Tag: Fox International Channels

Fox International Channels launches global sales platform

MUMBAI: Fox International Channels (FIC) has launched a new sales platform – Fox Media, which will take the company’s global sales to a new level with a comprehensive approach to global cross platform media buying and sponsorships.

Fox Media, which represents three media brands namely Fox, National Geographic and Fox Sports in its portfolio, will enable innovative ad sales partnerships, including native advertising and branded content, across multiple platforms. From a single point of contact, local, regional and global clients will be able to connect to quality audiences across FIC’s 1.825 billion strong TV footprint and nearly 130 million unique monthly online users.

Fox Media is the only network group with a track record of successful global sponsorships. In a recent example, Fox Media and Microsoft Surface partnered on this summer’s #1 scripted drama, Wayward Pines, from M. Night Shyamalan.

“At FIC, we turn the best TV shows into global cultural events; and with the launch of Fox Media, we’re uniquely positioned to deliver them to global, pan-regional and local brands who want to tell a bigger story, both on the big screen as well as the personal screen,” said FIC president and CEO Hernan Lopez.

Fox Media can leverage the power of more than 1.825 million homes, including 245 million homes for Fox, the 440 million homes for National Geographic Channel and Fox Sports, which is available in 90 million homes.

The Fox Media sales team, helmed by executive vice president, advertising sales & corporate communications Europe Deborah Armstrong, EVP ad sales and partnerships Asia Pacific and Middle East Simeon Dawes and SVP ad sales Latin America Juan Vallejo, will be driving the global sales initiative forward. The team will collaborate closely with the Fox sales team in the US to deliver a worldwide offering, while also supporting regional clients with the same multi-platform campaigns.

“The global partnerships we have executed in the past with Microsoft and Samsung as well as our upcoming campaigns are all excellent examples of the creative, comprehensive, cross-platform solutions Fox Media is able to deliver with our unrivaled reach in the coveted 18-49 demo. Our goal is to match global brands with Fox, National Geographic and Fox Sports; three of the world’s most powerful media brands, offering distinctive choices by genre, market, audience and media. We provide one stop access to the Fox world across entertainment, sports and factual programming and deliver global cross-media sponsorships that maximize the winning combination of TV and online,” said Armstrong.

Fox’s in-house creative teams will now be know globally as FoxLab and will continue to deliver integrated, a la carte, cross-media campaigns to clients in any industry segment across the most desirable genres and audiences. These powerhouse creative teams produce work with the Fox Media partners that connects deeply with audiences everywhere, sharing a brand vision that creates true chemistry.

“With the expansion of FoxLab to service clients in every part of the world, we’ve become a truly full service creative and content partner, well positioned to offer quality marketing partnership, branded content campaigns and native advertising relevant across all screens. It’s not just about channels anymore. We reach consumers across all media,” added Lopez.

September 25, 2015
Star eyes $500 million revenue from entertainment & sports by 2018: John Nallen

MUMBAI: Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox is relying heavily on its subsidiary Star to lead its international growth.

Explaining how Star’s growing entertainment ad revenues makes it a key player in the company’s plans to focus internationally, 21st Century Fox chief financial officer (CFO) John Nallen said, “One of the top priorities, uniquely for us is international. We’ve got a particular focus on growth outside the US. We continue to harness the assets we have in Star, FIC (Fox International Channels) and in Sky but we continue to be opportunistic to the extent we can outside the US.”

As was reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, this falls in line with a recent Morgan Stanley report that valued Star TV at $11.2 billion, where $300 million is the network’s gross revenue from entertainment business as of June 2015.

Given the growth rate, Nallen anticipates that number to reach $500 million by 2018. “We feel confident about the $500 million target for 2018,” he said.

It may be recalled that earlier this year, 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch had said that Star India is likely to earn operating income of $1 billion by 2020.

The growth, according to him, is coming from two factors – entertainment and sports. “The first is the continued growth of the entertainment business, which is the hallmark of the Star business. We get 23-24 per cent market share every night. It’s a market that is growing. In the last six months TV ad market grew 21 per cent, we over-indexed because of our strength,” said Nallen.

While entertainment continues to be a source of revenue for Star, its sports section is doing equally well. Seeing the prospects the company had earlier made its biggest sports investment by launching six sports channels with Star, which paid off for the network as “an enormous viewing success.”

Nallen, who was speaking on the company’s business strategy for the next couple of years, at an industry summit, also pointed out on the company’s strong focus on expanding its international reach and growth through Star TV. “Top opportunity continues to be international, led by Star, which clearly is going to lead a lot of our international growth,” he said.

Calling its Indian subsidiary – Star India, an undervalued asset, Nallen pointed out the growth statistic predicted from Star, which rides on the network’s continued success rate in the entertainment section, unlike the parent company’s recent experience of the same in the US.

“Our ad growth in the US is coming from news and sports, and not from entertainment. If you take our total revenue, roughly 30 per cent of it comes from advertising. Two thirds of that advertising total comes from news, sports and international. The place that we are focusing on and the place people feel more vulnerable is entertainment advertising in the US. That’s the rest of the one third left,” Nallen said.

Additionally, Nallen also clarified that Fox has no plans of further incremental investment in Star this year. “Not much more investment (in Star). This year we grew the investment because we extended one of the sports franchises that we started, the local Kabaddi sport that has turned into a phenomenon in India. There is not a massive new incremental investment that we need for Star,” Nallen informed.

September 14, 2015
Fox International Channels confirms season 4 of ‘Asia’s Next Top Model’

MUMBAI: Fox International Channels (FIC) has confirmed season 4 of the reality competition series Asia’s Next Top Model (AsNTM), once again for its female-targeted entertainment channel, Star World, set to air in 2016.

Season 3 of the show achieved phenomenal success on Star World as the highest-rated season to date in Singapore and the Philippines. The season 3 finale also garnered the highest ratings in the show’s history on StarWorld, and pushed the channel into the top ranking spot amongst all western general entertainment cable channels.

An original production by FIC, AsNTM is based on Tyra Banks’ popular ‘Top Model’ franchise, where aspiring models are mentored by industry professionals as they compete to become the next big thing in fashion. The series will once again be presented by Subaru and Zalora in this new season.

FIC has commissioned FremantleMedia Asia to helm the production of this upcoming season. FIC’s partnership with FremantleMedia Asia is set to deliver even more compelling characters and chic style this season, as the young women on the show grow into world-class modelling professionals ready to take the global fashion industry by storm.

Fox International Channels EVP and head of content and communications for Hong Kong & Southeast Asia Keertan Adyanthaya said, “We’re excited to be launching the fourth season of this successful franchise, especially on the heels of a well-received season 3. We strive to produce shows that are highly entertaining and build fan bases, but also offer creative and effective promotional opportunities for brand partners, which in turn allow us to invest further into production and marketing. AsNTM is a great example of this successful model.”

“We could not have created this hit without our committed partners Subaru and Zalora. They share our creative vision for quality content and have each very smartly used the show successfully as a platform for their own marketing and promotion, making these win-win partnerships. Together with FremantleMedia, we can’t wait to bring to AsNTM fans the best season yet,” he added.

September 4, 2015
FIC promotes Keertan Adyanthaya as EVP Hong Kong & SE Asia

MUMBAI: Fox International Channels head of entertainment and factual channels for Hong Kong & Southeast Asia Keertan Adyanthaya has been elevated as executive vice president – content and communications – Hong Kong & Southeast Asia with effect from 1 September.

In his new role, Adyanthaya will be responsible for all content, channel operations and marketing for the HK and SE Asia covering Hollywood and Chinese entertainment as well as factual genres.

It may be recalled that a couple of months back Adyanthaya, who was heading FIC’s India operations as NGC Network India managing director, was re-located to Hong Kong to handle a broader portfolio.

Adyanthaya elevation is one of many structural reshuffling done by FIC in north Asia so as to align with its new strategy as the company positions itself for a growth spurt in China with an aim to ramp up its investment in production of Chinese content and communications. The restructuring exercise reflects emerging opportunities in these markets including China, Japan and Korea.

FIC Asia Pacific and Middle East president Zubin Gandevia said, “Japan and Korea are two of the biggest media markets in our footprint. In view of recent strategic partnerships we’ve forged in both countries, including with JTBC to launch JTBC3 FOX Sports in Korea and with Avex in Japan as part of an OTT offering, we see massive potential for further growth in these markets.”

As a part of the restructuring, FIC managing director for SE Asia and Hong Kong Joon Lee will now move into a dual role, which is focused on driving growth initiatives in Japan and Korea as well as increasing FIC’s share of the growing opportunities in original Chinese production as executive vice president, North Asia & head of original productions – Mainland China.

“Joon’s unique combination of experience – his familiarity with our businesses in both countries plus his proven leadership and creativity – will be invaluable in helping us to dive deeper in these markets,” added Gandevia.

On the other hand, Simeon Dawes has been named FIC EVP ad sales and partnerships and MD – Hong Kong, Southeast Asia & Middle East and will take over some of Lee’s responsibilities in Hong Kong and southeast Asia, even as he will continue to oversee FIC’s Middle Eastern business and ad sales across Asia Pacific.

FIC EVP commercial and sports Rohit D’Silva will continue in his current role, which includes the FOX Sports Asia business as well as affiliate and content partnerships, and non-linear products.

“Keertan’s proven successes with content-driven initiatives will complement Simeon and Rohit’s ability to forge mutually beneficial partnerships with our advertisers and platform partners. All four executives are proven leaders in FIC and will without a doubt propel our businesses in North and Southeast Asia to new heights,” Gandevia said.

August 21, 2015
Fox Life India turns one

MUMBAI: Fox Life India, a channel that offers everything in the lifestyle genre from music, fashion, party, style to reality, has just turned one! And it’s been a year of celebrating food, fashion, music and travel. Owned by Fox International Channels (FIC), Fox Life India was launched on 15 June, 2014.

Back to the roots

The channel has seen multiple name changes. From Fox History and Entertainment, it was renamed Fox History and Traveller in May 2011. In October 2011, it became Fox Traveller and last year, the channel was christened Fox Life.

Going through numerous revamps by logos changes, the channel changed its logo five times from November 2008 to present. Subsequently as the channel dropped history related shows from its programming milieu and only had content related to travel and sight-seeing, it took on the name of Fox Traveller. Finally making a stagnant move, the channel changed its name to Fox Life, thus turning it into a lifestyle channel.

Action over the last 12 months

While it started as a channel that showcased travel and food, Fox Life later expanded the genre by adding lifestyle elements to the programming mix.

Fox International Channels India business head Swati Mohan believes that the journey has always been fun and the one with Fox Life has been truly spectacular. “Fox Life is a huge lifestyle channel in the FIC portfolio worldwide and here in India, we’re trying to keep on that global legacy while maintaining our local flavour. It’s a perfect mix of Indian and global content that showcases various aspects of lifestyle. Our fans and audience have loved the change,” Mohan tells Indiantelevision.com.

Adventure, Experiments, New Journeys

The channel delivers a slate of watch-together content like Soundtrek (second season), a music show, which featured artists from across the country and their take on classic old songs. Another hit show on the channel was Twist of Taste, which went into its fourth season and was hosted by Vikas Khanna.

Style and the City, the perfect fashion show, which goes behind a celebrity’s fashion closet also premiered its third season in May.

In addition to these India made shows, the channel has shows from around the world such as Getaway, which takes you to the best locales on the globe, Into the Unknown with David Beckham, a show which features the star and his bike ride through South America, Eat Street and Street Food Around the World, showcases the most yummy-licious food from the world over.

“We were the leaders in the travel and lifestyle genre with Fox Traveller and we have maintained that stance with Fox Life. The addition has been the new shows and contest genres that we’ve added,” states Mohan.

She further adds, “It really has been a year of change and through the 12 months we’ve been working hard to give our fans the best lifestyle mix. We’ve added so many sub-genres and grown the travel and lifestyle genre at large, which as the leader in the segment was our prerogative to do.”

The Buzzing machine

The channel attracts good eyeballs on social media. On the channel’s official Facebook page, it garners more than three million likes and has been decorated with it’s been #onederfuljourney since the past three days. On YouTube, it has more than 2,000 subscribers. On Twitter it has 25,000 followers. On the channel’s first anniversary, the hashtag #FoxLifeTurnsOne was also promoted.

In order to keep viewers engaged throughout the year, Fox Life has used the on-air medium to create engagement and visibility. Moreover, it has also offered audiences a lot of live tweeting options, watch and win and real time engagement with the channel.

For the show Twist of Taste, it got a famous food blogger in Mumbai to take 25 people on a dessert food walk around the city. Participants got to see a side of Mumbai they hadn’t and FB – Twitter fans followed the winners on their walk.

Another way in which the channel connects with its fans is by letting them interact with show hosts like Vikas Khanna, Rochelle Rao, Kiran Jethwa, David Rocoo and others.

For Soundtrek this year, Fox Life created a campaign for which it won silver for the ‘Outstanding Programme Image Campaign’ category at Promax.

“The journey so far has been great and we’re looking at going places in the future too. To grow the channel and give our fans all of that they need in the lifestyle space is the way to go and that’s what we’re going to do,” concludes Mohan.

For the record, the channel, which caters to the lifestyle segment was originally launched in Italy and now reaches to 73 countries in 19 different languages. Fox Life India reaches to more than 52 million households across the country.

June 17, 2015
Fox Formats Lab launches in Singapore to cultivate local production talent

MUMBAI: Documentary producers in Singapore are set for an opportunity of a lifetime with Fox Formats Lab, the latest initiative between Fox International Channels (FIC) and the Media Development Authority (MDA).

A unique initiative devised by FIC in a first-of-its-kind partnership with MDA, Fox Formats Lab was conceived to support the development of local content production talent and ramp up creation of international TV content by local production companies. The initial phase of the initiative will see content created for the network’s flagship factual entertainment network – National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo Wild and Nat Geo People.

The Fox Formats Lab initiative is a developmental platform aimed at enhancing skills and encouraging knowledge sharing from experienced professionals within FIC’s global network to aspiring local talents. Participants have the opportunity to tap into the global expertise of FIC executives to hone their skills, learn about the factual content development process at NGC, and ultimately better position themselves to work with international broadcasters in the future.

The initiative will kick off with a production workshop in May this year where invited Singapore registered production companies will be presented with a commissioning brief. Interested parties can then submit show concept proposals based on the brief, for the opportunity to be selected to take part in a series of workshops hosted by experienced executives and producers from FIC. These workshops are aimed at helping the participants to develop their ideas into full production proposals.

The process culminates with select proposals being chosen to be developed and produced into a documentary series for NGC, which will be co-funded by FIC and the MDA. The production development funding for Fox Formats Lab totals S$6 million.

NGC International executive vice president and head of international content Hamish Mykura said, “We’re very pleased to be launching this unique initiative, in which production companies will have unprecedented access to our global content development team. By aligning producers with commissioners, the Fox Formats Lab will not only provide a window into how channels operate and what drives our creative decisions, but will also result in new programming that will resonate with a global audience.”

FIC EVP of content & communications for APAC & Middle East Joon Lee added, “FIC and NGC have always believed in creating content at all levels – globally, regionally and locally. There are many local stories to be told in Asia and there’s no better entity to facilitate this storytelling than NGC. With Singapore already a strong hub for content creation and creative talent, we jumped at the opportunity to launch a worthy initiative like Fox Formats Lab with the MDA. We get to invest back into the talent pool as well as gain great locally-developed content for NGC in the process. It’s a win-win for all.”

MDA assistant chief executive (industry) Angeline Poh said, “We are excited to launch this partnership with FIC to deepen Singapore’s factual production talent-pool. Through the Fox Formats Lab initiative, promising producers will be mentored by industry veterans, and also given the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to develop compelling content for international audiences. We look forward to presenting to viewers the innovative formats that will emerge from this initiative.”

May 14, 2015
Fox International Channels makes new executive appointments in Asia

MUMBAI: Fox International Channels (FIC) has made three new appointments in its leadership team in Asia. Veteran FIC executives Rohit D’Silva and David Shin will see their roles being expanded, whereas Prakash Ramchandani joins the network to lead its non-linear strategy.

Effective immediately, D’Silva takes on the role of executive vice president – commercial, a newly created division, which oversees the network’s revenue streams across Asia Pacific and the Middle East, with the exception of advertising sales. In his new role, D’Silva oversees growth strategy for affiliate and non-linear partnerships, international channel distribution outside of Asia, as well as content syndication across all genres. FIC aims to broaden its relationships with new and existing partners by offering a multi-faceted portfolio of traditional and OTT products and services under one commercial division.

D’Silva has been with FIC Asia for 11 years, first starting out in India and then moving to Dubai as general manager of FIC Middle East in 2006. In 2013, he moved to Singapore to lead the sports division when ESPN Star Sports, which subsequently became Fox Sports, came under the network’s fold. In his new capacity, he will still retain his sports content acquisition duties and will continue to be based in Singapore. For his responsibilities covering Hong Kong & Southeast Asia and all sports acquisitions, D’Silva will continue to report into Joon Lee, who holds a dual role as FIC executive vice president of content & communications for Asia Pacific & Middle East and managing director of Hong Kong & Southeast Asia.

For his commercial responsibilities outside of HK and SE Asia, D’Silva will report into FIC president of Asia Pacific & Middle East Zubin Gandevia.

FIC promoted Shin to the role of general manager of its business and operations in Japan. In his new role, Shin will be responsible for FIC Japan’s P&L, growth strategy, content, marketing and channel operations. He joined FIC in 2009 and was leading the content & communications division in Japan prior to his promotion. In his tenure as head of content, he took the network’s content and channel operations from strength to strength, overseeing the introduction of sports content into FIC Japan’s portfolio, and pioneered the development of OTT platform partnerships, including recent groundbreaking deals. Shin reports into Gandevia.

Ramchandani joins FIC as vice president of Non-Linear Products for Hong Kong & Southeast Asia. In this newly created role, Ramchandani will be responsible for driving FIC’s non-linear strategy and product development across the region, including the network’s authenticated TV Everywhere services and new OTT business models. Ramchandani joins FIC from Spuul, a global OTT service, where he set up their Indian subsidiary and managed its P&L, as well devised the company’s overseas strategy since 2011. The appointment underscores FIC’s development and investment in the non-linear space, as part of the network’s commitment to working with new and existing partners to deliver quality content to viewers in all the ways that suit their consumption behavior. Ramchandani reports to Lee and will be based in Singapore.

Commenting on the executives’ new leadership roles, Lee said, “Our business is growing rapidly in Asia and our success depends in large part on having the right leaders in place. Rohit and David have been an integral part of the FIC Asia family so I can’t think of better executives to take on the roles they have. Non-linear products are a big part of our future and I’m pleased to have an experienced executive like Prakash onboard to help us drive this area. He is a pioneer and early mover in this space and I have no doubt he will take our plans forward rapidly.”

“As our business grows, so do our people. We have a clear vision for our business and having the right talent in key roles is integral to achieving all that we want to achieve. I am lucky to be surrounded by very capable executives who complement each other and are equally driven to achieve our vision. FIC Asia’s leadership team will continue to strengthen and I look forward to taking our business to new heights as a team,” added Gandevia.

April 24, 2015
Fox International Channels elevates Swati Mohan as business head

MUMBAI: Fox International Channels India has elevated Swati Mohan as its business head. She was previously vice president – content and programming.

In her new role, Mohan will take over the India operations from NGC Network India & Fox International Channels managing director Keertan Adyanthaya, effective 30 March, 2015.

Mohan will be reporting into the Hong Kong office and will be heading the network portfolio of all existing Fox International Channels in India including National Geographic Channel and Fox Life as well as the other network channel properties like Baby TV, Nat Geo Wild, Nat Geo Adventure, Nat Geo Music and National Geographic Channel HD.

Prior to this, since January 2012, Mohan has been spearheading the programming and content portfolio for the bouquet of channels including National Geographic Channel and Fox Life. She has over 16 years of experience in the industry, with a wide spectrum of work across companies including Group M, O&M, FBC Media and Endemol previously.

Adyanthaya said, “Swati has been leading the content team at Fox for the past three years and has done a stellar job. When it was time to choose a new leader for our business, we didn’t have to look beyond Swati. She has a keen understanding of the content and having been a key part of the hard working & dedicated team here, she will lose no time in propelling our company to even greater heights.”

Mohan added, “It’s been an enriching experience to have worked under the leadership of Keertan, and I thank the organisation for the opportunity to be able to take forward what he has built here at FIC India in the last five years. We have a great and diverse bouquet of offerings and I am excited about building the business further with the support of the capable team here.”

March 20, 2015
Turner International appoints Awantika Sood as sales director

MUMBAI: Turner International Asia Pacific has announced the appointment of Awantika Sood as the new sales director, representing the broadcaster’s kids and entertainment brands in southeast Asia.

In the new role, Sood will be responsible for local and regional advertising sales revenues for leading television and digital entertainment properties such as Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Toonami, WarnerTV, Oh!K and truTV. A significant part of her remit is to implement “beyond-ratings” initiatives, as well as exploring branded-entertainment opportunities for multiple platforms.

Turner senior vice president and southeast Asia Pacific and north Asia managing director Phil Nelson commented, “We’re really pleased to have Awantika onboard in this key position as we continue to make significant investments in our Kids and Entertainment portfolio. With her previous experience and extensive industry relationships, I am confident she will help us build upon our success in the Southeast Asia region.”

Sood will also spearhead Turner’s advertising sales strategy, driving regional revenue growth by developing new client accounts and digital expansion in important markets including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Sood’s appointment is effective immediately and she will be based at Turner’s office in Singapore.

Most recently, she managed ad sales for TV and digital platforms at BBC Advertising. She has previously held sales and marketing positions at Fox International Channels in Singapore, and Star TV in both Singapore and India.

October 16, 2014
Radio Canada and Fox International Channels content sales sign output agreement

CANNES: CBC/Radio-Canada French Services executive vice president Louis Lalande and FOX International Channels (FIC) chief operating officer and National Geographic channels International chief executive officer Ward Platt have announced that they have signed an output agreement that will expose FIC content sales library of National Geographic productions to more viewers, including Canadian teachers and students.

Radio-Canada has acquired over one hundred hours of National Geographic documentaries to be broadcast on the ICI Explora channel starting in January 2015. Also in January 2015, ICI Explora will introduce a new slot in prime-time exclusively devoted to National Geographic productions, starting with six documentaries on big cats. Radio-Canada has indicated its interest in a variety of documentaries and series currently in production to expand the programming line-up of Découverte,La semaine verte, Zone doc and Les Grands Reportages on ICI RDI.

The partners have also signed an agreement, which allows Curio.ca, Radio-Canada’s education platform – to air 200 hours of National Geographic documentaries previously acquired and aired on ICI Explora as well as additional hours secured specifically for Curio.ca. This collaboration enables teaching institutions and libraries throughout Canada who subscribe to Curio.ca to access National Geographic’s outstanding factual content.

Curio.ca is a new web portal that allows instructors at all levels – elementary, secondary and postsecondary to stream highly relevant video and audio content in classrooms to support their teaching. Content is organised into seven main subject categories – arts, business, education, health, history and geography, science, and social sciences. The portal, which features over 4000 news stories, documentaries and series, is currently accessible to over two million Canadian students.

Speaking about the deal Lalande said “It’s perfectly consistent with our multi-platform and multi-screen approach whereby we try to offer our audiences the best of worldwide productions. This is a great example of the kind of collaboration intended by A space for us all, the strategic plan unveiled by CBC/Radio-Canada in June that will help us better meet the expectations of Canadians.”

“This expanding partnership with Radio-Canada presents the perfect opportunity to introduce French-speaking Canadian audiences and a new generation of bright minds to inspiring, high-quality programming that encapsulates the core of the National Geographic brand,” commented Platt.

In addition to the extensive acquired hours, Radio-Canada and National Geographic Channels International will pursue the development and co-production of stories that will resonate for both partners including a project focused on the Arctic.

October 15, 2014