|
The English movie channel space has seen a shake-up. The power centre has been upset with the growth of Pix and the onslaught of new entrant Movies Now. From being a two-horse race, now there are four – Star Movies, HBO, Movies Now and Pix.
Having acquired the library of its parent Sony Pictures Entertainment, Pix is making a bigger push in a market that is getting more competitive.
In an interview with Indiantelevision.com‘s Ashwin Pinto, Pix business head Sunder Aaron talks about the rise of the channel, the challenges the genre faces and the opportunities to grow the market.
Excerpts: |
|
|
What have been the focus areas of Pix this year? |
|
|
How far has Pix gained from the output deal with parent Sony Pictures Entertainment?
Among our target audience, we have beaten HBO since January. The aim is to become No. 1 eventually. We will continue to focus on getting the right content and building distribution. |
|
|
Could you talk about how Pix has evolved since launching five years back? |
|
|
What are the changes you have brought on the programming front?
Younger audiences come in during the 12:30 pm-4 pm time band. Our programming is geared towards addressing that audience who are mainly college going.
In the last few weeks, two new things have happened. One is ‘Awesome Saturdays‘ where we have lined up the evening with popular movies. And on Sundays we focus on the 12 pm-4 pm time slot with an initiative called ‘Sunday Breakout‘. This is how we are pushing the weekends.
We are doing the Dynamite Diwali festival, which takes place on weeknights at 11 pm. In November, we will have an even bigger stunt. It will probably be called ‘Big Guns of Hollywood’. |
|
|
|
|
What about thematic blocks? |
|
|
When Pix launched, it skewed towards 25+ audiences. Now where do they come from? |
|
|
Is this genre seeing more of appointment viewing than say two years back?
People watch movies in different ways – DVDs, online, on their ipad. So why would you have to make an appointment at 9 pm to sit in front of a channel to watch a film? I don’t think that channels compete on this basis anymore. Competition is on the basis of content, perception and profile. |
|
|
Is channel loyalty falling? |
|
|
Has the market dynamics for the genre changed dramatically? |
|
|
Movies Now has made an impact by focussing on popular films. Does that mean that premieres have lost a bit of their value?
But I wouldn‘t say that it diminishes the value of premieres. It does show that Indian audiences still have an appetite for movies that are familiar to them. But when Pix showed ‘The Karate Kid‘, it was a premiere and propelled us to the No. 1 spot. |
|
|
Is there going to be more focus on original shows like ‘Gateway’? |
|
| How is the deal with the NBA working out? It is working out well. The big challenge, though, is that the NBA is in a lockout; they have not started the season. The players’ union has not come to an agreement with the owners to start the season. The season will get delayed. |
|
| Are you looking at more sports properties to build reach? We are careful. The NBA is enough; if we put more, it will look like a sports channel. |
|
|
How are you pushing distribution?
I don‘t want to rely so much on ad revenue. But we don‘t get our due in terms of subscription income. Carriage fees rise every year while subscription revenue is not keeping pace with it. |
|
|
Between the different mediums, how is your spend split?
I would say that online is a very effective medium. It is highly flexible. |
|
|
Could you give me a couple of examples of innovative campaigns that have been done this year?
For ‘The Social Network‘, we could not use Facebook as a medium. So we used radio and hoardings. People knew Mark Zuckerberg but not the film’s star Jesse Eisenberg. The thought for the campaign was the sexiest man alive; this created an intrigue. |
|
| How are you growing consumer contact initiatives like the Pix Movie Club? We have touched 10,000 members. We are in Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore and we want to take it further down next year. We haven‘t decided on whether or not to rope in advertisers for this. |
|
| Are you looking at more marketing initiatives? We are looking at doing something online. We are working on the details. For me, online marketing is about an idea and not just taking out a bunch of banners across sites. |
Tag: HBO
-
‘Pix’s growth has upset the balance in the English movie genre’ : Pix business head Sunder Aaron
-
HBO lines up Bond festival, launches biggest marketing campaign
MUMBAI: HBO, which has lost market share in the English movie channel space, has packed 21 Bond films and has kicked off its biggest marketing campaign for the festive season.
The movies, dubbed under the “HBOO7” initiative, will air Monday-Friday ‘after the 9 pm movie‘ slot.
As Star Movies had shown the Bond festival earlier in the year, HBO is trying to connect the property to the viewers‘ through a differentiated promotional strategy. The channel‘s identity has been fused to the property.
Said HBO South Asia country manager Shruti Bajpai, “This is the biggest marketing campaign in the channel‘s history. The levels of innovation are higher compared to our previous campaigns. We are using our own Bond women for the campaign that covers on-air, OOH, digital, print etc. We have created a site HBOO7.com that offers fans everything they want to know about Bond. There is also a desktop widget that fans can download. We are offering games where, among other things, people can dress up Bond women.”
A contest is being run on-air where fans can win Omega watches, ipads etc. The ads have been created using three themes – Bond and women, Bond and gadgets and Bond and villains. “This creates more focus and is different from just airing TVCs,” Bajpai said.
On the OOH front, the channel has taken billboards. In some of them, the cutout of a Bond woman is used to give a 3D impression.
Apart from the Bond festival the channel is also doing a ‘Diwali Platinum‘ initiative at 9 pm where blockbusters are shown. The ‘Diwali Gold‘ initiative at noon offers fun and family-oriented films.
On Sundays, there is a “Heroes versus Villains” initiative where films are shown back to back at 9 pm and 11 pm. The theme is that of good triumphing over evil.
On the ad front, Bajpai said that in keeping with the Bond festival poker sets have been sent to agencies.
Tata Manza and Sony Bravia are the main sponsors for the HBOO7 initiative. Other sponsors include Phillips and Micromax.
-
Soderbergh to direct Liberace biopic
MUMBAI: Steven Soderbergh is all set to helm a Liberace biopic for HBO titled Behind the Candelabra. The film will have Michael Douglas play the legendary entertainer and Matt Damon as his younger lover, Scott Thorson.
“From the inception of this project, we‘ve had two priorities: getting it right creatively, and getting as many people as possible to see it,” Soderbergh has been quoted to have said.
“HBO‘s fearless approach to original programming and their unparalleled ability to pull in viewers make them the perfect fit for us. Apart from my hair growing back, I couldn‘t be happier,” he added.
The project boasts a script penned by Oscar-nominee Richard LaGravenese that has been inspired by Thorson‘s memoir, Behind the Candelabra: My Life With Liberace.
Douglas has long been attached to the film, which was originally set to start shooting in June 2010. Because of Douglas‘ battle with cancer and Damon‘s busy schedule, the production was delayed. The film is now set to roll in the summer of 2012.
-
Fox Star to release What’s Your Number on 14 October
MUMBAI: Fox Star Studios will release the Anna Faris and Chris Evans-starrer What‘s Your Number? on 14 October.
In the film, Faris plays Ally Darling, who has just read an article in a magazine that women who have had relationships with twenty or more men are unlikely to settle down and get married. In a panic, she realises that she has reached her limit and instead of looking for a new boyfriend, she decides to revisit her 19 ex-boy friends with the hope that there must be one ideal candidate among them! Assisting her on this quest is her attractive neighbour Colin, played by Chris Evans.
With her impeccable comic timing, warmth and depth, Faris brings Ally to life with such authenticity that every girl will be able to easily identify with her.
As an actor and filmmaker, Faris appreciated the story being told from Ally‘s point of view, in a no-holds-barred way that mixes sex, heart, fun and emotion.
Packed with some truly hilarious moments, the film promises to be a complete entertainer for its interesting take on ‘finding true love‘ and the fabulous chemistry between Anna Faris and Chris Evans.
What‘s Your Number? has been directed by Mark Mylod, who had earlier directed the HBO TV series Entourage.
-
‘Now there are four key players in the market’ : HBO South Asia country manager Shruti Bajpai
Adopting an aggressive posture, HBO is giving a push to its content as competition turns fierce in the English movie channel space.
After its deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) ended, HBO stitched deals with 16 studios. The focus will continue to be popular blockbusters, cutting edge titles and original content.
The entry of Movies Now has shaken up the market and from a two-horse race it now has four key players. HBO, however, is looking at a double-digit growth this year and has brought in new category of advertisers to the genre.
In an interview with Indiantelevision.com‘s Ashwin Pinto HBO South Asia country manager Shruti Bajpai talks about the challenges that the genre faces.
Excerpts:
New entrant Movies Now seems to have upset the applecart, pushing HBO to the third position. How do you plan to bounce back?
Rating fluctuations are normal for any channel in this business. As the number of players grow, it is more important for the category to expand. As for HBO, there’s no reason to feel threatened because of the sheer differentiation in terms of our content. We are the only channel with the capability to bring the most popular blockbusters, cutting edge titles and original content. In terms of both quality and quantity, we are still unmatched.Movies Now’s strategy of showing popular films that have high repeat value seems to have worked. So have premieres gone down in value?
No! That counts for a lot in terms of brand perception. At the end of the day it is about what your brand stands for. We show more premiere blockbusters than any other channel. Our focus is on having more premieres, strengthening our franchises and telecasting HBO Originals. Our USP is to offer something for everyone and be a one-stop shop.What impact are the new players having on the genre?
From being just two key players in the market, now there are four – HBO, Star Movies, Movies Now and Pix.After HBO’s output deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment ended, how have you lined up content to take on competition?
We have, in fact, expanded our content pipeline. Last year, we stitched deals with 16 studios. We have the very best of blockbusters like ‘Ironman 2’, ‘Inception’, our popular franchises include Rocky and Bond. We have cutting edge titles like Blind Side, Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy and ground-breaking original content like Temple Grandin.
‘There are plans to expand the base in India and HD will be a part of that‘Movies Now was the first HD channel in the English movie genre. Is HBO looking at HD feed?
There are plans to expand the base in India and HD will be a part of that. We can’t really speak for others, but HBO has a multi-channel and HD presence in most of the countries across the globe. India will be no exception.Content costs are escalating due to intense competition in the genre. Has revenue also expanded?
Rising content cost is a factor, but a point of concern more for our competitors and relatively less for HBO. Unlike the rest of the channels which are mostly home-grown or only operational in Asia, HBO is a global player with widespread presence. With multi-year output deals with three studios – Warner bros, Paramount and Universal -and content from 16 other movie companies, we are best equipped in the genre to manage content acquisition costs.English movie channels in combine earned an ad revenue of Rs 3 billion last year. Will the genre post a 20 per cent growth this year?
Though this year has been a bit challenging for all non-sport categories with high influx of cricket, we wouldn’t like to speculate on what the genre has made. English movies has always been a very sought after genre with a wide variety of advertisers and HBO being the most preferred channel in this category, has maintained the growth rate as per the previous years.What revenue growth is HBO targeting this year?
HBO has always maintained double-digit growth numbers and this year will be no exception. We don‘t have advertisers; we have partners.We are also perceived as a very premium, international brand among the viewers as well as the advertisers. Many high-end and prestigious brands like Audi and BMW spend a large chunk of their marketing budgets on HBO. In the English movie channel genre, we command the highest rate for our inventory.
Are you tapping into new categories?
Yes. In fact, this has been our biggest success this year. We have added more than 30 clients this year, with far more contribution from new categories. It’s our high value perception that has helped us bring some non-traditional categories like real estate on board.What are the challenges the genre faces?
English movie and entertainment channels face the same challenges as any other channel in the country – intense fragmentation. In the last couple of years, this category has seen a significant number of new entrants. HBO, however, has always stayed a step ahead of the game. Since inception, we have been one of the strongest players in the market with superior content and high value to advertisers and viewers alike.The DTH base is growing rapidly. Are you looking at content innovations for this platform which can yield more revenues?
Yes! As the base grows, there is a need to tailor content for DTH. -
Saints and Warriors floats second agency to tap Delhi market
MUMBAI: Mumbai-based advertising agency, Saints and Warriors, has floated a second agency to tap into the Delhi market and handle conflicting businesses effectively.
With the launch of Yang, the five-year old agency will explore opportunities to grow its business in the capital city.
Confirming the launch, Saints and Warriors Chairperson Pushpinder Singh said, “Yang has been launched for two main purposes. First is to tap the potential of the Delhi market. Secondly, it will enable us to handle the conflicting businesses effectively.”
Yang will be headed by Sanjay Sharma and Anil Verma.
Sharma who has 20 years of experience in advertising, marketing and public relations, was the COO at Hanmer and president at Mudra Communications in the North and East region. He has worked on brands like Volkswage, Wrigley‘s, Philips and Emami among others.
Verma has been in the industry for 15 years and worked on brands like LIC, HBO, Union Bank, Mc Donalds and Domino‘s. He was also the creative head for the North and East region for Mudra and also been associated with Everest Brand Solutions, TBWA, Rediffusion-Y&R and Ogilvy India.
“Both Sanjay Sharma and Anil Verma have an excellent record and their experience will enable us to capture the market quickly” added Singh.
-
WB plans to double ad revenue on content ramp up
MUMBAI: WB, the hybrid channel from the Turner stable, is looking to double its ad revenue this year as it pushes up its content.
WB will air its first movie premiere 300 on 6 November at 9 pm and is aggressively attempting to build its franchise blocks.
The channel has been able to attract 60 brands in its first year of operations in India.
Says Turner Entertainment Networks, South Asia VP deputy GM Monica Tata, “This year WB‘s monthly revenue has grown 50 per cent over 2009. This growth comes from doubling the number of clients in 2010 (over 2009) and WB today has a portfolio of over 100 active brands. WB surpassed last year‘s revenue in the first half of 2010.”
With the festive season coming up, WB expects revenues to double by year-end.
Ponds once again tied up with the channel for its on-going Festival Of Lights initiative. 300 will be presented by Garnier Men Deodorant and powered by Spice Telecom in Association with Hero Honda. There are also brand integrations that the channel does such as Thumbs Up- Nitro, Garnier Biggg Ticket and Samsung Fast Forward. For the family audience, WB has Sunday Brunch in association with Knorr.
Since launching last year, WB has focussed on building its franchise blocks that set the tone for the kind of films that it airs. “Recently, we have added franchises in accordance to our focussed weekend strategy such as the Saturday Night Biggg Ticket block; Sundays Back-to-Back block; Friday, Saturday, Sunday – Trilogy block.This has also shored up our ad revenue,” says Tata.
WB aims to beef up its weekend lineup. “We are aggressively engaging audiences with our offering during the key movie viewing periods that include Saturday Night. WB offers single break movies, adding to the viewer‘s movie viewing experience, with a minimum two-minute break,” says Tata.
WB is currently celebrating the festival season with Festival Of Lights with movies in six themes. Apart from 300, the upcoming titles include 10000 BC, Speedracer and Golden Compass.
When asked about the importance of movie premieres as just having library content does not work in terms of getting viewership and ad revenue, Tata disagrees saying that while new titles have a ‘sparkle‘ value, what consistently drives viewership are good movies that have repeat value.
“Channels cannot run on only new titles, there aren‘t that many available! Look across channels and you will realise what works are good movies and what works even better are great action movies. An English movie viewer wants to see a good movie and that is the WB promise.”
She points to movies like Matrix Revolutions and The Mask that fared well in the ratings sweepstakes among the 15-44 SEC A,B demographic.
“WB‘s relative share of the genre in the digital panel is about 80 per cent higher than its overall share in C&S 15-44 SEC A,B. This clearly showcases Indian viewer‘s high preference for WB (as they choose WB and pay to view it) and is a big stamp on the quality of WB‘s content.”
In terms of innovations, she points to 9 pm on Saturday nights where it offers viewers the chance to watch movies with just a two-minute break. Being a hybrid channel, WB also airs TV shows. It launched the animated version of George Lucas‘ cult, science fiction series Star Wars The Clone Wars in July and the action thriller series Human Target in September.
WB, she adds, has been growing its WB Breakfast Franchise with shows like Good Morning Miami, Four Kings and New Adventures Of Old Christine.
In terms of the ratio between movies and shows, she says that WB currently operates in a 70:30 ratio when it comes to movies and television series.
“We feel that the mix and balance between the two is just right and is working well for the channel,” Tata adds.
Media analysts, however, believe WB has a lot of catching up to do with its sister channel HBO and Star Movies. It will also have to contend against established player Zee Studio and Pix which is beefing up its content following its output deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment.
-
‘India is among the top three markets for us in Asia’ : HBO South Asia country head Shruti Bajpai
For 10 years, HBO has warmed up audiences with big movie titles, library content and branding as a premium English movie channel.
The arrival of more players has not shaken up HBO‘s positioning. The channel has grown amid audience fragmentation and India surfaces today as the top three markets in Asia.
In an interview with Indiantelevision.com‘s Ashwin Pinto, HBO South Asia country head Shruti Bajpai talks about the the channel‘s decade-old existence in India and the plans ahead.
Excerpts:
We are at a time when a lot of English channels are looking to come in. What is the reason for all this rush?
There has been an influx of channels for some time now but it is not as though it is happening all of a sudden. Nevertheless, what is happening now is that with HD and DTH spreading their reach, a lot of specialised channels are looking at India. There is more interest as licences have been got and we are now hearing about more launches. Since Indian television has expanded, there has been a steady increase and there is more of an influx of English entertainment channels.
For long-existing players like HBO what challenges does this present?
The challenge is to retain existing viewership and get new viewers. And it is not just competition from the English entertainment channels, but also from theatrical releases and other forms of out-of-home entertainment. We have to be on our toes in terms of constantly refreshing content, delivering our promise of blockbusters and giving the extra value of entertainment that viewers don‘t get to watch anywhere in the form of HBO Originals.We will continue to do this as more and more channels come in. We have been successful as a brand and as a channel by increasing our offerings year on year.
In the English film space, new entrants have caused fragmentation. Players including HBO have lost some share. What is HBO‘s overall game plan to counter this?
I will answer this on two levels. All genres have fragmented with new players coming in and the English movie genre is no exception. Content has to be compelling for people to continue watching. On the other hand, maybe the way English entertainment viewership is tracked needs to change. Our measurement is still traditional. As more people enhance their TV watching experience through digitisation, channels get watched more. We need to look at the reporting of English entertainment space.I don‘t believe that the picture presented through traditional measurement is completely true. Why is there so much interest by companies to launch English entertainment channels if people were watching less of it? I am not sure if we feel that the measurement of digital homes has no scope for improvement. It has to capture the actual increase in the television viewing universe. Perhaps the measurement base has to be expanded. The measurement system has to keep pace with the pace of digitisation.
How is HBO celebrating 10 years of operating in this space?
From September on, we have 10 best films of the year. Our spots will celebrate the landmark.We are also refreshing our look and feel. This is being done in-house out of Singapore and comes into effect next month. The graphics, colours and fonts are being improved upon to give the channel a livelier and friendlier look.
In terms of business generated and viewership, where does India stand versus other Asian markets like Singapore and Hong Kong?
It is a priority market. India is in the top three. It has the potential to surprise you with viewership increases.
‘I can‘t give a timeframe as to when we will launch more channels. As I have said before, it has to make business sense. The timing has to be right and the market has to be large enough‘
Has there been any difference in focus this year compared to the previous years?
There has been more focus on HBO Originals. Our line-up has been better than in previous years in terms of the slate of movies like The Dark Knight, Star Trek, Terminator Salvation, Angels and Demons. Hollywood Premier League continues to grow for us. The aim is to balance the quality and quantity of content and to better ourselves at our own game.
Has any research been done to find out how HBO is perceived?
It is our mix of raters and differentiators that has led to a high perception among viewers. When you do a poll and research, viewers say that they like us for the kind of films we show. Even now we get talked about for movies like An Inconvenient Truth, Blood Diamond, A Mighty Heart, The Kite Runner. A lot of movies that will come to HBO like Invictus are doing well critically and theatrically.There is a high quality perception that viewers have of HBO. This helps us maintain our brand image. We are not known by the last title we show. What makes a viewer remember a channel more than the last title is the entire package and this is where we score.
Has loyalty come into this genre or is it just a question of who has the better titles at primetime?
It is a mix. You have the top two channels – HBO and Star Movies. Then there is a distinct number three. This has been happening for 10 years. There is a diverse selection on HBO ranging from romantic films to sci-fi. You cannot just have raters and one kind of film. Otherwise a dubbed English movie channel would be on top.We keep our ears to the ground and make the schedule as sharp as possible. It has evolved over a continuous basis. The number of movies shown is highest on HBO. You need to see how you hold the audience‘s interest. Make sure it is known as a brand not just for raters but also for things like True Blood. If somebody wants sci-fi, they can watch films in that genre. If they want blockbusters, it is there. The variety we offer is something nobody else has and this has led to the loyalty. It is not just about stitching films together and launching a channel.
What are the steps that HBO has taken to grow the audience base over the years?
Our primetime is not what has been traditionally defined. It is when people are watching it the most. Then you can grow it. Are there specific opportunities for genres like action and romance? When are women watching it the most? When do men come in? What about teens? It is the on-going job of the person in charge of programming and scheduling to look at ways and means to use this data to expand viewership.We were the first to come out with a block for women – HBO Time Out – years ago. We did a ‘HBO See It First on Sunday‘ block and now Star Movies has come out with something similar. We created a slot for kids, teens with Whazzup years back. If you remember, other channels did things like Action Mondays, Romantic Tuesdays. It was genre based and not viewer based. We were the ones who came out with a viewer based, profile targetted strategy.
Has the way in which viewers consume HBO changed over the past three years?
Three years back I would not have expected our series, True Blood, to have done so well. It is not all about creepy crawlies and a sinking ship. Thinking man‘s films are doing better now. I would give the example of Revolutionary Road which got positive feedback. Over the years due to more exposure, people have grown to appreciate films like this. But the basics do not change. Action continues to do well.
Are you looking at dubbing?
We do this as a one off. I don‘t think that it works to do it often as it can put viewers off. The channels that show dubbed movies are targetting viewers who do not understand English well. This is expanding the market for English films. For us, though, subtitles are enough. It helps with those films where accents are tough to understand.When do HBO‘s licensing deals with studios come up for renewal?
These are multi-year deals. I cannot talk about the time frame.
Pix has now gone into the blockbuster space as library content does not work that well. How do you see this impacting the other players?
Every movie channel has some blockbusters. I don‘t understand the big deal. There is no comparison to the number of blockbusters HBO and Star Movies brings versus what the other channels can bring. The key is to compare how blockbusters rate among the channels.
What role does library content play in getting viewers?
You need to have good amount of blockbusters that rate. But library also delivers ratings. It is this mix that makes or breaks a channel. We make sure that library titles are something that Indians want to watch. We do not have a library for the sake of it. We do programming around franchises like Lord Of The Rings. We are running a Star Trek franchise. It has to be relevant.
How will HBO be celebrating the festive season? Which are the big properties coming up?
Our festive season kicks in early due to our 10th anniversary which we celebrate next month. We have the 10 Best Movies Of The Year initiative. On the television series front, we will air True Blood followed by Number One Ladies Detective‘s Agency followed by Hung over the next couple of months. We will have films like Public Enemies, Gran Torino, Julie and Julia. We will have a big Diwali Festival. We will have the Diwali Blockbuster of the month and Blockbuster Of The Year coming up in November. There will also be India specific programming. We are looking at two shows in this regard.
What unique initiatives have been lined up on the marketing front in a crowded marketplace?
We don‘t spend a lot, but we spend smart. We will be doing a campaign next month to push films and the fact that we are celebrating 10 years. We will use social networks to talk about 10 years and the message will be Celebrating 10 Years.The digital platform is definitely important for us. The teenagers going into their 20s are absorbing media. Where are their touch points? We focus on social communities because we have to be there where the potential viewers are. Sometimes we do not have to spend a lot but focus on building communities where goodwill for our channel can be garnered. This cannot be one off for a title. The online conversation has to be about the HBO brand.
With the new players coming into the English entertainment space as a whole, do you see the ad pie correspondingly growing?
It will not de-grow. There is a high level of involvement that happens with the English movie genre compared to other genres like English news. So there are advertisers who will always want to reach out to this segment. You have FMCGs that have a luxury range. You have holiday destinations, insurance companies. Cola companies will come out with more offerings. They want to reach the viewer as you cannot take Hollywood out of the life of an Indian. I see a healthy ad revenue growth this year.
How is the mood in the ad market this year compared to last year?
It is more upbeat. We are back on track in terms of the interest levels among advertisers. Our primetime inventory is almost completely utilised for the year. It is about the brand image that we have cultivated over the years that has stood us in good stead. We make sure that there is not much clutter on-air.
Could you give me examples of packages that HBO offers clients that go beyond the 30-second spot?
We have been pioneers when it comes to brand integration. We once did a ‘Maruti Suzuki Live The Moment‘ initiative. The movies were about living the moment. For an initiative with HDFC Children‘s Plan, we showcased films like Pursuit Of Happyness. For the two wheeler Scooty, we did a Babelicious initiative. We also do things like HBO Scorecard that builds engagement. All this has solidified our relationship with advertisers.
Do you feel that the English movie genre should compete better against other genres like English news for ad revenue?
The involvement is different. We would be higher in the pecking order in terms of the kinds of ads shown. We have a disciplined niche quality when it comes to advertising and the viewer experience. The engagement that a viewer has with news would be much less compared to movies. The engagement is deeper with English movies. An English movie viewer might check out the news first when he gets home at around 8 pm or so. Then he will watch a movie at around 9 pm. To compare the two genres though is not fair.
How is the deal with Zee Turner working out in terms of reaching the smaller towns and cities more effectively?
The relationship with Zee Turner been working well. There is an opportunity to grow more in the smaller cities and towns. At the same time, our marketing budget is limited. There is only so much we can do. We have to focus, prioritise and take a call. But it makes sense to expand the market. It is part of our long term plan.
Do you see 3G having a big impact on this genre?
This is not something immediate, but it will definitely happen. We have to take a cautious approach initially to this. It will be slow and steady for us. 3G will happen at its own pace and time.
HBO also has a women-centric channel abroad. When will this come in?
I cannot give a timeframe as to when we will launch more channels. As I have said before, it has to make business sense. The timing has to be right and the market has to be large enough. The distribution scenario is changing as we speak. Cas is not spreading as had been expected earlier but digitisation is. -
‘Our goal is to increase our audience share to 25 per cent’ : Pix business head Sunder Aaron
When Pix launched four years back, it had to be content with library movies. Now the English movie channel has evolved into a stage where it can air current titles to draw in younger audiences and nurture ambitions of competing successfully with Star Movies and HBO.
A focus area for Pix will be to aggressively get into the action genre.
An important mix on the channel is also non-film content including football.
In an interview with Indiantelevision.com‘s Ashwin Pinto, Pix business head Sunder Aaron talks about the channel‘s progress over four years.
Excerpts:
What factors prompted Pix to change its positioning to a blockbuster channel?Our positioning as a premium Hollywood movie channel has not changed. We are still about telling good stories. It is just that our programming strategy has evolved. Our game plan in 2006 was to transform Pix into a current film channel. We are following the path that we had laid out for ourselves when we launched the channel.
What was the plan in 2006?When we launched the channel, we mainly had library movies from Sony and MGM. We also had all time favourites like Jerry Maguire. We still have those but they do not dominate our primetime as much as they used to. We knew that four years down the line we would add current movies and be as current as HBO and Star Movies.
So new films have to be part of the recipe for a successful English movie channel?We have learnt that brand new current films are the prized assets in this genre. At the end of the day, that drives spikes in viewership. As long as there are enough spikes, the overall welfare of the channel and its profile will rise. You will see the movie channels that have current films – HBO and Star Movies – excel.
You can have other kinds of films but it is these big, current films that will drive the channel. Within these current films, it is the action genre that is the most valuable and the most attractive. This is what our focus will rest on.
Any other lessons that you learnt from the last four years of Pix‘s operations?Yes, subtitling. To widen the reach, this is an important tool. We avoided it for a while but our viewers asked us for it. This led to an increase in reach. Shadows of Time, for instance, did well in the six metros. It is a Bengali film with subtitles. Subtitles make it easier for viewers to understand the film.
Is it fair to say that older movies do not have much traction due to the niche nature of this genre?You have raised two points. The English film genre is not niche anymore. If you look at it from a cable operator‘s point of view, they must have English movie channels. It is as essential as a sports channel.
One reason why older films do not as work as well is that the audience likes films that are current and sexy. The newer films appeal to the younger generation. Library films have less action and special effects. The style of cutting and editing is different from the way it is now.
‘We will have more current films. Our audience will also be more youthful and we will have a wider reach across the country‘
There are already two channels that showcase blockbusters and aim at becoming bigger and better. How will Pix differentiate itself?We operate from India. Star Movies is operated out of Hong Kong, while HBO is based out of Singapore. The fact that we operate out of Mumbai allows us to be more hands on.
We actually do local programming like Chicks on Flicks. We also have sports properties like the FA Cup. Thanks to the World Cup, the soccer fans have grown.
What goals have been set for the year?Our ultimate goal is to increase our share to 25 per cent and be on the same level as Star Movies and HBO. Right now our share is around 20 per cent. We want more youth tuning in. The current films are aimed at broad basing our reach.
Pix went for a design and look makeover. What was the aim of this?
We want to draw in younger audiences. It is not that older audiences are not useful but the fact is that the youth are the demographic that advertisers target.
The channel looks slicker and is more attractive visually. Earlier the look we had was too static and flat, colour-wise. Now there is more dynamism.
Is Pix going to create time slots that appeal to different TGs?We already have slots like Super Movie of the Month and programming tailored for the afternoon. Our share and time spent has grown though the category as a whole has fallen.
Does the English film genre face fresh challenges this year?Scarcity of product is a natural issue. The increase in prices and fragmentation are other issues. We are clever about how we deal with suppliers and where we find our movies. We track viewer feedback regularly. If somebody sends us an email, we read it and even respond sometimes.
Attention spans are changing. People are flipping channels a lot more. Luckily at Pix the time spent has been increasing. This shows that our films and promotions are better.
How much library content is on the channel and what are the big properties coming up?Our ratio is the same as our competition. We are airing The Hurt Locker which is a big one. So for two years in a row, we will be airing the Oscar winner for best picture. The other movies include Hot Tub Time Machine, District 9 (science fiction) and New York I love You.
The aim is to have at least one blockbuster each month. Then we have films that are not big blockbusters but are also premiers. If it is really good, it goes into the handpicked movie slot.
Have you changed how the weekend is programmed?No! We still promote the 9 pm movie. We had the properties Cheap Thrills and Damn Good Drama, but we got rid of those.
How tough will it be to get current films given the fact that major studios already have output deals?
It is a challenge. We have to be resourceful in terms of finding films that make the channel look good and elevate our level of programming.
Do Sony‘s films come to Pix first now?No! Their films go to HBO first. That output deal is still on.
Is local content like shows going to be more important going forward?
It is a distinguishing factor. We have Chicks on Flicks. And we are looking at a couple of other concepts. Gateway (the show done with Ashok Amritraj) will return eventually. It is a complex series that takes planning and it will come back with a new judge. The celebrities on the show have to commit to four to six weeks of shooting.
We are looking at Hollywood-based film shows. They are useful as interstitial programming.
Are you looking at expanding your base into smaller towns?It is costly to do marketing there. The focus has to be on the primary target market – which is metros. Beyond that, we do tie ups to reduce costs in secondary and tertiary towns.
This Is It was an interesting experiment. Since it is a musical and it transcends language barriers and has Michael Jackson, we did promotions in regional languages.
What marketing activities will Pix do this year?We will do a brand campaign when we air The Hurt Locker. This will reinforce the new content on our channel. The Hurt Locker is the kind of film that will pull in a wider, more mass audience.
Are out of home activities important?Yes! It is important for a channel that is local to behave in a local manner. The Pix Movie club was launched a couple of months back and the response has been strong in places like Mumbai. PVR is our partner and they are also happy with the outcome. You need events to connect with viewers directly on a regular basis.
We had Hollywood Pix Your Brain last year. This was a trivia quiz. It will return. With This Is It, we did activities in malls like flash mobs. We also did a four-city legendary Michael Jackson tribute. Music groups paid tribute to the late pop star.
What role does digital play?It is important given that this is where the youth spend a lot of time. On our site, you can get mobile reminders. We do online promotions. Certain films lend themselves to online promotions like This Is It and Slumdog Millionaire. The budgets are not big and so online is a better way to go about as it is a targeted promotional activity.
Is Pix planning to launch more channels?
Eventually, we will. We will start with digital platforms, but you will not see another Pix channel for a year. There are channels that launched but fell by the wayside. We do not want that to happen.
Where do you see Pix a year from now?
We will have more new, current films. Our audience will also be more youthful and we will have a wider reach across the country. The aim is to also have better viewership in secondary and tertiary towns.
-
Cramped space, slow growth dog English movie channels
There is no shake-up at the top in the English movie channel space but a grim battle is being waged at the lower level as the new entrants plot their growth path with stronger content and distribution.
The segment leaders, Star Movies and HBO, have marginally lost their channel share in the midst of this competition, but they are way ahead to even feel challenged. Star Movies‘ share has dropped to 38 per cent for the first six months of the period ending June as against 42 per cent a year ago, while HBO has shed three per cent to stand at 31 per cent.
Three-year-old Pix too has fallen 1 per cent to rest on a channel share of 11 per cent, according to Tam data (Tam data, c&s15+ SEC A,B) for the six-month period. However, Zee Studio, fourth in line, has trekked upwards from 7 per cent to 9 per cent.
The only ranking change during this period has been the upsurge of WB, Turner and Warner‘s six-month-old channel in India, that has overtaken UTV World Cinema, which is also a new player in the field. While UTV World Cinema has a channel share of 4.8 per cent, WB is a hair‘s length ahead at 4.9 per cent.
The first half of the year has seen the genre stickiness inch marginally up to 10 minutes, a one pointer climb from the year-ago period.
According to industry experts, it‘s current films that gives English movie channels the ratings and pulls in advertisers. Tam data shows that for the six months while Star Movies and HBO had most of the top 10 titles, Pix‘s Slumdog Millionaire peaked at a rating of 0.33 TVR.So, as maintaining consistent brand loyalty becomes a challenge, top and long existing players are fine tuning their strategies to attract more audiences.
Star Movies‘ focus this year has rested on enhancing its title choices for specific slots. It has also looked at giving viewers more opportunities to sample content that they can connect with. The aim is to make its flagship property, Friday Night Premiere, stronger.
Says Star Movies VP programming Jyotsna Vriyalaya, “Having brand loyalty in a genre that is so title driven will be a very big challenge. Viewers often sample the top two to three channels before settling on their favourite movie.”
HBO has concentrated on blockbusters and expansion of its theme variety such as the Hollywood Premier League, while continuing with original programming like True Blood. In an effort to go beyond just titles to build brand saliency, HBO is looking at new show formats.
Says HBO South Asia country manager Shruti Bajpai, “The key to developing brand loyalty revolves around selection of titles, how well content is packaged, experimenting in terms of show formats, channel‘s on-air look and communication.”Pix business head Sunder Aaron notes that while the category is title driven, brand loyalty also develops among viewers of movie channels. “It‘s all about context. When a viewer identifies strongly with the movies shown on a particular channel, considering channel‘s presentation is comfortable and the promos and breaks unobtrusive, it provides a favourable viewing environment and eventually leads to a viewing habit.”
Earlier, Pix was seen as a channel showcasing classic films. However, this year the channel has aggressively acquired titles from a number of distributors. The biggest was Slumdog Millionaire. With this acquisition, Aaron expects that there will be drastic change in how viewers perceive the channel over the next couple of years.
Says Aaron, “Pix‘s marketing helps to feature these newer titles in a bigger and better way than in the past. While we are flattered that channels are emulating or copying some of our on air strategies, we will continue to evolve the look and feel of the channel as well. This should help us continue to make up ground on HBO and Star Movies.”
Also, in a bid to introduce more variety, the channel airs soccer action from the FA Cup. “We‘ve introduced cinema-oriented series to India that have perfectly fitted into the Pix persona, with shows like Hollywood One on One, and Inside the Actors Studio,” adds Aaron.
Zee Studio faces the same challenge as Pix in terms of getting premieres. But channel business head Sujay Kutty says that there are a number of independent distributors who have first-run gems in their packages. He also claims that he has 18 premieres lined up for the year.
The channel has moved its primetime to 9 pm. April also saw the introduction of Sunday Noonatics, a slot for light entertaining flicks keeping the relaxed Sunday mood in mind.
Blocks or no blocks?
Well, apart from right title selection, placement and variety, the genre has also brought in the block-building strategy to attract target audiences. But with the introduction of blocks, the long-age debate also stands tall – do blocks work?
Aaron says that while the channel holds festival bands, it does not pay off to have too many blocks. “When you commit to certain types of programming for a slot, you are essentially creating a programming ‘strait jacket‘ whose proposition is not always easy to meet with the films in your library,” he says.
Lodestar Universal COO Nandini Dias notes that one can schedule content in a manner to appeal to different age groups without necessarily assigning labels. “Having blocks can get you sponsorship revenue, but you also risk alienating the rest of the audience if you are not careful.”
Offering a counterpoint, Bajpai says that it entirely depends on how a particular channel identifies its audience and devises its strategy. “HBO seeks its audience across segments and hence, to connect at a base-level, we do TG-specific programming blocks where we offer something for everyone out of our whole gamut of shows. With a relatively larger base of audience, for HBO this sort of programming format has worked well.”
For UTV World Movies business head Sameer Ganapathy, blocks ascertain that genre and star themes are presented to viewers in an approachable manner. “Having said that, we do not believe in too many programming blocks as that really limits the scheduling and hinders variety.”
UTV World Movies also aims to be present in all verticals of the business with the channel being the driver. So it has started releasing films into cinemas, like Waltz With Bashir.
“This brings a huge amount of saliency to the brand. We have the home video association with Shemaroo. We are currently the only channel in the genre that is truly 360° in nature,” Ganapathy avers.
True, English movie channels are construing and establishing various strategies to come to the fore. But the one element that could still cause disharmony in crafting better reach and contact is lack of strategic ‘distribution‘.
According to Turner International India VP, deputy GM Monica Tata, apart from content what also helped Warner cut through the heap is distribution.
She says, “In just over a quarter, the channel is available in 13 million c&s homes, including digital and DTH platforms such as Dish TV, Sun Direct and Big TV.”
Last year, MGM signed a deal with Star Den to get it distributed across cable and satellite and has also signed up over 500 cable systems.
According to MGM Networks president Bruce Tuchman, “We also debuted on Bharti Airtel in DTH. We have built a very wide and growing subscription base, as well as increasing our DTH presence.”
Tuchman feels that apart from creating reach, distribution will also facilitate attracting revenues in India. “What is being seen now in India is an inflection point where targeted, niche product that super-serves specific audiences will have an incredible opportunity to build fans, loyalty and subscription revenue. We‘ve seen this elsewhere around the world, and we believe this is the direction that India is headed in.”
What will, however, intensify competition amongst players is digitisation.
Dias opines, “At this moment, in an analogue era, some of the movie channels are at an advantage due to better placement. However, once digitisation spreads, all English movie channels will be one behind the other. A level playing field will therefore intensify competition. It will come down to who has the better titles at key timeslots.”Though the genre viewership is still skewed towards the metros, channels are also eyeing smaller towns to gain audiences. For example, Zee Studio has held on-ground initiatives in towns such as Pune and Ahmedabad.
Lintas Media Group Planning Sciences director Atrayee Chakraborty notes that in the distant future, viewership would come from the smaller towns and cities. However, in the short run, the movie channels need to concentrate on the metros as much still remains untapped here.
Revenue to slow down
The size of the English movie channel genre is estimated to grow to Rs 2.2 billion this fiscal.
Stung by economic slowdown, the industry expects the segment to see single digit growth in ad revenues this year. Says Chakraborty, “This genre would suffer relatively more as premium brands, durables and finance sectors, which largely advertise in these channels, have cut their advertising budgets.”
Ratings and perception play a role in media-buying decisions for this genre. Offering further insight, Chakraborthy explains that while the TG is upmarket and skewed towards the metros, it also looks at channel affinity within specific segments in the TG for budget allocation. “HBO, for example, is more preferred by brands targeting younger, upmarket males. Star Movies, in contrast, attracts a wider audience base.”
Bajpai is bullish on the genre‘s growth, “While there has been an air of caution in general across industries, it is also a fact that during a downturn advertisers tend to turn towards a strong product that is consistent, dependable and has a steady consumer base.”