NEW DELHI: With the government having given valid permission to a total of 886 private television channels including 399 news channels, it appears highly unlikely that the country will achieve the target of 1500 channels by March next year as assumed by the State Finance Commission while drafting its proposals for the 12th Plan (2012-17).
Interestingly, the Information and Broadcasting Ministry had given permission to 1035 channels but later cancelled permission to 149, thus adding twentythree more refused permission after 31 March this year.
Thus the number of general entertainment channels is 487 as on 31 July 2016.
Twenty-two channels including seven news channels have been permitted to uplink from India but not downlink within the country, thus leadiong to an increase of two general entertainment channels since 31 March 2016.
A total of 768 channels including 391 GECs are allowed to uplink and downlink in the country thus showing a reduction of one newx channel in the past four months.
A total of 96 including 81 GECs are uplinked from overseas but allowed to downlink into TV homes in the country, and there had been no change in this number for the past four months.
Interestingly, seven channels have lost their licences after 20 July 2016, when a list posted on the Ministry’s website in response to a Paliament question after the controversy over Peace TV and other illegal channels showed a total of 893 permitted channels.
After 30 April 2016, the lone news channel cleared is ATE TV of Airtravel Enterprises India
Limited;
The Non-News channels cleared are B4U Plus and B4U HITZ of B4U Television Network I
Pvt. Ltd; MAAS TV of Gokann International Media Pvt. Ltd; Nambikkai Television in Tamil and Goodnews TV of Goodnews Channel Pvt. Ltd; and MK Tunes amd MK Six of Madurai Krishan Network Pvt. Ltd.
The Information and Broadcasting Ministry site (mib.nic.in) also contains the full details of the owners of these channels, the languages in which they will beam, and the date on which the clearance came.
However, there are no details of the 149 channels denied permission.
NEW DELHI: With the government having given valid permission to a total of 886 private television channels including 399 news channels, it appears highly unlikely that the country will achieve the target of 1500 channels by March next year as assumed by the State Finance Commission while drafting its proposals for the 12th Plan (2012-17).
Interestingly, the Information and Broadcasting Ministry had given permission to 1035 channels but later cancelled permission to 149, thus adding twentythree more refused permission after 31 March this year.
Thus the number of general entertainment channels is 487 as on 31 July 2016.
Twenty-two channels including seven news channels have been permitted to uplink from India but not downlink within the country, thus leadiong to an increase of two general entertainment channels since 31 March 2016.
A total of 768 channels including 391 GECs are allowed to uplink and downlink in the country thus showing a reduction of one newx channel in the past four months.
A total of 96 including 81 GECs are uplinked from overseas but allowed to downlink into TV homes in the country, and there had been no change in this number for the past four months.
Interestingly, seven channels have lost their licences after 20 July 2016, when a list posted on the Ministry’s website in response to a Paliament question after the controversy over Peace TV and other illegal channels showed a total of 893 permitted channels.
After 30 April 2016, the lone news channel cleared is ATE TV of Airtravel Enterprises India
Limited;
The Non-News channels cleared are B4U Plus and B4U HITZ of B4U Television Network I
Pvt. Ltd; MAAS TV of Gokann International Media Pvt. Ltd; Nambikkai Television in Tamil and Goodnews TV of Goodnews Channel Pvt. Ltd; and MK Tunes amd MK Six of Madurai Krishan Network Pvt. Ltd.
The Information and Broadcasting Ministry site (mib.nic.in) also contains the full details of the owners of these channels, the languages in which they will beam, and the date on which the clearance came.
However, there are no details of the 149 channels denied permission.
MUMBAI: The English movies genre emerged as the top gainer in Chrome’s opportunity to see (OTS) analysis for six metros. The space marked an increase of 1.2 per cent. Movies Now emerged as the most benefited channel with 47.4 percent OTS in week 28.
Next up, the English news genre which recorded an increase of 0.9 per cent in six metros with Lok Sabha TV leading the genre with 92.2 per cent OTS.
On the other hand, Music in the Hindi Speaking Market (HSM) booked the third spot in the list of top gainers with a 0.7 per cent increase in OTS. 9XM led the tally with 90.6 per cent OTS.
Last but not the least, English entertainment in the six metros observed a growth of 0.6 per cent. Star World emerged as the chart topper with 44.7 per cent OTS.
Meanwhile, witnessing a drop of 0.1 per cent, the Hindi GEC genre in HSM topped the loser category with DD National scoring 97.4 per cent OTS.
On the other hand, with a drop of 0.1 per cent, the Hindi movies genre in an identical market was in the second spot with Max emerging as the most affectedC channel with 91.8 per cent OTS.
MUMBAI: The English movies genre emerged as the top gainer in Chrome’s opportunity to see (OTS) analysis for six metros. The space marked an increase of 1.2 per cent. Movies Now emerged as the most benefited channel with 47.4 percent OTS in week 28.
Next up, the English news genre which recorded an increase of 0.9 per cent in six metros with Lok Sabha TV leading the genre with 92.2 per cent OTS.
On the other hand, Music in the Hindi Speaking Market (HSM) booked the third spot in the list of top gainers with a 0.7 per cent increase in OTS. 9XM led the tally with 90.6 per cent OTS.
Last but not the least, English entertainment in the six metros observed a growth of 0.6 per cent. Star World emerged as the chart topper with 44.7 per cent OTS.
Meanwhile, witnessing a drop of 0.1 per cent, the Hindi GEC genre in HSM topped the loser category with DD National scoring 97.4 per cent OTS.
On the other hand, with a drop of 0.1 per cent, the Hindi movies genre in an identical market was in the second spot with Max emerging as the most affectedC channel with 91.8 per cent OTS.
MUMBAI: Viacom 18, after ruling the rating charts in the Kannada market for 62 weeks, now is set to launch its second GEC in the same space. Come 24 July 2016 Karnataka will have a new channel, Colors Super offering new programming. The channel will launch with four hours of original programming with mainstream genres per day during weekdays and a movie premiere on Sundays. Colors Super will be available on all the major DTH players.
Speaking on the launch of new channel, Viacom 18 group CEO Sudhanshu Vats said, “In terms of market size in the Indian television scenario, regional entertainment is next only to Hindi general entertainment, as a category. This translates into a sizeable ad market, growing at a CAGR of 15 per cent, similar to the overall TV ad market, over the next few years.”
Elaborating further, Vats stated, “Within the regional entertainment pie, the Kannada GEC ad market alone stood at an estimated Rs 500 crore in FY16. As we cemented our dominance on this market, we realized we had a lot more to offer – both in terms of content and brand solution opportunities. Colors Super will expand our offering to both the viewer, by bringing in missing genres into the market, and the advertiser, by increasing the available ad inventory, thereby plugging in existing gaps in the current market.”
Viacom18 has planned a marketing blitz across 179 major towns of Karnataka, targeting both the urban and rural markets of the state. The group is selling the channels separately. Colors Super has roped in Vizeum as a media planning company from Mumbai. The channel will aggressively use 360 degree to market the channel across platforms including television channels, print, outdoor and digital. The channel is spending more than Rs 5 crore on an ad campaign.
With the launch of Colors Super, the group’s aim is to create a superb family viewing experience by offering viewers an exciting mix of stories and genres that are currently absent but much in demand. The two channels Colors Kannada and Colors Super will complement each other and offer viewers holistic and superlative entertainment. Viacom 18 regional channels (Colors Kannada, Colors Super and Colors Bangla) project head Ravish Kumar explained, “The biggest point is the kind of content we will be airing is different from the shows that there are in the market today. We have many ideas but we were not able to do execute them because of limited number of time slots and were not just able to do them. Hence we realized that there is a very strong demand from the viewers on the content. Therefore the logical step was to launch the new GEC.”
With an eclectic mix of content, spanning mythology, fantasy and supernatural, romcoms, reality television and world satellite premieres of movies, Colors Super promises to induct a diverse mix of genres in the Kannada general entertainment market. Kannada heartthrob Yash, who started his career with Colors Kannada, will be leading the marketing campaign for Colors Super.
In todays’ time, Hindi general entertainment channels are extending their prime time. Talking about the trend in the Kannada market, Kumar explained, “If you look at the Karnataka GEC market in the past people have experimented with the morning programming. Even in Colors Kannada we used to have the original slots in the morning, we used to have original programming in the morning and over a period of time we discovered that the original programming was not working for us. Later when we started the repeats of the original programming they started rating better than the original. So, the buzz for the prime time is from the 6 pm to 10.30 pm. 6pm time slot is still early but the core prime time is from 7pm to 10pm.”
As mentioned above, Colors Kannada ruled the rating charts for 62 weeks – Kumar added on being a competitor of its own channel, he said, “We want to compete with ourselves because that brings out the best in us.”
The new offering provides significant opportunity for content innovation and business growth and is set to emerge as a high decibel entertainment destination for the viewers.
MUMBAI: Viacom 18, after ruling the rating charts in the Kannada market for 62 weeks, now is set to launch its second GEC in the same space. Come 24 July 2016 Karnataka will have a new channel, Colors Super offering new programming. The channel will launch with four hours of original programming with mainstream genres per day during weekdays and a movie premiere on Sundays. Colors Super will be available on all the major DTH players.
Speaking on the launch of new channel, Viacom 18 group CEO Sudhanshu Vats said, “In terms of market size in the Indian television scenario, regional entertainment is next only to Hindi general entertainment, as a category. This translates into a sizeable ad market, growing at a CAGR of 15 per cent, similar to the overall TV ad market, over the next few years.”
Elaborating further, Vats stated, “Within the regional entertainment pie, the Kannada GEC ad market alone stood at an estimated Rs 500 crore in FY16. As we cemented our dominance on this market, we realized we had a lot more to offer – both in terms of content and brand solution opportunities. Colors Super will expand our offering to both the viewer, by bringing in missing genres into the market, and the advertiser, by increasing the available ad inventory, thereby plugging in existing gaps in the current market.”
Viacom18 has planned a marketing blitz across 179 major towns of Karnataka, targeting both the urban and rural markets of the state. The group is selling the channels separately. Colors Super has roped in Vizeum as a media planning company from Mumbai. The channel will aggressively use 360 degree to market the channel across platforms including television channels, print, outdoor and digital. The channel is spending more than Rs 5 crore on an ad campaign.
With the launch of Colors Super, the group’s aim is to create a superb family viewing experience by offering viewers an exciting mix of stories and genres that are currently absent but much in demand. The two channels Colors Kannada and Colors Super will complement each other and offer viewers holistic and superlative entertainment. Viacom 18 regional channels (Colors Kannada, Colors Super and Colors Bangla) project head Ravish Kumar explained, “The biggest point is the kind of content we will be airing is different from the shows that there are in the market today. We have many ideas but we were not able to do execute them because of limited number of time slots and were not just able to do them. Hence we realized that there is a very strong demand from the viewers on the content. Therefore the logical step was to launch the new GEC.”
With an eclectic mix of content, spanning mythology, fantasy and supernatural, romcoms, reality television and world satellite premieres of movies, Colors Super promises to induct a diverse mix of genres in the Kannada general entertainment market. Kannada heartthrob Yash, who started his career with Colors Kannada, will be leading the marketing campaign for Colors Super.
In todays’ time, Hindi general entertainment channels are extending their prime time. Talking about the trend in the Kannada market, Kumar explained, “If you look at the Karnataka GEC market in the past people have experimented with the morning programming. Even in Colors Kannada we used to have the original slots in the morning, we used to have original programming in the morning and over a period of time we discovered that the original programming was not working for us. Later when we started the repeats of the original programming they started rating better than the original. So, the buzz for the prime time is from the 6 pm to 10.30 pm. 6pm time slot is still early but the core prime time is from 7pm to 10pm.”
As mentioned above, Colors Kannada ruled the rating charts for 62 weeks – Kumar added on being a competitor of its own channel, he said, “We want to compete with ourselves because that brings out the best in us.”
The new offering provides significant opportunity for content innovation and business growth and is set to emerge as a high decibel entertainment destination for the viewers.
MUMBAI: Featuring an intense and rugged looking Anil Kapoor as Jai Singh Rathod, Colors unveiled the first look of its much- anticipated espionage thriller 24 season 2 or 24s2. The first trailer revealed much about the upcoming season, leaving the audience awestruck.
The trailer makes it evident that Jai Singh Rathod has isolated himself from the world to become a recluse in self-imposed exile. It shows that his dark past has made him a fugitive; while his daughter Kiran supports him, his son Veer, who has become a part of the intelligence bureau, does not. Season two will also show how drug-lord Haroon Sherchan threatens to release a contagious airborne virus which could eradicate humanity unless his brother Roshan is released from prison. Setting in motion a series of events, the one man- army Rathod returns to thwart every sabotage attempt and face political blackmail, while battling an unseen enemy with a personal vendetta at the same time.
The Indian adaptation of the US series 24 has been co-produced by Anil Kapoor Film Co and Ramesh Deo Productions and directed by Abhinay Deo & Rensil D’Silva.
Season 2 of 24 is to be a weekend show. Though the channel didn’t officially announce the date, it is believed that the show would launch on 16 July at 9pm on Saturday- Sunday.
Speaking with Indiantelevision.com, Colors CEO Raj Nayak said, “24 Season 2 is a weekend show, while the time and date has not been decided as yet, it is most likely to be in July. Also deciding the time slot is more of challenge for us because we have so many shows on the channel and it’s difficult to decide which show 24s2 will replace. It is likely to be a 9pm show.”
Nayak expressed, “The first edition of 24 was an unprecedented game- changer, it conquered the Indian television industry with its freshness and gripping narrative. The show pushed the traditional boundaries with the device of presenting the plot within a real time format. Anil Kapoor and the team have an incredible job as the second season looks even more riveting in terms of storytelling and very international in terms of look and feel. Every time when we make show on Colors our expectations are very high. We worked hard towards making the show and try making it big.”
The show will see a robust multi-media promotional plan across key markets, including a 360 degree marketing campaign. “We are looking at this show as a film. We won’t leave out any medium be it radio, digital, outdoor, cinema, television or print. The weightage will differ, but visibility will be there across the channels,” informed Nayak.
The show has also earned the support of the advertising community with Maruti Suzuki coming on-board as the presenting sponsor and Oppo Mobiles as the ‘powered by’ sponsor for the second season of the show. According to industry guestimates, Maruti Suzuki had agreed to invest close to Rs 23 crore for the title sponsorship.
A source close to the development informed Indiantelevision.com, “The show’s ad rate is Rs 2.5 lakh per 10 second slot and the production cost of per episode is between Rs 1.5
crore- to Rs 1.7 crore.” Tthe production cost per episode of the first season has been estimated around Rs 1.4 crore.
Divulging details about season 2 of the show, actor and producer Anil Kapoor said, “The real star of 24 is the concept which will compel viewers to think about national sensibility and sentiment. We have devised a complex plot which when combined with Jai Singh Rathod’s volatile relationships, strong instincts and adrenaline- fuelled action, will be the perfect setting to foil a devastating terrorist plot. We are exploring different plotlines to enhance content relatability, shooting at multiple real locations outside Mumbai, and anteing up the production scale to enhance to overall television viewing experience.”
Commenting on its association, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd executive director (Marketing and Sales) RS Kalsi said, “We always like to associate ourselves with the brands which are equally powerful, synergistic and reinforce our relevance. Talking about these three factors, 24 is a premium content based on international format following a global standard. S-Cross is a premium offering, which offers a unique combination of power and performance of a SUV and the comfort and refinement of a sedan. The target audience that 24 caters to and its genre allows us to draw synergies between the brands of S-Cross and 24.”
Oppo MD of International Mobile Business and president of Oppo India Sky Li also added, “We are thrilled with this partnership with the popular show 24-the most awaited show this season on Colors. Oppo Mobiles has been a game-changer in the mobile devices industry through its innovation and leadership in selfie technology and camera performance and so is show 24 with its action packed drama amid twists and turns. Our alliance with the show enables us to draw synergies with the its target audience and cater to their needs while increasing market penetration and brand recall.”
MUMBAI: Featuring an intense and rugged looking Anil Kapoor as Jai Singh Rathod, Colors unveiled the first look of its much- anticipated espionage thriller 24 season 2 or 24s2. The first trailer revealed much about the upcoming season, leaving the audience awestruck.
The trailer makes it evident that Jai Singh Rathod has isolated himself from the world to become a recluse in self-imposed exile. It shows that his dark past has made him a fugitive; while his daughter Kiran supports him, his son Veer, who has become a part of the intelligence bureau, does not. Season two will also show how drug-lord Haroon Sherchan threatens to release a contagious airborne virus which could eradicate humanity unless his brother Roshan is released from prison. Setting in motion a series of events, the one man- army Rathod returns to thwart every sabotage attempt and face political blackmail, while battling an unseen enemy with a personal vendetta at the same time.
The Indian adaptation of the US series 24 has been co-produced by Anil Kapoor Film Co and Ramesh Deo Productions and directed by Abhinay Deo & Rensil D’Silva.
Season 2 of 24 is to be a weekend show. Though the channel didn’t officially announce the date, it is believed that the show would launch on 16 July at 9pm on Saturday- Sunday.
Speaking with Indiantelevision.com, Colors CEO Raj Nayak said, “24 Season 2 is a weekend show, while the time and date has not been decided as yet, it is most likely to be in July. Also deciding the time slot is more of challenge for us because we have so many shows on the channel and it’s difficult to decide which show 24s2 will replace. It is likely to be a 9pm show.”
Nayak expressed, “The first edition of 24 was an unprecedented game- changer, it conquered the Indian television industry with its freshness and gripping narrative. The show pushed the traditional boundaries with the device of presenting the plot within a real time format. Anil Kapoor and the team have an incredible job as the second season looks even more riveting in terms of storytelling and very international in terms of look and feel. Every time when we make show on Colors our expectations are very high. We worked hard towards making the show and try making it big.”
The show will see a robust multi-media promotional plan across key markets, including a 360 degree marketing campaign. “We are looking at this show as a film. We won’t leave out any medium be it radio, digital, outdoor, cinema, television or print. The weightage will differ, but visibility will be there across the channels,” informed Nayak.
The show has also earned the support of the advertising community with Maruti Suzuki coming on-board as the presenting sponsor and Oppo Mobiles as the ‘powered by’ sponsor for the second season of the show. According to industry guestimates, Maruti Suzuki had agreed to invest close to Rs 23 crore for the title sponsorship.
A source close to the development informed Indiantelevision.com, “The show’s ad rate is Rs 2.5 lakh per 10 second slot and the production cost of per episode is between Rs 1.5
crore- to Rs 1.7 crore.” Tthe production cost per episode of the first season has been estimated around Rs 1.4 crore.
Divulging details about season 2 of the show, actor and producer Anil Kapoor said, “The real star of 24 is the concept which will compel viewers to think about national sensibility and sentiment. We have devised a complex plot which when combined with Jai Singh Rathod’s volatile relationships, strong instincts and adrenaline- fuelled action, will be the perfect setting to foil a devastating terrorist plot. We are exploring different plotlines to enhance content relatability, shooting at multiple real locations outside Mumbai, and anteing up the production scale to enhance to overall television viewing experience.”
Commenting on its association, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd executive director (Marketing and Sales) RS Kalsi said, “We always like to associate ourselves with the brands which are equally powerful, synergistic and reinforce our relevance. Talking about these three factors, 24 is a premium content based on international format following a global standard. S-Cross is a premium offering, which offers a unique combination of power and performance of a SUV and the comfort and refinement of a sedan. The target audience that 24 caters to and its genre allows us to draw synergies between the brands of S-Cross and 24.”
Oppo MD of International Mobile Business and president of Oppo India Sky Li also added, “We are thrilled with this partnership with the popular show 24-the most awaited show this season on Colors. Oppo Mobiles has been a game-changer in the mobile devices industry through its innovation and leadership in selfie technology and camera performance and so is show 24 with its action packed drama amid twists and turns. Our alliance with the show enables us to draw synergies with the its target audience and cater to their needs while increasing market penetration and brand recall.”
MUMBAI: Speaking of the digital era, the number of LCD television sets sold each year has only been growing. For 2015, an Ernst & Young study had projected that 12 million television LCD and LED sets would be sold in India, reinforcing the point on the CRT to LCD/LED conversion. But this same conversion is not reflected when it comes to consumers going from SD to HD feed, especially in the case of English Entertainment television channels. The issue, Times Network English Entertainment Cluster senior VP and head Vivek Srivastava feels, is not in affordability but in awareness.
“HD channels’ have shown 93 per cent increase in viewership over the last year and doubled their advertisement revenues. But the one thing that remains a hiccup in the segment is the adoption rate of HD feed. It is estimated that 12 million HD enabled TV sets are sold every year but there are only 6 million HD subscribers. That means there are another 6 million who have the equipment but not the content pipeline. There is immense growth potential. So both for us, we as a network and for the industry, there is a need to educate consumers on the perks of HD quality video. This campaign will benefit not only our own English cluster, but the entire industry,” explains Srivastava.
Times Network has initiated steps to educate its consumers with a 360 degree ad campaign that the network will launch starting today – 2 May. Given the fact that its core English Entertainment channels are mostly in HD, it makes sense for Times Network to propagate the cause for HD conversion in the country. The campaign aims to push the HD subscription for its three HD English entertainment channels — MN +, Movies Now and Romedy Now HD. “Across the globe the main drivers for HD viewership have been sports and movies. In India, while the sports genre has seen that positive change, movie entertainment channels are lagging behind. Being a major player in the English entertainment space with a huge movie library, it was in our interest to push this cause,” says Srivastava.
Created and conceptualised in-house in three months, a TVC that is a fun-take on how Hollywood is viewed in India, features actor Purab Kohli enjoying a home theatre experience at home in all its glory. The punch line — ‘Raise your standards to High Definition’ — comes when the audience is made aware that all this luxury comes to a nought if the picture quality is not in high definition, thereby urging movie lovers to go HD. The campaign intends to play with the urban movie buffs minds that swear by their Hollywood movies and prefer a quality experience even at home.
“For the last three or four years, most of the HD TV commercials have spoken about the best quality and sound making one believe that all one needs to do to experience that is to buy the TV. But in reality that’s just the first step; and getting the content pipeline by switching to HD feed is what completes the process,” said Srivastava as he reveals the idea behind the ad.
The campaign will be heavily promoted across networks, with heavy emphasis on television and a strong digital backing. The campaign will also see some presence on print. “With reach being the primary objective, we are trying to expand the number of eyeballs as much as possible, especially amongst the television audience. The campaign kicks off on our network and will be gradually carried across all channels on other networks as well. We will not necessarily promote it on English entertainment channels alone. Out of the 650 million (65 crore) television watchers, around 30 percent watch English content, so obviously there is an increased need to reach out to a cross section of audiences to propagate the message better. We will have a presence on Hindi GECs, movie channels, news channels. Even music channels are a part of our media plan mix.” The ‘across channels’ promotion will be carried in parts, while the campaign will be kept alive within the network.
While Srivastava agrees that the Times Network channels primary viewership comes from the metros, this particular campaign is targeted pan India. “The metros have some awareness about the HD feed, but it is the tier II and tier III cities that we really need to touch base with,” he further reveals.
Given the ‘all in’ nature of the campaign, Srivastava also reveals that the network is spending slightly higher than the marketing budget for a regular mainline premiere on Movies Now.
MUMBAI: Speaking of the digital era, the number of LCD television sets sold each year has only been growing. For 2015, an Ernst & Young study had projected that 12 million television LCD and LED sets would be sold in India, reinforcing the point on the CRT to LCD/LED conversion. But this same conversion is not reflected when it comes to consumers going from SD to HD feed, especially in the case of English Entertainment television channels. The issue, Times Network English Entertainment Cluster senior VP and head Vivek Srivastava feels, is not in affordability but in awareness.
“HD channels’ have shown 93 per cent increase in viewership over the last year and doubled their advertisement revenues. But the one thing that remains a hiccup in the segment is the adoption rate of HD feed. It is estimated that 12 million HD enabled TV sets are sold every year but there are only 6 million HD subscribers. That means there are another 6 million who have the equipment but not the content pipeline. There is immense growth potential. So both for us, we as a network and for the industry, there is a need to educate consumers on the perks of HD quality video. This campaign will benefit not only our own English cluster, but the entire industry,” explains Srivastava.
Times Network has initiated steps to educate its consumers with a 360 degree ad campaign that the network will launch starting today – 2 May. Given the fact that its core English Entertainment channels are mostly in HD, it makes sense for Times Network to propagate the cause for HD conversion in the country. The campaign aims to push the HD subscription for its three HD English entertainment channels — MN +, Movies Now and Romedy Now HD. “Across the globe the main drivers for HD viewership have been sports and movies. In India, while the sports genre has seen that positive change, movie entertainment channels are lagging behind. Being a major player in the English entertainment space with a huge movie library, it was in our interest to push this cause,” says Srivastava.
Created and conceptualised in-house in three months, a TVC that is a fun-take on how Hollywood is viewed in India, features actor Purab Kohli enjoying a home theatre experience at home in all its glory. The punch line — ‘Raise your standards to High Definition’ — comes when the audience is made aware that all this luxury comes to a nought if the picture quality is not in high definition, thereby urging movie lovers to go HD. The campaign intends to play with the urban movie buffs minds that swear by their Hollywood movies and prefer a quality experience even at home.
“For the last three or four years, most of the HD TV commercials have spoken about the best quality and sound making one believe that all one needs to do to experience that is to buy the TV. But in reality that’s just the first step; and getting the content pipeline by switching to HD feed is what completes the process,” said Srivastava as he reveals the idea behind the ad.
The campaign will be heavily promoted across networks, with heavy emphasis on television and a strong digital backing. The campaign will also see some presence on print. “With reach being the primary objective, we are trying to expand the number of eyeballs as much as possible, especially amongst the television audience. The campaign kicks off on our network and will be gradually carried across all channels on other networks as well. We will not necessarily promote it on English entertainment channels alone. Out of the 650 million (65 crore) television watchers, around 30 percent watch English content, so obviously there is an increased need to reach out to a cross section of audiences to propagate the message better. We will have a presence on Hindi GECs, movie channels, news channels. Even music channels are a part of our media plan mix.” The ‘across channels’ promotion will be carried in parts, while the campaign will be kept alive within the network.
While Srivastava agrees that the Times Network channels primary viewership comes from the metros, this particular campaign is targeted pan India. “The metros have some awareness about the HD feed, but it is the tier II and tier III cities that we really need to touch base with,” he further reveals.
Given the ‘all in’ nature of the campaign, Srivastava also reveals that the network is spending slightly higher than the marketing budget for a regular mainline premiere on Movies Now.
