Tag: KKR

Emerald Media buys controlling stake in Cosmos-Maya

Mumbai: Cosmos-Maya, the market leader in IP-led Indian kid’s animation content, has received a shot in the arm as it now tries to cast the net wider in the global market. Emerald Media, the Pan-Asia company backed by global investment firm KKR, has acquired a controlling stake in Cosmos-Maya through a combination of primary and secondary stake acquisition. The capital from this investment will help the animation company with strategic growth initiatives and creating global IPs to further increase its footprint across the world.

Promoted by filmmakers Ketan Mehta and Deepa Sahi, Cosmos-Maya has been one of the pioneers in the art and technology of animation and visual effects in India. Over the last five years, the company has produced more than a 1000 half-hour segments of animated content. It has multiple ongoing productions with major television and digital platforms, including Viacom18, Disney Networks, Turner International, Sony Pictures Network, Discovery Networks, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and ALT Balaji.

The creators of the Motu Patlu animation series, a popular Indian kids’ show, Cosmos-Maya has a line-up of nine TV shows on air, including Shiva, Eena Meena Deeka, Kisna, ViR – The Robot Boy, Guru Aur Bhole, Chacha Bhatija, Tik Tak Tail and Selfie with Bajrangi.

Cosmos-Maya founder and managing director Ketan Mehta said, “The vision for Cosmos-Maya has always been to become a cutting-edge media technology company creating quality Indian content for the global market. The company will benefit greatly with a partner like Emerald Media, which has a strong understanding of the entertainment, broadcast and the OTT space. Through the capital infused, the company intends to develop international projects while leveraging the media relationships of Emerald to expand its global footprint.”

The company is also working on three international co-productions—Captain Cactus, Atchoo! and Help me Ganesha—in different stages of production and development. Cosmos-Maya targets audiences globally through its own YouTube channel, WowKidz, which has already become one of the fastest-growing channels for kids’ content with more than 2 million active subscribers and over 2 billion cumulative views since its launch in 2016.

“Cosmos-Maya has created and owns the content for some of the most popular kids’ shows and, hence, has its finger on the pulse of a very captive and influential audience. With the company now focused on the development of content, that crosses geographies, it is poised for growth on a global stage—not to mention the added opportunity of brand expansion and merchandising for its properties. This investment is a great addition to Emerald Media’s growing portfolio as it aligns with our vision of creating an ecosystem that caters to audiences of all age groups,” said Emerald Media managing director Rajesh Kamat.

Cosmos-Maya CEO Anish Mehta added, “With its successful and sizeable IP bank, strong business associations, a passionate team and the constant quest for quality—combined with the capital, domain knowledge and management bandwidth that Emerald Media brings on board—Cosmos-Maya is now poised for a global 360-degree approach to grow and monetise its brands through content, media, marketing, distribution, licensing and retail to markets, for kids across the world.”

January 11, 2018
KKR grew 24% as IPL value reaches US$ 3.8 bn, challenging times ahead

MUMBAI: Even as the business value of the IPL system grew 9% to US$3.8 billion, KKR, worth US$58.6 million, is the IPL’s ‘Most Valuable Brand’ despite missing out on the title this year.

Mumbai Indians has the most powerful brand and Royal Challengers Bangalore’s is the only brand to fall in rank, according to Brand Finance.

Since 2009, it has calculated both the business value of the Indian Premier League system and the brand values of each individual franchise team, providing a deep understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing the teams and the IPL system as a whole.

Being the fastest growth year to year of 24%, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) tops the Brand Finance IPL league table for the second year in a row. Despite missing out on the title, KKR has continues to consistent qualify for the playoff stages. The team has displayed strong leadership skills, team bonding, and a clear approach to composition and winning tactics.

This year, however, surprising player choices in the playoffs did not pay off as KKR lost to Mumbai Indians in the second qualifier. KKR has its owner Shah Rukh Khan to thank for a larger part of its popular appeal. The Bollywood superstar attracts incredible media attention and fan following, acting as an icon for the entire franchise.

Depending heavily on Khan’s personal brand equity and connections, KKR lands a host of local and national sponsorships and has been one of the first to introduce an effective merchandising strategy.

This year’s champions, Mumbai Indians (MI) are the most powerful brand among all franchises, with a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 71. As part of Brand Finance’s analysis, each brand’s strength is assessed (based on factors such as marketing investment, familiarity, preference, sustainability and margins) to determine what proportion of a business’s revenue is contributed by the brand. This proportion is projected into perpetuity and discounted to determine the brand’s value. Despite creating the strongest brand, Mumbai Indians have been less adept at capitalising on this strength than KKR.

At US$54.1 million MI’s brand value is over US$4.5 million behind KKR. MI must do more to convert its unrivalled brand strength into maximum financial returns and brand value.

Impressive growth of 23% to a brand value of US$46.5 million landed Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in third place, up from the fourth position last year. In 2017, SRH continued to be the most balanced team in terms of the ratio between overseas stars and high-performing Indian players, investing especially in young, emerging talent.

With a brand value of US$44.4 million, up only 4% year on year, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) fall to 4th place. As a team, RCB had a forgettable year in 2017, which is reflected in the decrease of the BSI to 64 from 66 in 2016. RCB is the only franchise brand whose strength waned this season.

Delhi Daredevils (DD) hold to 5th place in the study with a brand value of US$40.5 million, following growth of 13%. Zaheer Khan’s charismatic leadership infused a newfound spirit into the team and new talents such as Rishab Pant drove the team very close to playoffs, attracting praise from pundits and critics as well as a massive fan following far beyond Delhi.

Kings XI Punjab has a brand value of US$36.2 million, putting it in last place. However, solid 18% growth hints at the brand’s relative success this year. Under the leadership of Glen Maxwell, the team was a force to be reckoned with.

After a troubled 2016 season, the business value of the IPL System grew 9% in 2017 to US$3.8 billion. Celebrating 10 years of the IPL journey, opening ceremonies took place at all host stadiums this year, with a whole array of Bollywood entertainers and local cricketing celebrities. As the season progressed, fans without tickets could watch the competition in ‘Fan Parks’ in 36 cities across the country. Family-friendly and free to attend for all, Fan Parks offered music, entertainment, and a range of merchandise stalls, bringing stadium atmosphere to city centres on a scale larger than ever.

The quality of the game did not disappoint either, improving ticket sales and enabling the teams to build brand equity. The emergence of strong contenders such as the Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab, challenging the usually dominant Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians, resulted in a seesaw in the points table throughout the season. The emergence of relatively unknown young Indian players created further interest. Young guns such as Nitesh Rana, Rahul Tripathi, Washington Sundar, Rishabh Pant, Basil Thampi, and Mohammed Siraj, all began to build powerful personal brands, whilst adding to the interest in and value of the competition as a whole.

Overall, stadium attendance increased 25% from 2016 even before the season was over, while last year’s television viewership numbers were beaten by the time match 43 of this season had been played. Social media engagement reached an all-time high, with nearly six million tweets sent over the season’s first five weeks.

Brand Finance India managing director Ajimon Francis comments, “The 10th anniversary year is an inflection point for the IPL. The upcoming tender procedure for television and digital broadcast rights, the disbanding of Gujarat Lions and Rising Pune Supergiant and the revival of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals, as well as the unavoidable reshuffling of players all present challenges for the management of the IPL. However, this year’s results show that the IPL is now operating from solid financial and reputational foundations, with increasing fan interest and engagement. The future looks bright.”

May 31, 2017
RCB – KKR match had the highest ratings of week 17 IPL duels

BENGALURU: That the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) team is out of the race for the playoffs of IPL 2017 is a given. With only one match remaining, all that the team under one of the most exciting cricketers in the world – Indian test and limited overs captain Virat Kohli, the team can only improve upon its dismal showing of just 5 points – 2 wins and 1 no result from the 10 matches it has played so far. And yet, because RCB has one of the finest teams comprising of some of the who’s who of the global cricketing fraternity, the broadcast of the matches that the team has played have managed to draw a huge number of eyeballs.

As per Broadcast Audience Research Council of India (BARC) 17 of 2017 week (Saturday, 22 April 2017 to Friday, 28 April 2017), IPL match 27 on Sunday, 23 April between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) vs RCB garnered the highest weekly Impressions of 26,096 (000s) Sums on Sony Max, Sony Six, Sony ESPN (SD + HD). Of the 9 matches (9 matches plus one wash out) that were aired in week 17, another RCB match – match 31 on Thursday, 27 April – RCB’s encounter Gujarat Lions (GL) drew the fourth largest cricket audiences in the week with Impressions of 23,232 (000s) Sums. Yes, RCB did manage to put on a very poor performance and lost both the matches

The next best ratings for week 17 were those for match 30 on Wednesday, 26 April between Rising Pune Supergiant (RTS) and KKR with Impressions of 26,083 (000s) Sums on the same Sony Network channels. Match 28 on Monday 24 April between RPS and Mumbai Indians (MI) managed the third most viewers with Impressions of 24,778 (000s) Sums.

May 8, 2017
IPL fever set to grip fans

MUMBAI: The adventure of VIVO Indian Premier League season 10 is finally going to start today. To be telecast on Sony Pictures Network and streamed online on Hotstar (mobile and internet with a 5-minute delay) in the Indian subcontinent, this is the 10th edition of IPL in which eight teams are participating and the cricket fans will be able to see players of different team playing in their respective teams.

Today, at the beginning of the India’s most popular sporting event, the opening match will be played between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket stadium in Hyderabad.

The eight captains of the 2017 VIVO IPL got together in Hyderabad for a formal meet and greet with the IPL match officials. They discussed different aspects of the game and the tournament that will be played over the course of the next 47 days. IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla joined everyone over teleconference and addressed certain issues and doubts.

Later, all captains pledged their allegiance to the Marylebone Cricket Club’s (MCC) Spirit of Cricket campaign by signing the spirit of cricket bat. The skippers, one after another, trooped onto the stage as their names were called by former Indian skipper Ravi Shastri, who conducted this part of the event.

A panel of elite commentators will be behind the microphone in the 2017 edition of the VIVO IPL bringing to life the colour and flavour of the tournament. As many as 20 commentators will be traveling across the country to lend their perspective on the game across 10 different venues. A few additions to the list along with a blend of veterans are bound to give the cricket loving fan a fine view point of the game from the technical and entertainment aspect.

Hand in hand with its breakthrough 10th season, the Indian Premier League is set to re-activate its immensely popular Fan Park initiative for the third consecutive year. As befits the landmark 10th season of the IPL, the latest edition of the Fan Park promises to be bigger and better.

Money generated from TV/media rights sale is divided into two shares. A) IPL share, B) Franchise Share.

A) IPL Share: IPL will get 20% of the media rights money in the first two years of IPL but set to reach 40% by 5th year onwards.

B) Franchise Share: In the two years, 80% of total media rights money will be divided equally among all teams but it will be reduce to 60% by 5th year onwards.

So the biggest source of revenue generation in IPL is “TV media rights sale”. Back in 2008 when Sony signed a record breaking 10 year deal with BCCI for IPL rights they agreed to pay $1.02 billion over the 10-year contract. Sony will be paying 10% of the total agreed amount ($100 million) every year till 2018.

So of $100 million, $60 million is distributed equally among IPL teams every year while $40 million is kept by IPL governing body.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had announced the fixtures of the League. The schedule has been designed with each team playing 14 matches – 7 of them at home venues.

The season will also witness IPL returning to Indore for the first time since 2011. The final will be played at Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium – on Sunday, May 21st, 2017.

VIVO Indian Premier League 2017 fixtures

1st Match – Sun Risers Hyderabad vs Royal Challengers Bangalore IPL T20 2017

Date- 05/04/2017
Time – 20:00(Local)
Vs Venue
Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium

2nd Match – Rising Pune Supergiants vs Mumbai Indians IPL T20 2017

Date- 06/04/2017
Time – 20:00(Local)
Vs
Venue
Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium

3rd Match – Gujarat Lions vs Kolkata Knight Riders IPL T20 2017

Date- 07/04/2017
Time – 20:00(Local)
Vs Venue
Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium

4th Match – Kings XI Punjab vs Rising Pune Supergiants IPL T20 2017

Date- 08/04/2017
Time – 16:00(Local)
Vs Venue
Holkar Cricket Stadium

5th Match – Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Delhi Daredevils IPL T20 2017

Date- 08/04/2017
Time – 20:00(Local)
Vs Venue
M. Chinnaswamy Stadium

6th Match – Sun Risers Hyderabad vs Gujarat Lions IPL T20 2017

Date- 09/04/2017
Time – 16:00(Local)
Vs Venue
Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium

7th Match – Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders IPL T20 2017

Date- 09/04/2017
Time – 20:00(Local)
Vs Venue
Wankhede Stadium

8th Match – Kings XI Punjab vs Royal Challengers Bangalore IPL T20 2017

Date- 10/04/2017
Time – 20:00(Local)
Vs Venue
Holkar Cricket Stadium

9th Match – Rising Pune Supergiants vs Delhi Daredevils IPL T20 2017

Date- 11/04/2017
Time – 20:00(Local)
Vs Venue
Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium

10th Match – Mumbai Indians vs Sunrisers Hyderabad IPL T20 2017

Date- 12/04/2017
Time – 20:00(Local)
Vs Venue
Wankhede Stadium

April 5, 2017
IPL: Gionee associates with KKR & RCB

MUMBAI: Gionee India has announced its association with the Bengaluru franchise of the Indian Premier League Team, Royal Challengers Bangalore, as their presenting sponsors for the tenth edition of the annual cricketing extravaganza.

Gionee is already the principal sponsor of the Kolkata franchise – Kolkata Knight Riders, thus becoming the first brand to sponsor front jerseys of two IPL teams in the same edition.

Gionee which is highlighting its focus on Selfie + Battery, will have its logo feature on the front jersey of ‘Royal Challengers Bangalore’ as well as of ‘Kolkata Knight Riders’.

‘Royal Challengers Bangalore’ features some of the best-known names in the world of cricket today with Virat Kohli, AB De Villiers, Chris Gayle, Shane Watson among others forming part of an all star line up. The smart phone manufacturer had signed Captain Virat Kohli as its brand ambassador in November last year.

Gionee India CEO and managing director Arvind R Vohra said, “IPL is one of the biggest carnivals on the Indian calendar. It is as big and important as Diwali with millions of fans cheering for their teams throughout the tournament. This partnership puts us at the forefront in the IPL with the Gionee brand being visible in 26 of the 56 games till the knockouts. We are immensely proud to associate with Royal Challengers Bangalore- a team that has an eclectic talent mix and has entertained its fans over the years.”

Royal Challengers Bangalore chairman Amrit Thomas said, “We, at Royal Challengers Bangalore, are pleased to be associating with Gionee, a brand which has strong resonance among the youth in India. We are looking forward to a building exciting fan engagement initiatives that appeal to our bold fans across the country.”

The company had spent close to Rs 500 crore in marketing last year, and in 2017-18, they plan to increase the same by almost 50 per cent.

April 4, 2017
Amagi: KKR-backed Emerald leads US$35 million funding; buys stake

MUMBAI: Emerald Media, the Pan-Asia company backed by the leading global investment firm KKR, has been keen to invest in the media and entertainment sector. Today, it announced acquisition of a significant minority stake in Amagi Media Labs (‘Amagi’), the leader in targeted TV advertising and cloud-based TV broadcast infrastructure.

Premji Invest, the investment arm of Azim Premji (an existing shareholder), is also participating in this combination of primary and secondary US$35 million (Rs 237 crore/ 2.4 billion) Series D round. Mayfield India and Nadathur Holdings will continue to remain invested in Amagi.

The growth capital from this round of funding will enable Amagi to expand its targeted advertising platforms globally, enter new international markets for its cloud-based managed broadcast services and introduce a host of products to cater to the various needs of TV broadcasters and OTT networks.

Emerald Media is led by industry veterans Rajesh Kamat and Paul Aiello, supported by an experienced team of investment and operating executives. Paul and Rajesh together have a combined experience of more than 30 years in the industry and bring a unique blend of operational and investment acumen to their business approach.

Headquartered in Bengaluru with offices in New York City, London, and Hong Kong, Amagi is a next-generation media technology company providing cloud-based managed broadcast services and targeted advertising platforms to customers, worldwide. Amagi enables TV networks to create a complete broadcast workflow on the cloud and deliver content over satellite, cable, IPTV or OTT (Over-The-Top) platforms. Using Amagi’s patented technologies, advertisers can target audiences at a regional level across traditional TV and OTT multiscreen platforms.

Amagi has today scaled up to be one of India’s largest TV ad networks, playing around a million ad seconds every month on premium TV channels. With numerous installations of Amagi’s playout and edge insertion servers around the world, they are already a global force in the broadcasting technology domain. Amagi has deployments in over 30 countries for leading TV networks and is India’s largest TV Ad network supporting more than 3,000 brands.

The growth capital from this round of funding will enable Amagi to expand its targeted advertising platforms globally, enter new international markets for its cloud-based managed broadcast services and introduce a host of products to cater to the various needs of TV broadcasters and OTT networks.

Amagi co-founder Baskar Subramanian said, “Emerald Media has a strong understanding of the TV broadcast industry and the OTT space. Their domain expertise and regional and global media relationships will help us further leverage the transition of the TV broadcasting industry to the cloud and expand our international footprint.”

Emerald Media managing director Rajesh Kamat said, “Amagi has harnessed the transformative power of technology (both hardware and software) to change the way TV networks and brands perceive content delivery and monetisation. Emerald will assist Amagi in driving this change by providing a distinctive combination of capital, domain knowledge and management bandwidth.”

Emerald Media MD Paul Aiello added, “Baskar, Srinivasan and Srividhya are the pioneers of targeted-TV advertisement in India. Amagi’s high degree of workflow automation make TV networks future-ready compared to traditional models.”

December 15, 2016
Amagi: KKR-backed Emerald leads US$35 million funding; buys stake

MUMBAI: Emerald Media, the Pan-Asia company backed by the leading global investment firm KKR, has been keen to invest in the media and entertainment sector. Today, it announced acquisition of a significant minority stake in Amagi Media Labs (‘Amagi’), the leader in targeted TV advertising and cloud-based TV broadcast infrastructure.

Premji Invest, the investment arm of Azim Premji (an existing shareholder), is also participating in this combination of primary and secondary US$35 million (Rs 237 crore/ 2.4 billion) Series D round. Mayfield India and Nadathur Holdings will continue to remain invested in Amagi.

The growth capital from this round of funding will enable Amagi to expand its targeted advertising platforms globally, enter new international markets for its cloud-based managed broadcast services and introduce a host of products to cater to the various needs of TV broadcasters and OTT networks.

Emerald Media is led by industry veterans Rajesh Kamat and Paul Aiello, supported by an experienced team of investment and operating executives. Paul and Rajesh together have a combined experience of more than 30 years in the industry and bring a unique blend of operational and investment acumen to their business approach.

Headquartered in Bengaluru with offices in New York City, London, and Hong Kong, Amagi is a next-generation media technology company providing cloud-based managed broadcast services and targeted advertising platforms to customers, worldwide. Amagi enables TV networks to create a complete broadcast workflow on the cloud and deliver content over satellite, cable, IPTV or OTT (Over-The-Top) platforms. Using Amagi’s patented technologies, advertisers can target audiences at a regional level across traditional TV and OTT multiscreen platforms.

Amagi has today scaled up to be one of India’s largest TV ad networks, playing around a million ad seconds every month on premium TV channels. With numerous installations of Amagi’s playout and edge insertion servers around the world, they are already a global force in the broadcasting technology domain. Amagi has deployments in over 30 countries for leading TV networks and is India’s largest TV Ad network supporting more than 3,000 brands.

The growth capital from this round of funding will enable Amagi to expand its targeted advertising platforms globally, enter new international markets for its cloud-based managed broadcast services and introduce a host of products to cater to the various needs of TV broadcasters and OTT networks.

Amagi co-founder Baskar Subramanian said, “Emerald Media has a strong understanding of the TV broadcast industry and the OTT space. Their domain expertise and regional and global media relationships will help us further leverage the transition of the TV broadcasting industry to the cloud and expand our international footprint.”

Emerald Media managing director Rajesh Kamat said, “Amagi has harnessed the transformative power of technology (both hardware and software) to change the way TV networks and brands perceive content delivery and monetisation. Emerald will assist Amagi in driving this change by providing a distinctive combination of capital, domain knowledge and management bandwidth.”

Emerald Media MD Paul Aiello added, “Baskar, Srinivasan and Srividhya are the pioneers of targeted-TV advertisement in India. Amagi’s high degree of workflow automation make TV networks future-ready compared to traditional models.”

December 15, 2016
Yupp TV gets $50 mn funding from KKR-backed Emerald Media

MUMBAI: It’s a sign of the confidence international private equity firms have in India’s one-billion plus mobile user base, the over the top (OTT) ecosystem and the appeal south Asian content can have worldwide.

The Chernin-KKR-Ailleo-Kamath backed Emerald Media yesterday announced that it was investing $50 million (Rs 334 crore) in the Uday Reddy-run internet pay TV platform Yupp TV and gaining a significant minority stake in the firm. The purpose of the fund-raising: expand the OTT service’s footprint globally, its content library through originals and acquisitions, and in the process ramp up its subscriber base.

Headquartered in Atlanta, Yupp TV offers a mix of live TV (more than 250 channels in 14 languages), TV shows, movies and videos with a focus on the US, UK, Middle East, Canada, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand and the Caribbean. It has been making inroads in India too with an initial focus on the south Indian market, but has since been spreading nationally. The platform has more than 25,000 hours of entertainment content catalogued in its library, with nearly 5,000 hours of new on-demand content being added to it daily. It recently launched YuppFlix, its on-demand movie streaming service on the back of its 5,000 strong movie catalogue.

More than five million monthly visitors – peaking at 20 million – log on to the Yupp TV service using 27 integrated devices. The YuppTV app has had 10 million mobile downloads, 50 million Samsug TV and 300,000 LG Smart TV pre-installs globally. The app is also available for PS3 and PS4s.

Said YuppTV promoter & CEO Uday Reddy: “We couldn’t ask for a stronger partner than Emerald Media. YuppTV is a content distribution platform with a strong consumer connection, and Emerald Media has global media relationships. We hope to leverage their relationships and existing assets Endemol, OML, Fluence and Graphic India to create original programming and make this platform a next generation distribution and content powerhouse.”

Added Emerald Media managing director Rajesh Kamat: “Emerald Media believes in driving change and value-creation by providing a distinctive combination of capital, domain knowledge and management bandwidth. The world is moving from traditional consumption to multiscreen delivery mediums. YuppTV provides a unique combination of technology, strong content relationships and revenues of scale and will be an anchor to our vision of building a new age media company.”

Said Emerald Media managing director Paul Aiello: “Uday and his team have created an exceptional online video platform with a loyal subscriber base that realizes the huge potential of the global Indian diaspora. Our investment and relationship will enable YuppTV to further their strong leadership position in the rapidly growing OTT space.”

YuppTV will need all the financial muscle it can get. The Indian OTT and VOD space is just about beginning to warm up with the likes of Amazon keeping aside a war chest of around $300 million for its Prime Video service. Additionally, Netflix, Hotstar, SonyLiv, Ditto TV, Voot, Hooq, Viu, Spuul, and the soon to be launched Alt Balaji are all nurturing ambitious investments and plans to capture a piece of the Indian mobile consumer’s wallet.

Also read:

Hooq plans to invest $2 million on original Indian content

Challenges faced by the OTT players in India; the way ahead

October 12, 2016
Yupp TV gets $50 mn funding from KKR-backed Emerald Media

MUMBAI: It’s a sign of the confidence international private equity firms have in India’s one-billion plus mobile user base, the over the top (OTT) ecosystem and the appeal south Asian content can have worldwide.

The Chernin-KKR-Ailleo-Kamath backed Emerald Media yesterday announced that it was investing $50 million (Rs 334 crore) in the Uday Reddy-run internet pay TV platform Yupp TV and gaining a significant minority stake in the firm. The purpose of the fund-raising: expand the OTT service’s footprint globally, its content library through originals and acquisitions, and in the process ramp up its subscriber base.

Headquartered in Atlanta, Yupp TV offers a mix of live TV (more than 250 channels in 14 languages), TV shows, movies and videos with a focus on the US, UK, Middle East, Canada, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand and the Caribbean. It has been making inroads in India too with an initial focus on the south Indian market, but has since been spreading nationally. The platform has more than 25,000 hours of entertainment content catalogued in its library, with nearly 5,000 hours of new on-demand content being added to it daily. It recently launched YuppFlix, its on-demand movie streaming service on the back of its 5,000 strong movie catalogue.

More than five million monthly visitors – peaking at 20 million – log on to the Yupp TV service using 27 integrated devices. The YuppTV app has had 10 million mobile downloads, 50 million Samsug TV and 300,000 LG Smart TV pre-installs globally. The app is also available for PS3 and PS4s.

Said YuppTV promoter & CEO Uday Reddy: “We couldn’t ask for a stronger partner than Emerald Media. YuppTV is a content distribution platform with a strong consumer connection, and Emerald Media has global media relationships. We hope to leverage their relationships and existing assets Endemol, OML, Fluence and Graphic India to create original programming and make this platform a next generation distribution and content powerhouse.”

Added Emerald Media managing director Rajesh Kamat: “Emerald Media believes in driving change and value-creation by providing a distinctive combination of capital, domain knowledge and management bandwidth. The world is moving from traditional consumption to multiscreen delivery mediums. YuppTV provides a unique combination of technology, strong content relationships and revenues of scale and will be an anchor to our vision of building a new age media company.”

Said Emerald Media managing director Paul Aiello: “Uday and his team have created an exceptional online video platform with a loyal subscriber base that realizes the huge potential of the global Indian diaspora. Our investment and relationship will enable YuppTV to further their strong leadership position in the rapidly growing OTT space.”

YuppTV will need all the financial muscle it can get. The Indian OTT and VOD space is just about beginning to warm up with the likes of Amazon keeping aside a war chest of around $300 million for its Prime Video service. Additionally, Netflix, Hotstar, SonyLiv, Ditto TV, Voot, Hooq, Viu, Spuul, and the soon to be launched Alt Balaji are all nurturing ambitious investments and plans to capture a piece of the Indian mobile consumer’s wallet.

Also read:

Hooq plans to invest $2 million on original Indian content

Challenges faced by the OTT players in India; the way ahead

October 12, 2016
Social media glory: Vivo IPL 2016 versus Pepsi IPL 2015

MUMBAI: Although broadcast partner Sony Pictures Network (SPN) has touched estimated sponsorship revenue of Rs 1,200 crores from IPL Season 9, Vivo IPL 9 failed to garner as much social buzz as its predecessor Pepsi IPL did in 2015. As per a recently released report Social Penetration by IPL through MESH, which is a proprietary tool for data analysis by Maxus India, Pepsi IPL generated almost double the social media buzz in 2015 as compared to Vivo IPL this year. Comparable buzz numbers were 240,164 minions in IPL 2016 and 456,943 mentions in 2015

The MESH report says that the buzz around #Pepsi IPL 2015 vs # Vivo IPL 2016, Pepsi had generated 47 percent more mentions than this year’s IPL. Across social media platforms, IPL 2016 crossed 3.1 million (31 lakh) mentions.

According to the MESH report in week one of IPL 2016, mentions dropped by 9 percent against IPL 2015. Also in week 2 and week 3 of IPL 2016, the mentions went down by 20 percent and 11 percent respectively, while in week 4 social mentions hiked up by 20 percent. As per the reports, week 5 again witnessed a downfall of 8.1 percent but in week 6 mentions went up again by 3 percent. Week 7 of IPL 2016 was an impressive session. The last week witnessed 74 percent hike in social mentions from IPL 2016.

RCB was the highest buzzing team followed by KKR and Sunrisers Hyderabad. Virat Kohli with 533128 mentions and AB De Villiers with 229 831 mentions were the most tagged players of IPL 2016.

When it comes to top IPL and top buzzing sponsors hashtags Vivo ruled the buzz with more than around 2 lakh mentions around #VivoIPL followed by beverages company Kingfisher’s #UnitedByGoodTimes campaign. Gionee was number three with #GioneeKKR getting 100,000 plus mentions while Freecharge’s #LoDoKhatamkaro and Telecom company Vodafone’s #BeSuper campaign clocked 50,000 plus mentions during IPL 2016.

June 2, 2016