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Tag: indiantelevision

  • R.K.Arora bids adieu to Zee Media

    R.K.Arora bids adieu to Zee Media

    MUMBAI: Executive director and CEO of Zee Media R.K. Arora has stepped down from his role. A source close to the development has confirmed this development to indiantelevision.

    Arora was appointed as an additional director and CEO of the company for a period of three years with effect from May 24, 2016 soon after the chairman of the Essel Group of companies Subhash Chandra resigned from the post of director and non-executive chairman of Zee Media Corporation Limited (ZMCL).

    Arora was responsible for the various news channels under ZMCL that included WION, Zee News, Zee Business, India 24×7, Zee Punjab Haryana Himachal, Zee Madhya Pradesh Chhattisgarh, Zee 24 Taas, 24 Ghanta, Zee Kalinga News, Zee Purvaiya, and Zee Rajasthan News.

    Before joining ZMCL, Arora was the CEO of News Nation. He earlier was with ITV Network where he managed the overall operations of its seven channels.

    Updates on Arora’s successor is still awaited.

    Meanwhile, the whole Essel/Zee group is undergoing a restructuring. The group recently appointed a new chief executive for Zee Entertainment’s domestic broadcast business in Punit Misra, while Amit Goenka continues to be the CEO-International for ZEEL. Zee’s parent Essel has formed a new entity, Essel Business Excellence, which will take care of many of the common responsibilities of the group companies.Another business unit, Zee Unimedia, will not only look after ad sales of Zee’s digital platforms but also its TV channels, while scouting around for outside work too in the long run, if media reports are to be believed.

  • Rajdeep Sardesai clarifies Twitter hiatus

    Rajdeep Sardesai clarifies Twitter hiatus

    MUMBAI: Indiantelevision got in touch with Rajdeep Sardesai for clarifications regarding his exit from online social networking site Twitter. The popular news anchor explained, “There are multiple reasons behind doing this. I think my account has been hacked. Why will I put such negative and harsh comments about myself on social media? For now, I am on a Twitter detox mode. Let my company decide if I should operate through our official handle or wait for some time for further clarifications. I have already sent a complaint to Twitter and have requested it to look at this”.

    On Saturday afternoon at around 3:19 pm Sardesai alleged that his Twitter account had been hacked by someone. He tweeted, “How low will some people now stoop to? Hack my account? Put out false messages? When will this end? Time to disable account. Enough is enough”.

    The veteran journalist has often complained that he and his wife Sagarika Ghosh are constantly harassed by Twitter trolls, whenever they post their opinions against any political party or the government.

  • Rajdeep Sardesai clarifies Twitter hiatus

    Rajdeep Sardesai clarifies Twitter hiatus

    MUMBAI: Indiantelevision got in touch with Rajdeep Sardesai for clarifications regarding his exit from online social networking site Twitter. The popular news anchor explained, “There are multiple reasons behind doing this. I think my account has been hacked. Why will I put such negative and harsh comments about myself on social media? For now, I am on a Twitter detox mode. Let my company decide if I should operate through our official handle or wait for some time for further clarifications. I have already sent a complaint to Twitter and have requested it to look at this”.

    On Saturday afternoon at around 3:19 pm Sardesai alleged that his Twitter account had been hacked by someone. He tweeted, “How low will some people now stoop to? Hack my account? Put out false messages? When will this end? Time to disable account. Enough is enough”.

    The veteran journalist has often complained that he and his wife Sagarika Ghosh are constantly harassed by Twitter trolls, whenever they post their opinions against any political party or the government.

  • Q2-2016: TRAI Report: YoY and QoQ Radio ad revenue up 23 per cent

    Q2-2016: TRAI Report: YoY and QoQ Radio ad revenue up 23 per cent

    BENGALURU:  The radio industry in India has reported the highest advertisement revenue so far for the quarter ended September 30, 2015 (Q2-2016) as per the latest TRAI report. Advertisement revenue in Q2-2016 reported to TRAI by 236 radio stations was Rs 481.56 crore, or Rs2.04 crore per station. The ad revenue per station reported in Q2-2016 increased 23.17 per cent year-on-year (YoY) as compared to Rs 1.66 crore in (Rs 399.26 crore reported by 241 radio stations) Q2-2015 and 23.81 per cent quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) as compared to Rs 1.65 crore (Rs 393.9 crore reported by 239 radio stations) in the immediate trailing quarter.

    Before Q2-2016, the previous highest ad revenue was Rs 443.17 crore reported by 241 radio stations in Q3-2015 orRs 1.84 crore per station.

    Note (1): (a)100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10 million = 1 crore

    (b) The author has taken the liberty to introduce a measure – average revenue per radio station. This is a rough yardstick and may not necessarily be indicative of a station or a networks performance, because factors such as geography and market conditions within the area of operations are among many that will also determine performance.

    (c) This report is skewed more towards general financial numbers in terms of revenue and results, and not operational performance.

    Trends across 18 consecutive quarters (four fiscal years, plus two quarters of the current fiscal)

    Please refer to Fig A below – Ad revenue per station has been calculated based on combined ad revenue figures disclosed by TRAI across 18 consecutive quarters starting Q1-2012 until Q2-2016. During the period, in general, ad revenue from radio stations shows an increasing linear trend as is indicted by the broken black trend line. Over the financial years 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015, it has been noted that ad revenue increases in the following order from lowest to highest – Q1, Q2, Q4, Q3. It may be noted that in fiscals 2012 and 2013 ad revenue per station was actually higher in Q4 than Q3, but in fiscals 2014 and 2015, it was highest in Q3.

    Fig B below shows how ad revenues have changed YoY and QoQ since Q1-2013 until Q2-2016 (across 14 quarters). During this periodboth the YoY and QoQincrease was highest in Q2-2016 at approximately 23 per cent plus each. The previous highest YoY increase was Q2-2014 at 21.31 per cent, while the previous highest QoQ increase was Q3-2013 at 18.85 per cent. While there has never been a YoY decline, in the case of QoQ, revenues have declined in Q1-2013, Q1-2014, Q4-2014, Q1-2015, Q4-2015 and Q1-2016, hence further substantiating the above observations that Q1 of a financial year generally has the lowest ad revenue in a fiscal, while Q3, which is the festival quarter in India, has the highest ad revenue. Further, the QoQ drop in Q4 was not steep, and hence Q4 over the past two fiscals has the next highest ad revenues.

    For the year ended March 31, 2015 (FY-2015), the numbers reported by the radio industry for the year were the probably the best (indiantelevision link, radioandusic link) until then. Despite an 8.88 percent QoQ (quarter on quarter) fall in average ad revenue per station in Q1-2016, the ad average revenue per station of Rs 1.65 crore was the best yet for the first quarter over a period of 4 years. In Q1-2015, YoY ad revenue grew 11.90 percent as compared to Q1-2014.Combined with the great Q2-2016 numbers, historical trends indicate that FY-2016 could be an even better year in terms of average revenue per station and overall revenues.

    As per the latest TRAI data, the sum of average ad revenues per station for the first two quarters of 2016 at Rs 3.69 crore is already 54.4 per cent of the average ad revenue per station of Rs 6.78 crore for fiscal 2015. As mentioned above, Q1 and Q2 generally report the lowest and second lowest ad revenues respectively in a financial year. Results reported by a few companies for the third quarter ended 31 December 2015 (Q3-2016) indicate that YoY and QoQ revenues have risen.  Add to this the revenue of the new stations acquired in phase III auctions if/once they start operations in the fourth quarter, the radio industry should report substantial revenue increases from FY-2016 onwards.

    Let us look at how a few radio networks performed.

    Note (2):  (a) This report considers PAT posted by 2 radio companies (ENIL – Radio Mirchi, 32 radio stations; JagranPrakashan – Radio City – 20 radio stations), along with operating results of DB Corp (My FM, 17 stations); B. A.G. Films (Radio Dhamaal, 10 stations); HT Media (Fever FM, 4 stations); and TV Today (Oye! FM, 6 stations), or a total of 6 radio networks that represent 89, or 36.63 percent of the 243 private FM radio stations in Q2-2016.

    (b) The Q3-2016 numbers of individual players in this report have been obtained from their filings with regulatory bodies, the TRAI number for Q3-2016 has been extrapolated and could prove to be inaccurate.

    (c)Revenues for the sample stations mean Total Income from Operations and generally include ad revenue and other operating revenues.

    (d) Phase III and other radio stations acquisitions: ENIL has received permission from the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) to acquire 4 stations from TV Today Network Limited (Oye! FM), viz., those at Amritsar, Patiala, Shimla and Jodhpur – which the company says have been/will be re-branded and re-launched shortly as Mirchi, adding to its North India network strength. With another 7 stations acquired in phase III auctions, the core Mirchi brand will now be available in 43 cities. There are/will be a total of 39 FM radio stations that JagranPrakashan Limited currently has. This includes the existing 20 radio stations plus 11 stations acquired in phase III auctions and 8 radio stations under the brand Radio Mantra.  Radio Mantra was earlier operated by Shri Puran Multimedia, Jagran’s promoter group. Besides, the group also runs a web radio network with 21 web radio streams under Planetradiocity.com.  During the Phase III auctions, DB Corp (My FM) acquired 14 frequencies, through which MY FM will extend its presence to seven states and 30 cities with 31 stations. HT Media acquired 10 radio frequencies during phase III auctions, taking its total radio stations to 14. However these changes are not considered here, for this report pertains to the period before all the new stations have started operations.

    (e) In mid-December 2015, Radio Mirchi added two more station, those at Amritsar and Patalia. It is presumed by the author that the addition of these two mare station brought in no significant addition to income to Radio Mirchi in Q3-2016, hence Radio Mirchi’s revenue per station has been calculated on the basis of 32 stations in this paper for that quarter. However, actual facts could be different.

    Entertainment Network India Limited (ENIL) that operates brand Radio Mirchi is the only separately listed radio company in India and one of the most profitable ones by far. It must be noted that in Q2-2016, ENIL’s revenue made up 50.6 per cent of the combined revenue of the six entities in this paper. In Q3-2016, ENIL contributed to 51.6 per cent of combined revenues. Other stations/radio brands of consequence, whose results are within the public domain have been considered in this report.

    Please refer to Fig C below. It may be noted that the figure of Rs2.30 crore in blue for All India ad revenue per station is a projection based on certain assumptions made by the author, and could be incorrect.

    In Q2-2016 (30 September 2015), combined revenues of the six entities in this report had increased 10.3 per cent YoY and had increased 15.5 per cent QoQ, much lower than the YoY andQoQ increases reported by TRAI (23.17 per cent and 23.81 per cent respectively)

    Combined revenues of the 89 radio stations run by the six entities increased 19.2 per cent YoY to Rs 278.16 crore in Q3-2016 (31 December 2016) as compared to Rs 233.41 crore and increased 21 per cent QoQ as compared to Rs 229.95 crore.

    Combined operating profit/PAT in Q3-2016 of the six entities declined 11.1 per cnt YoY to Rs 60.31 crore as compared to Rs 67.83 crore, but increased 36.6 per cent QoQ from Rs 44.15 crore.

    Music Broadcast Limited (MBL) which runs Radio City reported 14.9 YoY (year-on-year) growth in operating revenue for Q3-2016 at Rs 64.80 crore as compared to Rs 56.39 crore for the corresponding prior year quarter. Revenue in Q3-2016 was 16.7 per cent higher QoQ (quarter-on-quarter) as compared to Rs 55.54 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

    B. A. G. Films Limited Radio segment Radio Dhamaalreported 1.8 per cent QoQ drop in operating revenue growth at Rs 2.18 crore as compared to Rs 2.22 crore and 10 per cent YoY decline in revenue as compared to Rs2.43 crore.

    HT Media’s radio segment Fever 104 FM reported a 25 per cent YoY increase in operating revenue to Rs 32.26 crore as compared to Rs 28.81 crore and grew 10 per cent QoQ as compared to Rs 29.34 crore.

    ENIL reported 22.9 percent YoY increase in Total Income from Operations (TIO) in the quarter ended December 31, 2015 (Q3-2016, current quarter) at Rs 143.57 crore as compared to the Rs 117.69 crore and 23.5 percent higher QoQ as compared to Rs 116.27 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

    DB Corp’s My FMrevenue increased 25.8 percent YoY at Rs 32.32 crore as compared to Rs 25.69 crore) and a  34.9 percent QoQ  growth as compared to Rs 23.96 crore.

    TV Today’s Network Limited radio segment Oye! reported49.4 percent YoY decline in operating revenue at Rs 2.02 crore as compared to Rs 4.00 crore, and 22.5 percent lower operating revenue as compared to Rs 2.61 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

    MBL’s (Radio City) profit after tax (PAT) in Q3-2016 declined 5.4 per cent YoY to Rs 16.17 crore (25 per cent margin) as compared to Rs 17.10 crore (30.3 per cent margin), but increased by more than a third (increased by 34.2 per cent) from Rs 12.05 crore (21.7 per cent margin). PAT for 9M-2016 declined 30.7 per cent to Rs 25.99 crore (15.5 per cent margin) from Rs 37.53 crore (24.9 per cent margin) in the corresponding period of the previous year.

    Dhamaal’s operating profit in Q3-2016 was less than a third (down 68.1 per cent) QoQ at Rs 0.23 crore as compared to Rs 0.73 crore and less than a fourth (down 75.5 per cent) YoY as compared to Rs 0.94 crore in Q2-2015.

    Fever reported 21 per cent decline in operating profit in Q3-2016 at Rs 7.46 crore as compared to Rs 9.44 crore, but was 94.3 per cent more QoQ than of Rs 3.84 crore.

    ENIL’s profit after tax (PAT) in Q3-2016 declined 18.8 percent to Rs 26.99 crore (18.8 percent margin) as compared to Rs 32.84 crore (28.1 percent margin) and was flat QoQ as compared to Rs 26.97 crore (23.2 percent margin) in Q2-2016. The company had entered the Rs 100 crore PAT club in FY-2015 with a PAT of Rs 105.98 crore (24.2 percent margin) on a TIO of Rs 483.48 crore.

    My FM reported almost double the operating profit (grew by 98.7 percent) QoQ at Rs 12 crore as compared to Rs 6.04 crore and increased 27.1 percent YoY as compared to Rs 9.44 crore.

    Oye! loss in the current quarter was higher at Rs2.54 crore as compared to the operating loss of Rs1.94 crore in Q3-2015 but lower than the operating loss of Rs 5.48 crore in Q2-2016.

  • Q2-2016: TRAI Report: YoY and QoQ Radio ad revenue up 23 per cent

    Q2-2016: TRAI Report: YoY and QoQ Radio ad revenue up 23 per cent

    BENGALURU:  The radio industry in India has reported the highest advertisement revenue so far for the quarter ended September 30, 2015 (Q2-2016) as per the latest TRAI report. Advertisement revenue in Q2-2016 reported to TRAI by 236 radio stations was Rs 481.56 crore, or Rs2.04 crore per station. The ad revenue per station reported in Q2-2016 increased 23.17 per cent year-on-year (YoY) as compared to Rs 1.66 crore in (Rs 399.26 crore reported by 241 radio stations) Q2-2015 and 23.81 per cent quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) as compared to Rs 1.65 crore (Rs 393.9 crore reported by 239 radio stations) in the immediate trailing quarter.

    Before Q2-2016, the previous highest ad revenue was Rs 443.17 crore reported by 241 radio stations in Q3-2015 orRs 1.84 crore per station.

    Note (1): (a)100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10 million = 1 crore

    (b) The author has taken the liberty to introduce a measure – average revenue per radio station. This is a rough yardstick and may not necessarily be indicative of a station or a networks performance, because factors such as geography and market conditions within the area of operations are among many that will also determine performance.

    (c) This report is skewed more towards general financial numbers in terms of revenue and results, and not operational performance.

    Trends across 18 consecutive quarters (four fiscal years, plus two quarters of the current fiscal)

    Please refer to Fig A below – Ad revenue per station has been calculated based on combined ad revenue figures disclosed by TRAI across 18 consecutive quarters starting Q1-2012 until Q2-2016. During the period, in general, ad revenue from radio stations shows an increasing linear trend as is indicted by the broken black trend line. Over the financial years 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015, it has been noted that ad revenue increases in the following order from lowest to highest – Q1, Q2, Q4, Q3. It may be noted that in fiscals 2012 and 2013 ad revenue per station was actually higher in Q4 than Q3, but in fiscals 2014 and 2015, it was highest in Q3.

    Fig B below shows how ad revenues have changed YoY and QoQ since Q1-2013 until Q2-2016 (across 14 quarters). During this periodboth the YoY and QoQincrease was highest in Q2-2016 at approximately 23 per cent plus each. The previous highest YoY increase was Q2-2014 at 21.31 per cent, while the previous highest QoQ increase was Q3-2013 at 18.85 per cent. While there has never been a YoY decline, in the case of QoQ, revenues have declined in Q1-2013, Q1-2014, Q4-2014, Q1-2015, Q4-2015 and Q1-2016, hence further substantiating the above observations that Q1 of a financial year generally has the lowest ad revenue in a fiscal, while Q3, which is the festival quarter in India, has the highest ad revenue. Further, the QoQ drop in Q4 was not steep, and hence Q4 over the past two fiscals has the next highest ad revenues.

    For the year ended March 31, 2015 (FY-2015), the numbers reported by the radio industry for the year were the probably the best (indiantelevision link, radioandusic link) until then. Despite an 8.88 percent QoQ (quarter on quarter) fall in average ad revenue per station in Q1-2016, the ad average revenue per station of Rs 1.65 crore was the best yet for the first quarter over a period of 4 years. In Q1-2015, YoY ad revenue grew 11.90 percent as compared to Q1-2014.Combined with the great Q2-2016 numbers, historical trends indicate that FY-2016 could be an even better year in terms of average revenue per station and overall revenues.

    As per the latest TRAI data, the sum of average ad revenues per station for the first two quarters of 2016 at Rs 3.69 crore is already 54.4 per cent of the average ad revenue per station of Rs 6.78 crore for fiscal 2015. As mentioned above, Q1 and Q2 generally report the lowest and second lowest ad revenues respectively in a financial year. Results reported by a few companies for the third quarter ended 31 December 2015 (Q3-2016) indicate that YoY and QoQ revenues have risen.  Add to this the revenue of the new stations acquired in phase III auctions if/once they start operations in the fourth quarter, the radio industry should report substantial revenue increases from FY-2016 onwards.

    Let us look at how a few radio networks performed.

    Note (2):  (a) This report considers PAT posted by 2 radio companies (ENIL – Radio Mirchi, 32 radio stations; JagranPrakashan – Radio City – 20 radio stations), along with operating results of DB Corp (My FM, 17 stations); B. A.G. Films (Radio Dhamaal, 10 stations); HT Media (Fever FM, 4 stations); and TV Today (Oye! FM, 6 stations), or a total of 6 radio networks that represent 89, or 36.63 percent of the 243 private FM radio stations in Q2-2016.

    (b) The Q3-2016 numbers of individual players in this report have been obtained from their filings with regulatory bodies, the TRAI number for Q3-2016 has been extrapolated and could prove to be inaccurate.

    (c)Revenues for the sample stations mean Total Income from Operations and generally include ad revenue and other operating revenues.

    (d) Phase III and other radio stations acquisitions: ENIL has received permission from the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) to acquire 4 stations from TV Today Network Limited (Oye! FM), viz., those at Amritsar, Patiala, Shimla and Jodhpur – which the company says have been/will be re-branded and re-launched shortly as Mirchi, adding to its North India network strength. With another 7 stations acquired in phase III auctions, the core Mirchi brand will now be available in 43 cities. There are/will be a total of 39 FM radio stations that JagranPrakashan Limited currently has. This includes the existing 20 radio stations plus 11 stations acquired in phase III auctions and 8 radio stations under the brand Radio Mantra.  Radio Mantra was earlier operated by Shri Puran Multimedia, Jagran’s promoter group. Besides, the group also runs a web radio network with 21 web radio streams under Planetradiocity.com.  During the Phase III auctions, DB Corp (My FM) acquired 14 frequencies, through which MY FM will extend its presence to seven states and 30 cities with 31 stations. HT Media acquired 10 radio frequencies during phase III auctions, taking its total radio stations to 14. However these changes are not considered here, for this report pertains to the period before all the new stations have started operations.

    (e) In mid-December 2015, Radio Mirchi added two more station, those at Amritsar and Patalia. It is presumed by the author that the addition of these two mare station brought in no significant addition to income to Radio Mirchi in Q3-2016, hence Radio Mirchi’s revenue per station has been calculated on the basis of 32 stations in this paper for that quarter. However, actual facts could be different.

    Entertainment Network India Limited (ENIL) that operates brand Radio Mirchi is the only separately listed radio company in India and one of the most profitable ones by far. It must be noted that in Q2-2016, ENIL’s revenue made up 50.6 per cent of the combined revenue of the six entities in this paper. In Q3-2016, ENIL contributed to 51.6 per cent of combined revenues. Other stations/radio brands of consequence, whose results are within the public domain have been considered in this report.

    Please refer to Fig C below. It may be noted that the figure of Rs2.30 crore in blue for All India ad revenue per station is a projection based on certain assumptions made by the author, and could be incorrect.

    In Q2-2016 (30 September 2015), combined revenues of the six entities in this report had increased 10.3 per cent YoY and had increased 15.5 per cent QoQ, much lower than the YoY andQoQ increases reported by TRAI (23.17 per cent and 23.81 per cent respectively)

    Combined revenues of the 89 radio stations run by the six entities increased 19.2 per cent YoY to Rs 278.16 crore in Q3-2016 (31 December 2016) as compared to Rs 233.41 crore and increased 21 per cent QoQ as compared to Rs 229.95 crore.

    Combined operating profit/PAT in Q3-2016 of the six entities declined 11.1 per cnt YoY to Rs 60.31 crore as compared to Rs 67.83 crore, but increased 36.6 per cent QoQ from Rs 44.15 crore.

    Music Broadcast Limited (MBL) which runs Radio City reported 14.9 YoY (year-on-year) growth in operating revenue for Q3-2016 at Rs 64.80 crore as compared to Rs 56.39 crore for the corresponding prior year quarter. Revenue in Q3-2016 was 16.7 per cent higher QoQ (quarter-on-quarter) as compared to Rs 55.54 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

    B. A. G. Films Limited Radio segment Radio Dhamaalreported 1.8 per cent QoQ drop in operating revenue growth at Rs 2.18 crore as compared to Rs 2.22 crore and 10 per cent YoY decline in revenue as compared to Rs2.43 crore.

    HT Media’s radio segment Fever 104 FM reported a 25 per cent YoY increase in operating revenue to Rs 32.26 crore as compared to Rs 28.81 crore and grew 10 per cent QoQ as compared to Rs 29.34 crore.

    ENIL reported 22.9 percent YoY increase in Total Income from Operations (TIO) in the quarter ended December 31, 2015 (Q3-2016, current quarter) at Rs 143.57 crore as compared to the Rs 117.69 crore and 23.5 percent higher QoQ as compared to Rs 116.27 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

    DB Corp’s My FMrevenue increased 25.8 percent YoY at Rs 32.32 crore as compared to Rs 25.69 crore) and a  34.9 percent QoQ  growth as compared to Rs 23.96 crore.

    TV Today’s Network Limited radio segment Oye! reported49.4 percent YoY decline in operating revenue at Rs 2.02 crore as compared to Rs 4.00 crore, and 22.5 percent lower operating revenue as compared to Rs 2.61 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

    MBL’s (Radio City) profit after tax (PAT) in Q3-2016 declined 5.4 per cent YoY to Rs 16.17 crore (25 per cent margin) as compared to Rs 17.10 crore (30.3 per cent margin), but increased by more than a third (increased by 34.2 per cent) from Rs 12.05 crore (21.7 per cent margin). PAT for 9M-2016 declined 30.7 per cent to Rs 25.99 crore (15.5 per cent margin) from Rs 37.53 crore (24.9 per cent margin) in the corresponding period of the previous year.

    Dhamaal’s operating profit in Q3-2016 was less than a third (down 68.1 per cent) QoQ at Rs 0.23 crore as compared to Rs 0.73 crore and less than a fourth (down 75.5 per cent) YoY as compared to Rs 0.94 crore in Q2-2015.

    Fever reported 21 per cent decline in operating profit in Q3-2016 at Rs 7.46 crore as compared to Rs 9.44 crore, but was 94.3 per cent more QoQ than of Rs 3.84 crore.

    ENIL’s profit after tax (PAT) in Q3-2016 declined 18.8 percent to Rs 26.99 crore (18.8 percent margin) as compared to Rs 32.84 crore (28.1 percent margin) and was flat QoQ as compared to Rs 26.97 crore (23.2 percent margin) in Q2-2016. The company had entered the Rs 100 crore PAT club in FY-2015 with a PAT of Rs 105.98 crore (24.2 percent margin) on a TIO of Rs 483.48 crore.

    My FM reported almost double the operating profit (grew by 98.7 percent) QoQ at Rs 12 crore as compared to Rs 6.04 crore and increased 27.1 percent YoY as compared to Rs 9.44 crore.

    Oye! loss in the current quarter was higher at Rs2.54 crore as compared to the operating loss of Rs1.94 crore in Q3-2015 but lower than the operating loss of Rs 5.48 crore in Q2-2016.

  • ‘There is a ‘church and state’ line between editorial and advertising’ :Sunita Rajan

    ‘There is a ‘church and state’ line between editorial and advertising’ :Sunita Rajan

    MUMBAI: Time and again news media, especially broadcast has come under scrutiny for compromising its editorial because of advertisers. Paid news and native advertising aren’t new to the industry and neither is the eternal debate between editorial and advertorial. Because the fact remains that the industry is heavily dependent on advertisers, and while selling content on entertainment channels is a task by itself, when it comes to news channel or other news media, it’s a completely different ballgame.

    While people are quick to point fingers and accuse media for being ‘sold’ and its content being ‘paid news’, they seldom look at it from the shoes of those who perform the tough balancing act of editorial and advertising sales and keep the machine running so more news is produced and reported.

    To understand how a popular mainstream media goes about doing its ‘business’ while ensuring that its editorial credibility is intact, indiantelevision.com’s Papri Das got in touch with CNN International advertising sales asia pacific VP Sunita Rajan to get some expert insight.

    A key member of the CNN International team, Rajan has been tasked with setting the business strategy to drive advertising revenue for CNN’s global portfolio of multi-platform products among Asia Pacific based advertisers. With an emphasis on integrated advertiser solutions across the full range of CNN’s linear and non-linear properties, she is responsible for managing strategic relationships and brand partnerships. 

    Excerpts from the interaction:

    With broadcast news being heavily dependent on advertising revenue, how does CNN go about creating news content without falling prey to native advertorials?

    I would like to break the response down in three parts. Firstly, as an advertising sales person, I don’t manage or control editorial. That’s part of the business agreement. My role is to run the business which is advertising and sales across the Asia pacific region. I think the best analogy to describe how we look at this is that there should be church and state lines between editorial and advertising. CNN is very clear about it. There is no blurring of those lines. 

    We have maintained that we keep our audiences at the heart of what we do. Our editorial ensures that every piece of content that we produce is of value to the audiences. We don’t make the news, we report the news. 

    Even in the features, long form and analysis pieces that we do, we are mindful and also extremely stringent about selecting the stories that we believe are of value to the audiences. For example, our series on Silk Route, or even a lifestyle series.

    Can you explain the business model for CNN international?

    Our business model for CNN international is of ad sales and content sales. The other stream of revenue is business development which we have initiated in the last couple of years. The three key pillars of all streams of revenue are distribution, content and ad sales.

    What happens when a piece of editorial content has a conflict of interest with an advertiser?

    I wouldn’t say there is a conflict of interest because we are not kept informed of what editorial does. Marketing and ad sales never get into the editorial meets. The only space where there’s a discussion or interface it is with the number of features content that we do special seasons or theme weeks. There are times when the editorial highlights or showcases a particular country. We have a number of franchises, like On The Road, which is focusing on India this time as its relevant to our audiences. India is being talked about and with Modi’s Make In India falling into place, the youth and their aspiration need to be looked at.

    What brings advertisers to CNN?

    We go and talk to brands and partners, we build commercial partnerships. What we sell to clients and what we bring to the conversation is the brand proposition. We talk about our audiences, scale and size, texture and profile and a bit of what these audiences care about and why they consume content on CNN, how they come to CNN for its unique content and CNN as a platform. To be honest, what brands are buying is the quality of the audience, the profile of the audience, and that’s what we showcase when we going for a pitch.

    How do you react to advertisers wanting to get an editorial favour as part of an advertising deal?

    We don’t promise the clients editorial coverage if that is what you are asking. I think the reason the clients come into conversations with CNN is because they recognise the value of the brand and they recognise the principles that CNN as an international platform adheres to. They come to us because of that integrity and the value we bring to the table, and not because they think they can influence the editorial. There are a number of channels that do operate with that market behaviour probably

    From the ad sales point of view, for me and my team, it is our job to identify themes and content relevant to the client. For example we have CNN Money, which is an online vertical that CNN operates and that’s our business proposition as well. It’s about how we present to our audience, what is unique about the content for brands and advertisers, the differentiation between how we capture the story and how others do it. Because we are not just focused in the stock markets, we go beyond that and talk about the aspirational values of stories and stories on finance and wealth etc.

    How different is advertising sales in news channels from that of other entertainment broadcasters?

    Ad sales for news, whether it’s international market or local news is very different from general entertainment channels and sports channels. Those brands and their content are very much a point of view. News, on the other hand is a must have; a daily habit. You dip in and out of it but it’s 24 by 7. It’s less about the specific show. Yes, we do have content on a specific time, be it daily weekly or monthly.  We do offer certain programs for sponsorships, everything except for news and current affairs and business as it can’t be sponsored in Europe like everywhere else. We don’t necessarily take one program to the market and ask for a sponsor for it. That’s because’ when you are buying news, you are buying the brands reach and not its audience at 7 pm or 9 pm like entertainment channels. Now advertisers may choose to place their advertisement at a specific time of the day. That’s where I come in and recommend what the media schedule will look like and which programming would be more relevant to the brand. 

    But there are editorial events such as Heroes which is a very popular franchise and is in its 10th year this year. Or a republican debate, which we do sell as a big point of view. It has specific time bands and exclusives with CNN, so an occasion such as that is sold as a standalone property.

    How important is TV viewership ratings to you from an ad sales perspective? 

    Whole news brands and channels always had a good proportion of viewership command, it is not always that a news broadcaster focuses its ad sales or the opportunity to associate with brands just based on television ratings. We don’t sell on ratings but the reach of the channel across a week and also the context or the value of the environment. It is very much a brands sale than ‘how many people are watching or engaging with the channel.’

    Both in India and in other markets, it is also about brands looking for an international platform and reach. I am not saying that we are not getting the BRAC ratings, but we are not selling on just the BARC ratings. We also very much have a multiscreen and multiplatform presence, be it on TV, desktop or the mobile or through a responsive website. 

    There are a number of digital platforms in India that have started aggregating short form video content on news that audiences can consume on demand. Are they competition to conventional news broadcasters when it comes to the digital footprint?

    From a business owner perspective and media owner perspective, one needs to be able to be where the audiences are, be it on an investment scale or technology scale that drives one’s content. And to be where the audiences are, you need to serve where they consume the content. Rather than concentrating on just creating programming, it is important to recognise who your audiences are, where are they consuming content and what kind of content they prefer. Not forgetting your primary audience on television, it is also increasingly necessary to evolve so that you have as many touch points with your audiences as possible.

    As far as CNN is concerned we look at it positively. It comes as an advantage to have worked in a global market. We own the content we produce and showcase so we work with a number of platforms and partner with them, whether it’s Facebook, Youtube or Snapchat. While we see our content through such platforms, we also aggregate our own content, providing it to enrich the user experience, and driving audiences. So a number of these technology platforms have recognised the value of working with CNN. We don’t see them as threats but as opportunities. 

  • ‘There is a ‘church and state’ line between editorial and advertising’ :Sunita Rajan

    ‘There is a ‘church and state’ line between editorial and advertising’ :Sunita Rajan

    MUMBAI: Time and again news media, especially broadcast has come under scrutiny for compromising its editorial because of advertisers. Paid news and native advertising aren’t new to the industry and neither is the eternal debate between editorial and advertorial. Because the fact remains that the industry is heavily dependent on advertisers, and while selling content on entertainment channels is a task by itself, when it comes to news channel or other news media, it’s a completely different ballgame.

    While people are quick to point fingers and accuse media for being ‘sold’ and its content being ‘paid news’, they seldom look at it from the shoes of those who perform the tough balancing act of editorial and advertising sales and keep the machine running so more news is produced and reported.

    To understand how a popular mainstream media goes about doing its ‘business’ while ensuring that its editorial credibility is intact, indiantelevision.com’s Papri Das got in touch with CNN International advertising sales asia pacific VP Sunita Rajan to get some expert insight.

    A key member of the CNN International team, Rajan has been tasked with setting the business strategy to drive advertising revenue for CNN’s global portfolio of multi-platform products among Asia Pacific based advertisers. With an emphasis on integrated advertiser solutions across the full range of CNN’s linear and non-linear properties, she is responsible for managing strategic relationships and brand partnerships. 

    Excerpts from the interaction:

    With broadcast news being heavily dependent on advertising revenue, how does CNN go about creating news content without falling prey to native advertorials?

    I would like to break the response down in three parts. Firstly, as an advertising sales person, I don’t manage or control editorial. That’s part of the business agreement. My role is to run the business which is advertising and sales across the Asia pacific region. I think the best analogy to describe how we look at this is that there should be church and state lines between editorial and advertising. CNN is very clear about it. There is no blurring of those lines. 

    We have maintained that we keep our audiences at the heart of what we do. Our editorial ensures that every piece of content that we produce is of value to the audiences. We don’t make the news, we report the news. 

    Even in the features, long form and analysis pieces that we do, we are mindful and also extremely stringent about selecting the stories that we believe are of value to the audiences. For example, our series on Silk Route, or even a lifestyle series.

    Can you explain the business model for CNN international?

    Our business model for CNN international is of ad sales and content sales. The other stream of revenue is business development which we have initiated in the last couple of years. The three key pillars of all streams of revenue are distribution, content and ad sales.

    What happens when a piece of editorial content has a conflict of interest with an advertiser?

    I wouldn’t say there is a conflict of interest because we are not kept informed of what editorial does. Marketing and ad sales never get into the editorial meets. The only space where there’s a discussion or interface it is with the number of features content that we do special seasons or theme weeks. There are times when the editorial highlights or showcases a particular country. We have a number of franchises, like On The Road, which is focusing on India this time as its relevant to our audiences. India is being talked about and with Modi’s Make In India falling into place, the youth and their aspiration need to be looked at.

    What brings advertisers to CNN?

    We go and talk to brands and partners, we build commercial partnerships. What we sell to clients and what we bring to the conversation is the brand proposition. We talk about our audiences, scale and size, texture and profile and a bit of what these audiences care about and why they consume content on CNN, how they come to CNN for its unique content and CNN as a platform. To be honest, what brands are buying is the quality of the audience, the profile of the audience, and that’s what we showcase when we going for a pitch.

    How do you react to advertisers wanting to get an editorial favour as part of an advertising deal?

    We don’t promise the clients editorial coverage if that is what you are asking. I think the reason the clients come into conversations with CNN is because they recognise the value of the brand and they recognise the principles that CNN as an international platform adheres to. They come to us because of that integrity and the value we bring to the table, and not because they think they can influence the editorial. There are a number of channels that do operate with that market behaviour probably

    From the ad sales point of view, for me and my team, it is our job to identify themes and content relevant to the client. For example we have CNN Money, which is an online vertical that CNN operates and that’s our business proposition as well. It’s about how we present to our audience, what is unique about the content for brands and advertisers, the differentiation between how we capture the story and how others do it. Because we are not just focused in the stock markets, we go beyond that and talk about the aspirational values of stories and stories on finance and wealth etc.

    How different is advertising sales in news channels from that of other entertainment broadcasters?

    Ad sales for news, whether it’s international market or local news is very different from general entertainment channels and sports channels. Those brands and their content are very much a point of view. News, on the other hand is a must have; a daily habit. You dip in and out of it but it’s 24 by 7. It’s less about the specific show. Yes, we do have content on a specific time, be it daily weekly or monthly.  We do offer certain programs for sponsorships, everything except for news and current affairs and business as it can’t be sponsored in Europe like everywhere else. We don’t necessarily take one program to the market and ask for a sponsor for it. That’s because’ when you are buying news, you are buying the brands reach and not its audience at 7 pm or 9 pm like entertainment channels. Now advertisers may choose to place their advertisement at a specific time of the day. That’s where I come in and recommend what the media schedule will look like and which programming would be more relevant to the brand. 

    But there are editorial events such as Heroes which is a very popular franchise and is in its 10th year this year. Or a republican debate, which we do sell as a big point of view. It has specific time bands and exclusives with CNN, so an occasion such as that is sold as a standalone property.

    How important is TV viewership ratings to you from an ad sales perspective? 

    Whole news brands and channels always had a good proportion of viewership command, it is not always that a news broadcaster focuses its ad sales or the opportunity to associate with brands just based on television ratings. We don’t sell on ratings but the reach of the channel across a week and also the context or the value of the environment. It is very much a brands sale than ‘how many people are watching or engaging with the channel.’

    Both in India and in other markets, it is also about brands looking for an international platform and reach. I am not saying that we are not getting the BRAC ratings, but we are not selling on just the BARC ratings. We also very much have a multiscreen and multiplatform presence, be it on TV, desktop or the mobile or through a responsive website. 

    There are a number of digital platforms in India that have started aggregating short form video content on news that audiences can consume on demand. Are they competition to conventional news broadcasters when it comes to the digital footprint?

    From a business owner perspective and media owner perspective, one needs to be able to be where the audiences are, be it on an investment scale or technology scale that drives one’s content. And to be where the audiences are, you need to serve where they consume the content. Rather than concentrating on just creating programming, it is important to recognise who your audiences are, where are they consuming content and what kind of content they prefer. Not forgetting your primary audience on television, it is also increasingly necessary to evolve so that you have as many touch points with your audiences as possible.

    As far as CNN is concerned we look at it positively. It comes as an advantage to have worked in a global market. We own the content we produce and showcase so we work with a number of platforms and partner with them, whether it’s Facebook, Youtube or Snapchat. While we see our content through such platforms, we also aggregate our own content, providing it to enrich the user experience, and driving audiences. So a number of these technology platforms have recognised the value of working with CNN. We don’t see them as threats but as opportunities. 

  • Balaji Telefilms’ ‘Naagin,’ a slithering success for Colors

    Balaji Telefilms’ ‘Naagin,’ a slithering success for Colors

    MUMBAI: Balaji Telefilms’ fiction show Naagin has swiftly slithered above competition with its special effects, storyline and star cast. Just 30 episodes old, Naagin has left behind all the saas-bahu dramas and has been the number one show with maximum ratings proving to be a game changer for Colors.

    In the first week of launch itself, the weekend fiction show Naagin overtook the top five programmes on Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs). Additionally, Naagin also became one of the first weekend shows, which totted more ratings than top rated weekdays shows.

    A source close to the development informs Indiantelevision.com that the per episode expenditure of the show is between Rs 20 – 25 lakh. On the ad rates front, Naagin commands Rs 1.5 lakh for a 10 second slot.

    Colors has roped in Chutki as the presenting sponsor for the show.

    A media planning expert on condition of anonymity said, “Fifty per cent of the ad inventory must have been allotted to the sponsors and the remaining 50 per cent is what Colors is selling at around Rs 1.5 lakh per 10 second. My assessment suggests that from the 50 per cent, Colors could easily be raking in around Rs 50 lakh, which is a great number and that is why we are seeing multiple channels bringing in the same concept in different ways.”

    Though the concept is not new to the audience, Balaji Telefilms’ portrayal of the story is commendable, which is what sets it apart from the others. The show is loaded with outstanding VFX effects, offering an authentic film-like experience, which only means more cost.

    Another senior media planner opined, “Just because one show is working, we cannot generalise. Different genres are working so the content has to be strong, interesting and has to be told in a different manner. That said, if Naagin is working, it doesn’t mean that the supernatural trend is working on Indian television. It has a supernatural element but it’s all about the presentation and storyline, hence everything has to work together.”

    As was earlier reported by Indiantelevision.com, Naagin glided to the numero uno position in the Top 5 programs on Hindi GECs with 15676 (‘000s) in its launch (week 44 of 2015) beating Star Plus’ prime time show Saath Nibhaana Saathiya, Zee TV’s Kumkum Bhagya, Colors’ weekday prime time show Sasural Simar Ka and Zee Anmol’s Ek Se Bhale Do. Naagin show saw a rise in ratings in its first day telecast in its second week (week 45) with 16,741 (‘000s) while on the second day telecast, the ratings fell to 12,761 (‘00os).

    That said, according to the latest week BARC India ratings data (week 6 of 2016), Naagin is still comfortably coiled on top of the chart with 20680 (‘000s).

  • Balaji Telefilms’ ‘Naagin,’ a slithering success for Colors

    Balaji Telefilms’ ‘Naagin,’ a slithering success for Colors

    MUMBAI: Balaji Telefilms’ fiction show Naagin has swiftly slithered above competition with its special effects, storyline and star cast. Just 30 episodes old, Naagin has left behind all the saas-bahu dramas and has been the number one show with maximum ratings proving to be a game changer for Colors.

    In the first week of launch itself, the weekend fiction show Naagin overtook the top five programmes on Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs). Additionally, Naagin also became one of the first weekend shows, which totted more ratings than top rated weekdays shows.

    A source close to the development informs Indiantelevision.com that the per episode expenditure of the show is between Rs 20 – 25 lakh. On the ad rates front, Naagin commands Rs 1.5 lakh for a 10 second slot.

    Colors has roped in Chutki as the presenting sponsor for the show.

    A media planning expert on condition of anonymity said, “Fifty per cent of the ad inventory must have been allotted to the sponsors and the remaining 50 per cent is what Colors is selling at around Rs 1.5 lakh per 10 second. My assessment suggests that from the 50 per cent, Colors could easily be raking in around Rs 50 lakh, which is a great number and that is why we are seeing multiple channels bringing in the same concept in different ways.”

    Though the concept is not new to the audience, Balaji Telefilms’ portrayal of the story is commendable, which is what sets it apart from the others. The show is loaded with outstanding VFX effects, offering an authentic film-like experience, which only means more cost.

    Another senior media planner opined, “Just because one show is working, we cannot generalise. Different genres are working so the content has to be strong, interesting and has to be told in a different manner. That said, if Naagin is working, it doesn’t mean that the supernatural trend is working on Indian television. It has a supernatural element but it’s all about the presentation and storyline, hence everything has to work together.”

    As was earlier reported by Indiantelevision.com, Naagin glided to the numero uno position in the Top 5 programs on Hindi GECs with 15676 (‘000s) in its launch (week 44 of 2015) beating Star Plus’ prime time show Saath Nibhaana Saathiya, Zee TV’s Kumkum Bhagya, Colors’ weekday prime time show Sasural Simar Ka and Zee Anmol’s Ek Se Bhale Do. Naagin show saw a rise in ratings in its first day telecast in its second week (week 45) with 16,741 (‘000s) while on the second day telecast, the ratings fell to 12,761 (‘00os).

    That said, according to the latest week BARC India ratings data (week 6 of 2016), Naagin is still comfortably coiled on top of the chart with 20680 (‘000s).

  • Sony Pictures Networks India eyes Rs 1200 crore revenue from IPL; 80% inventory sold

    Sony Pictures Networks India eyes Rs 1200 crore revenue from IPL; 80% inventory sold

    MUMBAI: The latest instalment of cricket’s flagship franchise – the Indian Premier League (IPL) is almost here and the official broadcaster Sony Pictures Networks (SPN) India is going all guns blazing when it comes to getting advertisers on board.

    With almost 80 per cent of the ad inventory sold, the broadcaster is eyeing revenue of Rs 1200 crore from this season of the IPL.

    An upbeat SPN India president Rohit Gupta tells Indiantelevision.com, “We have mostly sold out our entire inventory. All the big spots are locked and we are in the last stages of talks with a few advertisers. We will be in a position to announce them in a day or two.”

    E-commerce giant Amazon, which upped itself as the presenting sponsor of the tourney last year, will continue to be a presenting sponsor this year too along with telco Vodafone and a new entrant in the category Oppo.

    “We increased the number of presenting sponsors from two to three this year because of the huge demand. Mobile phone manufacturers Oppo has come on board this time as a presenting sponsor and it’s great that new associations are continuing. It shows the growing interest level in the tournament,” says Gupta.

    Other sponsors that have been roped in include Freecharge, Coca Cola, Ceat Tyres, Tata Sky, Vimal Pan Masala and Raymond Suitings. 

    “Freecharge is a new inclusion this year. We also have a few advertisers who went off for a brief period but have returned this year again, which is an encouraging sign. Coke has also come on board for the first time and hence we continue to have a cola brand associated with the tourney. We are in final stages of talks with a two wheeler and a four wheeler brand and it’s likely that they will be on board too. This will mark the presence of an automobile brand too,” reveals Gupta.

    For the uninitiated, Pepsi was the title sponsor for the IPL for xx seasons but severed its association last year and hence 2016 will be the first time that rival beverage brand Coca Cola has decided to come on board.

    When queried about the revenue that SPN India is eyeing from the IPL this year, Gupta refrained from commenting on the financials. However, a source close to the development said that the network has hiked its ad rates by 15 to 20 per cent and is hopeful of raking in around Rs 1200 crore in ad revenue.

    The source says, “For a 10 second ad slot, the network is charging between Rs 5.5 lakh to Rs 6 lakh, which is 15 to 20 per cent more than what they were charging last year.”

    IPL will be telecast in four different language this year. Besides Hindi and English, there will be a Tamil and Telugu feed as well to cater to the southern audience. However, the network is not monetising the regional feed separately. “We don’t monetise regional feeds separately. We will go ahead the way did last year,” asserts Gupta.

    A senior sports media planning expert on condition of anonymity says, “Rs 1200 crore this year means a 20 per cent jump from what they raked in last year, which is realistic as well as encouraging for the broadcaster. IPL has two new teams this year, therefore the sport will have a fresh and unwatched element in it. I think that has worked in favor of the broadcaster. Skepticism that were developing after the ban on Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals are now all dealt with. Placed right at the beginning of a financial year, IPL has established itself to be a great avenue to garner eyeballs and it manages to sustain its trends too, which is great.”

    SPN has the broadcasting rights of IPL till 2017. The network acquired the rights for 10 years for a massive $1 billion, (Rs 6600 crore). Experts predict that the new acquisition cost, when the rights come under the hammer again, will be at least double of what it fetched last time round.