion events around the globe. From the catwalks of New York, Paris, Milan and London, to glamourous red carpet events – Fashion TV is there on the front lines, poised to present up-to-the-minute news on every aspect of the fashion industry.

    Shows like Fashion Week and Fashion Event deliver the world of international fashion home to viewers, while Midnight Hot – one of the most popular segments on Fashion TV, serves up a visual feast for viewers at midnight, as the world’s top supermodels parade in the season’s trendiest lingerie and bikini outfits.

    Fashion TV also celebrates the personalities who make it all happen in the cutting-edge world of fashion. The designers and photographers featurettes give viewers an in-depth look at the creative process behind the work of designers, stylists and photographers who inspire the latest trends, while “First Face” and “F People” give the low down on the lifestyles of models and celebrities who dictate what’s in and what’s not in the fickle fashion scene.

    Fashion TV also has the latest tips and fashion finds – all that the fashion and beauty fan needs to hit the streets. Viewers will receive expert tips to revamp their wardrobe and makeup via programmes like Hair and Make-up, Now in Stores and Tendances. Hair and Make-up reveals the beauty secrets behind the most dazzling hairstyles and makeup; Now in Stores highlight one’s shopping spree must-haves; while Tendances showcases the season’s most coveted accessories.

    The channel’s Fashion and Film and Fashion and Music programmes take viewers behind-the-scenes of the latest films and music videos, and give them an exclusive glimpse of the elaborate makeup, styling and costume designing that takes place on the set of upcoming movies and music videos.

    This month Fashion TV profiles acclaimed designer, Roberto Cavalli, who started with humble beginnings in the late 60’s when he created his own fashion line inspired by art made from patchwork of different fabrics. He had his first taste of fame in the mid-90’s when his new line of clothing drew a celebrity clientele that included Madonna and Kate Moss. Cavalli was chosen as the favorite menswear label in Florence in 2002, and Cavalli was picked by Fashion Group International as Designer of the Year. Check out Cavalli’s latest inspirations on Fashion TV this November.

    Come December, Fashion TV will present the latest spring/summer 2007 fashion looks ‘live’ from shows in all the fashion capitals around the world. Book a spot next to the catwalk by tuning in to Fashion TV!

    Viewers can refer to the On-screen TV Guide or StarHub’s Online Programme Guide at www.starhub.com/cabletv for the schedule of the programmes on Fashion TV, and customers can call 1630 or 1633 to subscribe to the channel from 13 November 2006 onwards.

  • Google opens video marketplace

    Google opens video marketplace

    MUMBAI: Live from the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Google Inc. announced the planned opening of the Google Video store, the first open video marketplace enabling consumers to buy and rent a wide range of video content from a major television network, a professional sports league, cable programmers, independent producers and film makers.

    This fast growing collection of videos will include prime-time and classic hits from CBS, a full slate of NBA games from this season and outstanding performances from the past, music videos from Sony BMG, Charlie Rose interviews as well as news and historical content from ITN and new titles being added everyday, informs an official release.

    “Google Video will let you watch lots of high quality video on the web for the first time. You can search and browse, and we make it fast and easy for you to watch,” said Google’s co-founder and president, Products Larry Page. “For video producers and anyone with a video camera, Google Video will give you a platform to publish to the entire Google audience in a fast, free and seamless way.”

    Available soon, people who visit the Google Video homepage at http://video.google.com will be able to browse listings of video by category from the store or search Google’s entire collection of videos by simply entering keywords into the search box, the release adds.

    “This is yet another exciting platform in which CBS can leverage its market-leading content to a whole new audience,” said CBS Corporation president & CEO Leslie Moonves. “Making our programming accessible to the Google Video store guarantees our shows significant new exposure to millions of users who are likely to access this web service and who may not be traditional TV viewers. As the industry’s most prolific generator of popular TV content, it’s only natural that CBS would partner with Google on this service, which is destined to become one of the web’s most popular destinations.”

    CBS’s current primetime hits will include CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, NCIS, Survivor and The Amazing Race. Library classics will include I Love Lucy, The Brady Bunch, The Twilight Zone, MacGyver, Have Gun Will Travel, Mannix, My Three Sons, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager. All CBS programs will be presented commercial free.

    Google Video will also feature NBA games from this season and some of the greatest individual performances in NBA history. Marking the first time NBA fans can purchase full NBA contests on the Web, each NBA game for the rest of this season, including the NBA Playoffs and The Finals, will be available to fans in its entirety 24 hours after the contest’s conclusion. In addition, the highest scoring games of several of the NBA’s best players will be available including Kobe Bryant’s 62 point performance in three quarters vs. Dallas last month.

    Additional highlights of Google’s video collection will include:
    Music videos from Sony BMG. The line-up of launch videos includes offerings from some of SONY BMG’s global superstar artists, including Christina Aguilera, Beyonce, Kenny Chesney, Destiny’s Child, Kelly Clarkson, Alicia Keys, Lil’ Flip, Jessica Simpson, Shakira, System of a Down, Switchfoot, Usher, and many more.

    Feature Length Independent Films from Greencine.com. Including works by legendary Polish director Andrzej Wajda (Promised Land), documentary filmmaker Ted Bonnitt (Mau Mau Sex Sex) and independent actor/director Caveh Zahedi (In the Bathtub of the World).

    Historic, news and educational footage from ITN. This material ranges from coverage of key events in 2005 such as the Pope John Paul II’s death, back to a recording of the 1896 coronation of Tsar Nicholas II – one of the earliest known pieces of moving imagery.

    Charlie Rose interviews. Including interviews with Henry Kissinger, Oliver Stone, Quentin Tarantino, Martha Stewart, Martin Scorsese, Harrison Ford, Dan Rather, Charles M. Schulz, Steve Jobs, Jay Leno, Tom Brokaw, and others.

    Cartoon classics from Classic Media. Featuring many of the world’s most famous animated series such as Felix the Cat, Casper The Friendly Ghost, and Rocky and Bullwinkle.

    Children’s educational programming from CLEARVUE & SVE. Educational video topics vary from teen education on tattoos to explanations about the workings of the human brain.

    Clips from Getty Images’ Archive Films Collection. A diverse collection of short clips that capture personalities, moments and eras throughout history – selected from vintage newsreels and educational film, as well as contemporary news and events from around the world.

    There will be thousands of titles for sale in the Google Video store with more titles added everyday. The list of content producers will also include a broad range of entertainment and educational partners including among others, BlueHighways TV, CareTALK, Fashion TV, here! TV, HDNet, HilariousDownloads.com, Image Entertainment, iWatchNow.com, Kantola Productions, MediaZone.com, Plum TV, PorchLight Entertainment, SOFA Entertainment, Teen Kids, Trinity Broadcasting Network, WGBH, Wheels TV, and Wilderness Film India Ltd.